We just gave you a brief summary on The Nine Insights. Next, let’s dive into the exercise from The Celestine Prophecy: An Experiential Guide by James Redfield and Carol Adrienne.
My Past Preoccupations (Page 34).
The purpose of this activity is to help you become conscious of recurring themes in your life and of possible underlying belief systems.
Circle the three areas that have influenced you the most. How have these themes added to your life? How have the hampered your life?
| Addictions | Gaining approval | Physical image |
| Anger | Guilt | Resistance to authority |
| Conformity | Independence | Revenge |
| Control | Intellectual accomplishment | Security |
| Emotional dramas | Lack of love | Self-criticism |
| Family entanglements | Overspending | Under earning |
| Fear | Perfectionism | Other(s) |
From now on become aware of their presence in your life and notice how they are related to what you call your problems.
More Preoccupying Ideas (Page 35)
Complete the unfinished sentences with three items.
You may also want to write some thoughts about this exercise in your journal. And notice if you have any dreams after writing about your preoccupations.
Where In My Life Am I Just Going Through The Motions? (Page 37)
The purpose of this activity is to have a dialogue with yourself about where you are feeling stuck or where you have not admitted that something needs to change.
Write a paragraph or two in your journal about the parts of your life where you feel stuck or as if you’re “just going through the motions”. Really describe the feelings in detail. The more you can bring these feelings into awareness, the more you will open the doors for answers, opportunities and insights.
Finding New Paradigm Alternatives To Your Old Preoccupations (Page 37)
Look at your major past preoccupations from Exercise 2. Then write down in your journal its corresponding new attribute. As the mood strikes, you write also how you could begin to attract more of this attribute in your life.
| OLD | NEW |
| Addictions | Self-security |
| Anger | Empowerment |
| Conformity | Creativity |
| Control | Trust |
| Emotional dramas | Self-actualization |
| Family entanglements | Honest commitments |
| Fear | Love |
| Gaining approval | Self-trust |
| Guilt | Love with wisdom |
| Independence | Interdependence |
| Intellectual accomplishment | Wisdom |
| Lack of love | Divine love within |
| Overspending | Healing deprivation |
| Perfectionism | Self-acceptance |
| Physical image | Intrinsic worth |
| Resistance to authority | Sharing leadership |
| Revenge | Forgiveness |
| Security | Adaptability |
| Self-criticism | Acknowledgement of strengths |
| Under earning | Being paid what you are worth |
| Other(s) |
The answers don’t have to come at this moment. If any of these ideas is ready to become more of a reality, you will probably have a stronger feeling of excitement around it.
“Working to establish a more comfortable style of survival has grown to feel complete in and of itself as a reason to live and we’ve gradually, methodically, forgotten our original question … We’ve forgotten that we still don’t know what we’re surviving for.”
James Redfield
