As we follow the path of ascension, there are a few traps and pitfalls we need to be aware of.

The Four Ascension Traps:

1. Ignoring the Unknown

Anything that doesn't conform to an existing belief system is dismissed, ridiculed or attacked. "Oh, that didn't happen," is a common statement used in overlooking unexplainable events. For example, a woman saw a deva in my backyard. Since the idea of a deva didn't fit into her belief system, she devised an elaborate explanation. A few minutes later she declared that it was an electronic hummingbird traveling along a wire.

Making excuses to dismiss the unknown is the pacifying of reason. Many people say they are seeking truth, when in actuality, they are seeking to confirm their existing world view. It may be expressed as ridicule. Many are scared of anything they cannot rationally explain and that may come forth as an outburst of anger.

People hold on tightly to their belief systems. It is sometimes difficult for us to understand that a loved one would rather die than be healed. If they were healed, they would be forced to change their belief system. At times it is easier for us to accept people clinging to their belief system if we realize it is all they have. It is their identity and they are prepared to die for it.

If we are busy arguing away the unknown, we fail to receive the lesson at hand and it may have been the one designed to push us to our next level of growth.

2. Thinking we Already Know

We cannot take the unknown at face value or we will fall into the trap of thinking we know. The future, people, and words are part of the unknown. For example, what we think people say is frequently not what they are trying to convey. Their truth remains hidden. This applies to a description of an experience as well. We may have had a similar experience but that doesn't mean we know what that individual felt or thought because he may have an entirely different world view than us. Approach the unknown by feeling the true meaning with your heart.

To the average person, trap number two provides a feeling of comfort. He thinks he knows everything. Even those who are open-minded may say, "I may not know everything, but I do know what isn't possible."

3. Obsessing about the Questions

Obsessively asking questions drains our energy. An example of this is the questions that may have occurred to the woman who saw the "electronic hummingbird": A deva? What kind of deva? How do we know it is a deva? Could it be something else? If they really exist, why is this the first time I have seen one? Do other people see them too?

Most of the universe is unknowable. If we obsess about the unknowable, we miss the mysteries revealed by being in the moment. If our mind is cluttered with questions, we aren't still enough to receive guidance and insights.

If we accept that we live in an incomprehensible universe then we stay open and flow with life. If an obstacle comes up, we flow around it. We have no expectations of the world. We are innocently experiencing life as we go along.

4. Giving Our Power to Guides

Lightworkers need to be careful not to give their power away. Over the centuries, we have given our power to governments, religious groups, bosses, parents and even lovers. Unfortunately, Light workers also give their power to guides and spirit helpers. One man has a guide that tells him how to live. It says, "Don't let your son go out, his mother is going to call soon. Tomorrow your boss is going to want that paper you've neglected. I think you should take an umbrella, it is going to rain." This is interference, not assistance.

High-dimensional guides won't tell us how to live or make our day-today decisions. They will present options and light the way, but they won't interfere with our free will. Generally, they come when we seek them through communication and ceremony, but they may appear unsolicited if the timing is urgent, such as an emergency. They won't rob us of our ability to make mistakes, since these mistakes are our greatest teachers.

Sometimes guides from lower dimensions tell us these things to make us depend on them because they feed on our energy. Information isn't a good exchange for energy since many guides will tell us what they think we want to know. It is crucial to understand that lower-dimensional guides can only tell us knowledge that already exists on the planet, meaning ultimately, we already have access to it. Light workers are falling into this trap due to ego. It makes them feel important that someone comes to them for advice. People are attracted to channelers because they don't believe they can access the information themselves. Consequently, they seek answers through anyone who has any level of guidance. Sadly, they often blindly accept the information, never asking whence it came. It is okay for us to demand to know who is speaking to us, however, they often call themselves by a name that appeals to us. We can set boundaries and declare that only high-dimensional beings are allowed to communicate with us.

We need to exercise our intuition and apply discernment at all times, with all information. Don't take anything at face value and feel everything with your heart.

The Four Ascension Pitfalls:

1. Fear

When we release ego identification and activate Godmind, we realize we are all things, but before we fully grasp that, we will experience being no-thing. We find ourselves standing alone and it can be disconcerting the first time we realize, "I am nothing. I know nothing, and I live in nothing I can understand." This may put us in fear as we feel either too expanded or too contracted. This fear may feel like being in the bottom of an abyss and many Light workers will shut down at this point.

Another common fear is the unknown. Most people are afraid of change and if they are pushed too quickly, they may turn against the one they see as bringing change.

For example, a teacher can inadvertently do this. If he is delivering a higher level of information than the student is prepared to receive, the student may turn against the teacher rather than admit he isn't willing to take the next step. This also happens if a student hasn't released ego identification and the teacher prompts him toward a threshold and he doesn't succeed. If he has attachments to pride, his ego may be wounded and rather than try again, he may slander the teacher. It takes great courage to embrace the unknown aspects of ourselves.

2. Addiction to Challenge

When we start to see behind appearances, we know that we contain everything within that we need to meet the challenges of life. These challenges alter our perception and perception yields the gift of power, so we may find ourselves seeking them with an attitude of "bring it on!" This is being addicted to challenge. After we release the addiction and deal only with the challenges that are truly the next step on our path, we gain an inner quietness and confidence. We no longer need to prove ourselves to anyone—not even our self.

3. Power

Within the challenge of power we reach the ultimate choice which is called the “road of high adventure.” It is the place where we can perform great miracles. We have the ability to do showy things like making rattles fly or invoking balls of light to float around the room. If we become addicted to power by doing grand miracles, we become stuck. Many medicine men end up here because it is such an intoxicating place to be.

The other choice is to be humble enough to become a student again. This allows for growth. The student wants to go further because he knows power isn't the goal. It is merely a tool to facilitate our next step. To the student who possesses clarity, nothing short of the ultimate freedom from mortal boundaries will do. Power has been described as one of the biggest pitfalls in the universe. If someone acquires power and doesn't have self-esteem, the temptation to abuse it is very intense. We cannot utilize power to obtain results that will benefit our personal intentions only, it has to be for the good of all. Remember, the universe won't entrust limitless power to those who haven't mastered themselves. The lesson behind the test of power is that we don't use power unless instructed in the stillness of our mind and without attachment to results. If we don't have attachment to results, there is no temptation to abuse power.

4. Relaxing into Old Age

Old age can happen in any year. It is the point at which we accept our power and can sit back and feel we have arrived.

Many sages who have fully disconnected from ego and gone from the place of emptiness into the place of fullness, surrender to the bliss within. They allow themselves to sit next to horrific conditions and simply be. They prefer to be alone because in their aloneness they don't have to keep coming back to the human point of condition. In this state, the knowledge that “all is in divine order” may be taken to extremes. Examples of this include their not caring whether: they are alive or not; they sleep or not; and whether they eat or not.

It is an enormous temptation to remain in that addictive place of bliss and cease human activity. The problem is the power we have gained fritters through our hands like sand and we lose it. Also, there is no impetus for growth. Instead of sinking into complacency, if we make a 180-degree turn and plunge back into the human experience, we are able to slip past death. At this point, new life force flows in, reversing the aging cycle, and we are set free from mortal boundaries.

The Three Gates of Ascension

For us to be able to wield power that could adversely affect other kingdoms, it is necessary that we have mastered ourselves and fully understand that in the eyes of God, all are equal.

Many shamanic traditions have tried to force their way into power using intense rituals, but there is a limit to the results these efforts can produce. There are no boundaries to one who perfects his or her character and seeks to become one with God.

As we climb the mountain of ascension we find ourselves going through three initiations. They appear as gates: the gate of love, gate of wisdom, and gate of power. Unbeknownst to the initiate, his Higher Self designs a series of tests to see if he has mastered certain perceptions.

When he successfully proves himself, the universe bestows gifts on him. The trials designed to test our perception and the resulting gifts are what comprise an initiation.

1. The Gate of Love

The requirement for passing through this gate is the heart-felt recognition of the validity of every life form as a reflection of the Infinite. We must also fully understand that all of life is interconnected, meaning every overcoming enriches all life and every destructive act weakens the whole. Another aspect of interconnectedness is that our environment mirrors our inner state of mind (and becomes a guiding force as one learns to read it).

This reverence towards life must be extended to our beloved mother, the Earth. We need to acknowledge her sentience and cultivate a relationship with her. This ensures that we become aware of how our actions may effect her.

When this state of harmlessness has been achieved, the initiate may, without fully realizing, walk through the gate of love. He may have a peak experience but not fully grasp the ramifications. Nonetheless, a profound change has taken place and we may notice we are filled with empathy for the suffering of the Earth and our tears flow for the suffering of man and disrespect to animals. We may even cry from being overwhelmed by the beauty of mankind and the world around us. Developing within us is a melting compassion because we know that behind the twisted emotions of others, lies the pain of alienation. This enables us to embrace the folly of mankind.

In light of this compassion that forgives all and the empathy that understands all, others spontaneously heal, and we find ourselves walking in grace: things effortlessly fall into place and animals respond differently to us because they know they are in the presence of love.

2. The Gate of Wisdom

To enter this gate, we have to be free from the traps that blind men. When we take things at face value, we fall into the trap of thinking we know. That blocks us from receiving new information and results in distorted perception.

We need to acknowledge that from our perspective, most of the universe is unknowable. That means we don't know the mystery of life. Those who grasp this concept are ever watchful to read the signs of the environment and wait with abated judgment until they receive the necessary information or insights. These people are free to receive the energy that would have otherwise been utilized to maintain their world views.

Words are another trap. Reason cannot hope to capture the essence of that which they describe, and they lull us into a false sense of understanding. When we understand that words can be deceitful, we start feeling others' words with our hearts, looking for the underlying meaning.

Another prerequisite to entering the gate of wisdom is inner silence. This is achieved by not obsessing about the questions. When the need to know has been silenced, the heart guides us with pure feelings that enable us to access the unknown. Recapitulation further silences the internal dialogue and within the silence, all is possible. Truth starts to reveal itself effortlessly when it is no longer barred by the fanatical activity of the left brain trying to defend its world views.

Similarly to the gate of love, some who pass through the gate of wisdom may not understand what it means at the time it occurs. Others may be jolted by it. Either way, the results filter through one's life like gold dust that has been spread upon the wind. In quietness and in confidence, information pours forth into our consciousness. At this point, one is no longer an initiate but has passed into the level of an adept. Rational thinking requires a lot of energy, whereas effortless knowing doesn't. We will find that Spirit is whispering answers to assist with our next step. Since we can hear the Universe guiding us, we no longer feel alone. We stop seeking the meaning of life. We lie back in the arms of Spirit and the “peace that passeth understanding” enters our life.

3. The Gate of Power

The gate of wisdom provides increased energy that is now discharged to us in the form of direct power. The preceding gates prepared us for the enhanced perception necessary to use power. The prerequisite for the gate of power is that we must become a perception seeker rather than a power seeker. As described earlier, the perception seeker has ceased to need and knows he is his own source of power.

One who isn't supported by his or her sub-personalities could fall prey to the intoxicating temptation to use powers for the aggrandizement of himself. That is why this gate is positioned close to the top of the mountain.

Once we have entered this gate we notice miracles occurring, instant manifestation of thoughts, and increasing synchronicities. However, there is a learning curve with miracles. At first, miracles are only visible to the performer. When we pass the test of not needing to persuade others for the sake of approval, our power grows and we can openly show a life of miracles. We know that all power is within us. It only requires attention and intention to direct its course.

The Two Stages of Ascension

At the top of the mountain when the lightning flash of consciousness awakens us to the grand realization that we are all things, we look back with astonishment at how far we have come. Realization dawns that the journey that brought us to this point traversed two different terrains; we passed through Two Stages of Ascension.

1. Life Eternal

The first stage culminates in an insight that death has no hold on us. It is a result of painstakingly rejecting the world view that old age and death are a necessity. When we shed the past and balance our emotional components, we unveil that our birthright is joy. The joy awakens in us the three Ascension Attitudes that change the vibration within the cells, like a new song being sung. This creates a noticeable change in the vibration of our body that can be physically felt. The new song of the cells replaces the old programming. We find that remnants of unresolved trauma from the past disappear. As mentioned in the scriptures, "the years eaten by the locust" are restored to us.

This cellular song of gladness has to mirror back to us in our environment. This frequently results in losing old institutions, such as friends, jobs, and other situations that no longer serve us. The fear that we might falter vanishes since ample evidence has revealed itself that we are walking in a state of grace. At this point, aging ceases for we have mastered the atomic elements of the body. If on a rare occasion negativity travels through our cells, we can physically feel the shock to our system. We may experience nausea, trembling and weakness to the degree that we may faint or lose consciousness.

2. Life More Abundant

The second stage reached after we have passed through the gate of power is "life more abundant." It is a place of expanded awareness that knows it isn't the body. It has learned to love without pain, to work without attachment to outcome, and to see the perfection underlying appearances.

During this stage we have mastered not only the atomic elements, but the environment as well. The endocrine system of the body reveals its hidden qualities and we start to live beyond mortal boundaries.

The treasure chest of hidden gems has been opened, and one of its great gifts is that even the effects of our past "wrong doings" are erased. All karma is removed since restrictions in the universal flow of energy no longer exist within the Seven Bodies. That means events attached to these constrictions also heal. In this way, we affect not only the future, but the past as well, and even those who have borne the consequences of our misperceptions benefit. At the apex of the mountain, we can come and go with the speed of thought and our life of miracles takes on an even deeper meaning.

Almine

http://spiritualjourneys.com/ascension/