8 min read ⌚ 

Transform Fear to Faith

It’s anything but easy to tackle the self-imposed restrictions that your mind creates.

Nonetheless, Gabrielle tells us her story, and how she managed to come out victorious in this inner battle. It’s also a wake-up call for those who still cannot find peace and balance.

In this summary, we try to extract the key takeaways from this amazing life-altering book and present them in a digestible manner.

Let’s roll!

Who Should Read “The Universe Has Your Back”? And Why?

Over the course of thousands of years, human evolvement has led us to a point where most people are fed and have a roof over their heads, but we cannot find the formula for harmony and peace.

It seems as if worldly pleasures cannot complement for lack of spiritual maturity.

A world saturated with technology and opportunities doesn’t add up to this story. In contrast, “The Universe Has Your Back” answers this cry for help and outlines a couple of things we must do in order to get out of this meaningless life cycle.

About Gabrielle Bernstein

With regards to profession, Gabrielle Bernstein can be put into several different categories, but we believe the most accurate one would include: author, motivational speaker, and life coach.

She doesn’t shy away from telling her life-encounters and how one should act in various circumstances.

Gabrielle is the author of several other books:

• Judgment Detox
• MediDating
• Miracles Now
• Spirit Junkie
• May Cause Miracles
• Add More Ing to Your Life

“The Universe Has Your Back PDF Summary”

Well, it’s hard to imagine a system that caters to every whim of its subordinates. Moreover, if we look at the data, we’ll see that people’s well being is not proportionate to the global progress. It stands to reason why most Americans, struggle with depression regardless of their income or stature in society.

The same factual logic applies to the rest of the world, as well.

Gabrielle starts on the right foot by sharing the truth related to what has led her to write this book. In 2015, she had a life-altering experience during her yoga class. A sudden surge of restlessness, anxiety, and discomfort overwhelmed her and made the left side of her face go totally numb.

Within the next 24 hours, she visited a doctor who couldn’t find anything “physical” related to this phenomenon. After running a few tests, they diagnosed it as a panic attack.

Imagine the shock!

A successful, thriving, caring, and peaceful woman, mother, and spouse had this attack without any warnings or cues.

Let’s delve into it.

To understand why some of the people prefer not to get out of their state of discomfort, Sigmund Freud did a couple of tests.

Sigmund Freud realized that his patients weren’t getting any better and came to the conclusion that there’s some inner resistance that prevents them from transforming.

The universe or the universal power relates to the ability to catch a glimpse of this resistance and challenge the thought system. It’s a systematic safety-net that impedes our willingness to overcome this state of chaos.

Gabrielle recalls her struggle with depression since she was a teenage girl. Not knowing what exactly is causing this sense of perpetual fear, she took a trip with her boyfriend to a beach house.

Once there, she excused herself and walked into an isolated small room on the second floor to find her inner shelter. The dark cloud of thoughts was washed away, as she entered a blissful state of mind by connecting with the divine.

When this feeling of anxiety started to recede, Gabrielle became increasingly concerned with worldly pleasures.

Having a relationship, and thriving in a professional sense became the top priority.

She even started abusing drugs and alcohol, a decision that plunged her into the dark bottom. An instant slump, she feared is unrecoverable.

Gabrielle was ashamed of herself as if she betrayed the only real friend she has ever had.

However, it wasn’t too late to change the music, as her inner urge to overcome this anxious surge grew stronger by the day.

I began to recite, So, Ham, So, Ham, So, Ham – a mantra that helped her during those difficult moments.

The Universal Pull is the Source and Substance

In the next few chapters, Gabrielle emphasizes the significance of changing one’s perception. She conveys words of worry and hope to those who jump into conclusions without trying to shift their angle of view.

To prove a point, she even illustrates an example.

When you are at the movies, and the bad guy is waiting just around the corner, while the good person is passing by, we are all like “Don’t Go” “Be Careful” “Turn Back.”

This merely manifests our own habit to make the same old mistakes, but even that keeps us detained in a self-imposed prison. Whatever you perceive you conceive, therefore it’s of utmost significance to cast doubt on these mental tendencies.

The Universal Lesson #2 focuses on the three-step process for questioning the self-made world:

• Step #1 – What is the fearful movie you’ve been playing?
• Step #2 – What’s the positive movie you’ve been playing?
• Step #3 – Reconnect to your power.

It goes without saying that a state of presence is the only genuine power. Some people refer to this absolute phenomenon as God, other as Universe or Awareness, and in the modern-day lexicon, you’ll find it as Universal Truth.

Whatever name you assign to it, it will serve an equal purpose.

Gabrielle tells us that real power lies in presence, which goes against conventional logic and crosses swords with the inner world you have created. The accumulation of events, thoughts, and sense of sense self compose the egoic reality.

The Universal Laws apply to every person, every conscious being who has decided to go deep into this divine connection.

• Meditation and prayer are the two keys which can open up all the doors in the Universe
• The presence of resentment and anxiety indicates that you lean too much on your mind
• Your projection is your perception
• Being in the present moment is the only genuine power
• When you unintentionally break off this connection, just say a prayer and get back on track

If you have the guts to be responsible for what you see, then you’ll see an immediate shift in your state of mind. You cannot deny the connection between one’s inner world and its actual reality. For example, people living in wealthy and prosperous nations shouldn’t be having this difficult, but that’s just nonsense.

Regardless of your surroundings, and necessities, one should feast its eyes with love and compassion, case in point, Mahatma Gandhi.

Despite the appalling conditions, he was guided by a righteous cause that formed his perception.

An ignorant person wants to change the world; a smart person only wishes to transform itself. Don’t go running around, throwing your moral notions at someone’s face, and instead take on an inward journey to overcome your suffering.

In the next few chapters, Gabrielle explains to us how we can reap the benefits of being spiritually mature.

In addition, she calls upon all the humanity to wake up by doing the following:

• Step #1 – Ask for guidance
• Step #2 – Practice the holy instant
• Step #3 – Fast comeback
• Step #4 – Put out what you want to receive
• Step #5 – Create a purpose statement
• Step #6 – You are a dreamer of your dream

You might be thinking, that to avoid fear is the ultimate goal, but that’s not the case. You ought to identify your genuine teacher, which is the Universe, and abide by the rules of love and broader understanding.

The tricky part is finding the courage to detach from emotions and emotional baggage prior to strengthening your connection with the Divine.

To ensure that you receive the Universal love, it’s of utmost importance that you gear up with the right mentality for the task.

Get out of your comfort zone, and tackle the monkey mind at once. Very straightforward advice for those who might veer off course during the transition. It’s a powerful exercise that could help you when you are pushed into a corner and need some sort of a propeller to get the ball rolling.

By meditating, you’ll be able to calm your mind and put it in a position of total relaxation.

In this book, Gabrielle explains how practicing Kirtan Kriya for 12 minutes each day can lift your spirits and put you in a better mood. Also, it will help you understand your intentions which prompt you into taking certain actions and decisions.

Sometimes, you won’t feel like you are in the godly presence, but the Universe acts mysteriously even when you’re outraged at something.

Let go – is something you’ll hear quite often.

Even Gabrielle gives us a rundown on how our obsessive need to be in control can backfire on you and make you even more depressive.

In the last chapter, Gabrielle shares her obsession to get pregnant. She was so worried about the timing that she forgot about love itself. It was a process that was gaining momentum, making her dependent on the outcome, and not enjoying the present moment.

She even went as far as comparing herself to her friends, who just gave birth or conceived a baby.

As human beings who feel inclined to set goals, and make preparations for things to turn out in their favor, we rarely live in the “Now.” This process has the earmarks of a great plan that would keep us organized even in the most scatterbrained periods of our lives.

Nonetheless, nobody can spot the danger of remaining rigid. Why do you believe that your projections, your egoic predictions are the best-case scenario?

We are misled to believe that this little voice, is our best friend.

This arrogance and ignorance, keep us from seeing with the eyes of real wisdom which portrays life as uncertainty to its full extent.

The peace of love is shining in you now.

Key Lessons from “The Universe Has Your Back”

1.      Understand that you deserve to be happy
2.      Keep the fire on the other side
3.      The art of surrender

Understand that you deserve to be happy

Many people these days have given up on life, even though they are at their prime years. It’s a paradox that doesn’t seem to go away.

As a response, the author merely implies that “happiness” is a choice for those who want more.

It’s not a matter of materialism, but a matter of inner development and growth. It’s a state of mind and heart one should strive to achieve.

Keep the fire on the other side

If you believe that sheer will is all that separates you from a blissful experience, you better think again. The utility of applying an aggressive strategy in the workplace gives you the latitude to do whatever you want, but the same process is not on the same wavelength as the idea to reach genuine satisfaction.

So, it’s better to adjust your approach when dealing with mental tendencies.

The art of surrender

It’s against conventional wisdom not to lay down the law or be in the driver’s seat. To put it differently, people love to run the show, to hold the reins and reap the seeds of such actions.

However, in spirituality, you have to loosen up and take a break from all the restless striving to control the outcome.

Thus, the art of surrender will help you understand the big picture, and how going along with the flow could be the best decision.  

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“The Universe Has Your Back Quotes”

Our Critical Review

When a person relates to predicaments that he/she has been through, then you really don’t need to question its intentions.

We feel like that’s the case here.

Gabrielle struggled to keep depression out of her life but managed to subdue these negative urges through meditations and prayer.

As such, we find the book both practical and compelling.

Emir Zecovic

Emir is the Head of Marketing at 12min. In his spare time, he loves to meditate and play soccer.