Day 4 post Vision Quest 2010.
Soon after last year's Vision Quest, I was 'called' to quest again. The first quest had awoken in me an internal drumming that became louder and more insistent as the year went on. What I initially thought had been a graduation of sorts was actually an induction and this last year has taken me on an unexpected journey. Instead of effortlessly swimming in the calm bay of ease and flow, I have been dog paddling in a riptide.
The plan was to let go of my egoically driven life in Sydney, my identity as a film industry chick and my consumerist mentality, and surrender into a heartfelt existence firmly anchored in nature and fuelled by passion, purpose and soulfulness. The idea was that once you start living in true integrity with your Highest Self, the Universe will just pour itself into your waiting arms and whatever you desire will instantly manifest. I have since discovered that little nugget of wisdom is nothing but fool's gold. It seems the more I pursue this soulful existence, the more challenging this life becomes - the more I desire something from the highest point of integrity, the more it eludes me; the more layers I peel in my search for 'enlightenment', the less purpose and meaning I find. I feel like a child digging a hole at water's edge - the more I dig, the faster the water comes in to obliterate the hole.
And so, I went down to Bamarang to Quest again with the intention and prayer for the grace of true wisdom. I've been using the arrow in the Fedex logo as a metaphor for this quest: just last month I saw the arrow within the Fedex logo for the very first time. I have received tens of dozens of Fedex packages in my life and have seen the Fedex logo hundreds of times (sitting through the film "Castaway" alone I would have stared at that logo for at least an hour) but have never seen the arrow until someone physically pointed it out to me. And there it is - just sitting there in the negative space between the "e" and the "x" as plain as day - and now every time I see the Fedex logo, the first thing I see is the arrow, which I now understand symbolizes forward movement and thinking. How apt.
It occurred to me that perhaps I had not been seeing the Fedex arrow in my own life - perhaps the part I wasn't getting was as simple as adjusting my perception to see the arrow that has been in front of my eyes the whole time. And maybe in the simplicity and nakedness of nature, the arrow might be shown to me. And it was. Like some cosmic joke.
A few hours into my 24 hour quest, I laid back to look at the sky and noticed that the leafless tree directly to my right - or what was left of it - was a perfectly shaped arrow. There was the trunk, there was a branch on its left coming out of the trunk at a 45 degree angle, and another branch on its right of exactly the same size, diameter and position. And that was it - that was all there was of the tree. A perfect arrow. And a perfect red herring. I had asked for guidance and wisdom and the 'arrow' to show me the path of the paradigm shift and I got a dead tree, a dead end. How the hell was I supposed to convert a dead tree arrow into a decoder for my daily life? I was not amused. I paid good money to sit on my ass in the prickly and dense Australian bush amidst bull ants and horseflies incessantly buzzing around my face with no food and the gods were giving me a dead tree? Are you kidding? I felt like the recipient of one of those cheesy tee shirts... "my parents went to Utopia and all I got was this lousy t-shirt".
From there on, the quest was a monumental struggle. The day dragged on with agonizing and persistent relentless, where minutes felt like hours and my angry, frustrated thoughts drummed through my head like rain on a tin roof. The whole Vision Quest was, as far as I was concerned, the dumbest and most idiotic thing I had ever done (and this was my second round!). The idea of finding true meaning and purpose of life by sitting in a circle on some random piece of dirt for 24 hours was beyond ludicrous - it was completely asinine. The whole spiritual thing was a massive delusion and a cop-out to escape reality through ideology and romanticism and manifestation, the law of attraction and the whole pop psychology of 'The Secret' was a giant con game. In the midst of all this however, I would occasionally find myself spending brief moments as the observer where I would think "ah, look at what the mind is doing to distract and seduce.... that's interesting" but then I got the headache from hell, and the nausea, and it was truly a constant fight just to stay on that mountain, in my circle, and not toss it all in for the comfort of a warm bed and a crackling fire, food and escapism.
It did not get easier and even as I was coming down from the mountain at daybreak the next morning, I felt pissed off and annoyed I had just spent time and money buying into the whole 'Vision Quest' concept when the plain and simple truth was that there was no meaning or purpose in any of it - not just Vision Quest but any of these so-called spiritual endeavors.
But then something dropped in, unannounced, during the closing Sweat Lodge Ceremony. What I suddenly understood at some point between being so annoyed and skeptical when I went into the Lodge and being so hot during the Lodge that I thought I would literally combust, was that all I had to do was be in the experience of it. I didn't have to interpret any signs or symbolsl I didn't have to look for wisdom; I didn't need to imprison myself in a law of cause and effect - I simply had to be in the experience of it and not miss it.
This is different than just being in the present moment because to me, being in the now still implies a cause and effect pattern... if you learn to be in the now, there will be no suffering because nothing is wrong with this moment (unless there is)... whereas just showing up for the experience feels like a complete release of all the baggage - the search for meaning and purpose; the expectation of fulfillment, happiness or peace; the ideology of manifestation; the idea that anything in "my life" is either spellbinding or relevant - so you can just hang out in the experience of whatever it is that you are experiencing, without worrying about what it means or where it might lead or how you might use it. Just hang out. And forget about what it has to do with you. Because it really doesn't have anything to do with you at all and that's the point. Its just an experience, without adjectives.
So that was my glimpse of 'wisdom'. Its only been 4 days since I got that little download so I am still trying to feel my way into this new space at my own (authentic) pace but I did notice today a feeling of being very 'alive' and light. It was like the sub-conscious analysis of how everything relates to me was completely absent for the first time and I was therefore free and clear to just see and feel everyone and everything else around me. Its a feeling I would like to recapture as often as possible but again, even as I type that, the reminder is just to experience life... "don't miss it". I don't need to know what the equation is to replicate these miraculous moments. I just need to turn up for them and surrender to the 'negative' space wherein lies the arrow... whatever that means.
One of my intentions for next year is to study the Tao Te Ching whose 1st verse plants the seed for this apparent paradox -
The Tao that can be told
is not the eternal Tao.
The name that can be named
is not the eternal name.
The Tao is both named and nameless.
As nameless it is the origin of all things;
as named it is the Mother of 10,000 things.
Ever desireless, one can see the mystery;
ever desiring, one sees only the manifestations.
And the mystery itself is the doorway to
all understanding.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Saturday, October 9, 2010
The 4 Don'ts and 7 Do's of manifestation according to Wayne Dyer
I am in awe of and inspired by Wayne Dyer. I am equally in awe of and inspired by Anthony Robbins and the two are quite different in their views. Whereas Wayne Dyer says "do nothing and nothing will be left undone"; Tony Robbins scoffs at the idea of manifestation as a sole means of fulfilling visions. For me, a happy medium mantra would be something along the lines of "take massive action and surrender". Or yield.
Part B of the excerpt from Wayne Dyer's presentation in Sydney are his 4 Dont's and 7 Do's of Manifestation which he prefaced by saying "thoughts are the precious currency of your life. How you use these thoughts determines your level of consciousness. As you raise consciousness, your intuitive abilities increase exponentially and ultimately, you have the ability to attract anything." Unfortunately, he says most people unwittingly use their thoughts to attract what they don't want by:
1) Thinking about the way things are.
We have the currency to produce what we want but instead, we purchase and think about what we don't want. Focus on what you intend to manifest. Stop thinking about what IS if you don't like the way things currently are. Self-actualising people do not spend their time thinking about what is.
2) Talking about they way things are.
3) Talking about the way things always have been
4) Talking about what other people want for you
As an aside, a sign in a beach bar in Tortola, my home base in the Caribbean, reads "Small minds talk about people; average minds talk about events; great minds talk about ideas". I believe Eleanor Roosevelt said this first but the quirkiness of the hand painted wooden sign in a Caribbean bar is too charming not to credit. But the point is - for god's sake, stop gossiping. Don't speak badly about other people. Stop your meanness and your pettiness. It only ends up reflecting on you and is a currency that will ultimately bleed you dry.
So, back to Mr Dyer, who believes that if you hold on to an assumption long enough, it is impossible not to manifest. Here are his 7 principles for manifestation, which spring from a foundation of 4 virtues - kindness, reverence, gentleness and service:
1) Imagination - to come from formless into form it must be clearly imagined. What has not manifested has not been desired enough. By passionately believing in what does not exist, you create it.
As Henry David Thoreau said, "If one advances confidently in the direction of one's dreams, and endeavors to live the life which one has imagined, one will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.” if you do this, success will chase after you - you will not have to chase after it.
2) Living from the end, not towards the end - so first, you must imagine the end and then you must live from there. Live from the place you want to be - abundance, prosperity, joy.
As an example, Wayne said when he first started imagining his book "Wishes Fulfilled" he designed the book jacket and had it printed. One day, a friend of his came into his house and saw the finished book jacket on the coffee table and inquired after the book to which Wayne replied that the book was just catching up with the cover.
N.B This is where Tony Robbins and Wayne Dyer are in sync - Tony always talks about living in sight of the outcome and not the process of how to get there. He says when he has interviewed the most successful people on the planet and asked them if they would have done what they did had they known what it would entail, they have almost all said no. So, focus only on the end result.
3) Assume the feeling of the wish fulfilled - you must get to a place where you can embody what it feels like to have this wish - in your heart, your mind, your belly.
How do you do this? Again, this is where Tony Robbins is the ultimate master. He talks about getting into "peak state" where you are fully associated to the feeling of being, doing or having what you want. You change your state in one of 3 ways: through physiology (body), focus (what are you thinking about), and language/meaning (what language are you using to describe xx and.or what meaning are you placing on xx).
One of the things I absolutely love about Robbins events is the music they use to get everyone moving and zinging from floor to ceiling - they use physiology to put us into peak state and I tell you what - you can go from a state of deprivation, exhaustion, and a general feeling of being 'over it' at 1am after going for 17 hours with only one meal break to feeling like you could rock the house and bring the roof down in 3 minutes when you are in that environment. If you get yourself into that state over and over and over again your body will eventually be conditioned to that peak state as its default. As the saying goes, 'shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars.'
4) Pay attention to the outcome (energy flows where focus goes - Robbins) and note there is a difference between objective vs. subjective attention. For example, someone might say that one cannot cure a lifetime speech impediment but if you are the one with that challenge, the attention that YOU put on it (or anything) is what determines the result. Use your imagination to remind yourself of how great it is to be where you are going.
5) Subconscious mind - According to Bruce Lipton who wrote the incalculably brilliant book 'The Biology of Belief' the subconscious is where we live 95% of our life and is continually programmed from the the conscious mind. This is often why people feel frustrated with their attempts at manifestation and applying the laws from "The Secret". You can say something over and over again in your conscious mind but if your subconscious hasn't bought into the idea, it ain't going to manifest. And this is also why an incantation, said with total commitment, enthusiasm, facial expression and body movement, is far more powerful than an affirmation that is monotously read off some sheet of paper taped to the mirror. When you truly embody an incantation, your subconscious mind will accept it as reality a lot faster than some pop psychology cliche. You have to own it.
6) Last 5 minutes of your day - When you are ready to go to sleep ask yourself, "what am I doing with my thoughts and my mind because I am about to marinate these thoughts for the next 8 hours (if you're lucky!)". Your subconscious mind will then offer you experiences to match your marinated thoughts. Self actualising people spend the last 5 minutes of their day thinking about what they want through their subconscious mind and this is particularly effective because we learn best when we are in trance and our left brain is otherwise engaged.
7) It has to be natural - the ability to manifest does not absolve us from experiencing things in the natural world like illness or loss. You don't avoid rainstorms in your life - you learn how to dance in the rain. If a desired outcome does not feel natural to you, you have to look your underlying beliefs or values to find the discordance and then either change your beliefs or change the intended outcome so that the two are compatible.
In a nutshell, if you are inspired your consciousness expands in every direction and your mind transcends limitations, dormant faculties arise and you discover yourself as a greater person than you ever imagined.
In closing, Wayne Dyer left us with the observation "You can either be a host to God or a hostage to ego". This is a choice each of us has - what do you choose?
A bientot.
Part B of the excerpt from Wayne Dyer's presentation in Sydney are his 4 Dont's and 7 Do's of Manifestation which he prefaced by saying "thoughts are the precious currency of your life. How you use these thoughts determines your level of consciousness. As you raise consciousness, your intuitive abilities increase exponentially and ultimately, you have the ability to attract anything." Unfortunately, he says most people unwittingly use their thoughts to attract what they don't want by:
1) Thinking about the way things are.
We have the currency to produce what we want but instead, we purchase and think about what we don't want. Focus on what you intend to manifest. Stop thinking about what IS if you don't like the way things currently are. Self-actualising people do not spend their time thinking about what is.
2) Talking about they way things are.
3) Talking about the way things always have been
4) Talking about what other people want for you
As an aside, a sign in a beach bar in Tortola, my home base in the Caribbean, reads "Small minds talk about people; average minds talk about events; great minds talk about ideas". I believe Eleanor Roosevelt said this first but the quirkiness of the hand painted wooden sign in a Caribbean bar is too charming not to credit. But the point is - for god's sake, stop gossiping. Don't speak badly about other people. Stop your meanness and your pettiness. It only ends up reflecting on you and is a currency that will ultimately bleed you dry.
So, back to Mr Dyer, who believes that if you hold on to an assumption long enough, it is impossible not to manifest. Here are his 7 principles for manifestation, which spring from a foundation of 4 virtues - kindness, reverence, gentleness and service:
1) Imagination - to come from formless into form it must be clearly imagined. What has not manifested has not been desired enough. By passionately believing in what does not exist, you create it.
As Henry David Thoreau said, "If one advances confidently in the direction of one's dreams, and endeavors to live the life which one has imagined, one will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.” if you do this, success will chase after you - you will not have to chase after it.
2) Living from the end, not towards the end - so first, you must imagine the end and then you must live from there. Live from the place you want to be - abundance, prosperity, joy.
As an example, Wayne said when he first started imagining his book "Wishes Fulfilled" he designed the book jacket and had it printed. One day, a friend of his came into his house and saw the finished book jacket on the coffee table and inquired after the book to which Wayne replied that the book was just catching up with the cover.
N.B This is where Tony Robbins and Wayne Dyer are in sync - Tony always talks about living in sight of the outcome and not the process of how to get there. He says when he has interviewed the most successful people on the planet and asked them if they would have done what they did had they known what it would entail, they have almost all said no. So, focus only on the end result.
3) Assume the feeling of the wish fulfilled - you must get to a place where you can embody what it feels like to have this wish - in your heart, your mind, your belly.
How do you do this? Again, this is where Tony Robbins is the ultimate master. He talks about getting into "peak state" where you are fully associated to the feeling of being, doing or having what you want. You change your state in one of 3 ways: through physiology (body), focus (what are you thinking about), and language/meaning (what language are you using to describe xx and.or what meaning are you placing on xx).
One of the things I absolutely love about Robbins events is the music they use to get everyone moving and zinging from floor to ceiling - they use physiology to put us into peak state and I tell you what - you can go from a state of deprivation, exhaustion, and a general feeling of being 'over it' at 1am after going for 17 hours with only one meal break to feeling like you could rock the house and bring the roof down in 3 minutes when you are in that environment. If you get yourself into that state over and over and over again your body will eventually be conditioned to that peak state as its default. As the saying goes, 'shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars.'
4) Pay attention to the outcome (energy flows where focus goes - Robbins) and note there is a difference between objective vs. subjective attention. For example, someone might say that one cannot cure a lifetime speech impediment but if you are the one with that challenge, the attention that YOU put on it (or anything) is what determines the result. Use your imagination to remind yourself of how great it is to be where you are going.
5) Subconscious mind - According to Bruce Lipton who wrote the incalculably brilliant book 'The Biology of Belief' the subconscious is where we live 95% of our life and is continually programmed from the the conscious mind. This is often why people feel frustrated with their attempts at manifestation and applying the laws from "The Secret". You can say something over and over again in your conscious mind but if your subconscious hasn't bought into the idea, it ain't going to manifest. And this is also why an incantation, said with total commitment, enthusiasm, facial expression and body movement, is far more powerful than an affirmation that is monotously read off some sheet of paper taped to the mirror. When you truly embody an incantation, your subconscious mind will accept it as reality a lot faster than some pop psychology cliche. You have to own it.
6) Last 5 minutes of your day - When you are ready to go to sleep ask yourself, "what am I doing with my thoughts and my mind because I am about to marinate these thoughts for the next 8 hours (if you're lucky!)". Your subconscious mind will then offer you experiences to match your marinated thoughts. Self actualising people spend the last 5 minutes of their day thinking about what they want through their subconscious mind and this is particularly effective because we learn best when we are in trance and our left brain is otherwise engaged.
7) It has to be natural - the ability to manifest does not absolve us from experiencing things in the natural world like illness or loss. You don't avoid rainstorms in your life - you learn how to dance in the rain. If a desired outcome does not feel natural to you, you have to look your underlying beliefs or values to find the discordance and then either change your beliefs or change the intended outcome so that the two are compatible.
In a nutshell, if you are inspired your consciousness expands in every direction and your mind transcends limitations, dormant faculties arise and you discover yourself as a greater person than you ever imagined.
In closing, Wayne Dyer left us with the observation "You can either be a host to God or a hostage to ego". This is a choice each of us has - what do you choose?
A bientot.
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