Tonight marked the start of another fun-filled season of Healing with the Masters, and I couldn’t think of a better way to start it then with the always delightful and amazing Byron Katie.
Katie shared her moment of great depression that lasted for 10 years where her belief system about her reality had become incredibly unhealthy. It wasn’t until she began questioning her beliefs that she was able to pick herself up and start living her life.
When you believe, you suffer.
When you question, you separate yourself from the thoughts.
How do you know if what you’re thinking or believing is true?
Katie talked about how your beliefs can come from what you’ve heard from your parents, teachers, television, etc. If you heard something and believed it then you are the one who’s accountable for what you experience.
The Work® is actually quite simple, but very effective. It consists of 4 questions that can profoundly change your life.
Think of a situation that is currently stressing you out… For example, if you believe that someone doesn’t like you then do The Work®.
- Is it true (that so-and-so doesn’t like)?
- Can I absolutely know that it’s true (that so-and-so doesn’t like)?
- How do I react when I think about this thought?
- Who would I be without this thought?
[yes or no answer]
[yes or no answer]
[Do you go into attack mode?; do you become sullen & resentful?; Does the emotional pain become physical?, etc.]
[witness this answer]
When you do The Work®, you learn that what you believe about a situation is what you believe about every situation in your life. You learn that you’re just recycling old thoughts… and that you’re being driven by pride (your ego).
When you get this then the next step is to use a turnaround. Turnarounds put the ball (accountability) back in your court. They help you see where you need to make amends to right a situation.
When you use turnarounds, you begin to identify where you’ve also been hard on yourself.
Katie also mentioned that victims are the only violent people. The Work® gets us to take action and control over our own thoughts and lives. It’s about integrity; about being 100% honest with yourself.
Question anything that leans on stress.
When we understand the mind then it can rest within itself. It no longer has to identify with what it is not. The mind is not the enemy… Katie calls it a love child.
The mind will stop sneaking outside itself when we choose to shift our beliefs throught The Work®.
You must target the cause (your thoughts) to understand the effect (your emotions).
It was interesting to learn that life still shows up because everything happens for you. As Katie put it, “Life is the mirror image of the mirror image of the mind.” What we think and belief will show up.
When you identify and question your stressful thoughts, The Work® will bring the mind into a position that is more like our true nature. Assumptions or judgments about others help clear the space for the available options to move beyond those limiting thoughts.
The world is not the origin of cause; it is the effect of the mind.
This was such a lovely call that I didn’t want to end.
Katie offers so many incredible resources on her site as well as a ton a FREE downloads, like the Judge Your Neighbor worksheet that she talked about on the call, that can help you in using The Work® right away.
Her website is www.TheWork.com.
I’ll leave you with this lovely thought… I asked her how her life is today, and she said, “it’s Heaven!” Her book, A Thousand Names for Joy speaks to how her life is now and how everyone’s life should be.
CLICK HERE to listen to her call (replay available for only 48 hours).
