consciousness Archives — Page 5 of 5

Is There REALLY Proof of Heaven or Life After Death?

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Aware, Meaningful

“Doubt everything or believe everything: these are two equally convenient strategies. With either we dispense with the need for reflection.” ~ Henri Poincare

What’s REALLY going on & can we ever know for sure?

Ever had a conversation with someone and realized that no matter what you said, there was no way your companion would grasp what you were trying to say? One time I was talking excitedly to my nephew Mark about some studies I had recently uncovered about how our minds work. In complete seriousness Mark stopped me and said, “Studies, oh you can’t believe studies like that.” In that moment the conversation ended before it began. With that said, if you are convinced that life is finite and there is no heaven or any kind of existence beyond the physical, chances are good that nothing I can write will make any difference. But, if you are open to some ideas that are intriguing, it might be valuable to read a bit about the ongoing debate of life after death before completely making up your mind. [Read more…]

Exploring The Frontiers of Inner Space

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Aware, Meaningful

15th International IONS Conference

By now you’ve probably noticed that Thom and I like to do as much traveling as possible during the heat of our intense summers here in the desert. However, even though the majority of our travel is to both scenic and temperate locations, this last week we traveled homeward to attend a conference. That’s because even though we love to travel, oftentimes travel and exploration of the furthest frontiers of inner-space can be the most stimulating of all. As Marcel Proust said, “The real voyage of discovery consists, not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.” And I happen to believe that the only way to get those “new eyes” is to stay curious, open and search out and discover new ideas. [Read more…]

Freedom—What is it? Who Has It? And How To Get More

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Aware, Rightsized, Sustainable, Thankful

“Freedom is from within.” ~Frank Lloyd Wright

One of the perks of staying in our rental condo in Baja, Mx is being able to enjoy a lovely infinity swimming pool and hot tub overlooking some cliffs on the Pacific Ocean. Last night as the sun was setting, Thom and I put our suits on and walked the short distance to enjoy a soak. After settling in we were soon joined by three young men and a woman. (Did I mention it’s a big hot tub?) Over the next hour or so we talked about many things, but a big part of the conversation was about freedom. And because the U.S. is celebrating our independence day this week, I am naturally reminded that freedom is one of the greatest gifts available. But just because most Americans have many advantages related to freedom, that doesn’t always mean that we are all free to experience them equally or fully. What then does freedom really mean if we aren’t free to express, experience and enjoy our lives in happy and meaningful ways on a regular basis? [Read more…]

A World On Fire—Living In A Time of Vampires & Archetypes

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Meaningful, Rightsized

“…the archetypal energy of The Vampire has exploded into the consciousness of our current generation.”

I have been a fan of author Carolyn Myss since reading her first book Anatomy of the Spirit back in the mid-90s. Her clear, humorous, no nonsense style of communicating attracted me—but it is her constant reach for deeper levels of awareness and spirituality that makes me her student. This last week I listened to a recent lecture she offered on the Internet. During the talk Myss pointed out that the world we live in is both physically and spiritually “on fire,” and that one of the best ways to learn to navigate this new world was to learn how to use archetypes. Regardless of whether you’ve heard of Carolyn Myss before, or the “why” of archetypes, a couple of her ideas stuck out that I felt were worthy of discussion. The most important of those were how a couple of today’s common archetypes are a reflection of life in the 21^st Century and what that means to you and me. [Read more…]

Stuff Happens—A SMART Way To Approach Problems!

By Kathy Gottberg
Filed under: Rightsized, Sustainable

Let’s keep our problems in perspective.

Some of the posts here on SMART Living 365 might lead you to believe that SMART Living is merely keeping a positive attitude. You might also think that once you embrace what I have been calling SMART Living that nothing unpleasant or bad ever happens in your life. Actually, while it might be nice if that were true—it’s not. SMART Living isn’t a place you arrive at like taking a trip to Hawaii and never coming home. Instead, SMART Living is a journey of discovering that no matter what happens, you have the consciousness, understanding and tools to deal with whatever comes your way.

[Read more…]