Category Archives: Book of Change

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.

Two Wrongs Don’t Make a Right – IC – 110720

Unlike math, where two negatives make a positive, two mistakes only compound a problem, making matters worse.

This bonus blog was inspired by a Dan Bongino post, No More Nice Guy Nonsense.

The title concerned me, but I think he got it right.

Bongino understands election theft from personal experience. He ran for a congressional seat in Maryland. In the evening hours of voting, it seemed he won handily. Come morning, he woke up to find out the election had been stolen over night.

Not wanting to seem a sore loser, he acquiesced to injustice. Looking back, it’s one of his deepest regrets. So he’s determined not to make the same mistake now in this important presidential election.

He starts:

Stand by. Hold the presses. The race is not over. It’s fight time. Fight time is here. It has arrived. And by fight, I don’t mean the leftist definition of fight where we’re beating the crap out of our neighbors and burning things down. That’s a leftist thing. I mean this is a time to do what we’ve always done. Go through the process and get every legal, legal, legal count in.

Then, strangely, he continued, We need to learn how to fight like the left. We need to take lessons from the left.

That stopped me short. Seemed like a contradiction. The last thing Trump supporters need to do is stoop to the left’s level, matching hypocrisy, corruption and violence with more and worse of the same.

Tit for tat? We’re better than that. They aren’t our teachers.

The result would look like dogs chasing each other’s tails, spiraling in downward circles of self-destruction.

Speaking of self-destruction, I was very sorry to see that Steve Bannon shot his mouth off. However passionate and probably correct his sentiments, it gave mainstream media adversaries an opportunity to pounce on – an excuse to ban, block and discredit him.

A Sun-Tzu, I Ching warrior would have exercised restraint, held to the middle path of moderation. Kept his powder dry.

Now Sebastian Gorke (an equally passionate but more even-keeled Bannon cohort) – staunch supporter and advisor to the President – also presents himself as a Sun Tze warrior. Which is fine as far as it goes.

BUT . . . The Art of War is just tip of the iceberg. One can’t understand Sun Tze deeply or implement his strategies wisely without first being aware of the I Ching fundamentals which support them.

I felt called to offer a specific example, asking what the oracle would advise both Bannon and Dr. G. at this time. For, sadly, as Bannon’s regrettable mistake demonstrates, gaining competence in the fundamentals of Natural Law would make a powerful difference.

However much provoked, lapses of Hulk-like outrage undermine long-term effectiveness. They’re a disservice to the cause.

But . . . back to Bonjino’s claim that Trump supporters should learn from the left. Fortunately, in the section that starts at 44:52, he clarifies. Viewers are referred to a piece by David Heinz published by the American Conservative called How the Right Can Organize Like The Left.

The #1 take-way: Learn how to organize like the left.

Interestingly enough, the initial outcome of the I Ching reading below is, in fact, ORGANIZATION.

Usually, I simply ask, “What should we be aware of NOW?” For the sake of Dr. G., Bannon, et. al., however, I wanted a specific question, one which covers the strategy side and the need for justice – for both the wronged and wrong-doers.

So I asked The Common Sense Book of Change, “What is the best way to combat election fraud and secure a just outcome for all involved?”

ORGANIZATION is the initial answer. It changes twice.

Advice of line three is, “If a group excludes you, either befriend its leaders or leave.” It changes to ATTRACTION.

Advice of line four is, “Serving others selflessly will help you to prosper and grow.” It changes to UNITY.

When the advice is heeded, the combined final outcome is RESISTANCE.

The I Ching version best suited to address today’s question is Jack Balkin’s The Laws of Change. Not coincidentally, at the time of publication, he was the Knight Professor of Constitutional Law at Yale Law School. Here’s a sample of his comments:

GATHERING TOGETHER (ORGANIZATION)

Keywords

Gathering

Massing

Joining others

Assembling

Having a common cause

Holding yourself together

Pitching in

Cooperation between leaders and followers

. . [in a large group] the ruler needs assistance from trusted subordinates who put aside selfish considerations and devote themselves to the larger purposes of the group.

. . . Fostering unity takes skill and patience. In order to bring people together, whether in a community, a charitable organization, or a business, you must give them a shared sense of purpose.

MUTUAL INFLUENCE (ATTRACTION)

Keywords

Influence

Reciprocity

Attraction

Courtship

. . . the ability to attract others and sway them to your way of thinking. Good and appropriate influence should not be manipulation of one person by another, but rather mutual influence – in which each person is open to the other and responds to the other.

. . . the more important question to ask is whether you have behaved appropriately and with respect for the other and whether the mutual influence that results from your actions is healthy and beneficial.

UNION (UNITY)

Keywords

Joining with others

Joining in

Rallying around a leader

. . . this applies not only to the relationship of a king to an entire nation, but also a smaller, closer, and more intimate association of people.

. . . Successful unions can help all of their members grow as individuals and prosper. But they also require that people be willing to cooperate and work for each other’s good rather than for their own selfish interests.

. . . Unity is more than coming together; it also requires holding people together over the long run, and dealing with the stresses and strains, the difficulties and disagreements that inevitably arise in any group. Holding people together requires leadership – a central person or figure whom others depend on and around whom they can unite.

OBSTRUCTION (RESISTANCE)

Keywords

Impediment

Trouble

Difficulty

Hardship

Hindrance

Looking inward

Self-reflection

Surmounting obstacles within

“One is between the proverbial rock and a hard place.”

. . . instead of pressing ahead urgently one should hold back and accept the situation for what it is.

[Dems are doing the opposite: pressing forward prematurely to usurp the presidency, creating the illusion of a done deal before their corruption can be fully exposed, undone!]

[The rest of us need to cool our jets while the courts sort things out. “Resist not evil. Persist in the good.”]

. . . the point of detaching yourself from your current struggles is not to give up hope of eventual success. Quite the contrary: You must be absolutely determined to prevail in the long run. Rather, the point is to restore your emotional balance and clear your head.

. . . After you have taken time to reassess the situation, you need to join forces with others. Ask for advice from people you respect and trust, and who understand you and your goals. They may have fresh perspectives.

Caveat. Not without irony, it’s exactly when common sense is most urgently needed that folks want nothing to do with calm reason. Freedom fighters and their opponents are equally drunk on the intense energies of the times. Not the time for talk of the I Ching? But we’ve been challenged. “Are you doing your part?” And this is what I’m called to contribute. The rest is up to the powers that move me.

In any event, the warning remains. The real danger here is civil war. Dark lords of the underworld couldn’t care less which side “wins.” So long as Americans remain at each other’s throats, losing hope and trust in each other, THEY win. Humanity loses.

Let all of us think, choose and act accordingly.

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.

What Happened to Common Sense?

It wasn’t coincidence that led me to Common Sense as the right way to connect contemporary readers with the timeless wisdom of the Chinese I Ching and Tao Te Ching. I called easy-to-read, no-nonsense versions The Common Sense Book of Change and Two Sides of a Coin: Lao Tze’s Common Sense Way of Change.

I’m certain that in the cosmic scheme of things, it wasn’t coincidence that Tom Paine titled his plain spoken, carefully reasoned call to revolutionary action Common Sense.

So it’s also no coincidence that Rudy Giuliani — the New York mayor who helped heal the nation after 9/11’s assault — calls his website Common Sense.

Recent reviews of Paine’s influential book tells us exactly why:

In these troubling times, this important work reminds us just how unique the USA is, and what was at stake if freedom failed. We face the same type of enemies now, except they are within our own borders. A must read to understand our God given liberties and why they must be preserved.

Sadly, the same great land that gave us treasures of timeless wisdom is now enslaved by tyrants like those our Founders fought to get free of. Rudy is issuing the call of Common Sense to warn citizens that we’re again under attack.

Chinese overlords are systematically ensnaring the greedy, gullible elite with the intention of bringing the world under communist domination. Yet news of earthquake magnitude is being virtually ignored. The messenger is either discredited or silenced. The public is being kept in the dark by a media blackout.

There’s an important explanation for all this.

For that, I go back to another founding document which connects timeless wisdom with current events. The multi-level Life Wheel inherent in yogic teachings was structured into the United States from its beginning. The Declaration of Independence recognizes three levels of law: the laws of man, of nature and nature’s God.

In Rethinking Survival I pictured it this way:

This quantum paradigm includes all the levels combined in Common Sense. Street smarts are necessary, but not enough. Clear thinking and living true to conscience are equally essential to making good decisions.

In 2020, the world is reaping tragic consequences of being controlled by a brainwashed elite. They operate on a paradigm which rules inner levels of the Life Wheel out. That spells the death of common sense.

Generations educated into a paradigm which respects only the material, tangible and measurable have wreaked madness upon planet Earth. Highly educated, entrenched but out-of-touch intellectuals rule all facets of government, education and communications. That spells D-I-S-A-S-T-E-R.

Yeats wrote a poem quoted by Stephen King in his eerily prescient The Stand. In the novel, a suicidal general leaves this death note: “The center does not hold.” That’s the illusion leaders are left with when inner levels of Life Wheel are banned from conscious awareness. It looks like this:

This blog is written in response to a post on the Common Sense site. Mayor Rudy lays out the facts and evidence of inexcusable, probably treasonous crimes. He virtually seethes with moral indignation that the facts are being ignored — withheld from the public at a time when they could make all the difference in a critically important election.

Law enforcement at the highest levels, the press and social media are shielding hardened criminals, he says. Like the Communist Russia of old, they’ve put up an iron curtain to shield criminals from rightful consequences. By censoring truth, they’re flirting with the danger of another dark night, far worse than Stalin’s or Mao’s. It’s looming over the land of the free.

But a brainwashed, godless elite think its okay to play God with the planet’s future. Rudy’s detailed, carefully presented proofs simply don’t matter. They’re inconvenient. They don’t serve the leftist agenda. Common Sense isn’t in their vocabulary.

It remains up to those whose connection with gut feelings and conscience remains intact to tip the balance in favor of human survival.

Ominously, perhaps symbolically, there was an crack in the Liberty Bell which is part our heritage. It needs healing. Fatal fractures in false belief systems call for a revolutionary paradigm shift. As a matter of human survival, we must to restore Common Sense.

May the Force be with us.

What Happened to Unity? – IC – 102920

After weeks of silence, I just had a call from “Alice.” A pleasant surprise. She lives deep in the pure-land boonies. In her neck of the woods, internet connection is – at best — intermittent.

We were cut off four times before giving up.

Though we don’t always see eye-to-eye, she’s one of my soul family:

Alice groused over the poor connection: “We pay much higher taxes out here. But we don’t get the same internet service you do in town. It’s not fair!”

What can I say? That it’s part of the UN plan? As a matter of fact, their 2030 goal is to drive people off the land. Everyone’s being crowded into densely packed cities where they can be tightly monitored and controlled by . . . .

I thought, but didn’t say, “Honey, there’s method to the madness of your high taxes and zero service. They’re meant to force your out of your home.” The big picture isn’t her subject. She resists what’s unfamiliar. So I let it pass.

The conversation turned to the election. She’s adamant it makes no difference who’s elected. Nothing will change, either way. There, I couldn’t disagree more.

She mistrusts the President because he’s uneducated. Huh? Street-smarts don’t count? Lack of higher degrees could well be an asset. On my part, much of what was learned at university later had to be unlearned.

Alice says she’ll depend on SCIENCE to decide. ARG!! The empirical science paradigm is exactly what’s blinding the world to the inner dynamics of what going on!!!

How can there be effective communication, internally much less between friends, when your operating paradigm rules out two-thirds of existence?

How can there be unity or comm-unity when the very paradigm that would support them is disallowed?

The biased, censored “news” that filters through shows us only what’s going on at surface level: political claims and counter-claims.

The incomplete, misleading paradigm of empirical science leaves us vulnerable to propaganda. Without wisdom tools to guide us — help us see through through the maze of misinformation — we’re easy prey.

God and the good angels are broadcasting loud and clear. But it’s hard to through. The message is being jammed, the signal blocked.

I asked what Alice meant by science. It boiled down to self-interest. What’s in it for me? Whose personality is relatable.

I urged her, before deciding, to pray. I meant, “Be still. Listen to your heart.” But she misunderstood. “The clergy are just as bad,” she countered. True, though sadly, not to the point.

But she doesn’t have time for my posts. Right now she’s too busy. Looks forward to reading later, when things quiet down.

Honey, your later isn’t going to happen.

Today’s reading speaks equally to me, to Alice, and the rest of us.

Two components of Back To What’s Basic reappear here. Today’s reading begins where that one ended, with FAMILY. DEVELOPMENT returns, again from a changing line.

It bears repeating:

Inside the FAMILY one learns to play out given roles. This makes later success in roles on the job and in the larger community possible. Clearly defined relationships make communication easy. Respectful cooperation with others earns trust and acceptance from the human family. Avoid roles not suited to your nature.

Without a complete, accurate paradigm, the family unit (along with its benefits) is collateral damage. No wonder BLM calls for its destruction. That would serve UN goals just fine. But it would end all hope of human survival — life on planet Earth as we know it.

With intriguing symmetry, the bottom and top lines of Family both change. The bottom line is associated with the root chakra, the foundation of physical form. The top line is associated with the crown chakra, the human link with divine guidance.

The bottom line advises, “Clear rules and guidelines should be established from the beginning.”

My take: The foundations of a positive future must be based on a complete and accurate paradigm where all levels are included, aligned, harmonized and prioritized. The family unit (the basic building block of society) depends on this bedrock.

With the foundation established, the line changes:

Completion is the result of gradual, step-by-step DEVELOPMENT. A calm attitude and gentle actions will bring steady progress leading to success. The only way to establish yourself now is to let things develop naturally. Giving in to strong feelings and acting on impulse would defeat your purpose. Avoid hesitation. Avoid haste.

Establishing a viable foundation is just the beginning. Thought requires action. Beliefs have to integrated into daily life and expressed consistently in all we do.

Next, we shift attention to the top line. It advises, “Rise above worldly concerns. Create good work of lasting value.” There’s more than immediate personal self-interest involved. The future is at stake.

This heeded, the first word of the bottom line’s change, “Completion,” comes to fruition. The top line changes to:

Perfected actions reach COMPLETION. From this balance, however, new elements spring forth which create future imbalance. In this way, the cycles of nature are continued. This is not cause for sadness. Perfection lies in the whole life process, not in the beauty of a single peak moment. Avoid rigid attachment.

Just as the American revolution could not freeze the Founder’s values forever in our hearts, the faith and freedom they fought for cannot be taken for granted. They must be earned and redefined by each generation.

Accepting the responsibility to reinvent and revitalize our heritage, the combined outcome is:

Look within yourself for the cause of RESISTANCE from others. If you are closed, they will not cooperate. The situation will open up when your mind becomes open. Seek the company of people who can help you overcome mental blocks. Do not blame others for your problems.

Resistance occurs on every level of the Life Wheel. Physical tension. Political subversion. Emotional shut down. Mental denial. As a major 2020 theme, it appeared earlier. It comes back later.

Understandably, among us mere mortals, resistance to perceived threats is virtually universal. Sanctions against truth-bearers are horrific. (Ask Plato. Christ.) Though, on the other hand, it’s said that speaking and living truth has its rewards.

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.

Back to What’s Basic – IC – 102620

An unseasonal storm crashed through the area overnight. Violent thunder and lightening interrupted my plans to watch the final presidential debate. I had to turn off the computer.

Echoing a recent post on DISTURBANCE in the Force, the Universe was sending a message. What was it?

The crash bang storm was on the mark. But the reading on the drawing board for today begins with its opposite, GENTLENESS.

Then, preparing breakfast, I stopped in my tracks. “That’s it!”

Leaving food untouched, I turned the computer back on. Looked up Steve Bannon at Citizens of the American Republic and sent a direct Twitter message.

Now, why the interest in Bannon? Steve is attuned to the wisdom of J.R.R. Tolkien’s fantasy-truer-than-fact. He’s shouldered the Hobbit role of faithful Sam, loyal friend of Frodo, the ring wearer – a/k/a President Trump.

They’re emerging as the heroes foreseen by the Tao Te Ching. Passage 18 describes the critical mass humanity has arrived at . . . yet again.

Without asking why, I did as I knew I should, writing:

STEVE: Pay attention. Harris & Biden are expendables; must ask “Who is using them, to what long-term end?” A multi-level chess game is in play. To succeed, look deeper, see whole picture. All best.

Since plans for this morning were shot, I checked out his website. The term “disruptor” caught my attention.

What’s that? The internet tells me disruptors bring innovations to technology or how service is delivered. Computers replaced typewriters, etc.

Trump defenders see themselves as disruptors of the entrenched swamp’s corruption. Back to the basics upon which our Republic was founded. Integrity. Decency. Faith.

My job? Emphasize that their disruptions go far deeper than political misconduct. They’re throwing a wrench in the UN’s goal of world-domination. Still deeper, they pose a threat to the dark forces driving 2030 plans to dehumanize the planet.

Point out the problem with their strategy. While their extreme-yang warrior approach is vitally necessary, it’s not sufficient. It exposes but cannot heal 2020 madness. The facts of systemic corruption are just that. Mere facts.

To a culturally conditioned public (politicians and media included), ugly acts simply don’t compute. Nor is it enough simply to get rid of ignorant puppets who know not what they do.

In the long-term, what needs replacing is the underlying, false paradigm that drives corruption. The operating system, if you will.

The significant change, shifting gears, is a return to the timeless basics represented in the Unified Field Theory, to the archetypal Life Wheel which embodies a paradigm equally consistent with enduring religions and quantum physics.

It maps the deeper levels of the chess game which underpin the war for human survival, the fight to which Bannon, Rudy Giuliani, Sebastian Gorka et. al. have, in essence, pledged their fortunes and sacred honor. They know they’re fighting for more than just for a presidency, or even a way of life. Our very souls are on the line.

To win this war, defenders must focus on what ultimately matters. Remind the world not only of what’s wrong, but of what’s really at stake. Above all, urge followers to listen to their hearts. Remember the love on every level. Love of God, of family and of country.

Point to the proof. Huge crowds roar out their LOVE for President Trump, while Harris-Biden events are duds. We sense, deeper than deep, that he loves the U.S.. They don’t, and we the delorables, the Hobbits in the trenches, sense that too.

First and foremost, we must restore a complete and accurate paradigm – one that gives us permission to know and be true to who we truly are. Were we to continue operating on a false paradigm that rules out inner levels of the Life Wheel, we’d remain at the mercy of the destructive, dark and hidden agents driving politics and human destiny.

And that cannot be.

The I CHING READING

GENTLENESS is the initial answer to today’s question, “What should we be aware of NOW?” We’ve already seen it twice as a final outcome. In essence, it confirms the importance of appealing to people’s hearts as the healing yin balance to combative, yang disruption.

The bottom line’s warning is, “Don’t act without a clear purpose. Make a decision. Stick to it.” With fidelity to purpose, the line changes to FRUSTRATION, another theme that repeats throughout 2020. It reads in part:

External factors you may not even be aware of will cause FRUSTRATION. New projects will not work out now. This cannot be avoided. Arguing will not influence those who could help.

This reflects the interference of invisible players lurking beneath the surface of the multi-level chess board.

Appropriately, the second line’s warning reads, “Examine your situation most carefully. Be aware of hidden motives.” Know that major players with destructive intentions – like the Evil Emperor in Star Wars — are manipulating behind the scenes, hidden from public view.

This line changes with another confirmation that the way out of 2020 madness is NOT by matching conflict with more of the same, but instead with calm, gentle action:

Completion is the result of gradual, step-by-step DEVELOPMENT. A calm attitude and gentle actions will bring steady progress leading to success. The only way to establish yourself now is to let things develop naturally. Giving in to strong feelings and acting on impulse would defeat your purpose. Avoid hesitation. Avoid haste.

The combined outcome is FAMILY, with its emphasis on respect and cooperation –yet another 2020 theme:

Inside the FAMILY one learns to play out given roles. This makes later success in roles on the job and in the larger community possible. Clearly defined relationships make communication easy. Respectful cooperation with others earns trust and acceptance from the human family. Avoid roles not suited to your nature.

The end goal is harmonious relationship with the entire human family. This reading is so value-rich that, to do it justice, I had to publish a self-standing bonus blog, Family, Community and Organization.

Bottom line: There’s intense pressure – coming from all levels – to destroy core unity. It starts with internal consciousness and extends outwards to breakdown the family unit and then social organization. What’s the consequence of this breakdown? Who wants it?

Do you? If not, what are you willing to do about it? When?

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.

Family, Community & Organization

Today’s bonus blog supports Back to What’s Basic, where the final outcome is FAMILY. The subject is both timely and vitally important.

According to The Common Sense Book of Change:

Inside the FAMILY one learns to play out given roles. This makes later success in roles on the job and in the larger community possible. Clearly defined relationships make communication easy. Respectful cooperation with others earns trust and acceptance from the human family. Avoid roles not suited to your nature.

Family is the fundamental unit of society – the building block of community. It’s key to success at every larger level, lacking which entire civilizations crumble.

To restore today’s decaying foundations, however, Sages tell us to first look within. Thus, the Basic blog concludes:

The end goal is harmonious relationship with the entire human family. This reading is so value-rich that, to do it justice, I had to publish a self-standing bonus blog, Family, Community and Organization.

Bottom line: There’s intense pressure – coming from all levels – to destroy core unity. It starts with internal consciousness and extend outwards to breakdown the family unit and then social organization. What’s the consequence of this breakdown? Who wants it?

Do you? If not, what are you willing to do about it? When?

To help in rethinking what we take for granted at great risk, here are three supporting essays. Though originally written in the year 2000, they’re key to overcoming 2020 madness.

There’s a lot here. But it deserves your careful attention. What could be more basic to building a better future?

ESSAY 13. FAMILY

One who wishes to have a well-organized family should first cultivate his personality. / One who wishes to cultivate his personality should first regulate his mind. / One who wishes to regulate his mind should first be honest with his consciousness. One who wishes to be honest with his consciousness should first attain true knowledge. — Confucius, Great Commentary

In the family we learn love, patience, respect, nurturing, affirmation, and health. The family also teaches us about competition, domination, selfishness, and deceit. The family is thus a relatively efficient learning system for the development of mind, spirit, and body. It involves the whole self. — Tom Chappell, The Soul of a Business

For whosoever shall do the will of My Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother. Jesus Christ, St. Matthew 12:50

THE FRONT

The Latin root of family means household establishment. An obsolete usage refers to all the people living in the same house, including servants and slaves. A later definition refers to all the relatives living in the same house, including extended family. Only recently has it come to mean a nuclear unit, the traditional set of parents (one husband, one wife) and their off-spring.

A family can mean a group of people related by ancestry or marriage, including relatives. It can be all those claiming descent from a common ancestor, tribe, or clan — a lineage. A crime syndicate under a single leader is also called a family.

Ideally, children learn the basics within the family. If we trained ourselves and our children in I Ching ways, there’d be no need for each generation to reinvent the wheel over by repeating the same mistakes. Sheltering them from the “real world” isn’t a kindness. A better way to protect them is to provide the wisdom tools to give them the practical edge, help them meet the challenges of adult life with intelligence and self-confidence.

As Chappell indicates, within the nuclear family as in the human family, everything, both positive and negative is possible. As we learn to articulate what we see and respond wisely to experiences in the family environment, we become increasingly able to apply these skills in school, business and extended political situations.

But as Confucius teaches, the goal of improving and sustaining family relationships isn’t achieved by extending ever outwards. It requires looking inward:

  • Efforts to improve personality lead to the need to know one’s mind.
  • This leads to exploring inner awareness.
  • Then, in due time, inward movement cycles outwards, incorporating benefits of the inward journey into personal and practical everyday life.

Within families of every size, whether communities, religions, corporations or governments, some live by the law. Others don’t.

Christ taught that those who love and choose truth are all members of his extended family.

Those who love life, who seek truth and understanding and do their best to help others as they can, have more in common with each other than with evildoers within their own groups.

THE BACK

Opposites of family include strangers in our community whom we’ve never gotten to know, foreigners raised abroad who speak languages and practice customs we don’t understand, as well as others we’ve been taught to mistrust and dislike.

The antithesis of family is foe, including competitive opponents and military enemies. Whereas families are ideally founded on common beliefs, goals and mutual support, those who threaten or sabotage others undermine healthy relationships. Gratitude and hope build communities. Mistrust, hostility and abuse break them down.

ESSAY 14. COMMUNITY

We can create communities and relationships based on love and intimacy rather than fear and hatred. We can learn from the suffering of others. Awareness is the first stage in healing. . . Dean Ornish, Love and Survival

As we accept the smallness of the world, the density of the population, and the myriad influences on individuals and families, someday we may recognize the community and even the whole society as the patient. Imagine, then, what a “doctor of society” might do, what kinds of diseases he or she might treat! — Patch Adams, Gesundheit!

Each celestial body, in fact each and every atom, produces a particular sound on account of its movement, its rhythm or vibration. All these sounds and vibrations form a universal harmony in which each element, while having its own function and character, contributes to the whole. – Pythagoras, quoted in The Healing Power of Sound

THE FRONT

Community stems from a root word meaning fellowship. In English, the word refers to all the people living in a particular district or city. It can also mean a group of people living together as a smaller social unity within a larger one, and having interests or work in common, such as a college community.

Alternatively, it can refer to a group of nations loosely or closely associated because of common traditions or for political and economic advantage. It also covers similarity of tastes and preferences. The last definition Webster’s gives is the condition of living with others in friendly association and fellowship. The last definition comes full circle back to the original meaning.

Communities are founded on a common cause. It can be as practical as survival or as idealistic as freedom. Often, community cohesion is artificially stimulated by fear and hatred of a common enemy.

For example, Hitler inflamed passions against Jews and foreign bankers to mobilize his war-weary country into a second world war more devastating than the first. Then Americans rallied behind the common goal of defeating enemies of democracy on two fronts, Asia and Europe.

In Common Sense, Thomas Paine wrote about the relationship of divine, natural and human law in a way that inspired readers at the time of the American Revolution to fight for freedom from tyranny.

Winning that war did not, however, automatically secure freedom for all times. Democracy isn’t a static achievement that can be passed on unchanged from one generation to the next. It must renewed and earned again, one individual at a time, each generation at a time, continuously redefined in the context of immediate circumstances.

The music of life that moves every organization, smallest to largest, is the basis of harmonious fellowship. Approaching natural law and social organizations from the deeper understanding of the ancients could inspire a new, more humane and effective approach to international relations now, one based on energy dynamics which the human community share in common.

Sages say that freedom from tyranny begins with dispelling ignorance and overcoming negative emotions. True freedom and stable communities begin with the self-awareness and self-mastery which can be gained by diligent use of wisdom tools like the Book of Change. First remembering the core of compassion and caring within, we can then extend and expand this good-will into healing society as well.

Put another way, it’s useless to fight for a democratic world before first cleaning out the inner swamp of negative emotions. Inner life conditions attract corresponding external experience. Fighting in anger and hatred reaps results in kind.

Working to establish positive community relationships before personal attitudes of good-will and willing self-discipline are established is futile. As Covey reminds us, first things must come first.

THE BACK

Street gangs, terrorist groups, religious cults and secret societies are subgroups within the larger community. To the extent that their goals oppose and even endanger the community at large, these organizations are antithetical to the general good.

Pariahs, nomads and outcasts are individuals excluded from society, either voluntarily or by edict. Whether justified or not, their attitudes and behavior are out of harmony with accepted norms. If enough of them find common cause to band together, they form alternative groups which become the foundation of new communities.

ESSAY 59. ORGANIZATION

Because it is a structure of structures, the design of the I Ching can generate analytic systems of potentially infinite complexity and variety, and can be applied to any conceivable realm or situation. . .The I Ching analyzes the interplay of relations as functions of qualities, roles, and relative standing. It can be applied internally to any system of human organization, regardless of scale or configuration. — Cheng Yi, The Tao of Organization: The I Ching for Group Dynamics

THE FRONT

Roots of organization start with organ, originally referring to a tool or implement in the context of music, such as a church organ.

Organic means made up of systematically interrelated parts. Organize means to provide with an organic structure, or to arrange in an orderly way.

There are two basic approaches to social organization:

  • One builds from the smallest unit, organizing from the nucleus and extending outwards.
  • The other starts from the outside peripheral rim, incorporating smaller units, often swallowing them up by force.

I Ching thinkers focus on the smallest unit, making self-mastery their primary goal. World-domination seekers, from Alexander the Great to Napoleon and Hitler, represent the opposite extreme.

Natural Law reveals bad-faith motives of would-be conquerors. Pay attention to the rule, “The larger the front, the larger the back.” Those with the most to hide are exactly the ones most eager to seduce with promises of peace and acts of extravagant generosity.

Hitler, for example, didn’t bring war-weary Germans into WWII by announcing war plans. He promised just what his people wanted to hear — peace and prosperity, but then delivered a holocaust. For this reason the UN, for all its rhetoric, is suspect. Its “peace keeping” powers mask ominous potential for another push to world-domination.

An I Ching martial arts precept observes, “To push a man right, first push him left.” Chaos of natural disasters, famine and economic collapse play into the hands of empire builders. In extremes of social disorder, desperate people impulsively accept any strong man who promises to impose “order,” no matter how drastic the form, ruthless the “how” or self-serving the “why.”

After the immediate crisis passes, however, they wake up to find they’ve been maneuvered into a state of martial law where human rights no longer receive even token gestures of respect.

I Ching thinkers understand that unity and peace refer primarily to states of internal awareness and experience. When leaders use such words in the context of imposing organizational control, especially on an international scale, it’s time to proceed with great caution.

THE BACK

Disorganization is the opposite of organization. Since roots of the word imply natural order and coherent structure, the opposite implies a departure from the natural order. Disorganized lives reflect a lack of rhythm and harmony in outlook and lifestyle.

Perversions of organization include routinization and mindless, mechanical consistency. When attention isn’t focused on the immediate situation, there’s no appropriate adjustment to accommodate changing circumstances. An inflexible approach is likely to be wrong as often as right.

Disturbance in the Force – IC – 102220

Where do we draw the line between fact and fiction? Who’s to say?

With the rise of empirical science, much of what we intuitively experienced as fact had to be disguised. The only way to sneak them under the radar of cultural censorship was to pretend inner energy and light levels of the Life Wheel were fantasy. “Science fiction.”

That’s why Star Wars and Harry Potter films were so hugely popular. When the ongoing war between good and evil had to be relegated to storyland — long, long ago and far, far away — so-called fantasy fed a gaping, hungry hole in the collective psyche.

We could have our cake and eat it too — satisfy inner cravings while denying what we’ve been forbidden to know. “This doesn’t really have anything to do with us today. Not here. Not right now. No way.”

But quantum physics together with stunning research findings is lifting the veil. They’re revealing that what was dismissed as impossible fiction is not only highly possible but very, very close to home. In Becoming Supernatural, for example, Dr. Joe Dispenza documents the way “common people” are being trained to do the “uncommon.”

Chinese sages spoke of the Tao. Biblical prophets deferred to God. For modern day skeptics who write off the ancients, universal wisdom was updated. Star Wars heroes like Yoda, Obe-Wan Kenobe and Luke Skywalker revered the Force.

No difference. They all speak to the same all-powerful, central Source from which energy flows and life emerges.

Yoda tells Luke:

Size matters not. Look at me. Judge me by my size, do you? Hmm? You should not. For my ally is the Force, and a powerful ally it is. Its energy surrounds us and binds us. Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter.

Petty villains and charlatans, of course, deny its existence. Early on, Han Solo tells Luke:

Kid, I’ve flown from one side of this galaxy to the other. I’ve seen a lot of strange stuff, but I’ve never seen anything to make me believe there’s one all-powerful Force controlling everything. There’s no mystical energy field that controls my destiny.

Since he hasn’t “seen” them, the Center of the Life Wheel and middle, e=energy level couldn’t exist.

In contrast, when evil agents intentionally mess with the Force, destroying an entire planet, sensitives are instantly aware. In the original Star Wars movie, Obi-Wan describes a horrible premonition of disaster:

I felt a great disturbance in the Force…as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror, and were suddenly silenced. I fear something terrible has happened.

Science fiction serves to keep imagination alive, reminding the world of what the archetypal Life Wheel tells us simple and direct. There are levels to life, deeper than most feel free to acknowledge.

Being kept ignorance of Natural Law and operations of energy puts individuals at great disadvantage, the civilization at terrible risk. It’s too much to include here. So I’ve published a bonus blog on The E=Energy Level of the Life Wheel which all of us should have learned about in school.

Bottom line: in 2020, we urgently need to train and equip a generation of spiritual warriors – a small but effective army of Jedi knights, of Arjunas – to prevent an impending disturbance in the force . . . the disappearance of Planet Earth from among the heavens.

Do you not feel it? Politics are but the surface tip of the iceberg. It wouldn’t be the first time in our solar system. Look for the empty space between remaining planets for your proof.

The I CHING READING

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. Through the end of 2020, these bi-weekly readings are intended to serve as an introduction, to make what was unfamiliar now familiar.

My comments on Star Wars were triggered by ENERGY, the stand-alone answer to today’s question, “What should we be aware of NOW?” It reads:

By harmonizing the different aspects of one’s internal life, family relationships and job responsibilities, one can make the best use of intrinsic ENERGY. Organizing various inner energies makes it possible to act creatively and dynamically in the external world. Harness energy to worthy goals and projects. Avoid conflict and waste.

The entire quantum paradigm is built into this single reading. If you’re just skimming, it’s all too easy to miss. But it’s vitally important to recognize that the entire outer level of relationships and responsibilities is driven by intrinsic inner energies. If we want to be effective, even successful in life, we must know how (like Jedi knights) to master, harmonize and then harness our energies to serve worthy goals. This, in turn, depends upon underlying allegiance to Source. The Force. CREATIVE POWER.

One caveat here. Energy healers often repeat, “Energy is everything.” On the surface, this may appear to be so. Yes, every THING is spun from energy. BUT this does not mean energy is all there IS. Energy emanates from the deeper level of Light and, deeper still, from the Source of Light.

Nikola Tesla is often quoted to support their misleading claim: “If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency and vibration.”

However, this famous quote is listed as 27th among 47 found here. Taken in larger context, you’ll find that Tesla believed in God and recognized energy’s middle place within the larger Life Wheel pattern.

Compare Einstein with Tesla. You’ll find they’re on the same page. Albert said:

A human being is part of the whole called “‘Universe,’ a part limited in time and space. We experience ourselves, our thoughts and feelings as something separate from the rest . . .

This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from the prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty. We shall require a substantially new manner of thinking if mankind is to survive.

Nikola said:

What we now want is closer contact and better understanding between individuals and communities all over the earth, and the elimination of egoism and pride which is always prone to plunge the world into primeval barbarism and strife…

Tesla puts the limited and limiting empirical science paradigm in perspective within the larger context of reemerging Natural Law and the quantum paradigm. He wrote:

The history of science shows that theories are perishable. With every new truth that is revealed we get a better understanding of Nature and our conceptions and views are modified.

In other words, it’s not enough to scan the Book of Change for answers to personal questions. To survive 2020 challenges the better for having endured them, it’s essential to restore awareness of energy dynamics. Further, we have to recognize the place of Energy within the larger context of the quantum paradigm’s Life Wheel pattern.

Honor universal wisdom deeper than scientific fact still alive and well in Star Wars fiction.

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.

—

Light at the End of the 2020 Tunnel – IC – 101920

In late October, 2020’s cosmic symphony is building to a mighty crescendo. Whack! Crash! Bang!

Strident brass and pounding percussion sound off against wailing strings. Mars in martial Aires opposes Sun, then squares Pluto. Windy Mercury opposes moody Uranus, then turns retrograde.

But . . . Let your heart not be troubled. By year’s end, the noise settles down. Dissonance eases back into harmony. There’s a light at the end of 2020’s dark tunnel.

That’s how classic astrologers read the musical score in the sky. So does today’s I Ching reading.

Not that we can take returning peace and prosperity for granted. But it is a possibility IF we have the common sense and courage to admit past mistakes and correct them.

Getting ahead of the story, SHADOW represents the current situation. The sun of our hopes is covered over by clouds. But then . . . dynamic lines change first to PEACE and then PROSPERITY. They combine, however, to issue a challenge.

SUPPORT, the final outcome, warns of hidden risks inherent in abundance. Abuse. Were we to carry forward false, fragmenting beliefs, we would recreate the same old selfish patterns of prejudice and hatred. Repeating inequitable distribution of resources — discrimination along the lines of race, religion, age, gender or whatever – would cause another downward spiral of alienation, separation and conflict.

At end-stage 2020, we face a choice. We can decide to use abundance wisely, with gratitude. Or we can forget 2020’s lessons and squander future hope. To unify or fragment, that is the question. Will we survive or perish from the face of the earth?

What will make the difference? Einstein had the key to the new way of thinking. It was under his nose. For lack of yoga training, he missed it. But now we’ve got the Unified Field Theory. It’s embodied in the Life Wheel, consciousness factor included. Today, we can choose whether to use his formula to build bombs of destruction OR . . shift gears to the quantum paradigm of wholeness.

Hard as it may seem right now, the return of PEACE and PROSPERITY could be lie ahead — with an all-important qualifier.

The I CHING READING

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 in this series of bi-weekly blogs. Through the end of 2020, they’re intended to serve as an introduction, to make what was unfamiliar now familiar.

SHADOW is the initial answer to today’s question, “What should we be aware of today?”

Like the sun covered over by clouds, your hopes may fall under a SHADOW for awhile. You may feel cut off from others,who will not show sympathy for what you have to say. Even when it is best to remain silent, do not give up your ideals. Avoid anger.

A meditative attitude of Stillness, calmly keeping the faith, begins the process of positive change.

Then, line 2 advises: “Turn misfortunes to advantage. Outgrow obstacles that block your path.”

When this is done, the outcome is PEACE, a dynamic we saw earlier on the holy day of Atonement. We’ll see again in December:

“When the forces of nature unite in profound harmony, heavenly PEACE fills the earth. Lives blossom. Prosperity increases. Easy communication makes it possible to understand one another. This leads to cooperative efforts that will be fruitful. Tranquility follows fulfillment of life goals. Accept life’s blessings gratefully. Avoid disorder.

For those who say, “I don’t know how to cultivate inner peace,” or argue, “I have too much on my plate. Maybe later, after . . . ,” I recommend watching Eckhart Tolle’s YouTube video Finding Inner Peace During Stressful Times.

Though of different in national origin, gender, and temperament, he speaks in the same terms as do I. The Life Wheel is implicit in his teachings. Tolle contrasts living an incomplete, unhappy life on the surface with the fulfillment of going deep. The goal of his teaching is to heighten AWARENESS and awaken us to the eternal, True Self.

Next, changing line #4 advises, “If you understand your situation clearly, mishaps can be avoided.”

With more clarity, mistakes can be overcome. As Peace promises, the end result is an increase of abundance:

Use the time of PROSPERITY as the opportunity to benefit as many as possible. Hoarding wealth of any kind hastens loss. Nature acts to distribute resources equally. Therefore the way to prevent poverty is to live modestly in the present. Share wisely, without prejudice. This secures continued well-being. Avoid possessiveness.

Rather than holding tight to possessions, our ability to sustain prosperity depends on using it wisely. Don’t hoard, knowing that unjust abuses of wealth change to opposite and equal poverty. We’re living with the proof of this right now. Let’s not go back to the past, make the future a repeat of past mistakes.

How do we prevent past mistakes? Make it a practice to work with AWARENESS tools so we make better choices in the future. Continue to work with the I Ching, which one astrologer rightly calls a “spiritual GPS.”

There’s also enduring wisdom in the Tao Te Ching. This familiar, world-loved book sets principles of the relatively unfamiliar Book of Change (its foundation) into motion.

It wasn’t easy to choose among relevant examples. Here, just one must stand for the rest. Other (highly recommended) passages offer ways out of madness. Passage 53 speaks to the price paid in 2020 for past mistakes:

Sound familiar?

So. Throughout repeating cycles of history, humanity has been at low-ebb many times before. The bad news is, we forget and repeat the same the same mistakes, over and over. The good news is, there’s a track-record kept by sages who know and can show us the way out of madness.

Deep into 2020’s dark tunnel, we would do well return to this priceless resource of Wisdom. Respect those whose purpose was, is and always will be to lead us into the LIGHT.

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 CSBOC, or extras to give others, click here.

To orderTwo 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.

We Share This in Common – IC – 101520

Today, we’re already under the influence of a super New Moon that perfects tomorrow in Libra – the sign that rules relationships. This includes legal justice as well as relationships with ourselves, family, friends, community, and Source.

FYI, it’s called “super” because closeness to Earth intensifies its affect.

Be warned, we’re in for another rocky ride. One astrologer foresees “a lot of butting heads.”

Another sees it as a day to “Expand your life!!” Yet another focuses on the higher octave, recommending in the midst of chaos and breakdown, to “BE OPEN To A Higher Love”

Then, of course, there’s Pam Gregory. Followers find her insights immensely helpful. “You are getting me through 2020, Pam. You are my #1 ‘news’ source and I’m infinitely grateful to you.”

She sees two major themes this month. First is “deconstruction of the old order,” establishment clashing with strident demands for equality. Second comes shocking, seismic events: earthquakes, volcanic eruptions or political scandals.

Coinciding with this Libra New Moon, the U.S. Senate’s Supreme Court hearings have attracted unusual interest.

Now, I know some object. Astrology is pagan. It’s morally and/or scientifically wrong to pay attention to New Moons.

My answer: “It depends.” Natural Law is an integral (often overlooked) piece of the larger puzzle. Taken out of context, worshiped to the exclusion (or in defiance) of Source, Agreed. Not wise.

However, it’s useful to know about astral energy information for several reasons.

First, over thousands of years, sages have looked to the stars (not just planets) for information. Certainly, they were on to something important. They couldn’t all be wrong.

Second, whether consciously or unconsciously, no matter how immune we like to believe we are, planetary energies have a powerful affect on moods and behavior. It’s a primal thing we share in common, but have woefully forgotten. (Personally, I prefer be forewarned of “disturbances in the force,” the better to adjust and respond compassionately.)

Third, many follow astrology. Predictions shape expectations. Even when they’re silly, many believe them. So be aware of what people are thinking.

Fourth, again, knowledge of the middle, e=energy level of the Life Wheel is neutral. Its value, positive or negative, depends on the motives and skill of the user. Folks with Hitler-like motives are exploiting 2020’s dynamics to further their ends. They count on programmed, head-in-the-sand attitudes to get away with their schemes.

It behooves the spiritual warriors among us to be more skillful than they are, able to redirect and unify fragmented energies.

The I CHING READING

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.

ORIGIN is the first answer to today’s question, “What should we be aware of now?” It picks up where the last post, Where Do We Come From, left off and carries forward the theme of discovering inner worlds:

All people thirst to know the roots of their ORIGIN. At one level, learning about family and cultural traditions fills this need. At another level, this quest is satisfied by seeking for deeper knowledge. The vitality of all races flows from a single source which never runs dry. Avoid narrow-mindedness.

Family and tradition represent the outer rim of daily experience; vitality is the middle, energy level of the Life Wheel which links surface with Center.

In 2020, the chief complaint of “not-enoughness” comes from a powerful thirst for deeper knowledge. Relationship conflicts at every level reflect a programmed, socialized disconnect from Source.

For those who avoid narrow thinking, ORIGIN changes twice. On a hopeful note, line three advises, “Let others know what you can do. Opportunities will develop.”

When the advice is followed, the line changes to DANGER:

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.

The Book of Change has warned me of Danger many, many times. I’ll have more to say about this a month from now, when it reappears as a stand-alone. Here, the key is to protect against negative emotions.

The advice of the 4th line supports the 3rd. It hints at the way to explore new worlds. “Withdraw from activities long enough to rest and re-energize yourself.” Meditation, however it’s practiced, is an important counterbalance to 2020 conflict.

Heeded, the 4th line changes to INNER STRENGTH:

When difficult situations come to a head, rely on INNER STRENGTH to endure. If it becomes necessary to retreat, do so with courage and self-confidence. Make sure your inner and outer resources are secure. If you must begin a new life, you will have to depend on them. Avoid helplessness.

This confirms what many of us sense. In 2020’s year of critical mass, situations are coming to a head.

Resources on the surface include family, friends and community. Deeper, they include emotional maturity, mental clarity and steadfast faith in Source.

NOW. When heeded, the changing lines combine to form a familiar outcome. Arrived at in a different way, it’s the same as last time: DEPRESSION:

At times when it seems as if one’s resources are exhausted, care must be taken to soften the harmful effects of DEPRESSION. Whether the cause of depression is mental, emotional or economic, do not despair. The time will pass. Use hardship to develop inner strength and calm. Avoid negative thoughts.

Here there are two keys. First is Inner Strength, which repeats and reinforces the 4th changing line. Second is avoiding negative thoughts, the way to overcome Danger.

Depression too occurs on all levels of the Life Wheel. On the outer rim, it takes economic forms. In the middle, e=energy realm, it manifests as negative emotions. Deeper still, it registers as attachment to false beliefs.

Today’s take-away: rest assured, Depression will pass. In the meantime, benefit from its hidden blessings by exploring inner worlds, the better to return stronger, wiser and prepared to meet whatever may come next.

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.

Where Do We Come From? – IC – 101220

October 12th is Columbus Day, an American holiday viewed by many with mixed emotions.

It marks the official date when, in 1492, the Spanish explorer Christopher Columbus first set foot in the Americas.

What he set out to do was open a trade route to Asia. Instead, he discovered a whole New World.

In Journal of the First Voyage, Columbus described the three-month journey prior to landing. Crossing the Atlantic in wooden ships, the Nina, La Pinta and Santa Maria, was a harrowing ordeal:

Here the people could stand it no longer and complained of the long voyage . . .

“The Admiral cheered them as best he could,” he wrote. He also told them “it was useless to complain.” His mind was made up. He was determined, with God’s help, to go forward.

Ironically, on Columbus Day 2020, people of the world are again at sea, in the midst of a frightening journey, facing an unknown future, hardly able to stand it.

Now, here’s today’s problem. Americans once identified with Columbus as a national hero. We loved his vision and courage. But as the shadow side of cruelty came to light, we started to doubt our heritage. . . and ourselves.

Indigenous people got the short-end of Spain’s invasion. Should we therefore reject Columbus . . . and our heritage . . . entirely?

Or with compassion, should we shake our heads, knowing that as a law of nature, “Whatever has a front has a back. The larger the front, the larger the back.” Throughout history, the greater the venture, the greater its shadow-side of tragedy.

In duality, there are two sides to every coin. (Let anyone, on any side, who believes they’re exempt from the rule think twice, and then twice again!)

The I Ching solution is to go deeper within the Life Wheel, where all sides dance together as players in a larger story. In truth, our identities don’t depend on historical events, but on the eternal life we share in common.

Last week’s reading, OVERCOMING, offers a way to transcend illusory differences. Inspired music, art, theater and poetry remind us of a deeper origin, beyond race, gender, or nationality:

The harmonizing arts are useful tools for OVERCOMING the forces which block and separate. Inspired music, drama and art express the common light which guides all.

One example of inspired poetry to illustrate the point is Intimations of Immortality. Written by the 19th century poet William Wordsworth, it resonates powerfully with Einstein’s words. The illusion of separateness is like a prison, from which we must get free:

Similarly, the Tao Te Ching gives poetic life to I Ching wisdom:

In 1492, his crew rebelled against the terrible crossing. Columbus however, full of faith in God, was determined to stay the course. In the end, he discovered a whole New World.

Today, 528 years later, at another crossroads, the immediate future is painfully uncertain. However, those who keep the faith and accept the challenge of shifting gears to a higher octave will prevail. Ahead unknown new worlds are waiting to be discovered. The final frontier is within.

The I Ching Reading

Because The Book of Change isn’t taught in schools, it remains unfamiliar. That’s why I’ve chosen to bring the book to you. The goal is to make what was once unfamiliar now familiar.

FLOW is the initial answer to the question, “What should we be aware of today?” It reads:

Follow the natural FLOW of daily events. Swimming against the tide would exhaust your energies and accomplish little. Be realistic about changes which have taken place. Adapt to the present situation. Let others take the lead now. Assist them if possible. Live a quiet and simple life. Avoid stress.

Here, Flow is the extension of BALANCE, the original Fall Equinox reading:

Life flows to establish BALANCE among the basic elements of nature. Opposites clash and find a middle ground. Any imbalance in life will attract the opposite which restores balance. Waste creates want. Selfishness brings bad luck. Therefore, to stay in harmony with nature, remain moderate in all ways. Avoid extremes.

End-stage 2020 is awash in the consequences of extreme imbalance. Extravagant waste of resources — natural, human, and economic — is off-set by increasing poverty. Intensely partisan politics is off-set by escalating murder rates, scary scandals, and illness on every level.

Nature mirrors human imbalance with hurricanes, floods, and raging forest fires.

But resisting hardship makes matters worse. Instead, the I Ching approach to 2020 madness is to accept and adjust.

For those who choose to go with the FLOW, avoiding undue stress, there’s a change. Line 3 warns, “Be firm in separating from weaker elements of the past.”

I take this to mean that the imperialist mentality Columbus brought with him to the New World did not serve anyone well. To move forward into a better future, the separatist illusion of superiority must be left in the past, along with the limited materialist paradigm of empirical science.

Its warning heeded, line three changes to DEPRESSION.

At times when it seems as if one’s resources are exhausted, care must be taken to soften the harmful effects of DEPRESSION. Whether the cause of depression is mental, emotional or economic, do not despair. The time will pass. Use hardship to develop inner strength and calm. Avoid negative thoughts.

I read this in the context of a year when the inevitable consequences of extreme imbalance have reached critical mass. They can’t be avoided. They can, however, be learned from.

For those able to hear, tough times are extending the opportunity to go deep within, discover quantum new worlds of inner strength and light.

Looking forward, DEPRESSION is part of a larger pattern weaving through the rest of 2020. So there’s practical wisdom in choosing to go with the FLOW. Decide right now to make the best of what’s available, turning it to long-term advantage.

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 CSBOC, or extras to give others, click here.

To orderTwo 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.

Gandhi’s Way Out of Madness – IC – 100820

Before going further, rest assured. I’m not a politician. I’m not politically motivated. What follows flows from a profound sense of responsibility.

That being said, here goes.

During 2020’s polarizing time of conflict and loss, the last thing that appeals is the urgently needed counterbalance. People are upset — angry, afraid and worried about the future. No one wants to hear about focus and meditation.

But it’s exactly when things fall apart, when it seems as if “the center does not hold,” that voices of reason telling us to stay calm are most needed.

Practical tools which help us “keep it together” don’t hurt either.

We need ways to cut through the noise of distracting, propaganda news.

We’ve got important decisions to make. As top priority, we need to know what our choices really are — what’s ultimately at stake for the future.

For example: missing the mark by a long mile, BLM’s violent agenda is anti-family, anti-freedom, ultimately anti-survival. Neither positive nor progressive, members fight no-holds-barred to shift public thinking to the extreme far left, dangerously off-center.

It’s a far cry from the vision of Martin Luther King, Jr., whose birthday is celebrated by us in the U.S. as a national holiday.

BLM’s goals are antithetical to King’s. Where MLK would uplift and unify, they polarize and fragment.

Now. Borrowing from You Are Already Enough!, this is what the madness of fragmentation looks like from the Unified Field perspective. The levels of the Life Wheel are thrown off balance. They’re out of synch:

MLK gave the world a remedy. In Pilgrimage to Nonviolence, he wrote:

Nonviolence is both an attitude and a strategy. MLK learned it from Gandhi, who was credited with showing the world “a way out of madness.” Gandhi, in turn, got the idea from the Yoga Sutras of Pantajli.

Yoga philosophy calls it ahimsa: nonviolence in both thought and action. It’s a commitment to not causing pain, mental or physical, to any living being.

Gentleness, the final outcome of today’s reading, is the I Ching equivalent.

It’s important to understand that the middle level of the Life Wheel where Natural Law operates is impartial. Unlike humans, energy doesn’t have values.

Energy simply IS. It doesn’t care who uses it, how or why. Anyone can harness it to any end. Like a docile ox or a red Ferrari, it takes the driver, without question, wherever told. Whether it’s used or abused depends on the driver.

Mao Tse-Tung is a real world example of abuse. He says in On Guerrilla Warfare:

Careful planning is necessary if victory is to be won in guerrilla war, and those who fight without method do not understand the nature of guerrilla action. . . Even in defense, all our efforts must be directed toward a resumption of the attack, for it is only by attack that we can extinguish our enemies and preserve ourselves . . .

With an instinctive understanding of Natural Law, Mao brilliantly outmaneuvered his enemies to become China’s ruler. The strategy was effective. But it was driven by shallow ambition, not love.

BLM street fighters have much in common with Mao. Using his strategy of guerrilla warfare, they’re gaining ground. But their ends are similar.

So at the crossroads of 2020, humanity faces a choice. Which path will it be? MLK’s way of understanding and cooperation? Or Mao’s road to genocide and tyranny? (BTW: Quitting in confusion — being paralyzed into inaction, is also a choice. It too has consequences.)

Think about it. Carefully. What future are we choosing for ourselves, our children and grandchildren?

The I Ching Reading

Because The Book of Change isn’t taught in schools, it remains unfamiliar to most. Like other knowledge arising from the “taboo” inner levels of the Life Wheel, it remains a mystery. That’s why I’ve chosen to bring the book to you. The goal is to make what was once unfamiliar now familiar.

FRESH START is the original answer to today’s question, “What should we be aware of NOW?” It reads:

Even when it seems that all has been spoiled, it is possible to make a FRESH START. Be willing to face your faults. Find out how to correct them. The situation will gradually improve if you are sincere and work hard. Be sure you know what you want. Avoid delay.

Spot on!

Right now, it seems virtually everything has been spoiled. The economy, the healthcare system, school schedules, our social lives . . . even the course of the U.S. election.

The prospect of a Fresh Start is a breath of fresh air!

But hold on. Fresh Start may be the original reading, but it changes. It’s not the final outcome. Getting from here to there won’t be instant. Nor is it guaranteed.

Middle steps are involved. Two were introduced on September 28th in At-one-ment. The first is recognizing mistakes: owing up to the ways we miss the mark. Repentance. The second is self-correction: overcoming conflict and shifting gears to the Unified Field paradigm.

A third is Clarity, the final outcome of We’re At Critical Mass. Going forward, we’ve got to be crystal clear about our goals.

With this in mind, the advice of today’s changing 5th line is: “Demonstrate the ability to improve yourself. This will earn respect.”

Good intentions aren’t enough. Follow-through and results are required. The end goal is earning respect. (That would get a thumbs-up from MLK. ☺)

If the warning is heeded, Line 5 changes to GENTLENESS:

As the wind moves clouds, shapes mountains and stirs the trees, so GENTLENESS has a powerful influence. Quiet, steady gradual actions win respect and cooperation. Find out what concerns the people you work with and speak in those terms. In this way, you can reach their minds. Avoid noisy conflict.

Like Gandhi’s nonviolence, Gentleness is both an attitude and a strategy. Again, respect and cooperation resonate with MLK’s goals.

Now, don’t confuse being gentle with being a wimp. Far from being weak, Gentleness is a reflection of deep inner strength.

Gentleness is inspired by love. It blends thoughtful kindness with patience. Unlike Mao’s “attack and extinguish” guerrilla warfare, Gentleness avoids conflict. Instead, it wears down resistance and overcomes misunderstandings, gradually changing conflict into peace.

NB: On a final, hopeful note: today’s Fresh Start is at the beginning. It reappears as a final outcome at the end of 2020. Twice. First on December 21st, date of an exceptionally powerful winter solstice. Then on New Year’s Eve. So keep the faith. There’s a light at the end of 2020’s dark tunnel.

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 CSBOC, or extras to give others, click here.

To orderTwo 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.

Shifting Gears – IC – 100520

Today’s reading begins where last one ended:

At this crossroads, there’s a choice.

Either we can get sucked into the drama. Play out the anger. Drown in despair.

Or . . . we can use the opportunity of chaotic times to shift gears. Take a deep breath. Go within. Shift our minds to a higher level of consciousness. Change the way we think. Get better results.

The key phrase here is “SHIFT OUR MINDS.” What does that mean? How is it done? If there’s a shift, what are we leaving behind? Where are we headed?

Is a shift – a change in the way we think – really necessary?

Einstein thought so: “You cannot solve a problem from the same level of consciousness that created it.”

This needs unpacking. It’s really important.

***

Q. What problem are we talking about?

A. The problem of human survival. Einstein warned it can no longer be taken for granted. At end-stage 2020, we’re talking about conflict, within and without. Internal fear, anger and hatred is driving explosive external violence, tearing the world apart.

***

Q. At what level of consciousness was this conflict created?

A. On the outer m=mass, material rim of the Life Wheel. Conflict is the result of being cut off from the inner levels, separated from Source.

***

Q. At what level can the problem of conflict be solved?

A. At the innermost levels of intuition (Einstein’s good friend) and Creative Power.

***

Q. How do I get from here to there?

A. It starts with a paradigm shift, first personally, then collectively. Problems can’t be solved without a complete and accurate reality map that shows 1) where problems start and 2) the higher levels of consciousness where the Source of solutions resides.

***

As a matter of human survival, we urgently need to shift the way we think from the exclusively materialistic paradigm of empirical science to the Unified Field paradigm pictured below.

So. Here’s another picture worth 10,000 words. It shows that the called-for shift is one of focus, away from the M=Mass material world of drama and the e=energy level the emotions (fear, anger, and hatred). It’s a shift of attention towards the deeper realms where healing, solace and solutions are found.

So. How do I get from here to there?

Early on, my beloved teacher said it was my choice.“You can make it as easy or hard as you like.”

The easy way is to repent (admit mistakes) and atone (change). Increasing self-awareness with introspective tools, including scriptures and/or the Book of Change, helps. Meditation, especially Joe Dispenza’s dogma-free, science-based approach, is a fast track.

In each case, the purpose is to restore original UNITY to our lives. For this, we need to honor all levels of the Life Wheel. They need to be prioritized, aligned and integrated. Like the gears of a finely tuned mechanical clock designed to tell the correct time, they have to be in synch.

That’s the short story. : )

But then . . . . there’s the hard way. Sadly, it’s the path most often traveled – the fractured one of attachment, denial and resistance.

Another OA story makes the point. It starts with a man who sold a mule, guaranteeing it was a hard worker. But the purchaser returned it, disgusted. Wouldn’t do a thing.

No problem. The seller picked up a 2’x4’ and whacked the mule, hard, right on top of the head. Instantly, it perked up and did whatever it was told.

He chided the purchaser, “All you had to do was get its attention.”

It seems to me that, to get our attention, life is whacking the world with a 2’x4’. . . hard.

Since the vast majority has ignored calls to change that could have been answered the easy way, it’s happening now . . . the hard way.

The I CHING READING

Because we’ve never been taught about The Book of Change, it’s unfamiliar. Along with most of what belongs to the “taboo” inner level of e=energy, its ways remain a mystery, its value forfeit. That’s why I’ve chosen to bring the book to you. Let these bi-weekly readings serve as an opportunity to make what was unfamiliar more familiar.

The answer to today’s question, “What should we be aware of NOW?” is unusual in this way. For the first time in this series, there are no changing lines. OVERCOMING stands unchanged as the consistent, recommended way to Shift Gears:

The harmonizing arts are useful tools for OVERCOMING the forces which block and separate. Inspired music, drama and art express the common light which guides all. Community celebrations remind participants to cooperate in seeking prosperous peace. Rituals celebrating the changes of life affirm the unity of all beings. Avoid isolation.

The vibrations of music evoke and release emotions. Through resonance, inspired art touches and uplifts the soul.

When we immerse ourselves in any kind of creative work, however humble, the inner levels of our personal life wheels open and align.

Music is said to be the easiest, most joyous path to enlightenment. Sufi Inayat Khan (a master musician) wrote:

The art of music has been especially considered divine, because it is the exact miniature of the law working through the whole universe. . .

Exactly. Einstein most certainly experienced this mystery first-hand. He was a violinist, especially attracted to Mozart. When he got stuck, like Sherlock Holmes, he took out his fiddle. Music relaxed him. And inspiration would flow.

Like the I Ching, sacred art that mirrors “the law working through the whole universe” reminds us of our divine origins. It speaks to the universal truths we share in common, but too often forget. Here are variations on the wheels-within-wheels theme of life:

NB. A pattern is forming here. Today’s post builds on earlier ones, systematically, as if it’s all preplanned. Synchronicity at work. I look forward to finding out where it leads next. I hope you do too.

Collected readings 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 your very own copy of the CSBOC, to answer your unique questions at your own convenience, or want extras to give others, click here.

Two Sides of a Coin: Lao Tze’s Common Sense Way of Change is a yoga-based version of the Tao Te Ching, the ever popular, poetic and practical expression of IC Natural Law.To order a copy, click here.

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