The other morning I had a dream about being robbed. I placed my purse with all its treasures on a store counter. In the brief moment that I looked away, the purse disappeared. With the help of a store clerk, we searched hoping that at least some of the contents as well as the purse would have been quickly discarded. Nothing was found. In the dream, I used reasoning power. I told myself that I was in a dream and there was no cause for concern. When I awakened, the message was clearly understood. If any of us desire to live in peace and harmony, we must pay attention at all times not only to what is going on in our own mind but all activity that surrounds us. Living in a dream becomes a false reality when we are not alert to our own spiritual identity and purpose in living. When we temporarily forget the answers to both questions, we lose important aspects of who we really are. Identity theft occurs because we are negligent and forgetful. To be aware at all times is to be truly alive. We are less prone to mishaps and imbalances if we keep our focus.

Identity theft occurs when we do not know who we really are. This is a serious problem for millions of souls. We have to understand this question before we can answer it. We educate ourselves about how to use the Internet as an example, how to take care of mechanical things, how to care for our bodies and everything imaginable. What about answering the bigger questions instead of being philosophically illiterate? It takes courage to confront what appears as a mystery. A good start is to study sages, true philosophers, who have applied and tested their knowledge in daily life. Another tool is acute self-inspection. With self-inspection and firsthand experience with the inner intuitive voice, an inner authority will eventually surface. The authority is not merely abstract but very practical. What people simply do not get is that they will never transform themselves by accumulating only head knowledge. It will broaden the point of view but the underneath remains the same.

If we begin to understand the drama we are living and can seriously answer the questions, Why am I here? or What am I to do here? - we are less apt to experience identity theft when we know the answers. Why is that? We begin to honor who we are and pay close attention to what is happening within and without. Most people crave understanding but understanding will not happen if we keep looking outside of self. Lack of understanding, which is in my opinion, soul ignorance, generates illusions, attachments and therefore suffering. Ignorance is a sickness of the heart and mind and is accompanied by attachment. We must awaken the god in the soul. We have been given many ways as to how to awaken the sleeping soul. The unfolding of our spiritual nature is as much an exact science as astronomy, medicine or law. It is not a haphazard journey based on a particular faith. It is a sacred science focused on the subject of true identity. The most priceless secret is true understanding. All other things are impermanent. Understanding endures.

Before we can permanently hold on to our true identity, ignorance must be removed. The following are some of the traps that rob the soul of its fullness.

1, When we deny the Light of God, we invite the darkness of ignorance.

2, Refusing to develop a clear understanding of who we are and our purpose creates unbalance and confusion.

3, Jealousy and greed are lethal.

4, To allow enslavement of the body and mind through abuse and harmful habits are denial of the soul.

5, Thinking that intellectual knowledge, books and pretence constitute real power indicates that you have not yet awakened to inner wisdom.

6, Taking upon yourself the task of leading others when you lack pure intention is teaching with deceit.

There are many traps that must be removed to be totally free of falsity and pretense. If you really want your identity back, erase the false designs that you have created and replace them with a higher design. Peace, certainty and victory are established when we awaken to the fact that we already are what we seek. It is up to us to bring the evidence out into the open. Our real identity is secured when we daily accept and live who we really are. No one or no thing can steal this inner nature from us.