Knowing OneSelf--The Key to Loving…Oneself and Others Click here to hear the author narrate this essay
Q—I, like all others, am a drop of the Cosmic Ocean. As a drop, I am not all of the Ocean, but all of me is Ocean. I realize that this is true of all people, and not just myself. Yet I haven't always felt like that Ocean is part of me. Why is that?
A—Your society has taught you many things about yourself and others that deny that truth. But that has not changed the truth about you.
Q—If I am made in the "image and likeness of God," is there anything outside of God that ever could have changed me to be something less than that likeness?
A—There is nothing outside of God that ever could have or ever did change you from that likeness, for there is nothing outside of God, and God would never have done it.
Q—So, if nothing has ever changed me from my original image, then that original image must still be within me?
A—Exactly. This is why the Masters of all ages have told you to "go within," for they knew that that which is within you has never been changed and that that which is within you is that "image and likeness of God." It's only the thoughts that have come to you from outside of you, or from inside of you, once you adopted them, that have taught you differently. As you go within and quiet the thoughts from outside, the truth within you can begin to speak to you.
Q—So there could only be a thought or a belief within my mind that thinks that I have been changed from that likeness, and not a reality at all? And that thought or belief has simply been passed on by all of the generations who have gone before me, to whom it was passed on by those who went before them?
A—That is so.
Q—So what is a belief?
A—A belief is simply a thought that you have thought, over and over, until you have come to believe it, whether or not it is actually true. You have many beliefs which are not true, but, because you believe them, they are true to you, and you experience them accordingly.
Q—So if it is only a belief that tells me that I have been changed from my original image and not a truth, then that belief does not serve me, does it? And if a belief does not serve me, then what can I do about it?
A—Very simple: you change that belief to one that does serve you.
Q—And how do I change a belief?
A—By replacing it with a different belief.
Q—How do I replace a belief?
A—The same way you put it there: by thinking a thought that serves you, over and over, until you come to believe it. You think the new thought over and over, until it has replaced the one which doesn't serve you.
Q—And what is a new thought about this that would serve me?
A—The thought that you have never been changed from your original image and that you are, even now, all that you were created as and have always been. It's not something you once were but aren't now, and it's not something that you will become at some future time. You are now what you have always been. You are now all that you want to become. Only your belief denies it.
Q—So what should I do about this?
A—Think this thought over and over, until it becomes your dominant belief about who you are, instead of continuing to think the limited thoughts about yourself that you have been thinking.
Q—And how will I know when I have succeeded in replacing that old thought with this new one?
A—You will know that you are one with All-That-Is, as you have always been. You will know that you are not a limited human being, as you have been told, but the unlimited spiritual being you have always been. You will know that there has never been any separation between you and your Creator. You will know that all is well with you, and it has always been.
Q—And how will that affect my present life?
A—You will begin to live in the knowledge that all good is possible for you, for you are still made "in the image and likeness of God," and, since God is a creator, you, too, are a creator. You will begin to live from your possibilities, instead of from your seeming impossibilities.
Q—Will this belief make me think I'm superior to others?
A—No, for you will know that this is true of all, and not just true of you, for all are made "in the image and likeness of God."
Q—And how will that knowing affect my relationships with others?
A—You will be filled with the love that comes only from within. And you will be able to love them with the love you feel within, for you know that they, too, are made in the "image and likeness of God," whether or not they know it or acknowledge it. And so you will freely share your love with them.
Q—And what am I to do with this knowledge?
A—You are to live it. You're to live your life out of the peace and love that you have found within, for a life well-lived conveys more than mere words ever could.
Charles David Heineke, 1994
Spread the word. Please copy freely.
