Before the advent of digital photography, photographs were "burned" from negatives.  I remember holding a negative at a certain angle to the light and able to see a positive image.  Interestingly, we can make an analogy between the photographic negative and positive image versus spiritual life and physical life.  Most people live their physical life as if it were the real picture, the positive image.  Saying that our physical existence is our primary existence is tantamount to saying that the photographic negative is the real picture.  This is leading an "inverse" existence, as if physical presence on this earth is the primary existence.

The energy of life is on going -- it existed before birth and will continue to exist after the physical body is gone.  Spirituality is not merely practicing your chosen religion customs or duties at particular times, such as going to church, temple, shrine, etc.  Often times such duties are viewed as a chore -- something for which one feels that they must take time out for from their busy life in this physical world.  Actually it is quite the opposite.  That is to say that existence in this materialistic, physical world is in reality a very brief segment for which our spiritual being has taken time out from the spiritual world.  Why the physical world came into existence is perhaps a greater mystery than how.  Both are questions that theologians and scientists will debate among themselves and with each other forever.

Another interesting debate is religion.  Of course members of every religion believe that their particular religion is the "one" correct religion.  Although some members of some religions are content to believe their way and let others believe any way they wish, other religions are not content until they can convert the world to their own beliefs -- and eliminate anyone who will not conform.  Wars, slaughters, and cleansing of populations have all taken place in the name of religion.  The amazing fact about this is that these barbaric slaughters of humanity are not just events of ancient times; it is still happening today, as I write these words. I am very sad to have to say that although our technology is advancing, the human race has not advanced at all. The saying, "You can take the animal out of the jungle but you can't take the jungle out of the animal" is just as true when applied to humans.  We use our resources and our wonderful gift of imagination and ingenuity to think of ways to torture, maim, and kill our fellow human beings; these are accomplishments that humans cannot be proud of.  If equivalent amounts of money, energy, and time were invested in making people happy this world and humanity would be much better off.

It is disappointing that most religions stress negativity versus the positive.  Although the philosophical backgrounds are different, eastern culture is just as guilty of this as is the western culture that preaches damnation, etc. -- that is to say that anything that is pleasurable is sinful, and that one must sacrifice to prove their faith, etc.  We have all heard it and we all know it so there is no need for me to elaborate on this point.

What is it about certain traditional religions that teaches people to feel guilty about feeling good, or about having nice things, about being happy, and about having plenty?  What is it that causes religions to make people think that there is a limit to abundance or happiness?  How many times have you heard of someone's misfortune and felt relieved -- not happy about another's misfortune but relieved because now you felt that there was some  "good fortune" left over for you?  There is a mindset that there is a limited pot of good health, happiness, and fortune.  Most people do not wish misfortune on others but are brainwashed into thinking that the less that is available to others means that there is more available for them; a greater possibility that they will be fortunate to receive.  This type of negative thinking is what generates negative energy and keeps people from being happy.  Subconsciously and even consciously people are generating negative energy by wishing less for others so there is more for them.

There are several reasons why this type of thinking has evolved, some of which include arguments and scare tactics used by religious clergy to keep the masses under control.  However, I am not going to get into a controversial discussion that has as many opinions as there are people.

The fallacy of this type of thinking is the failure to recognize that there are no limits to energy.  There is no limit to greatness and there is no limit to smallness.  From any perspective, from any angle the universe is infinite.  This is a difficult concept to comprehend or even to imagine.  For example, imagine the energy from just one sunburst erupting from the surface of our sun.  Just one sunburst contains enough energy to provide all the electrical and fuel needs of our planet for centuries, yet there are thousands of sunbursts every day.  Take into consideration the fact that our sun is extremely small, indeed minute, compared to billions of other suns throughout the universe.

For those who might be thinking, "I'm not concerned about electrical or fuel needs..." and have other needs that are more important to them right now such as money, possessions, love, etc., I used the terms electrical and fuel needs above as examples of energy.  The fact is that everything in the universe is made from the same energy.  There is only one universal energy that permeates the universe.

Indeed there is enough energy just in our relatively tiny solar system to provide every person on earth with everything that they would ever want or need without depriving anyone else of anything.  How we are affected by the energy of the universe depends largely on how we perceive our world, which in turn is shaped by how we cause the energy around us to be manifested.  What we envision and believe is how we shape the energy that makes up our world and makes it what it is.

Before we get lost in the concept that the energy of the universe is a specific and separate entity or force, remember that the spiritual world is our primary world and is part of the energy of the universe.  It is where we came from and where we will return.  Of course the energy of our spirit is always a part of the overall energy of the spiritual world, which, in-turn, is formed from the energy of the universe.  Our physical entity has no conscious awareness of simultaneously being a part of that spiritual world.  You may dream about it from time to time or dream that you have been to a spiritual place but consciously we just pass it off as "a dream" when, in fact, it could be a suppressed memory.

The energy of the universe is all encompassing.  Some cultures refer to this energy as God.  The energy of the universe is neither positive nor negative -- it is simply energy.  Everything in the universe is manifested from that energy -- an intellectual energy that can cause energy to manifest into other forms of energy.  Our physical world and our physical being are a result of a manifestation of that universal energy.  Therefore, in that respect, we are all part of the universe or, as some would say, "We are all a part of 'God'."

We create our own reality by how we cause our energy to be manifested; a concept that might sound farfetched and maybe too "occult" to accept.  However, this simply leads to another point that I want to convey and that is that we have much more influence over what happens to us than what we realize.  If you create negative energy by believing that bad things are going to happen, whether you believe it or not, you will cause bad things to happen.  On the other hand, if everyday you believed and envisioned good things, positive things, you would be much happier.  That is not to say that "bad" things will not happen.  People die, get sick, and get into accidents, etc. everyday.  That is life.  Things happen at random. No one is looking down at you or anyone else and saying, "Let's screw up that person's day."  However, keeping your energy positive and keeping a positive attitude can help to direct your energy and energy surrounding you so that you are less likely to attract negative energy or what you would consider "bad things."

Copyright (c) 2008 by Robert T. Wood

(For more about energy throughout our lives and the universe, refer to "Everything" by Robert T. Wood.)