Yanni's Blog

This is part I of a four part blog.

In order to come to “Know Thy Self,” one first must learn how to “Listen.” For it is only by really knowing how to “Listen” that one can get “a handle one’s ‘Self.’” And it is only through “Listening” that we can be true to our Selves and live an empowered, passionate, fulfilled, joyful life.

Usually all we hear or listen to is the noise and static that our fearful, angry, worried ego mind produces; this noise effectively blocks out our ability to hear what is really important, what is at the core of who we are.

It is only by learning how to embrace the Silence, that we can hear anything important. It is only by being quiet that you can “hear” your Self, “hear” another, “hear” nature, “hear” Spirit, and “hear” the God/Goddess within. One must quiet the fretful ego mind in order to hear one Self and come to “know” one Self.

Silence is the language of God. Everything else is bad translation.

Silence is ancient. Silence has been in the space you are this very moment for longer than anything else. It will remain after you leave and exist long after all other things have faded.

This is part I of a four part blog. Please see my next blog entry on November 1 for part II.

Posted by Yanni at 4:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Life Mastery's Friday Weekly Podcast:

"The Sacred, Ancient Art of Blessing, Part II" Podcast


Click Here to Download MP3/Audio

(length 09:47 minutes)


Subscribe to Feed Below:

Posted by Yanni at 4:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

This is part IV of a four part blog. Please see my last blog entry on October 23 for part III.

When you see someone who is ill, bless him/her and see them in their wholeness and perfect health, for even in their suffering, this wholeness is in their potential and waiting to be recovered.

When your eyes behold a person who is suffering from the vicissitudes of life, seemingly broken by life, bless him/her and see them vital, abundant and joyful: for what on the surface looks broken is really glorious and perfect when one looks within and sees with the eyes and heart of the Soul.

When you pass a homeless person, bless them for their goodness and see them smiling, whole and surrounded by the eternal, unconditional love of God the Parent and filled to overflowing with love, wellbeing and abundance.

Whenever you see a prostitute or pimp, be they those of the physical body or those who slander and defame another with their ideologies and falsehoods, bless them, too, for their goodness, for “they know not what they do” and are, as we all are, “leaning out for love and will lean that way forever.” Offer the hand of blessing to them and, therefore, allow them to come to their senses again. Help them to see the wholeness which is at their essence and at the essence of all.

And please remember that it is impossible to bless and to be judgmental at the same time. So continually have as a deep, holy thought the desire to bless, for truly then shall you become a peacemaker, and then one day you shall behold the very countenance and heart of God wherever you look.

This is part IV of a four part blog. Please see my previous three blog entries on October 16, 18 and 23 for parts I, II & III.

Posted by Yanni at 4:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

This is part III of a four part blog. Please see my last blog entry on October 18 for part II.

As well, when something goes wrong in your day and some unexpected event ruins your plans, you, too, can remember to burst into a blessing. For life is teaching you a lesson, and the very event you wish had not occurred, you yourself asked for in order to learn the lesson you wanted to learn. Challenges are blessings in disguise, and only good follows in their path. As you learn to embrace and bless it all; it reveals its gold to you.

Also, to bless is to recognize the universal beauty and goodness which is ever present for those who "have the eyes to see”; it activates the law of attraction which brings into your life exactly what you need to experience and enjoy.

By blessing another, you are acknowledging the good within them. You are seeing them with the eyes and heart of God/Goddess. You are seeing their essential nature and not just the surface.

So, when you see a person in shackles, whether they are physical shackles or mental ones, bless them for their unawareness and wish them their freedom, kindness, and forgiveness and a pardon from their ignorance; for one can only be imprisoned by one's image of oneself. For we alone create the iron bars that imprison us when we harden our hearts and stop trusting in and seeing the goodness or “god”ness in each other and in all of our experiences.

It is only he/she who is free of judgments who can bless another and see the light in themselves and in others.

This is part III of a four part blog. Please see my next blog entry on October 25 for part IV.

Posted by Yanni at 4:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Life Mastery's Friday Weekly Podcast:

"The Sacred, Ancient Art of Blessing, Part I" Podcast


Click Here to Download MP3/Audio

(length 09:20 minutes)


Subscribe to Feed Below:

Posted by Yanni at 4:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

This is part II of a four part blog. Please see my last blog entry on October 16 for part I.
To bless means to wish, unconditional, complete, unlimited goodness for another from the depths of your heart and soul: it means to sanctify, to revere, and to see with pure wonder that which is a gift from God. The individual who is graced by your blessing is made whole and free and so are you as you release all judgments.

To bless is to bring into play the Divine upon another and to confer happiness and peace upon them. Though we are not the source of the blessing, by any means, we can be the willing instrument of God’s Grace, Blessing and Love for them. And, of course, this then is a great blessing for us, too.

To bless everyone, no matter who they are or what they have done, without discrimination of any sort is the ultimate form of giving and service, because those who you bless will never know from what source suddenly and unexpectedly came a ray of hope that burst through the clouds of their negativity, yet they still will be eternal grateful for your generosity.

You can have a very profound effect on someone simply by the act of blessing them. And the ramifications of this blessing can and will exponentially grow as this wave of goodness that you initiate goes way beyond the intended receiver. Your simple thought of kindness can unleash a wave of goodness, blessing and peace that will cover the entire world.

This is part II of a four part blog. Please see my next blog entry on October 23 for part III.

Posted by Yanni at 4:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

This is part I of a four part blog.

The ancient art of blessing is such a wonderful way to add sacredness and peace to your life. It is a great way to ground and stabilize your energies throughout the day. It is a magnificent way to grace your day and the day of another person with light, love and peace.

So, when you awaken, begin by blessing your day, for it is so full of goodness. Blessing your day affirms all the good that is everywhere present in the very fabric of all of life and which patiently waits for you to notice.

When you see people in the street, at work, on the TV or in their cars, bless them. Your blessing will silently and magically bring them peace and stay with them all day like a cool summer breeze, like a beacon on their path.

When talking to people, bless them regarding their dreams and aspirations, their health, their finances, their work, their family, and themselves. Bless them in every imaginable way, for such blessings not only grace the one you are blessing, but also bring grace, joy and peace to you.

Bless the nation in which you live, its government and infrastructure, its polity, its teachers, its children, its policeman, its firemen, its bankers, its priests, its doctors and healers and everyone that is a part of the community, whether they are young or old, rich or poor, firm or infirm.

Also, whenever anyone expresses the least amount of negativity or unkindness towards you, respond with a blessing: bless them fully, honestly, happily, for such blessing protects them from their ignorance, and allows you to step aside from the negative energy that was aimed at you.

This is part I of a four part blog. Please see my next blog entry on October 18 for part II.

Posted by Yanni at 4:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Life Mastery's Friday Weekly Podcast:

"Slow Down! Get There Fast!" Podcast


Click Here to Download MP3/Audio

(length 07:22 minutes)


Subscribe to Feed Below:

Posted by Yanni at 4:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

This is Part II of a two-part blog. See my entry of October 9 for Part I.

It was because my wife and I chose to “Slow Down! Get there Fast!” that we gradually began to realize that living in New York City with all the noise and frenetic activity was not a match for who we were.

As well, working in two high profile and high pressure professions was also not who we were and what we wanted to do with our lives. Even though we first thought that these jobs were our ticket to heaven; they really were quite the opposite!

So, after living in NYC for only three years; it became obvious to us that we had to leave. So, we made plans and in two years we were out of the City, no longer in those jobs and living in a lot slower paced and less urbanized environment. We moved to a setting that was so much more a match to who we were and not who we thought we should be.

As well, by slowing down, we began to get more and more of our real priorities straight. We took care of ourselves and explored all kinds of enriching avenues of personal growth. We deepened our meditation and other spiritual practices. As well, we started the study and practice of Chi Gung, a Chinese form of meditation and energy mastery.

This all lead me to have the courage to make my passion, which is teaching and writing about the spiritual and healing arts, become my vocation and my work. So, within just two years we moved out of the Big Apple and I began my healing and teaching practice.

Starting anything new always has it challenges and opportunities. So, there were many times when I doubted myself and my abilities. But every time I did, I remembered that if I would just “slow down” I could tune into that “still, small voice within” and there I would find my center and find my Self again and all would be clear. I would remember in this place of Silence who I was and why I came forth.

I would see where I stood on my climb up my mountain of mastery, redouble my courage and confidence and continue on, clearly knowing that I was now “getting there fast!” That is, I was getting there in Divine Timing and in Divine Order and All was truly Good!

So, “Slow Down! Get There Fast!” It works wonders!

This is part II of a two part blog. See my previous blog entry of October 9 for Part I.

Posted by Yanni at 4:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

My wife, Jaime, and I were living in New York City some twenty years ago. We were both working in very high pressure jobs in Manhattan. I was in book publishing and she was in insurance.

As well, we had a two hour of commute back and forth to work every day. So, by the time we got home we were exhausted from all the stimulation. There was always something to “do” and it always had to be done fast! So, life was a series of unending tasks that seemed to just exponentially explode on us. It wasn’t fun to say the least.

So, one day while we were taking stock of all we had to do, my wife, in total frustration, screamed out: “Slow Down! Get There Fast!”

It made us both stop in our tracks and first, laugh, but most importantly, it helped us to realize that we were like hamsters spinning around on a treadmill in a cage. We were going nowhere fast!

So, we asked, “Why are we doing this?” And we realized that we were unconscious. We were just doing more and more just for the sake of doing more and more in the hope that it would make us feel better about ourselves. But it certainly wasn’t helping!

So, at that point we recognized that we had to incorporate a conscious, consistent spiritual practice into our lives; that is, we needed to create a time of slowing down. We had been doing numerous spiritual practices for years on a haphazard basis, but it wasn’t enough obviously.

So, we then decided to sit and meditate and/or pray for at least thirty minutes an evening. It was so refreshing and relaxing. And most importantly, it helped us reach our goal of feeling good about ourselves very quickly; and we no longer had to run around mindlessly exhausting ourselves to reach our goal!

By slowing down, we got to our goal of feeling good about ourselves very, very fast. The other way of going about it, by running around all over the place, was actually moving us further and further away from our goal.

So, no matter what your goal is: “Slow Down! Get there Fast!” It works wonders!

In my next blog entry of October 11 I will continue this theme and explain how this process of slowing down helped me to find my purpose in life and live my passion.

Posted by Yanni at 4:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Life Mastery's Friday Weekly Podcast:

"A Life of Quality and The Art of Prayer" Podcast


Click Here to Download MP3/Audio

(length 08:42 minutes)


Subscribe to Feed Below:

Posted by Yanni at 4:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

“…whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and then the God of peace shall be with you.”

In terms of increasing the quality of my life, I have found that prayer is such an incredibly valuable and precious tool.

When I refer to prayer I do not mean the repetition of rote phrases that no longer have any meaning. Prayer for me is seeing the good in all people, events and circumstances in my life and blessing and appreciating it all.

As you “think” or pray in this way, you are shining light on everything. And it is in this light and because of this light that the hidden beauty and brilliance of whatever you are focusing on is fully revealed.

As well, as you pray, you will continue to see your light grow stronger and stronger. And this light and this strength will be the attracting point and signal that you put out to others and to the universe. And as a result, you will attract even more light and strength to yourself. And in time all the darkness within you will be transformed into the light it always was. In this way you become the beacon on the hill, the lighthouse in the storm.

As you practice this you will be awed by all the good you will find within and without!

Quality is not inherent in an object or a person; it is created one prayer at a time; one kind word at a time; one noble action at a time; one positive thought at a time.

The great Masters still shine so brightly because they knew to constantly strengthen and brighten this flame within themselves with the fuel of prayer, love, service and good thoughts! And because of this, they no longer cast shadows any more! For they had become the Light!

Think on these things!

Posted by Yanni at 4:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

We create quality. We create a quality life.

We give life its meaning, substance and value by the way we choose to interpret events. All of life is good and working towards the Highest Good. Everything we experience is from the Good and for the Good though we may not know how to “see” it that way sometimes.

Quality can not be measured by the quantity of material things we accumulate, the number or status of the people we know or the types of experiences we have; it can only be determined by the value we give to the experience.

So, to have a quality experience; go out there and give value to all you see and experience; especially give value to yourself. You determine the quality of your experiences by the way you choose to value them. You determine the quality or value of yourself by the way you choose to value yourself.

So, take the time to quiet your mind and go within and listen to that “still, small voice within.” And ask it to help you to learn how to “see” yourself and everything and everyone in your life with the eyes and heart of your Soul and then you will see all things “anew.”

You will “see” how precious and valuable you are and how precious and valuable every person, place and experience is in your life. They all are steps up your mountain of mastery. Everything and everyone is leading you to your Highest Good.

By listening to that “still, small voice within,” you will learn how to live your life in Grace and Trust. You will see the bigger picture and know who you truly are from the depths of your being and how blessed life really is.

So, slow down, quiet your mind and listen so that you can ease into a life of real quality and value!

Posted by Yanni at 4:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)