(This is an excerpt from my book, Sex and Virtuous Living, which will be published in the near future.)

Virtues are beyond the power of the mind; they are the intrinsic qualities of the soul. They are all there just waiting for us open them up and live a purposeful and satisfying life. The human soul contains the mind with all its desires and fears, the heart which longs to reach out to others, and the spirit that longs to connect through positive energy vibrations with others and the universal source of positive divine energy that we can refer to as universal love. This interplay of mind or ego, heart, and spirit has the potential to create the virtues that can lead to bliss and self-actualization.

It is my belief that we are more than body and mind. Granted the human mind is an amazing organ that can draw upon sensations and perceptions to create amazing concepts and schemas that, perhaps, may include some concept of a higher self interacting with a loving god or a universal source of positive energy. But from my studies of the brain and the mind, I do not see how the brain by itself can develop the qualities needed for virtuous living. The mind is very self-centered and focuses on creating and responding to desires that lead to its pleasure and competitive achievement. It wishes to survive at all costs and to be the alpha female or male so that its genes can dominate the next generation.  Even the most altruistic motives can contain an internal reward. Regardless of our views of the Source, the Universe, the Tao, or God as some exterior source of power and enlightenment, most of us would agree that we do in fact have a higher self, that part of us that wishes and attempts to create a higher purpose and be a part of a higher human society. It is this part of the human soul that we will be working with throughout this book. It is this part of the soul that we can tap into to create the virtues needed for spiritual self-actualization.

In our western world, sex and human relationships are terribly misunderstood and the cause of massive amounts of negative energy that surface as depression, anxiety, grief, anger, and hate. Sex is a powerful force that originates in the reproductive organs, the hormone system, and the limbic system of the old brain. It is designed to preserve the human race through copulation and reproduction.  Sex is sex regardless of the issues experienced by various groups in our society, so we will be looking at is as one of the basic drives of the body, mind and soul as well as how it applies to the LBGTQ community and to trauma victims of rape and abuse. Regardless of our sexual experiences, we can channel the sexual energies of our bodies into positive feelings, wholesome relationships, emotional healing, and an energy source we can ride to self-actualization. The way to do that is through consciously developing virtues.

Virtues are qualities or characteristics of the human soul. Even though they may lead to compassion and altruism, they are basically about the self and the interplay of the ego-self, the heart, and the spiritual or higher-self.  We are human beings with all the desires and fears, but we are also spiritual beings who long to resonate in positive vibration with others and to reach out to the Source of Life and Love. Virtues require a desire to cooperate and flow with others towards some universal good. To seek true virtues, I believe we have to go beyond the functions of the mind where there is no perceivable reward other than being part of the flow of goodness and love.

I have divided the virtues into four blocks of five that I label as grounding, centering, love, and spiritual self-actualization. Like Maslow’s hierarchy, each one builds upon the other. The foundation of virtuous living begins in being grounded in the spiritual reality of the higher self.  As we visit each virtue we will attempt to connect it with the drives of survival and reproduction.

Virtuous Living , that will be published in the near future.)

Virtues are beyond the power of the mind; they are the intrinsic qualities of the soul. They are all there just waiting for us open them up and live a purposeful and satisfying life. The human soul contains the mind with all its desires and fears, the heart which longs to reach out to others, and the spirit that longs to connect through positive energy vibrations with others and the universal source of positive divine energy that we can refer to as universal love. This interplay of mind, heart, and spirit has the potential to create the virtues that can lead to bliss and self-actualization.

It is my belief that we are more than body and mind. Granted the human mind is an amazing organ that can draw upon sensations and perceptions to create amazing concepts and schemas that, perhaps, may include some concept of a higher self interacting with a loving god or a universal source of positive energy. But from my studies of the brain and the mind, I do not see how the brain by itself can develop the qualities needed for virtuous living. The mind is very self-centered and focuses on creating and responding to desires that lead to its pleasure and competitive achievement. It wishes to survive at all costs and to be the alpha female or male so that its genes can dominate the next generation.  Even the most altruistic motives can contain an internal reward. Regardless of our views of the Source, the Universe, the Tao, or God as some exterior source of power and enlightenment, most of us would agree that we do in fact have a higher self, that part of us that wishes and attempts to create a higher purpose and be a part of a higher human society. It is this part of the human soul that we will be working with throughout this book. It is this part of the soul that we can tap into to create the virtues needed for spiritual self-actualization.

In our western world, sex and human relationships are terribly misunderstood and the cause of massive amounts of negative energy that surface as depression, anxiety, grief, anger, and hate. Sex is a powerful force that originates in the reproductive organs, the hormone system, and the limbic system of the old brain. It is designed to preserve the human race through copulation and reproduction.  Sex is sex regardless of the issues experienced by various groups in our society, so we will be looking at is as one of the basic drives of the body, as well as how it applies to the LBGTQ community and to trauma victims of rape and abuse. Regardless of our sexual experiences, we can channel the sexual energies of our bodies into positive feelings, wholesome relationships, emotional healing, and an energy source we can ride to self-actualization. The way to do that is through consciously developing virtues.

Virtues are qualities or characteristics of the human soul. Even though they may lead to compassion and altruism, they are basically about the self and the interplay of the ego-self, the heart, and the spiritual or higher-self.  We are human beings with all the desires and fears, but we are also spiritual beings who long to resonate in positive vibration with others and to reach out to the Source of Life and Love. Virtues require a desire to cooperate and flow with others towards some universal good. To seek true virtues, I believe we have to go beyond the functions of the mind where there is no perceivable reward other than being part of the flow of goodness and love.

I have divided the virtues into four blocks of five that I label as grounding, centering, love, and spiritual self-actualization. Like Maslow’s hierarchy, each one builds upon the other. The foundation of virtuous living begins in being grounded in the spiritual reality of the higher self.  As we visit each virtue we will attempt to connect it with the drives of survival and reproduction.