The Real Scoop on Friday the 13th

Watch out! Today is Friday the 13th, known by many as the unluckiest day of the year.

While many will laugh off the superstitious day, others will remain in bed paralyzed by fear and avoid daily tasks, conducting business or traveling. In the U.S., an estimated 17 to 21 million people suffer from a fear of Friday the 13th, according to a study by the North Carolina Stress Management Center and Phobia Institute.

The phobia, known as friggatriskaidekaphobia, is not uncommon. The word comes from Frigga, the name of the Norse goddess for whom Friday is named, and triskaidekaphobia, or fear of the number thirteen. It is also sometimes called paraskevidekatriaphobia, from the Greek Paraskevi for Friday, Dekatreis for thirteen and phobia for fear.

There will be three incidences of the superstitious day this year, Jan. 13, Apr. 13 and July 13. In the Gregorian calendar, Friday the 13th always occurs at least once a year and can appear up to three times in any one year.  

History and Origins of Friday the 13th

The origin of fears surrounding Friday the 13th is unclear. There is reportedly no written evidence of Friday the 13th superstition before the 19th century, but superstitions surrounding the number 13 date back to at least 1700 BC.

In the ancient Babylon's Code of Hammurabi, dating to about 1772 BC, the number 13 is omitted in the list of laws.

There has also been a longstanding myth that if 13 people dine together, one will die within a year. The myth comes from both the Last Supper, when Jesus dined with the 12 Apostles prior to his death, and a popular Norse myth, in which 11 close friends of the god Odin dine together only to have the 12-person party crashed by a 13th person, Loki, the god of evil and turmoil.

In fact, the number 13 has been considered cursed across the world for thousands of years. The number 12 is historically considered the number of completeness, while its older cousin, 13, has been seen as an outlier. There are 12 months of the year, 12 gods of Olympus, 12 hours of the clock, 12 tribes of Israel, 12 Apostles of Jesus, 12 Descendants of Muhammad Imams, among many incidences of the pattern historically.

In 1881, an organization was started called The Thirteen Club in an attempt to improve the number's reputation. The 13 members walked under ladders and spilled salt at the first meeting in an attempt to dissuade any negative associations with the number.

Despite these efforts, the number 13 continues to have an unlucky association today. Thirteen is so disliked that many cities do not have a 13th Street or a 13th Avenue, many high-rise buildings avoid having a 13th floor, some hospitals avoid labeling rooms with the number 13 and many airports will not have a gate 13.

Friday has also long been considered an unlucky day.  One theory hypothesizes that Friday has been considered unlucky because Jesus was crucified on a Friday according to Christian Scripture and tradition. Another states that the superstition regarding Friday comes from Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, published in the 14th century, where Friday is considered a day of misfortune and ill luck. Innumerous publications in the 17th century, Friday the 13th was outlined as an unlucky day to take a trip, to begin a new project or to have a major life change (such as a birth, a marriage, among other events).

The first recorded reference in English of Friday the 13th is in Henry Sutherland Edwards' 1869 biography of Gioachino Rissini, where Edwards writes: Rossini was surrounded to the last by admiring and affectionate friends; Why Friday the 13th Is Unlucky.

Nathaniel Lachenmeyer, author of Thirteen: the story of the world's most popular superstition, however, suggests in his book that because references to Friday the 13th were nonexistent before 1907, the popularity of the superstition must come from the publication of Thomas W. Lawson's popular novel, Friday, the Thirteenth. In the novel, a stock broker takes advantage of the superstition to create a Wall Street panic on Friday the 13th.

Wall Street has fostered a fear of Friday the 13th for decades. In Oct. 13, 1989, Wall Street saw, what was at the time, the second largest drop of the Dow Jones Industrial Average in history. The day was nicknamed the Friday-the-13th mini-crash.

Friday the 13th was also discussed in the popular 2003 novel, The Da Vinci Code. In the book, a connection is drawn between the slaughtering of the Knights Templar by the Church and Friday the 13th. Historically, the arrest of Jacques de Molay, the Grand Master of the Knights Templar, did occur on Friday, Oct. 13, 1307, however the association between Friday the 13th and bad luck is thought to be a modern interpretation of the event.

Superstition or Reality?

Many studies have been conducted to investigate the risk of accidents on Friday the 13th.

According to research completed at the Dutch Centre for Insurance Statistics (CVS) in 2008, there were fewer accidents and reports of theft or fire on Friday the 13th than on other Fridays.

I find it hard to believe that it is because people are preventatively more careful or just stay home, but statistically speaking, driving is a little bit safer on Friday 13th, CVS statistician Alex Hoen told the Verzekerd insurance magazine.

Between 2006 and 2008, CVS found that there were an average 7,800 traffic deaths on each Friday, but the average fell on Friday the 13th when there were only 7,500 deaths. Similar statistics were found in a comparison of normal Fridays and Friday the 13th for fires and robberies.

According to a 1993 study in the British Medical Journal, however, there is a significant level of traffic-related incidences on Friday the 13th as opposed to a random day, such as Friday the 6th, in the UK.

Friday 13th is unlucky for some. The risk of hospital admission as a result of a transport accident may be increased by as much as 52%. Staying at home is recommended, the report concluded.

According to CNBC, Friday the 13th is a calm day for the stock market, average gains proving to be only 0.2 percent or less. However, in three out of five of the most recent Friday the 13ths, CNBC reports that major averages ended down.  The North Carolina Stress Management Center and Phobia Institute also reports that between 800 and 900 million dollars are lost in the U.S. each year due to shoppers remaining at home or deciding not to travel.

Popular Myths and Superstitions

Whether there is any merit to the superstitions surrounding Friday the 13th will remain uncertain, but that will not stop millions of people across the world from worrying about the unlucky day.

There are a number of popular myths and superstitions surrounding the day, most famously:

• If you cut your hair on Friday the 13th, someone in your family will die.
• If a funeral procession passes you on Friday the 13th, you will be the next to die.
• Do not start a trip on Friday or you will encounter misfortune.
• If you break a mirror on Friday the 13th, you will have seven years of bad luck.
• A child born on Friday the 13th will be unlucky for life.
• Ships that set sail on a Friday will have bad luck.
• If you walk under a ladder or if a black cat crosses you on Friday the 13th, you will have bad luck.

Actually Everyone Is A Babbling Idiot!

Words Are Inadequate
Dr Raven Dolick M.s.D.
Feb 12, 2015

I hold firm to all the energy when I tell mt students. "words are the worst way to say what needs to be said".
As also implied when I tell them in all due respect to honesty you can't even say anything that hasn't already been said".
"Get out of the illusion that your ego can actually heal something outside of your own self".

You can never perfectly communicate something to another individual.
You can never perfectly communicate anything to another individual. hee hee.

Consider an event in your life.
Anything you experience is first filtered through your beliefs, your world view, the way you were raised as a child, everything which makes you... you.
Then unfortunately after an event goes through your filter, communicating this event to another individual requires words and words are inadequate.

If you don't understand another person's words, such as if they speak another language, communication can be very difficult.
Even when you speak the same language words don't always mean the same to you as they do another person.  Words become lost in definition.
Words stir up different feelings.  Because of a past experience one word may elicit a strong emotional response in you and yet leave another emotionless.
The words which you present to an individual to describe your experience must be translated by the individual through his or her filter, which as we mentioned, is very different from yours.

So it can be a daunting thought if you think about it.

Not one single person has the same world view, because no two people have had the exact same life experience.
Words are inadequate.  So we can never truly communicate to someone what we are thinking and even if we could it would be altered by their filter to fit their beliefs.

Consider now the futility of debating over whose religion is correct.
Because we have available to us infinite life experiences and because we can never fully communicate those experiences to another there is no way the entire world could ever come to experience one ultimate truth.
No matter what authority we claim to follow that authority is still being filtered though our world view and to expect someone to see it exactly as we do would require them to see it through our world view.  That is impossible.

Here is what so many have a hard time comprehending...
There can be more than one truth even when the truths seem contradictory.

Quantum physics tells us that light is both a particle and a wave, both matter an non-matter.
Einstein's Theory of Relativity shows us that even time is relative and will present different truths to different observers.

When you take world's religions and remove the dogma you often find they are saying the same thing.

Consider the four quotes below...

"The Kingdom is not coming in any way that you can observe.  The Kingdom of God is already here--within you." - Jesus

"Those who seek to find the One without ceasing, will find the Lord dwelling in their own hearts." - Krishna

"The Way is empty.  The Way is full.  There is no way to describe what it is.  Find it within yourselves." - Lao Tzu

"The Way is not in the sky.  The Way is in the heart." - Buddah

Hello!
If it is all coming from within us, then how can what is coming from within me be any less true than what is coming from within you?
It can't.

If it is all coming from within us, then how can what is coming from within you be any less real than what is coming from within me?  It can't. hee hee.

So maybe we should stop fighting over differences and start searching more and more for the similarities.  Perhaps upon seeing the similarities  we will draw closer to becoming the one that we are.  When that happens many of the worlds problems will just vanish.

Spirit and Body are One!

Spirit and Body Are One
There are no separations.

What does spirituality and physical healing have in common you might ask? More than you might think.
Many people believe that the mind can heal the body, and there have even been scientific studies that have begun to prove it.
Everything is energy, in one way, shape or form, and although energy cannot be destroyed, it can be transformed and cleared.
Some say that illness is merely blocked or clogged energy, and many therapies, such as reiki, acupressure and reflexology, work with the energy in your body to elicit healing.
There are many people that believe that divine spirits, such as angels and other spiritual beings, can offer healing as well, and who is to say if they are right or wrong?

There are some new up-and-coming energy therapies, such as quantum touch and re-connective healing, that use only the energy in the body to help one heal.
These kinds of therapies work by having someone funnel energy from spirit in through their hands onto the other person's energy field and body, and they have made some miraculous claims.
The premise is that the mind can heal the body and that each and every one of us has a thousand-year-old healer within us.

Some say that we all have access to this sort of healing power; we simply need to learn how to use it and how to channel it.

While these kinds of spiritual therapies may still be up-and-coming, in many ways, they can give someone great hope.
Imagine what an incredible world it would be if we could all self-heal? Imagine what you could do with your life if you weren't preoccupied by your physical health or lack of it.
It is almost hard to imagine. Think of all the amazing contributions people could make if they didn't have to focus on illness or disease.
It would be like a spiritual utopia. There are many people who say that we all have psychic abilities, and we all have equal access to the spiritual world.

Some of us choose to activate these kinds of powers and develop this power, while others choose more worldly pursuits.
There is no right or wrong way or right or wrong answer because everyone is on a very different spiritual path.
Energy medicine is the wave of the future, but some might say that we are merely returning to our roots.
Your body is made of a network of energy, and if you believe in the idea of the chakras, you believe that your chakras have the ability to heal you.

Scientists have also talked about the idea of a universal consciousness or universal energy field, a field in which we all are connected.
Some say this field connects us to others while others believe it connects us to spiritual realms.
I would argue that if there is even the slightest chance that we can tap into spiritual powers to heal our body, why would we not take it?
In many ways, this is exactly how prayers work. Just because you can't see the divine power does not mean it doesn't exist.

Energy healing has been used for thousands of years, and ancient shamanic healing practices used the same type of process.
It is a growing field that is becoming more well-known each and every day. Some people can see the energy emanating from their body, while most of us cannot.

Medical intuitives claim they can see illness and disease just by looking at someone, and I find this an incredible concept.
Why is it that some people have this gift, while others do not? The truth is that we all come to this earth for different reasons. Some come to develop their spiritual powers, while others come down to be great athletes or even great poets.

Some people can communicate with spirits and angels, while others have a hard time believing they even exist.
Just because we can't see something doesn't mean it isn't real. The spiritual world is very mysterious, and it is one of those things people have a hard time believing in.

Many people pray and attend church and have absolutely no doubt in their mind that what or whom they are praying for actually exists.

If there is a connection between spiritual and physical healing, what does it matter if we can't see it?
Many times people don't consider methods like energy healing until all hope is lost. In many ways, this should be the first place we start.
Think of all the pain and agony that could be avoided if one simply believed in something simple like spiritual healing.

No matter what you think, one thing is clear: Science does not know everything. New discoveries are being made each and every day.
Who is to say what might be discovered tomorrow? Who are we to judge if someone claims that an angel or spiritual being spoke to them and healed them?

What would you do if you found out you had stage four cancer and there was no hope? I know what I would do; I would pray, visualize and find every spiritual healer and medical intuitive out there who might be able to help me.
Most of all, I would believe in miracles. I would believe that I was worth fighting for, and so should you.

http://www.ravenstarenchantments.com/

FROM RAVEN'S NEST Feb 12

The Fifth Element

The legendary Fifth Element holds the key to the answer to one of today’s top mysteries in the worlds of physics and cosmology. Scientists estimate that 84% of the matter in the universe is composed of invisible dark matter, but they have no idea what it is. With a short venture into the world of metaphysics, you are about to find out the answer!
In ancient Greece, all material things were said to be composed of a mixture of the four elements of earth, fire, water and air. There was also said to be a more subtle, fifth element. This was called the quintessence (literally, “fifth element”), implying its very delicate or refined state of existence.
For many centuries, philosophers considered that all matter consisted of combinations of the basic elements in the Greek tradition. In the early 1500s, Philip von Hohenheim boldly renamed himself Paracelsus, meaning “beyond the medical pioneer Celsus” and came out with a counter-proposal. He declared that, instead of the old elements, all things consist of the subtle essences of elements that he called salt, sulfur and mercury. However, this only served to confuse the situation further as both theories did little to identify the basic chemicals that combine to form the enormous variety of compounds that are found in nature.
Next, fast-forward to the Age of Enlightenment. In the late 1600s, the early scientist Robert Boyle published The Sceptical Chemist, rejecting both schools of thought in favor of the then-novel idea that materials are composed of a variety of basic chemicals which, unlike compounds, cannot be further reduced by chemical operations. This demystified chemistry, laid the basis for its development as a science, and made possible the development of the table of elements that we use in chemistry today.
As the science of chemistry developed and accumulated physical knowledge, however, it became focused entirely on physical materials and ignored the old idea of anything more subtle.
The fifth element has been given various names in traditional Eastern thought and practices – such as prana, chi, qi, and mana – but it can be better understood by calling it vital life energy or etheric energy. From a physics perspective, the most concise term is etheric energy, which implies a more subtle energy than electric energy.
When electric and magnetic energies combine in complementary motion, they produce physical light as well as the building blocks of physical matter. Your body is composed of electromagnetic energy. Etheric energy is actually more common in the universe than electric energy. Its manifestation, etheric matter, forms most of the matter in the universe. Cosmologists know that it exists, even though they can’t see it (hence the term, dark matter), because of its gravitational effects on physical matter in the cosmos.
“Dark” energy and “dark” matter are roughly five times more prolific than their physical counterparts, so their influence in the cosmos is quite marked. The gravitational effect is a result of the fact that both energies – physical electric energy and the more subtle etheric energy – share a common interaction with magnetic energy. The magnetic energy component is provided by the ever-present fabric of space, which I term the God Field.
By using the term the God field, we can reduce a common form of confusion that exists today. The God field was traditionally called the aether and, although that sounds a lot like etheric energy, the two are quite different.
The God field is the fabric of space. It is a subtle, fluid, magnetic energy which fills all space. It is intensified within and around matter, where its attractive nature produces the force of gravity.
Etheric energy, or vital life energy, is the primary energy of the universe. Electric energy is, by comparison, a secondary, more physical energy. Electric energy interacts with the magnetic fabric of space to form physical light and physical matter. Etheric energy interacts with the magnetic fabric of space to form etheric light and etheric matter.
Etheric energy is a subtle, primary life energy, while electric energy is a physical, secondary energy. Both energies interact with the magnetic fabric of space, producing etheric matter and physical matter.
The great advantage with knowing about etheric energy is that this vital life-giving energy holds the key to vibrant wellness. Vital life energy or etheric energy is present in all effective healing systems. In acupuncture, it is the “qi” energy that is enhanced or balanced in its flow along acupuncture meridians. It is the healing energy transmitted in distant healing. It is the same healing energy that is passed to the recipient in Reiki or Polarity Therapy.
Vital life energy is the essence within sacred healing oils. It is the energy that flows into a person as they practice Qigong. It is the life energy in organic foods, in water exposed to sunlight, and in the oxygen that we breathe.
Without vital life energy, we would not physically exist. With additional vital life energy, miraculous healings can occur.

**** http://www.ravenstarenchantments.com/raven-dolick-doctor-of…

From Raven's Nest Feb 11

 Is There A New Tree of Life
Dr Raven Dolick MsD
May 17, 2014

As I see it and only relate from my point of experiences, we have now landed even further into a new cycle in which we will manifest from the eternal and spherical NOW which of course is WON spelled backwards! As we move into this new, upward, spiraling field . . . a new huge mother cycle of time . . . we will learn to manifest in this higher frequency. Within the new spiraling creation cycle (104,000 years . . . that is if our known time line still works at this point), there are infinite smaller spirals that are growing from the main mother spiral.

Linear time, the future and the past is a fading echo in our mind's memory along with old concepts, perceptions and realities. New Codes of Creation and Laws of Nature, including unconditional love, unity consciousness and holistic manifesting, will effortlessly replace the old lower natures of fear, ego, and manifesting for personal gain. Any perceptions from the past or future are quickly fading like judgments, guilt, expectations (comes from the past), worry, fear and linear plans (comes from the future). There will be a lot of shifting and letting go in our lives to make room for new codes that we are about to receive. We might feel a bit disorientated, frantic and ungrounded at times; yet we can feel at ease with this process. Time will appear to stretch (living in the present) or shrink (living in the past/future) depending on your perspective in each moment. The integration process is now in full gear. It is hard work and tiring; yet exhilarating as we can now feel forward momentum! Be in each moment, and allow the strange and oddly familiar process to take hold.

The more present we are in each moment, the more we will begin to create as living masters of the physical and spiritual realms. It is the first time we have done this in such a huge number of humanity. When we live from this higher frequency, it provides us with a natural built in protection from lower natures of the old paradigm that once could influence us. These will become invisible to us as our inner and physical sight will no longer perceive these lower frequencies, because they are not of "like" frequencies. We will have evolved past the "us and them" mentality. We are entering a new realm of being able to initiate spherical / spiral, infinite manifesting. We are stepping into manifesting as living integrated masters.

The ancients taught us about the sacred Tree of Life. But this concept has evolved significantly; just as we have. In this sacred Tree of Life, the main trunk is the sacred mother cycle. All creations are fueled (empowered) by the mother cycle tree trunk) that has advanced laws of nature and codes of creation. The larger branches are well developed creations and are now manifesting into form. The twigs are newly birthed creations. Newly birthed creations will seek out and team up with like energy so as to advance their creation. The twigs will begin to travel back to the larger branches and then anchor back to the mother cycle. All creation returns to the source . . . the mother spiral. This manifesting process is in the pattern of the sacred infinity symbol that we all know about . . . but in a spherical form. Because manifesting will become spherical, we will be able to create on as many branches as we like, and all at once. Now that is what I call cosmic multi-tasking! We will not be limited to doing one thing at a time anymore. Many of us (including myself) have asked to have more bodies so we could do more. This is the universe's answer to this request. We will learn to create from multiple directions at once. All creations are birthed from the new, natural codes of life anchored in the main mother cycle. From this new foundation (the mother cycle), we will create a new world. As above so below, this tree of life mirrors divine cosmic creation on Earth.

In our bodies, the tree of life relates to the two sides of our human brain, our hearts and our lungs. The sacred tree of life in our heart births/conceptualizes a vision to begin to manifest our dreams. It all begins at the center of our hearts. Our brain retains a map of the vision like a divine blueprint, and the lungs breathe life/spirit into the creation. We have opened and readied our hearts, and we have learned to breathe in life. We take in new, present, spiritual essence every time we breathe and our heart beats.

The tree of life in our brain is the last part of our bodies to come into alignment with the new energy, and it will enjoy arguing this point. Having headaches lately? We think we know it all, and yet we know nothing! Just like our heart and lungs . . . the right and left sides of the brain are the physical (left) and the spiritual (right) centers. The center of the brain between the two sides is the main trunk of the tree (mother cycle). We only use a small portion of our brain at this time, because out of control ego has blocked the way to our spiritual evolution. When we move into full alignment with the universal whole, we will begin to access the entire sacred tree in our brains synced with our open heart and spirit filled lungs. The closer we come into harmony with the universal whole, infinite manifesting will become more prominent and reverberate out into our physical world. This will afford us unlimited potential and will only be limited by our imagination.

Solar flares and magnetic storms can affect our physical body profoundly. Solar flares temporarily interrupt our creation cycle and can short-circuit our energy field. Nothing feels worse than when we put a lot of energy into creating a vision and then having the rug pulled out from underneath us. This can create a lot of physical and emotional symptoms as we adapt to the shifts. Yet our sun and these solar flares create tiny and manageable course corrections in the physical and spiritual worlds. These course corrections are literally created by us, our collective heart vision, so as to maintain a high level of integrity in what we are creating in the emerging New World.

Humankind, our planet and our solar system is magnetic in nature. We create our physical reality by emitting a qualified, defined, magnetic energy from our hearts. This happens when an idea is born in the center of our hearts. This sacred void space is eternally timeless, is always inside of us and holds all the creative potential in the universe. Our awareness of this void is what makes us conscious creators. But being aware of this void also keeps us from being totally satisfied in life. Our being conscious of the void . . . this cosmic, spiraling vacuum . . . means we are consciously aware of this subtle, unquenchable yearning. This keeps us seeking for the next step in our spiritual and physical evolution.

There have been uncountable books written and therapy sessions performed in order to heal this void spot. We don't like the way the void feels. However if we did, we would quit seeking and also evolving. We attach and blame personal issues on this empty creative void we feel inside. We have blamed our mothers, our fathers and our relationships. We have blamed the void for things we have lost including loved ones, lifestyles and material items. But when we do get what we think we want to fill this void spot, we still feel empty. This has sent human kind careening out of balance. Nothing can fill this void inside of us other than living in the NOW, and by continuing to seek and evolve. Once we step back into linear time, by looking back at our losses, or by looking forward at things we want, the void will become considerably more uncomfortable again, because you are not using this tool (void) in the way that it was created for.

This sacred void is an empty temple waiting to be filled with our heart creations, vision and perceptions. It is very much like an empty canvas in which a conscious artist can create a new reality. Once we reach a goal, another blank slate is formed in front of us which creates yet another void for us to fill. Just like the universe is eternally expanding, so is humanity we. "As above - so below." "What goes around comes around". We are painting a new vision together. Soon our earthly reality will evolve to include the entirety of the universe and all of life within it . . . here and now.

From Raven's Nest Feb 10, 2015

For the Serious Practitioners I present my 15 page copyright to help assist with the Ascension Symptoms of your evolutionary process.

Ascension Symptoms Why and What Are They
May 28, 2014 All rights reserved

Because of the vibrations becoming higher and higher here on earth our bodies and minds are changing and adjusting to this, and this can be uncomfortable and can even be painful at times. Be gentle with yourself and give your body and mind lots of rest. Stay as stress free as possible.
Ringing in the ears and Seeing geometric shapes and colors when your eyes are closed:
I feel these are information downloads transferred by light and sound. These help you learn about the new peaceful patterns and structures that may be useful while the old structures fall.
It’s a way of keeping you balanced through the ascension process.

Peaks and Valleys:
When you are in the natural flow you may feel great for a period of time and then crash and feel mentally and physically messy for a period of time. I feel this is helping us acclimate to the new higher vibrations. The higher vibrations come in waves so we get used to residing in them and when they fall away we know what we need to let go of. It’s almost like a forced purging at first. As you go on and relax and trust the process it gets easier. The road evens out and the peaks and valleys are not as extreme. Your life becomes more and more effortless.
Physical and Mental Pain:
As your body and mind let go or are purged of the lower vibrating structures you may experience mental and physical pain. The more you hold on to these lower vibrations and the more you fight with the higher vibrations chances are the more pain you will experience. If you realize you are going through this allow yourself to surrender to the process and realize it is a process. If you are feeling bad it will not last forever and once it’s released you will see the next plateau.

Needing Lots of Sleep:
My advice is… Sleep! The process can take a toll on your physical body so rest as much as you can and do not feel guilty about it. It’s exactly what you need and should do at that time. Your body knows. Listen to it.

Divine Timing 11:11, 12:12, 1:11, 2:22….
This tells me that we are always here now. It’s a reminder if you allow yourself to flow in the natural/spiritual direction without fight you will always remain in divine timing.

Feeling Weak:
Your body may feel very weak and frail and at the same time you can feel it repairing itself, being rewired and healing. The best thing to do is rest and allow the alchemy to occur.
Food Cravings:
Food is not to be judged. If you are craving all junk food then eat junk food. If your body wants all fruits and veggies then eat them. Listen to your body and intuition and you will know how much to eat, what to eat and when to eat it. Be prepared for the cravings to change dramatically. Think of yourself as being pregnant and you are giving birth to true self. Treat yourself kindly through the process.
The Ascension is about self empowerment and your enlightenment.

Quarantine:
It may feel like you are all alone and not allowed to speak to or see your friends and family at times. This can last a while and it can come and go. I feel this is because you need to balance your vibration and have to disconnect to outside sources for help. You need to become self reliant and self referring and this is one way it seems the natural flow allows you to do this. At first you may kick and scream but I say relax into the silence and your alone time. You will get through these phases much easier than trying to change them. Also do not take this personal. Your friends and family still love you and are there for you. It’s not about them. This is a part of your process.
Not Listening to Music and the Radio and Not Watching TV:
You may find yourself driving your car or walking through the park in silence as opposed to listening to you mp3 player or radio. You may have already gotten rid of cable or your TV. Being by yourself and being quiet helps you balance, rest in and get used to your own vibration. As you get used to our vibration you will begin to feel how other people may be seemingly draining you of energy. The truth is you are allowing your energy to be affected. No one can truly drain your energy. Only you can allow this to happen. You will learn a lot about how different vibrations of different people and events effect you in different ways the more you become silent. By resting and meditating in silence it helps you keep this silence that is you even in the midst of chaos.
Getting Rid of a Lot of or All of Your Stuff:
As your mind is becoming more spacious it seems the environment you live in needs to become more open and spacious. I know a lot of people who are going through the ascension process and a lot of them including me donated most of their material things. It felt really good but I do have to warn you… Get rid of what you don’t need and use but don’t be afraid to keep some things you may want to keep. I don’t regret getting rid of my things but there were a few times I could have really used some of the items again. The material items are not bad and are not the problem. It’s our attachment to them that is the problem. That’s something you may want to keep in mind if you haven’t gone through this part of the process yet. Not saying you will and if you did already, sorry! I wish you and I read this earlier! Ha Ha!
Synchronicity and Intuition:
Synchronicity and déjà vu can happen quite often in higher vibrations and it seems many more people are experiencing them because they are more available as we and earth ascend. Intuition is also more available and will guide you much better than your thinking. Intuition may be experienced as a knowing, a whispering voice, or a pulling in a certain direction and it usually feels like it is not from “you”. That’s because intuition is not from your ego. Intuition really is from the true you and it can take some time to learn to listen to and trust the true you as opposed to your ego. This is because throughout most of our lives most of us only listened to our ego and feared our intuition. You can see why the ascension process may be difficult to navigate at first. A lot of us have to completely change direction, throw away everything we knew and trusted and rewire and rebuild a new navigation system.
The Ascension is about self empowerment and your enlightenment.
Fear
Fear is a lower vibrating habit that a lot of people are AFRAID to let go of. Fear of allowing fear to drop away because of the fear of what may be on the other side of fear. That’s a lot of fear!!! You can see the fear catalysts being presented to us and we can choose to learn from these catalysts and go in the natural flow or disregard the lesson and keep blindly walking through catalyst after catalyst. It’s like being continually punched in the face and always being surprised and hit in the face by the first. Eventually you will see the fist. Most people are afraid to stop and look at the fist and see not only can you move around it, it doesn’t really exist!
Look at our economy collapsing. This is affecting a lot of people first hand and they are now afraid they are going to loose their money. How did this situation happen to begin with? All along you could see people in other countries were being killed and exploited so we could get cheap materials. Is it a surprise that a system of greed can not last? Should it last? There are horrible wars going on, people are starving all around the world and we are afraid that our money won’t be as valuable as it once was. When you are aware you see the bigger picture. You not only want things to change, you know they will. You welcome the change with no fear even if this change will affect you in order to make things better for all.
I see more and more people becoming afraid of government and fearing different conspiracy theories like the New World Order. I’m not saying these conspiracy theories are not true on some level. Then again I’m not saying they are. What I will say is if you are afraid you are directly feeding the thing you are fearing. If you there is a conspiracy and you are afraid of it you are giving it power to continue. If you are aware that this conspiracy theory is or may be true but have no fear of it then this changes everything. You do not add any power to it and your own vibration will help to dismantle this lower vibrating structure. You will also be able to speak freely and clearly about it to others.
Communicating the conspiracy theory with no fear of it and helping others see it clearly with no fear and adding no power to the conspiracy. As the others awaken to the conspiracy with no fear they will also not accept this lower vibrating structure and begin to vibrate higher themselves taking more power away from the conspiracy theory/lower vibrating structure. The more of us who are aware, awake and not afraid the more peace, equality and freedom we will experience here on earth. You can not fight fear. You can become aware of your fear. Being aware of your fears allows you to stop feeding them. Without food your fears die.

Letting Go of Spiritual Practices and Paraphernalia
One thing I have found with the ascension is constant change (Universal Law #4). This means letting go of anything and everything when the time comes for it to drop away. One thing that is hard for people who are on the spiritual “path” is letting go of parts of their practice and their spiritual material things like crystals. I thought I would be doing Kundalini Yoga all of my life but my practice became so intense and painful and I had to let go of it. I had enough spiritual energy flowing through my body already. The Kundalini Yoga was much more than I could handle. It served it purpose for many years but there cam a time for it to stop.
The Ascension is about self empowerment and your enlightenment.
All spiritual practices have their purpose and serve as tools to help us get into the natural flow. Once we get in the flow you can let go of any and all practices. I do very soft yoga and meditate. Those are my “practices”. I do not pray or chant. I keep my practice more silent and receptive. I’m not saying this is the right way. This is what works for me right now and this can change tomorrow. If chanting mantras feels right for you right now do it. Whatever feels right for you is right. Just don’t be attached to any practice to the point of not letting go of it if it becomes useless or even uncomfortable to you. Items like crystals are great and serve their purpose as well but again once you start to become balanced and are in the flow crystals may actually knock you off balance a bit.
Spiritual practices and crystals create imbalances to knock you back into the natural/spiritual flow. Once you are in the natural flow you will see how these tools also can confuse and disorient you, especially when you first enter no man’s land or just begin to flow in the natural flow. Once you are in the flow for a while you may feel some bumps but for the most part the disorientation starts to turn into clarity. One of the reasons it’s hard for people to let go of spiritual practices and items is because they will have blissful experiences and associate these experiences with objects and events which creates confusion. They think the crystal or practice gave them this experience.
The experience happened because the tools worked and it was time to experience that experience. Trying to chase or hold onto an experience like bliss is a major spiritual trap. People begin to think wow that was it! This tool and that bliss was it and now I have to get more of that. By doing this you are stopping your potential for ascension and growth because you are now out of the natural flow and chasing an experience. Experiences come and go and change. They are not to be held onto. This creates suffering. This also starts people to worship tools.
Worshipping
The ascension is about self empowerment and your enlightenment. It’s not about worshipping an outside source. You are the outside source. You are the inside source. All you need to do is be. It’s not to say you can’t enjoy reading religious works or even praying if that’s what you like to do. I feel at some point worshipping will start to work against your growth. Worshipping is a tool and many people need this tool to teach them something but if you feel you are finished with this tool I suggest drop it. You can always pick it up again at a later point if you feel you need to. Try not worshipping for a week or two and see what happens. This is a tough one for most people because we’ve been taught to fear God. Well, here’s one for you. God is everything. You are a part of everything. God does not have an ego and does not need to be worshipped. God is you. You may not know it yet but it’s true.
The Secret About Affirmations
Affirmations are fine but I wouldn't expect much of them. I think they are a good step in the right direction for a lot of people but if you say you are great but inside feel like a piece of crap you will still produce crap for the most part. It's a good start though. I suggest you become empty and clear and then you have a chance of producing something of value. If you truly believe something and you have no deeper contradictory thoughts to nullify your belief then the belief can be powerful. The Ascension is about self empowerment and your enlightenment.

FROM RAVEN'S NEST Feb 1

Death after Life 
Is there life after death?

It’s a passionate conversation and everyone thinks they know how it ends. The atheist says this is all there is and when you die, you’re dead. Christians say that after you die you will go to Heaven or Hell. Mormons believe that after death, if you’ve been good, you get your own planet. Muslims believe that after death, the men, at least, get 70 virgins. Hindus and Buddhists believe that after death you reincarnate and come back as a higher form of life… Every spiritual practice in the world has some sort of tenet around what happens after you die.
Fundamentalists in every group are so sure that their view is right that they’re willing to destroy their lives and the lives around them to prove their point. In our Christian culture, for example, there aren’t many who haven’t been threatened with some sort of afterlife catastrophe, such as hellfire and damnation and great pain and suffering.
For many of us, though, we’re not thinking in terms of life after death. We’re still trying to figure out life after birth; if we could just get that handled, that life after death thing would take care of itself.
“Reality,” however, doesn’t support any of us. No matter what happens after we die, all we know is now. Whether or not we’ve been here before, all we know is now. Whether or not there’s a Heaven or Hell, all we know is now. The Universe is very stubborn when it comes to life and death. Whatever lies beyond is not allowed here. It’s all about now.
From an evolutionary standpoint, though, this is important. Evolution is about growing and evolving. Evolution takes what is, tweaks it, makes it better, and then passes that on to the next generation. This generation is the foundation for the next generation, which will be the foundation for the generation after that. We are all participating in the growth and evolution of our planet.
Those who believe in some sort of after-death utopia fail to live this life. They put their lives on hold, waiting, hoping for something better. When something goes wrong, they “suffer through it,” knowing that they’re waiting for their reward in the sky.
That is not how evolution works. The reason the Universe only gives us now is because the Universe exists only in this moment. It is expanding, but only into the next moment.
That we only have now may be our contribution to evolution. It’s our evolutionary responsibility to consciously make the world around us better. It’s our evolutionary responsibility to consciously live life, improve it, and pass on a better place to the next generation.
God, a loving God, would expect nothing less. Love would never punish anyone for wanting to make life better for those with whom it interacts. In fact, that’s what love would do. Love would look for all the ways to make life better. Love is compassion and exists to support life.
The evolutionary question is this: “Is the world around us better because we’re here?” If the Universe itself agrees, then we’ve fulfilled our purpose. If the Universe around us says “No,” then we still have time to participate. All we have is now.
Speculation on life and death is sometimes frightening, sometimes fanciful, and sometimes fun, but it’s always speculation. Our evolutionary purpose isn’t to worry about life after death, it’s to figure out life after birth.