Friday, September 30, 2005
Searching the Toolbox
It’s funny how when an issue pops up it seems to pop up for many at the same time. Something to do with those wretched 100 monkeys I expect*. Anyway the issue of the Ego keeps raising its head at the moment. The Ego of course being that weird thing we carry around with us that we think is us. Back to the Hindu definition of the Real and the Unreal again I suppose. The Ego is definitely not the Real but it is what we tend to assume is Real.
So the next time you have that dialogue in your head along the lines of “There’s nothing special about me.” “I mustn’t be egocentric, I mustn’t show off.” “Who do I think I am that I could achieve that? I can’t do that.” Etc.etc. you know the territory. Perhaps try a trick I’m working on to help myself in these situations:
I try and visualise my ego as a toolbox. I have chosen to be here in this human form and in order to function I need to keep my body working well and take care of my various essential needs. I will need some tools for this. I also have a job to do while I’m here and in order to do that job I will need a few tools as well. My ego allows me to interface with this world we have created and to do what I need to do. I need to learn and develop so I can remember my unique role and then go about fulfilling it. So I take a look in my toolbox to see what I have. My toolbox will of course be different to yours and the tools I have will be specific to what I need in order to do my special job. So if I take myself as an example: so far I have remembered that I am here to heal and to lead others into the light to make it easier for them to connect with their higher selves. I am here to bring peace everywhere and where necessary to use words. Some of the tools I have been given to do this include the ability to teach, natural leadership skills, heightened kinaesthetic sensitivity, a kind of centeredness that makes others feel safe and the ability to write creatively and clearly (don’t laugh!).
Now take a look in your toolbox and ask yourself what tools can you see there (sometimes they are concealed from view) and what are they best used for? Are you making use of your tools or are they going rusty? Oh this analogy has a lot of legs! It can run and run! Fill in the rest yourself before I labour it to death!
So I see it as being that simple.
A mistake we all make is to think that we are the toolbox. That leads us into all sorts of trouble. That’s how we can start berating ourselves for our natural abilities. That’s how we can start prancing about like the sage on the stage. That’s how can get drawn into the illusion of separation (see my earlier ramblings on this if you’re interested).
One more thing … then that’s it for the toolbox thing for now. Who has the best tools, you or me? The answer of course is that we both do. You have the best tools for your job and I have the best tools for mine. You might as well ask who has the best tools between a plumber and electrician. So yes we are all connected to the same source and behind our masks there is pure light. Also we are all unique and special. No two of us have exactly the same job or exactly the same box of tools.
Phew.
Now for a joke:
Joke Time
Charlie dies and goes to heaven. St. Peter meets him at the pearly gates and takes him on the guided tour, like he does for all the new arrivals. Finally he asks Charlie if he’s had lunch. “No” says Charlie “I died before lunch actually”. “Well” says St. Peter “you’re in luck mate because the canteen is serving lunch right now.”
So St. Peter takes Charlie to the canteen. There he sees all the heavenly throng holding trays and queuing up for food. St. Peter proceeds to point out the various celebrities. “There’s St. Michael the Archangel, there’s Mother Teresa, there’s St. Francis of Assisi…” Just then a guy in a white coat bursts in, pushing Charlie and St. Peter out of the way. He grabs a tray, rudely pushes to the front of the queue, grabs some food and rushes off to a table where he sits down on his own. Charlie asks: “Who ever is that?” St. Peter says, “Oh take no notice of him. That’s God. But sometimes he thinks he’s a doctor.”
*I can’t be bothered to explain about 100 monkeys. If you don’t know what I’m talking about you’ll have to Google it.
So the next time you have that dialogue in your head along the lines of “There’s nothing special about me.” “I mustn’t be egocentric, I mustn’t show off.” “Who do I think I am that I could achieve that? I can’t do that.” Etc.etc. you know the territory. Perhaps try a trick I’m working on to help myself in these situations:
I try and visualise my ego as a toolbox. I have chosen to be here in this human form and in order to function I need to keep my body working well and take care of my various essential needs. I will need some tools for this. I also have a job to do while I’m here and in order to do that job I will need a few tools as well. My ego allows me to interface with this world we have created and to do what I need to do. I need to learn and develop so I can remember my unique role and then go about fulfilling it. So I take a look in my toolbox to see what I have. My toolbox will of course be different to yours and the tools I have will be specific to what I need in order to do my special job. So if I take myself as an example: so far I have remembered that I am here to heal and to lead others into the light to make it easier for them to connect with their higher selves. I am here to bring peace everywhere and where necessary to use words. Some of the tools I have been given to do this include the ability to teach, natural leadership skills, heightened kinaesthetic sensitivity, a kind of centeredness that makes others feel safe and the ability to write creatively and clearly (don’t laugh!).
Now take a look in your toolbox and ask yourself what tools can you see there (sometimes they are concealed from view) and what are they best used for? Are you making use of your tools or are they going rusty? Oh this analogy has a lot of legs! It can run and run! Fill in the rest yourself before I labour it to death!
So I see it as being that simple.
A mistake we all make is to think that we are the toolbox. That leads us into all sorts of trouble. That’s how we can start berating ourselves for our natural abilities. That’s how we can start prancing about like the sage on the stage. That’s how can get drawn into the illusion of separation (see my earlier ramblings on this if you’re interested).
One more thing … then that’s it for the toolbox thing for now. Who has the best tools, you or me? The answer of course is that we both do. You have the best tools for your job and I have the best tools for mine. You might as well ask who has the best tools between a plumber and electrician. So yes we are all connected to the same source and behind our masks there is pure light. Also we are all unique and special. No two of us have exactly the same job or exactly the same box of tools.
Phew.
Now for a joke:
Joke Time
Charlie dies and goes to heaven. St. Peter meets him at the pearly gates and takes him on the guided tour, like he does for all the new arrivals. Finally he asks Charlie if he’s had lunch. “No” says Charlie “I died before lunch actually”. “Well” says St. Peter “you’re in luck mate because the canteen is serving lunch right now.”
So St. Peter takes Charlie to the canteen. There he sees all the heavenly throng holding trays and queuing up for food. St. Peter proceeds to point out the various celebrities. “There’s St. Michael the Archangel, there’s Mother Teresa, there’s St. Francis of Assisi…” Just then a guy in a white coat bursts in, pushing Charlie and St. Peter out of the way. He grabs a tray, rudely pushes to the front of the queue, grabs some food and rushes off to a table where he sits down on his own. Charlie asks: “Who ever is that?” St. Peter says, “Oh take no notice of him. That’s God. But sometimes he thinks he’s a doctor.”
*I can’t be bothered to explain about 100 monkeys. If you don’t know what I’m talking about you’ll have to Google it.
Monday, September 26, 2005
path to peace workshop one
My latest path to peace workshop one was scheduled for Friday 23rd September (last Friday). It became fairly obvious that I would have to cancel it when I had only taken one booking with 8 days to go! The temptation in this type of situation is to indulge myself in a warm bed of negativity, a nobody loves me type-of-thing. I was tempted. My indecision about what to do with the venue I had booked was creating some anxiety for me. Should I cancel and get my money back? Should I try to raise a few path to peaceniks of old to come along for a day of meditation and bodywork… or something? Some folks were away, some folks didn’t reply and some were keen. I got all mixed up about who had said what. Finally I decided to stop. I asked myself “Can I see the room? Am I breathing? Am I in balance?” Then I just told everyone I could think of that I would be at the venue from 9.30am until 1.00pm and to come along if they wanted to and to bring a voluntary contribution to help pay for the hire charge.
Guess what? This worked really well. Four folks turned up and it was obvious almost immediately that it was going to be a very powerful morning. Well I don’t know about the rest of them, but I had a good time!
We meditated for 45 mins and then exchanged healing, all working in our different ways. In fact someone suggested we all focus healing on one person, taking turns to be that one person. I can see how that might not work, a mix of incompatible energies perhaps or everyone sure they were the only one doing it the “right way”. Actually none of that happened, it was great. Everyone did his or her own thing and it worked really well. I felt terrific afterwards and still do. I’ve got loads of energy and the cold that was starting up has gently faded away into the background. So now I think I will organise mornings such as this on a regular basis.
So what seemed to be a negative situation turned into a very, very positive experience once I had decided to let go of the morning and to stop trying to control everything (Control freak? Me?). But no matter how often I am given that lesson it is always a difficult one: surrender, trust and gratitude. That’s the title of workshop two by the way. We always teach what we need to learn the most!
My joke for today:
Q: How many psychoanalysts does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Two. One to change the bulb and one to hold the penis.....sorry! I mean ladder. Why do I keep saying penis?
Guess what? This worked really well. Four folks turned up and it was obvious almost immediately that it was going to be a very powerful morning. Well I don’t know about the rest of them, but I had a good time!
We meditated for 45 mins and then exchanged healing, all working in our different ways. In fact someone suggested we all focus healing on one person, taking turns to be that one person. I can see how that might not work, a mix of incompatible energies perhaps or everyone sure they were the only one doing it the “right way”. Actually none of that happened, it was great. Everyone did his or her own thing and it worked really well. I felt terrific afterwards and still do. I’ve got loads of energy and the cold that was starting up has gently faded away into the background. So now I think I will organise mornings such as this on a regular basis.
So what seemed to be a negative situation turned into a very, very positive experience once I had decided to let go of the morning and to stop trying to control everything (Control freak? Me?). But no matter how often I am given that lesson it is always a difficult one: surrender, trust and gratitude. That’s the title of workshop two by the way. We always teach what we need to learn the most!
My joke for today:
Q: How many psychoanalysts does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Two. One to change the bulb and one to hold the penis.....sorry! I mean ladder. Why do I keep saying penis?
Sunday, September 25, 2005
The Illusion of Separation
The more we rely on technology the more we give away our power. This is the situation in some of the Gulf Coast areas in the US right now. It made me think about how much technology I take for granted and how very difficult I would find it to survive without electricity, gas, running water etc. Many of us who live in cities in particular, are so removed from the natural world that we can start to believe that we’re in charge. This is a really dangerous distortion. The recent disaster in New Orleans in particular highlights how close we all are to chaos.
In the blink of an eye everything changes. In the Guardian newspaper on Saturday there was an interview with a woman who survived one of the recent Tube bombs in London. She had been right next to the bomber when he detonated his bomb. One minute there she was thinking about getting to work, in the next second she was sitting in a tangled mass of metal. She lost both legs. Before this she had a good job, was very well paid and lived a full and active life. Now she sits in a wheel chair, totally traumatised, unable to come to terms with what has happened.
Perhaps a mistake we make is to believe that things will always be the same. We are totally shocked when there is a major Earth shift or huge storm. Why is this? We know that the Earth is in a constant state of shift, that continents have been torn apart, seas have risen and disappeared again and so forth. Things have never always been the same. Do we think that the Earth will stop moving and shifting because we are so advanced technologically? Do we think we should somehow be able to stop natural disasters now?
Humans have never been so technologically advanced and so spiritually impoverished all at the same time. It seems to me that one follows on from the other here. Technological advancement seems to cause the ego to believe itself to be a god. Looking through the eyes of the ego we see only separation and separation is our greatest fear. In fact fear of separation is the root cause of all our fears. As small children we fear separation from our parents and this transforms into fear of separation from each other and the Divine. No one could become a suicide bomber unless they were convinced that they were separate from others and from the Divine. No one could kill or harm another unless their egos were running the show. Why? Because the truth is that separation is an illusion. It is an illusion that the ego buys into fearfully, but in out hearts we know that it is not so.
When was the last time you asked your heart about anything? It takes practice to be able to communicate with the heart, as most of us haven’t done this since we were children, if at all. If you look into the eyes of a baby you will clearly see what I am talking about. A light shines out from a baby’s eyes. A baby will hold your gaze and connect with something deep inside you. What is that? Where do you feel it?
The Hindu religion refers to that light and that feeling as the “Real”. Everything else is the “Unreal”. The Real is the Divine and it is what we actually are, all of us. We are not separate from God, we are God, all of us. Now hang on a minute. If we are all God what about all the religious leaders, all the clerics, all those people who are there to connect us to God – or whatever you call it? What about them? Well you tell me, because the fact is that we all have a direct line connection, in fact we are the connection. In our hearts we know this, but we have to listen to the heart to hear it.
In the blink of an eye everything changes. In the Guardian newspaper on Saturday there was an interview with a woman who survived one of the recent Tube bombs in London. She had been right next to the bomber when he detonated his bomb. One minute there she was thinking about getting to work, in the next second she was sitting in a tangled mass of metal. She lost both legs. Before this she had a good job, was very well paid and lived a full and active life. Now she sits in a wheel chair, totally traumatised, unable to come to terms with what has happened.
Perhaps a mistake we make is to believe that things will always be the same. We are totally shocked when there is a major Earth shift or huge storm. Why is this? We know that the Earth is in a constant state of shift, that continents have been torn apart, seas have risen and disappeared again and so forth. Things have never always been the same. Do we think that the Earth will stop moving and shifting because we are so advanced technologically? Do we think we should somehow be able to stop natural disasters now?
Humans have never been so technologically advanced and so spiritually impoverished all at the same time. It seems to me that one follows on from the other here. Technological advancement seems to cause the ego to believe itself to be a god. Looking through the eyes of the ego we see only separation and separation is our greatest fear. In fact fear of separation is the root cause of all our fears. As small children we fear separation from our parents and this transforms into fear of separation from each other and the Divine. No one could become a suicide bomber unless they were convinced that they were separate from others and from the Divine. No one could kill or harm another unless their egos were running the show. Why? Because the truth is that separation is an illusion. It is an illusion that the ego buys into fearfully, but in out hearts we know that it is not so.
When was the last time you asked your heart about anything? It takes practice to be able to communicate with the heart, as most of us haven’t done this since we were children, if at all. If you look into the eyes of a baby you will clearly see what I am talking about. A light shines out from a baby’s eyes. A baby will hold your gaze and connect with something deep inside you. What is that? Where do you feel it?
The Hindu religion refers to that light and that feeling as the “Real”. Everything else is the “Unreal”. The Real is the Divine and it is what we actually are, all of us. We are not separate from God, we are God, all of us. Now hang on a minute. If we are all God what about all the religious leaders, all the clerics, all those people who are there to connect us to God – or whatever you call it? What about them? Well you tell me, because the fact is that we all have a direct line connection, in fact we are the connection. In our hearts we know this, but we have to listen to the heart to hear it.
This is my first blogging adventure. I hope it will be interesting to read once I get the hang of how to do this!
