Although C.J. Martes has been knowingly guided by angels since childhood, her contact took on a new face in 1995 when she was visited by guides who called themselves the Angelic Counsel of 12. Wherever CJ is getting her information, she offers wisdom and insight about what concerns so many of us today: How to deal with the huge vibrational challenges, emotions, and changes that are taking place today for those of us who are committed to the Light. "If you want to control something," CJ says, "then learn to control your consciousness."


In this article, we are looking at ascension as being a process of going from one level of consciousness to another, higher level or dimension.

How do you define ascension?
CJ: There are certainly very many definitions of ascension. The traditional definition was to leave the Earth and be with God in heaven. But I agree that ascension is dimensional, and that it does take place while we are embodied. It is about the vibratory changes that take place as we move from one dimension to the next. We're learning to live dimensionally and develop a perception of things that are beyond our third-dimensional reality. We have been third dimensional, and the third dimension was very much about living in a body - and living in fear. We are essentially hardwired to live in fear; our bodies are based on survival. Negative emotions were developed from that need for survival. The concept has been that if you touch a hot stove, you will be burned. We had to protect ourselves and defend against things that were fearful.

The Fourth and Fifth dimensions are about living in love and opening the heart. They are about clearing fear and transmuting it into love. Fear blocks our energy. But instead of remaining in fear, it is possible for us to move into our etheric input and have a different reaction. As we develop enough consciousness of ascension, or dimensional movement, the higher vibrations will pull us away from 3D. The veils will become thinner. Our bodies and souls will become more synchronized, and that will release the ego.

So as we move into the Fourth and Fifth dimensions, we are essentially unplugging from a fear-based dimension. What may happen is that we will experience two Earths" — one that operates in the Fourth and Fifth dimensions, and one that other people experience in the Third Dimension. It may be like the reality portrayed in the movie The Matrix. This film presented the idea that one group of people can interact with another while being detached — knowing that the experience "feels" real, and can be experienced by the body in the physical, but also knowing that the experience can be changed through consciousness. This is an example of a possible reality that will occur through ascension. We may find that we will be aware of 3D reality only if we choose to enter into it with those who are still perceiving the Earth in those terms.


Asa: What are some of the changes that occur in the body and DNA during ascension?
CJ: I am being told that there are twelve strands in the DNA that will become activated. These strands represent the essence of the soul, or the vibrational template. Our bodies are a representation of our etheric presence. We all have to change - we are essentially wired for 3D, and in 3D there are many fears that are stored in the body. The body is very dense, and it has to go through this conscious process.

Before my visitation from the angels, I was very depressed. This happens to many people. They may also become ill. In my case, I couldn't get out of the bed. My body had to shift to move into this dimensional or higher energy. We can generate a healthy body by moving into higher consciousness, but when we start, the body is often dense. It can take time. For me, it took a couple of years. There is often a huge detoxification process that happens. The body is always giving us information about the shift. Our emotions are actually our opportunities for healing.

Fortunately, the body is very good at throwing off these energies. It is possible to see physical changes that become apparent as people move into the higher dimensions. They become happier; their faces and bodies carry more light. They become younger in appearance. Our consciousness state does affect our physicality.


Asa: What are conscious changes that we can make to move more easily into the ascension process?
CJ: In very many ways, this dimensional shift is about emotion. The angels are literally holding a blanket or cloud of higher vibrational energy around us. The only way that we can ascend into this energy is through our emotions. The situations that come up are very dramatic. Our buttons are literally punched when we move forward in the process because it is the only way that we can clear ourselves for love. The emotional blocks that we experience are often from other lifetimes, and we are being cleared. The energy that we are experiencing as emotion is essentially karma — not in the old sense, but in the sense that the energy we haven't dealt with properly is returning to us at a rapid rate. We have to work through it. We have to learn to open our hearts. These emotional rollercoasters are really the catalyst to do this. When we learn to open our hearts, we release fear.

We have to develop the awareness that we are larger than our emotions. We are larger than the emotions generated by the brain and ego. When we are feeling a very strong emotion, we need to realize that what we do in the moment is crucial. It is the key to our ascension. There are only two choices. We can choose love or fear. In the moment that we choose an emotion, each choice will seem equally valid. We have to develop the perception that we have the awareness to choose. If a situation doesn't work the way we thought it should, we can either become disappointed and hurt, or we can say, "The world is in perfect order. It will all work out." When we choose love and acceptance — including self-love and self-acceptance — we make quantum leaps in our consciousness. When we make this choice to rise above the situation or emotion, the world often changes the situation in response to our choice. These are little miracles that happen to everyone. Ascension is also about perception, about how we perceive our reality. We can choose to validate ourselves or tear ourselves down. We have to keep choosing the love; it's all about love.

Fear has served us very well in the past. It has protected us. But we no longer need it. We have to let go of attachment to outcome — the fear that the outcome will not be what we want. When we release that fear, we move back into the center and move into love. The more of us who learn how to let go of attachment by controlling the consciousness and coming into who we really are, the more quickly the ascension process will take place. We are literally holding a place for others to make the shift. In other words, as we make the shift ourselves, it becomes possible for others to entrain with us. I really do believe that we are shifting consciousness at a global level as we do this.

Imagine that you fill a room with clocks, and eventually, they all become synchronized. This is entrainment. For each of us who can clear our emotions, we are making it easier for everyone else to do so. We create a point of reference in dimensionality for others to find on their path. As soon as you can transfer your energy from fear to love, there is an almost immediate response. The energy returns very quickly in this dimension, and it's obvious when people are accomplishing this. They become happier and look younger. The body reflects the consciousness shift.


Asa: How can we use our consciousness to change our emotions?
CJ: The more we are willing to understand that there are no victims, the more easily we can grasp this wave of energy. In a sense, as I mentioend before, the angels and higher beings are holding a blanket of higher consciousness over us at this time. This is essentially an opportunity that we have been given in a certain time frame. We glazed over our emotions in the '80s, and now we have to feel them again. It's the way this process works. This new energy is a gift for all of us, but again, it can feel like an emotional rollercoaster. You have to be willing to go deep and understand that we have to learn about energy emotionally at this point in time. Whatever we have suppressed emotionally is going to come up. Our thoughts are energy, and everything is working differently. Whenever we have a conflict emotionally, it's because we are experiencing two feelings, two emotions. We are experiencing duality.

We have to accept what spirit shows us, and then realize that we always are choosing either love or fear. We have to learn to see the opportunity in every moment to choose love. As more of us can move into love, the easier it becomes and the more everyone else will entrain and move naturally into this conscious pattern. But those of us who are working on this now, it can be exhausting. That is a partial explanation for the current national unemployment rate.


Asa: That's an interesting view. How does this work?
CJ: The result of so much unemployment is that many people are having downtime, and in this time, they are learning to rethink their lives. For example, if people in 2003 are without a job, they can either worry — or they can create new opportunities in their lives. It's an interesting situation. These unemployed people all have one goal, to create a job. So they can worry, or try to go back to their old work, or they can create a new opportunity. They have a strong motivation, and they can use it to move out of the reactionary mode and into the ascension mode. We are learning about power and empowering ourselves. We can choose reaction and negative emotion, or we can trust — and create something new. When we move past negative emotion, we have to let go of attachment and control. When we let go, we move into the opportunity of the moment and into trust. Everyone is always trying to control external circumstances, and it can't be done. If you want to control something, then learn to control your consciousness.


Asa: How can we develop that trust to let go of controlling externals?
CJ: A minister at my church asked a lady if she trusted God, and she said no. So he suggested that she start trusting God for just one week and see what happened. I think this is a great suggestion. All of us should try letting go of control and putting our trust in God, even for just one day! I say, "Let's try out trust for just one day." If you can do that, everything will be perfect. You won't have to worry. God will take care of everything. Your ascension process will be perfect.


Asa: You mentioned earlier the view that there are no victims. And I know that part of the ascension process is about truly learning how to create the reality we choose. Can you comment on this?

CJ: Often, those of us who aware of this process of learning to create will say, "How or why did I create such-and-such?" That's really not that important, and we shouldn't stay there. We are not living in the moment if we are having these thoughts. If we're unconscious, then we're blocking energy. We're blocking perfect creation in our lives. So we need to really look at the situation for its value, and then look for the intense emotion behind it. But although we have to really look at the emotion, it's important not to judge it. All we want to do is clear it. It's not possible to fulfill our destiny or dharma with blocked energy, and we are really having to clear in this way. Spiritual knowledge is often found underneath these blocks; information we did not know we had. If we let go of the emotion, it allows us to express this part of Spirit that we did not know we had.

We have millions of filters, and this is how we work through them, and we're learning how to rechannel the energy for good. For example, a lot of our ego tapes tend to play around the idea of giving. We are really conditioned to give with the idea of outcome in mind. We think that this person will like us if we give to them, or we'll receive something back in return. We tend to think of giving in a totally conditional way. It's completely different to give unconditionally. It's hard to trust to God to return the gift in whatever way is correct. We tend to only want the gift if it's wrapped in metallic paper with a green bow (because that's how we described it in our consciousness), and we don't want the gift from God if it comes in a cardboard box.

It takes courage to do work through emotions, live in the moment, and surrender outcome — a lot of courage. The wave of higher dimensional energy is coming, and every time we can be courageous, those little parts of us are jumping up and down, waving, saying, "I can do this, too! I know how to do this, too!" We're not in this alone. As each of us becomes more courageous, it becomes easier for all of us.


Asa: What are the earth changes that may be associated with the ascension process?
CJ: We already have adverted many catastrophes, both as a race and as individuals. Currently, the planet is reflecting the changes that we are experiencing. As we are clearing ourselves of fear and detoxing from our emotions, the Earth is attempting to clean and clear in a similar way. It is a necessary clearing, for the Earth also is moving through the ascension process. I also feel that the polarity expressed at this time in our consciousness is evident on the planet. There is a lot of polarity around the planet. If we could look at the planet from a distance, I think we would see the light on one side and the darkness on the other. The Earth is expressing our duality. There is a real dichotomy going on. I expect that we will see more changes and upheaval, but that the Earth will eventually heal. It will eventually get better.


Asa: Are there any thoughts about ascension that you have in closing?
CJ: We all have a choice in the moment, and that choice is to shift in one direction or the other. This is really what ascension is about. That's probably the most important part of the process. I've stated my beliefs about ascension, and I can walk my talk. We learn about human life by walking through it and walking our talk. Each individual must decide what ascension means to him or her and how that process works. A conscious choice to embrace and seek higher consciousness will bring in the information — the correct book, article, or person will come. Learning to be open and detached brings in higher consciousness. When we can achieve detachment, there is a natural rhythm to the cosmos. If we can learn to get out of the way, the rhythm will come into our being and put us in touch. If we have already begun to experience ascension and have knowledge about moving dimensionally, then it is important to walk the walk and help others. If we don't know how to do this, then we must keep seeking to find out how. If we want a happy life or to touch the greatness of our inner potential, then we should keep trying. Happiness and authenticity are the natural outcome of ascension.


CJ Martes has received direct angelic guidance since childhood. This guidance has led her to work spiritually with others to assist their healing processes. A major spiritual awakening occurred for CJ in 1995 when she was visited by a group of angels (the Angelic Counsel of 12) who gave her more information about her path and purpose. She became a conscious channel for two years during these visits. CJ received her certification in Energy Studies from Vibrational Gateways Institute in Kansas City, and is now a practitioner of Attunement Therapy and Full Body Scans. She works with clients on accessing their own wisdom to create healing potential, clear negative vibrations, and integrate lessons in order to bring clarity of mind, body, and spirit. She is an accomplished lecturer and available to talk on ascension, angelic intervention and other spiritual topics. She is also a writer with published articles in both printed and online publications. Her first book is due out in Fall 2004. She can be contacted for private consultations at 816-392-7662 or CJ@ascension.net, or visit her website at Ascension.net.