Get our latest staff recommendations, award news and digital catalog links right to your inbox.
Contemporary Spirituality for an Evolving World
A Handbook for Conscious Evolution
Published by Bear & Company
Distributed by Simon & Schuster
Table of Contents
About The Book
A practical guide to conscious evolution for personal, spiritual, and global transformation
• Provides spiritual practices to manifest a meaningful connection between Self and God/Source/Creator and psychological exercises to heal the shadow self
• Offers an in-depth overview of religion and spirituality, both the old paradigm and the evolving new one
• Includes the first fully written account of the First Nations Peoples’ oral wisdom teachings on the 7 Dark, 7 Light, and 7 Rainbow Arrows for evolving consciousness
We are living in an unprecedented time of change, a new epoch with a new consciousness. We have reached Zero Point in our personal and collective consciousness and are now in a phase of accelerated conscious evolution and manifestation of personal and collective vision. As the current political, economic, and social systems begin to collapse, people are instinctively and intuitively reevaluating their lives and asking what has real meaning and value and what brings them true peace and happiness. Humanity is now poised to establish a unified, co-creative new world that reflects the evolved consciousness of awakened hearts and minds, of collaboration, and of peace.
Presenting a guide for these auspicious times, Nicolya Christi offers psychological and spiritual tools to accelerate conscious and global evolution and initiate a New Consciousness for the post–December 21st, 2012, epoch. She gives an in-depth overview of religion and spirituality, both the old paradigm and the evolving new one, and explains how all trauma results from “empathic disconnection,” which hinders our spiritual growth. She provides spiritual practices to manifest a meaningful connection between Self and God/Source/Creator as well as psychological exercises to heal and integrate the shadow self and dissolve psychological wounds. She offers the first fully written account of the First Nations Peoples’ oral wisdom teachings on the 7 Dark, 7 Light, and 7 Rainbow Arrows for evolving consciousness. She also writes in depth about the evolution of relationship and aspiring to a higher love and sexuality.
Detailing several maps and models for conscious and global evolution, this handbook inspires each of us toward a consciously evolving spirituality and a true and authentic relationship with God/Source/Creator.
• Provides spiritual practices to manifest a meaningful connection between Self and God/Source/Creator and psychological exercises to heal the shadow self
• Offers an in-depth overview of religion and spirituality, both the old paradigm and the evolving new one
• Includes the first fully written account of the First Nations Peoples’ oral wisdom teachings on the 7 Dark, 7 Light, and 7 Rainbow Arrows for evolving consciousness
We are living in an unprecedented time of change, a new epoch with a new consciousness. We have reached Zero Point in our personal and collective consciousness and are now in a phase of accelerated conscious evolution and manifestation of personal and collective vision. As the current political, economic, and social systems begin to collapse, people are instinctively and intuitively reevaluating their lives and asking what has real meaning and value and what brings them true peace and happiness. Humanity is now poised to establish a unified, co-creative new world that reflects the evolved consciousness of awakened hearts and minds, of collaboration, and of peace.
Presenting a guide for these auspicious times, Nicolya Christi offers psychological and spiritual tools to accelerate conscious and global evolution and initiate a New Consciousness for the post–December 21st, 2012, epoch. She gives an in-depth overview of religion and spirituality, both the old paradigm and the evolving new one, and explains how all trauma results from “empathic disconnection,” which hinders our spiritual growth. She provides spiritual practices to manifest a meaningful connection between Self and God/Source/Creator as well as psychological exercises to heal and integrate the shadow self and dissolve psychological wounds. She offers the first fully written account of the First Nations Peoples’ oral wisdom teachings on the 7 Dark, 7 Light, and 7 Rainbow Arrows for evolving consciousness. She also writes in depth about the evolution of relationship and aspiring to a higher love and sexuality.
Detailing several maps and models for conscious and global evolution, this handbook inspires each of us toward a consciously evolving spirituality and a true and authentic relationship with God/Source/Creator.
Excerpt
CHAPTER FOUR
From Religion to Contemporary Spirituality
I found I had less and less to say, until finally,
I became silent, and began to listen.
I discovered in The Silence, The Voice of God.
--Soren Kierkegaard
CONSCIOUS COMMUNICATION
As human beings, the greatest gift we have at our disposal can also be the greatest weapon--words. We can heal ourselves, others, and the world with words, yet they can also be used in a destructive manner. Because of the pressure of living in the culture that we have been raised in we have mimicked and learned dysfunctional and entirely inappropriate ways of relating, not only with others but also with ourselves. Most of us are unaware that the ways in which we relate are entirely distorted and unnatural.
We have been conditioned from birth to buy into a fear-based mentality and react. Generally, most cultures of the world exist in survival mode, in a pattern of fight or flight, which is a react and defend mentality. A healthy way of relating is when we are free to express our true feelings without fear, when we speak from the heart and communicate honestly, are emotionally stable, and are able to respond instead of react.
Conscious communication requires that we trust in ourselves, in our truth, and in our ability to express this to others. Reacting is a defense mechanism and responding is an expression of the felt sense. To react is to attack and defend. Response is a balanced, calm, and stable communication speaking directly to the emotions, with feelings being expressed consciously and mindfully. Reacting uses language that disconnects, finger points, blames, and shames. The language of response is connected, centered, empathic, and compassionate.
Ask yourself, Do I have to remain in survival mode or can I dare to explore how it would feel to trust, to be open, transparent, and, most importantly, to risk sharing from the heart, communicating from the foundation of Love, which forms the core of each one of us?
To make this shift requires courage and a yearning to know and experience true peace at the deepest level of our Being. To embark upon such a noble quest will require a radical reevaluation of our relationships, a conscious encounter with our wounding, an exploration and clearing of our psychological history, and a period of deconditioning from the ingrained patterns of fear, defense, attack, and survival, which have accumulated throughout our lives. We are blessed to live in times when freedom is offered to most of us on a plate. It is ours for the choosing. Never before in modern history have so many of us been free to make life-serving choices.
THE FOUR INTENTIONS AS A MODEL FOR CONSCIOUS COMMUNICATION
The Four Intentions can support our quest to establish a new approach in our communications.
1. Speak from the Heart
This means speaking not from our heads but from our hearts. It means to communicate as honestly as we can in every moment.
Today we may each experience countless thoughts, ideas, or feelings, some that bring us joy and some that may make us feel uncomfortable or emotional. Let us set an intention to express these truthfully, being mindful to do so from the heart--be it with words, movement, sound, or in conscious, respectful, and connected silence.
Let us trust our capacity to be present as individuals or in a group and seek to find harmonious ways to express our thoughts and feelings, fostering harmonious outcomes and resolutions.
2. Listen from the Heart
This means that we try to listen without judgment, to listen with an open mind, even if we disagree with what the person is saying. We simply try to take in what is being said and to hear it completely.
If we feel the need to express a feeling or thought we must remain mindful to whether we are reacting or responding. If we are reacting, we are not speaking from the heart.
3. Communicate Respectfully
Communicating respectfully means waiting until the other has finished speaking before we respond. We try not to interject or interrupt. We are mindful not to raise our voice above whoever is speaking in order to be heard ourselves.
Let us be mindful that some voices are quieter than others. Those with quiet voices may find it difficult to contribute. These voices are to be encouraged as they have equal validity and a right to be heard. Let us not cultivate a communication where the loudest voices rule!
The intent with respectful communication is to wait for the other to express his thoughts and feelings and then check with him to confirm he has finished, at which point we can express our desire to respond and to include our own thoughts and feelings.
4. Speak Leanly
Something that is lean has nothing extra or unnecessary attached to it. Speaking leanly means to keep to the point of what we are trying to say and to let go of any unnecessary details.
When we speak, we need to keep in mind that there is another, or others, involved in the communication who may also wish to share and be heard. Speaking leanly fosters the practice of mindfulness in our communications--for example, respecting our own, as well as another’s, time boundaries.
Speaking leanly invites us to avoid going off on tangents, instead sticking to the essence of what it is we wish to share. Remember, most people appreciate the opportunity to be heard, yet more often than not there is only a limited amount of time to do so.
Let us also practice listening from the heart. Through attentive listening, we foster deep sharing and communication that meets the needs of both (all) parties.
This approach beautifully honors our need to be seen and heard, gracefully serving the cultivation of harmony with others.
From Religion to Contemporary Spirituality
I found I had less and less to say, until finally,
I became silent, and began to listen.
I discovered in The Silence, The Voice of God.
--Soren Kierkegaard
CONSCIOUS COMMUNICATION
As human beings, the greatest gift we have at our disposal can also be the greatest weapon--words. We can heal ourselves, others, and the world with words, yet they can also be used in a destructive manner. Because of the pressure of living in the culture that we have been raised in we have mimicked and learned dysfunctional and entirely inappropriate ways of relating, not only with others but also with ourselves. Most of us are unaware that the ways in which we relate are entirely distorted and unnatural.
We have been conditioned from birth to buy into a fear-based mentality and react. Generally, most cultures of the world exist in survival mode, in a pattern of fight or flight, which is a react and defend mentality. A healthy way of relating is when we are free to express our true feelings without fear, when we speak from the heart and communicate honestly, are emotionally stable, and are able to respond instead of react.
Conscious communication requires that we trust in ourselves, in our truth, and in our ability to express this to others. Reacting is a defense mechanism and responding is an expression of the felt sense. To react is to attack and defend. Response is a balanced, calm, and stable communication speaking directly to the emotions, with feelings being expressed consciously and mindfully. Reacting uses language that disconnects, finger points, blames, and shames. The language of response is connected, centered, empathic, and compassionate.
Ask yourself, Do I have to remain in survival mode or can I dare to explore how it would feel to trust, to be open, transparent, and, most importantly, to risk sharing from the heart, communicating from the foundation of Love, which forms the core of each one of us?
To make this shift requires courage and a yearning to know and experience true peace at the deepest level of our Being. To embark upon such a noble quest will require a radical reevaluation of our relationships, a conscious encounter with our wounding, an exploration and clearing of our psychological history, and a period of deconditioning from the ingrained patterns of fear, defense, attack, and survival, which have accumulated throughout our lives. We are blessed to live in times when freedom is offered to most of us on a plate. It is ours for the choosing. Never before in modern history have so many of us been free to make life-serving choices.
THE FOUR INTENTIONS AS A MODEL FOR CONSCIOUS COMMUNICATION
The Four Intentions can support our quest to establish a new approach in our communications.
1. Speak from the Heart
This means speaking not from our heads but from our hearts. It means to communicate as honestly as we can in every moment.
Today we may each experience countless thoughts, ideas, or feelings, some that bring us joy and some that may make us feel uncomfortable or emotional. Let us set an intention to express these truthfully, being mindful to do so from the heart--be it with words, movement, sound, or in conscious, respectful, and connected silence.
Let us trust our capacity to be present as individuals or in a group and seek to find harmonious ways to express our thoughts and feelings, fostering harmonious outcomes and resolutions.
2. Listen from the Heart
This means that we try to listen without judgment, to listen with an open mind, even if we disagree with what the person is saying. We simply try to take in what is being said and to hear it completely.
If we feel the need to express a feeling or thought we must remain mindful to whether we are reacting or responding. If we are reacting, we are not speaking from the heart.
3. Communicate Respectfully
Communicating respectfully means waiting until the other has finished speaking before we respond. We try not to interject or interrupt. We are mindful not to raise our voice above whoever is speaking in order to be heard ourselves.
Let us be mindful that some voices are quieter than others. Those with quiet voices may find it difficult to contribute. These voices are to be encouraged as they have equal validity and a right to be heard. Let us not cultivate a communication where the loudest voices rule!
The intent with respectful communication is to wait for the other to express his thoughts and feelings and then check with him to confirm he has finished, at which point we can express our desire to respond and to include our own thoughts and feelings.
4. Speak Leanly
Something that is lean has nothing extra or unnecessary attached to it. Speaking leanly means to keep to the point of what we are trying to say and to let go of any unnecessary details.
When we speak, we need to keep in mind that there is another, or others, involved in the communication who may also wish to share and be heard. Speaking leanly fosters the practice of mindfulness in our communications--for example, respecting our own, as well as another’s, time boundaries.
Speaking leanly invites us to avoid going off on tangents, instead sticking to the essence of what it is we wish to share. Remember, most people appreciate the opportunity to be heard, yet more often than not there is only a limited amount of time to do so.
Let us also practice listening from the heart. Through attentive listening, we foster deep sharing and communication that meets the needs of both (all) parties.
This approach beautifully honors our need to be seen and heard, gracefully serving the cultivation of harmony with others.
Product Details
- Publisher: Bear & Company (September 2, 2013)
- Length: 304 pages
- ISBN13: 9781591438434
Browse Related Books
Raves and Reviews
“Nicolya Christi writes with the soul of a mystic, the mind of an evolutionary, and the heart of a lover of life itself. She brings forth the agenda for human conscious evolution--social and beyond--to guide us toward the next era of our evolution. . . . This book is magnificent, a labor of love and a gift to us all."
– Barbara Marx Hubbard, author of Birth 2012 and Beyond and president of the Foundation for Conscious
“Every now and then a rare book comes along that synthesizes the key trends of an epoch and where we are headed. Such was Marlilyn Fergusons’s The Aquarian Conspiracy in 1980. Nicolya Christi has achieved a similar tour de force by synthesizing the fields of spirituality, psychology, and personal development. One feels that her understanding of spirituality is something she has lived through, experienced, and felt in a manner we have rarely encountered in the contemporary literature."
– Pierre Pradervand, author of The Gentle Art of Blessing and Messages of Life from Death Row
“Nicolya Christi’s new book is a roadmap that speaks to the authentic self within each of us. This rich and compelling book is a psychological tour de force for finding our way back to the wisdom of the Self. Nicolya Christi speaks from the intelligence of the heart in offering a crystal-clear vision of psycho-spiritual integration, the ‘new human,’ and the significance of Higher Love. This book is indispensable for anyone wishing to connect with a contemporary spirituality for an evolving world."
– Kingsley L. Dennis, author of New Consciousness for a New World and Struggle for Your Mind and cofou
“Nicolya Christi is a bridge between the old world and the New Earth that is arising, and so is this--her latest book. It connects the reader to deep psychological and spiritual truths explored in simple, accessible concepts and language. It connects the mind and the heart, the inner and the outer life, and shows how we have imprisoned ourselves and how we can liberate ourselves. It will prove a blessing to all who enter its pages and apply the wisdom through their own heart’s knowing, thus blessing all life."
– Wendy Webber, core process psychotherapist, trauma resource facilitator, coach/mentor for personal a
“Contemporary Spirituality for an Evolving World: A Handbook for Conscious Evolution is recommended for general spirituality holdings as well as new age collections, offering a set of psychological and spiritual keys to achieve global evolution and a new consciousness for the new year. It reviews old and new paradigms of religion and spirituality, examining how elements of the newly evolving world differ from old habits and paths that hinder spiritual growth, and it provides a strong collection of psychological exercises designed to heal psychological and spiritual wounds. The result is an outstanding survey, highly recommended for any interested in uncovering differences between new spiritual thinking patterns and old habits.”
– Midwest Book Review, December 2013
“This book is beautiful. The chapter ‘Contemporary Spirituality for an Evolving World’ is revolutionary, thank God, and very, very timely. This book is about You. I highly recommend you read it."
– Rev. Peter Owen-Jones, author of Bed of Nails and Letters from an Extreme Pilgrim
“As our current political, economic and social systems have recently shown distinctive collapse, people instinctively and intuitively re-evaluate their lives by looking at the methods for achieving true peace and happiness. Nicoyla Christi believes we are now perfectly poised to establish a new, co-creative world that reflects awakened hearts, minds, peace and collaboration. This book is mean to facilitate an evolutionary shift within your consciousness so you can evolve into a lasting peace, free from past negativity, allowing you to become the best incredible being that you are.”
– Awareness Magazine, March 2014
“This book is outstanding, crucially timely, and important."
– Ervin Laszlo, Nobel Prize nominee and author of 83 books in 21 languages, including Science and the
“Christi (2012: A Clarion Call) feels the urgency of the need for widespread change in our existence; this extensive study and manual for such alteration, both personal and cultural, is organized rather loosely around Native American–inspired conceptions of “arrows”: Seven Dark, Seven Light, and Seven Rainbow. Christi’s prior work—and to a lesser extent this book—is anchored in the rather dubious elevation of 2012 as either the end of the world or a prompt for transformation, depending on your outlook (that “Mayan calendar”), but the principles she espouses are hard to contest: peace, justice, self-discovery. VERDICT Christi’s goal—to turn “emergency into emergence”—is laudable and many readers, especially those interested in alternative religious perspectives, will find value in her book.”
– Library Journal, May 2014
Resources and Downloads
High Resolution Images
- Book Cover Image (jpg): Contemporary Spirituality for an Evolving World eBook 9781591438434
