Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Violence - Are We By Nature Violent? Can We Change? One Man's Experience...


On November 19, 1979, Edward experienced
 a transformation which completely
 revolutionized the way he perceived reality.
 When the event manifested itself, it was
unlike anything he had ever heard of
 as every belief he cherished was torn asunder..
 Nothing could have led him to expect the form
 it would take. He had the sensation of inconceivable
 powers clashing, as if repeatedly struck from
 within by lightning. When the cataclysmic upheaval
finally subsided, something absolutely new had emerged. 
 

He brought forth a new human, and a New Consciousness upon Earth.
Edward is a Transformational Relationship Coach who has devoted the last thirty years of his life reaching out to people who are seriously considering the options before them. He has spoken to thousands of people from around the world about “Self-Transformation” and the possibility of life without violence.
Self Transformation:

A New You 

By Edward Jones

Yesterday on the Dr. Phil show, a discussion occurred regarding The Warrior Gene, hypothesizing that some individuals are genetically keyed to violence. This may or may not be proven one day, but I think that each of us has the "potential" for some level of violence. It may be limited to abusive language transactions with others, and it may occur only when under extreme pressure... Or maybe we are conditioned for it...


I had the opportunity to read an earlier version of this book. Although I could believe that something happened to Mr. Jones, I felt that book was not presented well for potential new readers. Mr. Jones was receptive to my critical comments and I must say that I am thoroughly impressed with the published self-help book. It provides sufficient information in a logical manner to allow you to understand the premise upon which Edward Jones speaks. It also includes information from a sample workshop with an open exchange of questions and answers. You may find more information on Mr. Jones site by clicking the title of this article.

Throughout my life, I've been an individual who is "willing" to explore. Many years ago, I was an avid reader of self-help books and attended many workshops and classes exploring Maslow, Yung, et. al. I am a Christian, but I am not afraid to explore alternatives and question... I think I can say, with some degree of expertise that, if YOU are looking for something...then Edward Jones' book could very well be one that will interest you.

This book is not for the average reader. it is not fiction, even though you may not believe anything that is said. It is one person's experience--an experience that totally transformed his life. Basic Premise: I am a liar and Truth is the answer (my interpretation) Highly recommended for those seeking new answers... The following are examples of what I found of importance:

  • Anger is a part of the defense and control mechanism. Angry people can defend themselves from anybody getting too close, and they can control their surroundings.
  • We are selfish little clods, clawing everything to ourselves that we can to hold on to it.  I even had a friend who had a big sign in his office which read, He who has the most toys when he dies wins.
  • Even in the Bible it says not to hide your light under a basket. The truth is your light. The truth will set you free, and the truth about everything needs to be spoken.  
  • Consider the word God.  The newspaper recently ran a story about a married couple who were convicted of second-degree manslaughter because they prayed for their sick child to get well. They believed that God would intervene, but the child died. In that case, thinking was thinking those parents.
  •  I say the only possibility we have is to speak the truth in our lives. Speaking truth is the emptying of our consciousness. What fills up our consciousness is the memory, or rather the attachment to the memory. Speaking the truth relieves that attachment and clears our heads, so to speak. 
  • Being knocked out of our language reactions would be the same action we’d take if we came around a corner and suddenly saw a rattlesnake. We would get out of its way very quickly. After we were out of its way, it’s probable that only then fear would show up about being bitten. Can we see that we allow language to bite us daily? 
  • I know someone who was raised to be a fundamentalist Christian, and he told me that he would be asked questions like, “Is your faith strong?” or “Do you love God?” to elicit a certain kind of response or behavior. After a while his responses became automatic. Repetition will do that. I call that a frozen belief. That’s when the belief becomes so strong you don’t even realize it’s a belief. You think it’s true.
  • The linguistic action is the action of creation. But as with so many other things, knowledge and belief get in the way. We have been so busy for the last few thousand years repeating, repeating and repeating that there can be no creation. In repetition there can be no love, no intelligence. It’s all being blocked by the ignorance of knowledge and belief.
I had made highlights on many paragraphs throughout the book. The above are used as presented and are not intended to be the most important, merely just the first of many that affected me personally.  When I first started working at West Virginia University in the early '60s' I wrote a letter to the campus newspaper in response to some article or letter, I don't remember what. The thrust of my letter was that each of us must find Christ--we cannot know God just because our parents knew him and taught us about him... I think several of these examples reflects my thoughts at that time. Is your Christianity your own or have you been conditioned...

Then taking that a step further... If you are a Christian, are you also a liar...  Please note that Christian can be replaced by Buddhist, Muslim, Atheist, or any other belief you use as an identification for yourself

Are you satisfied with today's world? I'm not! I think violence has increased so much so that our children could very well be conditioned to be violent... Why else? Is it really a part of our DNA or can the world change; i.e., can I change? More importantly...will I?


Book received
from Author


GABixlerReviews

4 comments:

  1. Glenda,
    Great post! This sounds like a book well worth studying.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Glenda,
    Thank you for your comments and review. This book is something everyone needs to read!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I think the book has much to offer...whether we are strong enough to act on what we learn...?

    ReplyDelete
  4. It does have a lot to offer and has had a profound effect on the way i live my life. and it is a challenge! perhaps The Challenge, the one to end the violence. nothing else i have done has come close. perhaps this will :)

    Jan

    ReplyDelete