Announcing: The Zen of Near Death ©2019

I'm pleased to announce the working title of my next book:

The Zen of Near Death

Afterlife Lessons for Transcending the Mess 

©2019 by Robert Kopecky
Watch for it in 202?

Beatitude Adjustment – Our “Sermon on the Mount” Top Hits, Unplugged

“Materiality is a metaphoric manifestation of our ‘invisible’ spiritual nature.”

      Perhaps the biggest challenge that faces any theology is the tendency for its most fervent proponents to insist on literal interpretations of their basic scriptures, when really all ancient spiritual texts are intended as metaphors for spiritual conditions and approaches, meant to help you align yourself to the energy of Love in the Universe (to put it simply). 

      Translating those texts can be very important too, as certain translations may only be appropriate for very particular agendas; take for example the common Biblical translations for the terms “sin,” which comes from the Greek word amartia, and really means: to miss the mark; and “repentance,” from the Greek word metanoia, which actually transliterates as: beyond thought (transformational). You can see what a different spin those choices give to the pure meaning.

      The Beatitudes – everyone’s favorite list of righteous suggestions from “The Sermon on the Mount,” Matthew 5–7 (firmly based on the Old Testament Psalms) are no exception. Plugged into their institutional translations, they can be a little confusing, or subject to rote interpretations that overlook the underlying spiritual technology they describe. In fact, overlooking in a different way is the real meaning of “The Mount;” whether anyone ever spoke from on top of a hill or not isn’t the point – “The Mount” really only means to assume a spiritual point-of-view, where you can get a clear view of the hardships of being human. With all that in mind, allow me to try to Unplug the Beatitudes for you, and hopefully reveal their natural spiritual suggestions.

Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

      The idea of Heaven is always easy – it means being in alignment with the energy of Love in the Universe, it’s just “the poor in spirit” part that gets a little confusing. It seems to suggest that we’re talking about poor people, or that we’re talking about people who come up short in “the spiritual” department – yes to both. It is easier for people who don’t have lots of money, and all the demands and obsessions it brings, to be serenely connected to our Divine Source; and back in those days, the powerful leaders of organized religions were considered “rich in spirit” (the same could be said about today's Evangelical mega-preachers). Theirs was not “the kingdom.”      

Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.

      Sadness opens our hearts, and causes our energies to resonate with deeper structures of the Universe. It’s a call for connection, and that call is always answered by the Divine, which is absolutely indivisible. What we mourn is always alive—and we know it in our hearts.

Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.

      A Zen sage once said, “Water finds its greatest power by seeking its lowest point,” and it’s true of the life of this planet. Humility grounds us in our most profoundly connected way, and the more dogmatic, the more egocentric, the more intellectually self-assured – the more willful – we are, the less chance we have of survival. The greatest chance for humans lies in our sincerest humility, because Earth will always default to the energy of the authentic, the most cooperatively adaptable.

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

      The willingness to take part in the inner exploration – the deep need to discover that energy, that light within (our spiritual sustenance); and to reunite ourselves – to restore ourselves to that Divine energy, is absolutely essential. It’s only by opening up and digging-down (for sustenance and refreshment) that we can be repaired and re-filled by the energy of Love.

Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

      “Do no harm,” is the first precept of Buddhism, and it’s that absolute Golden Rule that informs not just the way we live life in each moment – with (and as a part of) the grace that compassionate consciousness grants us – but also aligns us with the energies of Love in the Universe. It creates our positive karma – as we respect the Divine in all living things, the Divine Love Energy of the Universe reflects that grace into our lives.

Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.

      “The Kingdom of Heaven is spread across the Earth, but men don’t have eyes to see it,” said Yeshua, the Gnostic “Teacher of Righteousness,” meaning that it’s the misperceptions created in our minds that prevent us from aligning ourselves with the Field of Love. When we practice kindness, honesty, humility, forgiveness, compassion, and service, our cognitive hearts are cleared, and open to the intuitive intelligence available – the way to live with perspective, presence, and purpose. Then we can witness the Divine in every direction we look.

Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the Children of God.

      Really little kids are so innocent and gracious (when they’re not crying…), the ambitions and expectations of life haven’t painted them into any corners they need ‘to fight their way out of’ yet. Those judgements create the aggressive instincts to “get ahead” materially – what we want, what we think we need, what we must hold on to – that cause us to lash out, or try to forcibly control; that’s the painfulness our narrow, short-lived human desires create, not the eternal playfulness our authentic selves deserve.

Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

      People look at you funny when you purposefully and unashamedly pursue your spiritual path; they think you’re crazy (because they’re thinking with their heads, not their hearts). I survived three traumatic incidents, and three “Near Death Experiences” – so I had no choice in the matter, my spiritual beliefs are literally immaterial. Most folks try to navigate in a material world, grasping little pieces of serenity, wonder, and joy here and there; and if you turn that approach around 180º and live as a spirit in a world of arising matter, naturally you’ll be misunderstood a lot...

      ...but you’ll live in a world alive in the Field of Love, connected by a powerful, “unseen” spiritual technology that transforms you “beyond thought,” and lets you “hit the mark” – almost every time. It’ll give you a real experience of grace, serenity, joy, and wholeness like you’ve never known. In truth, it’ll put gratitude in your beatitude!

Read about this and much more in: How to Get to Heaven (Without Really Dying), Wisdom From a Near-Death Survivor  from Llewellyn Worldwide available direct on this page, or online. The first book: How to Survive Life (and Death), A Guide To Happiness In This World and Beyond is available the same ways – but ask for it it at your local bookstore!

How "Polishing the Mirror" Helps You Reflect the Miraculous

Although I'm an avowedly non-violent kind of guy, it's not beyond me to ruthlessly torture a metaphor along with the best (or worst) of 'em, and seeing as this is a session that requires lots of spiritual elbow grease–nearly everyday–you have my permission to cover your eyes. You won't need them to look into this mirror.

"Our life is shaped by our mind, for we become what we think."

                    Buddha, The Dhammapada 1:1

In Zen Buddhism, where meditation is called sitting zazen, they use this marvelous housecleaning metaphor of "polishing the mirror" when they talk about how to think about not–thinking. It's like this: If the way we think is just an incomplete reflection of a greater, more blissful consciousness (based on how healthy our connection to it), then the best way to perceive more of that blissful Source is to do some housecleaning, so to speak—starting with the "inner mirror" that serves as our doorway into the limitless potential of Life.

That mirror stands for the surface of something unfathomably deep that we can only reach by entering our imaginations. In the reflection of Life that we are, we see ourself only on its surface. We'd like to feel more a part of it—to become more a part of it—and sometimes we can momentarily reach into that depth, but we, ourselves, are what's reflecting that profound reality so poorly. All of the fogginess and flaws are a result of own misperceptions; our conscious and subconscious designs. The obscurities are all of our own making.

 So, naturally it stands to reason that if we can improve the quality of the reflector, we'll improve the reflection.

To start that process, we need to sit in stillness and roll up our 'inner sleeves' to ready ourselves for housecleaning. Everything goes better when it's picked up a bit: straightened, inventoried, and organized. Most—if not all—of the mess on the surface of the mirror are simply all the stuff we're thinking about. Thoughts about who we are, about what we don't have, about what we think we should have, about what we think we need to be happy, and what we need to feel whole.

We need to stand back a bit, and clean up our streaky, smudgy thoughts.

"The deluded, imagining trivial things to be vital to life, follow their vain fantasies and never attain [bliss]; but the wise, knowing what is trivial and what is vital, set their thoughts on the goal, and attain [bliss]."

                     Buddha, The Dhammapada, 1:11, 12

In a recent article ("Sitting in the Wilderness," at The Mindful Word.org) I tried to simplify the three "temptations," met and overcome, by both Jesus and The Buddha as they sat and faced their 'devils'—temptations that can stand in quite nicely for the surface-obscuring stuff that clouds our internal mirrors. Simply put, they are:

1) The deep wish to control things to be just the way we want them to be.

2) The superficial, or material, or physical desires we desire to have gratified, and 

3) Our fears – usually having to do with numbers one and two.

 Our fears are the basic filmy schmutz (that's Yiddish) that "as through a glass darkly" obscure our ability to perceive our brightest potential—and they should be the easiest to simply wipe away, seeing as how most of our fears aren't even real. The shadows they cast over the way our daily life appears to us are largely the product of our own negative imaginations. Most of what we fear comes and goes with little or no real consequence, and even when it does impact on our life, it is still only Life, doing what it will do. Usually, we learn our greatest lessons that way, by facing our reflected fears.

Polishing that inner mirror puts us directly in touch with the surface of an ocean of underlying support and serenity. There's a quality of contact with the depth of all that potential that allows us to see through those simple fears to the calm sanity and intelligence that stands behind them, and beneath everything. You gain a purpose that lets you patiently wipe away the default negative inventions that obscure your underlying potential—those feelings that you some how don't measure up, or the resentments you get against others (who are simply doing their best to reflect consciousness too). Just a crumpled-up newspaper, and a little ammonia works wonders.

And then, as long as you're inventing things to think about, invent something wonderful—visualize the miraculous coming true for yourself and others. That ought to lighten up your life quite a bit, and allow you to reflect the sanity that lies at your true Source.

There, in the clarity of that improved reflection, we realize the funhouse mirror distortions our ego causes us to see—the illusion that we're much taller or wider, that our head is so much bigger than everyone else's (when really, we're all just about the same size). It's not the mirror that causes the distortions, it's only our distorted ego. Smooth that surface out flat with a calm, deliberate, repetitive circular motion, until the reflection invites you in— through and beyond your ego illusions. Feel the freedom of becoming that truth that lives beneath your fearful projections.

"To identify consciousness with that which merely reflects consciousness, this is egoism."

                      Patanjali, The Yoga Sutras, II.3

There will always be little surface smudges, and underlying distortions, but the more you experience the sense of transcendent being—that expansion of Consciousness into our deeper dimension of being that occurs when we lose "our self" in the act of polishing, the greater ease you'll experience in every other moment too, and the better you'll feel about reflecting your true potential—which is only limited by your imagination.

With the mirror cleaner, you need never obsess on the flaws again, because you'll see—clearly at last—that your reflection is something of unimaginably great beauty. You are a perfect expression of the greatest, deepest, and most beautiful mystery of all…a perfect expression of Life's Consciousness that all of this world will reflect back to you. 

Sit, and if you "polish the mirror" patiently, soon you'll be able to step right into it, and into a whole new world, where all you need is to simply be who, and what you really are—a remarkable reflection of the miraculous.  

  

Read about this and much more in: How to Get to Heaven (Without Really Dying), Wisdom From a Near-Death Survivor  from Llewellyn Worldwide available direct or online. The first book: How to Survive Life (and Death), A Guide To Happiness In This World and Beyond is available the same ways – but ask for it it at your local bookstore!