White Sagefrom
White Sageby Jef Meisser, F.R.C.
by Rael Flamenco
by +J. Julian Gillmon
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Sage has an ancient history in healing. Its natural antiseptic qualities have been used by all native peoples of its many lands. The Native American used sage in their rites of purification, burning the leaves like incense for banishment of negative spirits.
Sage can be made into a delicious tea that will help ease sore throats and clear the lungs. Putting a strong tea into a hot bath relaxes tired muscles, and will leave the skin smoothe and sweet-smelling. Used as a hair rinse, sage will give the hair luster and condition the scalp.
by Jef Meisser, F.R.C.
The other evening, while I was meditating, trickling into my consciousness there was a familiar entity. There followed intense feelings of love. Then a voice, "Grandson, I have a message for you." Thus came the words which follow. May they be as informative to you as they were to me.
Let's look at an ancient concept. It's a simple word, respect. Does it have any practical use for us today in the modern world? Not much at first glance, usually it's said by admonishing elders:
"Have you no respect?" ... "Respect your elders!" ... "No self respecting person would do that!" ... "She's not respectable."
Where does the word come from and what does it really mean? Perhaps Merriam-Webster has a clue. They define respect as follows: From the Latin root it can be used as a noun or a verb. As a noun it can mean in reference to, or held in high regard. As a verb it can also mean to hold in high esteem. The word implies that this special regard or esteem is deserved. One of my favorite definitions is, to refrain from interfering with what is, a rather Taoist concept. To have concern is another good definition. In ancient times the word was used to mean retrospect or respite. This to me is having vision, to see the ramifications of one's past actions.
When people do damage to themselves, or others, or the environment, could it be from lack of respect? Could it be an uncaring unconcerned attitude? If so where do we find this respect, this caring, this concern? Good questions! So glad you asked! Here are some thoughts that may lead to some answers.
Most people who abuse themselves emotionally or physically or both, do so because they feel worthless. They see no value in themselves, punishing themselves for being the lowest on the totem pole. This makes it even more difficult to value something else. How can we appreciate something outside ourselves if we are unable to appreciate ourselves? We must see ourselves as having value. We can start by loving ourselves.
The schizophrenics are thinking, "You mean all my selves?" Yes, every one. We must learn to see the part of us that is God, that part that is intimately connected to the creator. God is all. God is everything. There is no spot where God is not. So look inside to where that spot is and find your value in limitless light and love. We must have self-respect before we can respect others or our environment.
The great medicine man Sun Bear, in a visit to Madre Grande Monastery, put it like this, "Live in a sacred manner." It sounds so nice, "sacred manner;" to treat our bodies in a sacred manner, with high esteem, with respect; to treat others in a sacred manner, with high esteem, with respect; to treat our environment in a sacred manner, with high esteem, with respect.
Ram Dass also talks about living life with respect or in a "sacred manner." In his book Be Here Now he speaks of sadhanna, the state of being where every action, every thought, is done with great respect, with great reverence, in a sacred manner.
This is not new stuff. The same message seems to be there in all traditional cultures. In our western rush to find truth we can overlook what is right in front of us, in our own unique heritage.
RESPECT ... something to think about ... an attitude to take to heart.
by Meera
shoulders silken smooth
your kisses on the water
my neck's curving
pool
flowing into oceanic depths
timeless tides movement
hands
caress
skipping across the still lake
of my being
ripples from
the center
openings at the source
plummeting downward
into a
spiral dance
hips move in circles
exquisite feminine
silken
smooth fluidity
whisper songs
breath notes across the water
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by Rael Flamenco
Rebirthing (the ecstacy of breathing) is one of the fastest-growing, most-popular techniques in Self-Development in the world today. It is a personal growth process using a breathing technique called "conscious connected breathing". The aim is to gently clear out physical, mental and emotional blocks and stress, especially those arising from birth and early life experiences. The origin of most human behavior difficulties stem from very early childhood experiences. Through the breath we are able to gently let go of all suffering, which results in a joyful integration of energies, and this enhances our capacity to love and enjoy life more fully. There are immediate benefits when we consciously start connecting our breathing:
High stress level reduction and deep relaxation; Increased intelligence, better perception and creative ability; Improvement in personal relationship with self and others; Emotional stability and greater understanding of life; Better health, more youthful vitality and physical energy; Inner peace, compassion and lasting happiness; Expansion of self-awareness, leading to "Self Realization". Rebirthing is not a religion, cult or an organization that you have to join. The process does not conflict with any religion or philosophy. Rebirthing is simply a tremendously powerful and effective method of healing and personal growth, using the breath to cleanse the mind/body energy systems of stress, freeing us to experience our natural flow of love, joyful aliveness and creative self expression. My rebirthing sessions are integrated into a psychological-new age approach in counseling, designed especially for those who willingly reach "beyond the comfort zone" and look for new directions in life. In a unique way of connecting breathing and music, we explore and experience inner feelings and emotions, and we reconnect to our tramautic life experiences. This is done in a confidential and supportive environment, where client and therapist become one, integrating into the heart of total awareness of healing. One of the most important components in rebirthing is the conscious connected breathing. The breath is the link between the life-force and the physical body, and by consciously connecting our breath, we bring all parts of the body to our awareness. Suppressed material becomes "activated" which means it begins to come up to the surface level of consciousness. Basically, we connect the inner breath, the Life-force or Prana with the outer breath of the respiratory system. We consciously reconnect all parts of our being, expanding our awareness of self, others, the universe, God, truth, and radiating compassion. If we get nothing more out of Rebirthing than learning how to focus awareness on what is happening in our bodies and minds, we will have learned a technique so valuable, that it alone can take us all the way to "Self-Realization". Total awareness not only speeds up the activation of suppressed energy patterns, but also accelerates integration, the vital part of the overall process of Rebirthing.
by Rita Gillmon
Feminists looking for a figure to speak for them in the Judeo-Christian tradition may wish to consider appealing to Sophia as a voice for the voiceless. She speaks in the Hebrew scriptures eloquently and is spoken of in the Greek scriptures of the early Christians, though she has almost vanished from sight as a focus for worshippers in Jewish and Christian congregations.
In the Jewish tradition today, Wisdom, or Sophia to use her Greek name, is usually regarded as the wisdom of God, wisdom as an intellectual abstract and not personified. In the Christian tradition, Sophia's attributes as a creator, her existence at the time of creation and concern for humanity, were assigned to Jesus. Other of her attributes that seemed peculiarly feminine were given to Mary in the Catholic tradition and Mary assumed some of the divine qualities of Sophia. Yet Wisdom is a feminine noun in both Hebrew and Greek. The Hebrew scriptures often speak of her as a person. In the ninth chapter of Proverbs the writer says,
"Wisdom has built herself a house
she has erected her seven pillars,
she has slaughtered her beasts,
prepared her wine,
she has
laid her table.
She has dispatched her maidservants,
and proclaimed
the city's heights:
Who is ignorant? Let him step this way."
Sophia appears in the Hebrew scriptures between the fifth and fourth centuries B.C., a late hour in the development of the Hebrew religious writings, most of which were developed at a much earlier date. Cady, Ronan and Taussig speculate that she may owe some of her prominence in the late Hebrew writings to influence from the surrounding religious cultures, which had figures similar to Sophia among their divinities, including Inanna and Isis. She also appears in the Gnostic writings between 200 B.C. and 200 A.D. She appears alone as a semi-divinity in some writings, such as Eugnostos, a work written about the first century B.C., and alongside Jesus, as in The Sophia of Jesus Christ, a work that is an emendation of the former work. The Eugnostos is a non-Christian revelation discourse from a teacher to a disciple. It is a description of transcendant realms and beings and their influence upon the world. Sophia is prominent as the one responsible for the fall of drops of light from the divine realm into the world. This can be seem as the means by which men can perceive and partake of the divine. Eugnostos speaks of "the First who appeared before the universe" and of his deciding to have his light become a great power "Immortal Androgynous Man." It says his male name is Perfect Mind and his female name is "All-Wise Begettress Sophia." The Sophia of Jesus Christ frames the text of Eugnostos with a dialogue between Jesus and his disciples. In this work, Jesus is equated with the Perfect Mind, the First Begotten and is the consort and brother of Sophia. She is referred to in both works as Pistis Sophia, or Faith and Wisdom. The name Pistis Sophia is given to another work translated by G.R.S. Mead. This work is a Gnostic Gospel translated and annotated by Mead. In it Sophia is partaking in a kind of trial for her descent from the highest realms in search of more light or the Logos. Her story is told by the disciples of Jesus in answer to his questions. The one quickest with answers is usually Mary Magdalene. Sophia falls from transcendent bliss into the lower realms and is rescued by Jesus, who thus becomes her savior and has pre-eminence over her. During the long discourse Sophia sings her praises to the light in the words of the Hebrew Psalms. Though this work appears to make Sophia subservient or dependent upon Jesus as her savior, H.P. Blavatsky, in her commentary on Pistis Sophia, identifies Sophia with the Logos and views both as the symbol of a soul in its initiation process. The soul must descend into matter where she risks losing her own light or spirit, Blavatsky says. "The descent or repentance of Sophia is a history of the pilgrimage of the soul, the degrees of initiation or the cycles of human evolution."
The soul in its struggles, represented by Sophia, is assisted by Jesus, by also by the angels Gabriel and Michael and the Sun and Moon. Pistis Sophia in the final battle treads underfoot the Basilisk with seven heads. This image of Sophia treading underfoot a basilisk can be related to the serpent which Mary treads under foot in the many artistic portrayals made of her, which we will discuss later. Sophia's great prominence among the Gnostics probably has a lot to do with her disappearance from the Christian scene when the Gnostics were routed by what became the orthodox Christian church. She was referred to frequently in what became the New Testament, by Paul. In First Corinthians Paul writes, "We are preaching a crucified Christ ... a Christ who is the power and Sophia of God."
John's gospel description of Jesus proclaims, "here is Sophia." The Gospels of Matthew and Luke have Jesus speaking the words of Sophia as his own. Cady et al explain that in their search for categories and words to explain the phenomenon of Jesus, the early Christian churches lighted upon Sophia. Sophia like Jesus had failed. She had called vainly to humanity and then gone back to God without having visibly changed things. Jesus also failed to visibly change things on earth, as the messianic figure in the Hebrew scriptures was clearly supposed to do. So it made sense for the Christians to choose Sophia as a category or image for Jesus. Later these categories were disguised by translators who never translate "wisdom" as Sophia today and by the loss of the Gnostic scriptures in which she played so prominent a role. Yet the impulse to find the feminine side of divinity will not be quenched in the human spirit, male or female. So men and women turned to Mary to place upon her the images drawn from Sophia and from the Goddesses of the Middle East, especially Isis. Manly P. Hall in his voluminous writings on Secret Teachings of All Ages, has two chapters particularly relevant for our inquiry, Chapter XLV on Isis-Sophia and Chapter XLIX on The Sun a Universal Deity with a celestial virgin. In the first, Isis is called the virgin of the world and the Queen of Heaven, both titles are given to Mary by the early and medieval church. Isis' image includes wheat, grapes and an ankh and weights for fair measure, and she treads a serpent under her feet. A hymn of Isis-Sophia bears a striking resemblance to the texts about Sophia from the Hebrew Wisdom literature.
"I am she who separated the heavens from the earth,
I have pointed
out their paths to the stars.
I have overthrown the dominion of tyrants.
I have caused men to love women,
I have caused truth to be
considered beautiful."
In the chapter on the universal deity, the resemblance to Mary of the celestial virgin is particularly striking. The celestial virgin is shown with the sun god in her arms and the stars at her head. The twelve signs of the zodiac in medallions surround the oval nimbus which encompasses her figure. There is a crescent moon at her feet upon the world surrounded by a serpent. Hall says this signifies the glorification of the Creative Power as exemplified in motherhood. The Christ Child always symbolizes wisdom, the Virgin Mother, faith. Wisdom born of Faith shall redeem the world now encircled by the serpent. This symbol resembles many images of Mary as used in the Catholic church, but particularly the Miraculous Medal as seen in a vision at Lourdes by Bernadette Soubirou. The image lacks the child, but most of the other elements are there, with twelve stars standing for the apostles rather than the zodiac. There is no material lacking to restore Sophia to an honored place in human hearts and in their forms of worship. Both the Jewish and Christian scriptures are replete with texts testifying to her existence. In spite of the complexity and confused nature of many Gnostic texts, they can be searched for material to flesh out the portrait of Sophia for modern persons. Cady et al have made a beginning in using Sophia texts in worship and in Bible studies to draw out the power in these for the spiritual development of Christian congregations. It will be a while I suppose before the average Christian congregation will pray to Jesus-Sophia, but changes in religion come slowly and from the ground where people are worshipping, rather than from edicts from on high. It is up to those who are longing for a feminine figure to identify with to seek out Sophia wherever she may be found. From the images of the past and from the worshipping heart of today an image of Sophia may be created that will speak to modern humans of the Wisdom of the compassionate heart of God.
Sophia: The Future of Feminist Spirituality, Susan Cady, Marian
Ronan, Hal Taussig, Harper & Row, San Fransisco, 1986.
Wisdom's Feast: Sophia in Study and Celebration. Susan Cady,
Marian Ronan, Hal Taussig, Harper & Row, 1989.
The Encyclopedic Outline of Masonic, Hermetic, Qabbalistic and
Rosicrucian Philosophy, Manly P. Hall, The Philosophical Research
Society, Los Angeles, 1975.
The Nag Hammadi Library, James M. Robinson, editor, Harper &
Row, 1988, Eugnostos and The Sophia of Jesus Christ, translated by Douglas M.
Parrott.
Pistis Sophia, A Gnostic Gospel, G.R.S. Mead, Spiritual Science
Library, 1984.
Commentary on Pistis Sophia, H.P. Blavatsky: Collected Writings,
Volume X111, 1890-91, Theosophical Publishing House, 1982.
by Mary Kempf
On October 24 this year, the Los Angeles Times reported the discovery of five new Medflies within a two-mile radius in the City of Los Angeles. Officials are scheduled to discuss the release of sterile Medflies instead of spraying Malathion. Previously, the established state procedure of Malathion bait application was followed by sterile Medfly release. Does this reflect a more responsible attitude on the part of the government that might open the door to a 100% non-toxic alternative? Let's hope so. Malathion has cleared from the air and memories of many residents of San Diego, but not from mine. I am faced with a day-to-day reality that makes aerial spraying of Malathion a matter of my survival in Southern California, and in turn, brings about my concern for the future of many children that live and play in the aerial spray zones. The state maintains that the low levels of Malathion that have been used in our neighborhoods are safe. My experience and credible studies say that this is not so.
Chemicals "Hit Home"
I have the luxury of not needing to deliberate about the safety of the use of Malathion on my home. My hospitalization in 1986, diagnosed me with an immune system disorder called Chemical Hypersensitivity, or Environmental Illness. There is no cure for this of yet, and for now, avoidance of petrochemicals is the only way for me to continue to function and survive. Avoidance of pesticides and herbicides is not an easy task. Every public building and surrounding grounds such as our schools, parks, hospitals, theaters, apartment complexes, and retail stores, are sprayed as often as one time per month to once every three months with pesticide and herbicide. All state and county highways have a weed abatement program in which hundreds of miles of roadsides are sprayed at least three times per year. When the state applies Malathion aerially, I cannot go within ten miles for three days after the spraying without symptoms of burning, followed the next day by seizure activity. These applications have the potential to threaten my survival in Southern California, for instance if the health food store where I buy my food was sprayed. My sensitivity to pesticide is to amounts as low as parts-per-billion, which means that I have contamination problems for indefinite periods of time following a pesticide application. To seek refuge from the spraying, I moved from Orange County to San Diego County in March of last year, only to find that less than two months later, they were to begin spraying there. But I am fortunate to find refuge and now reside at Madre Grande Monastery, where pesticide is not used as a matter of principle out of respect for the earth and our health. I have acquired an immune system disorder that has rendered me disabled as a graphic arts and advertising professional since 1986. This is because of an inherited predisposition, as my mother is also chemically hypersensitive, and because of chronic low-level exposure to chemicals. Chemicals made my livelihood possible, and they fascinated me. For fifteen years, I was exposed to them around the clock. They worked magic. I watched images appear in the chemical baths in the darkroom, and in printmaking they were responsible for making my art images appear on paper. Soon my life became dominated by extreme fatigue, chronic infection, and memory loss, followed by the pursuit of fifteen medical specialists to seek help. With proper medical treatment, education, and removal of petrochemicals from my air, food, and water, the chronic fatigue, infection, and memory loss have been eliminated. But the damage that those years of exposure have brought about is still with me. Because of the severity of my illness, I lost my husband, my career in advertising management, and for extended periods of time since 1987, have had little or no shelter. I became intolerant to indoor environments, and as a result, I had to struggle to survive by living on porches, or under trees in remote areas. Though I was able to graduate to a custom-designed porcelain-on-steel trailer, from a Worker's Compensation settlement, my sensitivities still prevent me from being a productive member of our society.
Malathion Affects Many
There are many with this disorder in the Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego Counties. Some have suffered the tragic loss of their homes to the aerial spraying with no recourse for them to recover financial losses because of their forced and permanent relocation. Others have had severe symptoms from short visits to the spray zone after a Malathion application. In an effort to stop the spraying in January last year, many citizens at the Orange County Board of Supervisors meeting reported their experiences as being contrary to the state's position. People were made sick, pets killed within days of the spraying, and there were a number of reports of a veterinarian finding a number of wild baby animals born deformed in the Medfly eradication zones of Los Angeles. A television special titled, "War on the Medfly", by Jeffrey Kay and Lyce Meckler, aired an interview early in 1990 with Dr. Paul Papanek, of the Los Angeles County Health Department. Judging by the number of complaints his office had received, he estimated a total of 11,000 people adversely affected by the Malathion spraying. Further estimates conclude that one in 300 persons had adverse reactions in Los Angeles County.
Children at Greatest Risk
The increased use of pesticides in our present day stimulates a growing concern for the future of our children, so much so that the Journal of Pesticide Reform responded by dedicating the entire Fall 1991 issue to the subject of pesticides and their effect on children. An article, "Intolerable Risk: the Physiological Susceptibility of Children to Pesticides", gives validity to our concerns by stating, "Although not required by federal regulation, some behavioral tests ... have been conducted which indicate that low-level exposure to organophosphates [Malathion] and carbamates during nervous system development [prenatal through childhood] may impair neurological activity." The specific impairments noted are "... delays in reflex and sexual development ... impair[ed] neuromuscular function, alter[ed] brain electrical activity, and in several cases affect[ed] brain structure." This article explains further that children's exposure to neurotoxic chemicals, for example with repect to pesticides in food, is greater than that of adults. Because of their higher rate of metabolism, children consume more food than adults in proportion to their body weight. Along with these greater amounts of exposure, they are also more susceptible to these exposures, because their critical physiological development is still in process. Scientific studies have found the young to have greater retention of specific doses of certain toxins. They are not as able to keep toxins away from target organs because the gastrointestinal tract is more permeable; and this is compounded by the fact that detoxifying enzymes are not fully functional in the young. The brain is an especially susceptible target organ of children with respect to neurotoxin or pesticide exposure. A great part of this is because of an incompletely developed blood-brain barrier, which inhibits the passage of toxic compounds from the blood to the brain. Other developments in the young are taking place such as: myelination, in which nerve fibers are being covered with a protective fat-like substance; formation of the new blood capillary system; branching out of nerve fibers; and newly developing neurotransmitters and hormone cell receptors. All of this increases susceptibility because neurotoxic chemicals can disrupt the formation of any of these systems. Along with individual studies, the references used for this article are certainly credible: the National Resource Defense Council, National Academy of Sciences, and World Health Organization. In the same issue, according to "Cancer Clusters Among Children: the Implications of McFarland", it is probable that pesticides are the most likely killer of six out of sixteen of the children that contracted cancer in the designated "cancer cluster". In the agricultural town of McFarland, California, the number of cancer cases is four times greater than the incidence of cancer in the average population. In February 1988, a preliminary report by the Task Force of the California Department of Health Services concluded that an "environmental aberration" occured in McFarland and the cancers are now the result.
Study Results Manipulated
Even more critical to our overall picture are the implications of these cases, which enable us to analyze how responsible our government is in regards to the widespread use of toxic chemicals and its effect on our health. Can we wholeheartedly trust the state's assurances of safety in regards to the Malathion application on our homes? The McFarland article refers to the lessons of Love Canal, Times Beach, and Stringfellow Acid Pits. "We've learned over and over again that studies produce statistics to be analyzed away, that tests produce numbers to be classified into safe levels or standards, and that experts can find ways to explain away anything." It has been well publicized that the original author, Dr. Mark Lappe, declined to approve the study upon which the State of California has based it primary proof of the safety of Malathion. Lappe maintains that concerning the safety of Malathion, the government completely misrepresented his findings. Though the use of Malathion has been sanctioned by the EPA, in War of the Medfly, Dr. Gross, also with the EPA, stated that he believes it possible that Malathion may cause cancer.
State Allows Hidden Toxins
Though these scientifically proven "facts" about Malathion safety seem to give way at this point to scientific opinion, our trust is shattered further in the light of new information released in February last year. It can be concluded from the information provided by the State of California Department of Food and Agriculture, that the impurities contained in 5% of the Malathion mixture actually possesses 33% of the killing power of Malathion itself. The most potent chemical, Malaoxon, is 60 times more toxic than Malathion. Other impurities listed are Trimethyl phosphoro thioate, which is 23 times more toxic, and Isomalathion, which is 12 times more toxic. This information was revealed after the Malathion program was underway because California state law does not require that impurities need to be disclosed to the general public. California state law also allows considerable latitude in the impurity concentration, which can be changed without notice; and thus, there is no limit that the unintended ingredients have with respect to the total Malathion mixture. If the impurities were to increase from 5% to 10% of the total, it would add a potency of approximately 80% of the killing power of Malathion. On the basis of this information, and considering the lack of legal restriction, how can we be sure of what is actually being sprayed upon us?
Positive New Directions
Though the health majority sees no immediate or apparent effects from the use of pesticides or the aerial application of Malathion on our homes, I hope that the questions raised, and the demonstrated losses of life, health, home, and livelihood, can raise public concern; which, in turn, will prompt careful re-examination of current methods and generate creative new alternatives to our use of pesticides. The information contained in an article by William Jordan, Jr., Ph.D., in May 1982 Natural History, challenges the black and white picture presented by the state concerning the threat of the Medfly. He points out that the Medfly is a tropical species and does not thrive in California's climate or its agricultural soils. Also, the Medfly is only a problem in a few fruits and vegetables. He suggests that alternative biological controls and integrated pest management can hold the Medfly population below damaging levels. In an encouraging report on May 29 last year, the San Diego Union revealed new evidence of the success of safe biological control methods for the cotton bollworm, launched by the California Cotton Pest Control Board. These methods have reduced nearly 100% of the test population in Coachella Valley; and also by using biological control preventive measures, " ... the San Joaquin Valley remains the only cotton growing area in the United States without a firmly established bollworm population." For almost twenty years, the Imperial Valley had tried and failed in reducing its established bollworm population with pesticides. Terry Wyatt, manager for Southern California Calcot, the nation's largest cotton marketing cooperative, explained that the costs of chemical control brought the profit margins and cotton production way down when the spraying escalated to 10 to 25 times during a season. This was because of the insect's increased resistance to each new type of pesticide. The new biological control uses three methods. The first one schedules a short growing season to increase a host-free period; the second uses synthetic pheromones, or female scents to confuse the mating male; and the third saturates the field with sterile bollworm moths. These ecologically sound methods also have the advantage of not losing their effectiveness with long-term use. Bill Tracy, deputy director of the California Department of Food and Agriculture, stated, "Because of this program, 80 million tons of pesticides have been avoided in the San Joaquin Valley." Though it will probably be a five- to ten-year period before Imperial Valley has control of the bollworm, the growers have an appreciation of this new-found ecology as expressed by Wyatt, who said, "There are no losers; you bring back an economically viable crop and at the same time, you protect the environment.'
In conclusion, for the sake of those already affected, and for those whose future health is concerned, I hope that our elected officials will bring about necessary changes. The state's Medfly eradication program needs to be altered so that it no longer poses a threat to our health, and especially the health of our children. Will the memory and satisfaction of having all the fruit available at the price we want it to be, outlast and outweigh the effects that the increased occurence of cancer and other health problems will have on ourselves and our children in the years to come?
by Todd Kaprielian
There is an unassuming strength and assurance in the Warrior's stride. Every step taken is full if awareness. With this awareness the Warrior perceives meaning and significance. This perception is inaccessible to the eye that focuses exclusively on the material world. From the Warrior's point of view, nothing can be taken for granted. The Warrior is a seeker of knowledge, though not the cumbersome knowledge of theory and speculation. Rather, the Warrior is interested in the experiential knowledge of being. This type of knowledge is perceived by a part of our being that stands outside of the reasoning intellect. Consequently, the Warrior's path and knowledge cannot be traveled or understood by the mere reading of a book, nor can a Warrior claim for theirself the enlightenment gained by others. The luxury of being a passive, objective observer is simply not an option. The Warrior must engage theirself completely, walking the path with their own heart in mind. The undirected person, following their own inclinations in non-awareness, leads theirself to the illusory beliefs that hold them in fear, ignorance and pain. By questioning these beliefs, they begin to understand who and what they really are. The difference between the Warrior and the everyday person is attentive awareness. Because they lack this, the path of the everyday person is confused and unclear. They bounce from experience to experience with no real intent or purpose to their life. This purpose could be generated by directed love. It is true that the everyday person has motivations and is inspired to action; but their deeds and constant reactions to their own fears, the will of other humans, the values of their community and their cultural limitations. Although active with many projects, the everyday person may note, with a moment's reflection, that their life still lacks a deeper meaning or aim. The will of the spirit within every human being is strong. It is the mind that deadens and disables the will with its thoughts and feelings: fear, judgements, doubts and self-pity. Everyday persons wish to think of themselves as just and fair when, in fact, they are in a perpetual state of judging themselves and others. They live in a cloud of shame, repressing their emotions further still in denial. In a very real sense they are lost in a dream, a living brutal nightmare of slow emotional torture that literally lasts a lifetime. The irony is that they are unaware of this. They believe theirself, instead, to be completely normal, which is accurate from their cultural point of view. A mind filled with judgement and fear is considered sane.
Life for the Warrior, however, is very different. Having cultivated awareness of their judgements and fears, the Warrior is capable of getting rid of this agent which undermines the expression of the will. For the Warrior, every experience is an opportunity, not only for confronting fear but also for gathering love. The creative will of the spirit, or love, is not conditioned upon anything that can be known or conceived in the material world. Love transcends material perception, residing instead in the infinite reservoir of eternal possibility that exists at the core of every human. The Warrior is aware that fear may be defined by material conditions placed upon expressions of love. Striving to reduce fear, the Warrior opens their mind to experience and express the vast unknowable dimension of pure possibility; a dimension that is totally beyond any pre-conceived notion of who or what they could possibly believe theirself to be. As children, we all were expressing the will, because we had not yet learned to fear. But as children we were domesticated: taught to hold back our love in the material world. For us, at this time, to leap into the unknown is to defy fear, to proceed in spite of our doubts. How do we gather the confidence to attempt redefining our emotional relationship to the material universe? By knowing and perceiving the fundamental capacity within us, that resilient vitality we all expressed as children. This new-found expression of ability does not come easily, in fact, we have to fight for it. The Warrior battles not in physical conflict, rather, the battle is within the mind. As this battle is waged, as fear is conquered, love begins to grow. As love grows, there are fewer beliefs and opinions to uphold, less to prove or accomplish. With love's blossoming the self wanes and begins to vanish. Beliefs, opinions, validation, the self, these are all highly valued commodities used in our daily lives, but they are hindrances on the Warrior's path. Is it any wonder that so few seek wisdom, knowledge or love, that so very few seek the path of the Warrior? The foot falls softly.
by Rita Gillmon
Sun Bear was at Madre Grande last winter spreading his teaching that the earth is in danger and it is up to those who are aware to save the earth and themselves. "My work is to teach people to do ceremonies to restore the balance and to take power over their lives, so they aren't destroying, but helping the healing process," he said. Sun Bear, founder and medicine chief of the Bear Tribe, is an Ojibwa by descent born on the White Earth Reservation in Minnesota. He had dreams and visions at an early age that presage his development as a medicine teacher. He pursued these studies with his uncles, who were medicine men, and has continued to learn from native and non-native teachers, as well as through dreams and visions, throughout his life. His visions have led him to share his knowledge with men and women of all races, not only with Native Americans. In 1970 he founded the Bear Tribe Medicine Society, which is located on land about 35 miles northwest of Spokane, Wash., though the tribe has an administrative office in downtown Spokane. To spread his teachings Sun Bear has written books and articles and traveled widely, speaking to people face to face. I am on the road 90 percent of the time and have been teaching and traveling for 30 years," he said. The core of his teachings is that the earth is a living, intelligent being and is capable to make the changes necessary for its own survival. "These changes might not be convenient for humans, but the earth will make them anyway," Sun Bear said in his book Black Dawn/Bright Day, written with Wabun Wind in 1990. As a dog shakes itself to get rid of fleas, the earth will generate earthquakes, volcanoes and climactic changes to rid itself of surplus and troublesome humans, he said. Sun Bear does not claim his predictions are unique with him, but says many people are making similar predictions, because they have had similar visions. Some have predicted that as much as 75 percent of the earth's population will be destroyed. Sun Bear's aim is to teach people what they need to do to survive. "The people who will survive will be those who love life and affirm life in every way they can," Sun Bear said. "They will be people who are willing to make a conscious change in the way they view life and in their actions toward all creation." In his book, Sun Bear said the survivors will not be those sitting with their 30-06 rifles over a can of beans. The survivors will be people reaching out for another level of consciousness and seeking communication with the Creator and the Earth. They will be people living close to the earth far from large cities who are able to grow and harvest or gather their own food from the wild. At the Bear Tribe there are 15 people living full time at the community and an equal number at the center in town. "We produce 80 percent of our own food and fuel now and eventually want to get all our food from a 50-mile radius," Sun Bear said. "We are also planning to use horses for cultivation and other work so we are not dependent on diesel fuel." On their land in Washington, he said the tribe could grow wheat, oats, barley, lentils, peas, beans and hay for the livestock. "Right now, we are growing vegetables mostly, and buying wheat," he said. Sun Bear has been living in one room with his companion, Jaya, when he is home with the tribe and was hoping to build a house for them this summer. "We are away so much that we haven't needed much room, but we would like to have a home of our own," he said. His tribe welcomes native and non-native Americans as students, associates and members. It publishes the magazine Wildfire and books by Sun Bear and other members. At the land in Washington and at other locations around the world, including Madre Grande, Sun Bear holds introductory programs for apprentices into the new way of living, Vision Quests, Self-Reliance Intensives and Medicine Wheel Gatherings. Sun Bear said he has found many people in Germany interested in what he has to teach. "We have 600 apprentices in the United States, Canada and Europe working with my methods," he said.
In his book, Sun Bear said, "I'm trying to reach out and create a larger group of people who are in harmony with the earth. These people won't get wiped out in the process of the earth changes. If you know where to be and how to prepare, this can be a very comfortable, interesting and exciting time."
by Brian Surks
The Sweat Lodge is an ancient ceremony that has been practiced by the peoples of Turtle Island (what we call America) for hundreds of years. It is a ceremony of spiritual and physical purification as well as a place to commune with yourself, Grandmother Earth, and the Creator. On the surface it looks like a bunch of people sitting in a small hut with one person pouring water on rocks that have been heated. Now, most people know that if you pour water on hot rocks in an enclosed area the water turns to steam and you sweat. Simple, right? It sounds very much like a sauna, but actually there is much more to it. To begin with, all of the elements in the lodge are purified with smoke from sacred herbs and prayed over for blessing. Thanksgiving is offered for all that has gone in to creating the ceremony; the rocks, the trees, the ancestors from whom this ceremony has passed and our family and relationship to all things. The fire is built in a sacred way as is the sweat lodge itself, all done with a focus on spirit and creation. As you can see, much happens before anyone arrives. Once everyone does arrive, we gather together in a circle, bless ourselves with the sacred smoke and introduce ourselves to each other. One of the beautiful things about this ceremony is that no matter who you are or what you do, for at least this time, you have the opportunity to feel the family of humanity. In the Sweat Lodge we are all family. What is a Sweat Lodge and what makes it so special? I have briefly stated that there are physical and spiritual aspects of the Sweat Lodge. To me, one of the things that makes it so special is what it represents. When you crawl into the Sweat Lodge, you are entering the womb of Grandmother Earth. You are crossing the gateway of death into life to sit in the void of creation. When you enter, you acknowledge "All my Relations," for all that you are and all that have come before you. You are also acknowledging the gift of the Sweat Lodge and the people to whom it was first given. When you sit within the lodge you are warmed by the fire and the Spirit Within the Fire--which also warms your spirit. When you sweat, you are cleansing your body of impurities. When you speak, you may speak from your heart, cleansing you spirit of impurities. You may give away to Spirit those things within you that cause you pain and imbalance. You may receive a vision of those things that will fill the parts of you that feel empty. You may feel gratitude for life and all it contains. When you leave the Sweat Lodge, you are birthing yourself anew to start life now, in the moment, and fresh. This is simply a description of what can be. It is only a description. What will be real for you is the experience that you bring to your own personal ceremony. If you would like to try this yourself, there is a community sweat at Madre Grande on the second Saturday of each month. Plan to arrive at 12 noon in order to relax from your drive, participate in the lodge preparation and connect with your brothers and sisters. It would be good to bring towels, comfortable clothing to change into (keep seasonal weather in mind) and picnic-type food to share. It is customary in some traditions to enter the Sweat Lodge nude, since that is how we were born. If you are uncomfortable being nude, please honor yourself by bringing a swim suit or other clothing that is appropriate for you. We do not charge for ceremony. A teaching I was given is that one always gives back when one receives something in order to offer respect and to keep balance. (If only our industries would understand this simple law). The traditional exchange for ceremony is tobacco--or other sacred herbs such as sage or sweet grass--and a heart gift. This is something (it doesn't have to be big) to exchange with the people who are doing the ceremony for you. Please bring something for the Dance Chief and the Fire Keeper.
by Ahmaddin as-Salik
Scrabbling blindly to an edge fledglings topple over,
their sudden
breathless plunge toward earth
forcing open untested wings.
You bring ecstatic clarity to this scarecrow being
so quietly You share
Your love so infinitely aware
for You have breathed upon my dusty heart
perceiving
need and cleansed the mirror there
Laurence McCarty, whose Sufi name is Ahmaddin as-Salik, has been a member of the Johannine Catholic Church for more than twenty years and is a bishop and teacher in the same. He is a friar of The Paracelsian Order and a Siraj of the Sufi Islamia Ruhaniat Society (S.I.R.S.).
by Kelly Bryson
Blame is the game that protects me from the understanding that the cause of all my emotional distress, fear, shame and guilt comes from the part of me I call "the inner voice". As long as I keep the big bony finger of blame pointed in your direction, I can remain unaware of the fact that that it is what I am telling myself about your behavior that is stimulating my painful reaction. This lack of awareness of the true cause of my distress also keeps me powerless to do much about it. And even though I may make great efforts to douse this distressing fire inside me by ensnaring you into taking responsibility for it, the fire still burns. It is as though there were a mirror reflection of fire and I continued to pour bucket after bucket of water on the mirror expecting the fire to be put out. Another way of looking at blame is to notice that it is a tragic expression of an unmet need. When I call you "selfish", I am expressing disappointment about wanting you to give more consideration to my needs. When I call you "stupid", I may be expressing frustration about wanting you to have already been aware of certain information. When I call you a "jerk", I may be scared and wanting more space between my car bumper and yours. So I might say that blame is an ineffective request for empathy, for painful feelings and for understanding of unmet wants. The tragic part is that the form I have chosen to express my request almost guarantees its denial. This is not only true of requests I make of others, but also of those I make of myself. Here's an example.
This morning I tried to motivate myself to get out of bed early and write this article by telling myself that I was lazy and self-sabotaging if I didn't. Well, that was such an unpleasant nagging voice to hear so early that I rolled over and went back to sleep.
So what can be done about this habit of making requests of ourselves and others in the form of blame? Just as blame is a protective move based on fear and ignorance, compassion is a corrective countermove based on courage and understanding. Whenever I find myself blaming myself or others, I want to take some time to turn my attention to that part of my body that feels the blame. Sometimes it's my stomach, and I know it's anger; sometimes it's my heart area and I know it's hurt; or if it's my upper chest it's fear. It feels relieving just to acknowledge it, feel into it and image what it wants in order to feel better. Now I'm ready to try what Dr. Marshall Rosenberg, a clinical psychologist, calls "Giraffe Speak". Now I am ready to take responsibility for what I am wanting, and for what I am feeling. I am willing now to "stick out my long neck" and reveal my true feeling of the moment and ask for exactly what I want. Now instead of calling you inconsiderate, I might say "I feel lonely and want you to come over." Instead of calling myself lazy, I might tell me, "I'm feeling scared and want you to finish this article before the deadline." Giraffe Speak is not a technique to manipulate, but a way of increasing your chances of inspiring compassion and cooperation from yourself and others. The reason blame is so rampant is that it looks like it works. A mother tells her grown son that he's ungrateful because he doesn't phone often enough. So the son starts calling weekly. Did the mother get what she wanted? Maybe on the surface, but not for the reasons she can enjoy. Yes, the son is calling, but only because he feels too guilty, ashamed, or scared not to. And the deeper longing the mother has for connection with her son will continue to be unmet. Another popular feature of blame is its usefulness in extracting sweet revenge on our hated ones. Aside from my private practice I work with gang kids and their families in Southeast San Diego. I have noticed that few things seem to delight the kids more than to catch one of the counselors breaking one of the rules and then to point the big bony finger at them for it. When you ask the kids why this brings them such joy they say, "cause now they can know how I feel all the time when they yell at me for stuff." Again I can see how this blaming--and trying to get revenge--is a poorly coded S.O.S. for understanding and empathy.
This reminds me of a story Dr. Rosenberg told about his work with a certain murderer in the Swedish prison system. The murderer told him that the only thing that got him out of bed in the morning was the joy of fantasizing about the revenge he was going to take on the person that had turned him in, once his nine years were up. Dr. Rosenberg, being a gambling man, said, "I'll bet you that if you give me one hour of your time, I can convince you that there is something you want even more than revenge." The prisoner, having plenty of time on his hands, agreed.
Dr. Rosenberg began, "So it sounds like you're completely enraged with this man that turned you in, and would like him to know just how you feel about him."
"Yea, I'd like to break the squealer's neck," replied the prisoner, "And to think he used to be my best friend."
The doctor: "And besides anger is there also a sense of deep pain and confusion about how your best friend could do this?"
The prisoner: "Yea, I would have never turned him in, he was my best friend."
The doctor: "Is part of the pain you're feeling about the loss of this friendship?"
After an hour of this deepening dialogue, the prisoner began to cry as he became aware that his desire for revenge was a cover for a deeper need to have his feelings about the situation understood. This prisoner went on to convince many other prisoners to take workshops with Dr. Rosenberg, who now goes back to Sweden every year to work with them.
Self-blame is the same game. It's an attempt to get some relief, through revenge, on ourselves. And again, this self-blame is a poorly coded S.O.S. for help in the form of self-understanding, empathy and compassion. I have tried to affirm the self-critical voices away, only to create more polarization.
Voice: "How could you be so stupid?"
Me: "I am a perfectly intelligent person."
Voice: "How could anyone like you?"
Me: "I am a perfectly loving person," etc.
But this is like ignoring a crying child. And inside of us the crying either gets louder or takes another form in an attempt to get heard. Sometimes it takes the form of self-sabotage, relationship or work addiction, spiritual addiction or depression. So what I am wanting to always remember is to keep clear my intention to compassionately connect with any blame I hear, whether inside or outside of me. Unless, of course, I am feeling overwhelmed, and that's when I want to remember to reach out to you for understanding. And one hopes you'll have your "Giraffe Ears" on and hear my feeling and understand about my unmet dreams. And please try to remember not to try to solve my pain with New Age Chicken Soup, like, "Why have you created this in your life," or "You'll probably need to increase your zinc intake," or with the Common Variety Chicken Soup, like, "Things could be worse," and "No pain, no gain."
"Words are Windows or they're Walls,
They Sentence us or set us free.
When I speak and when I hear,
Let the healing flow through me."
by Jef Meisser
Jef Meisser has been a student of the esoteric teachings for several years. He is a student of The Johannine Catholic Church seminary and a candidate for the priesthood. He resides in the province of Alberta, Canada and has worked with Phil Lane, Jr. at the Four Worlds Development Project at the University of Lethbridge, Alberta.
While working with the natives in Southwestern Canada, I became aware of some amazing similarities between native legends and the myths of western civilization. So naturally I started to take a closer look at the legends of the native peoples here in Southwestern Canada, to see how they would compare with each other. Every culture known to me has a flood story. The Holy Bible in the book of Genesis has a story most of us know. The story of Noah and his Ark: God is going to destroy all humans, except that Noah and his family are chosen to be saved. They have to build an ark to survive, the rain comes, the ark floats. All humans drown. Noah and company land on a mountain when the water recedes, and they repopulate earth.
The Cowichan tribe of Vancouver Island has a very similar story. In the old days the Great Spirit told a wise man in a dream of the coming flood. The wise man told the tribe. Some of the people believed him; most, however, did not. The wise man and his followers built a huge raft of many canoes tied together. They survived the flood, and all the others drowned. Their raft finally came to rest on a mountain peak. They were responsible for repopulating the earth.
But, we are dealing with myth, mystery, not history. Carl Jung defines myth not as legend or fiction, but that which is psychologically true. What symbol does this myth represent? Taken simply, it can be interpreted as a lesson of trust in the Creator, as well as the innate ability of humans to adapt and survive natural disaster. On a deeper level, a human starts out as an earthly, material being. The rain represents the nourishment of consciousness and inspiration (it falls from heaven). Too many blessings forces us to change or perish. What was nourishment now becomes a threat. The flood becomes a sea, which represents the unconscious. We no longer have a place to stand, we must prepare properly to journey safely through the unconscious to arrive at the mountain top ... enlightenment. What is the myth of the flood? It is one of the symbols of Initiation.
Another myth tells a universal truth, the myth of the Pleiades. In the Greek version there are seven Pleiades. One of them, the "lost Pleiad", was the sister who hid herself in shame because she had married a mortal. Native people from Eastern and Western Canada as well as the Northwestern United States have many myths about the seven sisters in the sky. The Huron-Wyandots have a story similar to the Greeks: Long ago a brave was having a fasting period near the end of a lake. His fasting lodge stood in a solitary place where no one ever ventured. One evening, when his fast was almost over, he was sitting in the entrance to the lodge. To his surprise he heard the faint sound of singing in the distance but he could not see anything around him. He thought he could tell that the music was coming from the beach near by. As he approached the beach, he saw seven beautiful young girls. They were singing and dancing, hand in hand. All of them were surrounded by the glow of star light. One of them was more beautiful then the others, and he fell in love with her at once. While trying to move closer some pebbles slipped out from beneath him, revealing his hiding place. The seven girls immediately climbed into a large basket and vanished into the sky. For several evenings the brave heard them singing and watched the dancing on the shore of the lake. He longed to capture the girl with whom he had fallen in love. One evening while the Seven were dancing, he rushed into their midst. The last girl attempting to climb into the basket was his beloved. The brave managed to hold her and they both fell to the ground. The brave told her of his love and asked her to be his wife. She explained that they were seven sisters and had always lived together. She said, "We are a cluster of stars you have often seen in the sky. I cannot marry you unless you come up to the sky with me." Then the brave ascended with the beautiful girl he loved and hid with her in the land of the sky. That is why, on starry nights, we can see among the Pleiades only six of the seven sisters. Sometimes, however, the hint of the seventh can be faintly seen.
And what can we say is the meaning of this myth? The ennobling power of Love. Love, which is God, can cause an apotheosis in us. It can make us demi-gods, raise us to heaven. Myths have been used by all cultures for many reasons. They explain natural phenomena and the nature of the human condition. We see events that happen in myths can occur in everyday life. We observe that, aside from cultural differences, the condition of human nature is the same for all people. So we conclude that similar myths may have the same source. It would seem that deep below the surface all cultures and peoples have a common connection. Can we use this to find out something about ourselves? Let's explore that possibility. This connection is seen in similar story lines of myths, legends, and folk tales of all peoples. From a mystical point of view, the source is the Creator which resides in every male and female, every plant and mineral on the planet. That's quite a connection, and not just to each other, but to everything in, on, or above our planet. The differences in similar myths of other cultures represent different expressions of the Creator's grace, and love. These different expressions help us by revealing solutions to our problems through myths and fables. All our moral codes come from revelations by the Creator. So what does all this really do for us? It is possible to see the connection to the Creator in each of us. That part of us that is part Creator is our higher self. These common myths allow us to be able to see our connection to the Creator and the higher self in others. That is the advantage of these tales. If we can learn to see this higher self in others and to hold that vision, we can become tremendous forces for good in our world. Here is an example.
A good friend of mine had just met a lovely young woman, who was such a blast to be with. She was always happy and friendly. She had an uncanny ability to appear from nowhere with a kind word or intelligent conversation. Her friends remarked about what a change had come over her. She used to be so shy and depressed, usually complaining about something. My friend explained that since he had no preconceptions of her, he only focused on seeing her true higher self. Seeing her as she truly was, allowed her to see herself in the same light. Thus to others what appeared to be an amazing change was really the process of becoming her Self.
Just think of what we too might accomplish with this simple technique.
By John H. Drais
Once upon a time, in the long, long ago,
Not only long by the measure of men,
But long by the races and ages of elves,
There was a planet, by name called Sin.
This planet had fled through vast spread of time
The clutches of Sol, with whom she's entwined.
There was among her lives a race of men that she loved most,
Who dared approach the being of the starry host.
As their planet faded into night,
Their collective consciousness receded out of sight,
And slipped into the shining sea,
Into supernal bliss of parasamadhi.
Yet, its integrity endured,
Though absolutely silent was their peacefulness of mind,
Until a spark awakened them to action once again;
And then -- vanishend from that plane.
Thus they reemerged from whence they had withdrawn,
And as their home was old and worn and dead in its course,
They balanced their thought in a point close at hand,
For a new planet they made their demand.
Ever so slowly, collecting their forces and imaging clearer,
Their planet took form and sank into matter;
The shell of old Sin, which sought to lie nearer,
Took note of this body and stirred up its lust.
"It's mine," it cried, "and have it I must!"
So it brought to this world its influence, both lethal and sweet,
And directed their work to its pleasures,
It so fervently sought to repeat.
Though its men has lost attraction to old Sin,
Its lesser beings had no memory
That would protect them from attack
And bring their selves beyond the throes of matter and its lack.
As soon as they had locked its place in time and space,
By fending off these fetid aims,
Sin's lifeless corpse, adjusting its old course,
Revolved about the body it had caused and claims.
As Sol's breath of life blew by,
Sin's matter, gross and pale
and decadent,
Showered its effects on Terra's growing sky
And touched the peacefulness of angels once its men.
Corruption and unrest, as well as blindness and distrust
Unto this world was borne;
Unable to sustain itself, when distant from its Sol, It grows and flows in
cycles from full orb to sharpened horn.
Just as our moon does wax and wane, Our Sin encircles Terra, as a mother
does her babe,
And as a fiend its precious medium Into this world of sense and pain.
Terra's seven sisters are compelled to go about old Sol
In paths that tell their nature.
Five are found, with some still young and others old,
But two we can not find at all.
Sweet Eros, lost to those of us with eyes,
Cycling with Earth's mother, close to whom she lies,
Auras holding form intact, her violet commands,
And channels pranas into Terra, through Scarab, we call Crab.
Swift Mercury has intuition keen;
This chariot of the god's is seen
In brilliant yellow, east or west, close on to Sol;
She passes overhead, invisible to all.
Deep blue, in abstract thought, does Venus rise beyond horizon morn or eve;
She even twinkles in the blinding sun sometimes, for those who know her
ways.
At zenith high she won't unveil to mortal men till eyes so sensitive to
light are shed;
To see her as she really is, in Libra must the passions cold and hot be wed.
Fourth flies Vulcan, we call Sun,
To tell her place can not be done;
Through her pumps the sun life pure in radiance of gold;
The Leo summer solstice was her own of old.
With passion red and flaring, sometimes bright and sometimes far, as in
vicissitudes of war,
She controls the fate of those who Ares worship and adore;
The star we call Antares, in the heart of Scorpionis, connected as through
Hermes
With the Virgin's spike of blue, is her star of even hue.
The eldest of these gods is dressed in daylight sky,
And all the other sisters in her aura lie;
Meditation on bright Jupiter brings freedom from all care,
And being without form to those of her's who dare.
So seventh in our heaven turns Saturn slowly round,
And binds the thoughts of men to Ea* and its
ground;
Within her shades of earthen green,
Stern old Jehovah can be seen.
If these seven planets seem remote to you at night,
Then bear in mind your fortune lies within their astral light,
For all our solar system is arranged by careful plan,
And all their several natures are the principles of man.
* Ea is the personalized consciousness of the physical plane.
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by Maya Bailey, Ph.D
Maya Bailey, Ph.D, is a widely known speaker, seminar leader, writer and psychotherapist. She is Director of the Center for Personal Development in Irvine and specializes in issues of self-esteem, relationships, personal empowerment and reprogramming the sub-conscious mind.
What is Empowerment?
I've been fascinated with the idea of empowerment for years -- just the word "turns me on." I first heard it from a friend 5 years ago who said she was teaching people to "empower themselves"; and a little voice inside of me said "That's what I want to do", and that's what I've done.
Would You Like Personal Empowerment?
Don't we all, deep down inside, want to feel more power in our lives? And yet, think of how many times we stop short of being the powerful beings that we were meant to be. Why is this, why do we sell ourselves short?
One of the reasons, I believe, that we hold ourselves back from power is a confusion in our minds about what power is and isn't. How many of us, when we were growing up, had a negative association to the word power? What did it mean to us? What are your first associations with the word power?
Some examples come to mind; power over someone else, tyranny, domination, being under someone's thumb, and control. When we were growing up, we associated these words with people in history, as in the phrase, "When Napoleon was in power." Power always meant "power over someone," like the power to take over a country. And then there was power in our own personal lives. Who had the power? Teachers, parents, bosses -- again, it was always at someone's expense, often our own. We grew up resenting any one having power over us, we even grew up subconsciously hating the word.
Then along comes the '80's and everyone began saying "Be in your power! Own your power!" This can be confusing. What does that mean? Who are we supposed to have power over? Isn't power bad and weren't we taught that it wasn't O.K.? It personally took me a long time to feel that it was O.K. to be a powerful person and a long time to figure out what that meant. What do you mean when you say power or empowerment? What are your associations with those words?
Below I have outlined "old vs. new" concepts of power. Take time to reflect on your own changing associations to the word power.
Domination Creativity
Control Fluidity
Tyranny Freedom
Boss around Allow to emerge
Manipulation Mastery
It is clear that the old concepts of power are a world apart from the new concepts of power. I will call the new concepts of power "empowerment". To me it means our ability to create our life the way we want. It implies that we are creative in our thoughts, fluid in our movements, free in our spirits and we allow ourselves to emerge and to blossom so that we increase in mastery over our lives.
What is your level of empowerment? Below are a few questions to help you determine your level of empowerment. Rate yourself on a scale of 1 to 10, giving yourself a point for each question to which you answer "yes".
The higher your score, the more you are on the path to empowerment. If you scored low, don't put yourself down, just learn to take the steps you need to take to become "empowered". Also, start to become aware of your own personal blocks to empowerment.
Blocks to Personal Empowerment
Why do we block ourselves from personal empowerment? There are many reasons that can be traced back to how we were conditioned. As we grew up, most psychologists say, our basic personalities were formed at a very young age probably around four to five years old.
Think back at that time in your life. Were you encouraged as you were growing up to be a powerful person? Or did you experience, as many of us did, that we were punished if we let our feelings out too much. We heard "Don't cry, don't be angry, don't be afraid, don't be too loud." All of this gets translated to us as children to "Don't be yourself."
How were we taught to be? In a manner that pleased those around us, of course. We heard expressions like "be good, be nice, be sweet, be quiet," i.e., "Be who others want you to be, don't be you." I have quite a few clients who report that their survival strategy, i.e., the ways that they coped, was to be "invisible". They became like "a fly on the wall" so they wouldn't be noticed and wouldn't be picked on. Can you imagine how hard it is to be a powerful person if you have a program in your subconscious mind that says "be invisible"?
This kind of conditioning, which 99 percent of us had to one extent or another, meant we couldn't be our "real self". Instead we developed a false persona, a mask that helped us cope, survive and get some approval from others.
Outer vs. Inner-Directed
We became "outer-directed" people at a young age. In other words, we were rewarded for looking for the approval of others to tell us how to be, how to define ourselves. One of the biggest blocks to empowerment is that many of us, subconsciously, are still looking to others for approval, instead of inward. We are robbing ourselves of the opportunity to develop our own unique set of values and ethics which are appropriate to our own lives. We still think the answer lies out there.
Victim Consciousness
Another block that goes along with this is a "victim consciousness". Almost all of us modeled ourselves after our parents and absorbed many of their traits. One of the traits we may have absorbed was the mentality of a "victim". In my own life, my mother always felt like a victim of life, as if life happened to her and she had no power to create her life any different from how it was dished out. It took me many years of therapy, groups, seminars and reading to liberate myself from the deep subconscious feeling of being a victim.
Most of my clients are struggling with feeling like they are helpless "victims". One of the biggest turning points in therapy happens when they realize that they are believing themselves to be a victim when in reality this is not true. When we begin to realize that we are responsible for creativity over our lives, and that if we're not happy, there is no one else to blame; this is the beginning of pushing aside one of the biggest blocks of empowerment.
Fear of Selfishness
Another block to empowerment is the belief that we are bad for being "selfish". Often we make the other people's feelings and needs more important than our own. Another word for this is co-dependency (see Winter 1989 Resources, "Breaking Free of Co-dependency", M. Bailey). Does this work? No, we usually end up feeling resentful and drained because it's exhausting to take responsibility for others' lives and feelings; and it's impossible to feel empowered if you're feeling resentful and drained.
I teach people to develop a healthy self-love and to nurture themselves. Is this selfish? Far from it. It is one of the paradoxical facts of life that as you learn to love yourself, take care of yourself, and honor your needs, that you begin to become like an overflowing cup. By giving to yourself, you have so much more to give others. Some of the most giving, generous people I know are very self-loving first. Clearing up misunderstanding about selfishness is one of the primary ways that we can become fully empowered.
Steps to Personal Empowerment
Inner Child
One of the most helpful approaches to personal empowerment is through our inner child. That may seem paradoxical at first. We don't think of children as being powerful. However, having your inner child as your ally will definitely increase your personal power. Why is that?
Our inner child is the source of our aliveness, our emotions, our spontaneity and our zest for life. If we can befriend him/her, we can experience a strong source of energy. Denying that we have an inner child, which most of us do, simply pushes that part of us down but it doesn't make it go away. Instead, our inner child will try to get our attention in whatever way that works. That could include making us sick, sabotaging our successes, making us overeat, interfering in our relationships, etc. Does that sound like a prescription for empowerment? No, that's a prescription for sabotage.
Most of us tyrannize our inner child, and leave it no choice but to rebel. Do you wonder why you stop short of being who you could be? Check out your inner child. When was the last time you asked it what it wanted to do for fun? When was the last time you rewarded it for cooperating with you on a project? When was the last time you took it to the beach?
Start listening to the voice of your inner dialogue and begin to identify the voice of your inner child. As you begin to find out what it wants and needs, you'll be on the path to renewing yourself.
My inner child likes to go to the beach and feed the sea gulls. That's where I take her when I want to write articles like this one. Even as I write, three sea gulls are staring at me, the sun is glistening on the water and a cool, gentle breeze is massaging the pores of my skin. I think you get the idea. You are so much stronger and so much more empowered when your inner child is a part of your life.
Inner Parent
Along with our inner child, there are many other parts of us that need to be balanced and integrated for us to feel empowered. For example, are you hard on yourself? Do you criticize yourself at every available opportunity and use hard words for yourself like "stupid", "dumb", or "lazy"? Do you give yourself a lot of shoulds and shouldn'ts? If the answers are "yes", you've been listening to your inner critic and most likely it is an overdeveloped part of your psyche. One of my clients, Tom, had a very critical father. He learned to internalize that self-criticism and was constantly berating and putting himself down. No wonder he wasn't able to fulfill his potential and become the success that he was trained to be. As he gradually learned to tune out his inner critic and listen to his inner-nurturing parent, he found: a friend in himself; his self-esteem rapidly increasing, and his successes followed quickly.
All of us have this choice at any moment. We can either listen to our inner critic or our inner nurturing parent. If we listen to our inner critic, we will feel disempowered, as if we always have a judge beating us up. If we listen to our nurturing parent we'll be able to say things to ourselves like "You're great, I love you, I am so proud of you." We'll then have an internal friend, a part of us that cheers us on and loves us unconditionally. Can you imagine what a boost to your self-empowerment this would be? The next time you catch yourself talking negatively to yourself, change the channel to a positive one and feel the difference.
Boundaries
Another important step to take along the path of self-empowerment is learning to set boundaries and define our limits. In other words, how much are we willing to take in and how much are we willing to give out? What happens if we don't set boundaries in a relationship? We end up feeling resentful because we've either given more than we wanted or we've allowed ourselves to be invaded by the other person. Do you allow yourself to be invaded or to be put upon by anyone in your life? Do you end up giving too much? If so, then you are not setting your boundaries, and there is no way you can feel empowered if your boundaries are not defined.
How do you set boundaries? First do some inner work on yourself to get clear about how you feel and what your limits are. Then you communicate your limits to the other person, such as, "I will no longer allow myself to be invalidated by you," and then leave the room if it happens again. If someone is complaining to you and you feel like a receptacle for their negative energy, mention it to them, and say, "I really don't like it when you complain around me." Finding ways to protect yourself through the clear setting of boundaries is an absolute must on the path to empowerment.
Also keep in mind that boundary setting can be done on an internal level as well. In other words, if someone is angry with you and you are able to be compassionate with that person and understand the hurt feeling beneath the anger, there is no reason to shut that person out. Through your compassion and understanding you most likely will not be adversely affected. That is the ideal state we would all like to reach. If, however, the other person is just using you as a dumping ground and is not available to explore the more vulnerable feelings underneath, then the wisest move for you would be to set your boundaries outwardly, and let him/her know that your boundaries are being violated and your are not willing to allow this to happen. Remember, when you uphold your boundaries, you are also protecting your inner child.
Feelings
Another important step to take in "empowering" yourself is getting in touch with your feelings and learning to express them appropriately. Why is this so important?
- Feelings are a source of our aliveness. If you stuff down your feelings, you feel less energy, less aliveness and more apathy and boredom.
- You can't suppress negative feeling without also suppressing positive ones, i.e.: if you are "stuffing" anger, sadness, or fear, you won't be able to fully feel your love, joy, and excitement. It's a package deal.
- Feelings that we don't express often turn in on ourselves and become self-destructive, especially anger and resentment. Of all the people that I have helped over the last decade, at least 75 percent suffered from a displacement of anger onto themselves. A turning point in therapy for them came when they realized they no longer had to turn their anger inward.
- Feelings are barometers for us, like the oil light in your car. If you're not in touch with your feelings, it's like driving without the gauges on. You're driving blind.
Getting in touch with our feelings and learning to express them is perhaps one of the most important gifts we can give ourselves. My path has been helping thousands of people do this in individual one-to-one counseling. There are other ways as well, including transformational seminars, support groups, classes, books, tapes, and any other avenue that supports your inner journey. What's really needed, whether it be therapy or seminars, is to be in a safe place where your inner truth can emerge and be supported by others. A safe space means, a space of no judgement where your vulnerability is honored and respected. We all need this to grow, to change and to become empowered.
Any discussion of empowerment would not be complete without mentioning my mentor, my teacher and my friend, Dr. Barbara De Angelis, creator of Making Love Work seminars and author of the national best-selling book Secrets About Men Every Woman Should Know. She has helped so many people become empowered through her seminars and books that I would highly suggest trying her "power" journal. Simply record in your journal every experience in which you give your power away, even the subtle ways like being afraid to say, "no" or not asking for what you want. After you bring your awareness to these experiences for about a week, start to change them and start to record your progress in owning your power. Even give yourself credit for the minor changes, like speaking up for yourself, refusing to be used, strongly maintaining your boundaries or being less dependent on others' approval and more on your own.
You will find as you bring more and more awareness to this process, that the new positive experiences outweigh the old negative ones. It's fun to keep track of your progress and acknowledge how well you are doing. As Dr. De Angelis suggests, finding a "power buddy" to work with (someone who supports your empowerment) can definitely speed up the process, as you share your experiences.
Just to summarize, remember that empowerment is our birthright. We can choose to repress it or accept it. If we repress it we will feel like "victims" of life just "getting by" with a comfortable numbness. If we accept it, we gain energy, aliveness, creativity and passion for life. We are confident in knowing we can create whatever we desire. We know that the source is within and finding the inner source is worth all the effort.
"Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it." - W.H.Murray
P.S. People often ask me why I feel so passionate about teaching people to be empowered. My answer is if each of us becomes more empowered then we can create a planet in harmony with itself in which people celebrate life instead of worrying about it. That's the kind of planet I want to live on. Don't you?
by Ahmaddin as-Salik
UNITY
Often, especially at night when the nurturing Sea
in the depths of Being
is a distant background noise,
when all else is still and full of mystery,
and my soul is held in equipoise,
i feel Her Presence and know She
is close to me
in secret ways--ways that nullify
my senses--and,
lifted by wings of Certainty,
we soar above the firmament so high
that sometimes i feel She is bringing me home to die,
and i wait for my
breath to cease. Then, higher yet,
i hear Her whisper, "Peace!"
and down we fly
together from the faintly winking velvet
stars, my
reeling heart in ecstasy,
for there is no more "we" but only "She!"
From nothing, God's inspiration
fleshes into maturity,
a miniature
macrocosm:
all in everything,
everything in all!
Heart
expanding,
eagerly
transformed by this role,
we are Caretakers
of Mother Earth,
mirror through which
God sees Herself,
our
only function
to remember.
by Jef Meisser
There once was a man with a dove
Whose inspiration came from above
When asked about sin
While grinning a grin
He said all that you need
is love
There once was a man from Orleans
His fate was disaster it seems
His
love did depart
She taking his heart
'Till he met the girl of his
dreams
The universe is a wonderful teacher. Disaster, catastrophe, tragedy, are words that have an obviously negative connotation, but are they in fact what they appear to be? Sometimes the worst calamity can turn out to be a blessing in disguise.
Let me illustrate my meaning with the ancient story of Wu Lin:
Wu Lin was an old peasant in ancient China who lived in a small village of farmers who worked the Mandarin's land. He and his three sons lived in a one-room hut. Being too old to work the fields, Wu Lin sold the milk from his cow to pay his taxes.
One day a violent storm swept over the village. Nothing was damaged except the corral where a few timbers had blown over, creating a hole large enough for an animal to escape. One did, Wu Lin's cow.
The villagers quickly repaired the corral, then went to Wu Lin and said, "You poor man, great evil has befallen you. Isn't this terrible? How will you pay your taxes?"
Wu Lin said, "Perhaps it's bad, perhaps it's good. Tomorrow I will send my sons to look for the cow."
They replied, "After that storm? They will never find your cow."
The next day Wu Lin's sons found not only the cow, but also six horses. The village elders quickly went to see Wu Lin. "Oh you are blessed Wu Lin. You are now a wealthy man. This is great fortune."
"It may be good, it may be bad," Wu Lin replied.
"How can you say it may be bad?" asked the elders. Wu Lin repeated his statement. The elders departed, they did not understand.
The next day while trying to tame the horses, the first son broke his arm, the second broke his leg, and the third broke his shoulder.
The village elders came to Wu Lin's house and said, "Oh, isn't this terrible?" Wu Lin said, "It might be bad, but then again it might be good."
The elders asked, "How can you say it might be good? Who will work the fields? Who will tame your horses? Who will milk your cow?"
"Perhaps it's good, perhaps it's bad. I will milk the cow. The fields and horses can wait," said Wu Lin.
The following day the Mandarin came to town. He was starting a fall campaign against a rival. He came to the village and conscripted all able-bodied young men into his army; all except Wu Lin's sons.
The universe moves in mysterious ways. Our perceptions of the moment may be hiding what is truly in store for us. Our feelings are determined by our present attitudes. As Shakespeare said in Hamlet, "There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so." Thinking... perhaps that's part of the problem, thinking and not accepting. Thinking leads to judgement that leads to a preconceived notion. When our experience does not match our preconceived notion dissonance occurs. This leaves us disappointed or unhappy when life does not meet our expectations. If we maintain a child-like openness to our experiences, we do not limit our experience with our preconceived judgements. By changing our way of perception we change our experience.
Is it right to make snap judgements? In our story Wu Lin suspends his judgement. He is unaffected by his first impressions. He stays calm, accepting, waiting for the universe to provide more information. Does this mean we're at the mercy of external influences? Of course not!
Saint Francis of Assisi displays an interesting perspective on this issue in his Serenity Prayer, "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." The question is, how we determine whether or not something is a negative experience. If we take an honest look at our lives, we can see that some of our tremendous growth and discoveries have occurred because of some calamity. On another level, we need negative experiences in order for us to have positive ones. Otherwise you would never realize or appreciate that you were having a positive experience.
We can see this idea expressed in our cultural archetypes. Death, the thirteenth Tarot card, tells us the story of transformation. When something is transformed the previous thing is destroyed. Death begets life. The Hindu God Shiva is the God of creation and destruction. Here we are shown that whenever something is created something must be destroyed to create space for the new. It is just the same with us. If we find a better way of doing something, we use the new way. Simultaneously with the birth of a new idea, the previous idea or way of doing dies. When our physical bodies die our consciousness experiences new life. While our physical body disintegrates it also births to life countless microorganisms. We tend to get complacent and comfortable in our ways of doing things. Then we resist change. The universe that loves us must then gently nudge us to change and grow. This can be difficult if we cling to previous patterns of behavior.
So when you are experiencing life's difficulties remember to keep your eyes, ears and heart open. Great learning is taking place; the birth of some new growth of consciousness.
May peace be with you.
Jef Meisser has been a student of the esoteric teachings for several years. He is a student of The Johannine Catholic Church seminary and was ordained a JCC priest this past March in the Madre Grande Meditation Room. He resides in the province of Alberta, Canada and has worked with Phil Lane, Jr. at the Four Worlds Development Project at the University of Lethbridge, Alberta.
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by Rita Gillmon
Our Norse forebears used a system of signs called runes that was both an alphabet and a tool of prophecy and divination. Though its use as an oracle had ceased when Christianity expunged it from the Northern European countries where it had flourished for more than a thousand years, it has in recent times been restored through the workings of both European and American scholars.
The longest works in this system or script that are still available for study are the Norse sagas. From these, most of our knowledge of the origins of the Germanic myths is obtained. These myths include stories of Odin, the wise Shamanic figure, the trickster Loki, Thor, the Hammer of the Gods, and Freya, a female figure of great power.
Scholars generally agree that the runes were created at about 100 B.C.E. probably developed from a North Italic script adopted by Germanic tribes living in the Northern Italian peninsula at that time. R.I. Page, in his book Runes, 1987, chooses this as most likely, given the similarity between the full Futhark of runes, as the complete sets of signs came to be called, and many of the Italic signs.
Ralph Elliott, author of Runes, an Introduction, said the creation of the Futhark must have preceded the extinction of the Italic script by the Latin alphabet, which occurred sometime in the first century of the Common Era.
"The Futhark was probably created by one man who had the leisure and the remarkable phonic sense to create the futhark from a model know to him," Elliott said.
Elliott said their first use was probably for marking articles with the owner's name and sending messages, but definitely also for divination and casting lots. By 500 C.E., the runes had spread over the Germanic world and are found in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, England, Germany, Poland, Russia and Hungary. The signs record different Germanic languages, just as the Latin letters are used in both English and French today. Inscriptions found throughout Europe have been cut, stamped, inlaid or impressed in metal, bone, wood and stone.
These early inscriptions are often difficult to interpret because of their brevity and because individual letters are difficult to identify. Also it is often not known whether to read from right to left or from left to right.
Some scholars believe that runes were primarily used for religious, ritual or magical purposes; that runes have magical properties and that the rune masters, the men who were trained to use the script, had supernatural powers and were able to control or release such powers by the use of runes. Page and many other scholars deplore what Page terms a "flight from reason" into the realms of superstition and fantasy. He denigrates the use of runes as a means of divination or as a modern writer has put it, "a mirror for the magic of our unknown selves" and "an instrument to tune into our own wisdom."
Such a scholar is Edred Thorsson, a scholar of Old Norse and Old English language and literature who has completed graduate studies in comparative mythology and religion. For more than 10 years he has been intensively engaged in the study of Germanic religious and magical traditions in both theory and practice. Thorsson founded the Rune-Gild in Austin, Texas, in 1980, as well as the Runa Workshop, for the furtherance of effective restoration of runelore. He also founded the Institute for Runic Studies.
"Runelore represents an important part of the oldest tradition of initiatory wisdom-magic known to the Germanic world," he said. "The ancient Goths, Scandinavians, Germans and English all knew the power of the runes, and they were bound together by a mighty guild of runemasters who taught their craft throughout all the tribes of Northern Europe. It would seem wise for the descendants of these forebears to turn to the runic power to regain the depths of their hoary wisdom."
Thorsson said it is most important to remember that the runes were born from a magical tradition, not a purely linguistic one, and this magical association never left them. Thorsson said that mythically it is through the God of Magic, Odhinn, that the gods and men are able to receive rune wisdom. Thorsson has created in his three books, Futhark, Runelore, and At the Well of Wyrd, -- all published by Samuel Weiser -- a complete system for using the runes for divination and as focal points for evocatory magic and meditation as well as self-transmutation and mystical communication.
Runes are especially valuable in magical works concerning victory, success, protection, rescue from restriction, love and the gaining of wisdom, he said. He deplores the fact that so many descendants of the North are seeking to develop their talents through the use of Middle Eastern or Mediterranean-based systems, rather than seeking to develop what he feels is their genetically-attuned heritage.
Guido Von List, born in Vienna in 1848, was one of the first in the modern era to write about runes and founded a society to spread his mystical-sociological ideas about the place of the runic system in German life. After the tragedy of the Nazi era in Germany, his ideas fell into disrepute, though undeservedly, through adoption of some part of them by Nazi enthusiasts, particularly occultist members of the SS. It should be noted that several independent runologists spent the Nazi years in prison. Thorsson said the Nazis mobilized all things Germanic and perverted them to manipulate ends.
"One brief glance at a book on ancient Germanic and old Scandinavian culture and religion will show the massive degree to which the Nazis perverted the egalitarian systems of the ancients into a totalitarian scheme," he said.
Since the end of the war, many works of rune lore have been published, including new editions of List. His work The Secret of the Runes has been published in English with an introduction to List's life and a translation by Stephen E. Flowers. Of all the English language rune lore available, Flowers cites Thorsson as writing with the most depth.
According to Norse mythology, Odhinn is the first being to be fully initiated into the runic mysteries; that is, he first extracted the rune wisdom directly from its source and formulated it within his being in such a way that it could be communicated to other beings. Therefore it is through the Odhinnic force that the runes may be perceived best. In the Elder of Poetic Edda written in Old Norse this initiatory myth is presented in the song called Havamal. In stanzas 138 and 139 we read, in Thorsson's translation:
I Know that I hung
on the windy tree
all of the nights nine,
wounded by spear
and given to Odhinn
myself to myself,
on that
tree,
which no man knows,
from what roots it rises.
They dealt me no bread
nor drinking horn,
I looked down,
I
took up the runes
I took them up screaming,
I fell back from there.
This describes an initiatory process of a shamanistic type, in which the initiate passes through the Nine Worlds of the World Tree in the Realm of Hel (Death) and momentarily enters her sphere. At that moment the initiate receives the entire body of rune wisdom and it is etched into his being. In the next instant the initiate returns to Mudguard with the rune wisdom permanently encoded and ready for use and communication.
Thorsson deals with the Elder Futhark of 24 runes, though he said the Younger Futhark of 16 runes or the Anglo-Saxon Futhark of 33 runes are still magically effective. He gives for each of the 24 runes, the standard form of the rune, the word in Old Germanic that it stands for, and its esoteric significance. He also includes chants, or galdr, a kind of incantation to be used in working with runes, as well as stadha, or postures, to go with each rune. He gives several methods of divination and casting as well as directions for making your own runes.
In the runic system, as in any divinatory method, all depends on the approach of the practitioner. If one tunes into the Norse world-view, learning the systems of the nine worlds and their different realms, and takes seriously the aim of discerning one's path through life, who is to say that one won't have at least as much success as those who go into expensive therapy? Thorsson said the Odhinnic religious system is not one in which one worships Odhinn, but one in which the vitki, or practitioner of the runic system, seeks to emulate Odhinn in his search for wisdom.
In his book, At the Well of Wyrd, Thorsson explains several methods of rune casting, from a simple choice of three runes for a reading of past, present and future, to the complex system of casting upon the airts. The latter incorporates the Old Norse division of the sky and the plane of the earth into "eighths", in Old Norse "aettir", with a central circle that stands for Mudguard, or Middle Earth, thus giving a graphic presentation of the Nine Worlds of Germanic mythology. Someone accustomed to the use of a Native American medicine wheel will find this orientation to the four directions comfortable and familiar.
The use of the runes can begin simply by making a set of runes and learning the meaning of the names of each sign and lead on to the use of the most complex high magic imaginable.
Bibliography
The Secret of the Runes, Stephen E. Flowers, Destiny Books, 1988.
Runes, an Introduction, R.W.V. Elliott, Manchester University Press--St. Martin's Press, 1959.
Runes, R.I. Page, University of California Press--British Museum, 1987.
Futhark, Edred Thorsson, Samuel Weiser, 1984.
Runelore, Edred Thorsson, Samuel Weiser, 1987.
At the Well of Wyrd, Edred Thorsson, Samuel Weiser, 1988.
The Book of Runes, Ralph Blum, St. Martin's Press, 1982.
by +J. Julian Gillmon
The I Ching (pronounced yee jing), or Book of Changes, is an ancient Chinese Oracle based upon the Taoist Philosophy. Taoism (pronounced dowism) is a philosophy that states that the Tao (which is undefinable and immeasurable) is the root of all being, yet it doesn't create, it becomes. Te (pronounced duh) means the ten thousand (innumerable) things--creation as we know it.
"The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao. The name that can be named is not the eternal name."
"The Tao gives birth to One. One gives birth to Two. Two gives birth to Three. Three gives birth to all things."
The I Ching is based upon the foregoing principle. Two represents duality, Yang and Yin; Yang--positive, the generative, masculine, convex, light, Heaven; Yin--negative, the receptive, feminine, concave, dark, Earth. "The Two gives birth to Three," the three lines of the eight trigrams generated from Yin and Yang, which, in turn, form the sixty-four hexagrams, that is the oracle.
Divination is usually applied to foretelling the future, which implies a fixed future not amenable to free will, while an oracle supposedly speaks to the inner person. Some people query the oracle daily at the beginning of the day, others only when they have critical decisions to make.
"To the Superior Person the I Ching gives advice; regarding Inferior persons it makes predictions."
Holding the question in mind, the Player or Operator generates the hexagram using one of several methods:
1. The yarrow stalk or stick oracle, which is the slowest and allows the most time for meditation on the query.
2. The coin oracle--favored by most operators--uses three coins and takes less time than the stick oracle.
3. The dice oracle, which uses two octahedral dice each containing all eight trigrams, one blue for the upper trigram and one brown for the lower trigram. This is the quickest of all, requiring only two throws of the dice.
Oddly enough, I favor either the slowest method for meditation or the fastest for instant synchronicity. In any case the I Ching cannot be interpreted without obtaining one of the translations (see bibliography). As these all contain the two methods for casting the oracle, those methods are not described herein. I personally prefer the Wilhelm-Baynes translation published by the Bollingen Foundation with a foreword by C.G. Jung, though the Trosper & Leu Illustrated Primer is quite useful for beginners.
In the first two oracular methods, one generates six lines, from bottom to top, to form the hexagram. Each line can have one of four values:
Six, called Old Yin -- this is a changing line and is marked as a broken line with an "x" in the gap;
Seven, called Yang, marked as a solid line;
Eight, called Yin, marked as a broken line; and
Nine called Old Yang -- this is another changing line and is marked as a solid line with a small circle or ellipse in the center.
If there are any changing lines a new hexagram is also formed (indicating final outcome) where a six line becomes a seven line and a nine line becomes an eight line. Change lines are individually interpreted as part of the oracle.
When using the dice oracle, the dice are thrown a second time, and if a different hexagram is obtained it is used to indicate the change lines in the first hexagram.
When using the I Ching over the years I have found it to be a most wise oracle, always giving answers that are most pertinent though not always to the question asked but often addressed to my inner state at the time of questioning. I have found that I know what hexagram will result when I have obtained no more than the first or second line.
Life Reading
Fifteen years ago this coming fall I took a course in The Oracular Tradition, given by Doctor Alan Anderson in the Department of Religious Studies at San Diego State University. A major portion of this course was devoted to a study of the I Ching. The final project was to do a life-reading of oneself, a once-in-a-lifetime reading. Before I describe this process, I should first elaborate on the nuclear hexagrams as they are used in the analysis of the life reading.
Each main hexagram consists of six lines numbered one through six from bottom to top. These same lines generate five nuclear hexagrams in which change lines must also be considered. These are:
Begin your life reading by titling a blank 8 1/2" x 11" page with your full name "I Ching--Chart of Life Passage for Transformation." Then draw a six-inch diameter circle centered on the page and draw its vertical and horizontal diameters. Draw an arrow at the top of the vertical diameter and on the right of the horizontal one. Draw an arrow somewhere on the circle to indicate clockwise rotation. At the points of intersection of the diameters with the circle, starting at the top, just outside the circle, place the letters "S", at the next intersection "W", at the bottom "N", and on the left "E".
You are now ready to begin the life reading, which consists of six questions. Take your time, consult the oracle only when it feels appropriate. Your Karma was not built in one day, neither does your life reading require it. Allow one or two separate sheets for each query, seeing that you will draw a main hexagram and five nuclear hexagrams for each query. On the separate sheet write the query with the date, place and time asked. Also on the main sheet, you will write the brief of the query just outside the circle (with two exceptions) and the main hexagram(s) obtained just inside the circle at the same position.
Start at the North point of the circle with the query "What is my Nature?" On the separate sheet you should ask the same question in a longer and more polite form. I asked "Sincerely I ask the oracle to give me a hexagram describing 'What is my Nature?'"
In the East write "VOCATION (perfection of form)." Inside, "For the sake of my passage, I inquire of the oracle 'What is my Vocation?'"
In the West write "AGENT (Why was I born)." Inside "I am directed to inquire of the oracle 'Why was I born, why am I here?'"
Now, diagonally upward across the center of the circle write "What is my cross?" and draw the hexagram(s) obtained below it in the same diagonal direction. Inside "I ask the oracle 'Please give me a hexagram defining what is my cross ... What must I do in the service of time?'"
In the South write UNIFIED SELF (Good End)." Inside "I ask the oracle, please, to give me a hexagram to indicate 'What is my unified self?'"
Finally, at the top of the page under the heading write, "DESTINY" with the main hexagram(s) below it. Inside, "I ask the oracle to give me a hexagram indicating, 'What is my destiny ... What is the will of Heaven for me?'"
The answers obtained to the above questions with their interpretations should serve as an excellent guide to your Karma.
Bibliography
The Tao Te Ching, A New Translation by Stephen Mitchell, Harper Collins, New York, 1988.
The I Ching or Book of Changes -- The Richard Wilhem Translation rendered by Cary F. Baynes, Bollingen Series XIX, Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ, 1950, 1967, 1976.
I Ching, The Illustrated Primer, Barry R. Trosper & Gin-Hua Leu, KGI Publications, San Jose, CA, 1986.
The I Ching or Book of Changes, translated by James Legge.
The I Ching or Book of Changes, translated by John Blofeld.
End Notes
Stephen Mitchell: Tao Te Ching, A New Translation; Harper Collins, New York, 1988, Stanza One.
Ibid: Stanza Forty-Two.
Barry H. Trosper & Gin-Hua Leu: I Ching, The Illustrated Primer, KGI Publications, San Jose, 1986.
Thesebooks are often found at occult or esoteric bookstores, and were originally distributed by Uni-Sun Box 25421, Kansas City, MO 64119.
by David Cohen
David Cohen is a professional oracle, actor, teacher, and writer whose work is linked by an interest in the healing power of the imagination. He has communed with the Tarot for twenty-one years, employing it as a tool to enhance awareness and develop intuition for both individuals and groups.
My favorite story about the origin of the Tarot -- apocryphal, as they all are, even should be -- concerns a conference held in the city of Fez in Morocco in the year 1200 C.E. In attendance were representatives of the Old Religions from all over the known world, among them the wisest and the deepest souls on the planet at that time, scholars and sibyls and sages, priestesses and prophets -- the inheritors of millennia of Pagan thought and culture. Their purpose was a somber one: to find a way to protect and preserve the heritage of all those aeons of ancient wisdom against the onslaught of the Christian patriarchs of the Roman Church whose final domination, it was clear to them, was not only inevitable, but imminent; and whose classic methods -- the desecration of sacred places and temples, the suppression of the ancient rites and teachings, the murder of the priest- and priestess-hoods, the midwives, the teachers -- were soon to be augmented by the genocide of what remained of their peoples in the name of the Holy Inquisition. From all over the world we must imagine them having come, initiates of the Mystery Schools -- whatever tatters were left of them, kabbalists, alchemists, astrologers, members of the families of the old nobility who still bore the handed-down knowledge of ancestral forms of worship that preceded Christian worship by far longer than the whole history of Christianity from that time to our own.
Lacking a common language, they nonetheless shared a common vision, and understood, all of them, each in his or her own unique way within the context of his or her own deeply rooted and antique tradition, that what drew them together was far more essential than whatever might keep them apart. They were used to communicating beyond language -- as they were used to identifying with realms of their Being other than body, and higher or deeper than Ego. They soon realized that all of their diverse systems contained within them core images that were remarkably similar. The more ancient and esoteric, in fact, the teaching, the more consonant it was with the symbolic structures handed down to them by the earliest of their predecessors from the time of the beginning. It was as if each of the stories they'd been telling and hearing for thousands of centuries were but facets of a single story which, jewel-like, contained and reflected them all.
What emerged from this meeting, what was distilled from the many meetings of these mythically minded men and women, was a set of images that, correctly understood, told in rich detail the story of the soul's progress through the material world.
Thus was the goal of preserving the old teachings fulfilled, in a way that cut through differences of cultural background and discrete tradition. What was to be transmitted, after all, was not only a verbal experience, but a whole way of seeing and interpreting the world -- a way of experiencing the Self and other people and the cosmos that was radically different from the ways of the sky-god religions now positioned politically to eradicate it. So what then of the other goal, that of protecting the old teachings? And how could a way be found to continue to disseminate them even as they had to remain hidden, occult?
The answer they hit upon was a brilliant one. The powerful images of their collective imagination would be hidden right under the noses of their cultural masters, disguised as a harmless game. They would shrink their mighty systems down to a pack of twenty-two cards that might then be spread all over Europe and Asia Minor without arousing the suspicions of the Church's official censors. Attys, Dionysos, and Osiris would continue to rise and fall and rise again, now hung upside down on the limb of the World Tree wearing the bright clothing of #12, The Hanged Man; the Priestess of Isis at Serapis of Artemis at Ephesus would continue to hold her place of honor as #2, The High Priestess, even as #5, The Hierophant would remain eternally available to new initiates of the Eleusinian Mysteries of Demeter, Persephone, and Hades. If the great cultures they represented really were going to seed, then so be it; they would aid the process. The images of these Tarot cards would become the seeds of the great flowering of wisdom of their dying world-view. They would send them out into the world to keep that wisdom safe until it was again ready to take root in the soil of new souls seeking a way back to it at a time when the religion of the usurpers would reach its own twilight.
Whether or not the convention at Fez ever "really" took place, elements of this basic story are common to most of the legends and theories of the cards' origins, particularly the need to preserve and protect the esoteric traditions from the zealots of the religious right of those days. I'm fondest of this one because it not only explains the history of the cards but also gives us important clues about how they continue to do their work today; and why, when one gazes at a Tarot image, information can emerge from within that can illuminate in totally new ways the immediate and practical facts of one's here-and-now, twentieth-century existence -- as well as connecting that existence to its deeper roots in soul.
The images of the Tarot school the intuition. They help to contact and develop inner realms that lend depth and dimension to ordinary experience, thus leading to extra-ordinary insights. Because they are drawn from the vast reservoir of the most ancient of the sacred images of our human race, they have the power to activate the deepest images within our individual psyches; images that -- once activated -- can transform and heal us. The images that Carl Jung thought, in some essential way, aren't just in us, but are us.
For this reason it is extremely important not to bypass these images in favor of strictly verbal reductions of a card's meaning that would limit it to a pithy phrase or traditionally assigned meaning. Readings that concentrate too heavily on the verbal tend to stop at the first level of the possible benefits of a real encounter with the cards. They run the risk of conveying information at the expense of transformation because they keep the subject focussed in the mind rather than centered in the heart. They tend to reduce a card's impact by narrowing the attention to an intellectual understanding of the card rather than a fuller experience of it that includes feeling and imagination. There is after all a part even of our minds that still thinks in pictures, the part from which we dream and wish. Perhaps the real work of a reading is between the silent image on the cards and the silent depths within the person having the reading, and the words we speak just the icing on the cake.
This is certainly not to say that the intellect has no place whatsoever in a Tarot reading, or that it should transpire in silence without speech or abstraction. One can think of the conscious mind in a reading as a hand reaching down from above the surface of a body of water, and the unconscious, the non-rational mind, as a hand reaching up from the depths. When they touch, a link is formed that creates a new alignment between parts of the Self that had previously been operating in separated, often dysfunctional ways, with the left brain, as it were, not knowing what the right brain is doing.
Heraclitus of Ephesus, arguably the greatest of the Pre-Socratic philosophers, whose aphorisms are themselves jewel-like images that teach by non-rational means rather than by logic, held that "The Lord whose oracle is at Delphi neither reveals nor conceals, but indicates." The Tarot, that great remaining Western oracle, indicates -- literally, points toward -- more than just what is going to happen or when or by what means. If we let it, it can change the stuff of our everyday lives by showing us a wholly other way of seeing.
by Beth Ingber
Beth Ingber is the spiritual director of The Triple Eye Foundation--a nonprofit spiritual organization based in Southern California--expressing the intersection of twelve-step programs, psychotherapy and new age spirituality, The Foundation proposes innovative approaches to our collective needs for recovery, emotional, physical and spiritual well-being, creative expression, work and social organization. Its approach is based upon the development of intuition and the bringing together of that intui