Fulfilling intentions: A study of the underlying factors
by Dr. Saidas M. Ranade
Introduction
My beliefs about miracles and synchronicity have been shaped by my own experiences and by reading the works of well-known authors. Growing up as a child in India, I found myself naturally drawn to philosophical and mystical works. I am not sure if this was my way of coping with the pain around me or some other factor at play. As an engineer by training with a natural bent toward design, my first instinct was to write a “how-to” article about fulfilling intentions. The article would have been written in a deductive style with facts supporting my beliefs. Instead, I have decided to use an inductive or an a posteriori approach. Unlike deduction, which assuming its premises are sound, is certain, absolute, and airtight, induction is about mere probabilities; its success depends on how accurately you observe and over how many cases [1]. This article begins with the description a few real events from my own life followed by my analysis of the underlying common factors and ends with a summary of findings. Readers may agree with my analysis or may end up drawing different conclusions than mine.
Data
It was August of 1980. I had secured a scholarship to the University of Houston’s Graduate Chemical Engineering program. Due to some errors in paperwork, my student visa to the United States had been rejected twice. The fall semester was scheduled to start on September 3 and we felt helpless. One day, while reading the local newspaper, my father got an idea. A congressman named Dr. Subramanian Swamy was going to meet with his constituents. Since Dr. Swamy had studied in the U.S., my father thought he might be able to give us some advice. The idea made no sense to me at the time but I decided to play along. On August 7, we left our apartment at 8:00 for a meeting at 10:00 a.m. in Kurla. We had to take a bus from Anushaktinagar to Sion and then take another bus from Sion to Kurla. It was already 8:30. It began to rain and the bus schedule went haywire. The buses were full and would not even stop at the bus stop. At 9:00 a.m. I told my dad that we should just go home. He insisted we wait for a few more minutes. As we were waiting, a white Fiat stopped in front of us and the driver, a complete stranger, asked my dad if we wanted to go to Sion. We got into the car. We met with Dr. Swamy, who immediately called the U.S. consulate to explain my situation. My new interview date was set and I got my visa. To this day I am not clear why the man in the Fiat picked my dad out of the long line of people or how he knew our destination.
In early August of 1985, I had just completed my Ph.D. I had a job offer from ICI’s Tensa group in Clear Lake. Prior to officially starting my job, I was attending a training session at their facility in Clear Lake. I got a call from Dr. Jack Burke, Director of International Student Services at the University of Houston. He said the INS was about to decline my Practical Training Visa application. He asked me to get a letter from my boss and suggested my boss and I meet with him in downtown Houston the next morning. By mistake the company had submitted the wrong job offer document. The next morning, my boss and I met with Dr. Burke and then with the Director of Immigration Services in Houston. We submitted the corrected documents and within a few days my training visa was approved. Since the meeting went well, I asked Dr Burke how often he came to the INS downtown office with requests like mine. His answer shocked me: “Once every five years.”
It was sometime in 2000. I was working for Computer Associates (CA) in Houston. We had to give a presentation to Hertz Corporation on database management solutions. I was totally new to this topic but I had worked hard to become knowledgeable. However, I still did not have a presentation. Then on the Friday of the week prior to our meeting, a visitor from another CA location arrived in the office. He was looking for a salesman, whom he needed to give a copy of a presentation. The sales person was not in that day. He gave me the copy of the presentation to give to the salesman. It was exactly what I was looking for. I went to Hertz in Oklahoma City the following week and was able to fulfill my obligation.
In early March of 2008, as I was reading the Houston Chronicle, a book about physics caught my attention. That day I went to the Barnes and Noble to buy it, but I forgot the exact name of the book and author. I asked Denise, the customer support person, to search but without a book title or author name, she was not able to find the book. I asked her if they had a copy of the Sunday Chronicle so I could look it up. I went to the front desk but they were sold out. I went back to customer support desk and decided to search using my iPhone. Suddenly, someone from behind me whispered the name of the book: “Physics of the Impossible!” The book was right behind me and the young man who whispered the name was just informing his friend about the book.
Analysis
While I may be slightly off on the exact dates, all the events I have described are true and accurate. What are the underlying common factors?
* The events seem to be independent of time and location. Some happened in India and others in the United States. These events cover a time period of 25 years.
* Each event involves change in heart of a stranger. For example, the office visitor offering me the presentation I was searching for.
* In each case I was making an honest effort to achieve the goal. I had set an intention. I was completely immersed in the activity.
* The events vary in terms of their “perceived” importance from somewhat trivial, like finding a specific book to somewhat significant, such as getting a visa to be able to come to the United States.
* I am not sure if the events described made me successful, but in each case the experience was fulfilling. By that I mean I achieved an outcome I was happy with.
The role of intentions
The importance of intentions has been recognized by many authors as the cause or the driver for fulfilling actions. According to Dr. Frank A. Gerbode [3], intention is a combination of desire and ability. It is the proximal end of an action being performed by a person. My life events described above certainly meet those requirements.
Meditation and other techniques
Some intentions seem to manifest efficiently while others seem to take more time and involve a lot of struggle. Why is this? Is the difference caused by how one manages the manifestation process or is it because of where the intentions originate?
The events from my life support the old adage “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” My experience indicates that the universe likes to have a clear idea of a person’s intention. This is reflected through action. The component of follow-through seems to be an important part of fulfilling an intention. And there is a general agreement that trying to control the outcome or obsession about an outcome are hindrances to fulfilling an intention.
Authors like Deepak Chopra [4] and Wayne Dyer [5] prescribe meditation as a technique for planting intentions. In his workshops, Wayne Dyer asks the attendees to close their eyes and be centered, and then asks them to define and express their precise intention. Other authors like Osho, completely reject the idea that meditation is a means to an end. According to Osho [6], meditation needs to be viewed as play and not a means to an end. He suggests that desire separates the present from the future hence preventing one from being totally in the present moment.
The other important question about intentions is their source. Deepak Chopra and Wayne Dyer have suggested that you can come up with any dream and all you have to do is let the universal or creative intelligence know what it is. Others such as Osho, Eckhart Tolle and William Duggan seem to differ on the source of the intentions that get easily fulfilled. Their advice is to be prepared, be present and wait for the flash of insight. The underlying assumption is that when you are in alignment with the cosmic intelligence, it filters all possible intentions by evaluating their probability of success by taking into account your current state and your obligations – or as William Duggan [7] eloquently calls them, your karma and your dharma. The difference in the two schools of thought can be summarized by the phrases “you can pick your intentions” and “intentions happen.”
Conclusions
In my life events described above, I shared my intentions with others but I did not make much fuss about them. I was centered but did not follow a technique to achieve that state. I am not sure about the source of my intentions that were fulfilled. Reflecting back on these events, it appears that I was simply doing what needed to be done and then letting the universe do its part. In summary, based on examination of my life experiences in light of the works of renowned thinkers from diverse traditions, I have reached the following conclusions about intentions:
* Intentions drive experiences and events that give us a sense of fulfillment.
* Aligning oneself with the cosmic intelligence accelerates the process of manifesting one’s intentions and eventually one’s full potential.
* Silence is a perfect ground for intentions to germinate.
* Meditation is not a technique for inserting intentions but an important method for centering.
* Honest and sincere effort is a way to let the universe know about your intentions.
* Obsession toward a specific outcome and need to control the process are barriers to fulfillment of intentions.
* Being prepared, being totally present and aware, and having the courage to act complement the manifestation process.
References
1. Jones, J. and W. Wilson, “An incomplete Education,” 3rd Edition, Ballantine Books, New York, 2006.
2. Tolle, E., “A New Earth,” Penguin Publishing Group, New York, NY, 2005.
3. Gerbode, F.A., “Affinity, Desire and Intention,” Article 37, Journal of Metapsychology, Re-revised, May 1990.
4. “Healing secrets with Deepak Chopra: Intention,” – video on youtube.com posted by Lightbridgemedia, May 2008.
5. Dyer, W.W., “The Power of Intention,” Hay House, Inc., Carlsbad, CA, 2004.
6. Osho, “The Book of Secrets,” St. Martin’s Griffin, NY, 1974.
7. Duggan, W., “Strategic Intuition,” Columbia Business School Publishing, 2007.
Author
Dr. Saidas M. Ranade is an engineer, an award-winning comedian and author.
He has published articles on a wide array of topics such as mathematical modeling and organizational excellence.
He is a student of the human mind, human nature, science and spirituality.
To find out more about Dr. Ranade, visit www.mirthmystic.com.
E-mail your comments and feedback to him at [email protected].
Knowing What You Really Want
If you are unable to harness the Law of Attraction, you might well be luckier than you know. A revealing interview with James Twyman, director of the record breaking new movie, “The Moses Code.”
By Jean-Claude Gerard Koven
The next time someone complains that despite all their best efforts, they haven’t been able to make the highly publicized Law of Attraction work, tell them to count their lucky stars. The naive misuse of powerful cosmic tools to acquire fame, fortune, and other creature comforts can easily have ruinous consequences. In the mystery schools of old, a great deal was demanded of initiates before such potent teachings were revealed.
Yet there are many among us who eagerly assume the role of pied piper, leading the eager masses astray – as long as there’s sufficient personal payback in the form of money, fame, or control. To many in the metaphysical community, the allure of instant gratification promised by the latest book, video, channeling, or guru is little more than a cleverly veiled trap obfuscated by new age mumbo-jumbo to ensnare the innocent and unwary. Give me your money and your soul and I will give you the keys to the Kingdom in return.
That is why I was somewhat conflicted when I agreed to interview best-selling author James Twyman, to learn more about the story behind the making of his recently released movie, “The Moses Code.” The promotional email I received opened with a disheartening teaser: “Is it possible that nearly 3,500 years ago Moses was given the secret for attracting everything you’ve ever desired?” In stark contrast, the release ended with a compelling message that suggested that James might be leading us in another direction altogether: “You’re here to use the power of Divinity itself to create a world based on the laws of compassion and peace. That is the task that lies before us.”
It was clear this would be an interesting journey of discovery. Will the real James turn out to be the peace troubadour that has captivated millions from Northern Ireland, South Africa, and the Middle East to the United Nations and the Pentagon, or did he have a hidden agenda?
We were only a few minutes into our conversation when we addressed his views on “The Secret,” the recently released movie that has taken the world by storm. “I felt they (the producers of “The Secret”) were missing the deeper teaching; that’s why I decided that another movie had to be made to continue this discussion and take it much deeper.”
James then made a simple declaration that made his stance on the matter crystal clear: “I consider ‘The Secret – the Law of Attraction’ to be very dangerous. It entices people to look at the subject of personal power from a narrow and shallow point of view, encouraging them to believe that their lives would be enriched by getting things they didn’t have. It enslaves people to materialism and greed. The real message that leads to personal empowerment lies in the opposite direction. It’s not about what can I get, but what can I give?”
The astonishing breakthrough that culminated in the production of “The Moses Code” arose when James received a sudden inspiration that allowed him to view the enigmatic words spoke by God to Moses in Exodus 3:14, “I am that I am,” in a new light. “I somehow realized that the ‘I am that I am’ was incomplete as a simple declarative. Inserting a comma gave it a far greater depth of meaning: ‘I am THAT, I am.’ I consider this to be the essence of the Moses code: seeking the oneness.”
Neale Donald Walsh’s further development of this concept in the film is profound. He recounts a time when he attended a workshop and the facilitator asked each of the participants to practice a simple exercise that would allow them to better understand the oneness of creation. For the next few hours they were instructed to repeat the phrase, “I am that,” to every object they noticed. If they saw a tree, a dog, flower, cloud, or person, they were to become totally present with it and project the realization that were one with that tree, dog, flower, cloud, or person. I invite you to try it. Within a surprisingly short time your heart might reveal the essential meaning of God’s message to Moses, that in all the infinite creation, there is only the oneness. Each time you find yourself in another manifestation within that creation, you find God. The implication of such a discovery will not only change you, it will change the world.
When God declared, “I am THAT, I am,” He put us all on notice that there was nothing within the creation outside of the All That Is. James further explained that, “It was through Moses’ harnessing the power of the name of God that many of the greatest miracles of the Bible were created. Even to this very day in certain cultures, speaking His name aloud is punishable by death. The reason for this stricture, imposed by the various priesthoods over the millennia, is to inhibit people from identifying themselves as one with God. Doing so would make them too powerful and more difficult to control.”
Grasping the fullness of this principle releases you from the yoke of dogmatic sovereignty. Viewed through this more pervasive understanding, many of the passages in holy texts take on new and far deeper meaning. During the course of our conversation, James cited several examples of when Jesus invoked the Moses code in the Bible:
1. Jesus said unto them (the scribes and Pharisees who were seeking to tempt and accuse him), “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.” Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by. – John 8:58
2. “I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.” – John 12:46
3. “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” – John 14:6
James stressed that the true message of the Bible expressed by the “I am that” was meant to be inclusive not exclusive. We are being instructed to seek God directly, bypassing those who would wish us to believe we need intermediaries to reach out to the heavens. We are, as Jesus points out, extremely powerful beings in our own right: “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.” – John 14:12.
In closing, James affirmed, “I believe that today, more than ever before, it’s important to embrace that power within ourselves. The purpose of the Moses code is for us to realize that we can be the embodiment of God here in our own lives and that we can use the power of that embodiment to change the world. I suggest that chanting the name of God (I am that …. I am that … I am that) may well be one of the most important steps for humanity to take today. In so doing we will come to realize we do have the power to change the world.
“I would like for humanity to realize we are all interconnected and that all actions we perform for others we actually receive ourselves. At this critical time in human history it is important for all of us (nations, groups, and individuals) to realize that we are interdependent and that we need one another to survive.”
His words were music to my ears. The choice confronting each of us during this time of unprecedented uncertainty is simple: Am I here to serve myself or to serve others? If I am given the power of manifestation, how will I use it? The option you ultimately choose is far more consequential than you might imagine. Before attempting to apply the powerful Law of Attraction for personal benefit, I strongly counsel you to view “The Moses Code.” There is much in its message that needs careful consideration and the information it provides, through such celebrated personalities as Neale Donald Walsh, Gregg Braden, Iyanla Van Zant, and others, is an important rebuttal to the temptation of bartering your true birthright for a few trinkets that only have value within the temporal illusion.
Jean-Claude Gerard Koven is a writer and speaker based in Rancho Mirage, CA. He is a featured weekly columnist for the UPI (United Press International) Religion and Spirituality Forum and the author of Going Deeper: How to Make Sense of Your Life When Your Life Makes No Sense, selected by both Allbooks Reviews and USABookNews.com as the best metaphysical book of the year. For more information, please visit: www.goingdeeper.org.
©2008. Jean-Claude Gerard Koven / All Rights Reserved.
Tools for Abundance
By Tom T. Moore
There are tools that you can use for having abundance in your life that you might not be aware of. They include: astrology, recording dreams, meditating, requesting Benevolent Outcomes, and expecting great things. Here’s how I’ve utilized them.
When I was 17, I decided I wanted to be worth one million U.S. dollars by the time I was thirty. My Dad didn’t have very much money, and I had to work in a supermarket my last two years in high school just to pay for my first year of college. Even with a small band scholarship I had to live illegally in the dormitory the first year. I earned money in college washing dishes, selling men’s clothes, and as an apprentice electrician. My major was Finance, as I thought that would surely help me achieve my goal.
Besides working, I chose as my extra curricular activities being on the Entertainment Committee, Dance Committee, and The All University Trip Committee. Little did I know those interests would turn into my two major careers.
My first career took off after I returned to Dallas following my Army discharge (which helped pay my college tuition the last two years) in the late 1960’s. I took various jobs—selling insurance, pots and pans, knives and keys, townhouses, and newspaper advertising to pay bills as I started a tour company—a singles snow ski club. This eventually grew to over 1,400 people, but while still in its growth stages I picked up the local newspaper one day and read a story about a local astrologer that was predicting the Dallas Cowboys football team would not go to the Superbowl that year, and he gave 10 reasons or so why they wouldn’t. But he did say they would go the following year. I had never read anything like that, so I tore the page out and put it in a desk drawer.
At the end of the football season I took the page out of my drawer, and he had been correct on approximately 80% of the reasons why they didn’t win enough games for the championship. I didn’t know how he was able to do that, as all I had read were the daily predictions that most newspapers print. So one year in advance, I reserved 300 airline seats from Dallas to Miami, Florida, site of the next Superbowl.
I also started learning more about astrology and started having my ski club parties on days with beneficial aspects. This became my first tool for abundance. The parties were greatly successful, the ski club grew and I had many more people on the ski trips. Then the following January the Dallas Cowboys did go to the Superbowl for the first time, and I was the first tour operator in Dallas to ever run a trip to the Superbowl. I made quite a bit of money—enough to purchase our first duplex—and start a travel agency to handle our many ski trips. The travel agency expanded into Las Vegas and Cayman Island trips, and my company evolved into a wholesale and eventually international wholesale tour company. We ultimately sold the company to a conglomerate in Chicago.
In 1979 I started recording my dreams on a daily basis. After only a couple of weeks I had a vivid dream of an explosion and a woman and some men involved. It was so vivid that my wife and I changed the itinerary of a trip we had planned to Manila for a world conference of travel agents and added extra days to Taiwan and Hong Kong.
The first day of the conference terrorists exploded a bomb in the front of the hall where I normally like to sit. They arrested a woman from the Philippine trade office in Los Angeles and four men. After that I’ve recorded my dreams every single morning, keeping a dream journal, flashlight, and a dreamer’s dictionary handy. I’ve had many precognitive dreams since then, many about my business– another tool for abundance.
After selling our tour company, I began licensing films and TV programs internationally. The business grew and I thought that was the only thing I would be doing until retirement. But then I read an article in a magazine where Robert Shapiro channeled that you could request benevolent events to happen in your life; I decided to try it out and it worked PERFECTLY! From small things like requesting a Benevolent Outcome for a parking space to really big things in my business. I would simply say, “I request a Most Benevolent Outcome (to or for)…., thank you!” and it was magical what would happen. But I seemed to be the only one out there doing this and it made we wonder why.
Eventually, during a Dick Sutphen seminar in Sedona, Arizona, we were put into an altered state, I contacted a Shaman living in the 1600’s and he told me I had been a Shaman then, and that I had reincarnated in the 20th century to “reintroduce” people to THE GENTLE WAY. This became the title of the book he said I was supposed to write. Was I surprised! But I did write it and found a publisher. And I continued my “active” meditations as I call them where I constantly ask questions about the world and my life—a great tool to use!
The last tool I’ll mention I just discovered recently. Each morning I say, “I’m EXPECTING great things today, great things tomorrow, and great things all this week, thank you!” I’m told in my “active” meditations that this opens the door for your own Guardian Angel to be creative in assisting you. You’ll be amazed at the results you’ll have by saying this each day.
So you have many tools to assist you in this life. You can stay on that dusty, rocky road, or try a different path and explore! Have a great life!
COPYRIGHT 2008 by Tom T. Moore
Tom T. Moore is an entertainment industry CEO and speaker, who distributes motion pictures and TV programs internationally. His book, The Gentle Way: A Self-Help Guide For Those Who Believe in Angels (ISBN # 1-891824-60-0, Light Technology) gives many more suggestions for requesting abundance. Visit his website at www.TheGentleWayBook.com.
The Gift That Keeps On Giving - Shopping Your Way to Abundance
One of the beautiful paradoxes of our universe is that the more we give, the more we receive. As we bless others, so we are blessed. How many of us recite daily affirmations not only for our own abundance and prosperity, but for the selfish habits of our often greedy society to change and create a new world in which everyone can live in peace and prosperity. Giving, receiving and circulating love, food, friendship and wealth and all of our resources benefits every living being, and as consciousness raises in our society, we are beginning to realize the importance of extending this law not only to our relationships with others, but to all aspects of our daily lives. But who would think that we could find the perfect tool to bless and prosper both ourselves and others in an online shopping mall? However, a new innovation in online shopping is creating the perfect tool to do just that, while you shop in over 1000 well known stores and businesses like Macy’s, Starbucks, Gaaim, NetFlixs, Super Target and Kmart in your own private online mall.My Power Mall (MPM) is a new concept that was five years in the making. It’s founder, Ginny Dye, had a background in multi-level marketing, but says that she became discouraged because only 3 percent of individuals who enter the MLM field succeed. “That means 97 percent fail,” she explained. “I wanted to create a program where people could succeed.”
While the MPM program works on a 9- tiered system, in which individuals with their own malls have others under them, that’s where its similarity to multi-level marketing stops because there are no buy in fees, no products to sell, no meetings to attend. All people involved in the system need to do is shop in their own malls and share the mall with others. Everything is free, except for the shopping of course! As people shop, they earn rebates from 7 percent of the commissions on purchases in their personal mall all the way up to 35 percent of commissions generated by shoppers in malls they’ve gifted to others on their fourth tier. Commissions are smaller in tiers 5 to 9, but as the founder explains, “most people build their businesses up to the fourth level, so we’ve designed this so they receive the most benefit on the first four levels.”
However, this program isn’t all about shopping, it’s also socially conscious. MPM is an affiliate of the “Together We Can Save the World” project which sponsors one day a month to mobilize communities to help with needed projects like cleaning graffitti, planting trees and helping senior citizens with home projects. And 2 percent of corporate profits go to a program called One-Child-At-A-Time in which needy children are gifted with funding for such things as life-saving operations, a seeing-eye dog or other serious needs.
“It’s a win/win situation,” according to Eve-Lyn Forbes, who has her own personal mall. “Everyone benefits.” Forbes believes that the MPM system is great for people who are homebound or ill and are having difficulty entering the workplace. “Think of the possiblities,” she explained, “for those who can’t work for one reason or another.” And indeed the possiblities do seem to be as endless as the variety of people who shop. Consider students, senior citizens struggling to make ends meet on social security, those working two to three jobs to survive, those who are underpaid. And the possiblities for extra income grows as people gift one another the opportunity to prosper just by doing their normal shopping. Those without home computers can readily access MPM on public library systems, so they can easily begin to grow a personal income without the cost of internet service or a new computer.
Patty King, who also has her own mall, sees it as great way to enjoy retirement, earn money and still have time to be with her grandchildren. “What I like about this,” she said, “is that everyone benefits. When you gift someone with their own mall, you are gifting them with the opportunity to make extra income, to be successful.”
MPM isn’t just for individuals, however, it is a great tool for organizations like food banks, churches, and service organizations to help support their projects. The online system provides free training and marketing tools for all of its members including a small library of online books about how the system can be used by non-profit organizations, businesses, churches and schools. Not only can an organization benefit from the shopping of its members, the members themselves can also earn rebates and create their own income. Better still, food banks can support food banks and churches can support churches. Similar organizations no longer need to compete with each other for limited funding resources, but can support each other.
“It’s important for us to begin to develop socially conscious businesses,” said Robin Leake, another MPM mall owner. “We need models that prove that people can support one another without competing and still succeed.” MPM certainly seems to offer that possibility. Perhaps we are now bearing the fruit of all of those affirmations for abundance and prosperity for ourselves and those we love and the world around us.
For more information see www.mypowermall.com/Biz/Home/37943