The following post is the purpose reading, given to me by Julie Chan, an intuitive and founder of Being My Purpose. Check out the podcast where we discuss her origin story, and how purpose readings work.
To provide some context, Julie Chan typed the reading below on her own, and then we spent three hours in person going over the nuances of the purpose reading. It was a very intense three hours where I often felt like the reading was knowing what I was thinking. The reading even addresses me at one point, saying “Ben may find this all abstract…” and that’s exactly what I was thinking at that moment. There were many of these profound moments during the reading. The themes of leadership, service and love are central in my life, and it felt validating to hear that. The reading provide questions and imagery around where I need to develop, so I feel like I can and should go back to it often. I do often think about how I can develop leadership skills, so the discussion and images provided a good framework for further thought. Another important theme was the stressing of all of us being interconnected, and that highlighted the work I need to do to feel connected. This was illustrated well with the analogy of the individual not as a water drop, but as a part of a body of water, and how this focus on oneness will help guide my intuition to serve my purpose better. There is so much for me to continue meditating on in the reading. It provides a good reminder for me, the more I open up to others with love, the better I’ll be at living my purpose. It reinforces the work I need to do to open myself up more.
If you’re a little curious, then it’s worth a shot to get a reading. If you’re interested, use the special offer code “PurposeUpRocks” for 10% off the Discover Your Purpose coaching session on Being My Purpose.
Akashic Record Purpose Reading for Benjamin (Ben) Stein 8/10/16
What is his purpose in life?
Ben’s purpose is to believe in the power of one hand. This relates to how there is an attachment to the need to have collective action, to have more than one hand on the steering wheel when in actuality, ONE HAND is all that is needed. This one hand symbolizes the interconnectedness of all beings — physical and non-physical — that are here to serve for one purpose only — and that is, an expression of unconditional love. In his life, there has been a tension between going it alone and being the visionary, the lone wolf, and the decision-maker AND the need to have collective wisdom, to get all opinions and all data and all analysis before something can be done. Similar to what Julie learned in her thesis — when she starts hearing the same thing over and over again, she can move on from her analysis and she can let go of finding that one piece of information that might negate what she is saying.
This focus on the negator is one of his blocks. When the search is for the devil’s advocate, or the naysayer or the person that disapproves of what he is doing (with the search being conscious or unconscious), then he brings that level of energy into his work. For example, if an entrepreneur were to look for feedback and approval from all his mentors, and they do provide constructive feedback, in some ways, he is also hoping that someone will tell him no. It is as if by someone telling him “no”, it will give him the motivation to prove them wrong. This method of lighting the fire certainly yields results, but the spark is not necessary borne out of LOVE. It is borne out of a need to prove oneself, to be the outlier, to be “on the one hand” VS. the “other hand.” What this means is that it is important for him to see that the one hand is, in actuality, the SAME AS THE OTHER HAND. When he transcends this notion of separation and otherness, then he can finally have inner peace. That requires a transcendence beyond the needs of the self, so that he can be fully integrated into the ONE HAND to guides all creation.
So, what exactly does this mean? It means that in his life he has seen this “hand” playing a role in his life. The hand may have caused positive things and negative things — it may have set to motion a chain of events that he didn’t expect, or it could have harmed him or hurt him on a physical, emotional or spiritual level. What does the “hand” mean to him? How does he relate to it? Is he the one USING the hand (ie, it’s a part of him)? Is he the one being hit by the hand? Is he the one guiding the hand that doesn’t have the eyes to see? This can be different in different scenarios – the key is to be fully aware of this hand.
He may be thinking that this sounds a bit abstract, but it really isn’t. Who controls him? What factors does he think has controlled him in the past? How has he spent his life trying to get out from under the hand so that he can have some semblance of control?
Image 1
You saw a hand, outstretched upwards towards the sky. The palm was facing towards the ground at an angle. It felt like the sign of famed dictators, hailing a crowd of followers. This hand represented leadership from a very extreme point of view. It commanded respect, obedience, and it caused a lot of harm to masses of people during the Holocaust. In the next image, you saw the outstretched hand of Mother Theresa. Her palms were up, and she was offering food, water, and comfort to those in need. She touched others’ hands and through her physical engagement, brought a sense of warmth and comfort to people she didn’t know.
This image represents his past. There are two different forms of leadership here — one of thinking that he is right, that his beliefs are right, and that others need to learn something new. We are not comparing him to dictators but we are emphasizing one angle of leadership that he has pondered about — how does one actually get to that point? How does one lead and be so charismatic and yet so feared and hated through history? How can one person, one hand, get to wield so much power? These are questions that have burdened his psyche and he wonders if he can get to the bottom of it, he can reveal the metaphorical Wizard of Oz. That is, by revealing the inner works of how people follow and how people lead, he can wake people up to be their own, empowered, creator-selves.
The second part of the image is about how the hand can symbolize humanity, comfort, unconditional love, and warmth. It is the same part of a human body that can be expressed in such completely different ways. How does this connect back to a person’s heart? How is it that both people thought that they were right and righteous, and that they were creating a better world?
It is these questions that he seeks to answer. How is it that people can see and NOT SEE at the same time? How is it that these images are the yin and yang – both sides of the same coin that is all part of the larger WHOLE, or the ONEness?
Reflect on these questions and read about what others have said. Then write out and speak out what HE thinks. What are HIS lessons learned and conclusions from this work? What can he share with others so that other people can also ponder these questions?
We recommend doing the research, writing in his journal, reflecting and brainstorming how the symbol of the hand (with layers of meaning around leadership, love, and right vs. wrong) impacts where humanity is going. Speak to others and get their opinions, yes, but then go back to his own reflections, mullings and cross-pollinations to get out HIS ideas. Share them.
His first aspect is to study the hand and what it symbolizes and how it is the driving force of how humans relate to one another. Julie can recount her experience in Coro Leadership NY and the hand-to-face, hand-to-hand exercise. This is an eye-opening view of what control, ripple effects, and unknowing and involuntary impacts occur when people make conscious or unconscious choices.
The second aspect for him to ponder is around what it means to be a leader. It requires an element of self-awareness, selflessness in the way that he loses his own identity and becomes part of a larger WHOLE. This is a state of being that means that when he looks down at his own hands and his body, he doesn’t know where he starts and where he begins relative to the people he works with and serves. When he transcends self-identity and enters into a state of true service, then he is what we call a Divine Leader. That means, he is embodied in the divine principles of Love, Selflessness, and Truth. Note that selflessness implies transcendence of the self and the other as two separate entities. It is like when a drop of water enters a lake, the drop of water ceases to be itself. Instead it is part and parcel of a much larger WHOLE. Yes, it may contain millions and millions of droplets now, but they are all indiscernible and indistinguishable from each other. The human journey is to understand and express that shift in thinking and embodiment.
When has he felt part of a larger Whole? When has he been very conscious of how there is a self and an Other? When did he consciously become aware that he had transcended his own identity?
To be a divine leader is to be able to transcend that, and to see that his own will is still his ego. He may have a vision for what the world can look like and be like, but that this still driven by his ego mind. There is nothing WRONG with this. It is just to bring up the fact that the ego can serve the Higher Self, and that on the one hand, he may have a singular vision that he wants to get people on board with, and the on the other, he must realize that he is one person out of many who are all playing the roles that they are consciously or unconsciously playing. Stepping into this level of understanding will allow him to release control over how things are transpiring, and to truly be in service to a larger good.
Image 2
You saw a picture of the Earth, as seen from outer space. It was a beautiful planet – full of blue oceans, white whispy clouds, green and brown continents and lands. You felt the presence of one droplet of water, and then you noticed that the droplet of water went into the ocean. There, it transcended all identity and it was part of an ocean, and really ONE LARGE mass of water that encompassed the whole world. Only humans think about the ocean as the Atlantic and the Pacific, when in actuality, they are all one and the same. In the next image, you noticed that angels surrounded the entire globe, holding hands. They encircled the globe in a beautiful, golden white band. You then knew that every little that was happening on a day-to-day, one single human life- to one-single human life level, that ALL OF THIS was being orchestrated by something much greater than our minds and hearts can actually fathom.
This image represents his present moment. He is playing a role in healing the planet and it is all driven by divine love. This love communicates THROUGH him – through his intuition, his inspiration, his passion,and his excitement. When he is a divine leader, he is fueled by this unlimited divine love. If he can imagine that his work is part of a much larger and complex orchestration by a ring of angels around the Earth, then how does he view himself? Does he? Imagine if he no longer sees himself and his day to day work, and instead sees the grand view of angels all healing the world. And that he has a part to play in this healing.
We recommend shifting his focus and motivator from a personal, Self standpoint to one that can taken in the picture of the Earth as a whole. How does that shift his energy? What does he focus on and what thoughts arise? How does this impact his decision-making?
To see that this is all part of one hand and its guidance — that of love and healing — is to understand and then allow his OWN hand (as part of the One Hand) to move with more ease, lightness, and presence of being.
Notice whenever his ego mind arises about what is his and what is someone else’s. Notice when there is any separation in his mind about what he is doing vs. what someone else is doing. Notice how he feels when he can fill his mind and heart with an image of angels healing the world, and that his efforts are all part of this orchestration.
Notice that when an orchestra conductor uses his hand and the baton (ie, an extension of his hand) to conduct — he is providing cues, reminders to emphasize emotion here and emotion there, bringing in new voices and layering them so that the resulting piece is actually far, far greater than the sum of just its parts.
The third aspect for him to be mindful of is his ability to wield power and to let go of power. The notion of control and power are important in this discussion. In each and every one of his relationships, what is trying to control and hold on to? What is the IMAGE that he wants OTHER people to see about him? This control over image and control over how people interact with him is something for him to explore out of a state of love and compassion. When has he NOT held compassion for other people? When has judgment arisen? Who are the people who are usually the butt end of his judgment? What situations typically arise? Notice the patterns and reflect on shattering the patterns. What is he holding on to when he prefers to keep behaving in the same exact way?
To wield power is to channel it through his Higher Self, and to pour into the divine channels of others. Power is a neutral energy. It can be channeled and it can be channeled for positive and negative things. While both exist in this world and are both necessary to appreciate the other, the key is to channel this power through inspiration and love alone. When he interacts with others, it becomes how can he empower THEM to channel their power through their inspiration and love alone? If he can imagine a large straw that funnels the liquid gold of divine energy through to other people, his focus is on how can he attach the straw to these people properly, how can make sure that they aren’t leaking, how he make sure that they know what to DO with the liquid gold, and where it is ultimately going. These questions are analogous to how he aspires to empower others and to connect with their Higher Selves.
Note when he feels alive and what patterns exist. How does it relate to when he has connected teh straw, provided the divine energy, and helped them channel it in a way that keeps the flow going, and without it piling up like a blocked pipe?
Image 3
You saw a person connected to another person through this metaphorical straw. Divine energy, passion, enthusiasm ,joy and inspiration coursed through this straw. You then see that the main person had a straw that connected to the Universe — ie, up into the cosmic spheres (or the sky). This divine energy came from a higher, divine source. You then notice that these straws keep going on and on, connecting people’s hearts to other people’s hearts, and the loops continued. You then notice that everyone else also has a straw that connected to the sky and THEY were drawing in divine energy and sharing it through the hearts of other people. He was therefore RECEIVING divine energy from others even though he was focused on channeling his through THEM. YOU then notice that there is a giant spigot in the sky, and a large hand was turning the spigot on and off. You notice that this spigot doesn’t actually exist, and that this “one hand” in the sky is not real. You then notice that every single person had their OWN spigots and they could turn the flow on and off to their own hearts.
You realized that the key was their OWN hand that turned the spigot on and off, that was the most important hand. It affected whether it received energy from the Divine, and whether it was channeled to other people.
This image represents his future. How can he empower to know that THEY control their own spigots, and that there is not outer, large hand that controls the spigot above them? That is a myth. In actuality, everyone is interconnected, so that if one spigot were turned off, it affects everyone else. The goal is to realize that the true work is turning on the spigot ourselves and empowering others to see that the larger hand does not exist. It is all about our individual efforts that even allow a collective to exist.
We recommend identifying when he loses sight of own spigot and when he believes there something outside his control. How has he empowered others, and what does he feel is necessary to help others see their own spigots? Reflect on these questions and journal on them. Then, be in action to test out ideas and explore how he feels when he is channeling his energies..
How does this relate to career? The ideal is the channel his purpose through his daily work. Explore what this means with empowerment. Explore what this means with philosophizing and understanding the concepts around “the hand.” Explore how he wants to relate to the hand and what people need to be aware of in their own dealings.
How does this relate to relationships? When has he been the holder of the hand, and what rules and regulations does he make up? What does he move an inch on and it affects the well-being of others he doesn’t even know? Explore this and be in a position of empowerment so that their awakened selves and understand the roles they play in the larger web.
How does this relate to his service? It is all about service, and being in the mindset and heartset of transcending his own identity, goals and wishes in order to see the healing that is taking place collectively. It can feel like a duality but over time, he will see that the more he fills his heart with the image of the healing angels, the more he realizes that he is one of them and he is being guided by them.
His purpose is to believe in his power, to control his spigot, to awaken others to see their interconnectedness. It is about how he relates to people, how he relates to ideas and concepts that humanity has debated and discussed for thousands of years. Be in inquiry and be in a state of love, for it is with this way of being that he can demonstrate to others what truly expressing his purpose looks like.