I've been thinking about Lessons Bloody Lessons and decided that the title is a bit misleading. It's a throwback to a time about 5-10 years ago when I thought I had learned enough. And I got really mad, raging mad about the idea of always having to learn more and more lessons and that they would never end. So, I suppose, now that I've realised that I've always had this really cool internal teacher (the Holy Spirit in Christian terms, the Buddha Within in Buddhist terms) and that I can learn my lessons when I'm ready, it's not so bad, really.
The key word in learning from life and enjoying it while you do is "enthusiasm". Whatever you're doing be enthusiastic about it. If it's a boring job, what we call a real chore, then learn to do it on auto-pilot, and put your enthusiasm into thinking about what you really love. It could be something from the past or the future, it could be a place you'd love to be or have been. It doesn't matter what we think about as long as we are enthusiastic about it.
Jim Green maintains that when people become enthusiastic about anything they can actually warm up a cold room. And equally well if other people are knocking the idea they cool the room down. He told me enough stories of his experiences with this to convince me.
The students were complaining last night that the room I was teaching in was cold. I was roasting. Maybe it was because I was moving around a bit more than them, or maybe I was being more enthusiastic about the subject than them. Anyway we did a few exercises and they all warmed up.
In the Way of One course with Tantra Maat and Richard Waterborn (An Tosnu, Carrigaline, 1996) she explained that enthusiasm can be interpreted as "in Theos I am" Theos being the greek word for God.
05 July 2012
Lessons Bloody Lessons, Human Beings - 10 October 2007 exLJ
So, having said that we are here to have our learning experiences, we'd have to learn what it means to be a Human Being.
How many people do we need to cover the complete range of human experience? Even hough we are all unique human beings, there are patterns that repeat themselves over and over again. When I was in UCC a fellow student claimed that we only need 200. Suppose that he hyper-underestimated and that we really need 20,000 or even 20,000,000.
I don't think that it's anywhere near this number, but for argument's sake we'll take a number somewhere in between, like 80,000 - the population of a reasonably small city. But, there are 6.4 billion of us, that's 80,000 time 80,000. So why are we doing it over and over again? Maybe we are a very stupid species and can't learn from each other. Maybe we are being led astray like in the Pied Piper of Hamlin story.
As human beings we have been given access to the complete range, from here to eternity, from hell to heaven. We've got it all. But we have convinced ourselves that we are limited. That we are limited to the perception range of our bodies, or the extended range we get by using technology (telescopes, microscopes...).
There is only one mind and that mind contains the universe, the whole shebang, lock, stock and barrel. The quantum physicists may be referring to this one mind when they talk about the quantum vacuum. There are absolutely no particles in it. Yet it has the potential to become galaxies, super-galaxies and whatever else they call the bigger and bigger collections of stars.
As Will Shakespeare once said "All the world's a stage..." And we are all actors on that stage. We are not only the actors, we are the producers, directors, scriptwriters, key grip, gaffers and so on. We are also the audience. So, no matter how you see your part in this play. It's your part. Make the most of it. Learn to enjoy it. Have fun with it. Play with it!
How many people do we need to cover the complete range of human experience? Even hough we are all unique human beings, there are patterns that repeat themselves over and over again. When I was in UCC a fellow student claimed that we only need 200. Suppose that he hyper-underestimated and that we really need 20,000 or even 20,000,000.
I don't think that it's anywhere near this number, but for argument's sake we'll take a number somewhere in between, like 80,000 - the population of a reasonably small city. But, there are 6.4 billion of us, that's 80,000 time 80,000. So why are we doing it over and over again? Maybe we are a very stupid species and can't learn from each other. Maybe we are being led astray like in the Pied Piper of Hamlin story.
As human beings we have been given access to the complete range, from here to eternity, from hell to heaven. We've got it all. But we have convinced ourselves that we are limited. That we are limited to the perception range of our bodies, or the extended range we get by using technology (telescopes, microscopes...).
There is only one mind and that mind contains the universe, the whole shebang, lock, stock and barrel. The quantum physicists may be referring to this one mind when they talk about the quantum vacuum. There are absolutely no particles in it. Yet it has the potential to become galaxies, super-galaxies and whatever else they call the bigger and bigger collections of stars.
As Will Shakespeare once said "All the world's a stage..." And we are all actors on that stage. We are not only the actors, we are the producers, directors, scriptwriters, key grip, gaffers and so on. We are also the audience. So, no matter how you see your part in this play. It's your part. Make the most of it. Learn to enjoy it. Have fun with it. Play with it!
Lessons Bloody Lessons 9 October 2007 exLJ
When I was a trainer in DDC I decided to offer a class in Time Management. I came across and bought a video by John Cleese called Meetings Bloody Meetings to help me get the message across. Hence the title of this post.
I went through a phase where I though I had learned enough bloody lessons. But it kept being shoved in my face that we're never finished learning lessons. Well, to hell with that. So when will I be finished learning? When I wake up in the morning in peace, spend the whole day in peace, fall asleep and sleep in peace. Sounds boring? Not really!
Because the idea of "walkabout" entered. In walkabout mode we just go about our lives enjoying what is presented to us without any expectations. We're not trying to do anything, just being and enjoying it. Having fun!
Well, anyway back to the bloody lessons. I wake up in the morning, and I'm in peace. I go through the day. At some stage I discover that I'm not in peace. Maybe I'm angry, mad, sad, afraid, frustrated, anxious, worried, agitated... What situation, event triggered this reaction? Who did this to me?
Nobody did this to me. I reacted. I decided that an emotional response was appropriate. I may not be aware that I decided, but some part of me must have decided. So today's lesson becomes "How did I get myself out of peace?" Let me get back into peace. Let me rest in peace!
Over the years I have accepted that I will have to learn my lessons. That's the way the universe works. If I don't learn them today, then I'll learn them sometime. There is no choice about this - I will learn my lessons. You can almost imagine the authoritarian figure pointing at me saying "You will learn your lessons" And I ask him do I have any choice. And a gentler, more helpful universe responds "Yes, its true, you will learn your lessons, but you have a choice. Three choices really. First choice is the timing choice. You can learn them now or later. Second choice is the location choice. You can learn them here or anywhere. Third choice is the how choice - the easy or the hard way."
OK! Lessons bloody lessons are only given to us when we are ready to learn them. We are better off learning them when they are first presented, otherwise the tend to get more difficult the more we postpone them. And we usually wind up saying to ourselves "Why didn't I do that immediately, is really was not as difficult as it thought it would be"
If my current location is not my favourite place in the universe, then I can always move to my favourite location.
I don't always have to keep beating my head against a stone wall. Maybe someone else has learned this lesson. It's definitely sure that someone else has learned this lesson already. I can buy the book, and take it with my favourite chair and sit on the beach and simply read the lesson in peace and comfort.
There is a much simpler way of learning and that's to just tune into the mind-state we desire to learn. I suppose in Matrix-land they referred to this as "Deeks (can't remember his name) load the program!"
I went through a phase where I though I had learned enough bloody lessons. But it kept being shoved in my face that we're never finished learning lessons. Well, to hell with that. So when will I be finished learning? When I wake up in the morning in peace, spend the whole day in peace, fall asleep and sleep in peace. Sounds boring? Not really!
Because the idea of "walkabout" entered. In walkabout mode we just go about our lives enjoying what is presented to us without any expectations. We're not trying to do anything, just being and enjoying it. Having fun!
Well, anyway back to the bloody lessons. I wake up in the morning, and I'm in peace. I go through the day. At some stage I discover that I'm not in peace. Maybe I'm angry, mad, sad, afraid, frustrated, anxious, worried, agitated... What situation, event triggered this reaction? Who did this to me?
Nobody did this to me. I reacted. I decided that an emotional response was appropriate. I may not be aware that I decided, but some part of me must have decided. So today's lesson becomes "How did I get myself out of peace?" Let me get back into peace. Let me rest in peace!
Over the years I have accepted that I will have to learn my lessons. That's the way the universe works. If I don't learn them today, then I'll learn them sometime. There is no choice about this - I will learn my lessons. You can almost imagine the authoritarian figure pointing at me saying "You will learn your lessons" And I ask him do I have any choice. And a gentler, more helpful universe responds "Yes, its true, you will learn your lessons, but you have a choice. Three choices really. First choice is the timing choice. You can learn them now or later. Second choice is the location choice. You can learn them here or anywhere. Third choice is the how choice - the easy or the hard way."
OK! Lessons bloody lessons are only given to us when we are ready to learn them. We are better off learning them when they are first presented, otherwise the tend to get more difficult the more we postpone them. And we usually wind up saying to ourselves "Why didn't I do that immediately, is really was not as difficult as it thought it would be"
If my current location is not my favourite place in the universe, then I can always move to my favourite location.
I don't always have to keep beating my head against a stone wall. Maybe someone else has learned this lesson. It's definitely sure that someone else has learned this lesson already. I can buy the book, and take it with my favourite chair and sit on the beach and simply read the lesson in peace and comfort.
There is a much simpler way of learning and that's to just tune into the mind-state we desire to learn. I suppose in Matrix-land they referred to this as "Deeks (can't remember his name) load the program!"
A Train of Thought 2 October 2007 exLJ
A train of thought is a sequence of concepts, a process. In slow motion an event is a process. There is no such thing as a random happening, no such thing as chance, no such thing as chaos. We just don't have enough information to see the control system at work, or we do not have the ability or the willingness to understand the bigger picture, the grand scheme.
There is also a vested interest in keeping the concept of chance or chaos going. If we knew it all, there would be no fear. Without fear why would we need security for the future, why would we need security for the present? Why would we need to pay insurance, why would we need systems of control, hierarchies of management or government.
Anyway, another mangle (I've decided to call these misquotes and mixed sayings that come into my mind mangles).
"Ego is a voluntary incarceration of a boundless mind."
Looking at bodies (man-watching) may be futile. It could be
- trying to interpret a mind by inferring from the body language, image or form.
- seeing beauty in a form.
- looking for a connection.
It is definitely dangerous when judgment enters - we make a decision about another separate part of mind based on what we see as the form, shape or appearance of the body. If discernment engages rather than judgment - do I like what I see? Can I help the mind that believes it is a body? Then we can take it or leave it. The problem with our judgments is that we feel we have to do something about them.
When I was doing the Healing At Work promotion I had lots of time for man-watching (or more accurately woman-watching). The question occurred to me "What is the perfect figure?" The smart answer I got, which I had come up with before, is "8". Which leads neatly into another mangle.
"Beauty is in the mind of the perceiver. Offence is in the ego of the receiver."
There is also a vested interest in keeping the concept of chance or chaos going. If we knew it all, there would be no fear. Without fear why would we need security for the future, why would we need security for the present? Why would we need to pay insurance, why would we need systems of control, hierarchies of management or government.
Anyway, another mangle (I've decided to call these misquotes and mixed sayings that come into my mind mangles).
"Ego is a voluntary incarceration of a boundless mind."
Looking at bodies (man-watching) may be futile. It could be
- trying to interpret a mind by inferring from the body language, image or form.
- seeing beauty in a form.
- looking for a connection.
It is definitely dangerous when judgment enters - we make a decision about another separate part of mind based on what we see as the form, shape or appearance of the body. If discernment engages rather than judgment - do I like what I see? Can I help the mind that believes it is a body? Then we can take it or leave it. The problem with our judgments is that we feel we have to do something about them.
When I was doing the Healing At Work promotion I had lots of time for man-watching (or more accurately woman-watching). The question occurred to me "What is the perfect figure?" The smart answer I got, which I had come up with before, is "8". Which leads neatly into another mangle.
"Beauty is in the mind of the perceiver. Offence is in the ego of the receiver."
A New Paradigm - 2 October 2007 exLJ
A paradigm is a thought system that is so ingrained in a society that no-one ever questions it or even sees the need to question it. A New Paradigm is a bit of a contradiction. I was talking to a friend yesterday. His son has got married. He wanted to have a simple wedding and spend his money on a 6-month world trip with his wife. His wife wanted the all bells and whistles wedding, which she got. The son now feels trapped - all his money is gone, they even borrowed for the wedding. He's got a €385K mortgage and a €20K loan for the new car. Looking at it an other way he could say that he's got a beautiful wife, a great house, and a marvelous new car.
The New Paradigm being introduced is based on the Law of Attraction. This basically states that what you think about you get. Think about disasters get disasters. Think about abundance get abundance. There are many books and sites selling it. The major one at the moment is "The Secret". The only problem with most of them is that they are looking at things in terms of money and wealth; as if these are the only things that matter. What really concerns people is being happy, safe and in peace. These are all mind states and can only be achieved by looking at our thought system and by each of us changing our thinking.
OK, I'm getting off my soapbox.
The New Paradigm being introduced is based on the Law of Attraction. This basically states that what you think about you get. Think about disasters get disasters. Think about abundance get abundance. There are many books and sites selling it. The major one at the moment is "The Secret". The only problem with most of them is that they are looking at things in terms of money and wealth; as if these are the only things that matter. What really concerns people is being happy, safe and in peace. These are all mind states and can only be achieved by looking at our thought system and by each of us changing our thinking.
OK, I'm getting off my soapbox.
Conspiracy Theories - 9 June 2007 exLJ
Been reading a few different conspiracy theory books - Icke mainly. Read Sitchin's End of Days as well. And, of course, I watched Conspiracy Theory again. Icke's major theory is that the dinosaurs never became extinct, that they evolved into humans. Very like the Super Mario Brothers movie, except that he maintains that they are alive and well and living all around us. He does go on and on about the horrors that these cold blooded reptiles get up to with us warm blooded mammals. By the end I was accusing him of genetic discrimination.
I suppose the cynic in me says "What the hell difference does it make who we've evolved from as long as we've made it here". Then I remembered seeing huge similarities between the whale anatomy in the National Gallery and ours. So much so that I commented that maybe we are devolved from the whales.
The conclusion that I've come to is that all conspiracy theories are based on the ultimate conspiracy of them all - the one that maintains that we are only bodies. Once I accept fully that I'm mind, all mind, then nothing can get to me, nobody else can do anything to me, unless, of course, I want them to, or I allow them to.
I suppose the cynic in me says "What the hell difference does it make who we've evolved from as long as we've made it here". Then I remembered seeing huge similarities between the whale anatomy in the National Gallery and ours. So much so that I commented that maybe we are devolved from the whales.
The conclusion that I've come to is that all conspiracy theories are based on the ultimate conspiracy of them all - the one that maintains that we are only bodies. Once I accept fully that I'm mind, all mind, then nothing can get to me, nobody else can do anything to me, unless, of course, I want them to, or I allow them to.
Mind Stuff - 16 May 2007 exLJ
I watched Altered States last night and after that I watched Being John Malkovich. Altered States was very different from what I remembered. Being John Malkovich was a kinda weird, not quite black comedy, maybe grey comedy. The funny thing was that they were both about mind stuff.
In Altered States Dr Jessup was proving that the state of the mind changes the state of the body. By sensory deprivation and magic mushrooms his body would transform into homo erectus. When he did he wasn't in control of his behaviour anymore. He nearly lost it a few times but in the end his love for his wife saves them both from a fate worse than death, as the cliche goes.
One of the funny things about Altered States and my mind was that in the beginning he was just describing in words the scenes he was seeing while in the sensory deprivation tank. These descriptions I had turned into images in my mind and remembered the imagined scenes as part of the movie. I was a bit disappointed that the scenes weren't in the movie at all, just a description of them.
In Being John Malkovich a puppetteer discovers a portal into John Malkovich's mind, and then learns to control him and eventually take him over. After many twists and turns they all live happily ever after, except the puppeteer, of course. Thinking about it, maybe it really is a black comedy.
In Altered States Dr Jessup was proving that the state of the mind changes the state of the body. By sensory deprivation and magic mushrooms his body would transform into homo erectus. When he did he wasn't in control of his behaviour anymore. He nearly lost it a few times but in the end his love for his wife saves them both from a fate worse than death, as the cliche goes.
One of the funny things about Altered States and my mind was that in the beginning he was just describing in words the scenes he was seeing while in the sensory deprivation tank. These descriptions I had turned into images in my mind and remembered the imagined scenes as part of the movie. I was a bit disappointed that the scenes weren't in the movie at all, just a description of them.
In Being John Malkovich a puppetteer discovers a portal into John Malkovich's mind, and then learns to control him and eventually take him over. After many twists and turns they all live happily ever after, except the puppeteer, of course. Thinking about it, maybe it really is a black comedy.
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