Spirituality

Love, Eternity and Watching Life Flow By

Greets Friends.

Just yesterday I got word that my beloved little cat Brina, is diabetic. Ok, no sobbing out there, stop it! I had a cat years ago who was diabetic and yep, it sucks and eventually they die. Most importantly, I’m gonna make sure this little critter gets a lot of love and comfort for her remaining days here which could be weeks, maybe months.

This brings up a lot of feelings of course, and I start to know what I am made of spiritually. It’s easy to say the words “we are all one, we never die, time does not exist, there’s no real losing or winning in life” and so on. But when things do in fact happen in life, the “rubber hits the road” and then we know what we are made of. Words go out the window, and it is time to “walk the walk”.

And now, I am standing on another peak of my spiritual landscape.

I look back and see that a woman with whom I was very serious for 3 years (we’ve been apart for sometime, no worries) is leaving NYC in a few days. My God – my marriage to my ex seems like a lifetime ago. My little kitty will leave soon, as my others have. Goals which were wild dreams but a year ago have been accomplished and are yesterday’s news. Where did it all go? 🙂

But….

I look ahead and of course there are new things coming, new relationships, new music, new experiences as well. Vibrant relationships, joys, music and more experience awaits.

What’s constant is the eternal “flow of life”. The flow never stops. There is this process of watching it all flow by, and as I watch I know this – when the “stuff” of life appears and dissapears, the only real thing left is love. That which remains after all the “Broadway Show” of life is simply love itself – a colorless, invisible essence that is a delicious, essential vibration and the basis of all that we do and strive for.

By seeing what changes, you then can see what doesn’t change and what is eternal. It then becomes clear that Love and Eternity are intertwined, and maybe even perhaps 2 ways to describe the same thing. Maybe they are other ways of describing and/or knowing God. They are certainly closer to knowing the Essence or Source of life than words or imaginings could be because they are an experience – not an idea.

When everything rises and falls, we see that Love alone is real.

Until next time…

Diving Back Into Life

By Adam Rafferty Leave a Comment

Greetings Friends!

Upon returning from my last tour, I felt oddly disconnected when I got back to NYC. Yes it was my apartment – just as I had left it, yet it felt like a memory. Relationships with family, friends and everyone here felt distant as if they were a memory from a past life. I had been away almost 2 months and went from daily European trains, planes, automobiles and people 24/7 to – total silence! AHHHHH! 🙂

When I got back I thought – that’s it. I’m gonna be “the monk” of Jackson Heights. I meditated a lot and looked at the contents of my mind. I didn’t want to go back to the “old life” of running around NYC and the b.s. drama of people, family, and egoic pursuit of anything wearing high heels. The quiet and calm felt great and made me feel very in control.

I then had a good taste of the waters that demonstrate “life is not outside it’s inside”. It’s weirdly and beautifully true when you see without a doubt that you, we, I create our own reality.

We assemble pictures in our minds, an add meaning to them. Even if something out of control happens, we create our story and mental organization of what hits our eyes and ears and we are 100% responsible for the story we tell ourselves. (This is a tough one to swallow.)

I realized that many people don’t get the chance to have this quiet experience that I was having – to sit on top of some kind of peak (which felt a bit lonely) and able to look at life in this quiet, still way. I am not saying it was “deep” or even pleasurable. I am just saying it was quiet and clear(er).

I have no kids, no pressing drama, no madness that I am caught up in the way most people are. Most of my friends and family are caught up in the drama of work, the non stop noise of raising a family, psychotic behavior in their interpersonal relationships, the drama of debt, and so on.

To be honest, the quiet and spaciousness was delightful at times and very disconcerting at other times. I’d feel “now I am free and my spirit can now soar into the heavens”. This would be swiftly complimented with waves of lonliness and wanting to also “have a story”, have human interaction and contact. It was equal parts of pleasure and pain.

It’s a helluva lesson to see that everything is okay in one’s life and negative feelings can still bubble up. It’s the cure to blaming others and blaming circumstances. I had to take a look at this and had to admit that I am not done developing and learning.

The little jolts of pain and lonliness were not something though I just wanted to “squelch” and look away from, repress or escape from. “What is this quiet? What is this lonliness?” I thought. Then I’d see how just with my own thoughts I could change feelings. I could make lonliness vanish without actually having other people involved!

I saw one night that a state of “seeking and wanting” rather than a state of “having and loving” was my own responsibility and that the latter would be an attitude of joy, the former resulting in lonliness.

I noticed also – and amazingly – that all these sensations were all inside, and that I was 100% responsible for my reality. Thoughts and pictures led to emotions, and I get to choose the thoughts and pictures. (Another hard one to swallow.)

Unlike most people whose life feels like a runaway freight train of outer circumstances and blaming other people, I got to take a quiet peaceful and sometimes lonely look at the whole picture. It felt sober and healthy to wake up on some chilly sunny winter mornings by myself and simply “be”, and reduce my “thinking and spinning”.

At that point in my spiritual readings the passages about relationships being “the basis for our growth” started speaking to me and making sense. The next biggie to see is that others (YOU) and myself stem from the same source, and that we are truly “one” in nature and not separate. Thus, having others in my life just allows a deeper inquiry into who I am and why I am here. And, relationships with others will surely show me weak spots the fabric of my personality and psyche.

The joys of giving and receiving, the birth of new friendships, and the sometimes gritty dealings with family and close friends are something I am not done with just yet. I felt it was time to dive back in and saw that the perfect situations for spiritual growth can actually lie in everyday relationships.

Straight ahead! Until next time….

Vision Boards – Tapping True Spiritual Magic

By Adam Rafferty 14 Comments

Greets Friends, and Happy New Year.

It’s 8:30 am on New Years morning 2010. I am happy to say that I had a delightful night last night at home, popping in tablature in my computer for a new guitar project. I feel wonderful now, while many are dragging home after a night of partying.

I have had a story in the can for some time, and been wondering if I should put it on my blog, so here goes.

I know that the “religion / spirituality du jour” is the Law of Attraction stuff. It is a pity that so much of it on the net is bastardized to be packaged up and sold as a money making trick – “learn how to be spiritual and you’ll get rich!”.

That’s a pretty shabby and shallow way to look at a binding law of the universe and how we as humans function. I happen to enjoy the more heartfelt teachers of these principles – like Esther and Jerry HIcks. Check them out!

This “Law of Attraction” and visualizations becoming materially real is a law on this plane, just like gravity. You and I use it always, constantly throughout our lives. Allow me to illustrate.

– You want a cup of coffee, and envision it. In minutes you have it.

– You pull up the Google homepage and do a search. You find what you are looking for, and call up a webpage that matches the picture previously in your mind’s eye.

– You see an article of clothing, maybe on someone else that you like. Soon you have a similar article of clothing, but prior to that it was only an image.

– You have an idea to exercise, and find yourself exercising.

The same holds true for big items, and even unwanted items. As Lester Levenson said, the mind is an oven. Put a shoe in the mind, you get a shoe. Put a million dollars in the mind and you get a million dollars.

I have a story for you.

After being inspired by John Assaraf in the hit movie “The Secret”, I started to work on a vision board. At the time, I had just discovered the great guitarist Tommy Emmanuel and been very inspired by his playing. It was a dream of mine to share the stage with Tommy one day.

I went to go see him perform at a venue called “Highline Ballroom” in New York City on June 8, 2008. When I came home, I had the ticket stub in my pocket from the evening.

I had bought the ticket online so along the edge of the ticket, my name was printed on the ticket with the same font.

I then had a silly idea. What if I cut out my name and carefully pasted it over the opening act’s name, so it would read “Tommy Emmanuel and Special Guest Adam Rafferty”. So I got my scissors and tape and got to work. In about 5 minutes I had my new ticket stub.

This felt like the silliest thing I had ever done. After years of playing professionally, making CD’s, and touring – to reduce a huge goal career move to some voodoo just felt crazy and dumb. I dared not tell anyone.

I then tacked it up to my vision board and glance at it every day. (Cork boards at Staples cost about $10)

Adam Rafferty creates Tommy Emmanuel Ticket for Vision Board

Little did I know that feeling silly is a great symptom, in this case. It sets up what’s called “cognitive dissonance”. The concious and subconcious mind start to disagree and the subconscious mind then works 24/7/365 – even while sleeping – to resolve the dissonance between “what we think it should be” and “what is”.

Plus the mind responds to images – not words. To see my name on the ticket with his was something that sank deep into the mind, more than saying “I’d like to play a concert with him”.

About a month later a friend urged me to go to the Chet Atkins Appreciation Society yearly gathering in Nashville TN. I had no plans or intention to go and on a whim followed his advice and bought a ticket for a weekend in Nashville.

I knew no one there when I arrived, but was quickly greeted by the world of friendly guitar players. They knew me from Youtube. Then one guy approached me and requested that I play him my version of “Chameleon” with human beatbox, so I did.

After a friendly pow wow with him he told me that he had organized concerts for Tommy Emmanuel in Finland and that he’d like to help me by getting me on the gig as a special guest.

The excitement of all of this was wonderful, and the last thing on my mind was a vision board. I thought “No, this was happening because of youtube, my wonderful personality and playing skills and my perseverance.” The vision board was not even a consideration!

As a result of this meeting, I got to perform with Tommy the first time in Helsinki in April 2009. As I was there I had to pinch myself. “Am I living reality or is it all a dream?” I thought. I then went on to do some concerts and touring as a soloist after that.

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIbdHYJoF2I]

Upon arriving home in New York City, my eyes glanced at the vision board. I saw the ticket hanging up there. “Oh my God, the vision turned real!” I thought. I started weeping at the awesome power that was demonstrated. This was an awakening.

Every decision along the way started with planting the seed in my mind of that ticket on the vision board. From flying to Nashville right on through to being on stage with the man himself, the cognitive dissonance HAD to get resolved.

This is much deeper than “willpower”. Seeds don’t sprout from willpower.

To know that this is law is powerful, exhilarating and frightening at the same time. I know now that without a doubt I create my reality. Now the question is “what do I want?” because I know that without a doubt, it will all manifest exactly as I envision it.

We are all unbelievable glorious creators that do this constantly, every day, all day. Just like a dog or cat is unaware of gravity, many of us are unaware that every idea, thought and word propels us into what we call “reality”.

Don’t try this because you’ll “get what you want”. Do this and behold the delectable sweetness, magic and majesty of the Creator.

Happy 2010!

The Magic of Yearly Goal Setting

By Adam Rafferty 5 Comments

Greetings friends!

I am writing you from a freezingly cold December afternoon in New York City. Christmas is a week away, and I have not bought a single gift yet. Tomorrow, I’ll start shopping, I promise!

With each blog entry I try to describe something of benefit to you, and I try to see a principle operation in my life. And it’s not about me being a teacher at all. It’s more about you the reader and I beholding a piece of “real magic” and hopefully learning and observing together so that you can improve your life as I improve mine.

One thing that was a huge turn off growing up was and teacher, advisor or advice giver who didn’t walk the talk. In between the words and the sentences lies the feeling and vibe of truth, and you know if someone is full of bull or not.

I try to make myself the guinea pig before writing or speaking. Whether it’s a musical principle or a life principle I test and observe. Then I speak or write.

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I am reflecting on this past year 2009 and it’s had ups and downs – but I gotta say, truthfully it has had more ups than anything. I attribute this to weekly “mastermind” / accountability meetings with a friend and bassist extrordanaire Paul Beaudry. (our duo album is coming soon fyi…)

I had an awesome streak of goals that I met – I released the Stevie Wonder Guitar Instructional DVD, the Chameleon CD, the Christmas Guitar Celebration CD, I toured for several months non stop, and appeared 3 times in 3 continents on stage with Tommy Emmanuel.

Whew! (How did he do it all? Read on…)

On a weekly basis (when off the road) Paul and I met over morning coffee and acted as “accountability” partners. Each of us would get an hour for our “stuff”. We would advise eachother, tip eachother off to resources and encourage one another. We’d each leave the meeting committing to action that must be taken the following week.

After accomplishing “things” and seeing principles in action you see that the most powerful thing you can do is visualize. You already do, as a matter of fact. If you are envisioning what groceries you’ll buy and find them in your fridge ours later – you used visualization!

Humankind has known this for centuries, and devoted to the power of prayer and belief since ancient times. Now that us humans are going deeper and deeper into the mysteries of quantum physics, it gets more and more mysterious.

What we see in our minds eye, and what we believe is what we get.

It’s very fashionable to talk about this stuff these days, all the LOA and “The Secret” stuff. But doing it – really doing it – and seeing it, is breathtaking.

Paul and I used a system this year by success mentor Raymond Aaron called “annual backwards goals”. The idea is that you envision yourself at the end of the year, going to a New Year’s Eve party and thanking yourself for the goals you have achieved. That’s right, so on Feb 12, 2009 I wrote myself a letter but dated it December 31, 2009 thanking myself for achieving the goals of 2009 that at that time – had not yet been achieved.

What’s super cool about mapping the year’s goals out is that it adds a new dimension to your monthly goals, then to your weekly goals and of course daily goals.

The result? Well this process sets up a picture in your mind, and every action, discussion, email, phone call and breath end up being directed towards the accomplishing of those goals. No, not in a pushy conscious way but in an automated, sub-conscious way. It is as though the goal was a vortex whose gravitational pull you can’t escape. Your mind functions as as a success seeking mechanism.

This works equally well for anticpating bad events and worrying – so one needs to be strong and envision the good stuff. A mental couch potato has no problem seeing the bad in life or worrying. It takes strength to keep one’s vision positive and productive!

I very much hope to somehow empower musicians and artists (and everyone else) to harness this awesome power. These principles for many years were written off as feel good mumbo-jumbo, but what you start to see is that faith, vision and creativity are far more important than what lies in front of you. What’s in front of you physically is already the past, but your vision and ideas are the future.

Quantum physics is proving that the outcome of experiments changes depending on the “observer”. The observer is co mingled with matter and energy and is part of the experiment. If this is the case, know that your observation and vision manipulates the matter and circumstances around you too.

Happy Holidays! More to come on this fascinating topic….

A Glimpse into Attachment and Aversion

By Adam Rafferty 8 Comments

As a musician, returning from a tour can be tough. After nights of gigging, seeing new places, meeting new people, being the center of attention – to come back to the mundane existence of the same old neighborhood and dusty apartment can feel very dissapointing. It stirs up huge amounts of attachment to the “exciting parade” of touring, and aversion to my “boring life back home”.

As they say, it’s always darkest before the dawn. How true. Allow me to share the rays of today’s sunrise with you.

Whether it’s love one wants, or money, or security, or an object – the feeling of “being incomplete” until the object of desire or situation is acquired is itself the source of misery. How many of us walk around feeling incomplete all day long? Maybe your job is not good enough, the car, the house needs fixing, I want a new gadget, etc. It goes on endlessly until the madness is seen for what it is. Must we walk around feeling incomplete? We often do so automatically without inquiring into this feeling.

For about a two weeks an intense feeling of wanting has come over me due to the ending of a relationship. Being the spiritual seeker that I am, I decided to use this situation to look deeply into the nature and causes of my pain and suffering. It’s one thing to do it in the abstract – but to really apply knowledge and insight when the emotional rubber hits the road is quite the test!

By knowing the feeling of “not having” this person in my life, it follows logically that I know what it feels like to “have” her, right? Both feelings are accessible to me, right? If I know the pain of being without something, then I know the love of being with it, right? Could I somehow find harmony and oneness in this duality of having vs not having? Is there one big reality that contains both feelings? Can I discover the “coin” that these 2 sides belong to?

I started doing this inquiry on the plane ride home from Europe, and at the same time found myself contemplating how we were chasing daytime around the globe. I observed that it is always day, and it is always night somewhere on earth. There’s always part of the globe illuminated and part not. These 2 are linked, like yin & yang. One can think it is night yet it is day somewhere else, right? It’s not day or night – it’s both!

Aha! From an earthbound standpoint it either has to be day OR night – but stepping back to a more cosmic viewpoint, one sees it is equally both at all times. Could I see that feelings of having and not having are also aspects of one unified, non dual reality as well? Could I “go cosmic” in regards to my feelings of wanting versus having?

Much to my surprise, I easily called up the feeling of the “having” the love I yearned for – and let go of the lacking feelings for a brief moment. I fooled myself by asking if I could allow myself 30 seconds of relief to feel the “having feelings”. I felt it not as a memory, but a present moment feeling of “I have it now” – much like what is prescribed in visualization books. In an instant, I entered a whole new place through letting go of a lacking feeling.

Just think of all the things you have had in your life, toys as a child for example. You may no longer have them, but you might not feel that you need them to be complete now. You can feel that you have them even if you don’t, right? Can you see that the feeling of having is not necessarily based on the physical presence of an object? Like wise, you can have something and feel that you don’t have. Look at the person with the 5 million dollar house who wants a 20 million dollar house – they feel they don’t “have”. Crazy but true.

For example – I feel that I have my beloved Grandmother in my heart, with no longing to have here on this plane. The same for the beloved pets I have had. They are with me, and I feel that I have them despite their not being here. On the flip side, I have been on international tours and still held onto the feeling of “I need to get more gigs”. Crazy but true.

Can you see now that the sensations of having and not-having are ONLY feelings? I repeat – crazy but true. But sane to investigate this! 🙂

Lester Levenson laid it out simply. Want equals lack. Give up the lack feelings, and have it all. Simple and profound.

A shift in my viewpoint started a deep sense of “everything is ok”, “it is all given”, and peace emerged. Things still are what they are, but the feelings of “I’m incomplete” and “I want” transformed into “It’s all ok” and “I am at peace”. A shift in perception! Now that’s a true miracle.

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Here’s a little illustration you might enjoy:

“Christmas is coming and it’s time to get a tree. A feeling of incompleteness settles because we want but don’t have a tree. It’s urgent and necessary – we gotta have a tree. We get the tree and have to decorate it. More wanting, we gotta do it and won’t feel complete until we do. We do it, and sit back and ahhh…we feel complete for a little while. A week later – hey the tree is getting old, we gotta take it down. We gotta put all the ornaments away and sweep and dispose of the tree properly – more wanting. We’re incomplete until we do so. We do it and feel complete again now that the house is all cleaned up.”

Ok – nothing wrong with a Christmas tree, of course! But what I am looking at is the thread of “incompleteness” sewn through the experience and the relatively few moments of feeling complete woven through this whole scenario. Isn’t the feeling of completeness accessible to us more than this? I think so.

This example is just a microcosm of how we live life. I know there is a happier way. The feeling of completeness is always accessible to us, just the same way silence sits behind noise, waiting patiently.

Happy Holidays! I hope Santa brings you everything you want 🙂