As my teacher Swami Satchidananda used to say, "You can learn things from books; but they can never teach you". Life is like a factory that turns out enlightened beings. You are always attracted to what you want or need and what you don't want; which also serves as a learning tool. I am not saying that having a degree cannot be useful, I have one, but for the most part it will only give you more flexibility with respect to opportunities to make money. If I can give advice concerning your vocation, you should do what you love to do. So many people work at jobs more for the money than the love of the job. I believe that everyone has a gift to offer all of us and this gift is found in the area that you love. It is far more important to do what you love than to have a degree. When you follow your excitement and do what you love then you are on track doing what your Higher Self wants you to do. And why are you here in the first place? You are here to gather experiences and to be on a spiritual journey whether you are a monk in a cave or in a busy business work place. People used to think they could not become enlightened unless they quit their jobs and a family life and went off to be a hermit. This is not true. Although, I will admit that in history more Sanyasins or non married people probably opened their sixth chakras; but the time for householders to do this is approaching. There are no prerequisites to enlightenment. We are all on our own path. For those in a busy work place I suggest the words of Sri Ramana Marharshi " Meditate two hours a day and become  a Karma Yogi". By Karma Yogi he means doing the work for the service it provides. An excellent attitude is to say, "How can I be of service"? This does not mean that you can't be properly paid for this service. As Bashar has recently stated, "Abundance is the ability to do what you need to do when you need to do it." It does not have to come in the form of money; but money is also an option. According to the Andromedans, in 22 other civilizations in space like ours; we are the only one that still uses money!! Look at the energy coming from the Center of the Galaxy that is creating a new sound and frequency that will move all the dimensions up one level. This is truly an amazing time to be on the planet. I recently heard of an experiment in Russia where certain salts were given to inmates in prisons that totally changed their behavior. These salts were forged in pyramids and demonstrated how this single activity changed human behavior. Certainly we are in need of such behavior on a mass scale and we are receiving this assistance. And to me the REAL KNOWLEDGE is all self knowledge and all about self empowerment. It is knowledge that runs vertically and not horizontally. In point of fact all knowledge is free if you know how to access it. When you open your sixth chakra fully and have a fully functional pineal gland then when you ask the question the answer will come. It is one of the clues about Bashar that indicates that he has become one with his Higher Self. How else can one being know so much on every topic known to man? I have heard him speak to physicists, doctors, you name it on any subject and he can take their information out a few steps. How is this possible? Because he can access the Cosmic Mind if you like. The information is free for the taking. Just like a cherry tree. All you have to do is pick the fruit. If you want someone else to pick the fruit for you, then you pay for this service. All CREATIVE THOUGHT comes from the Higher Self. The rational mind is not capable of having a creative thought. It is the perceiver of ideas not the creator. Perceiver as in past tense. When we function as a whole unit, we function with the Higher Self, brain and rational mind all cooperating and each doing its task. The primary function of the rational mind is to PUT A POSITIVE SPIN ON OUTER CIRCUMSTANCES. Don't you want positive experiences? That is how to create them!!!!  I appreciate that we get some self satisfaction from thinking we are so smart or smarter than others. The truth is we all have the potential to access the Higher Knowledge. It is when the little I shuts up that the Big I kicks in!!  Even the chess masters, who sometimes think they are so smart; have never had a creative thought that didn't come from the Higher Self or Beings at higher levels playing through them! And don't think that just because you have advanced degrees that you are so much better than others. I like to give the example that information is doubling every two years and every year  and a half in science. By the time you are in your second year of college the information is out dated. And do you not think that there are unpublicized computers that function much better than what the public is aware of? How fast is information doubling for these computers? Every day? It has been estimated that only about 6% of the information on any topic is available to the public. That includes major universities. For some people they think they have more value with more degrees. The fact is that we are all valuable. God didn't make extraneous parts or beings. We are all unconditionally loved by Prime Creator. Bashar has said that we are all making the most possible impact on this world already; but when you do the thing that is your passion other people become aware of the impact you are already having! The old saying is that the more you know the more you realize that there is so much you don't know. We are not capable of knowing all the answers; but we are capable of connecting to levels of consciousness that can give us the answers. One of the keys is the activation of your chakras which includes the pineal gland. We have mentioned before that fluorides calcify the pineal gland. There are techniques that can assist to open your chakras. Of course the best place I know of will be my website at www.etyoga.com which will be up soon. You can obtain there all of the techniques you will ever need at a very reasonable price. This service I can provide for you, if you cannot access it yourself. Actually, the site was developed as a one stop shop for all your spiritual needs. I realize that many people are far too busy to spend thousands of hours surfing the net and accessing the kernels of good information. So, I am developing this site so all you need to do is go to one place. Of course you have to put to practice the techniques. Swami used to say that techniques are like soap that clears away the dirt and after your hands are clean you don't need them anymore. Which are the most powerful mantras or techniques? The ones that you are attracted to. For me I have included the best ones I came into contact with at www.etyoga.com. When I speak of Self Knowledge or Self Empowering knowledge, it is all about assisting in your spiritual growth. It is about conquering fear; which keeps you from claiming your real power. It is about keeping in harmony with the frequency you prefer to be and also creating the kind of life you truly want to experience. The educational system is basically about regurgitating information and not about getting you to be a creative thinker. It is also designed to by pass the emotional centers. The system is designed more for control issues than for liberating the individual. Free thinkers are not scared into thinking they need protection from the outside. They realize that they create the outside and take responsibility for their creations.  Acknowledging that you are responsible for the outside is what gives you the power to change it. Because, if you created it then you can change it. But if you blame others for the outside condition then you just create yourself as a victim. And of course you will be abused. Fear, fear, fear....can be a great motivator. Create the fear and then create the solution. Fear can become your friend if used properly. And Mr.Fear has his foot on the toolbox marked, Your Personal Power. All Fear is Illusion. False Evidence Appearing Real! And all fear is not in alignment with your Higher Self. Because first of all in order to be in fear you must believe that something, someone or some organization is more powerful than you are. Let me remind you that you cannot experience what you are not the vibration of. That is a fundamental operating procedure in the physical universe!! If you are not of that vibration then for you, you are invisible to that vibration!!! And you cannot conceive what you do not contain. In other words if you can imagine it, then you have the capability to achieve it. You are never given the desire for something that you do not have the ability to attain!! That is why realizing the importance and possibility of enlightenment is the planting of the seed that grows to its fruition. My sincere best towards your attainment of full consciousness, perfect health and abundance. Charles Maxwell Green www.etyoga.com (If this article made a difference in your life, you can support the author via PayPal at green.etyoga@gmail.com)