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No, that is not the way problems and solutions relate to each other. Problems and solutions do not work against each other, they work with each other. There is no taking of sides because they are within each other, which at times might seem impossible.
The statement that every problem is born with its solution has been said in many ways over the centuries by some wise people. One of the most common quotes is, "A problem simply cannot exist unless the solution for it exists at the say time". The street slang translation of this is, you got problem than you got solution. When you think of problems and solutions, think of the yin/yang symbol with that little dot of yin within yang and the little dot of yang within yin.
That being said, problem solving should be a simple thing to do. But, as you know that is not always the case. Finding your solution is often overshadowed by your think, think, think conscious mind. Combine experiences held in your subconscious with your logical thinking, and you can come up with dozens of reasions for not being able to see your solution. You also might be thinking so hard about your problem that you simply have no energy left to look for a solution.
Sometimes the solution is a path that leads to a lesson that will help in your life's journey. Sometimes the search for a solution takes you into the unknown. Deepak Chopra has said that the unknown is full of potential. To get that lesson or potential you first have to shift your focus from the problem to the solution. When you are focused on the problem, blinders block your view of the solution. How many times have you or someone you know talked about a problem, but never mentioned the word solution? In the course of your typical work day how many times do you hear the word problem, or words that imply a problem? How many times in that same period do your hear the words solution or answer?
Have you ever let your dog off his lease, looked away for just a minute to do something, and then when you look back he is gone? You stand there calling and calling your dog's name until finally you just give up and turn around. At that point you see your dog sitting patiently, and no doubt wondering why it took you so long to turn around. When you turn around and shift your attention away from the problem, sometimes the solution is right there in front of you.
Meditation and Japanese styles of Usui Reiki help you to learn to shift your focus from energy draining problems, to a state where you can see solutions. The way in which Reiki looks at well-being as opposed to the illness is a good example of overlooking the problem in order to see the solution. Medical professionals focus on the illness so that they can diagnose and prescribe treatments. Reiki professionals trust in universal wisdom and focus on the health and happiness of the life form that they intend to move into the state of well-being. Hippocrates said, "The physician treats, but nature heals"; nature looks at the vitality of health, not the disease.
When you are looking to find a solution there is an air of harmony, instead of the disharmony created by your view of the problem. When you focus on finding a solution the problem becomes out-of-focus, and that fight or flight response often created by problems melts away. An example of the problem going out of focus when you look beyond was shown in the movie Patch Adams. Patch was shown that when you focus on 4 fingers you see 4 fingers, but when you allow your focus to go beyond those fingers you see more.
In my article "'Universal Key to Happiness', on this site, I write about when working in what was once called a mental institution I became locked in a hall in an abandoned section of that building. The problem was innocently created when I followed my curiosity and the habit of closing doors behind me. Nevertheless, it was a problem that when focused on created several negative images in my mind. I learned that day that some doors only open from the outside, and was reminded that answers do exist if we look beyond our problems. It just happened to be the day that maintenance people were working on a section of an attached building. One man just happened to be someone who was willing to take the time to listen to me calling out the window, and then find someone with a key to one of the locked doors.
Focus is an important thing. If I had kept me focus on the light fading in that hall with all exit doors locked, I would have spent a long cold dark night alone in that hall. Looking out the window for my solution allowed me to see the men packing their tools in their truck on the ground below that window. One of those men was my solution.
Sometimes the solution is easy, but cannot be seen because your focus is fixed on the symptoms or side-effects of a problem. When this happens and you cannot even see the problem, and you have no idea of what to look beyond to see the solution. Have you ever focused so strongly on the symptoms or side-effects of a problem that you never actually recognize the problem? Before you can allow yourself to open up and look beyond the problem you must first recognize the problem.
Once you know your problem, then one-focus meditation or a guided meditation can help you to uncover the solution. Being in altered state of mind can even help you recognize the problem if you are too focused on the side-effects of the problem. Going into meditation, or joining with the light if you have completed a level in a style of Usui Reiki, allows you to be in a different state of consciousness. Albert Einstein said, "No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it". Have you ever turned your house upside down looking for something, but found it only when you turned your attention to something else?
I have been giving guided meditations in both my meditation and Reiki classes since 2002. They always vary with the class and the students within the class, but I had been asked over and over for recordings of them. When I looked at recording my guided meditations problems immediately flooded my mind. Then one day I said to the students asking, you tell me how and I'll do it. When I said that, I was looking beyond the problem and the answer to the first step came immediately from one of those students. Once I had the first step in my solution everything else fell into place. Finding a solution to any challenge requires that you first look beyond the challenge, regardless of its size.
The solution does not have to be for more material things, careers, or relationships. It can be the solution to not having the time to write that letter to a relative or friend. The solution to a room that seems drab can be as simple as bringing in a lamp from another room or adding a pillow to the chair of sofa. Nevertheless, even simple solutions cannot be seen if your mind is filled with too many thoughts. When you go into the stillness between your thoughts and focus on the solution, it is the friendly solution you will see and not the disagreeable problem.
Regardless of what one-foucs or guided meditation you try, you might not find the solution for world peace, but you can find the solution for peace in your corner of the world. Wouldn't the entire world be an even nicer place to live if everyone was focusing on solutions and not problems in their corner of the world?
The next time you are faced with a problem of any size, stop before reacting. Stop, take a deep breath, let go of worries, look beyond the problem and once you see the solution then act based on the solution rather then reacting based on the problem.
Through Usui Reiki Ryoho, meditation, and herbs Roberta R. Barnes is dedicated to the art of well-being. Roberta has reached the highest level in both Western and Japanese styles of Usui Reiki. Her focus is teaching and practicing Gendai Reikiho & Komyo Reiki, and meditation. At the request of students Robeta Barnes had recorded 2 of her guided meditations on an easy-to-use CD. These meditations not only relax your mind, but take you on a journey to find your solutions that have not been able to see. Roberta is also an Herbalist Consultant. She will travel to give talks on Reiki and herbs, and to teach Gendai Reikiho or Komyo Reiki. Her healing room Natural Healing & Learning Center is nestled in the tress in a certified wildlife habitat in Maine, USA. For additional information please visit her website http://www.naturalhealinglearning.com
