Possessions are an extremely important part of our lives; in fact, we spend the greater part of our lives trying to obtain them. We run after money in order to have food, clothing, housing, transportation and anything else we need. If we are spiritually oriented, we want to pursue the study of Torah and fulfillment of the commandments, and we want to balance our relationships with others. We seek a spouse, children and a fine reputation. Even the Talmud teaches that a beautiful wife, a beautiful home and beautiful possessions expand the consciousness of man (Brachot 57b).
God gives us possessions to help us actualize ourselves and to fulfill our mission in life. We have both physical possessions (such as a house and car) and spiritual possessions (the Torah we have studied and integrated within ourselves); we have emotional possessions (our openness to feel the next person), cognitive possessions (our mental ability to absorb concepts) and potential possessions (our ability to tune into and draw from our infinite positive potential).
It is crucial that we control our possessions and that our possessions not control us. A husband who spends too much time in the business at the expense of his wife and children, a yeshivah student who is so involved in studying Torah that he ignores his basic physical needs, a mother who is so fearful that she feels the need to control the lives of her family – all indicate that their relationship to their possessions is out of balance.
We have an ally to help us balance our relationship to our possessions: the color orange. Orange is tangy, with a bit of chutzpah; it is full of life and positive energy. Orange tingles with motivation. Orange is the integrated blend of red and yellow. The red aspect of orange helps us create and maintain positive beneficial boundaries in relating to our possessions. Its yellow aspect gives us the motivation and joy to find fulfillment via the possessions that G-d has given us.
The following visualization is designed to help you create a balanced positive relationship with your possessions.
Orange
Exercise I
For the next sixty seconds, please look with total focus at the orange sky pictured here, holding one hand on your forehead and your second hand on the back of your head, opposite your eyes. As you look at the picture, breathe calmly and deeply.
Relax your arms for half a minute.
Exercise II
Again, place your hands in position and read aloud as you think about the following “statement of choice.” At each pause to breathe, take a deep breath and take another look at the picture:
I choose to connect [breathe] to the healing power of the color orange [breathe] in order to release all self-punishing behaviors, [breathe] all self-destructive behaviors, [breathe] and all self-denigrating behaviors or perceptions [breathe] that block my ability to create a balanced relationship with my possessions [breathe].
And I choose instead [breathe] to use the healing energy that is present in the color orange [breathe] to connect to my intrinsic, essential positive self, [breathe] and to create feelings of positive self-encouragement and satisfaction [breathe] in order to flow with healing energy, [breathe] to keep myself radiant with life and motivation [breathe] while creating and maintaining positive beneficial boundaries [breathe] to use all my possessions – [breathe] physical, emotional, mental, spiritual and potential – [breathe] to achieve positive self-actualization [breathe] in all areas of life, relationships, learning experiences and endeavor [breathe].
Relax your arms for half a minute.
Exercise III
Once more, place your hands in position. Read aloud as you think about the following “statement of choice.” At each pause to breathe, take a deep breath and take another look at the picture:
Any time in the future [breathe] when I chance to see the color orange, [breathe] whether it be the orange horizon just before sunset, [breathe] a glass of orange juice on my breakfast table, or a cluster of lovely orange poppies, [breathe] I choose to rearouse the powerful positive energy created by this visualization [breathe] to re-enhance a positive, balanced connection to all my possessions, [breathe] in all areas of life, relationships, learning experiences and endeavor [breathe].
Relax your arms for half a minute.
