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How Blissful Are You? Take the Quiz!, by Tess Whitehurst

(Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal.)

Author's note: at the end of this article, you'll find a simple quiz that assesses your holistic happiness and wellbeing with the help of nine essential life keys. But first, let me introduce you to the wisdom behind these nine life keys, which is the guiding force behind my newest (and perhaps most exciting!) book, The Art of Bliss: Finding Your Center, Getting in the Flow, and Creating the Life You Desire.

When I first started practicing metaphysics, I thought of it as a process of adding something, or tacking on something extra. You know, my normal everyday existence, plus a new romance or a new job (or whatever it was that I chose to manifest). In time, however, I began to notice that if I was out of alignment with prosperity consciousness (for example), a prosperity ritual would not merely bring forth riches out of nowhere. Rather, it would help align me with the energy and the feeling of prosperity, so that prosperity would naturally begin to flow into my life experience. And, if there were aspects of my habitual thought/feeling stream that weren't in alignment with prosperity, something would arise that helped these aspects fall away. I might "happen to" discover a book such as Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich, or "inadvertently" vocalize a limiting belief (such as, "We always live to the edge of our means"), and someone would notice and point it out, helping me to see that it didn’t always need to be true.

So I began to see that it wasn't about adding. It was about opening up to, and tapping into, the generous flow of prosperity that was already in existence. Like finally beginning to hear, and then dance to, the music of prosperity that was already playing on the radio.

I also noticed that when I worked on manifesting something that really brought joy to my heart, that joy always fueled my success. The more joy, the more success—and the quicker it flowed. So this led me to understand something else: that our truest desires are not something extra, but a part of our true selves. When we remember that we are energetic beings, we see that we are not just a body and a mind, but a unique flow of divine energy—like a pattern, a blossom, or a song.

Consciously manifesting things that bring us joy, then, is a process of opening up to who we really are and aligning with the divine energies that naturally want to flow through our life experience. It's like how water wants to flow through a river in a particular way, or how an acorn wants to become an oak.

What's really fun to me about the wisdom in The Art of Bliss is that it's a framework for helping us clear the way for this flow, and to get in alignment with it, in the most ideal and natural of ways. So it's not just about doing a prosperity ritual or a love spell, but rather about opening up to the already existing flow of prosperity or love, and seeing how this nourishes everything else that's going on in our life. Once we make a habit of interacting with the conditions of our lives in this holistic way, our life experience begins to spiral like a glittering galaxy into greater and greater levels of harmony, wisdom, and joy.

To introduce you to the nine life keys that provide the framework for The Art of Bliss (which are derived from the feng shui floor plan and the wisdom of the I Ching), and to help you quickly assess how each one is currently flowing in your life, I've prepared the quiz below. In your journal or notebook, number 1 through 27. For each quiz item, write a number between 1-5, a five meaning "strongly agree," a three meaning, "sort of agree," and 1 meaning "strongly disagree." After the quiz, you'll find a key.

1. Most of the time, no matter what is going on in the outside world, I feel a sense of stillness and calm at the center of my being.
2. I exercise regularly, and feel good about my exercise habits.
3. I enjoy spending time alone.
4. Regardless of my current "job," I feel that I am constantly flowing into deeper and deeper levels of joy and satisfaction when it comes to my overarching career path.
5. I regularly follow the path of my passion and spend time on the things that interest me.
6. Even though it is beyond words, I feel that I have a strong sense of myself: I know what I want, and I feel grounded in authenticity.
7. Everyone always seems to be helpful.
8. I often find that I happen to be "in the right place at the right time."
9. I feel that I have a lot of support in my life, from both seen and unseen realms.
10. I creatively express my uniqueness.
11. I often feel playful and imaginative.
12. I take good care of my inner child.
13. I am comfortable with my body, and enjoy the feeling of being present in my body.
14. I am a sensual person: I love slowing down enough to really enjoy things like scents, massages, beautiful landscapes, music, and yummy food.
15. I am happy with my current romantic situation.
16. I love being seen and appreciated.
17. I regularly shine my light and share my talents with the world.
18. I am well known and well respected in the ways I would most like to be.
19. Everything I need is always provided for me.
20. It feels natural for me to receive an ample supply of money and resources.
21. At least somewhat regularly, I let myself enjoy the things I really like to enjoy: going out to eat, taking vacations, etc.
22. Even if I’ve endured hardships in the past, I’ve healed from them, or I am currently moving toward healing from them.
23. I have a positive relationship with, and feel supported by my family, or a family-like group of friends.
24. I feel connected to, and inspired by, my genealogical and/or spiritual heritage.
25. I feel grounded and centered, at least most of the time.
26. I feel like my life is—generally speaking—in a healthy balance.
27. I feel like there is a healthy connection between the various aspects of my life experience. For example, my partner gets along with my family and my job is in alignment with my passion.

Key
Numbers 1-3: Serenity. This is the key that has to do with exercise, study, meditation, self-improvement, and that sense of stillness that allows everything else to flow more smoothly and enjoyably.

Numbers 4-6: Life Path. This key is related to your sense of authenticity, and your alignment with your truest inner self. It often manifests as an overarching career path, and it infuses everything with a sense of purpose and joy.

Numbers 7-9: Synchronicity. This key has to do with things flowing smoothly, easily, effortlessly, and auspiciously. Things like finding parking spaces, procuring employment, and catching your plane fall into this key, and it also has to do with your connection to all your helpers in both seen and unseen worlds (i.e. angels, friends, and people you don’t even know).

Numbers 10-12: Creativity. The Creativity Key governs your relationship with everything you create, whether it's children, cookie recipes, or paintings. It is the most playful key, and is related to laughter, spontaneity, and the wellbeing of your inner child.

Numbers 13-15: Romance. This key has to do with your love relationship and your ability to appreciate your body and sensual pleasures. When this key is activated, you're more receptive to all the gifts of this life experience.

Numbers 16-18: Radiance. The Radiance Key is all about the way you are seen and known in the world. In many ways, it's about the full realization of the Life Path key—the generous, outward expression of your deepest inner joy.

Numbers 19-21: Prosperity. This key has to do with resources, blessings, and gifts of all sorts. In our culture and in this present time in history, it is closely related with money and finances.

Numbers 22-24: Resilience. My favorite key, this key is aligned with our ability to weather the storms of life and to reap the blessings that they bring. It also has to do with our physical health and family relationships.

Numbers 25-27: Synergy. The key that falls into the center of all the other keys (imagine a tic tac toe board), The Synergy Key is about balance and flow, and about the way all the other keys interact with, and nourish, each other.

Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal. Copyright Llewellyn Worldwide, 2012. All rights reserved.

Do you advise for or against reading for yourself? When I try to use a pendulum, I wonder if I'm influencing it to give me the answers that I want. It's the same with tarot. Is it wise to do readings for yourself, or do we just end up leading ourselves down the garden path by viewing everything through the lens of our desires?
Thanks! - Lisa

Dreamchaser:

I am probably going to take a lot of heat for this answer, but oh well - I like living on the edge!

We can't read for ourselves because we can't be objective enough to see clearly. I've had people tell me that I'm not really psychic if I can't read for myself. I think that idea is totally false.

Obviously, I am psychic, but I am also human. If I try to read for myself, I get caught up in what I want to hear or have happen. If I think I want a certain outcome, I try to make whatever divination tool I am using give me that outcome. This is sort of like trying to cram a round peg into a square hole - and appearing to succeed!

What we CAN do is ask for signs from Spirit. (Ironically, this relates to our other question this week.) We can pray for messages and/or meditate in our own way to hear our own answers.

We all have psychic ability. We all have a sixth sense and "gut instincts." If we ask for clarity or an answer, it will come to us. Usually, however, that answer comes in the form of a message from Spirit via an external source.

When I'm seeking answers for myself, I listen to everything around me. I listen closely to the music on the radio or whatever is on television or to conversations around me. So often I hear the answer I'm seeking from "casual" sources.

For example, I recently asked Spirit if I should break off a relationship with a person who does not seem to be honoring me and my spirit. The answer came when this person did not contact me and did not return my calls. While this may not seem obvious to some people, I knew it was my answer.

It's only human to not like all the answers we receive and then to try another method to see if we can get a different answer. We can make our minds "see" or "hear" what we want them to see or hear, but we're only fooling ourselves. When asking for answers and guidance, we have to be truly open, receptive and honest with ourselves. We also have to be ready to receive any answer - even those that don't match what we think we want.

One way I rise above all of this confusion is to just live my life in the NOW. If I am living in the NOW, then whatever I need automatically comes to me. The past and the future don't matter when I'm in the NOW. I just trust that whatever comes across my path is exactly what I need at that time. It may not be what I think I want, but I know it is what is right for me.

When we live in the NOW, we relinquish the control we THINK we have over our lives and allow Spirit to guide us.

I wish you obvious answers.

*****

Astrea:

Reading for oneself is tricky, because regardless of the method, it's possible to influence or misinterpret the information received.

I imagine trying to use a pendulum for yourself would be VERY difficult, as your subconscious might "swing it your way" without you realizing it. Cards might be a little more accurate, though you can influence which ones you draw from the deck based on your desires. Even if you're good at automatic writing, you may never be sure that you aren't just writing down what you hope to see.

Every reading is an emotional experience, whether we're trying to read for ourselves or others. The more emotionally invested we are in the happiness of the person being read for, the more we'll influence the answers received.

My fellow psychics seem to be evenly split about whether it's wise to read for oneself. Some of them do it every day, and it becomes just another daily habit like brushing their teeth or getting dressed. Many of them believe this is a great way to test yourself and get connected with your divination tools before you go to work with them.

Like me, others believe you should NOT read for yourself or your own family because it's so hard to drop those rose-colored glasses.

Most people who are doing readings for themselves are involved in some kind of situation where they are worried or feel out of control, and when I feel that way, my cards WILL NOT cooperate and give me any kind of clear answers. Also, most people wouldn't be able to see past all the apparently negative stuff on the surface to the ultimately positive reasons it is happening.

If you MUST read for yourself, I recommend one of those $300 astrology programs that some genius mathematician has honed to a fine point. Those will give you objective readings because you can't control where the planets are landing in your sign at the time. Astrology isn't foolproof, but it's about as accurate as anyone can get in this kind of work.

Otherwise, I feel it's better to get someone ELSE to read for us. Even a friend can exercise more objectivity about our concerns than we can.

Sometimes I just spontaneously receive messages from my guides whether I try for them or not. The other day as I wrapped up many hours of doing readings at Psychic Chat, I discovered a card was missing from my tarot deck. I looked under the chair, and there it was. I was AFRAID to turn it over, but to my relief, it was the Sun. If it had been the Tower, I might have crawled under the chair with it and stayed there until the next morning!

Astrea:

Many times in life we hear, "You will always have what you NEED, but not necessarily what you WANT." Your spirit must have needed to experience the feeling of leaving your human body, and the suggestion in the next chapter of Sylvia Brown's book was all it took to get you there.

Even though you hadn't read it yet, your SOUL recognized the title of that chapter as something it had been seeking, and your soul, knowing that you had that reference to read after your experience, got with it and out you went!

While I don't usually recommend her books, Sylvia Brown has a wide reaching and powerful effect on lots of people. A Gemini like you would be able to relate easily to her writing and put it to good use. Synchronicity - you gotta love it!

I like your description of "getting caught." That's exactly what it feels like, isn't it? One minute you're free and hovering above the room, and the next minute, ZAP! back down into your corporeal form you go!

As a little kid, I loved that "feeling of return." With practice, most of the time we can control that event, but sometimes, when our physical ears hear a distracting noise or something else occurs to knock us back into reality, back we go. With practice you will be able to control your return better.

I find it interesting that you were visiting your mother-in-law and not someone in your own genetic family. Evidently, you and your husband got married for reasons that are even deeper than love. His family's interest in "psychic stuff" will nurture your children in such matters and help them to grow into their own abilities.

You'll never have to be concerned that when your daughter visits them, she'll be discouraged from exploring her own psychic life and power. My parents encouraged me to develop my psychic senses in a time when it wasn't nice to even discuss such things in public. Heck, it's STILL not considered a great topic at the dinner table in some families!

Your kids will get to talk about it ALL and ask questions and read and study. This is going to give them such an edge in life! Talk with your husband about how you want to present this to your kiddos, so that you are united in your approach and ready to tell them their experiences are all natural and okay.

A word or two of warning: Geminis often have difficulty staying grounded in REAL LIFE. Don't get so strung out on your ASTRAL life that you neglect what you're doing here on Earth.

You are at the beginning of a long journey to learn where your power really lies. Try to be patient with this process and take your time.