"Feel the rain on your skin, no one else can feel it for you, only you can
let in in
No one else, no one else can speak the works on your lips,
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins, the rest is still unwritten"

Natasha Bedingfield - Unwritten

Every day I usually read the specified reading in Iyanla Vanzant's " Acts of Faith" and in today's reading she talked about Queen Maat whom the ancients believed was the gatekeeper of our hearts and weighed them against her feather of life after death to see what our after life would be like.
What struck me were two things - the qualities that we could possibly harbour in our hearts that would weigh against us negatively and destine us to continue on until we cleansed our spirits and the qualities that the ancients believed would guarantee that we were destined to eternal peace and rest.

The qualities that were negative were: hate, anger, fear, judgement, shame, guilt
Hate: how often do we pretend to tolerate and facilitate people and things when we hold terrible feelings of hate, disdain and dislike - hate occurs in so many shades and variations and does not only manifest itself in the extreme forms we associate this word with - it basically describes any situation with the absence of love
Anger: So often we are prone to this emotion which in many cases is simply the reaction to any given situation we encounter when we feel threatened or are afraid of something we pereceive will harm us - this emotion can be avoided by taking a deep breath and trying to reshape our perspective by looking at it from all angles
Fear - False evidence appearing real - this crippling emoton that makes us move away from our true nature of love to become twisted and gnarled because it strikes at the survival instinct and love of life we all share
Judgement - this quality that some use to set themselves apart from others and to make themselves feel better about the lives they lead
Shame: a peculiar emotion that can shock us into paralysis and fear - one that is hard to conquer
Guilt: an emotion that can tear at our hearts and souls and only comes with true forgiveness of self, trust, and love

Then Iyanla talks about the positive qualities the ancients felt contributed to a well lived life: truth, honour, justice, harmony and love

She says they believed to get through the gates of Maat we must:

seek and speak the truth harbouring no ill thoughs or feelings
you must honour the ways of those who came before you
you must deal justly with honesty in all situations
be harmonious in all that you do, seeking no quarrel with anyone and extending only love to others

A tall order but one worth the effort