For a long time it thought that daily affirmations were a little hokey. however, several weeks ago i was moved to write a few, based on a particular core concept of my paradigm that gets little practical attention.

As a preamble, let me say that when I think of 'god' I don't think of an individual being, high above, meting out justice and salvation from on high. most of us here probably don't. However, words have a great deal of power. So, in speaking of the divine with the word "God" an anthropomorphized entity is the inevitablely brought up in the un/subconscious mind(s). We can't really help it, we're conditioned from youth - in most cases, that is, certainly in my own having been raised mormon and southern babtist alternately.

So, instead of saying/thinking the word God (or Goddess, for that matter, as it is the same principle of anthropomorphizing divinity) I have taken up callig it The Force - yes, inspired by star wars. This label triggers a different connection to divinity - one that is experiential and permeating, even internalized, rather than external and relationship oriented. One needs no relationship to the Force, one IS the Force.

Now, I've chanted mantras for a long time, even spent one entire day (littearlly 14 hours straight) chanting a mantra over 100,000 times. What I got was a dry throat and a bowl of rice grains. Further more, having spoken to many individuals who chant reguarly in foreign tongues (sanskrit most notably) I have found that they more often than not can explain a simple conceptual idea of the mantra they are chanting, along with it's intended effect. When asked how the effects are coming along, all be a few who happen to speak fairly fluent sanskrit admitted through their descriptions that the mantras serve to focus their mind, but only that. So, I began to doubt that a mantra in and of itself will actually work for every person. I have noticed only minimal effect. After having written these affirmations (english for Mantra, IMO, and canted in the same fashion for my own practice of them) and used them daily every morning, 108 times as per the chanting of a mantra, already I have begun a spike of mystical concurrences in my life.

So, I thought i'd share them here, as they may be especially useful for anyone else who connects particularly deeply to the concept of the Force. They consist of the verbal, mental, and emotional components used in 'magickal speech' as prescribed by - I believe - Either Franz Bardon or the guy who did the Center of Stillness meditation (who works from the bardon system, so I forget who actually contributed it. the (emotional state) and the [imagery] are synchronized with the lines themselves.

Affirmation of Union:
"I open myself to the Force. (calm, like the surface of a still pond) [the Center opens, exposing the inner light to the Force]
It flows into me, and through me, (elation, rush of excitement) [like becoming part of a river, the Force first fills us, then flows through us and back into the universe)
Unifying me with the Divine. (euphoria, smile!) [the individual and the Force become indistinguishable]
Fear, Anger, Sadness, Doubt - (each of these emotions in turn) [dark elements within the individual's locale within the force]
These things the Force Cleanses (relief from those emotions) [the dark elements are carried into the current and away]
Washing my Mind, Body, and Spirit in Compassion. (acceptence and thankfulness) [purified, the individual locale expands within the force)
No Obstacle may deter me (empowerment, strength) [the Force now reinforces the individual]
No doubt Assail me (clarity, confidence) [the Force extends outwards into life, clearing away all obstacles within and without]
As I become my purpose. (definition, purpose) [the Self is Clarified, its place in the Force made clear]
I am. (confidence) [identify yourself as Conscious Force]
I am One. (strength) [Identify yourself as an Entity within the Force]
I am All. (endlessness) [identify yourself AS the Force]
I give myself to the Force. (surrender) [Fill yourself with the Force, feeling its presence drive you to Right Action]

Each morning I have chanted this Affirmation of Union and in a few weeks I have felt a distinctly new area of awareness beginning to manifest in my daily consciousness. I feel more connected to my fellow man, to my day, to the energy around me. I have recieved more continuous insights and intuitive leaps of understanding about what action to take for what situation. I find that this affirmation aligns one gradually with the universal intention, which leads one naturally to one's own life intention. it is about understanding that one is both individual AND the totality of the Force at once, and feeling intuitively the natural alignment each of us has with that universal Current. It also brings into consciousness the applicable understanding of what compassion is and how it affects us and our connection with the Force.

Affirmation of Compassion:
"No Fear
No Anger
No Doubt
My heart opens
And I become Compassion.
Today I am free from Doubt
Today I see only Beauty
Today I feel only the Force
I am Love."

One Maintains compassion throughout this affirmation of the same. It becomes more intense from beginning to end, the visualization being that of the body of light growing brighter and brighter until its light is indistinguishable from the Force. i have found that this affirmation immediately heightens my sensitivity to the emotional needs of myself and others, and has already allowed me to be a better healer to my clients. It first denounces the three greatest barriers to connection, then invites a new, stronger principle to replace them. The next lines then affirm freedom to command oneself beyond doubt, affirm the natural state of beauty in which the true nature of the world is observed, and then affirm that all that is felt is the Force. Finally, one establishes the true nature of consciousness as Love.

Affirmation of Truth:
"There is no Fear
There is no Doubt
Today i am beyond Illusion
There is only Here
There is only Now
There is only Truth
The Truth is the Force.
I am Free."

This affirmation is spoken from the emotion of Confidence and Clarity, as the self is visualized become lighter and freer with each line. it will immediately alleviate anxiety, fear, and indecision, and reveal the illusions influencing one's immediate choices. Twice in the past three weeks I have made huge leaps of faith, based on my instinct and the clarity of necessity between this affirmation and the affirmation of Union.

I'm not saying mantras in other languages don't work, but they don't work for a lot of people. The theory underneath the science of mantra is inaccurate and incomplete, in my opinion. I recieved one of the several mantras I have reguarly chanted from a 'Guru' herself, and honestly found nothing especially powerful about either it or her. What does work, is finding a conecept you can connect with, and utilizing it as a catalyst for your faith and intuition. The catalyst you choose to identify with will determine how that faith can be channeled, and what it's manifestation will be centered on. For me personally, the Force is a catalyst which is all pervading, the element of essential connection and continuity beneath the fabric of reality itself, and so for me it has become a powerful conceptual focus for attaining connection and alignment with the Divine, the Universe, or just the Force itself.

As an aside, I'm also not claiming to have invented the affirmation, in case I need to make that clear. i'm not naming names, but i've been accused of 'ripping off' concepts as though I originated them. This is not the case at all, I simply see no inherent merit in touting my sources to back up my ideas and claims, aside from using someone else's name to validate my own opinions. If you like it, take it, if you've heard it all before, that's fine, and if you don't like it, leave it. Nothing's original anymore, except application. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sport_boxing.gif)

peace