Michael Bernard Beckwith - The Answer is You

Also by Michael Bernard Beckwith

Spiritual Liberation:

40 Day Mind Fast Soul Feast

Inspirations of the Heart

Living from the Overflow

A Manifesto of Peace

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Copyright 2009 by Michael Bernard Beckwith

Published in the United States by: Agape Media International, LLC 5601 W. Slauson Ave., Suite 150 Culver City, CA 90230 (310) 258-4401

Agape Media International is a publishing, film, music, and new media expression of the Agape International Spiritual Center and the Agape Movement worldwideMichael Bernard Beckwith, founder and spiritual director.

Distributed in the United States by: Hay House, Inc.: www.hayhouse.com Published and distributed in Australia by: Hay House Australia Pty. Ltd.: www.hayhouse.com.au Published and distributed in the United Kingdom by: Hay House UK, Ltd.: www.hayhouse.co.uk Published and distributed in the Republic of South Africa by: Hay House SA (Pty), Ltd.: www.hayhouse.co.za Distributed in Canada by: Raincoast: www.raincoast.com Published and distributed in India by: Hay House Publishers India: www.hayhouse.co.in

Publishing executive: Stephen Powers Edited by: Anita Rehker Cover photo: Mikki Willis Cover design: Brooks Cole Interior design: Trish Weber Hall Typography: Craig Woods, Donalyn Brooks Catalano Transcriptions: Christina Migliorino Special thanks to: Agape International Spiritual Center ( www.agapelive.com )

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced by any mechanical, photographic, or electronic process, or in the form of a phonographic recording; nor may it be stored in a retrieval system, transmitted, or otherwise be copied for public or private useother than for fair use as brief quotations embodied in articles and reviewswithout prior written permission of the publisher.

The author of this book does not dispense medical advice or prescribe the use of any technique as a form of treatment for physical or medical problems without the advice of a physician, either directly or indirectly. The intent of the author is only to offer information of a general nature to help you in your quest for emotional and spiritual well-being. In the event you use any of the information in this book for yourself, which is your constitutional right, the author and the publisher assume no responsibility for your actions.

Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-4019-3935-9

Digital ISBN: 978-1-4019-3937-3

Based on the PBS Television Special Michael Bernard Beckwith: The Answer Is You

14 13 12 11 4 3 2 1

1st edition, September 2011

Printed in the United States of America

To my beloved family members who grace my life with
their loving hearts, and to my global spiritual family
of students with whom I have the honor and privilege of
sharing the journey of spiritual awakening.

CONTENTS

Chapter 1
The Answer Is You

Chapter 2
Tapping the Root of Happiness

Chapter 3
Harmonizing Your Life Structures

Chapter 4
Embodying True Abundance

Chapter 5
Living as an Emissary of Peace

The human yearning to connect with something of cosmic significance has birthed the worlds philosophical schools, scientific communities, and spiritual traditions, which have for millennia questioned and explored the origins and meaning of existence.

Our spirit of creative inquiry begins very early on. Just ask parents, and they will verify that the mantra most devotedly practiced by their young children consists of one word: Why? A father of two myself, as my son and daughter outgrew the Why stage, their adolescent inquiries aimed at a most sensitive target: the questioning of parental authority itself. Their in-your-face directness urged me to question my own authoritative sources, which eventually led me to expand the African proverb, It takes a village to raise a child to include likewise, it takes a child to raise a village.

But questioning is not only the domain of the young. Once activated, the innate impulse to question simply does not go away. At every age and stage of development, questions energize our thinking and expand our awareness. For example, people of all ages, races, and cultures claim that they have experienced spontaneous healings, answered prayers, beatific visions, and other phenomena that are not backed up by empirical evidence. According to a 2007 Harris Poll, four out of five individuals believe miracles are real, and nearly two-thirds personally know someone who has experienced one. Are such experiences genuine? Are they all in ones head? There are only two ways to live your life, Albert Einstein extolled. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as if everything is. I believe in the latter.

Questioning our tidy answers, cherished beliefs, and the authoritative sources that have influenced our values and creeds for living leads us on a pathway to deeper selfdiscovery. Asking creates space for new realties to enter our experience; it invites us into perceptions larger than our unexamined reference points. Questioning is not a lack of faith; it inspires us to grow beyond faith into trust. What have you recently changed your mind about or shifted your point of view on through the process of questioning?

Its very encouraging how the simple act of questioning offers us a completely different perspective on who we are and what our role is in the creation of our life. Big questions place us right on the dot: If the universe is governed by natural laws, then what is their source, and what is their purpose in human life? Are we central to the universe? If so, what does that mean for us? Does holistic thinking offer us a more accurate worldview? Are individuals who believe they have the answers happier than those who continue to question?

Questions are a celebration of human inquiry. Consider the Buddhist koan, which is meant to provide thought-tools to bring about a deeper awareness of reality. A frequently quoted koan is, What did your face look like before your parents were born? Such paradoxical queries send us on a quest for spiritual and philosophical integrity. Torah commentator Iba Ezra said, One who is ashamed to ask will diminish wisdom among men.

The act of questioning can be a vulnerable experience. Taking action on the answers to our questions may result in our being ostracized by our family or social group if we abandon their accepted belief system. There are risks, yes, but the rewards are life-transforming. As human beings, every day we are faced with questions from small to great that inform our decision making and life choices. The resulting actions we take impact not only ourselves, they also affect those in our immediate sphere of influence and ultimately our world.

When I teach on this subject, its not uncommon for someone to ask, Is there a hierarchy of questioning in that some questions are of more benefit than others? Experience has convinced me that while there definitely are no wrong questions, the depth of consciousness from which we ask corresponds directly to the depth of answer we receive. When we are facing a challenge, for example, we may ask, Why me? which reveals a victim consciousness, a lack of emotional maturity that blames conditions outside of ourselves for our predicament. Such experiences repeat themselves until we learn to ask more skillful, self-revealing questions such as: What quality must I cultivate to shift this circumstance? What skills am I being called to develop? What would life have me do here? What can I learn from this?