Spirit-Quest essay by Dana Pritchard
Master of Metaphysics
I will begin with praise for the course “Spirit Quest.” I found it well presented, easy to understand, and comprehensive. It has been very easy to share many of the lessons learned through this course with my friends, family and those in my ministry.
I account myself as an eclectic Gnostic Christian because I believe in the basic tenets of faith as outlined by many different schools of religious and spiritual thought. The lessons presented in “Spirit Quest” reaffirmed my beliefs and enriched my faith. I have always found it easier to learn with the hands-on exercises, especially when the information is so esoteric. The homework assignments were fun, exciting, and enriching.
How did the heart of “Spirit Quest” reach the depths of my personal beliefs to have such a reaffirming, empowering affect? In this way:
Jesus of Nazareth taught me about sin, forgiveness and how to be one with “God” and hope for an eternal home. Spirit Quest outlined the art of forgiveness in the nicest way. It made it so clear as to why it is important, and made the process of following through so plain.
Buddha taught me how to control my emotions and how to be quiet in the stillness of night. Spirit Quest gave me new approaches to the skill of grounding and focusing. We can only hear the still, small voice that whispers to us (the God of our understanding, spirit guide or whatever you believe in for guidance) if we can be still in our own mind and body long enough to listen. In these hectic times this inner quiet is very important not only for our spirituality but for our sanity as well.
The Hindu path showed me the multiplicity of the Deity, and how to tap into other dimensions. Spirit Quest gave me protection from the negativity of others within this dimension to help me quietly escape from the negative, painful, abusive energies and attitudes of others. This is all so discrete and unassuming. I was delighted to use this technique when being confronted by a former spouse who is steeped in negativity. It made the encounter almost effortless.
Allah taught me through the Koran and the tenets of Islam to follow as my heart dictates so long as I harm none (Wicca teaches the same line of thought ‘an harm none, do as ye will.). This was re-enforced over and over by the belief of ULC and the baseline of this course.
Many paths led me to believe in the three-fold law of Karma-whatever you do comes back to you three fold. Even commercialized advice guru’s like Dr. Phil, will tell you that it is bad news to try to manipulate someone else…you can only change and control yourself. He would never tell you that to manipulate another being is “bad” karma, but it is and as sentient beings we all understand that at some level. This course outlines karma and all the essences of balance, meditation etc. quite concisely.
I plan to review the course on a regular basis to remind myself of the many aspects of the spirit. Judaism teaches that there are many great writings by many great teachers whose wisdom holds true through the millennia. I won’t say that the course is great literature but the words are certainly wise and I think we will find that it will indeed hold true through the millennia…look how long these concepts have been around already….
Dana Franklin Pritchard, Ph. D., D.D.
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