Can we use words to make ourselves feel and actually be better? Michael Morrison certainly thinks so, and in this insightful guide he tells us about the transformational power of language. In doing so, he delves into such concepts as neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), Lamarckian evolution theory, the Biology of Belief, Cell- Level Healing, the power of prayer (in health as well as sickness), the Gaia Hypothesis, and Earth Hour. As current concerns move from the individual to the global, our well-being is seen as holistic rather than localised. Can we use positive thoughts and frame positive words to change ourselves-and ultimately help our world flourish? Read Prisoner of Words and discover a new approach to old problems.

Prisoner of Words

By Michael E Morrison

BALBOA PRESS

Copyright © 2012 Michael E Morrison
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4525-4713-8

Contents

Acknowledgements.........................................viiIntroduction.............................................xiChapter One Prisoner of Words...........................1Chapter Two Health and Words............................11Chapter Three Wealth and Words..........................25Chapter Four The Power of Prayer........................35Chapter Five The Science of Imagery.....................53Closing Chapter..........................................65Bibliography.............................................69

Chapter One

Prisoner of Words

Your beliefs become your thoughts; Your thoughts become your words; Your words become your actions; Your actions become your habits; Your habits become your values; Your values become your destiny. Gandhi

Reading the above quote from Gandhi teaches us the importance of tracking our thoughts. Eckhart Tolle refers to employing a 'watchman' in The Power of Now. By that he means being a guardian to our mind's chatterbox and casting a watchful eye over our negative states. By employing the 'watchman', we welcome in only the good positive energies. We all have negative thoughts, but the important thing is not to let them linger. 'Just as we can't stop birds from flying over our heads, but we can stop them from nesting in our hair, so we can't avoid evil thoughts, but we can stop them from taking root in our heart and giving birth to evil deeds.' (Martin Luther) This is achieved only through a commitment of consistency. Think of the time we put aside to exercise our bodies through dieting, exercising and the like. Why not put time aside to exercise your mind? Brain gym, as you will. Anyone for some positive press-ups? For habit can be the best of masters or the worst of servants.

There is no such thing as an idle thought.

Every thought and word has a power and unique vibration that carries a force so great that it can change us. It can be pure magic. Thoughts sculpt and shape our destiny. Words can allow us to express our thoughts. Every utterance we espouse is life changing. Every day we have the power to make a difference – a kind word of appreciation; hello to a stranger; a humorous exchange of energies, or to say 'I love you' to a loved one, a family member or friend. The more we express these simple words, the more love, laughter and lightness we attract back into our lives.

We are engulfed and surrounded by a latticework of energies. Everything vibrates and resonates in our own bodily system, our surroundings and our universe. Our energies can be affected by our thoughts and words. Every thought and word has a vibratory imprint that can greatly influence our landscape. Think of our daily language patterns: we don't accept compliments, we put ourselves down to easily, we use the words like 'try', 'but' and 'I don't know', 'I'm not good enough'. We are conditioning ourselves by verbally inputting self-defeating negative language. In Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), there is no such thing as trying.

Trying is useless. You can try real hard to feel better and finish feeling worse. Trying is like attempting to force a door inwards, you can waste a lot of energy before you realise it actually opens outwards.

Joseph O'Connor and John Seymour, Introducing NLP, p.68

Oft quoted from Nelson Mandela, but sourced from The Course of Miracles, the biggest fear is the fear of who we could become and how bright we can shine. The fear of fear often derails us on our path, paralysing us from actualising and becoming who we want to become. Allied with the fear of failure, the two fears can numb us into ourselves. Sean Lemass, former-Taoiseach of Ireland, once said, 'A man who never made a mistake, never made anything.' I remember having that quote etched on my desk while studying for my Leaving Certificate examinations. This quote is further strengthened by Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP).

In NLP, Robert Dilts developed a means for turning what looks like failure into feedback. That is, every experience experienced is an opportunity to learn. We do what we can and make comparisons to what our desired outcome would be. By bridging the gap between our current situation and our ideal situation, we are getting closer and closer to realising our ideal situation and goal. An environment of punishment and fear of failure does not create an environment of exploration and independence but a fear of failure. It is literally promoting a failure-to-launch mentality.

Think about driving a car. At first we are nervous nellies behind the wheel. Our awareness is very poor; our command of the gearstick is rough; and we are very conscious of everything and every action of driving, from igniting the engine to seat belts, signalling, checking mirrors, working through the gears, etc. If we were to take our first efforts behind the wheel and become one with that experience of ineptitude, we would not be too inclined to return behind the wheel. However, with time the experience behind the wheel becomes more comfortable as we develop and learn from mistakes. The feedback from instructors makes us a better and more skilled driver, turning us from a conscious incompetent driver to an unconscious competent driver who is no longer consciously focusing and concentrating on every gear change. This gradual progression is a good example of feedback, and the powerful learning experience of feedback over the failure ethos. Imagine the power of schooling and educating under this model, rather than fear and failure. The person develops and sees learning as fun and shows others how to learn rather than what to learn.

'Man's mind, once stretched to a new idea, never goes back to its original dimension.' (Oliver Wendell Holmes)

Since the dawning of time, man has constantly stretched himself intellectually and mentally, and with that stretch of thought society has benefitted to a degree. So many great thinkers have opened the doors of destiny, and though ridiculed at the start they broke through the conservative thinking of the time to become paramount in our thought patterns today. Think back to Copernicus, when he announced the Sun and not the Earth was the centre of the Universe. He was ridiculed and lambasted as a heretic by the gross masses.

Wendell Holmes' quote excites me every time I read it aloud. Throughout my time in reading and researching for my book A Path Less Conventional, I have encountered and embraced a considerable paradigm shift in how I look at health, no longer studying illness but studying health. As mentioned before, I was a disciple of Western medicine, bowing to the illusion of health being a pill for every ill. This dupes us into believing we are being healed. In reality we are just disempowered bystanders to health. I realised this one restless night, bereft of sleep, that I and only I could really help me. I was no longer limited by the conventional menu of Western medicine alone. Now I can employ the wonders of complementary practices in addition to conventional medicine.

This path less conventional has ignited a fire of passionate interest in looking at health – from looking at energetic principles of homeopathy to the quantum mechanics of Matrix Energetics. Each step has seen me move from being a mere passenger to chief participator. This stretch in thought has given me greater insight into the means and methods needed to gain better health.

It is important to find your sense of what feels right. The Swedenborgs spoke of the importance of distinguishing what is right from what is wrong, and how to gauge between the two was the key to intelligence; then to have the courage and grace to follow your instincts, even though others may look oddly and some may look poorly on you. In this path, we are honouring our innate intelligent antennae. Honouring our within and our without will shine.

How do we Converse with Ourselves?

Words form the thread on which we string our experiences. Aldous Huxley

How do you talk to yourself daily? Do you rejoice and regale your body and mind with how wonderful you are? Do you play the Ally McBeal-style soundtracks in your mind that make you feel alive and pumped up? Or do you browbeat yourself with negative energies? Do you analyse to the point of paralysis every aspect, to the point that you are not living?

'Words have profound suggestive power.' (Norman Vincent Peale, The Power of Positive Thinking) Words can whip us into a frenzied panic or create an oasis of calm. The words we use have a profound physiological and psychological effect on us. When we are at one with ourselves and happy with ourselves our language changes. We speak with dynamism and energy that is infectious to all around us. We create a magnetism that draws more vibrancy into our lives. Through our verbiage, we can break from the shackles of our own ego-created prison or entrap and enslave ourselves into this prisoner of words mentality. Peale states that 'our mind reacts to peaceful words'. Next time you find yourself wired, follow Peale's advice and try saying a few choice melodic, peaceful words to induce peace, like serenity, tranquillity, and so on.

Transformational Vocabulary

'Transformational Vocabulary' is a phrase coined by the vivacious champion of language, Anthony Robbins. Robbins was amazed that, upon hearing negative news delivered to him and two other colleagues while in a meeting, it induced three differing levels of angst: one was 'Annoyed', another 'Enraged' and then he was 'Angry'. The employment of a word has a huge bearing on the situation we can create for ourselves. Our words can create peace or drama in our lives. Most people inhabit an impoverished language landscape and can only employ a handful of words to describe any and all situations. Think of your words when you hear bad news. Do you make a mountain out of a molehill?

A colleague of mine while on a conference spoke to me about my use of the word 'hate'. I did not use this word in relation to another being, I must add. It was an experience, a rather trivial experience, and not one that would warrant such a strong word as hate. The choice of word like hate is very strong, and a lot of us choose inappropriate words to describe a situation that does not merit such power-punching intensity.

Transformational Vocabulary, according to Robbins, is simply adjusting our habitual daily vocabulary to change how we think, feel and live. It is the 'power to instantly transform emotions, to lower or heighten their intensity'. (Giant Steps, Section 6, 'Vocabulary of Success', p.183) Take the time to correctly attune your mood and emotion to your vocabulary. Next time, when someone rattles your cage or you hear bad news, think before you speak and employ the word befitting the situation. How would you react to being told 'You've got a puncture'? Angry? Annoyed? Enraged? Pissed? Agitated?

Compare this with the news of being let go from your job. Both situations are not ideal, though they're not on the same scale. Respond accordingly to each and every situation. Also, note how people retort to the greeting, 'How are you?' Many mundanely respond with the gloomy, dull laconic 'OK', followed by a heavy sigh, or with the equally laconic 'Fine'. Both replies are devoid of animation or enthusiasm. Try responding with the gusto and enthusiasm of a child. 'Life is smiling', 'Champion', or 'I am peachy', and see the effect you have on you yourself and the person asking. A lot better than hearing the mundane 'OK'.

With over 750,000 words in the English language, why limit ourselves to so few? We are beasts of habit and our language pattern reflects this habitual nature. However, our choice of words can greatly influence our reality and our view of reality. I abhor the use of profane language, and since the birth of my beautiful niece, Sophia, I made an agreement with myself to cut down and limit my use of vulgar or vile words. 'Son of a bitch' was replaced with 'son of a biscuit' à la Butters in South Park; f—k was replaced with 'fudge' or 'fiddlesticks'; 'Jaysus' with 'jeepers'. It is only when watching my beloved Arsenal or Ireland play soccer in the company of friends and fans that 'whoops-a-daisy' and 'jeepers' seem a little out of context amid the machismo of male bonding and soccer watching. The referee is a fist shaker!

Before I was sixteen, I never read a book outside of school and academia. I was not inclined to the world of words. In fact, I wanted to leave school at fifteen to work as a bag packer in my local grocer rather than face doing exams. I picked up a fervent interest in football and Arsenal in particular. My parents bought me a copy of A Complete History of Arsenal and my reading voyage began! I remember having to read and reread words with my trusted pocket-sized Collins Dictionary in hand. Not a line would pass without some word needing to be checked. A love affair with words began for me and their rich employment in my language. I would underline and scribble in books the meaning of the word and make reams of notes of words and their meaning beside them. When I can, I browse online at www.dictionary.com for their word of the day and how to employ that word into everyday language. Along with perusing dictionary.com, I encourage you to read, read, read. It opens up the doorways to our imagination.

Our choice of words can create an environment for change and improvement, or a feeling of self-doubt and fear. They can allow us to circumnavigate problems or lead in and provide us with yet more headaches; they can assuage or add fire to troublesome situations. In essence, words are the foundation for the world we inhabit. Allow your words to be words of wonder, not woes!

WORD WORKOUT

excursus \ik-SKUR-sus\, noun:

1. a dissertation that is appended to a work and that contains a more extended exposition of some important point or topic.

2. a digression.

inveterate \in-VET-uhr-it\, adjective:

1. firmly established by long persistence; deep-rooted; of long standing.

2. fixed in habit by long persistence; confirmed; habitual.

excoriate \ek-SKOR-ee-ayt\, transitive verb:

1. to express strong disapproval of; to denounce.

2. to tear or wear off the skin of.

loquacious \loh-KWAY-shuhs\, adjective:

1. very talkative.

2. full of excessive talk; wordy.

erudite \AIR-yuh-dyt; -uh-dyt\, adjective: characterised by extensive reading or knowledge; learned.

Chapter Two

Health and Words

Words can produce illness; words can kill. Therefore, wise physicians are very careful about the way they communicate. Dr Norman Cousins

Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. World Health Organisation definition of 'health'

Health is more than just physical wellness as affirmed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) definition of health. The root of the word health is derived from the Greek word holos meaning 'whole'. Taking this meaning, we need to embrace health as mental, emotional and spiritual wellness as well as physical. That means it is very important that we find a career that caters for and meets all the above criteria, allowing us to have both short- and long-term goals.

Health Equals Harmony in our Working Lives

It is important for our health that we have both short- and long-term goals and outcomes we wish to achieve. Our soul is our guiding light, shining on us, showing us the path we must follow to fulfil our spiritual journey. If we take time out of the daily dalliances of life and use that time to reflect on our interests and hobbies, I believe there are enough clues present in our daily lives to tell us what we should be doing.

The Soul knows what environment and what circumstances will best enable us to do this, and hence HE places us in the branch of life most suited for that object. Edward Bach, Heal Thyself, p.7

It is when we veer from the path of soul illumination that we dim our own light and with that invite illness in. I believe that this is one of the most overlooked causes of disease. Dis-ease with one's life invites illness into our lives. For illness is the way for man to rebalance and readdress the conflict in his life and it is the ...

... bringing back of the personality to the Divine will of the Soul; and thus we can see that it is both preventable and avoidable, since if we could realise for ourselves the mistakes we are making and correct these by spiritual and mental means there could be no need for severe lessons of suffering. Bach, op. cit., p.9

Why is our Health so Precarious?

Today our society is more affluent than ever before. We have access to greater class of health care, pills for every ill, and yet health is far from being our strongest asset. People's automobiles are given more maintenance and care than their owners. We often continue apace, with our lifestyle having more importance than taking time out to listen and cater for our bodies. These physical vessels are being polluted and the outcome is not only detrimental to their bodies' health but that of their offspring and their offspring's offspring. For the Lamarckian theory of evolution espouses that organisms acquire and pass on adaptations necessary for their survival in a changing environment.

(Continues...)

Excerpted from Prisoner of Wordsby Michael E Morrison Copyright © 2012 by Michael E Morrison. Excerpted by permission of BALBOA PRESS. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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