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Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Empathy

A Beginner’s Guide

Empathy in essence is one of the very most basic abilities, though it is far from being unimportant. Empathy creates a bridge between what is said and what is meant. Empathy is a gateway ability that helps us to be more open to abilities such as energy reading, automatic writing, telepathy, medium abilities, and intuition. Even in its mildest forms it is essential in all types of communication and psychic work. By becoming better empaths we can become more efficient in all areas of out lives and get a deeper understanding of the lives we lead.
Every emotion and every thought has a frequency. That means every time you think a happy thought a happy vibration is sent out. And every time you think about a person the vibration of that person is sent out. Empaths learn to pick up on these vibrations and to some degree to “translate” them in to words that can be understood. Though not every thought and emotion is exactly the same, unless other circumstances are exactly the same. So if you are happy because you got an A on a test and you are happy because you just found a $10 bill then you are sending out the vibration of both those thoughts. So the emotion of both of those thoughts is happiness but the other vibrations within the larger emotional vibration tell why that emotion is experienced and what is causing you to feel that way.
Thoughts and emotions are energy and energy vibrates at a frequency. The frequency of a thought/emotion tells you what it is. Knowing what the thought or emotion is about tells you the frequency.
Empathy is a branch off of clairsentience. That means that empaths can feel and know the emotions of others. This allows a deeper understanding of the human mind and of the things that keep people going. Empathy is normally felt primarily in one of three parts of the body. The Head (Third Eye), The Heart, or The Gut. All places contain a chakra or energy vortex that in some way corresponds to the ability.
Empathy makes receiving and sending information psychically much easier. Instead of having to send an explanation of your current mindset you can send a conceptual emotion of your current mindset. Making it easier to focus not only on the target meant to receive but also on the information being sent.
This ability can also be extended to feeling the physical pains of others. Few people ever experience this.
In order to awaken your inner empathy you must be open to the emotions of others. And to understand the emotions of others we must first understand our own emotions and emotional states. In everything there is a base that we build on. In empathy the base of our ability is the ability to understand ourselves.

Exercise #1 (Let It All Out)
Get a few pieces of paper and a pen and sit down somewhere where you won’t be disturbed. (If you have a sacred space that is probably a good place to go.)
Think of about 4 or 5 words that bring up strong emotions in you. The emotions may be similar or totally different. The same applies to the words. You can have people’s names, places, events, dates, actions, adjectives, etc.
Now write each word on a separate piece of paper (if you’re trying to save trees you can probably manage with one piece of paper. Half a page for each word on the front and back)
Okay now focus on the first word. Let all emotions attached to it come to the surface of your mind. Once you have a feel for what the emotion/emotional cluster write down a few words that correlate to the word under the word.
Continue to focus on the emotion(al cluster) and analyze the emotion at hand (if it is an emotional cluster go through as many emotions as you see fit). Why do you feel that way? What cause this emotion in the first place? How is this emotion different from other things I have felt about this before? Why do I experience this emotion in correlation to this word?
Write down the answers to the questions you ask yourself or any other information that may come through.
Continue this with the rest of the words. Being sure to write down everything that is significant (or even insignificant but if you wrote it down its probably not insignificant).
Save the paper and read over it whenever you get a chance. If more words pop up write those down. When you are confident with those emotions move on.
That should have helped with opening up emotional channels in yourself helping you to become more honest with yourself and others. It also helps you understand the many levels of emotions, as well as encouraging you to understand emotions before expressing them.
Being an empath is fun and helps you to grow as an individual. You can also use empathy to help others. Empathetic therapy is a great way to help people deal with emotional stress and problems. Sometimes just being there and listening can be all a person needs. Though In order to truly help someone you must understand their emotions on as many levels as possible. This next quick exercise helps to open up our understanding of others and how their emotional states can differ from ours.

Exercise #2 (Different Point of View)
First think of another person who is close to you. Then choose a problem that they may have.
Now see them being confronted with the problem. What kind of emotions do you think they will feel? How do you think they will handle the situation?
Watch how the emotions change and shift as the problem is fixed and as the problem starts.
Now I want you to change perspectives.
Imagine now that you are your friend. Look at you hair (if you can) and see the color it is now that you are your friend. Look at your hands and notice how you feel in their body.
Now bring the problem up. Now from their perspective what emotions do you feel? Do these emotions feel familiar or foreign to you?
Figure out how you will handle the situation from your friends perspective, this may or may not be the same as you saw earlier. What emotions arise with the solution?
Implement the solution. What emotions surface now? How do they feel? Why are you (in your new perspective) feeling these emotions?
Now change back in to yourself. See your own hair and your own hands and feel the familiar sense of being in your own body.

The last step of the exercise is very important. Empaths will commonly lose track of who they are or become caught up in the emotions of others. We feel out of place and out of sync with ourselves because essentially we are. We are another person’s emotions and perspective in our own body. Although we should help others and learn from their emotions we should always remember who we are. Boundaries are not limits meant to keep us in, they are limits meant to keep bad things out. Next is the last exercise and is a general exercise meant to help us tune into ourselves and others.

Exercise #3 (Energy Field Shape Shifting)
Sit down in a way that mimics a dog. Or basically cross your legs “Native-American” style and lay your hands palm down flat on the floor in front of you. This is a very primal position and connects us to the Animals of nature.
Imagine an animal. Think of its name a few times. How big is it? What shape? What color? How many legs? What kind of mouth? Etc.
Now see yourself changing and shape shifting into the animal in your mind. Look down at what you can see of your new body.
Now shift your eyes in to the perspective of the animal. Put yourself in a scenic setting that is familiar to your new form.
Walk around for a bit and if you want you can even ask the animal what wisdom it holds. To ask all you must do is think the question. The answer should come on by itself without your help and will probably be different from person to person.
Now when you are done shift back in to your body and feel your own limbs. Open your eyes and look around now that you are back in your own body.
If you want you can continue on with more animals and may even want to venture in to plants, people, and inanimate objects.

As we become more and more open with ourselves we will become more and more open to others. When we know our own light for its truest beauty then others will know us for our truest beauty. When we can find the good in others, others will find the good in us. Everything you send out comes back to you. So look to help and heal and the Universe will take care of you. You are an empath. You are a healer. What beauty you see and what beauty you create is not nearly comparable to the beauty inside. We are strong. We are powerful. We are beautiful in all ways.
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