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The Twelve Foundations

A New Path of Transformation and Self-Discovery

    The Twelve Foundations is a program of transformation and self-discovery
which integrates the human and spiritual dimensions of self and aims to unfold the true qualities of one’s inherent naturesuch as love, joy, aliveness, abundance, creative power, and beauty.
    This program encompasses four major areas of growth and development: a) being part of a supportive and caring group of
like-minded people, b) cultivating one’s creative mental power and forming a positive alignment with one's world, c) developing a well-balanced and integrated life, with a positive and healthy human identity, and d) realizing of one's spiritual nature (and unity with Life) through meditation and the practice of presence
.

    The Twelve Foundations is designed to be a complete path of spiritual wholeness and transformation, but it can also be used as "the next step" for people who want to overcome life-challenges and addictions in a positive and uplifting way.  With this approach, life-challenges and addictions are not so much overcome by wrestling with the outer manifestation of the problem but by cultivating and expanding one's inner power, wisdom, and resolve.  The root of most of life's problems is that we are out of touch with our true center, our true self.  The various outer struggles and addictions that hamper many people are the ways we try to cover up the pain and emptiness (which comes about when our natural state of love, joy, and beauty is missing from our own lives) or an attempt to try to replace the natural joy, fullness, and love of our own being with some attainment or substance.

    Transformation Comes Through the Positive

     The nature of Infinite Spirit is positiveand all its inherent qualities, such as love, fullness, freedom, creativity, aliveness, and beauty are positive.  Everything is created and sustained through the positive, through what is present, and not through the negative, or what is absent.  Similarly, it always holds true that human growth and transformation comes though the positive, through expanding upon the positive approach (and through creating what we want) and not through the negative approach (or trying to get rid of, or avoid, what we don’t want).  The Twelve Foundations is based upon expansion of one's positive qualities, upon affirming one's creative power, and consciously realizing one’s inherent unity with Spirit.
 
     "Higher Recovery"

   ‘Recovery’ is a term that can be applied to people who have overcome an addiction and who are now in the process of recovering the ‘manageability’ of their former lives.  Such a person might say, "I am in recovery."  However, this notion of being "in recovery" can also apply, quite aptly, to the spiritual path: in this path of “higher recovery” we do not recover the human life we once knew—a life which was beset by difficulties and limitations even before it was derailed by addiction—but our true, spiritual self.  For a person in "higher recovery" it
is not enough to remove addictions and overcome some of life's problems
—through this happens as a natural result when we get in touch with the truth and wonder of our own being.  In this "higher recovery" we want to recover the fullness of life, we want to recover the wholeness and glory of who we truly are, we want to recover our unity with Infinite Spirit and our innate qualities of love, joy, aliveness, power, abundance, and beauty. 


The Steps of The Twelve Foundations

    (Compared with the traditional Twelve Steps)


Step 1. Affirmed that I (as a creative center of Infinite Spirit) have power and dominion over the conditions of my life.
     We admitted we were powerless over our addictions, that our lives had become unmanageable. (1)

Step 2. Came to believe that the conscious power within myself, and my intelligent use of that power, is the very thing that could restore me to wholeness.
     Came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity. (2)

Step 3. Made a decision to align my life (will, thoughts, and actions) with my highest good and the Spirit of Life.
    Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood him.  (3)

Step 4. Made a complete and fearless assessment of my life, my priorities, my wants, and my place in the world; sought to go beyond fear and/or lack and to live from a state of calm knowingness and abundance.
     Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves. (4)

Step 5. Dared to expresses (and partake in) my true humanity and joy.
     Admitted to ourselves, to God, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs. (5)

Step 6. Was entirely ready to take responsibility for my own transformation and accept my place as a co-creator with Spirit—and never to expect Spirit to do for me what it can only do through me.
     Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character. (6)

Step 7. From a place of wholeness and allowance, became ready to cultivate my true and noble qualities.
   Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.  (7)

Step 8. Was ready to have every relationship in my life be a source of benefit and support; was ready to resolve negative emotions (such as anger, guilt, regret etc.) and to forgive others and myself as needed.
     Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all. (8)

Step 9. Took steps to put my house in order, to bring balance, joy, peace, and stability to my life.
     Made direct amends to such people whenever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others. (9)

Step 10. Continued to shift my thoughts (and actions) to the positive, abide in presence, and cultivate that which brings value and joy to my life.
     Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it. (10)

Step 11. Sought through meditation and/or prayer to deepen my contact with essential presence, enhance my creative power, and further align my life with Spirit (and Divine Will).
     Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.  (11)

Step 12. Having realized my true self and creative power (through participation with these steps) I was inspired to share this state with others and to live in accordance with these higher princinples.
    Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to other addicts and to practice these principles in all our affairs.  (12)

Printable version of The Twelve Foundations:


TwelveFoundations.pdf
File Size: 95 kb
File Type: pdf
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