The Spiritual Mechanics of EFT
Part 3 of 3 - Using EFT for spiritual goals

In this final part of this series I look at how  EFT might be applied to spiritual goals.  Even if your goals aren't directly spiritual (perhaps being about business or relationships), our spiritual fears and beliefs can have a direct impact on what we think is possible or acceptable for us in those arenas. Here are a few of the main ways EFT can be applied to spiritual issues, with example setup statements to illustrate and get you thinking.

Dealing with Conflicts and Paradoxes
One of the first sorts of problems that faces the spiritual seeker are the conflicts and paradoxes between spiritual ideas and concepts versus situations faced in everyday life.  These can be dealt with as any other conflict, using the Conflict Pattern (described by Silvia Hartmann), which often results in insight and/or release of tension between the two ideas e.g.
   - "Even though God loves us AND there is suffering, ..."
   - "Even though I'm in a world of dualities AND I want to experience my Oneness,..."
   - "Even though I want to turn the other cheek AND be a protective father to my family,..."

Working with Goals
With any goal, sometimes even thinking about it brings up emotional resistance and doubts. With spiritual goals these can be a sign of the work itself that needs to be done. By applying EFT to these doubts, you're not only dealing with your reversals around the goal, you may well be working on the goal very directly. e.g.
   - "Even though I've been praying for salvation all my life and I just feel exactly the same no matter what,…"
   - "Even though I'm probably being arrogant even presuming to be closer to God,…"
   - "Even though I don't like having spiritual goals because they might not be God's will,…" 

Working with Fear
Fear and Blocks around spiritual issues can be extremely profound, especially if they are rooted in traditional religious teaching. Applying EFT to these fears can be extremely helpful in bringing clarity of thought and a willingness to explore spiritual issues more freely. e.g.
   - "Even though I'm afraid of going to Hell,…"
   - "Even though I feel having fun must be wrong because it doesn't look spiritual,…"
   - "Even though I'm a bit afraid of suddenly being taken over and not being me any more if I surrender to the divine,…"

Working with Beliefs
Beliefs can act as powerful stoppers in any area of life. But spiritual beliefs can be even more a problem in that they may be a "matter of faith" - so  that questioning them can seem like an UNspiritual act. EFT has repeatedly been shown to only take away the negative, and to leave intact the true and positive. EFT therefore offers a way to explore spiritual beliefs safely, in the sense that whatever may be removed will ONLY be the negative or untrue aspects of the belief. Beliefs based on the truth (or love, if you prefer) will remain intact; beliefs founded on fear or lack of confidence will be more likely to fall away. e.g.
   - "Even though I think only <Jesus/Buddha> was capable of true connection with the divine,…"
   - "Even though I think I should be getting some kind of tangible vision if I were really spiritually enlightened,…"
   - "Even though I can't make lots of money because I'm a good Catholic,..."

Finally, some spiritual traditions regard all beliefs as being illusions of the conscious mind. Could not EFT be applied to this problem too? e.g.
    - "Even though I have conflicting beliefs, I deeply and completely accept myself for having them."
    - "Even though this looks like a paradox I deeply and completely accept myself for not understanding it and not being able to resolve it."
    - "Even though I have all these beliefs and delusions, I deeply and completely accept myself."

I believe applying EFT to spiritually related goals opens up a whole new arena for personal exploration. I'd love to hear from any readers who try some these ideas on themselves.

Gross National Happiness How the King of Bhutan decided to "have it all".
(Inspired by an article in The Sunday Observer by William Sutcliffe, 2003)

Bhutan is a tiny country between India and China. It was isolated from the "developed" world for centuries and so its way of life is highly traditional - except for several very modern differences:

- Most Bhutanese people live a traditional village life based on farming - but all its adults have access to a free adult literacy and education system.

- The average yearly income is about £300 ($600) - but it provides a free medical system that has doubled the life expectancy within a few decades.

- People wear the same traditional dress as their ancestors hundreds of years ago - but they go to discos playing Western pop music.

- The national pastime is archery - but Bhutan has it's own mobile phone service and even the Bhuddist monks carry them.

So what has happened to allow this extremely stable traditional society to also embrace so many of the benefits of modern technology? And what lesson can this teach those of us seeking to live more fulfilled lives. The answer lies with the King of Bhutan. He has  decided that "Gross National Happiness" is more important than "Gross National Product" - and makes policy decisions accordingly.

Superficially, it's about beling selective about what to bring in from the outside world and what to keep out. But beneath these individual decisions is a more Fundamental Choice - that happiness is more important than the rest of the world's definition of success.

My point isn't that Bhutan is a paradise or even a perfect society (many would dislike its political structures for instance). But it is successfully existing on its own terms and according to its own values.

So, what's your Fundamental Choice? And do your day-to-day choices reflect that? It doesn't have to be the same as the King of Bhutan's.

EFT on TV.
Or how to get someone's attention when introducing them to EFT.

EFT is starting to hit the mainstream in the UK. Recently EFT has been featured on several TV shows and used by some big name entertainers as part of their repertoire. if you're in the UK you might like to keep an eye out for these names and shows.

Paul McKenna is perhaps the biggest name to pick up on EFT - he currently has a regular feature on ITV's "This Morning" show in which he is challenged to deal with someone's phobia during the show. Paul McKenna is a hypnotist and NLP practitioner and mixes his techniques together - as many EFT practitioners also do.

Discovery Health Channel has recently finished screen a show called "Life Guru" featuring a hypnotherapist,coach, and NLP practitioner - who, like Paul, mixes in EFT occasionally for issues such as public speaking and confidence.

And just last month, BBC1 aired a programme on the subject of anger which featured many different techniques, including TFT (Thought Field Therapy - a precursor to EFT).

Why does this matter? It's an unfortunate fact that most people will take far more notice of something they see on TV compared to a leaflet, a website or an advertisement. Why? Because TV means  "Lots of other people already think this is a good thing - trying this isn't a completely whacky or stupid thing to do". If you're a practitioner or a self-help fan of EFT, mentioning EFT on TV can be a great way to get someone's attention!

Gary's Corner

Gary Craig, the originator of EFT maintains an excellent website packed with real case histories. Each month I select case histories that really show the power and range of EFT.

This month:

The Palace of Possibilities - Money

Gary's Palace of Possibilities series and CD set were a major inspiration to me in writing The EFT Coach. The whole series is well worth reading - and applying! This part focuses on money issues.

EFT Coach featured on AMT website.
I'm really excited to report that The EFT Coach was featured last month on the main website of the Association for Meridian Therapies. It was reviewed by none other than Silvia Hartmann (author of Adventures in EFT and many other works on energy psychology). In her unsolicited review she says::

 "...The EFT Coach, with its specific techniques, guidelines and practice examples ... presents EFT for what it really is - a boost for ANYONE who wants to realise their own ambitions, enhance their existing strengths, maximise their potential and further their own endeavours in a most proactive and positive way". (Full review)

Learn EFT now! You can start using EFT for yourself right now by downloading my EFT QuickStart manual.

Alternatively, learn directly from Gary Craig, by ordering his training CD's

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