Mormonism – Preston Flatt

Though Mormons don't have mantras, I discovered that there is a phrase from their tradition, that when repeated as a mantra while walking outside in nature, seems to make nature come alive, and the world more beautiful. Mormons don't have mantras, or for the most part, even set prayers, as some traditions have. And that is why my discovery of this verse, and that it can be repeated as a mantra in this way, and bring the results that it does, was a surprise to me. To the best of my knowledge, as used in this way, this is a new discovery. Strangely enough, though this phrase does indeed come from the Mormons, to the best of my knowledge, there has been no Mormon tradition of using or repeating it in this way, as a mantra. You Will Like This Pretty Weird Thing I Discovered While Walking Down The Street One Day. I discovered that when you say this phrase over and over again as a mantra, It may increase your ability to see the beauty in nature, and in the world. To the best of my knowledge, it works every time. All you do is just walk down the street saying it, or even just thinking it, and see what happens. It's as simple as can be. You can also use this, saying it over and over again like a mantra, while surfing, skating, doing board sports, or just walking around. Instead of just walking past the beauty of nature without seeing it, and having it not register, repeating this as a mantra may tend to allow that beauty, and the beauty of the world to appear increasingly before you. First, though, I'd like to give you an example of something visual that might help you understand it. The Discovering Of Books Of Ancient Chinese Paintings And Buddhist Temples At BYU. Many years after being a Mormon missionary in Taiwan, I thought I'd go sniff out some of the books in the Asian section of the BYU library. It was during the coldest, most barren winter, and I couldn't wait to get out of the cold and the hated winter landscape, to get into the warm building. So I came down to the Asian section to see if any of my old Chinese-speaking missionary buddies from years earlier were still hanging out there, or if they had departed like particles of a fart in the winds of time. Sure enough, they were nowhere to be found. No evidence of them remained. It was as if they had never lived. I did, however, look down and see books of Buddhist Temples and Chinese Paintings sitting there on a shelf in the oversized books section. And This Is Where The Strangeness Begins. You've probably seen those special effects picture memes, where after you stare at a dot on the center of the image for 30 seconds, and then turn your head and look at a white surface, you can still see a kind of latent image, but that image will look like something else, or it will look somehow different. That image on the retina of the eye remains for a while. And the white surface that you look at, will also look different than it would have previously appeared if you hadn't first stared at the dot on the image of the meme for those 30 seconds. What happened to me that day that I visited the library must have been something like that. I had been so happy to find that book on Chinese Paintings, that I just sat there like a sponge, just registering, and soaking it all in. It reminded me so much of Taiwan. Page after page, I witnessed the twisted bark and branches of winter scenes and studied exactly how they are painted. The brush strokes, everything. It was so beautiful. And then it started. How Looking At Books Of Chinese Paintings Made The World Look Different. When I left the library and stepped outside, the world looked beautifully different. My experience had somehow been printed upon, colored, or influenced by those paintings. My mind had been channeled into a path of seeing a new kind of beauty. The same barren bark, on those trees, and branches that I had previously not appreciated, now had the beauty of those Chinese paintings. I could see beauty all around me, and for the first time, even craved looking directly at the barren, knotted bark and branches of those trees. They were almost spiritual. And that channel for beauty remained for some time. I realized that there had been a seeing of beauty that kept with me as I stepped away from the book, and went out into the formerly boring, bleak, and barren winter landscape. I knew that I would miss seeing the bark and the bare shapes of the trees and the branches in that beautiful way when summer finally would arrive. Well, that effect lasted probably about 15 or 20 minutes. And it gradually faded. But from that, I learned, and directly experienced that it is possible to look at the beauty of art or nature, and experience that beauty remaining, and enduring, even when stepping away from that, returning out to the world. That was a visual example. Now here is the weird thing: I also found a way to repeatedly say something over and over again as a kind of mantra, and have that produce a channel for beauty. But because you can keep saying it over and over, it can last longer. It can be done on demand, and so is not dependent, in that way, on being in front of, and staring at books. I Discovered How To Do It, And Will Tell You Exactly How In This Article. But first, I better give you one more example so it will make sense: Remember how when you just finish watching a kung fu, or superhero movie, and you first walk out of the theater, you feel strong, skilled, and ready to go. Fully equipped. You may think to yourself that if ever someone was gonna try to attack you, you would hope that they could do it right after you come out of a movie like that. Because you are feeling great, strong, all together, and relatively fearless. You feel like you have skills. And hopefully, the attacker won't wait around too long for that effect to wear off. It Is As Dependable As Clockwork. This is a real, duplicatable state of being, that you can have any time you want. All you do is watch that kind of movie, and feel that way afterward. That may somehow be related to learning by mirror neurons. Okay, so that was the last example. Let's Get Onto The Mantra Thing I Was Telling You About. This may work in a similar way to that. Not as so much a visual thing, but rather a repeated phrase that may work in a similar way. And Because It Is A Phrase, Here Is The Mind-blower: You can say it any time that you want, and by doing so, access whatever benefit would be there, anytime, any place. All you do is walk along and say this phrase, or mantra while in the midst of nature, and see how the beauty of nature and the world presents before you, in a way that previously was not there. The beauty that you otherwise might have walked right past without seeing. So, with this method, it isn't so much that you look at something and there is a short-term latent visual effect that colors the world in beautiful ways, but rather, saying this phrase will direct your senses and your intention toward discovering and witnessing the beauty around you. And you can keep it going by continually repeating it. It is important to mindfully, fully attend to the words as you say them though, and not just absent-mindedly parrot them off. Here Is The Mormon Mantra Phrase: It is a portion of one of their articles of faith. "If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report, or praiseworthy, we seek after these things." It is the last part of the 13th article of faith, that their founder wrote in a letter to someone when describing his beliefs. I don't take credit for writing it. It is pretty cool to use it and to see how just walking down the most common and boring street, things may seem somehow different. This Is How You Use This Mormon Mantra For Beauty In Nature: It's simple. Just take a walk along the street and enjoy repeating over and over again these words: "If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report, or praiseworthy, we seek after these things". And moment by moment, after you do that for a while, just see what changes. If your experience is like mine, you will be seeing beautiful details in nature that you normally would have walked past without noticing. You will see clouds, insects, plants, and flowers that you normally would just walk past. You may also experience an increased feeling of love, appreciation, and gratitude for creation itself. So just compare your experience while repeating this mantra, to that which it had usually been like for you just walking around while not repeating it. That's how you will know that it works. How To Keep Count Of Each Repetition On The Fingers Of The Hands Without Using Prayer Beads. I have previously talked about the actual technique of gathering two or more points and abiding in the midst of them while surfing the presentations of life. I have described a way to do this while sitting, but there is also a way that allows you to do this while walking and moving freely about. You just choose different points to gather, and you can still do it while moving freely about. There is an actual, mystical way to use the anatomical landmarks on the fingers and hands as a beadless rosary, or as beadless prayer beads, and count, or pray on the fingers while repeating this mantra, and while surfing the changeless place between opposites. It's a mystical way. And knowing the hand positions, you can actually surf the changeless place between opposites as you walk along. This is the way that I developed to do that: How To Pray The Rosary Without Rosary Beads, Using The Fingers Of The Hands As Landmarks. Do Mormons Use Prayer Beads Or Rosaries? Mormons don't usually use prayer beads or rosaries either. The fun thing though is that you can pair this Mormon verse, or "Mormon mantra" with prayer beads if you feel like it, and pray it that way, using prayer beads as you walk along. It's fun and it looks cool. Another option is that you can use the technique I mentioned above, that of counting as if with prayer beads, but without the beads. On the segments of the fingers of the hands instead. Using either prayer beads, or the beadless rosary method may help you keep on task though, so as to not become distracted with other things while walking. The cool thing is that you don't even need beads though, and you can have fun repeating that mantra right away, by just walking along and repeating it, without even keeping count. Where Did That "Mormon Mantra" Verse Come From? That 13th article of faith was perhaps derived from the bible verse in Philippians 4:8, which says, "[8] Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." That seemed like a pretty great verse to try as a mantra too, so I tried repeating it to see how it worked. Somehow it didn't seem to work in that same way. Maybe it was too long, or maybe it is because, at the end of the verse it staples things down by saying, "think on these things", instead of, "we seek after these things". To think on something involves stationing the mind there, and in that way, it takes it out of seeking, out of action. It assigns it to that one place, on that one topic or consideration, upon which it remains. There is nothing wrong with that. That is a legitimate way to practice or train, but it is a different way, with different results. That "nailing down or assigning it to something", thinking on one thing, prevents the mind from continuing to move and sample and survey across the free beauty of a vast and continuing, changing landscape. Discovering new beauty. That is the reason that I think the Mormon verse works better as a mantra than the verse in Philippians 4:8. So this portion, of the verse known as the 13th article of faith, is a pretty great one to use as a mantra. And when you say it this way, as a mantra, you may see increased beauty in the world around you. Nature Is Always There, And Is As Old As Creation Itself. It is now possible for you to direct your intention in new ways, to sample the world, and to take a vacation in beauty, any time you want. "If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report, or praiseworthy, we seek after these things." Just write it down, memorize it, and head out the door and see what happens. The following article explains the other technique I mentioned, of how to use the human frame to gather two or more points, and set up the equivalent of an old-fashioned scale, which is the very same as the mystic scale, mystic cross, or Christian yoke, and to then surf the timeless place between opposites: How To Surf Or Skateboard Without A Board: (The Spiritual Exercises). It is possible to do this even while walking, and while saying this "Mormon Mantra for Seeing Beauty in Nature". https://youtu.be/MbWRboHmIFE Mormonism And The Mormon Mantra For Seeing Beauty In Nature. By Preston Flatt