Category Archives: awareness

Thou Shalt Not Adulterate My Language

The Ten Commandments Moses brought down from Mount Horeb tell us, among other things, not to adulterate. It’s seventh in the line-up. But in reviewing the list just now, it was hard not to conclude that the radical left violates them all . . . systematically.

Don’t steal. Don’t lie. Don’t covet what’s not yours. Don’t bear false witness? The year 2020 has seen a pandemic of law breaking, as if virtuosity in brazenly flaunting the law is the latest fad.

In this increasing corrupt world, monuments of the Ten Commandments are banned from public property. Narcissists are giving themselves free rein and encouraging others to openly do what they’ve been doing behind closed doors for centuries. Lie, steal, covet, commit adultery.

But today, I’m focusing on just one glaring sin. Adultery. (As you’ll recall, I earlier defined sin as “mistake.” It’s simply missing the mark.)

And in the Yoga Dictionary, as you’ll also recall, words take on new meanings as one moves up the ladder of energy centers.

At the root chakra, which governs the physical foundations of life, there’s systemic adulteration (pollution, if you will) across the board. Air, water, soil, food. Every element of nature that sustains human life is being poisoned. The problem is so pervasive it can’t be accidental.

And there’s more. In his remarkable book, The 9 Steps to Keep the Doctor Away, Dr. Rashid Buttar shines a laser light on a multitude of health risks.

He also tells the deeply personal story of his pact with the Creator. He promised to give anything in return for learning how to return a beloved son, rendered autistic by toxic vaccinations, back to health. His prayer was answered and the good doctor upheld his end of the bargain . . . this book is the result.

I have to draw from memory in describing it. My personal copy went to the building’s caretaker, who has two autistic sons, both damaged by vaccine poisoning. If you, your family or friends have similar concerns, check out Dr. Buttar’s book. Some find it intense, but with good cause.

But wait, there’s more. The second energy center focuses on sexual concerns and the capacity for empathy. It concerns not only traditional marital fidelity, but matters of reproduction (abortion), gender identity, promiscuous sex and related disease transmission.

The third energy center is related to leadership and control issues. Lust for and abuse of power originate within this center. Contamination of 2020 election results by adulterating valid votes with fraudulent, even computer-altered ones, is lodged here.

The fourth energy center is related to matters of the heart and feelings of compassion. The epidemic of heart disease – caused by poor diet, sedentary lifestyle, oxygen deprivation and/or emotional stress — afflicts this energy center.

The fifth center is related to speech and language. That’s the primary concern I’m focused on here. I’ve called it the Tower of Babel Dilemma. The English language is so badly abused that it’s often not worth talking.

Spencer Klavan calls 2020 an Orwellian Nightmare. He details the ways the Left abuses language to manipulate the culture. They’ve weaponized psychology, loading the language with incendiary trigger-words planted into the subconscious. Say, “racist,” for example, and a programmed mind registers it as a command. “Riot.”

Public figures routinely “plagiarize” meaning “steal” other’s words and ideas to confuse the public. We’re left to sort out who is genuine when speaking of Unity or quotes from the Bible. And who’s a sordid hypocrite.

Dynamics get increasingly more complex. Words can be inverted, perverted or simply misused to the extent that they become meaningless.

Further, in It Was All A Distraction, Max Igan explains, “You’ve been fooled. Everything is a lie.”

. . . the depths of this lie is quite literally, so profound and so all pervasive, that it’s almost impossible for most people to even see because its so big that it covers virtually everything single aspect of our lives.

. . . that’s why it’s so difficult to ever really discover the truth and to wake up the people around us. Most of the information we’ve been researching has been falsified. That is why people are locked into different belief systems, why they continue to argue with each other, and why they continue to perpetuate their divide and conquer programming.

Because he says it so well, I continue to quote. He says, as a starting point:

. . . we have to understand that we’ve been manipulated and controlled, and trained to argue with each other about our differences.

He concludes:

. . . what we need to do is focus on stopping this system in its tracks right now and giving ourselves a chance to regroup, to find out what the truth is. This is not going to happen unless we can put our differences down, stop trolling each other, stop attacking each other, stop spreading mistrust and division . . .

The solution is within. All you have to do is look within and remember yourself.

Igan speaks of a “solution,” in synch with David Icke’s most recent book, The Solution. Both recommend disengaging from a vampiric system. Don’t feed it with your energy. Don’t acquiesce. If enough of us refuse to supply the dark-side with undeserved attention, it’s toast.

How do we get from here to there?

It starts with paying attention, first to what’s going on inside, then to the immediate world around us. From personal experience, I assure you that working with the Book of Change can be an indispensable aid in this effort.

It will lead, as it did me, to replacing the fracturing paradigm of empirical science with the complete and accurate, yoga-compatible quantum paradigm — the one which operates on the variables of Einstein’s unified field formula.

The year 2020 is the time to wake up! Like Lambert the Sheepish Lion, remember who you truly are.

Don’t be fooled. Don’t be distracted or engage in conflict. Trust in God and in yourself. Then find trustworthy friends. Build safe, intentional communities.

And – of course — speak the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

Bottom line: don’t stop half way. For those with ears to hear, there’s massive proof of pervasive election fraud. But take the next step. Political corruption and the media’s double-speak bluff are symptomatic of deeper trouble.

But don’t stop there. Language is just a mental software program. Still deeper, the fundamental paradigm — the operating system itself — has been corrupted and urgently needs a reboot.

End-stage 2020 challenges us to step back, take stock, and prepare to make a Fresh Start. This is, literally, in the I Ching readings for late December. In alignment with the heavens, they promise major shifts in human events.

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Half-Brained Is Half-Assed

Have you ever taken the time to think carefully about Ralph Waldo Emerson’s often quoted words of wisdom? If not, it’s worth doing so now:

A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines. With consistency a great soul has simply nothing to do. He may as well concern himself with his shadow on the wall.

Here’s the standing joke. Anyone who’s always consistent is consistently wrong half the time. As archers know, if you’re left of center, aim right. When right of center, adjust by aiming left. Otherwise, you miss the mark.

In any case, inspired by Emerson’s words, Henry David Thoreau chose to live like a sage, in seclusion, simply, close to nature, engaging in carpentry and other manual work to survive. He felt the same powerful need we have today . . . to get free of cultural-conditioning which suppresses awareness and full expression of our true nature.

In the year 2000, I outlined a set of essay sketches. This one, to the point of “No Either-Ors,” is a favorite:

Divisions go wide on the surface of the Life Wheel, but also go deep. A common excuse for bureaucratic incompetence is, “The right hand doesn’t know what the left hand is doing.” On a personal level, the right brain doesn’t talk to left. Head and heart are out of synch.

We also say, “She’s all in the head, out of touch with her (e=energy level) emotions.” Deeper still, we observe, “He acts without conscience.”

Folks in biblical times lived closer to nature than most do today. That’s why their teachings often mirror the same wisdom found in the Book of Change. For example, according to King Solomon:

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.

Ecclesiastes continues:

A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up.

Sages of every time and place observe this dance of duality. The pairs of opposites sometimes balance and blend, other times clash or separate.

With their wisdom, it’s possible to steer nature’s energies. Sailors, for example, harnessed shifting winds to safely reach their destination.

Today, however, lacking natural common sense, political elites have led the world dangerously adrift. Divided between extremes, all sides clash mindlessly against perceived enemies. Partisans defend group members, right or wrong.

We seem hopelessly polarized. Any superficial excuse will do. Gender. Race. Religion. National origin. Class. Political affiliation. The list expands into trivia. Favorite sports teams. Fashion preferences.

I’ve already told you what I think of this suicidal, genocidal madness. The only one who benefits from unnatural warfare is the Evil Emperor. Hidden in the invisible realms which science tells us don’t exist, this dark-side entity manipulates us like powerless pawns to our mutual destruction.

Now don’t get me wrong. As Solomon said, there IS a time for war. There’s also a time for the breakdown of institutions which no longer serve their intended purpose. The year 2020 is such a time.

But let there be some balance, some common sense, even in the midst of orchestrated chaos.

I have a major problem with people who sit passively on the sidelines, as if they were helpless victims, unable to make a difference in political outcomes.

I admit I was once of them. But OA set me straight.

I believed, thanks to Sunday school, that Jesus was sweet and nice, as I should be too. He loved little girls and boys (and probably puppies). He was exclusively kind and gentle . . . well-mannered, you might say.

WRONG. Jesus fully lived all sides of Natural Law. OA reminded me of the best known example: overturning the money-changers’ tables in front of the Temple at Jerusalem. He had harsh words for hypocrites.

Bottom line: Jesus wasn’t a wimp. Neither were I Ching-savvy Shaolin monks, who protected their monasteries with Kung Fu.

I’ll also confess, I was brainwashed in university to believe in self-righteous non-violence. Taking up arms to defend myself and protect those I care for would be immoral – not to mention impolite. (That’s someone else’s dirty job.)

Now, I’ve already written half of the story in Gandhi’s Way Out of Madness. Here’s the other half.

Yes, non-violence was a brilliant strategy. It mobilized the masses. Natives succeeded in driving the hated British enemy out.

But then it backfired. Indians brothers and sisters turned that same hatred on each other. Muslims battled Hindus in civil war. They split a unified country in two. Relocation took an unspeakable toll in death, pain and suffering.

WHY?

The yogic principle of non-violence (satyagraha) was a great idea in Gandhi’s head. Weaponized, it was a powerful political tool.

BUT – –

Non-violence was only an idea. An empty, pretty thought. It wasn’t understood by the people. Like pawns, they followed instructions. But commitment wasn’t alive in their hearts. It wasn’t internalized at the deeper, e=energy level of the Life Wheel.

So after Gandhi’s mission to oust an external enemy was accomplished, natives didn’t practice non-violence at home. The country exploded.

The blessing hidden within 2020’s hard lessons is the opportunity to fully recognize the horrific consequences of wide-spread, half-assed behavior, along with the option to heal ourselves. Make ourselves and our country whole again. Unified.

Yes, there are significant wars to be fought. The deep and abiding war between good and evil is the best example. HOWEVER, irrelevant distractions — surface-level differences — aren’t among them.

For the sake of human survival, know the real enemy and pick your battles wisely, guys!

Keep to the Core to Keep It Together – IC – 111620

My relationship with DANGER, today’s unchanging I Ching reading, goes way back. It’s close and familiar.

Here’s one example. Whenever I asked for advice about a former roommate (cruel “Kas”), the book was strangely consistent. Whatever the immediate situation, the lines changed to produce the same outcome: DANGER.

Yes. However physically attractive, she was, beyond a doubt, damaged, self-serving and deeply dangerous.

In Kas, life gifted me with a powerful teacher. To keep my sanity, I was forced to find words for the unspeakably crazy things she did. I had to admit that her cruelty got to me and find out why. In the process, I discovered how to protect myself, both inside and out.

An early article I found listed ways to recognize a narcissist. It said, If your person demonstrates eight or more of twelve listed behaviors, you’re in deep trouble. Kas demonstrated all twelve. Danger!

Making matters worse, her cohorts were narcissists too. One was overt – the abrasive, vulgar and bold-faced type. The other was covert — the sneaky, snake-in-the-grass, two-faced kind.

In combination, I learned from direct experience how energy vampires operate to paralyze and drain their intended victims.

But I also found out I’m not alone. In fact, a psychiatrist who specializes in this disorder warns that the plague of narcissism has grown to pandemic proportions. (An interesting parallel, don’t you think?)

Here’s what I learned about their communication style. The signature of rampant narcissism is COGNITIVE DISSONANCE. Narcissists present a false front to the world. But their Life Wheels are fractured. They’re frauds, and self-deceived ones at that.

Inside, they’re sniveling. insecure cowards driven by demon-spawned negative emotions: fear, anger, hatred, greed, and lust. The Bible-quoting jerks who made my life miserable operated absent any hint of connection with conscience.

From first-hand experience, I can tell you this:

And here are the survival lessons they taught me. At root, these decisions are simply common sense.

Now, why is it important for me to share this with you?

Because the dynamic of DANGER isn’t just about me.

It’s about you, as well as the rest of us.

As a Law of Nature, what I learned up close and personal, the painfully hard way, translates true to form on every increasingly larger scale of magnitude. Because I recognize the dynamics of danger operating on the micro level, I easily recognize them writ large on today’s political canvas.

The reason for detailing the dangers of narcissism is that the same remedies and protections that worked for me at the personal level will work, not only for anyone else in similar trouble, but also for business organizations, government agencies and even whole nations plagued by the worldwide pandemic of narcissism.

Put plain and simple, the solution is this. Let each one of us hold fast to the unifying central core of the Life Wheel, whether you choose to call it God, Source, Conscience, the Creator, Allah, or Nothing at all. It keeps all levels of the Unified Field together – the Light of intuition, Energy of action, and Mass of tangible, measurable results.

The slang advice, “Keep it together” sums the solution up perfectly. When things seem to be falling apart, it’s exactly the time when we most urgently need to keep it together.

  • When dark, painful emotions tear us apart, it’s the time to take a deep breath, stand back, and keep calm distance.
  • When friendships, families and organizations seem to be unraveling, it’s time to demonstrate the wisdom to keep them together.
  • When liars, cheaters and thugs seem to be tearing nations apart, let those with cool heads keep their states together by focusing on the core values humanity share in common, the ones which which transcend time, space. . . and even politics.

NB: For the record, narcissists of every stripe have tried to diminish President Trump by projecting onto him all their own faults. Again, the MAGA-millions who sense and return his love aren’t fooled. The rest of us shouldn’t be either. Though some find his style abrasive, he keeps his promises. His words and actions match. He’s consistent across the board. He’s not the one with a problem. It’s the feeble-minded, fork-tongued, zombie-like pretender along with his handlers and those they’ve fooled who are in deep dark trouble.

We’re not trained to look to the Book of Change for answers to our deepest questions. That’s why I’ve chosen to bring the book to you in this series of blogs. Through the end of 2020, they serve as an introduction, to make what was once unfamiliar now familiar.

DANGER is the single answer to today’s question, “What should we be aware of now?” The Common Sense Book of Change version reads:

DANGER is the true test of character. Be as careful of negative emotions which cloud inner clarity as you are of external dangers. Face all challenges with fearless grace. Hold fast to the goals and ideas which guide you. Act according to what you know to be right. Avoid cowardice.

It took me a while to recognize that the greatest danger is the risk of giving in to negative emotions. In the end, it doesn’t matter if other people’s negativity is infectious. Or if economic losses and/or political events are upsetting. Of if. . . you name it.

Ultimately, as Viktor Frankl demonstrated, even in a halocaust world, the option to respond wisely and responsibly remains open. Holding fast to core values — love of life and faith in God — is the enduring anchor which keeps us as individuals and as nations together.

Because the U.S. is in the constitutional crisis of its lifetime, I look to the version of the I Ching published by a Yale Professor of Constitutional Law. Jack Balkin lists these descriptors of DANGER.

He observes:

When faced with danger from without, one can escape unharmed if one maintains an attitude of devotion. To survive through a period of danger, one must preserve faith in one’s self and in the possibility that one will get through.

The Book of Change teaches that even in the times of greatest distress one must never lose hope that one can still turn circumstances to one’s advantage. One must have faith of ultimate success. It is only through having such faith the one can have a chance at ultimate success.

To despair is to fall into the abyss. . . . one must follow one’s heart to ride out a time of danger. To lose heart during such a time means that one does not hold one’s self together. This leads to danger.

In sum, Balkin’s advice confirms mine: Right now we must keep to core to keep it together.

Collected posts will be published as The Lessons of 2020: Using the Wisdom of CHANGE to Build a Better Future. Look for it on amazon in January of 2021.

If you’d like a copy of the Common Sense Book of Change, or extras to give others, click here.

To order Two Sides of a Coin: Lao Tze’s Common Sense Way of Change, click here.

Okay, then. That’s all for now. Talk with you again soon. Take care, all.

The Choice Ahead – IC – 111220

At tipping point 2020, the choice ahead for the U.S. and its watchers is profound. Which path prevails will shape the future for generations to come.

There’s a fork in the road ahead. We must choose which direction to take, towards either good or evil. This legal format makes the case clear.

To illustrate the point, I have three stories and a song to share with you. First is a modern myth by J.R.R. Tolkien, author of the world-loved trilogy, Lord of the Rings. Then come two jokes, one for dark-side evil-doers, another for the light-workers they falsely believe can be discouraged, defeated and crushed. Last are lyrics to a tune that take on new meaning.

FIRST

Tolkien’s The Silmarillion begins with the story of creation. It describes how evil entered the world and how the war against it resolves. It starts at the level of frequency, with music:

There was Eru, the One, who in Arda is called Illuvatar; and he made first the Ainur, the Holy Ones, that were the offspring of his thought, and they were with him before aught else was made. And he spoke to them propounding to them themes of music; and they sang before him, and he was glad.

However, a disruption crept into the great song.

. . . it came into the heart of Melkor to interweave matters of his own imagining that were not in accord with the theme of Illuvatar; for he sought therein to increase the power and glory of the part assigned to himself. . .

Some of these thoughts he now wove into his music, and straightway discord arose about him, and many that sang nigh him grew despondent, and their thought was disturbed and their music faltered . . .

Three times, Illuvatar intervenes to encompass Melkor’s prideful discord, including it as part of a more solemn song.

Here’s the repeating pattern. Temporary chaos is swallowed up and transformed to serve a larger good. Chaos prevails for a short time, but cannot prevail.

We can take comfort in Tolkien’s view that even today, every short-term subversion – albeit in ways beyond our puny comprehension – serves the Creator’s plan.

SECOND

My beloved teacher, OA, taught us how to make God laugh. Do you want to know how? Tell him your plans.

Democrats planned from the day of Trump’s inauguration to destroy him. This fits right in with the UN’s plan to, literally, dehumanize the planet (I kid you not) by the year 2030.

Like Melkor, they can plan all they like.

But you can trust, God always has the last laugh.

THIRD

This next story includes both music and laughter. Beethoven, it is said, couldn’t pay his rent. His landlady threatened to throw him out onto the street.

“Please don’t,” he pleaded, wringing his hands. “I’m going to write a great symphony and become famous. Some day you’ll be proud to have me in your house.”

But she’d have none of it. Slapping her knee, she ridiculed him, “You write a symphony? Ha ha ha Haaa.”

Her cold contempt inspired his most famous symphony, the 5th, catapulting him to greater heights of success:

Funny how, when we know how to change adversity into its opposite extreme, even our enemies, outsmarting themselves, help us achieve our goals.

You know what they say. “He who laugh last laughs best.”

The TUNE

Finally, also to the point of choice, is a Lovin’ Spoonful tune, Did You Ever Have To Make Up Your Mind? You can hum along with the music by clicking here, or just browse the opening lyrics:

Approaching year’s end, the corrupt ways of an entrenched deep state have been outed and exposed as antithetical to the Founders’ intent. The swamp will be cleaned out. As OA told us, “You can make it as easy or as hard as you like.”

Either way, there’s no turning back. Once fallen, Humpty Dumpty can’t ever be put back together. We need to pick up the pieces of our shattered assumptions and “normal” lifestyles, sort them out, keep the best, and leave the rest behind. We have to make up our minds. What direction do we want the future to take?

FINISH is the unchanging outcome of today’s question, “What should we be aware of Now?” The CSBOC version reads:

When the FINISH is near, think about the future. Since nothing ends without a new beginning, prepare for what comes next. Order your life so that you are free to move on. Success in the next cycle will depend on the inner wealth you have stored. Avoid fear of change.

On a personal level, this reading speaks to the end of a relationship, a lifestyle, a job or career, a stage of life, or even life itself. Historically, it indicates the completion of a cycle. For example, 2020 has long been foreseen as a “deconstruction of the old order.” Trump supporters intent on cleaning out the swamp will read this one way, Democrats and UN officials in quite another. Some will see it as referring to The End of The World As We Know It.

It’s fitting that the I Ching version which speaks best to the current constitutional crisis is authored by a Yale University Professor of Constitutional Law.

In Jack Balkin’s The Laws of Change, the 64th and final hexagram is called Before Completion. He lists these descriptors:

The CSBOC observes, Nothing ends without a new beginning. Balkin drills in on that new beginning:

Wei Ji involves a new cycle that begins in chaos. . . it represents a difficult period of confusion that nevertheless has all the elements necessary for success. Its theme is how to bring matters from disharmony to harmony and from chaos to order . . . we are in the middle of things, but with the promise of ultimate success.

He draws on the traditional image of a wise old fox treading lightly across a frozen river. By testing for cracks on the surface, he avoids the danger of crashing into the icy waters beneath.

To bring order to a confusing situation, you must begin methodically . . . Be on the lookout for any signs that your strategy is counterproductive. Be like the old fox navigating the ice – cautious, alert, flexible, surefooted, and willing to change directions at a moment’s notice.

If you can keep your wits about you, you will get across.

In sum, Trump supporters are treading on thin ice. But with great caution, by taking nothing for granted and not getting ahead of themselves, they’ll succeed in transforming an apparent end into a new beginning.

The last word, however, goes to Lao Tze, the I Ching sage whose gentle approach compliments Sun Tze’s way of the warrior.

The historical ebb and flow of revolutionary uprisings spins on the surface of the Life Wheel. Sages, however, like the wise old fox, tread lightly, knowing what lies beneath: the dangerous undercurrent of world domination. Napoleons, Hitlers and their UN counterparts have been seduced by Melkor’s dark music. They’re driven by dark-side forces which hide deep and invisible inside the middle, e=energy level of the Life Wheel.

Thus it is that the choice ahead has implications deeper than deep. In the ancient and ongoing war between good and evil, will the UN’s 2030 plans for world domination be furthered by a usurped presidency?

Or, exposed to the light of truth, will their attempts fail, as Lao assures us they always do.

Don’t Be Fooled! – IC – 110920

In duality, every coin has two sides. If you haven’t learned how to harness this dynamic, it can get you into deep, dark trouble. Today’s I Ching reading shows how to change the conflict of this uncertain time into an opportunity.

As a Law of Nature, Whatever has a front has a back. An axiom of the Law is, The larger the front, the larger the back.

The scary tale of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde captures this simple fact. In duality, rarely if ever is anything on the surface actually what it seems to be.

This is why sages recommend the middle path of balance and moderation. This isn’t milk-toast timidity. It’s wisdom dressed up as street-smarts. They know that every extreme changes into its opposite – an unwelcome outcome best anticipated and avoided.

The two-sides rule explains how con artists get away with deception. Anyone who can’t see through appearances is easy prey. In fact, I recently heard a commentator say politicians depend on P.T. Barnum’s law: “There’s a sucker born every minute.”

That’s why I’ve made it my life work to mainstream wisdom tools which help people think more clearly, see more deeply into the nature of things. We need to raise a generation that can’t be fooled. Human survival may well depend on it.

Proof is in the consequences of today’s wisdom-deficit. In 2020’s year of extremes, waves of backlash have swollen to tsunami proportions. When opposing factions are at each other’s throats, each undoing whatever the other proposes, it’s nearly impossible to steer a steady course.

The yo-yo effect of extremes is the stuff of Greek tragedy, where the hero’s greatest strength is the cause of his downfall. Flash forward. In 2020, President Trump’s outspoken, confident personality has a predictable downside.

It’s hard for folks like my friend Alice to identify with a winner’s outlook. She’s been trained by both church and state to be passive, polite, and (frankly) hypocritical. She’s been taught that wearing a mask (now, ironically, literally) is what it takes to be “good.” She’s been rewarded for owning the mask of conformity.

So, how dare anyone break the unspoken rules by being candid and upfront? Truthful. It’s “bad.” That makes the President a bad person.

Fortunately, many see deeper than surface appearances. President’s Trump’s faith in God and in himself strikes a resonant cord with “we the people.” We sense and return the towering, lion-hearted love which energizes and empowers him.

Deeper than economic policies and peace initiatives, what moves us is his unashamed devotion to purpose. In his presence, we feel energized and encouraged. Hopeful. He supports us in our love of God and country.

Here’s the secret sauce of his success. He’s speaks to the hunger Marisa Peer has so brilliant diagnosed. This world-famous therapist of the rich and famous has put her finger on (and quickly heals) the root of every addiction and ailment.

Every dysfunction starts with the painful feeling of being “not enough.” Church and state have hammered the lie of not-enoughness into our psyches. It keeps us in our place, submissive and easily controlled. (David Icke has a bit to say on the subject!)

The President has picked up that gauntlet and thrown it in the face of the ruling elite that would enslave us. He’s telling downtrodden deplorables we are OKAY. We are enough. In fact, we can and should be GREAT.

We love that message. And we love him for being its messenger.

On the flip side, how can the public possibly relate to a decrepit, deeply corrupted candidate? Do they, like Alice, feel sorry for him? Do they sympathize with having to live behind a mask? Do they identify with his resentment against “smart guys,” feel the pain of being the slowest – but nicest — kid in the class?

Revenge also plays a part. Remember the Eddie Murphy movie, Trading Places? It’s being playing out in politics. Those who choose to see themselves as disenfranchised salivate at the opportunity to symbolically own a failing, old white guy. Use him as a front for their agenda before replacing him entirely? It’s a BLM wet dream.

In this scenario, there’s no compassion. No forgiveness or unity. The oppressed are simply grasping at the opportunity to revere roles, become the oppressors.

N.B. For those who believe it’s too late, the game’s over, nothing and no one can change – that a drab, dark future lies ahead, cast in stone — think again. Here’s what Lao Tze has to say about pessimism:

All that being said, the following I Ching reading offers a way out of madness.

We’re not trained to come to the Book of Change for answers to our deepest questions. That’s why I’ve chosen to bring the book to you. Through the end of 2020, these bi-weekly blogs are intended to make what was unfamiliar now familiar.

CONFLICT was the initial answer to October 9th’s question, “What do we need to be aware of NOW?” It reads:

CONFLICT develops when one refuses to see the view-point of others. The way out is to be open to others and willing to meet them half-way. Pushing a disagreement to open conflict would result in separation. This would bring unfortunate results.

In the extreme, there’s potential for civil war. It’s not the wise option.

Advice of the bottom line reads, “Don’t let misunderstandings continue. Make peace with your friends quickly.”

It is a grave mistake for Americans who share much in common to divide as a result of closed-mindedness fueled by incendiary media hype. Better is to remember the love, return to what’s basic.

This advice being heeded, the line changes to:

In stressful situations, your CONDUCT will determine the outcome of your efforts. Do not let negative or unpleasant people affect your own balance. Respond to the demands of others according to the quality of their motives rather than acting impulsively. Play by the rules of the game. Avoid becoming emotional.

Look and think deep. Be part of the solution. Don’t act in ways that make the problem worse.

Advice of the second line reads, “Retreat and regroup. Your opponent is too strong for you.”

At this point, resolution of post-election conflict rests in the hands of political professionals, their lawyers, the courts and just maybe, a handful of honest journalists. In the short-term, it’s best for the rest of us to conserve our energy, preserve our sanity, and pray for the best.

This advice heeded, the second line changes to Standstill:

When opposing forces draw apart, activity comes to a STANDSTILL. Lack of understanding results in mistrust and refusal to cooperate. When weak leaders prevent necessary cooperation, it is best to withdraw from the situation and wait for the times to change. Direct your attention toward inward growth.

When confusion and misunderstandings prevail, don’t react emotionally. Bide your time. Keep your powder dry.

Combining the changing lines results in this final outcome:

Cultivate CLARITY. Listen to the pure and childlike voice of your inner being. Even if this results in new and unexpected experiences, you will benefit. Take joy in being true to your Self. Modified by consideration for others, this will give you creative abilities. Avoid fearful attachment to the familiar.

This says in another way what I concluded in Listen To Your Heart:

The year 2020 has been harsh. Tough. Painful. No doubt. The possibility of emerging stronger and more peaceful than before is its hidden gift.

Add inspired creativity to the list of 2020’s hidden blessings.

Also include the clarity of knowing you are already, inherently enough. You were born that way. Never, ever allow anyone to fool you into believing otherwise.

Collected posts will be published as The Lessons of 2020: Using the Wisdom of CHANGE to Build a Better Future. Look for it on amazon in January of 2021.

If you’d like a copy of the Common Sense Book of Change, or extras to give others, click here.

To order Two Sides of a Coin: Lao Tze’s Common Sense Way of Change, click here.

To order You Are Already ENOUGH! How Would Your Life CHANGE If You Really Believed It?, click here.

Okay, then. That’s all for now. Talk with you again soon. Take care, all.

Listen To Your Heart – IC – 110220

The camp song I’ve been humming all morning divides into rounds. The first verse starts, “Listen, listen, listen to my heart’s song.” As the first group of singers continued, “I will never forget you. I will never forsake you,” the second joined in with harmony, “Listen, Listen, Listen.”

Finding the right title for today’s I Ching reading wasn’t easy. First I called it, “For God’s Sake, Pay Attention!” That was too harsh. So I softened it: “Listen To Your Soul.” But that didn’t work either.

Here’s the problem with both titles. For those operating on a paradigm which rules out the existence of God and denies the possibility of having a soul, they simply don’t compute. They’re outside the hearing range of the programmed masses.

But . . . even those who’re tuned-out to two-thirds of the Life Wheel still experience love. We are all moved — even if unconsciously — by the call of the heart.

If it weren’t tragic, the contradiction would be funny. Earlier, I described a conversation with my deep-boonies friend, Alice. When I urged her to pray before deciding which way to vote, she objected: “The clergy are just as bad.” They’re split too.

The option I intended didn’t register. I meant, “Listen to your heart of hearts. Listen to your soul, deeper than deep.”

Why the disconnect? Alice goes to church. At the same time she believes in science. From both sides, she’s been programmed to trust “experts” — not herself.

She can’t quite put her finger on it. Alice believes in Christ, who said he and the father are One. He told his followers, “Ye must be perfect like your Father in Heaven.” Whole. Complete. Unified.

But she’s unfamiliar with the paradigm which allows us to know and be true to ourselves. The Life Wheel pictures the way Christ is at One with the Creator, how we can be too, and why the timeless essence of Christ neither forgets nor forsakes any of us. Not possible.

Now, even without the benefit of astrology, former CIA operative, politics savvy and intentional community founder Pastor Joe Fox foresees extreme violence around the Nov. 3 election date. His advice: “bug out” of cities and suburbs. Take refuge in rural locations.

Certainly there’s practical wisdom in his advice. But . . . getting the hell out of Dodge isn’t enough. Ultimately, conflict is a matter of mind, not location. As the reading below suggests, long-term improvement depends on emotional stability and inner peace.

Living a rural life doesn’t guarantee enlightenment. Sadly, Alice’s fist in my face is proof.

The I CHING READING

IMPROVEMENT is the initial answer to the question, “What do we need to be aware of now?” It changes twice before ending with STILLNESS, the essence of meditation.

With only brief comments on the progression of changes, I leave it to you to listen to your heart. Decide how they apply to your immediate situation and needs.

IMPROVEMENT is now possible if you are willing to follow the example of worthy teachers. If you have absorbed negative suggestions in the past which prevent you from expressing your higher self freely, use this time to break away from bad habits. Seek the inspiration of positive influences. Avoid pessimism.

We want our lives to improve! What would that look like? In the context this post, the worthy example to follow is Christ. Negative suggestions which prevent free expression of your higher self, come from the limiting empirical science paradigm. Especially when there’s no encouragement from others, look for inspiration from books of wisdom, including the Book of Change and Tao Te Ching.

The advice of line three reads, “The time is right for improvements. Others will assist you.”

Where in the Life Wheel are improvements most needed? Lifestyle? Finances? Location? Attitudes? All of the above? You decide.

Accepting available assistance, the 3rd line changes to:

When you have outgrown a situation, it is time to TRAVEL on. Staying longer would prevent attainment of important goals. Commitments made now probably would not work out. In dealing with strangers exercise careful self-control. Talk little. Listen much. Learn from everyone who has information to share. Avoid dangerous exposure.

This is probably what Pastor Joe Fox was getting at. Avoid physical danger. Stay out of harms way. When times are volatile, tempers are hot and risks high, keep unwelcome opinions to yourself. Keep your emotions under careful self-control. Adopt the attitude of a meditative observer.

The advice of line four reinforces line three. “ Strong action triggers strong reaction. For better results, pace yourself.” In the 2020 year of extremes, the pinnacle blue moon Halloween weekend tops the charts. Adjust accordingly.

This done, the 4th line changes to:

ADVERSITY is a test of fortitude. When it cannot be prevented, the wisest response is acceptance. Use times of hardship as opportunities to strengthen character and focus on inner resources. Misunderstandings are likely to occur. Remain calm, take care of yourself and support those who depend on you. Avoid despair.

The weeks following the Halloween blue moon, US elections and contentious results are, inevitably, an unavoidable test. So the refuge Pastor recommends includes inner retreat. Take care of yourself and those closest to you. Don’t despair when crazy times peak. They will pass. Your choice is whether to emerge the better for enduring them, or . . .

With the choice to keep mental distance and remain calm, the combined outcome that begins with IMPROVEMENT culminates in meditative awareness:

Peace within and harmony without come from STILLNESS. When immediate answers to important questions cannot be found, sometimes keeping still is the best way out. Burning desires produce chaotic thinking. This only clouds the issue and makes life painful. Meditation is a valuable method for finding stillness. Avoid useless activity.

The year 2020 has been harsh. Tough. Painful. No doubt. The possibility of emerging stronger and more peaceful than before is its hidden gift.

Collected posts will be published as The Lessons of 2020: Using the Wisdom of CHANGE to Build a Better Future. Look for it on amazon in January of 2021.

If you’d like a copy of the Common Sense Book of Change, or extras to give others, click here.

To order Two Sides of a Coin: Lao Tze’s Common Sense Way of Change, click here.

Okay, then. That’s all for now. Talk with you again soon. Take care, all.

The Middle E=Energy Level of the Life Wheel

The stand-alone I Ching reading for October 22, 2020 is ENERGY. In conjunction with that reading, I’m publishing a bonus blog on the vastly important but misunderstood, overlooked middle, e=energy level of the Life Wheel.

This information was originally published in Rethinking Survival, and again in abbreviated form in the Handbook.

Most is written in the language of the person who I was in 2014, which at end-stage 2020 seems a lifetime ago. I’ve reworked it a bit for brevity and timeliness. I’ve sectioned off bite-sized pieces where some has been deleted.

Most, however, stands for itself. Given the dynamics of 2020’s prior-election chaos, with swirling rumors of drug addiction and treasonous corruption in high places, the following is highly relevant RIGHT NOW. None of it makes sense without the whole picture. So it deserves your careful attention.

e =energy. Much ignorance, misinformation and confusion surrounds the middle, energy level of the quantum paradigm.

Chaos in 2020 is a consequence of this tragic information deficit.

The middle level of the Life Wheel is the domain of Natural Law. The Chinese I Ching, the Book of Change, maps its repetitive, cyclic patterns. This body of knowledge evolved over eight thousand years as sages observed the operations of energy and documented the essential dynamics of change.

Natural Law maps the underpinnings of the physical world. Though invisible, everyone experiences its influence in their lives. Changing seasons occur on all levels in nature. They also repeat on every scale of magnitude in human experience, from the personal pattern of birth, growth, decay and death to the repeating cycles of human history. (Strauss and Howe’s The Fourth Turning is but tip of the iceberg.)

—

The middle level is the realm of less tangible but still measurable states of energy, including electricity. More subtly, it is the chi, ki or prana described by Chinese, Japanese and Indian traditions as the life force which animates all living beings. In Greek and Christian contexts it correlates with the breath, the psyche.

These subtle energies influence internal psychological states and drive external human behavior, which in turn affects social relationships. Knowledge of these dynamics is essential to personal survival.

Effective leadership and the quality of life within organizations hinge on the quality of awareness brought to dynamics at this level. Some leaders understand the dynamics of change at a gut level as a matter of common sense. However, systematic education would significantly improve results of the decision-making process.

—

Many “sensitives” survive by channeling socially banned, unacceptable awareness into the arts: music and literature, including romance, murder mysteries and science fiction.

Humor provides another outlet for releasing the pent-up emotional tensions which cause illness. The quantum paradigm gives credence to the Norman Cousin’s belief that “laughter is the best medicine.” It validates the healing wisdom of Patch Adams, the paradigm-breaking physician who’s earned international fame for clowning with patients.

Rather than merely releasing pressure build-up, however, yogic practices harness that energy. They integrate the levels. According to Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, the purpose of preliminary disciplines is to to heal the physical body of disease and then correct ignorant character flaws which result in personal misfortune.

The next step is to purify the body-mind of toxic, emotional disturbances which clog the middle level. This enables students to penetrate the so-called astral sheath and prepares them to travel deeper to merge with the innermost source, thus fulfilling the ultimate purpose of life. Incidental powers (siddhis) which sometimes occur at this mid-stage of development are warned against as obstacles: dangerous distractions from the goal of enlightened inner peace.

The power generated at this level is the driving force that allows seemingly ordinary people to perform extraordinary feats of strength and endurance. The mother who single-handedly lifts a vehicle off of a beloved child trapped beneath demonstrates the stored energy potentials which can be released in response to a crisis of Titanic proportions.

When sufficiently purified and mastered, disciplined and intelligently harnessed to positive goals, the middle level fuels Anthony Robbins’ “unlimited power.” These subtle energies explain the possibility of seemingly impossible feats, including the miracles attributed to Moses and Jesus.

—

The concept of Natural Law as America’s founding fathers understood it was based on the writing of European philosophers: Rousseau, Locke and Hobbes. Though in some ways similar, for the most part it’s a different subject. In the 20th century, Wetherill reinvented “natural law.” Unfortunately, his valid contribution is distorted by the imposition of an evangelical agenda.

Other than to acknowledge that different approaches to Natural Law exist, they’re outside the parameters of this discussion.

—

In Life Wheel context, the “subtle” energy realm exists between the outer, surface level of matter and the deepest center of unchanging stillness. As the functional link between extremes, both on the out-going and the in-going paths, it serves as the gatekeeper and mediator between the two. “You can’t get from here to there,” except through this middle level of experience. Cluttering or denying access to it make connection with the Center difficult, at best.

Historically, Asian cultures are more comfortable with this middle level. Asian healing arts and practices including as chi kung, tai chi and hatha yoga use exercise to intentionally circulate, balance, harness and direct subtle energies through the physical body.

Westerners are beginning to catch up. As international business and educational exchanges increase, Western technologies and Eastern subtle sciences are cross-fertilizing.

Musicians, especially ones educated in the Eastern and Western sciences of sound vibrations, are keenly attuned to this level. Inspired, harmonious music can heal the physical body and uplift the soul.

It’s no accident that Einstein was an accomplished violinist. Or that the biblical David — first musician, later warrior and king — soothed King Saul’s feverish fits by singing to the accompaniment of his stringed lyre.

Don Campbell describes the benefits of performing or just listening to classical music. His title, The Mozart Effect: Tapping the Power of Music to Heal the Body, Strengthen the Mind, and Unlock the Creative Spirit suggests music’s ability to harmonize and coordinate the levels of the Life Wheel. Research has shown that the effects of music delay or even prevent dementia. Harsh, strident sounds, however, trigger negative emotions and can damage the nervous system.

—

The middle level is also the repository of karmic information, where the history of past actions is kept, along with a record of debts to be repaid. In psychological terms, it’s the repository of short and long-term memories. The composite of emotions — fears, desires and repressed tendencies — are stored here in what Western psychologies call the “unconscious.” It is the stuff of dreams — inspired visions, nightmares and everything in-between.

The bardo, where (according to The Tibetan Book of the Dead) recently departed souls travel, is located within this level. Spirits, ghosts, leprechauns, angels and demons or jinn acknowledged by various mystic traditions also reside there. From here, unseen hands from the “dark side of the force” reach out to derange the minds of power-hungry rulers and undermine political affairs. (It’s for this reason that disciplines for “cleaning out the swamp” precede introduction to advanced yogic practices.)

So long as invisible energetic influences remain unaccounted for, the failings and depravities of human leaders remain mystifying. Conspiracy theorists can track the complicated networks of human crime on the surface. But to trace world domination plots back to their lair, one must look deeper. St. Paul described it in his letter to the Ephesians:

6:12. We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

—

When cluttered and undisciplined, the middle energy level is like a swamp full of alligators.

Once the swamp is cleared out and the alligators are tamed, however, energetic potentials can be harnessed to worthy goals. They’re like the gas that fuels the car engine, or the horses that drove Plato’s chariot. They become the generator of what Tony Robbins calls “unlimited power.”

But easier said than done. The quantum paradigm validates experiences which report a dark side to the subtle realm, which the life traveler must be prepared to encounter and survive. Some describe it as “Chapel Perilous” or “the Hero’s Journey.”

There’s much truth to the classic lines from Shakespeare’s Hamlet. The beleaguered prince, haunted by the horrific vision of his murdered father’s ghost, tells his steadfast friend, “There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, Than are dreamt of in your philosophy.”

Here are three examples of encounters with the dark side. The first has a positive outcome, the second a tragic result, and the third a comic twist.

The most familiar is the temptation of Christ. After forty days and nights spent fasting in the wilderness, he was approached by the devil. All the kingdoms of the world were promised to him in return for bowing down in worship. Jesus answered, “Get thee hence, Satan, for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and only him shalt thou serve.”

The tragic example of temptation is the Faust story, most famously told by the German romantic poet, Goethe. Fed up with the arid emptiness of intellectual life, an aging scholar agrees to sell his soul to Mephistopheles in return for youth, power and the love of an innocent woman. Inevitably, he pays a terrible price.

The third example is the comical but cautionary tale of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, animated as a Disney cartoon, staring (appropriately) Mickey Mouse. In his master’s absence, a lazy student tries to harness the forces of nature to do his cleaning chores. He succeeds in casting a spell on the element of water, but can’t turn it off. He escapes drowning only because the master returns to rescue him.

This third example brings up an important point which deserves emphasis. The Life Wheel’s paradigm is called “positive” because all the components of Einstein’s formula included, balanced, aligned and prioritized. The center is the first and primary core. Energy is subordinate to it. It emanates from this source and returns to it. The surface, though largest in circumference, is but the final and transitory manifestation of the creative process. It depends on the center for its existence and upon the energy level for life-sustaining vitality.

History is full of seekers who get a taste of power and then, tragically, forget from whence it came and to which it must return. They presume to challenge and rebel against the Creator, as if it were possible to usurp the center place within the wheel. They distort the relationship amongst the variables, attempting to turn things upside down. Inversions and perversions inevitably bring harm to those who try to put themselves first, mistakenly attempting to subordinate either nature or nature’s God to the whims and ambitions of human ego.

—

Turning off consciousness is far from an optimal option. Inhibiting awareness of the energy level cripples efforts to acquire self-knowledge, much less enlightenment. Religionists, moralists and even poets like Edgar Alan Poe warn against exploring the middle realm, portraying it as dangerous, fearful or unclean.

But in effect this slams the lid on libido, the motivating life force. Doing so doesn’t avoid its dangers. It just banishes this level from conscious awareness. This part of inner experience then festers, rendered inaccessible, relegated to “unconscious” status.

Enforcing taboos on access to energy level awareness backfires, resulting in mental illness, socially aberrant behavior, addictions and personal tragedy. Jung’s observation, quoted in relation to irrational prejudice, bears repeating here:

Our time has committed a fatal error; we believe we can criticize the facts of religion intellectually. . . The gods have become diseases; Zeus no longer rules Olympus but rather the solar plexus, and produces curious specimens for the doctor’s consulting room, or disorders the brains of politicians and journalists who unwittingly let loose psychic epidemics on the world.

The facts of religion Jung referred to include not only the existence of a supreme being residing at the center of and permeating the whole of creation, but also the middle energy level — including the dangers of its satanic potentials — as an integral part of that whole.

Chinese sages, who trod lightly but surely in that middle realm, used the I Ching as their instruction manual. Recently, it’s been correctly called a “spiritual GPS.” Jung understood the potential good that could come from introducing this wisdom to the Western world, where it could be used as an instrument for making the unconscious again conscious, restoring intelligent competence at this level.

– – –

I summed up the repressive attitude of the materialistic science paradigm in the following Essay Sketch:

WHAT’S THE BIG DEAL? Funny how the mind works. For centuries it’s been known that if you tell people not to think of white elephants, they’ll think of nothing else. So, to pervert children, forbid them to think about sex.

Slamming the lid on libido drives it into the inaccessible “unconscious.” While publicly feigning compliance, people thus repressed will privately indulge compulsive sexuality in extreme.

Energy science trains students to be wise/skillful in sexual matters, fulfilling intimate needs without tearing the fabric of their emotional/social life apart or harming innocents. Why aren’t these basics taught in schools, instead of filling young heads with ignorant fear and shame of their bodies and God-given potentials?

Havoc reaped now for enforcing ignorance/silence is sure indicator that long-neglected basics should be top educational priority of Positive Action advocates.

And ask this: Who, if anyone, stands to profit by the results of ignorance?

Many a politician and educator knows this sad truth. It would be instructive to look at the tragic (if predictable) sex abuse scandals which plague the Catholic church through the lens of the quantum paradigm. See Daniel Goleman’s work on “emotional intelligence” (why it can matter more than IQ) for an approach to educating competent behavior at this level of experience.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) looks at emotions from a complimentary perspective. “E-motion” is an energy-suggestive word, suggesting kinetic potential. It’s closely associated with “motives.”

Each of the basic emotions correlates with an internal organ, giving new meaning to clichés like, “My gut tells me . . .” or “It makes my heart ache . . .” In TCM, anger is associated with the liver, fear with the kidneys, worry with the stomach, and so forth. When the physical body is basically healthy and the energies of the internal organs are harmoniously balanced, each is associated with a specific virtue. The virtue of the lungs is courage. The virtue of the liver is kindness. The virtue of the heart is compassion.

—

Those denied access to material and social resources are often forced inside. Of necessity, turning inward, they develop and depend for survival upon strengths drawn from the middle and center of the Wheel. It these cases, it expresses as “street smarts.”

At times, material deprivation and hardships yield the opposite and equal blessings of in-sight and emotional fortitude. Other times, however, excessive investment at the middle level results in delusions, latent with the potential for erupting into violence.

In any case, making a virtue of necessity by rejecting the material world prevents completion of the pattern. It can’t correctly be equated with spirituality.

—

Cultures which enforce an exclusively materialistic worldview and deny the experience of everything which isn’t tangible and measurable place severe hardships on those whose inner lives are especially active. The Handbook gives ample opportunities to diagnose such imbalances, the better to remedy them.

Societies which deny their citizens practical outlets for harnessing inner energies creatively drive people crazy — to political extremes, homicidal violence, to suicide — or at best, underground.

Many “sensitives” survive by channeling socially banned, unacceptable awareness and longing for self-fulfilling adventure into the arts: music and literature, including romance, murder mysteries and science fiction.

This is a great loss to society. The world would be better off if high-energy, creative individuals were identified as potential leaders, trained and given employment options accordingly.

—

Keep It Simple – IC – 092420

I’m going to get ahead of the story by telling you up front: the outcome of today’s reading is WISDOM.

But it’s a very special kind of wisdom. The kind that comes from direct experience.

It’s not about traditional customs. It’s not about the dictates of authority.

It IS about connecting with the inner authority of conscience.

I said as much as early as 1975 in the Introduction to The Common Sense Book of Change:

Those who have become disenchanted with sexist, authoritarian and culture-bound sources of guidance find that The Common Sense Book of Change offers a viable method for getting in touch with the authority of inner conscience.

Between then and now, I’ve discovered a lot about the method in its magic. I intuited the connection between Einstein’s formula and the universal, yogic Life Wheel. This image serves to show how working with the Book of Change links the noisy, everyday mind with its central, eternal Source.

I also became certain that absence of WISDOM is the cause of so much that goes wrong in our lives, despite the best of intentions. We’re never been taught about Natural Law, most especially the Law of Karma. Operating “out of sight, out of mind” in the “taboo,” middle, e = energy level of the Life Wheel, they function as the gatekeeper between ordinary experience and inner conscience.

In Rethinking Survival,” I called this blind spot in public education a “fatal knowledge deficit.” Ignorance of Natural Law has led to the worldwide leadership deficit and related budget deficits.

There are NO comprehensive remedies to 2020’s madness other than returning to Wisdom. You can’t get from here to there except through that middle, energy level of the Life Wheel, the domain of the I Ching.

Since this isn’t the place for detailed explanations, I’ve supplied links to more information.

Before going to today’s reading, however, I will tell you a bit about why I wrote The Common Sense Book of Change and the unique value it offers you.

Countless versions of the I Ching are already out there. However, I had a problem with them. They layer universal laws with cultural agendas. They cloak simple truth in flowery poetic language, esoteric symbolism, and unnecessary sexist assumptions.

To my way of thinking, truly important ideas can and should be expressed with utmost simplicity. Einstein said as much. Occam’s Razor, don’t ya know.

Which isn’t to say the basic book is simple-minded. Quite the opposite. It’s oceans deep. It’s pure science, but in the original meaning of the word, “with knowledge.” Its wisdom is more inclusive than science of the limited, empirical sort.

For example, did you know that the hexagram’s open and closed lines correspond with the lower chakras of the subtle energy body? Or that they preceded calculus and binary-digital computer code?

Or that the Chinese pictogram of the book’s name closely resembles the DNA double helix? In fact, researchers correlate the 64 hexagrams directly with the 64 basic DNA strands.

In combination, these tidbits hint at why the book has had such a powerful affect on human consciousness for eight-thousand years and counting.

But, for most of us, it’s enough just to experience that it works!

So begin with the easy-to-read Common Sense Book of Change. It strips away irrelevant cultural trappings, expressing the essential ideas clearly and simply.

Granted, like other ancient books, it has suffered abuse. Sometimes it’s turned to selfish ends. But it wasn’t meant to be used to get what we want, or find out whether we’ll get it.

It can’t possibly tell us what the future will be. The future hasn’t yet been decided. It can, however, advise on the best ways to prepare for the future, whatever it may hold.

But the basic purpose of the I Ching is to return us to our true selves, to reconnect conscious Awareness with inner Wisdom. It’s pure divination, in the sense of invoking divine presence.

One final thought before proceeding. My teacher long ago warned me. I had a choice. Either write what people want to hear or tell the truth. The first will be popular. The second won’t.

Today, I see a third option. Give readers a user-friendly method for connecting with their own truth. Some will. Others will hear what they want. Either way, the door remains open.

Here’s the progression of the reading. Be warned. Synchronicities abound. : )

With the exception of an additional changing line, today’s reading is IDENTICAL to the 1975 Introduction, where I asked “What does The Common Sense Book of Change have to offer its readers?”

In both cases, the original answer is:

Fascinating!! From the very onset, the CSBOC’s self-introduction included the three variables of the Unified Field Theory: creative source (light), the patterns of natural change (energy) and the end results of linking the levels of the Life Wheel (matter).

The advice of the bottom changing line is, “Narrow-minded self-interest is not enlightened. Broaden your views. Include others.”

I understand it to mean that the universal patterns of nature are eternal. Awareness of them is to be shared; they can’t possibly be the exclusive property of a single group. Hoarding knowledge for personal advantage is a grave mistake. So is denying, defying, distorting or burying it.

The line changes to GAIN, which looks like this:

Now. What’s new to this pattern is an additional changing line in the second position, which results in a different final outcome. The message of the extra changing line reinforces and expands on the first. It reads, “You won’t benefit from using new learning for selfish reasons.”

It changes to:

It highlights the potentially healing effect of the arts in melting selfish resistance and opening hearts to wisdom.

Whereas the 1975 outcome emphasized GAIN, today’s final outcome focuses on the I Ching approach to WISDOM:

In sum: today’s reading reinforces the powerful benefits of increasing AWARENESS. “Human relationships will become smooth.” There will be a flowering of friendships, community, and restored respect for the UNITY of all beings inherent in the Unified Field Theory.

Wisdom honors the unshakable knowledge of inner experience and its gift of compassion.

The potential outcome is PEACE, first within and then without.

Every day the world is becoming more fragmented, chaotic and crazy. More than ever before, we urgently need restore simplicity, wisdom and unity to our lives.

Early in 2021, collected readings will be published as The Lessons of 2020: Using the Wisdom of CHANGE to Build a Better Future. What better place to announce this than with a reading on WISDOM?!

If you’d like your very own copy of the CSBOC to work with, to answer your own unique questions at your own convenience, or want extras to give others in need of insight, solace and support, it’s available here. : )

Okay, then. That’s all for now. Talk with you again soon. Take care, all.

Easter Blessings – Hidden Opportunities

What follows is the script published on April 12th to my Youtube channel, Rethinking Change.

Smiley Mandala sized

Today we’re picking up where we left off in the last video. There I said, the best way to focus our attention now is to look for the hidden opportunities embedded within the COVID-19 pandemic. Because it’s a Law of Nature that in duality, there are two sides to every coin. Wherever great dangers lurk, we can be certain that within them are hidden, opposite and equal opportunities. Blessings in disguise.

So that’s today’s subject. Coming at Easter, it’s especially timely.

Today, I’m asking five related questions.

  • 1. What is the deeper meaning of Easter? And what blessings does it offer us in the year 2020?
  • 2. What is the archetypal Life Wheel? How does it explain the eternal hope of Easter? And how does the Life Wheel which embodies Einstein’s Unified Field Theory connect quantum physics with the healing work which Dr. Joe Dispenza calls “supernatural?”
  • 3. How have our lives become so fractured? Was the COVID-19 shock-to-our-collective-system the 2’x4’ necessary to finally get our attention and motivate us to heal our inner fractures?
  • 4. What are the similarities between today’s COVID-19 situation and the bio-engineered flu die-off in Stephen King’s story, The Stand?
  • 5. How can we use the timeless Book of Change to adapt most wisely to current changes? What advice does it have to offer at Easter about the opportunities hidden within the global shutdown?

By the end, you’ll have my response to these five questions. Here, I can only touch briefly on key points. But hopefully, it’ll be enough to spark your curiosity and motivate you to look further . . . for your own answers. Please stay with me to the end. I promise it will be worth your time. If you have questions feel free to comment below. I’ll do my best to respond.

So, let’s dive in. FIRST. What is the deeper meaning of Easter time? And what blessings does it offer us in the year 2020?

Easter is a perennial time of hope and renewal. It marks the change of seasons, entering in to new life after the dead of winter. It’s a time of rebirth on many levels. It’s not only a time when our gardens come back to life. It’s also a time for resetting our inner clocks and making a fresh start. It’s a time for remembering our values . . . spring cleaning, inside and out.

In 2020, the pending change of historical season brings with it new ways to rejuvenate and deepen our understanding of traditional teachings. Answers to the questions which follow explain what I mean.

SECOND. What is the archetypal Life Wheel, known to meditators?

It’s not so tough. As I said in the last video, I’ve taken the archetypal Life Wheel and plugged into its increasingly deeper levels the three variables of Einstein’s formula. M=mass on the outer surface. E=energy in the middle level. And C=light deeper still. These levels revolve around a stable, unchanging center – the hub of the Wheel. Call it Source. God. Creator. Tao. Or nothing at all, as you wish. The levels are linked in a two-way loop by the figure-eight infinity sign. The result is the Unified Field Theory –consciousness factor included. Einstein already had it, but for lack of yoga training, missed it. Here’s what it looks like:

Unified Field Theory

How does this Life Wheel explain the eternal hope of Easter? Here’s where it gets really interesting and where science has actually come full circle to support biblical wisdom. Science gives us technical terms for what the apostles described in the poetic language of their time.

Today we have not only quantum physics and but also the Life Wheel to explain the meditator’s experience of infinity, giving us a new way to understand “Christ consciousness.”

The quantum field is beyond three-dimensional time and space. In the same way, Jesus told us he existed outside of time, He existed before and will continue to exist after this cycle of time. This is what Peter meant in comparing Christ to the Matrix.

Further, Christ told us he and the Father – the Source at the Center of the Life Wheel – are One. His consciousness flows outwards in all directions from that Center, permeating the quantum field. Here’s a picture of Christ broadcasting blessings from that Center:

Saving the Best

But what’s important to remember today is that Christ said we each have the potential, in fact a responsibility, to follow his example, to become One with the Father. Which leads to the next part of this section.

How does the Life Wheel which embodies Einstein’s Unified Field Theory connect quantum physics with the healing work which Dr. Joe Dispenza calls “supernatural?” His methods give us a way to follow in the healing tradition of Christ. Dr. Joe teaches the age-old, but now science-based practice of healing ourselves and others. Through meditation, his students systematically travel inwards to reconnect with the Center and then to return outwards, enriched by an awareness of this experience to live daily life more fully.

Dr. Joe’s students testify to the healing of crippling injuries and to the total remission of life-threatening illnesses. From his personal experience, as well as that of others, he reports that it is possible to change in this lifetime. We don’t have to die, as Christ did, to be reborn. And this, my friends, is the eternal hope of Easter.

THIRD. How have our lives become so fractured? It’s the result of rejecting wisdom traditions and replacing them with empirical science. According to that belief system, only what is tangible and quantifiable is real. In effect, it rules out the inner levels of the Life Wheel where emotions and intuition are found. It looks like this: (Card #4)

MaterialistAthest

HOWEVER, saying subtle experiences aren’t real doesn’t make it so. It only fractures the levels of the Life Wheel, pushing feelings, intuition and conscience outside of conscious awareness. The results look like this:

Fragmentation

The consequences of fragmenting the Life Wheel in this way are catastrophic. Divine love spins detached outside of daily experience. On the surface, we project good intentions and protect our self-image. But pride, fear, and aggression, prejudice and insecurity, anger, rage and hostility all fester below the surface, outside of conscious awareness and control, as do feelings of hopelessness, powerlessness and suicidal depression. It looks like this:

Consequences

So. What’s the way out of this destructive madness? Was the COVID-19 shock-to-our-collective-system the necessary 2’x4’ to finally get our attention, serious enough to make us change our ways – heal our fractures and restore inner unity? If yes, that would be a blessing on a scale and magnitude comparable to Christ’s sacrifice more than 2,000 years ago. Here’s what the process of restoring unity would look like:

Restore Unity

Which leads to the next related question. FOURTH. What are the similarities between today’s COVID-19 situation and the bio-engineered flu die-off in Stephen King’s apocalyptic story, The Stand?

I’ll touch only briefly on the blame game, because it leads in the opposite direction from where we need to be going. The point of Christ’s sacrifice was to wipe the slate clean. So even if it were proven that the virus was weaponized in a lab for the sake of world-domination, let it go.

You can trust that evil intentions will backfire, of themselves, returning to the sender. If world leaders have separated from timeless wisdom, they will without a doubt reap the rewards of actions that violate Natural Law – the Law of Karma. Intervention isn’t necessary. So don’t even think about rebellion or revenge. That would ruin this golden opportunity for a positive fresh start.

From my point of view, what’s far more interesting is King’s attention to a Yeats poem, “The Second Coming,” where in despair, an officer commits suicide, leaving behind this quote: “The centre does not hold.”

That’s the real issue. Should we follow that example, give in to despair, regard the horrors of a pandemic as proof that the Center does not exist, cannot hold?

Never! No matter what happens on the ever-changing surface, the eternal Center of the Life Wheel remains still and unchanging. In fact, COVID-19 might be just the shock it takes to wake us up, so that like Lambert the sheepish lion, we finally remember who we truly are. Here’s the Lion Lambert, designated protector of the flock:

Lambert

There’s another important similarity. In The Stand, two communities emerge. They represent a choice between good and evil. One group follows Jesus. The other follows a demon. In a similar way, Joe Dispenza and Gregg Braden both agree that today, we’re living in a time of extremes. One side seeks unity and cooperation, to live in harmony with nature. The other is addicted to conflict and has no respect whatsoever for life.

Which leads into the FIFTH question. Because here’s where working with the Book of Change can make a difference in which side you choose. Like meditation, it’s a self-awareness tool. We can use it to repair the fractures that leave us unaware of feelings and intuition . . . helping us line up with the wisest, life-affirming options available. Acting on its advice, we can adapt, turning whatever is going on to best advantage.

Braden tells us that three converging cycles of change are now upon us: changes in weather, in the economy, and in warfare. That’s all interesting. But how do we relate to these cycles in a personal way? The Book of Change brings global ideas home. It lets us tap in to how each of us as an individual can cope wisely with global events at one specific point in time.

For today’s example, I asked, “ What advice does the Book of Change have to offer at Easter about the opportunities hidden within the global shutdown?”

The first answer, which describes the immediate situation, was #23. ADVERSITY. It had one changing line in the 5th place that results in #20. AWARENESS.

This is totally fascinating to me because, in the Introduction to my version, I asked, “What does the Common Sense Book of Change have to offer its readers?” I got the very same answer to that question then as I did again today. #20. AWARENESS. Which happens to be Dr. Joe’s favorite word. As he repeats, “Be aware that you’re aware.”

Hexagram 23 looks like this:

23 Adversity

It seems to me that the opportunities of the 2020 Easter season include quiet time to reconnect with our “inner resources” – with the inner e=energy and c=light levels of the Life Wheel. And we are specifically warned to avoid despair, the choice of the suicidal general in The Stand, who quotes Yeats out of context, believing “The centre does not hold.”

I’ve seen Youtubers describe what we’re going through collectively in terms of Kubler-Ross’s “Five Stages of Grief.” First comes denial, followed by anger. Next are bargaining, depression and finally acceptance. So here, the advice that “the wisest response is ACCEPTANCE” represents the blessing of healing grief over so many losses – of loved ones, jobs, income, and of the familiar lifestyle we took for granted.

But then comes the opposite and equal blessing in disguise. The advice from Line 5 is: “Help from an unexpected source can reverse a difficult situation.”

The result looks like this: 

20 Awareness

So when unexpected blessings, whether in the form of guidance, inspiration or beneficial synchronicities, truly come from SOURCE, they have the potential to reverse the negative consequences of living an unconscious, fragmented life and restoring the AWARENESS of unity and inner peace which no one and nothing can ever take away.

May that deepest, lasting well-being be yours at this sacred time of hope.

Until next time, do continue to take good care of yourself.

book header bird

If this resonates, please like and share to get this badly needed information out to a world that for lack of it is in such deep trouble. THANK YOU!

To Save the World, First Save Yourself

The implications of teen climate activist Greta Thunberg’s UN speech are at the heart of this post.

“We are in the beginning of a mass extinction, ” she warns. She’s probably right, but for all the wrong reasons. In fact, OA confirmed predictions of a pending Near Extinction Level Crisis (NELC) in posts to his short-lived website, appropriately called OldAvatar.com. 

But, what about all the wrong reasons?

Well, let’s see. Of all the looming natural and human disasters competing to destroy the planet, where do her specific fears fit in (if at all)? Could it be they are an intentional distraction from valid, urgent issues? Can the United Nations fix any of the very real dangers (or is it part of the problem)?

And how plausible is it that an autistic 16-year old pawn, coached by handlers, reading a scripted message, gets to lecture a gathering of world leaders with an angry, guilt-ladened message: “We will never forgive you.” (A moot point if we’re going extinct.)

Not to mention that there’s a whole lot of virtue signaling going on, meaning that behind the front of an undeniably worthy cause with which we all must agree (saving the planet for the sake of future generations), not-so-hidden agendas combined with the toxicity of her presentation skew the message.

Despite the implied unity in the organization’s handle, United Nations, it seems to me that this drama is pushing yet another fracture onto the world stage. The future generation is being pitted against its elders.

Yuppers. All the ingredients of big trouble brewing. What to do about it?

Let me switch gears for a moment. I’ll get back to this in good time.

blessing tap sized.

Now, OA’s way of showing me affection was to gently tap the center of my forehead. This blessing always made me smile, received as a kindly reminder to focus. “Get smart.” “Remember who you are.”

When we spoke of commitment, he tapped my heart. His formula was Head + Heart = YES.

And so it was. And IS.

I believe Dr. Joe Dispenza, Gregg Braden and folks at the HeartMath Institute would call this balanced unity of spirit “head-heart congruence.” It is the foundation of inner wholeness and resilience, the key qualities they recommend for thriving in this polarized “time of extremes.”

Head-Heart Congruence

Expressed another way, this modification of Einstein’s Unified Field Theory expresses inward unity as it extends outwards through the quantum field, informing all relationships. The seven levels of being are aligned, activated, in synch and in balance.

Wheel2

Here’s how the Book of Change sees Unity:

IC 8 UNITY.jpg

Further, Essay 60 on Unity brings both inner unity and doubts regarding the United Nations into focus:

I have always felt that one of the simplest and most apt metaphors for an organization as complex as the United Nations is the Rorschach inkblot test. What one person sees as the hope of a world free of war, famine, poverty, and disease, another interprets as a global boondoggle comprised of uncaring civil servants threatening the cherished concept of state sovereignty. — James Holtje, Divided It Stands: Can the United Nations Work

In contrast, it quotes Martin Luther King, Jr.:

An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.

Another quote focuses on the unity of creative genius:

The scientist or the artist takes two facts or experiences which we separate; he finds in them a likeness which had not been seen before: and he creates a unity by showing the likeness. . . . All science is the search for unity in hidden likenesses. — Jacob Bronowski, quoted by Todd Siler in Think Like a Genius

Essay 60 continues:

Effective, consistent action depends on an integrated concept of self and a comfortable relationship of each part with the whole. Therefore, thinking carefully about what unity means — as well as what it doesn’t — is a necessary prelude to ultimate success in life.

It points out the benefit of harmonizing practices like those taught by Dr. Joe Dispenza and Gregg Braden:

The motive, the “why” of psychologies and meditative practices is the same: to unify fragmented, antagonistic functions of mind, personality and behavior. The purpose, the “what” they plan to accomplish ranges from personal self-mastery to inner peace and/or functional relationships.

. . . Once one is focused and all the facets of inner energy are coordinated by a single-minded purpose, the pieces of life’s mosaic fall into place, forming a coherent picture.

It also places unity within the larger context of the Life Wheel:

External diversity complements inner unity. The core of life’s concentric circles, like the hub of a wheel, remains still as the outer rim revolves, constantly changing and in motion. Meridians, like spokes of a wheel, link center to surface, connecting and organizing the wheel of life in a dynamic unity.

And concludes with this warning:

Regimentation and conformance are perversions of unity. Though nature flourishes in diversity, and like snowflakes, each individual is a unique variation of its kind, in extreme social contexts variations are suppressed and punished. While this unnatural state might be appropriate to unnatural situations like war, it’s antithetical to personal well-being.

In this context, we have the picture of a fragmented Life Wheel, which may well be the greatest collective danger facing our planet right now. Pretty scary stuff, if you ask me. Reminds me of the bad old Hitler days. We don’t need a repeat of that, thank you anyway.

Disunity

So, where’s the hope? Is there an antidote?

Healers of all persuasions agree: it depends upon each of us restoring unity within. For people content to remain fractured within themselves, in denial of unredeemed personal problems and fiercely committed to saving face at all costs, are in no position to save the world. As Covey said, “First things first.” As the ancients taught, “Physician heal thyself.”

Only by achieving at least a modicum of wholeness, by being committed to the effort to restore head and heart coherence, can we have a unifying affect upon the world around us.

Saving the world, one person at a time, must start with having the courage to be Self-Aware; to have the common sense not to be taken in and over by propagandists; to live true to the true science: Conscience.

Because, in quantum reality, the butterfly effects of self-healing are immeasurable. Each personal victory, however small, has a ripple effect across time and space, changing future outcomes for the better. This (not legislation or political posturing) is how we give genuine hope to future generations.

And so it IS.

Phoenix - sized