10 ANCIENT WISDOM

Most people, once they have clarity about the cause of the pain in their lives, are excited and eager to go to work on taking care of issues which need to be resolved. Richard was the exception. When I spoke again of True Forgiveness being the solution , he went ballistic.

Richard's voice deepened. "Forgiveness!? Come on. I've been listening to your explanation but I've tried forgiveness; it changes nothing!" he bellowed.

"Take another deep breath," I suggested. "Remember I spoke of letting go of the dialogue in your head? I invite you to listen to my words , not your past realities about forgiveness and the negative associations you have made.

"The way forgiveness is commonly taught is only a shadow of its true meaning and function. In this culture, we've generally accepted a substitute for True Forgiveness. Due to our own ignorance we've bought into the common belief that forgiveness means 'letting them off the hook' for the terrible things they have done to us. This is a Greek concept . It comes from a mind-set that externalized everything and attributed cause to the outside world. This is not how True Forgiveness was originally presented and not even close to the original Aramaic concept !

"Engaging in True Forgiveness is required to heal. I personally believe that human beings and even civilizations cannot survive long term without it. Observe the direction our culture has been moving and I think you will see what I mean."

Richard seemed to be baiting me. "You've mentioned Aramaic several times, does it have something to do with religion ? If so, I'm really not interested in hearing about it."

"The Aramaic language is an ancient tongue, spoken by the originators of at least five of the world's major religions. Religions address the topic of Forgiveness, of course, but the topic itself is not the exclusive property of the religious . We need not speak of Forgiveness in a religious context in order to experience its enormous practical value."

"For me," Richard began, "forgiveness has been linked to religion , something which doesn't interest me. It never occurred to me that it could be useful in a practical sense outside of the religious context." He softened a little as he continued, "Tell me more about this Aramaic and why it is so important."

"According to historians, the Aramaic language sprang to life fully matured. There was no developmental period nor any known place of origin, and Aramaic is one of the oldest spoken and written languages in the world. It was the language of the day throughout the Persian and Babylonian empires. From 1,000 BC to 1,000 AD, Aramaic could be heard from the Mediterranean to the Great Wall of China; it is still spoken today in some villages of Lebanon and in the mountains of northern Iraq.

"The Zoroastrian, Hebrew, Christian, Islamic and Baha'i faiths were all originally taught in Aramaic , and it is the language of many of the Dead Sea Scrolls. It was the native tongue of Moses, Abraham, Jesus, Mohammed and Baha'u'llah."

"How does that relate to my twentieth century mind?"

"The Aramaic language and culture impart a practical understanding of human behavior and clearly explain how the mind works. It has the ability to convey deep psychological meanings by simply adding prefixes and suffixes to root words, an ability unknown in any other languag e. It seems to me that it has this ability because the Aramaic peoples had an understanding that no other culture has acquired to date. This ancient language encompasses a technology desperately needed to heal the insanities in our culture.

"The level of comprehension of human function reflected in Aramaic is unknown in the West; and what today is thought of as religion was then simply guidance for daily living . It taught people how to best handle their family lives, relationships , sexuality, businesses, taxes, legal matters, land, crops, inheritance and finances. Unfortunately, its advice has been, for the most part, ignored and thought of as antiquated by the 'modern mind.' It has a thought structure so radically different from what most of us have been taught that, when first confronted, it shocks the Western mind."

"Still sounds like a religious spiel to me!" he exclaimed.

"Can you let go of the conversation in your head long enough to hear that there might be something more in the Scriptures than religion ? If you investigate genuine Spiritual teachings you will find they are about life; they deserve serious consideration! In Truth, they are simply an owner's manual for your life, relationships and body."

"Okay! You've got my curiosity. What you have said so far makes sense, so I'll listen," came Richard's wary reply.

"Once you go beneath the misinterpretations and grasp the original Aramaic thought structure in the Scriptures, you might experience, as I have, a clarity that is profound. What today is called religion has its roots in solid, down-to-earth guidance. The original intention of religion was to create a community where it was safe and nurturing to live differently than the insanity we humans have created in the world—a community that taught people how life worked and instructed people how to achieve the best life had to offer. Many religions still hold fast to this as their goal.

"Do you recall hearing quotes from the Scriptures like, 'Do not judge by appearances,' 'Do not defile the temple' and 'The wages of sin is death'?"

"Yes, and it never made one lick of sense to me, either. When I was a kid, I heard hypocrites spouting that stuff all the time , then they would do the exact opposite when they thought no one was looking. It sure turned me off," Richard said with disgust.

"I hear it was confusing for you to see people not walking their talk. With the amount of energy and resistance you have around this conversation, I suspect you were abused due to their hypocrisy? Were you?"

"My folks talked about Love and honesty at church, but beat me up, verbally and physically, at home. If I spoke up or asked why they acted so differently in public, the beatings doubled. I had to lie to keep the family secrets. I had to be dishonest in order to make it look like everything was okay—or I'd be punished. Keeping up appearances was demanded of me. It was pretty crazy. While I was being lectured on the value of telling the Truth , I was required to live a lie!" Richard bit his nails as he replayed his story. The way he was sitting reminded me of a scared, angry, little boy, perched on the edge of his seat ready to escape.

"I saw hypocrisy in the minister and deacons—lots of people. They were always telling me I was a sinner. That was painful." As he finished his story, he was rigid and holding his breath.

"Take a breath, Richard. Holding your breath is exactly how you acquire a past about something and carry it with you. Holding your breath attaches the pain of an experience to a reality in the mind. If that reality is triggered, even though external circumstances do not justify it, there will be pain.

"Richard, has it occurred to you that just because someone could not live up to a teaching does not mean it has no value or that the problem lies within the teaching ? It sounds like one of the issues was your parents' inability to live up to their ideals. That does not make them good or bad. It simply means that, like all humans, they were not perfect. It seems you attached the imperfection and abuse of your parents to their religion .

"Projecting your pain onto religion makes it difficult for you to see any benefit in it. I have seen many who simultaneously abandon their relationship with their parents and Spiritual support systems in this fashion."

"Hmm, I guess my parents deserve the right to be human, too. Perhaps I expected too much of them," he pondered, "I can see that they were trying—and doing the best they could. I feel relieved just knowing that."

"That insight is a result of Forgiveness. It's a small but significant example of how Forgiveness works," I said.

"What do you mean?"

"You had a reality , a 'file' so to speak, called 'My parent or parents should have been perfect.' According to your perception, they weren't, and you attached the pain , abuse and resentment you experienced with them to your mind's file on 'parents.' Whenever the reality 'parent' was triggered , your perception of them or yourself as a parent was clouded by the complex of thoughts and feelings in that file.

"In Aramaic , Forgive means to cancel. The minute you loosened your grip on your need for them to be perfect, in effect, you canceled your need for that perfection. The result of that action is your 'parent' file opened and the abuse, pain and resentment it contained began to release. This is True Forgiveness in Aramaic , certainly a radically different action than letting them off the hook . As the cloud over your perception of them lifted, a painful reality was in process of being forgiven and you can now see them more realistically."

[Book contains graphic illustrating the effects of true Forgiveness.]

"I'm not sure I heard everything you just said, but I sure feel relieved," Richard sighed.

"You are not the only one who will experience relief, Richard. This release will impact not only your mother and father but, due to the new clarity in your 'parent file,' your capacity to parent will also be enhanced.

"Notice your parents were not involved in this process and neither they nor the actualities of the past have changed, yet, you feel better. You are always in charge of your feelings, and no change is required of anyone but you in order for you to heal! Our natural state is happiness. The human being is designed to feel good. Just observe the ease and happiness of a child before it is impacted by our cultural insanities."

"You said the release process began, michael. Does that mean it's not complete? Will I have to go through more of that pain ?" Richard winced as he wrapped his arms around his knees.

"Healing is not an event, Richard, it is a process. It takes time and happens in stages. You will tend to experience your process as painful as long as you resist it and want to hold on."

"How long will it take?" he asked.

"As long as it takes. It can be a pleasant, exciting and easy experience, though. Unfortunately, many, because of resistance , don't go through it easily. It is an individual process that can be accelerated," I added.

"How?!"

"There are many factors that determine how quickly you move through your healing, how easily you process . These include your nutrition, exercise, your support system and a host of other factors. The best way I know to accelerate healing is to apply what I like to call 'Cosmic Grease.' It is the willingness to embrace with Love whatever you find inside yourself. It speeds up process immeasurably."

KEY THOUGHT—Willingness is the "Cosmic Grease" that helps you move easily and quickly through your issues.

"I've heard of changing the past, is that what I've just done?"

"Your Forgiveness did not change the past , but it changed a reality in your mind about the past . There is no reason why the pain of old realities should be carried inside of us. Your relief and release is a good example of the successful use of True Forgiveness. It is wise to remember a success like this if resistance to change surfaces in the future. Give yourself a pat on the back. Go ahead, actually pat your back. It's more than a cliché. Intentionally emphasizing the positive effects of an action or attitude is known as a positive anchor. When you anchor things through this kind of emphasis, you will be more inclined to repeat them in the future."

"I'm kind of sensing what you're saying, michael, but it's a little overwhelming. I feel better, but I'm still confused. I don't know why. I'm not sure I quite understand what just happened." Richard leaned over and untied his shoes as he spoke. He stretched his legs out in front of him as he settled back into his seat. Even though he didn't understand everything we had covered, he looked more relaxed and comfortable. For the first time since he arrived, the lines in his forehead were softening.

"Richard, as you undo old patterns, some confusion is normal. Bringing your conflicting thoughts and feelings to the surface as you heal creates that kind of effect.

"Your relief in the situation with your parents came from spontaneous forgiveness, the kind that happens in an accidental and haphazard fashion. One of the primary tools we offer, which you can learn to use and take home with you, is called 'The Reality Management Worksheet.' The purpose for this tool is to teach , on an experiential level, how both joy and pain are created. It is a reliable, scientific method you can use at any time to let pain go and really embrace the joy ."

"If what you're saying is true, I want it!" Richard exclaimed.

KEY THOUGHT—Willingness is the key to empowerment. If you want to be empowered, use the key.