The GEM is an emanation of LvX, comprised of 64 contemplations for change. It is a companion for mastering yourself day by day, sowing seeds for miracles in your own life. You can become the change you want to see in the world. Imperceptibly, like a plant growing, you may begin producing new fruits. Some things that initially sounded like deprivation may end up as a source of abundance. Others that at first seemed to require too much of your precious time may end up freeing you from time’s dictate. It is helpful to first read the LUX Manifesto to better understand its intent.

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The GEM does not require an exhaustive and sequential reading. It tells no story. How many stories have you already read about the real or imagined lives of others? The only story that really matters is yours. The GEM wants only to open a path into the conscious creation of your own story. 

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GEM is s not a “how to” method or a school of thought. How many books have you already read that promise you success with a money-back guarantee if you’re not satisfied? How many books have told you that if you do this and that, all in the right order, then you will be as successful as the person giving you the advice? How many do you still need to read to become as successful as you think you need to be? We don't want you to be successful like me, we want you to become the fullness of what you are meant to be.

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The GEM is a collection of contemplations for change. We could call it "the book of changes", but that title was taken thousands of years ago by the monumental Chinese work called I Ching. 

Instead, we have called it GEM. It is a play on the words lux and luxury. Lux, because a gem refracts light. Luxury, because gems are considered a form of wealth. The value that each of the facets can bring to your life is greater than any mineral that you string around your neck or display on your finger.

The GEM contains 64 facets, each capable of refracting light from within you. A single ray of light can spark transformation. It may alter your life ever so slightly, softening the great solid edifice of your identity. Imperceptibly, you may begin to morph into what you are meant to become. The world around you will morph along with you. Indeed, all is waiting on you. The orchestra is in place and waits for you and your singular instrument before the music begins.

In our holographic universe (once upon a time known as the realm of Indra), a net of brilliant gems stretches out in all directions, infinitely. Each gem also reflects every other gem, infinite in number, and each of the reflected images of the gem bears the image of all the other gems. Whatever affects one affects them all. No matter how hard you try, through good or evil, to define yourself as a separate being, you will not change the underlying nature of inter-being. You will only experience the illusion of separation, also known as samsara or suffering.

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For you, and for all of humanity, small steps have unexpected effects. If 1 billion of the earth’s inhabitants were to simultaneously try out a single one of the practices suggested in this book, the impact would be phenomenal. The Japanese invented Kaizen: the idea of changing for the better: everyone, every day, everywhere. It is said that you cannot force others to change, but your own changes, however slight, do produce changes in others. Only you are not the master of how others change.
 

Form is an inseparable part of the message. Each facet of GEM is a part and a whole. Each is encapsulated by a three-letter word, or trigram. The content of each is organized into a triad format, playfully described by the acronym AIM, such that you take good aim for change. The triad format of each facet integrates your heart-consciousness, your thinking, and your body. 

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With three begins infinity, and the three shall set you free.

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Two is a polarity, a dissonance, an either/or;  three is a harmony, a whole. Using only three-letter words as titles is a play on simplicity and complexity. We come to see that the smallest of words, just like the smallest of acts, can have great significance. We get a sense of how everything is contained in everything else. The chosen word is significant, yet another word could also have been used as a portal to the same understanding. It’s good fun more than anything else, an activity a bit like building only with sticks. The idea germed one day and we just followed its path.

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There is one prominent four-letter word, like a light that shines through each and every facet. By the end of your reading, it will be of no mystery to you.

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