Tag Archives: Lao Tze

We’re Never Alone 

In the prescient, 2014 Rethinking Survival, this final section follows Alien Invaders, We’re in a Terrible Mess, Fresh Start, and Einstein’s New Way of Thinking.  

Again, it’s written in the free-association style of who I was at the time. I’m so different now, there’s no point in trying to rework it. I’m letting it stand, for the value it has to offer. 

In the book, all the quotes are footnoted with careful precision. I’ve decided against cluttering this space with scholarly paraphernalia. Most of the references are easily searchable online. If there’s a problem, I’ll gladly supply supporting materials. 

We’re Never Alone: Gladwell’s Giants and Misfits in Perspective 

When Malcolm Gladwell’s David and Goliath came out recently, I had to read it. The subject promised to be a perfect fit with the vision of Rethinking. After all, King David is my ideal: musician, psalmist, warrior and king in one. 

It turns out this book is a perfect example of how sorely the Quantum Paradigm is needed. “We need a better guide for facing giants,” Gladwell wrote.  

I agree.  

Here it is. 

As far as it goes, the book is a good read. What’s lacking is the Quantum Life Wheel to put David and Goliath in context. From this perspective, Goliath was stuck on the surface. Despite his physical size, he was ultimately powerless.  

David, on the other hand, was connected to Center. That gave him the advantage. 

Using this model, we can place the source of David’s strength as well as his strategies and his deadly slingshot.  

Resting in the innermost hub of the wheel was the source of little David’s confidence — the timeless God of Israel.  

His strategies, however, belonged to the dynamic, energy level.  

His prowess as a straightshooter depended on physical strength, visual acuity and years of experience. Those have their place on the material surface.  

In other words, the levels of David’s life were coordinated. They were in synch. Unified. 

If David had drawn a blank on any one of the three levels, he wouldn’t have succeeded then. Nor can anyone succeed today.  

Vision that’s not backed by good plan and technical competence is incomplete. Cunning strategies lacking equal competence to execute them are lop-sided. Without a direct connection with the creative center, all the physical resources in the world aren’t enough. 

There are several reasons, however, why the story of David and Goliath isn’t the best model for coping with adversity today. 

For one, we’re at a very different point in history. We’re at end stage. Civilization was relatively young back then. Different times call for different responses. 

Further, confronting a single foe face-to-face was one matter. The tangled mess of corporate-faced, alien-driven evil which little guys are up against now is a much different threat. Different dangers call for different protections. 

Another point: Gladwell’s subtitle refers to underdogs and misfits. It’s not a good idea to romanticize misfits. Timothy McVey and Charles Manson were misfits. They didn’t fit in with mainstream society, but with good cause. 

It’s the telescoping mistake. Extremes on both sides of the bell-shaped median are lumped together and written off as “deviant.” But spiritual geniuses and murderous psychopaths don’t belong in the same category. 

Further, not all giants are enemies of the people. There are corporate CEOs who treat their workers decently and genuinely serve the public. When I searched my memory banks for a good example, I thought back to Glenn Beck’s billionaire philanthropist friend.  

What was his name?! It took me a couple days to find it. 

Strangely, he doesn’t get much media attention. (Why not is an interesting question!) 

But Jon Huntsman, Sr. is living proof. A corporate giant can be as much a part of the solution as the underdogs. Sometimes even more. 

A web search comes up with several sides to his story. He gained his wealth by climbing the corporate ladder of success. In 1974, Huntsman Container Corporation created the “clamshell” container for the McDonald’s Big Mac. It developed other popular products, including the first plastic plates and bowls. This led to the 1994 founding of the multi-billion-dollar Huntsman Corporation. He continues to expand into new business ventures. 

As a philanthropist, Huntsman has given away more than $1.2 billion to both domestic and international charities. His humanitarian aid includes help to the homeless, ill and underprivileged. 

He holds that the very rich should give not half, as Gates and Buffet say, but a full 80 percent of their wealth to worthy causes. It should be through voluntary choice, however. Not taxation.  

In this, he agrees with Thomas Paine’s Common Sense. His goal is to give away everything before he dies. But this isn’t an easy task. He keeps on making too much money. 

On the personal side, Huntsman not only lost parents to cancer, but is himself a four-time cancer survivor. His response has been to turn adversity into opposite and equal good. The Huntsman Cancer Institute in Salt Lake City accelerates the work of curing cancer through human genetics. It also focuses on providing humane care to cancer patients. 

Huntsman has been married to his wife Karen for over fifty years. He’s the father of nine children. The eldest son, Jon Jr. is a public servant. He was the governor of Utah, and later an ambassador to China. (Small world.) The second son is a corporate executive who carries on his father’s business. 

Come to find out, Jon Huntsman. Sr. is also an author. One of his books is Winners Never Cheat – Even in Difficult Times. Amazon’s editorial review calls him “one of the finest human beings, industrial leaders and philanthropists on the planet.” His book drills down on “ten timeless, universal values” for business and life. The review concludes that Huntsman’s work edifies, inspires and motivates all of us to model his common sense lessons. 

Timeless? Universal? Common sense? I like it!  

Winners Play By the Rules is another of his titles. This book tells “how to keep your moral compass pointed toward true North — even when those around you are compromising their ethics.”  

True North? Compasses? WOW. There is a positive paradigm shift going on. I am not alone in this. 

Redefining Power 

Gladwell says little guys need to redefine power. That’s what I’ve done in Part Two. True power comes from within. Goliath, who drew strength primarily from the physical plane, was puny compared to the force behind David’s sling. 

Gladwell notes that a single smooth stone to center of Goliath’s head probably destroyed the pituitary gland. He quotes researchers who theorize that the giant had a glandular disorder which explains his huge size. This same pituitary disease would have caused eye problems. That’s probably why a slave had to lead him into battle. Presumably his vision was failing. 

But from a holistic perspective, the same story has a deeper meaning. David’s single shot went straight to the third eye, the ajna center located in the center of the forehead. It correlates with the pineal gland, a close neighbor of the pituitary. In yoga anatomy, this center is associated with spiritual vision. 

David’s projectile put out the giant’s lights. It was poetic justice for an enemy who was closed to inner truth. That was the giant’s weakness. It remains the weakness of bad guys today as well. A single shot is all it takes, when you know where to aim. 

It reminds me of the plumber with a golden hammer. The story is told about a home owner with a flooded basement who makes an emergency call. The plumber comes. Climbs a ladder. Reaches up to the leaking pipe. Takes out a golden hammer and taps. Once. Tink.  

Problem solved. 

Then he gives the owner his bill. That will be $350.  

What? Why? That took less than five minutes!  

The plumber’s answer: “The charge is for knowing where to tap.” 

Bad guys have blind spots. That’s their weakness and the good guy’s advantage. If they’ve cut themselves off from the center, no matter how rich and powerful in the world, or how charismatic at the middle level of energy dynamics, in the long run they’re the losers. 

The middle layer of the Positive Paradigm shows us what’s missing from Gladwell’s book. Applying David’s story to today’s dilemmas falls short without the complete picture. David’s God broadcasts from the center of the wheel.  

Today, noisy competitors are broadcasting from the middle, astral plane. In effect, they jam the air waves, making it hard to hear the still small voice of conscience. 

When religionists comfort us that we’re not alone, they’re telling us a half truth. Christ is broadcasting from the center (even when we can’t hear or won’t do). But there are lots of competing distractions. Some voices mimic good angels, but aren’t.  

My description in Part Two bears repeating here: 

. . . spirits, ghosts, leprechauns, angels and demons or jinn acknowledged by various mystic traditions also reside at the middle level. 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. So long as their invisible influence remains unaccounted for, the failings and depravities of human governments remain mystifying. 

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. 

This is why the David paradigm can’t be taken at face value. David told Goliath, “God is with me.” But since then, the same claim has been made by numerous demon-driven leaders. Combatants on both sides of every battle want their followers to believe that God is on their side. 

What makes sense in Quantum Paradigm context is that David was with God. He was listening. He “knew” what he had to say and do. And he did it. 

Here’s a time-tested way to know who is who. Ask who’s calling. If it’s Christ broadcasting from the center, or a true disciple, LISTEN. If it’s a voice from the astral plane that won’t acknowledge Christ, then DON’T. Tell it to scram.  

Remember the words of the marvelous cartoonist James Thurber. He drew a panther lounging in a telephone booth with the receiver in its paw. The caption reads: “If it’s a panther, don’t anther.” 

Here’s another way the David and Goliath book breaks down. Gladwell wants to identify ways for little guys to battle big guys. First, not all little guys are good guys. Nor do little guys have to come up with strategies now as if inventing the wheel from scratch. They’ve been codified in cultures saturated in I Ching philosophy for thousands of years. 

The middle level is the realm of the Natural Law encoded in the Book of Change. Energy dynamics are impartial. They work regardless of the user’s motives. For every David who uses strategies to defeat a wicked enemy, there are countless Alinsky clones. 

They’ll use every underhanded strategy in the book to undermine anyone who gets in the way of what they want. Sometimes the motive is sheer greed. They fabricate excuses for confiscating other people’s wealth. 

For every sage like Lao Tze who honored the Tao and wrote the classic Tao Te Ching, there many others also immersed in spinoffs of I Ching savvy whose connection to the Center of the Life Wheel is uncertain.  

Sun Tzu, for example, applied the principles of natural law to describe The Art of War.

Later offshoots include versions like the 36 Stratagems. One has the suggestive title Lure the Tiger Out of the Mountains. This book pairs anecdotes from Chinese history with stories about current corporate practices. It shows how IBM, Apple, Microsoft, and other business giants overcame early odds to beat out the competition. They used the same yin-yang strategies which the advisors to Chinese emperors recommended in the past. 

A more chilling version is Hide a Dagger Behind a Smile: Use the 36 Ancient Chinese Strategies to Seize the Competitive Edge. 

Musashi’s Book of Five Rings is a Japanese approach to strategy. 

In fact, Saul Alinsky comes straight out of this tradition. He could well have taken his ideas from the Asian history books.  

Remember him? He’s the one who dedicated Rules for Radicals to “those who want to change the world from what it is to what they believe it should be.” 

Change strategies are variations on the theme: “Extreme yin changes to extreme yang. Extreme yang changes to extreme yin.” 

In others words, giants and underdogs trade places. In this scheme of things, the apparently powerless, like little David, have always had options for turning the tables in their favor. 

Natural law also reminds us of the yin-yang paradox. “Whatever has a front has a back. The larger the front, the larger the back.” As described from personal experience, those who project the most holy image predictably have the most corrupt underbelly.  

Extreme size like Goliath’s is unbalanced. It changes into a liability. One’s greatest strength can be flipped to become one’s greatest weakness. (The same goes for governments, too.) 

So, the David and Goliath story is a useful example that can be applied to current events. On the surface, it may not seem unique. Corporate executives who accept the Japanese maxim “Business is War” practice taking advantage of yin-yang principles to maximize profits and power. 

But here’s the important riddle to solve. What’s the difference between Saul Alinsky and David? What separates Alinsky-clones from Positive Action advocates? 

The answer: Alinsky and his clones are functional atheists. 

Like Goliath, they’ve cut themselves off from the center of the Positive Paradigm Wheel. They may be intimidating or charismatic, but they’re not enlightened. Far from it. 

David, in contrast, linked the levels. He was in harmony with Source. He spoke for it and acted from it. Positive Action advocates aspire to follow David’s example. 

Perhaps it’s time for the good (not necessarily little) guys to take the hint. Mastery of Natural Law can be a good thing. As I’ve labored to demonstrate, in Quantum Paradigm context, it’s not opposed to Divine Law. 

There’s no either/or choice. Nature is integral to the whole. 

Stratagems aren’t good or bad in themselves. There are white magicians and black magicians. Both are adept at manipulating the elements of nature. It all depends on who’s doing what and why. 

Bottom line: it’s a matter of survival to be savvy in dynamics at the middle level of the paradigm. A step in this direction is already being taken. Books coming onto the market now advocate using Alinsky’s tactics to protect and restore what alien infiltrators of both church and state are actively destroying. 

Conversion 

The real beauty of the Quantum Paradigm model is this. It serves as proof that it’s never too late to change. Given the right circumstances, even the most obstinate resistance to the calling of conscience melts away. 

Einstein’s formula of energy conversion applies to changes of faith in both directions. Believers fall away from their faith. The faithless return to the fold. The prodigal son completes the hero’s journey. After trials and travails, much to his father’s joy, he returns home, forgiven and welcomed. 

Here’s a current example of conversion in both directions. 

Matt Morris, known as a Micky Mouse Club member and later as a writer, has captured public attention. He was raised as an Episcopalian. In 2009, reacting against his church experience, he left Christianity. He turned instead to Druidry. a form of nature worship. In 2013, he was actually on the cover of Witches and Pagans Magazine.  

Shortly afterwards, Morris made a sudden about face. It was as if he’d become aware of Christ broadcasting from the center. He wrote in a blog post: 

I’m overwhelmed with thoughts of Jesus. Jesus and God and Christianity and the Lord’s Prayer and compassion and forgiveness and hope and judgment and freedom from judgment and all of the things which made (and make) me feel connected to the Sacred. 

He denied that he’d returned to institutionalized religion. It seems his experience was qualitatively different. He’d made a direct link with the eternal center. 

The biography of C.S. Lewis is another example of conversion. He’s best known as the author of The Chronicles of Narnia, a thinly disguised parable of the Christ story.  

Earlier, however, during WWI, horrors witnessed on the battlefield turned him to atheism. Then, eventually, he changed his views. He used reason to reconnect with faith. The world’s beauty persuaded him of the undeniable existence of “Intelligent Design.” 

Nelson Mandela’s story is the most famous example of two-way conversion. Frustrated by lack of results from protesting peacefully against state-sanctioned apartheid, he became a card-carrying Marxist Communist. He turned away from the path of peace to violence. 

When he was arrested as the leader of a terrorist organization in South Africa, Mandela admitted to his crimes. But instead of receiving the death penalty, he was sentenced to life in prison. 

Twenty-seven years in jail became a blessing in disguise. They gave him the gift of quiet time, which he turned into the opportunity to rethink his past. 

Had Mandala chosen to pursue the path of vengeance when he was released from prison, a bloodbath would have followed. 

However, he had changed. He chose the path of love and forgiveness. He became a unifier, leading blacks and whites together to overcome unjust separation of the races. By the time of his death in early December of 2013, Nelson Mandala the peaceful protester and then hunted criminal had become a revered national leader. People worldwide had come to regard him as a saint. 

But always remember: the opposite side of the coin is equally possible. Even those who’ve had a glimpse of the eternal cannot take enlightenment for granted. Many pitfalls and unforeseen dangers lurk along the paradigm’s two-way street. God is constant. Humans are not.  

The night of Christ’s arrest, Peter denied him three times before the morning came, much to his great sorrow.  

Continuous vigilance is a must. 

You Never Know 

In Part One, I described my experience with neatsies — miracles. With the supreme confidence of youth, I traveled safely alone through Europe. There was little planning and less money. But a lot of “luck.” Looking back now, it only seemed that I was alone. Of course, I never was. 

The same hidden hand that guided and protected me throughout has brought me to this point. Just as I wrote The Common Sense Book of Change as an act of faith in 1975, I’m doing the same with Rethinking Survival now, more than thirty years later. The twists and turns on my road — the numerous kaleidescope reversals — were integral to the process. 

Even in this, I am not alone. I was amazed when I recently happened upon the story of another life traveler. He used exactly the same words I have to sum up his experience: “Your never know.” 

In a seminar recorded on video, Master Chungliang Al Huang tells how one thing led to another through a lifetime of unforeseen changes. As a child, he was given a traditional education in all things Chinese. He studied the philosophy of Confucius. He practiced Tai Chi. He mastered the art of calligraphy using an artist’s brush. 

He then came to the United States and became thoroughly American. He studied architecture and worked as a architect. Then one thing led to another. 

A step at a time, he reverted back to the roots of his Chinese origins. He became a dancer; he performed with the Martha Graham troupe. In the 1960s, when Americans were hungry for Tai Chi, he was invited to become an instructor at the Esalen Institute in California. 

He’s become a boundary-spanner, working to link Western and Asian cultures. Just as I fantasized about the possibility of seducing the Chinese into remembering their neglected I Ching roots, he’s working to rescue his native land from the heartless, atheistic influence of current rulers. He literally says,” There’s a paradigm shift going on in China now.” 

Actually, sir, it’s going on worldwide. Everyone everywhere is being called to remember the heart of the perennial philosophy which they share in common. In fact, there’s a Quantum Paradigm shift going on. 

So I must make this small caution. The highest compliment Chungliang Al Huang gives Caucasian members of his audience is, “You have a Chinese heart.” I would answer, “No. I have a universal heart. And so do you. So did Einstein.” 

The same hidden hand that has opened doors of opportunity and taken him on a marvelous journey of change has guided me all my days as well. No country, culture or class has a monopoly on miracles or inner truth. 

David told Goliath, “God is with me.” But it’s more correct to phrase it the other way around. We need to be with God. For with God, all things are possible.  

As long as people everywhere, in every circumstance, continue to focus on the center, there’s hope of human survival. Whatever threatens to block access to the Center must not be allowed to interfere. “Let me not to the marriage of true minds admit impediments.” 

This is why it’s imperative to root out the assumptions based on dysfunctional paradigms that tie us in knots. They tear us apart. They drive us crazy. They push us to murder and even suicide.  

We urgently need to recognize and root out false paradigms. To survive intact, we must cleave to the essence of the perennial philosophy.  

The quantum Life Wheel is a snapshot of the essential truth which the world’s great religions share in common. It offers us a way out of global madness. It gives us a means for restoring sanity to our world outlook. 

David and Goliath has one take on the giants of the world. But there’s also another way to think about giants. The reverse, shadow side. The opposite side of the coin.  

Inspired by Awaken the Giant Within, I founded the +A Positive Action Press in response to Tony Robbins’ book. From a Quantum Paradigm perspective, his words take on new meaning: 

If we want to discover the unlimited possibilities within us, we must find a goal big enough and grand enough to challenge us to push beyond our limits and discover our true potential. . . The answer to our current energy challenges will lie in the imagination and resourcefulness of today’s physicists and engineers. And the resolution to our social crises, like the alarming spread of racial hate groups, homelessness, and hunger, can only be addressed with the inventiveness and compassion of dedicated individuals like you and me. 

The threat of evil giants in the world serves to awaken the true giant that resides deep within each of us. That’s the blessing hidden in adversity. It’s the opportunity latent in Titanic Times. 

The Greek Titans, the giants sired by Kronos, survived his murderous envy and returned to claim their heritage. Similarly, there are giants are among us now. It’s time for them to WAKE UP! 

In the face of Titanic dangers bearing down from all directions, remember the stork and cobra cartoon. The snake is winding up the bird’s long, skinny leg, wrapping around its neck in a choke hold. The caption reads: “Never, ever give up.”  

To this, I would add more — essentially other ways of saying the same thing. First, to the snake: “It’s never to late to change.” Second, to the bird: “Never, ever forget.”  

Never forget that, no matter how dark and dangerous life becomes on the surface, God the Creator — the Tao, the Source of all life — broadcasts love, wisdom and hope eternal from the center of the quantum Life Wheel.  

We’re not alone. We never have been. We never will be. 

 

Patricia West is author of The Common Sense Book of Change and Two Sides of a Coin: Lao Tze’s Common Sense Way of Change. She’s current working The Phoenix Response: Dying To Be Reborn – in the Same Lifetime. 

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Born For Such A Time As This – IC – 122420

It is said we each choose the time of our birth. We come here for a purpose with a mission to fulfill. In the Bible, for example, Queen Esther’s courageous defense of her people, risking her life to rescue them from destruction, was inspired by sage advice. “. . . who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?”

A brilliant commentary on this passage expands on her uncle’s words, making them relevant to each one of us, here and now:

So why did you choose to be here for 2020’s challenges? What is your mission at Christmas time’s blessed reminder of hope, overshadowed by a crisis that threatens everything George Washington and his soldiers fought for as they crossed the Delaware River in the shadow of night on Christmas Eve.

Why am I still here? In Be An Instrument of Light, I offered the answer that works for me. It started with choosing to spend every last cent in my pocket to purchase a small lamp that seemed meant for me:

I liked the guitar motif, but didn’t get the hidden message for quite a while. Then, Click! I should have known. Being a string player, it was tailor-meant for me.

During my musician-yoga years, I’d actually outlined a book, The Body as Instrument: How To Tune It. Did you know that string instruments are modeled on human anatomy? They vibrate the same way we do, which explains our resonance with music. . .

In essence, my guitar lamp was an answer to unspoken doubts about writing, confirming the call to “be an instrument of light.”

Now, let’s look further. Why do you suppose Donald J. Trump, our duly elected President, is in place right now? In a recent interview, the honorable Lin Wood describes the immediate constitutional crisis in exactly the words I’ve used to describe 2020. The nation is fragmented. We’re being “torn apart.” We’re at a crossroads. Wood believes our President is the God-appointed leader qualified to meet the challenge, born for such a time as this.

Putting things in perspective, in the repeating cycles of time, this is not the first time around the historical clock. In the introduction to Two Sides of a Coin: Lao Tze’s Common Sense Way of Change, I wrote:

In Passage 18, Lao Tze echoes the Bhagavad Gita’s premise, confirming the widely-held belief that from time to time, at the nadir of historical cycles, God incarnates in varying places and in different forms, for the instruction and deliverance of troubled truth seekers:

On a smaller scale, closer to home, each of us has the potential to be a hero in some respect, if only by becoming victorious over one’s own negative emotions, overcoming one’s doubts and finding the courage to do what is right.

In accord with timeless wisdom traditions, our President is demonstrating the courage to choose moderation over civil war. He’s shown the wisdom to forgive unjustly harassed citizens at this blessed time of year. Lao Tze had words for such leadership:

On Christmas Eve 2020, the night celebrated as the birth of humanity’s renewed hope, let’s draw the lines clearly. In the US, it’s not about Democrats versus Republicans, nor is it about Americans versus Chinese, Russians, or any of their allies. It’s between freedom and slavery, between lovers of Truth versus treacherous slaves of the dark side. It’s between the Republic and what it stands for versus global communism and all it represents.

President Trump, who honors and serves Christ, is behaving like an epic Taoist master. Walking the tense tightrope of moderation, he’s doing what’s right to both preserve the Republic and avert the bloody, self-destructive civil war our enemies would salivate to oversee.

Wayne Allyn Root has just published a book of praise called Trump Rules: Learn the Trump Rules and Tools of Mega Success and Wealth From the Greatest Warrior and Winner in History! It’s an excellent idea — as far as it goes. But our President’s greatness goes far deeper.

For example, celebrated constitutional scholar John Yoo argues persuasively that the President, with the insight of an historian, is the Constitution’s Defender in Chief.

Yes, he’s fighting to win, but with the fewest physical casualties possible. He’s steering a steady course with the hope of preserving peace and unity, not grasping for personal power. He’s a genius, allowing true patriots come forward and take a stand, while giving sell-out cowards time to show their hands.

FORGIVENESS is the original answer to the question, “What should we be aware of on Christmas Eve of 2020?” It reads:

Through FORGIVENESS, old debts are canceled and harmony is restored. Free yourself from outgrown habits. Don’t be afraid to let go of the past. Releasing tensions will produce health. Mental blocks will be resolved. New clarity of vision will lead to important decisions. Peace of mind will follow. Avoid anxiousness.

Each sentence of this reading is a gem, worthy of a self-standing blog. It applies perfectly to the Christmas message, to 2020’s crisis as an opportunity release past mistakes, and to our hope for a better New Year.

* * *

Advice of Line 5 reads, “Respect from others must be earned. Right actions give self-confidence.”

Neither a bully nor a victim be. Others respect us when we demonstrate the self-respect to stand our ground. This applies equally to personal and political situations. However intimidating terrorist threats may be, acting in spite of fear and choosing to do what is right is the ultimate confidence builder.

When our actions demonstrate that we honor this advice, the 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.

Again, each line is worthy of careful attention. In sum, the darkest depths of winter is a time of reversals. “Sages know that when critical mass is reached, regeneration is possible.” A light in the night sky appears.

But redemption is not instant. Christ was born when the priesthood of the temple was deeply corrupted. We are again at such a point in time. The potential of restoration has appeared. Perhaps we have been born in such a time as this to fulfill its promise.

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 Great Reset Starts Today – IC – 122120

Can it be coincidence that, hosting the Student Action Summit – Turning Point USA, Charlie Kirk speaks of a Reset? Is he aware that, according to astrologers, today’s winter solstice marks the long-heralded Cosmic Reset of the Ages as Jupiter and Capricorn simultaneously join and together exit heavy-handed Capricorn to enter into the radically different, enlightened sign of Aquarius?

Does it matter? Either way, Charlie, his generation and those who support them are perfectly in synch with the incoming wave of a positive, better future.

Often, I don’t know until “day of” what the content of a post will be. Lessons of 2020 is writing itself, one day at a time. I’m just an observer, a humble instrument, waiting for messages to come through. Saturday the 19th was no exception.

I “just happened” to randomly click on the the event just in time to hear Charlie’s opening comments. As I listened to presenters, I took notes to quote them here. They voiced exactly the same messages that China’s Lao Tze gave the world centuries ago during an earlier Fourth Turning. As coincidence would have it, Passage 54 was the pre-planned content scheduled as commentary on today’s I Ching reading.

Here are a few samples, spoken as if taken directly from my earlier posts.

  • Sara Carter: We are at a crossroads, a turning point. We have a choice.
  • Kristi Noem: America is not about fear. It is about hope for the future.
  • Tucker Carlson: Never betray your conscience. Be true God, yourself and the ones you love. You are still in charge of what is going on in your head and with the people you love. . . Corporate overlords are fundamentally at war with nature. This system has run its course.
  • Jeff Meyers: Universities are misleading students with three counterfeit maps of reality: Marxism, secularism, and post-modernism. The first blames wealth, the second religions, and the third truth seekers.
  • Mike Lindell:Learn from your mistakes. It will get you where you need to go.
  • Dinesh D’Souza: Ally wisdom with courage and deep faith and we become invincible.

Speakers spanning several generations all honored Charlie’s audience as custodians of the future, recognizing challenges to be overcome. I’ve long agreed. For example, because it speaks volumes, I quote the dedication to Two Sides: Lao Tze’s Common Sense Way of Change:

DEDICATION

The 2014 edition of Two Sides is dedicated to the Millennial Generation. Though it may seem as if they’ve been economically disenfranchised by their elders, material misfortune on the surface of the Life Wheel contains within it the hidden seeds of humanity’s long-term survival.

Ours isn’t the first time in the repeating cycles of history that leaders have squandered national resources. But in the context of Lao Tze’s larger reality, material resources aren’t that significant when compared to the intelligence, inner strength and inexhaustible vitality available to those whom circumstances oblige to return to the less tangible but very real levels of inner experience.

Millennials are the ones for whom the results of the materialistic, conflict-paradigm are so catastrophic that they have no vested interests to protect. They’re the ones prepared to move forward once again into the past, recovering the timeless treasure of the Quantum Paradigm buried deep within the Tao Te Ching’s wisdom.

They’ve been given the greater opportunity to dig deep, rediscover their inalienable inner resources and become the truly radical agents of substantive, positive change.

Also, because it speaks volumes, I offer one of the 81 passages for your careful, thoughtful attention.

We’re not taught to look to the Book of Change for answers to our deepest questions. That’s why I’m bringing the book to you. Through the end of 2020, bi-weekly posts are intended make what was once unfamiliar now familiar.

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

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.

While SAS celebrates the potential of millennial leaders, the outside world remains in chaos. At the lowest-ebb of 2020, it’s important restore the balance of inner quiet.

Advice of the 2nd line reads, “If you have acted out of turn, unhappiness will follow.”

“Out of turn?” I hear you ask. “How so?”

On many levels. In the world, prematurely certifying blatantly, defiantly corrupted election results would end in widespread misery. Whether the U.S. Republic stands or falls depends on our combined wisdom, courage and faith to right egregious theft before it’s too late.

On a deeper level, people persist in seeking peace in the wrong place, in the wrong ways. Looking for it on the ever-changing surface of the Life Wheel is futile. As Lao Tze told us thousands of years ago, lasting peace starts only from within, and one person at a time. It radiates outwards with a ripple effect, first influencing close relationships, then communities, spreading to countries and then the world.

Only when one operates from a complete, accurate reality map that shows where peace begins and how it radiates from Center to the surface does the line change, making a Fresh Start leading to a better future possible:

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.

It’s now or never. Our endangered Republic will be rescued, redeemed, healed and restored NOW or not at all. AVOID DELAY.

Whatever comes to pass, a better future begins with committing on a personal level to achieving self-mastery. It’s the first, necessary step we can take today as the best, in fact only insurance we can have for prevailing in the face the unknowns which lie ahead.

WHAT IF, God forbid, the grid went down? WHAT IF there were no connection with endless information streaming over toxic 5G? WHAT IF you couldn’t hear the encouraging words of SAS speakers each in their own way confirming what Lao Tze taught at an earlier Fourth Turning, or what the text he worked with, the Book of Change, advises?

I know what I would choose to have close by. It would be the Book of Change itself, serving to reconnect me with angelic realms and Source, confirming the wisdom of my True Self, linking the eternal with the immediate circumstances I face, day in and out. Amen.

If this resonates, please like, share and magnify the benefit of the Reset message.

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

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

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

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

The Choice Ahead – IC – 111220

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

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

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

FIRST

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

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

However, a disruption crept into the great song.

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

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

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

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

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

SECOND

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

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

Like Melkor, they can plan all they like.

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

THIRD

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

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

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

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

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

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

The TUNE

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Don’t Be Fooled! – IC – 110920

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

This advice being heeded, the line changes to:

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

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

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

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

This advice heeded, the second line changes to Standstill:

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

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

Combining the changing lines results in this final outcome:

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Once in a Blue Moon OPPORTUNITY

I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase, “Once in a blue moon.” Technically, when a second full moon happens inside of one month, it’s called a blue moon. Usually, when people use the phrase, they mean “a special, rare event.”

As if Halloween on the Saturday before U.S. elections doesn’t add enough chaos to this crazy month, October 31st is also a blue moon. And NOT just any, ordinary blue moon.

Astrologers are raving about the 31st’s once-in-64-years connection of a hyper-emotional moon (said to represent the people) with rebel Uranus. Worse are eruptive asteroid energies, not to mention challenging squares of Mars and Mercury to the Capricorn trio which has plagued 2020.

They foresee family strife, neighbors at each others throats, and street riots. That’s why I decided to publish early. Days before the actual date, this explosive energy is already in affect. And it will be felt days afterwards.

So be forewarned. “Step back.” Don’t get sucked into the astral maelstrom. It will pass.

I know most disregard astrology. This works to the advantage of those who use it to manipulate us towards self-destruction.

This morning, I woke up with a follow-up to the DM sent to Steve Bannon:

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.

This one went to Sebastian Gorka, a long-time co-worker:

Dr. G. Right/Left being played against each other, all expendable. Sun Tze manipulators operate on multi-level chess board. UN 2030 plans are advanced by Left/BLM exploding against Trump, obliging martial law.

When I watch Dr. G videos, I smile at the Sun Tze license plate behind him. I don’t know whether he knows, but The Art of War is a spin-off of the I Ching. So is Lao Tze’s Tao Te Ching. In my last post, I recommended balancing yang, disruptor energy with yin love for family. Today, I urge balancing Art of War strategy with Tao Te Ching wisdom.

Passage 60 sums up the longer response to today’s I Ching question, ““How can leaders successfully counter Left and Right factions being played against each other?”

Now, in the dark-side scheme of things, anyone you see on the news is small fry. This includes politicians, fake news and social media giants, as well as BLM.. They’re the ones whom Lao Tze would forgive. They’re puppets who know not what they do, blinded-sided as are the rest of us, by a false paradigm that rules out two-thirds of life.

To the higher ups who hide, invisible, inside the Life Wheel, it doesn’t matter a fig who wins the election. They win either way. They welcome political discord and violence in the streets. It leads to what they want: martial law and, eventually, world domination.

Why, then, do I call this blue moon an opportunity?

Because it offers a fork in the road, We have a choice. The low-level 3D option — intense drama — serves the dark lords. Shocking news. Secrets being revealed. Confusing claims and counter-claims. Anger and rebellion.

The 5D road, however, leads to transformation. Where lower-octave of Uranus is disruptive, in the higher octave, Uranus is linked with Truth. It’s the piercing sword of clarity. Dark strategies are being exposed to the light of day, where the people now can see them clearly.

We are being offered a higher road: the Phoenix response. We have the option to rise out of the ashes of a world in disarray to be reborn, better than before.

For reasons astrologers explain in detail, the gift of this blue moon is a rare opportunity to shift gears, entering a higher level of awareness, one of WISDOM with its many facets: love, joy, mercy, compassion, gratitude, and above all, forgiveness.

I would LOVE to give dark-side schemers a huge Halloween surprise. Instead giving them what they expect — returning violence with even worse of the same — let leaders opt for the wisdom strategy. Let them act wisely, with moderation and restraint, to bring all sides into balance, restoring Unity to the United States.

It’s a long shot, I know. But the reading below suggests it’s possible.

The I CHING READING

Today, for the most part, I’m letting the message stand on its own, leaving you to understand its meaning.

BALANCE, often translated as Moderation, is the initial answer to today’s question, ““How can leaders successfully counter Left and Right factions being played against each other?”

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.

This is an unusually dynamic reading with changing lines in the first, second, third and fifth places. In sum, I’m understanding that tit-for-tat, reactive exchanges of anger would make things worse and fuel dark-side goals.

Commitment to a long-term process wins in the end. Each changing line reinforces the call for moderation: restricting use of force to bare minimum. Avoid extremes. Over-kill would be disastrous.

—

The bottom line advises, “Go about your work quietly. Modest action accomplishes much.” It changes to Shadow:

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.

Keeping a low profile when misunderstood is the lesser of many evils. Avoid anger. Quietly stay the course.

—

Advice of line two reads, “Moderate, persistent activity is required for a successful outcome now.” It changes to:

PROMOTION will come from steady, positive improvement over time. Rising to meet new challenges results in emotional maturity. Advancing on the job puts one in the position to serve those who are in need. Quiet, persistent self-discipline wins the confidence of others. Make the most of opportunities. Avoid hesitation.

Again, when political opponents rage, throwing tantrums, don’t waiver. Earn public respect by holding fast to the high ground.

—

Advice of line three reads, “Finishing what has been started wins the respect of others.” This may include protecting the Constitution, keeping to the Founders’ vision. Again, this earns public respect. Heeded, line three changes to:

OPENNESS completes Creative Power. Just as the mother gives birth to the child of the father’s seed, remaining open makes it possible to create new forms from pure idea. Remain in harmony with nature. In this frame of mind, much can be accomplished easily. Avoid holding on to rigid beliefs.

Keep a clear mind in the midst of 3D chaos. Open minds to all levels of the quantum paradigm. Replace the false paradigm which rules out two-thirds of experience.

—

Advice of line five reads, “Do not confuse humility with weakness. Act decisively when necessary.”

No wimps allowed. Decisiveness is also required to earn respect. However:

The 5th line changes to:

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. Avoid untimely actions

People’s minds are closed because the limited, limiting paradigm of empirical science rules out two-thirds of experience. Overcoming mental blocks [OPENNESS] starts with restoring a complete and accurate paradigm.

—

The final outcome is the reading that results from four changing lines:

To get work done, put LIMITS on the way time and energy are used. To find peace within, reduce desires. To get along with others, do not make unrealistic demands. Pruning plants helps them to grow. In the same way, defining boundaries creates needed order in life. Avoid frustrating restrictions.

Again, there’s practical wisdom as well as compassion in forgiving those who know not what they do. Save your wrath for those who intentionally undermine humanity. And leave judgment, inevitable and sure, to the Creator from whom no one can hide.

—

Unfortunately, this has been hastily written, the sooner to get it out to you. Let it serve to trigger wisdom within. May it protect you from the worst of possible outcomes during yet another peak crescendo in the dark music of 2020 chaos.

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.

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.

Rethinking SURVIVAL

Today’s post is written with a wink and a nod towards the venerable Bruce Lipton, who confirmed through science what the ancients earlier believed about our eternal spirit.

I’m winking because I totally empathize with the frustration you experienced, being ahead of your times, virtually unheard for decades. The good news is, however long it took, the public is finally getting there.

Being in my 74th year, I too have waited a long time, the patient custodian of work with the potential to alter the outcomes of our extreme times. This work augments yours.

I’m nodding towards you here, thinking perhaps getting your attention could make a difference in whether this vitally important work finally sees the light of day.

The stakes could not be higher, so here’s my best shot. But not to worry. I’ll keep it simple and interesting, so the taste of this sample leaves you wanting more.

My point has three parts:

  • Part One describes your discovery and how it validates ancient wisdom – in particular, Lao Tze.
  • Part Two looks forward towards the work I could bring to the table. It complements both empirical science and ancient wisdom – in particular, the Life Wheel which embodies Einstein’s Unified Field Theory. (Yes, though unawares, he had, in fact, received it.)
  • Part Three looks at apparently contradictory definitions of “survival.” I place them in the context of the Life Wheel, the better to confirm that part of us which never dies, and, further, to suggest how best to use that knowledge to regenerate ourselves and in the process, create a better future.

Phoenix - sized

Part One. Here, in your own words, transcribed from a 2015 Youtube video, “A Message of Love,” is the story of your transformational discovery:

The most profound teachers I ever sat before . . . were so magnificent that I can’t fully put [their lessons] into words. Who were those teachers? They were the cells that I was working on in a petri dish. Talking to them. Watching them, day-by-day. Seeing how they lived. And then opening to the message.

That message?

They showed me from my point of view and my reference to life, that there was something called “spirituality” that I didn’t know existed. . . . And the moment I saw the mechanics of how a signal from the universe comes into my body-suit, my virtual reality suit. . . There was this instant of recognition. I said, “Oh my God! I can’t die!”

The result:

It was an OWNING of spirit. . . And the moment I owned it, a weight I never even knew I was carrying around . . . whoosh . . . disappeared. Because I became free for the first time to recognize I’m here for something other than my [mundane] life. I’m going to own who I AM. I’m a spirit that has come to this planet to experience and to create and to manifest heaven on earth.. . It’s an understanding that it’s all driven by love.

Now, in the Tao Te Ching, Lao Tze repeatedly confirms what you experienced as our inherent immortality. For example, Passage 16 describes the creative process:

16 quote

Conscious life continues on, rooted in a reality larger than a single lifetime. Passage 54 tells us:

54 quote

Passage 33 urges us to be steadfast in our experience of eternal life:

33 quote

Even further, when meditators intentionally pierce the veil of illusion, traveling back through and beyond time and space, they are, as Dr. Joe Dispenza puts it, “reborn in the same life time.”

Or, in your words:

I now have two lives. I have previous learning life. Struggle, anger, control, trying to fix everything. And I have post experience. A calmness. An understanding that it’s all driven by love. Even if other people can’t see through their filters of criticism, they’re still driven by love. Every one of you is a piece of all that IS. Every one of you!

The first Passage from my version, Two Sides of a Coin, gives words to the way ancients experienced travel beyond time:01

Tai Chi Tu

Part Two. Now, how do we identify and connect with that unchanging source, the “unified center achieved in stillness” of which Lao Tze speaks? Where is it located? Within us? Outside and all around us? Both?

To quote myself:

In working with wisdom traditions, I’ve become certain that each is striving to express a particular aspect of a single, unnameable Truth. Further, each is a mosaic piece of a larger picture. When the pieces are put together, the sum is greater than its parts.

The Positive Paradigm of Change adapted from the Life Wheel is that larger picture. It draws from wisdom traditions, both East and West. It is consistent with biblical teachings and the essence of I Ching philosophy. It is yoga-compatible. In addition, it’s equally compatible with modern science.

In Rethinking Survival, the Positive Paradigm of Change is described as:

. . . . a new, inclusive reality map, one people worldwide can easily comprehend and agree upon. It is equally compatible with scriptures and science, bridging the gap between them. It fulfills Einstein’s intuited search for the Unified Field Theory, picturing how all parts of creation are related, interwoven and interdependent.

Working with the Positive Paradigm empowers the “substantially new manner of thinking,” which, Einstein said, is necessary “if mankind is to survive.”

It looks like this:

Unified Field Theory

The Positive Paradigm wheels-within-wheels model consists of concentric circles around a common center. It places the three variables of Albert Einstein’s famous formula, e = mc2 (energy, mass and light) in a two-directional, infinite continuum.

This Synthesis Wheel mirrors the microcosmic structure of atoms as well as the macrocosmic structure of planetary systems. On the largest scale of magnitude, it reflects the in- and out-breaths of perpetually expanding and contracting universes.

This familiar structure repeats smallest to largest in the patterns of nature, from snow flakes and intricate flowers to spiders’ webs and sea shells. Similar patterns repeat worldwide in the art of every culture — including the prayer wheels of Native Americans, the colored sand mandalas of Tibetan Buddhists, the stained glass windows of European cathedrals and the intricate geometrical patterns covering Muslim mosques. They offer proof of the universal awareness of a central inner reality, of an inner structure common to all humanity, and to a continuity of experience deeper than individual lives or transitory cultures.

Elsewhere, I’ve described its value thusly:

This Wheel of Change is a paradigm, meaning a worldview. It offers a positive alternative to the prevailing, dysfunctional paradigms which cause so much misery. It is an inclusive reality map that accords with the way life truly is, showing the full spectrum of human potentials. It explains how the world works, how the individual fits into it, and what is required to truly survive.

Unlike exclusively materialistic, atheistic, hedonist or religionist paradigms, all levels of experience are present, and in balanced, aligned relationship with each other. Nothing is missing. Nothing is out of place.

This paradigm pictures an elegantly simple yet complete reality map that meets the standard of Occam’s razor: maximum inclusiveness with greatest simplicity.

I explain the levels, with this caveat:

Yoga scriptures correlate the three levels of the Wheel with three different states of consciousness. Most of us experience the states of waking, sleep and dreamless sleep separately. However, it is possible to experience the entire continuum simultaneously while remaining fully conscious.

In the terms of modern brain science, this is accomplished by not only integrating functions of the right and left hemispheres of the brain, but by simultaneously coordinating the full span of vibrational brain wave frequencies from fastest (beta) to slowest (delta). The fully enlightened sage’s experience of linking the levels is called “turyia.” In that state, a highly accomplished being is said to be “here and there at the same time.”

The concentric circles aren’t literally separate and discrete. Rather, they are a continuum along the infinite spectrum of creation. Within each layer are numerous distinctions verified only by direct experience. For the sake of the following discussion, however, the three levels are described as if discrete, starting from the surface of the Wheel and moving inwards.

And with that said, here are the three states:

m = mass. The outer rim of the circle is the realm of the material, manifested world of creation. This level is the abode of empirical science which measures tangible, measurable things. It is the plane of duality, the fluctuating ebb and flow of mortal life, the ups and downs of daily experience.

It is the realm into which public school education too often squeezes and flattens children. This is the level of which Einstein said, “The only thing that interferes with my learning is my education.”

Those focused excessively here are unduly attached to material possessions as well as to money, social status and institutional power. Here appearances are more important than substance. Saving face replaces authentic virtue.

Paradoxically, out of balance, abundance on the material plane seems to foster an insatiable sense of lack. Limited connection with the center breeds insecurities and greed. The infinite variations on the same eternal forms are misconstrued as grounds for cultural conflict and competition for illusory supremacy.

When people live primarily on the surface, with the middle (primarily “unconscious”) level clogged and in conflict, systems break down. Attempting to fix problems caused by this inner turmoil at the superficial level can not achieve any lasting, qualitative improvement.

e = energy. Much ignorance, misinformation and confusion surrounds the energy level of the Wheel. The state of chaos into which the world has degenerated attests to this deficiency, as well as the urgent need to correct it.

The middle level is the domain of Natural Law mapped in the Chinese I Ching, the Book of Change. These changes are the energetic underpinnings of the dynamic, physical world, experienced as the recurring cycles of seasonal change, as well as humans cycles of birth, growth, decay, death and rebirth.

The middle layer is the realm of less tangible but still measurable states of energy, including electricity. More subtly, it is the chi, ki or prana described in Asian 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 [most often ‘unconscious’] psychological states and drive external human behavior, which in turn affects social relationships. A clear understanding of these dynamics is essential to personal survival.

Now, as you’ll recall, I earlier asked, “How do we identify and connect with that unchanging source, the “unified center achieved in stillness” of which Lao Tze speaks? Where is it located?”

The answer rests deep within the levels of “Light” and “Source of Light” at the central hub of the Wheel:

c = light. The hub of the wheel, the Source of Light, is innermost state of being. It is silent yet fertile, that from which all forms emanate and to which all return. It is the alpha and omega, the ultimate and exclusive source of infinite light and power.

Merging with this all-encompassing source of consciousness is what scriptures refer to, quite literally, as “enlightenment.”

The deepest center is the original seed of life from which creative solutions and new beginnings emerge in answer to the prayers and sincere efforts of those who hear and do. It’s the unfailing source, deeper than ephemeral fears, which gives survivors the inner strength to withstand the sudden shocks and catastrophic changes of Titanic times.

The experience of light is described with worlds like inspiration, intuition or guidance.

Unlike the levels of mass and energy, which can be described at length from experience, the center of light is best honored in silence. Or at least as few words as possible.

0 Hush

Here’s just one example of the myriad ways the Life Wheel is adapted to picture deep understanding. It plugs Passage One into the levels of the Wheel, depicting Lao Tze’s travel away from previous life learning – struggle, anger and control on the outer rim of the Life Wheel – towards the innermost, post-experience of supreme calm.

Inward-pointing arrows trace the path of release; outward-pointing arrows point towards physical manifestation. In the words of the biblical God of Moses, this repetitive, full-circle dynamic is spoken as a command: “Return unto me and I return unto you.”

II-8 rev

Way cool, huh!

Part Three. At the outset, I promised to look at apparently contradictory definitions of “survival” by placing them in Life Wheel context. Briefly, it’s important to rescue the word from the negative context of stress. Survival emotions are counterproductive. However, survival also means to continue to exist through dangerous situations, to live when death seemed imminent. It can be associated with being alive and enduring. Viable ancient customs and beliefs, for example, are said to survive through the ages.

The ongoing concern of this website, RethinkingSurvival.com is based on this premise:

Human survival, Einstein warned us, can no longer be taken for granted. Tipping the scales of history in favor of survival depends on freeing ourselves from the mental prison of limited, delusional thinking.

Again, quoting myself:

Chances of success in life are slim to none without an accurate reality map. It’s imperative to have a complete picture of your potentials along with a correct understanding of the world around you, and what’s required to survive in that world. Basing decisions on a worldview that’s distorted, incomplete or otherwise out of synch with the way things really are seriously diminishes chances of survival. In times as dangerous as these, it’s more important than ever to make sure you’re operating on complete and correct information.

To the point, just briefly, I’ll introduce the Fifth Axiom derived from the Positive Paradigm. “History Is Neither Progressive or Linear, Nor can Human Survival Be Taken for Granted.”

The final Corollary E: An apparent death sentence makes time remaining all the more precious. In biblical terms, awareness of impending disaster is motive and opportunity to repent (meaning to change one’s heart and ways), and to atone (meaning to realign – be ‘at one’ – with the center), using the gift of whatever time is left gratefully, wisely and well.

Some will actually defy medical/historical prognosis and survive to carry on, whether it be here, in other dimensions or even different universes. (Science fiction fans of TV’s two-hearted, regenerating time traveler Dr. Who are well-acquainted with these possibilities.)

CONCLUSION

Bruce, your time has arrived. You get to travel the world, sharing your insights. I’d love to do the same. But mine has yet to come. The I Ching, the super-ancient foundation of Lao Tze’s wisdom, has yet to be reintroduced, refurbished, for survivors who urgently need access to the cosmic clock. Its 64 hexagrams (does that non-coincidental number make you think of DNA?! ), and each of the six-level AC-DC, binary-digital constructs are a short-hand representing the dynamic interactions amongst the six primary energy centers. . . tons of information is stored here like buried treasure to be recovered through diligent re-search. (Understatement.)

But, just maybe, my reaching out to a fellow early-adaptive thinker might change that. After all, within the quantum field of God, all things are possible!

N.B. I’ve already written a post for your compadre, Gregg Braden. On the drawing board is another, on Creativity and Genius, favorite words of another amigo, Joe Dispenza. So is a final one, The Universal Pattern.

Ripples in Time

 

 

Lao Tze & the I Ching Go Hand in Glove

The Tao Te Ching and I Ching compliment each other like the right and left hands of a pair of gloves. Working with either book illumines the other.

I’ll give you an example that compares and contrasts these two treasures.

SunriseSunrise

 

Starting at the beginning, here’s a Book of Change description of the Creative Source.

01 Creative Power

Now, look at the first passage the Tao Te Ching to see how Lao Tze expands on the same concept.

01

Receptive Openness, the compliment of Creative Power’s complete yang, is complete yin. The Common Sense Book of Change expresses it thus:

Passage 4 of Two Sides of a Coin: Lao Tze’s Common Sense Book of Change expresses the same vision this way:

04

Chinese landscape

The difference between these complimentary approaches is in their use. Work inter-actively with the I Ching to trigger inner knowing, making the unconscious conscious. Sit quietly with Lao Tze’s aphorisms, allowing them to serve as passages to higher levels of consciousness.

 

Truth IS . . .

Dr. Jordan B. Peterson says, “Truth is the handmaiden of love. Dialogue is the pathway to truth.”

I say, “Dialogue may be the instrument of coming to common understanding between individuals and amongst groups. But Truth has many levels.”

TruthLevels021713

At the center of the Life Wheel, Truth partakes of the absolute, unchanging source. But ephemeral manifestations of truth depend upon the focus and direction of travel – the inward or outward pathway – within the Life Wheel.

These distinctions serve to solve much confusion. Understanding them simplifies and clarifies experience.

“Hard evidence” partakes of facts and data verifiable by standard research methods. It lives on the ephemeral surface of the Wheel.

The truth of subjective opinions and feelings/emotions is also subject to continuous change. They reside at the middle level.

Absolute, unchanging Truth rests within the innermost center of the Life Wheel. Several bible study blogs elaborate on Truth at this level:

If we ever hope to determine if there is such a thing as truth apart from cultural and personal preferences, we must acknowledge that we are then aiming to discover something greater than ourselves, something that transcends culture and individual inclinations.  To do this is to look beyond ourselves and outside of ourselves.  In essence, it means we are looking for God.  God would be truth, the absolute and true essence of being and reality who is the author of all truth.  If you are interested in truth beyond yourself, then you must look to God.

References include:

Proverbs says, “one who speaks the truth gives honest evidence. (12:17)

Truth is also a quality used to describe utterances that are from the Lord. The psalmist tells God to “guide me in your truth” (25:5); the psalmist asks God to “send forth your light and your truth.” (43:3)

Ultimately, Jesus said,”I am the way, the truth, and the life…” (John 14:6)

Now, the absolute truth experienced and then described in scripture is unfathomable to most of us. As written elsewhere:

“The bad news is, it’s like trying to explain what colors look like to a blind person, or how chocolate tastes to someone who’s never had any.

“The good news, however, is that inner truth can be known by direct experience. And there are means and methods for getting from here to there.”

Were you to ask a Zen master how to achieve enlightenment, the simple answer you’d probably get is: “SHUT UP!”

In gentler form, the Yoga Sutras of Patajani offer the same solution.

As I’ve also written elsewhere, the path of a Truth is a two way street.

To know the truth, be quiet. “Shut Up.” “Be still and know that I AM God.” Travel the inward path from surface to center of the Life Wheel to reunite with the Creative Source experienced as Conscience.

If you want know the world, then reverse course. Move in the opposite direction. Extend outwards from stillness towards the manifest world on the hub of the Wheel.

Lao Tze puts it this way:

01

Phoenix - sized

On another tack, in two separate posts, I’ve written about truth as game. Popular shows you’re probably familiar with include TO TELL THE TRUTH and TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES.

In Yes, AND. . . I wrote:

Bogus claims . . . remind me of the long-running TV game show, “To Tell the Truth.” In this format, three challengers are introduced to a celebrity panel, each claiming to be the featured guest. Impostors can lie and pretend to be the central character. Only the real one is sworn to tell the truth. Panelists are challenged to ask penetrating questions, see through deceptions, and correctly identify the truth teller.

In this game reality, the best liars are rewarded. But that’s not how it works in the real world. There’s nothing entertaining or ultimately rewarding about deceiving the public. Yet, at this stage of history, it’s nigh unto impossible for all but the most discriminating (in the positive sense) to tell the difference between imitators and the “real deal.” Shameless parodies of wisdom traditions abound.

As for Truth or Consequences, it may be well worth your while to check out the entire post. Here’s a snippet:

I remembered this experience while writing about Terry Silver’s three rules for winning an unfair fight. He advised Daniel-san, the Karate Kid:

  • If a man can’t stand, he can’t fight. So break his knees.
  • If a man can’t breathe, he can’t fight. So break his nose.
  • If a man can’t see, he can’t fight. So gouge out his eyes.

Granted, I appreciate what the monkey prohibitions were getting at originally. It has to do with the meditative discipline of Stillness. If the bans are a warning not to get entangled in negative situations that poison mental clarity, not to speak impulsively or slander others, and not to project dark side urges onto others, then fine. Otherwise not.

 

Angel Calling

Be Harmless, NOT Defenseless

Jordan Peterson is drawing predictable backlash upon himself.

Though a clinical psychologist, he seems irrationally intent on attracting danger, while at the same time, logically, persuasively but incorrectly protesting that retreating from conflict when you shouldn’t “will cause self-annihilation.”

The qualifier is “when you shouldn’t.” Sun Tzu, reputed author of The Art of War, is keen on the importance of knowing when to make strategic retreats. There is, after all, a time and place for every purpose under heaven.

Second, what does he mean by “self-annihilation?” As righteous warriors grounded in Old Testament faith know full well, the true Self is indestructible. So also, savvy martial artists who are seeped in I Ching wisdom trust that true identity is neither enhanced nor diminished by the dance of advance and retreat.

So what’s really at stake in pressing forward against the tide, against the grain, against the laws of nature? Why vent rage, disgust and contempt at despicable, treacherous, venomous opponents? If he exposes and humiliates them, however much deserved, they will mirror his negativity back – in spades. It’s called backlash. Every action generates an opposite and equal reaction. It’s a natural law of psychological physics.

There are other, wiser ways to shift gears — address valid grievances on higher ground without attracting inevitable vengeful retaliation.

Persisting in upping the ante, provoking human snakes, smells like pride to me. Hubris, to be precise. The stuff of tragedy in the making.

I am afraid for this highly articulate but unin-formed professor.

Here’s an example of the inevitable retaliation and escalating conflict he has drawn not only into his own personal life, but also into his neighborhood — not to mention the media.

On October 26th, 2017, he posted on Twitter: Those who consider themselves my enemies have been posting these all around my home neighbourhood.

Here’s the poster:

jbp

I tweeted back, “What else would you expect?” Afterwards, I realized that without this explanation, the remark wouldn’t make sense. Hence, this blog of explanation.

Phoenix - sized

Please understand. I do not write to humiliate or diminish Dr. Peterson. Quite the opposite. He has become to the current generation of young people what John F. Kennedy was to mine. A symbol of nobility. Of hope.

I remember as painfully as if it were yesterday what it felt like to me and my friends when we heard the news that his brains had been splattered by an assassin’s bullet.

I dearly want that NOT to happen again.

I’m writing to warn Dr. Peterson. To suggest ways to protect himself, not only for his own sake and for his family’s, but for those to whom he has become a hero – who would be shattered were he to come to harm.

To plead with him to rethink the limited psychology which allows him to rationalize such intensely emotional, dangerous risk-taking.

I’m writing to urge him to add to his armory of psychologies the survival wisdom of Lao Tze and the foundational attitudes prescribed in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. Their teachings have guided the lives of truth seekers of thousands years. There must be something of value to recommend them, having withstood this test of time.

For example, Dr. Peterson knows not whereof he speaks when he says, “Don’t be harmless.”

Is he intentionally rejecting ancient wisdom by this word choice, or is he unaware of the significance of this virtue in ancient lore?

Lao Tze, in fact, uses harmlessness as his defense. It’s a time-honored strategy.

Here is a famous drawing of Lao Tze riding his ox. He is credited with writing The Tao Te Ching, which next to the Bible is the world’s most often translated scripture. It shows the enlightened sage as so intricately merged with the beast which carries him that they appear inseparable. This image represents the higher mind which has tamed and harnessed the energy of emotions. He uses them to carry him towards his destination.

Lao Tze on Ox

I will give you a hint of this survival approach to dealing with snakes excerpted from Two Sides of a Coin: Lao Tze’s Common Sense Way of Change.

snake

Passage 50 reads, in part:

Those who live by the law are protected by it.

They travel the world without being injured.

In the midst of hostilities, no one knows where to attack.

Wild beasts sense no openings to penetrate.

Enemies find no weaknesses to exploit.

Armies can’t locate a fortress to assault.

This accords with the following section about harmlessness used as defense strategy.

Non-Violence

Taoists abhor selfish meddling and gratuitous violence as equally destructive to individuals, society and the environment.

In this, their thinking is in accord with the most fundamental tenet of the yoga. Non-violence is the virtue listed first among the commitments which constitute the fundamental basis of yoga disciplines. The attitude of harmlessness, or non-violence, is the prerequisite upon which all more advanced spiritual practices depend.

In Sutra 35 of Book II, Patanjali informs us that:

When non-violence in speech, thought and action is established, one’s aggressive nature is relinquished and others abandon hostility in one’s presence.

Similarly, in Passage 55 Lao Tze describes sages as being accomplished in the ways of the ancient yoga masters:

Sages who master the infant’s harmlessness:

don’t startle wasps or snakes, and therefore don’t get stung;

don’t threaten angry beasts, and therefore are left in peace;

don’t bother birds of prey and therefore aren’t carried off.

Lao Tze describes non-violence as the cornerstone of social stability. In Passage 68 he tells us:

The best leaders act with subtle dignity.

Successful warriors move with alert caution.

Enduring winners shun prideful vengeance.

Good employers quietly support their workers.

The way of non-violence is the supreme treasure of communities

founded in the eternal Tao.

book header bird

Again, let me emphasize that I wish Dr. Peterson all the best. May he live long and prosper. Let him put on the full armor of God for protection. Give him the wisdom to tame his righteous indignation with the discipline of a seasoned sage. Let him survive as a shining inspiration to those who have come to treasure his innate nobility.

As yet, for whatever reasons, he remains unresponsive. The Catch 22 seems to be that since I’m not a well-known public figure, he assumes he has no grounds for communication. In Don’t throw pearls before swine, he says, “You cannot talk to people who will not engage in a discussion.”

So be it. He says he had no desire to engage in the legislative issue that catapulted him to fame, but felt compelled to do so. In exactly the same way, I had no desire whatsoever to write these blogs, but felt deeply compelled to do so. Unfathomable but somehow irresistible.

Whatever the outcome, at least I’ve done my best. And having done so, leave the future in trust to God’s will.

Angel Calling

Fresh Start

 With four equally compelling bogs on the drawing board, it was hard to choose which to complete first. An article Pinned Tweeted to Jordan B. Peterson’s account boiled it down to two.

Tim Lott’s Life Spectator article, Jordan Peterson and the transgender wars, bears the subtitle, “The psychology professor is in trouble with the transgender crowd. He is also one of the foremost thinkers of our age.”

The first choice from this article echoes a book in the works, The Phoenix Response:

He [Peterson – JBP] points out that the INRI inscription on crucifixes has a mystical meaning, apart from ‘King of the Jews’ — ‘Through fire all nature is renewed.’ Which means that in order to renew your soul, you have to die and be reborn repeatedly.

The second choice, however, is closer to practical home. So that’s where I’m starting today. Besides being the eve of a projected doomsday event, Saturday, September 23. 2017 is close to the Fall Equinox, the Jewish New Year — Rosh Hashona — a new moon and to Old Avatar’s birthday. He’s seated at his work desk, mentally traveling through Otherwhere space, to outward appearances reading through a stack of James Wesley Rawles books. “Do not disturb.”

Be that as it may, according to Lott:

More than 90 per cent of his [Peterson’s] audience are men, which seems a pity since there is nothing particularly gender-specific about his teachings. Why the imbalance then?

‘Because these men’s stress levels are very high,’ he says. ‘I’m telling them something they desperately need to hear — that there are important things that need to be fixed up.

‘I’m saying, “You guys really need to get your act together and you need to bear some responsibility and grow the hell up.”

Lott continues:

At this point, to my astonishment, Peterson begins to weep. He talks through his tears for the next several minutes.

‘Every time I talk about this, it breaks me up,’ he says. ‘The message I’ve been delivering is, “Find the heaviest weight you can and pick it up. And that will make you strong. You’re not who you could be. And who you could be is worthwhile.”’

They’re so starving for that message. Young men are so desperate for a pathway that they are dying for it. And it’s heart-breaking and terrible that this idea has been kept from them. . . . Some of the young men who come to my lectures are desperately hanging on every word because I am telling them that they are sinful, and insufficient, and deceitful and contemptible in their current form, but that they could be far more than that, and that the world NEEDS THAT. [emphasis added.]

Though hardly the masculine role model young men crave, I too grieve for their plight. But young women are just as much at risk! For many of them, a gentler, yin perspective on his intensely yang presentation of universal truths is what’s needed to bring his skewed audience numbers into balance.

For my story certainly includes gender-confusion issues. Here’s a snippet excerpted from the “Who I Am To Say” section of Rethinking Survival.

The specter of suicidal thoughts haunted my up-bringing. It’s taken me over fifty years to track this demon to its lair and tame it. In retrospect, in simplest terms, I was raised in a family, reinforced by a culture, which disconfirmed my very existence.

A girl who in no way matched demeaning stereotypes — who had no desire to either cynically exploit or fearfully cave into them — was simply a non-being. She could not and should not exist. The tacit message: “Make yourself gone.”

At first I coped with less catastrophic compliance — denial. I reasoned like this: “Women are stupid, fickle and helpless. If I’m not stupid, fickle and helpless, then I’m not a woman.” I disowned the labels associated with gender and escaped into music and books.

Only later, a yogic energy understanding of the difference between feminine essence and cultural molds allowed me to rescue the baby from the bath water, reestablish an identity in harmony with the facts.

Phoenix - sized

In any case, it remains that for those on both sides of the gender see-saw, there’s a hopeful light at the end of the tunnel. Historically, at critical mass, hidden opportunities buried within danger emerge. The dedication to Two Sides reads:

Though it may seem as if [Millennials] have been economically disenfranchised by their elders, material misfortune . . . contains within it the hidden seeds of humanity’s long-term survival.

Ours isn’t the first time in the repeating cycles of history that leaders have squandered national resources. But in the context of Lao Tze’s larger reality, material resources aren’t that significant when compared to the intelligence, inner strength and inexhaustible vitality available to those who choose to access the less tangible but very real levels of inner experience.

Millennials are the ones for whom the results of the current conflict paradigm are so catastrophically dysfunctional that they have no vested interests to protect. They’re the ones prepared to move forward once again into the past, recovering the timeless treasure of . . . the Tao Te Ching‘s wisdom.

They’ve been given the greater opportunity to . . . become the truly radical agents of genuine, positive change. [They have] the means to see through Saul Alinsky’s pseudo-radical pose, answer his twisted rhetoric, and choose the truly radical approach to change.

In work presented elsewhere, I’ve described additional teaching tools which compliment Peterson’s array. BUT . . . I’ve long since come to the conclusion that books and videos aren’t enough. For several reasons.

First, young people need direct interaction with mentors. In addition to psychological advice, they need opportunities to build practical skills. Abstract internet connections are much better than nothing. But they’re not the same as immediate, face-to-face, working relationships.

Second, young people are starved for daily, immediate working environments which support their efforts towards positive change. It’s not enough to walk away from negative pseudo-friends and exploitative employers. There has to be someplace positive, healthy and supportive to go, to live, to sink roots. . . a place where creativity is valued, honesty is rewarded, and personal growth is encouraged.

It’s not only a mental/spiritual pathway young people are starved for. Optimally, they need community: physical locations where they can gather and work together under structured supervision towards a noble goal: human survival, for example.

As it stands now, one of the major reasons many fear change is that personal transformation is the social equivalent of suicide. Too often, there are few rewards and heavy punishments associated with personal growth. In a world where old paradigms are dying, those with vested interests in the status quo are fiercely protective of “normalcy.”

My own university experience is a good example. When I entered the UW-Madison Department of Educational Administration, the doctoral thesis of my choice was “The Origin and Future of Universities.” The plan was to expand on a paper written for an Educational Policy course. It found that universities no longer meet basic student needs and advocated building alternative schools which do.

How naive. Professors married to their comfortable status quo would not allow it.

As a condition of graduation, I was obliged to conduct a statistical research study on women principals in elementary public schools – far afield from my interests in every respect. For a complex set of reasons, including that the Ph.D. credential was essential to accreditation of an alternative school – I completed the study.

Unfortunately, as “fate” would have it, I inadvertently produced statistically significant results that were just as controversial as my original thesis topic. Scratch the surface, it seems. You’ll find problems lurking just beneath.

In this case, analysis of the principal selection process showed that public school administration is a closed-shop monopoly. A pre-selection process grooms candidates who reflect the values and personal attributes of current power-holders. The only teachers who pursue administrator degrees or credentials are those who have already been quietly promised a job. Only pre-approved candidates enter the formal selection process.

Was I rewarded for exposing what insiders already knew? Not in the least!

In retrospect, this career was not meant to be. At least not yet, or as I imagined it then. Within months of my thesis defense in 1978, the rug was pulled out from underneath me. Both of the protectors who guided me safely through the politics of education disappeared. My statistics professor, who was astonished at the quality of my work, died suddenly in his sleep. The job we’d lined up was defunded. My major professor, who never doubted I’d land on my feet, no matter what, retired early and moved out of state (in large part in protest over the way his colleagues had treated me).

I was stranded, left out in the cold – with school loans to pay.

I’m not complaining, mind you. In retrospect, it was the ongoing work of an invisible, friendly hand, closing doors to open windows. But from direct experience, I well appreciate that creative people, no matter how conscientious and agreeable, are likely to find themselves excluded from thoroughly corrupt institutions. It’s simply not a match. Truth seekers and unnatural institutions are – with rare exceptions – a contradiction in terms.

I did, of course, manage to land on my feet. In turn, it has become my calling to facilitate safe landing for as many others as possible.

The alternative school I had in mind earlier was a School-Without-Walls. It would have allowed self-responsible students to define a professional goal and then select all relevant courses combined with internship experiences that furthered that goal. For example, a golfer could study everything from physiology to design and maintenance of greens to teaching golf students to acquiring the business skills necessary to run his business.

JBP speaks of a future Truth University. Yes. That’s foundational. But it’s not enough, especially because the times are growing ever more precarious, on many fronts. There’s no guaranteeing how long the infrastructure that sustains civilization will remain functional. So now I’m thinking more along the lines of monasteries established as islands of survival, community and learning during dark ages, both in Europe and Asia.

The James Wesley Rawles books OA has been browsing are much to the point. Reading these would be an excellent use of time.

Here’s the amazon description of Patriots: A Novel of Survival in the Coming Collapse:

America faces a full-scale socioeconomic collapse— the stock market plummets, hyperinflation cripples commerce and the mounting crisis passes the tipping point. Practically overnight, the fragile chains of supply and high-technology infrastructure fall, and wholesale rioting and looting grip every major city.

As hordes of refugees and looters pour out of the cities, a small group of friends living in the Midwest desperately tries to make their way to a safe-haven ranch in northern Idaho. The journey requires all their skill and training since communication, commerce, transportation and law enforcement have all disappeared. Once at the ranch, the group fends off vicious attacks from outsiders and then looks to join other groups that are trying to restore true Constitutional law to the country.

Patriots is a thrilling narrative depicting fictional characters using authentic survivalist techniques to endure the collapse of the American civilization. Reading this compelling, fast-paced novel could one day mean the difference between life and death.

One review reads:

I read this book after reading “One Second After”. [a nuclear holocaust scenario] They are two different books by two very different authors. I think it’s a very good follow-up book if you have already read that one. This book is written as a story with integrated prepper “how too” instructions.

From more points of view than can be detailed here, it is becoming increasingly evident that the collapse Rawles foresees is only a matter of time. In fact, it often seems to me as if humans and nature are in a race to see which will do us in and under first.

Who is Rawles to say? From his bio:

James Wesley Rawles is a internationally recognized authority on family disaster preparedness and survivalism. He has been described by journalists as the “conscience of survivalism.” Formerly a U.S. Army intelligence officer, Rawles is now a fiction and nonfiction author, as well as a rancher. His books have been translated into seven languages. He is also a lecturer and the founder and Senior Editor of http://www.SurvivalBlog.com, the Internet’s first blog on preparedness that has enjoyed perennial popularity and now receives more than 320,000 unique visits per week.

Interspersing JBP videos with visits to this website might be an effective way to fortify self-improvement goals. Gathering practical survival information, “real,” survival-related news and other interesting tidbits could make a significant contribution towards future positive outcomes. Today’s quote, for example is, “Those in possession of absolute power can not only prophesy and make their prophesies come true, but they can also lie and make their lies come true.” Eric Hoffer.

Surely unknown opportunities are embedded within inevitable disasters that loom ahead. However, things are sure to go better for those who proactively prepare to meet them. This includes building viable support systems.

The model of intentional communities I now have in mind is similar to the rural one upon which my alma mater, Oberlin College, was built. Its motto is “Learning and Labor.”

For urban centers are quickly becoming death traps. If and/or when the grid goes down, it may be too late to escape. Better to get out while it is still an option. (Gives new meaning to “safe place.”) Inland locations, not too close to military bases or downwind from nuclear facilities, are preferable. Further, rural settings provide the opportunity to tune in again to nature, restoring harmony with rhythmic cycles which our forefathers took for granted.

Intentional preppers, regardless of their personal beliefs, are dedicated to restoring practical survival skills: learning how to live outdoors and off grid, work with tools to construct basic housing, farm, raise livestock, preserve food, feed and protect their families.

There’s lots of to be relearned by those willing to work in the process of sorting out their personal lives. This is a relatively gentle, voluntary way to make a fresh start, one person at a time.

book header bird

Interestingly, from the Taoist canon which Dr. Peterson greatly respects, Numbers 18 of both Lao Tze’s Tao Te Ching and its ancient great-great-grandfather, the I Ching, both speak the point in repeating cycles of time where – out of the ashes of corruption — new beginnings emerge. For it’s not only humans who crash and burn to be reborn, On larger scales of magnitude, entire communities and civilizations do as well.

Passage 18 from Two Sides of a Coin reads:

18

Hexagram 18 from The Common Sense Book of Change describes a positive approach to encroaching chaos:

18 IC FRESH START.jpg

Our collective future depends upon the quality of individual choices. Is it worth going through the testing fires of positive change to get from here to there? The choice is yours. But be aware. Failing to choose is also a choice, one with dire consequences. In any case, the time is NOW.

Jordan Peterson is doing his heroic best to tip the scales of history in favor of human survival. Clearly, he dearly hopes the young men he grieves for will choose wisely. As do I.

For those with ears, let them hear. And do.

Angel Calling

 

Coming next:

  • Yes, AND . . . .
  • The Heart Doesn’t Lie
  • Be an Instrument of Light

 

 

It’s Hard

I identify with Jack Kornfield‘s stories about the hard work between leaving everything behind and coming to a bit of self-knowledge and calm. In the 1960s, walking away from an unhappy childhood in a troubled American society, he sought out Asian teachers via the Peace Corps and apprenticed himself to Buddhist masters.

However, a warning maxim sums up what he quickly learned: “Wherever you go, there you are.”

When Kornfield – a senior founder of the mindfulness movement – sat in a far away jungle monastery practicing meditation, he didn’t experience bliss. Instead, what came forward was a powerful mix of painful emotions – buried disappointment, fear, rage, and hatred – triggered by memories of an abusive father which he’d failed to heal earlier.

His experience confirms another cautionary maxim. As I was warned early on, best not expect quick results from introspection. “It’s hard to remember you’re here to clean out the swamp when you’re up to your ass in alligators.”

alligators

I wrote about my own personal challenges in Rethinking Survival:

Rethinking Survival is a hybrid. It’s part memoir. But far deeper, it’s the stuff of a paradigm shift. It voices the aspirations which everyone shares in common. But it also fingers the false assumptions that too often tie us in paralyzing knots. 

Inevitably, shadow issues to face were embedded within the wonderful opportunities I’ve been granted.

Each opportunity that presented itself contained within it an opposite and equal challenge to divest myself of limiting myths and misconceptions. Yogis compare the process to peeling away the layers of an onion. The Taoist I Ching scholar translated by Thomas Cleary described it as stripping away artificial veneers of cultural conditioning to restore the original True Self. Another source likens the process to the Herculean task of cleaning out the Aegean horse stables.

Further:

The same friend who told me about neatsies also reminded me about R.D. Laing’s Knots.2 Undetected assumptions wrapped in twisted logic can tie people in knots. They act like a life-draining cancer. False beliefs can drive people crazy, even to acts of criminal violence. We agreed about the dangers of living a lie, as if there were no options. This is how individuals (then dysfunctional families and nations) self-destruct.

One benefit of respecting the wisdom to be found in ancient cultures is this: Those who lived simply, close to nature, remind us of timeless truths which we as complicated urban dwellers have forgotten. Asians seeped for thousands of years in the I Ching understood much that harried moderns dearly need to recover.

For example, Confucius understood the primary importance of personal responsibility:

Confucius

Though stated in reverse order in the Tao Te Ching, Lao Tze also held that the world is necessarily changed one person at a time, and from the inside out:

18

With this in mind, I had mixed emotions about the recent American election. In Clarion Call I wrote:

Perhaps deeper than the President-Elect consciously knows (or even needs to), his words ring true across the full continuum of the Life Wheel. BUT: here is the danger . . .

Many people, due to a host of unfortunate circumstances, live primarily on the shallow surface of the Life Wheel. They haven’t the depth to recognize or respect what,  for whatever reason, they’ve forgotten. Worse, some, unintentionally or otherwise, live at odds with inner truth. They will continue to spin, distort and attempt to delegitimize DJT’s victory . . .

They will definitely stir up unnecessary conflict to destabilize the world, as if to prevent his best intentions from coming True.

Today, looking back with the advantage of hindsight, I shake my head. What a noble but sadly mistaken approach, to focus on ending corruption on a national scale, while individual hearts, families, communities and states are, for the most part, alligator-infested swamps.

Current events reinforce earlier my conclusion:

Changing the world, especially in dangerous times, is an overwhelming prospect. It’s also unnecessary. No matter how much is going wrong “out there,” the manageable unit that’s one’s first responsibility to change is the one closest to home: oneself.

Our best hope is, still yet, to think small. Begin with one’s self.

Yes, taming one’s inner alligators is hard work. Very hard. But it’s infinitely worth it.

climbing alligator

 

 

 

Keep It Together

star of david

Although it seems there’s no longer much more to be said, yesterday’s Aha moment is an exception.

Here’s the back story.

Over Thanksgiving week-end, for the benefit of those who hadn’t seen The Walking Dead series, we spent several hours here watching back-to-back episodes of the first two seasons.

For me, this second go round had an even greater impact. The content speaks on many levels, in many ways, to our increasingly dangerous times.

Like life itself, the series is a complex counterpoint of relationship drama, political intrigue, philosophical ponderings and soul searchings. It’s intense: not for the weak of stomach or for lovers of sentimental fluff.

Beyond the surface story line, however, it is poignantly symbolic. Perhaps in a very deep way, it’s prophetic. Which explains why a simple pilot unexpectedly took off to become a sensational success. For those with ears to hear, it resonates straight to our very core.

How, you might ask, does a story about a world overrun by hoards of cannibalistic zombies apply to current events and leadership issues?

Well, let’s see.

In The Walking Dead, zombies are mindless corpses that carry on after humans die. All but the primal, limbic functions of the human brain have been disease-destroyed.

When you think about it, it’s not such a far cry from the end result being achieved (perhaps intentionally, perhaps not) by manipulating humans (programming them in the name of education) based on brain science.

Neuro-marketing, for example, stimulates the same vestigial, animal part of the brain that drives zombies – intentionally bypassing rational cognitive functions involved in critical thinking and rational decision-making.

An academic website defines neuro marketing as : the formal study of the brain’s responses to advertising and branding, and the adjustment of those messages based on feedback to elicit even better responses. Researchers use technologies such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and electroencephalography (EEG) to measure specific types of brain activity in response to advertising messages. With this information, companies learn why consumers make the decisions they do, and what parts of the brain are motivating them to do so.

It increasingly seems as if walking dead hoards include not only fictional zombies, but average consumers and citizens — even the college professors, marketing professionals and politicians who direct their communications to these same animal brain functions.

Economists and politicians have jumped on the marketing bandwagon, exploiting brain science. Earlier, I expressed strong reservations about the ethics and consequences of applying brain science research to marketing and policy making.

Intentionally targeting instinctual, animal functions of the brain with subliminal messages represents an intentional effort to control and dehumanize the general population. The results could be scary indeed.

In a LinkedIn article that points out serious problems with Thinking, fast and slow, Kahneman’s book on behavioral economics, I concluded:

To continue sleep-walking on the shallow surface of life as most of us do now plays into the hands of madmen and tyrants, some of whom, if it seemed to further their ambitions, would have no compunction whatsoever about plunging the entire world into nuclear war.

But back to The Walking Dead. As a commentary on leadership options in this scary new world, it triggered my Aha on the importance of “keeping it together” as a devolving world militates to tear us apart. The answer I came up with is part mystical, part medical for those with the training and diligence to practice yogic breathing and concentration methods.

The primary questions this series challenges us to think about are, “Who is going to survive in such a chaotic future, How, and Why?”

The protagonist, Rick represents the voice of reason. His words and actions show him to be more evolved than most. He’s a “natural leader,” if you will. This former sheriff’s deputy knows weapons and can handle himself in a fight. But in balance, he is also a “righteous dude.”

Rick earns farm-owner Hershel’s respect by showing him respect.

Hershel – a religious optimist who chooses to deny the existence of danger closing in on all sides – wakes up the hard way, losing all he owns in the process. He’s highly evolved, but out of balance. The practical street smarts were too late coming. At least in the beginning, he was extreme yin, out of balance.

And then there’s the opposite side of the coin. Shane. His exudes extreme yang energy. This treacherous shake in the grass, ruled by animal appetites, rationalizes his lusts and takes whatever he wants however he can.

Shane dogs Rick’s every step, working to undermine him, scheming to take everything – Rick’s wife, son, and leadership role in their small community. Shane operates from the solar center, with little heart awareness and no functional conscience. He has no concept (much less respect) for higher levels of consciousness. Mercy is outside his range of awareness. To Shane, Rick and Hershel seem weak.

Shane seduces whomever he can with the argument that, civilization being destroyed, he is the wave of the future. Only he is qualified to protect the group. But, depending on the rest of us, that vision remains to be seen.

How to deal with the Shanes of the ugly new world? I’m reminded of Lao Tze 41:

120115 2 Sides 41

In thinking about what combination of leadership qualities will succeed in steering small communities through both the internal and external dangers they will face if/when “civilization” breaks down, I was amazed at how skillfully the leaders in The Walking Dead adjust to change. Like the ancients, they keep their balance by adjusting to the fluctuating demands of a dualistic world.

For in duality, as Solomon wrote:

120115 ecclesiastes

In the future, those in small communities who persist in old ways of thinking, clinging to one extreme or the other, either rational or animal, rigidly ignoring the complex demands of an altered, endangered new world, risk forgetting Henry David Thoreau’s warning: “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of feeble minds.”

Certainly Christ knew this. He taught, “Love one another as I have loved you.” Yet his was not an example of foolish sentimental permissive “tolerant” love. Certainly he had no use for the money changers and demonstrated fierce anger towards hypocrites.

It was at this point in my thinking that the Aha happened. The Star of David, traditionally worn over the heart, is the perfect symbol of balancing the polar qualities future leaders will need to keep civilization from devolving into the exclusively animal realms of a zombie-like existence.

This Star is housed in the “secret place of the Most High” described in Psalm 91. It is associated with the heart center located in the middle Dan Tien. It is the seat of compassion, the place where the upper Tan Tien’s mental light and lower Tan Tien’s solar fire join, blend and balance.

This joining is mirrored in the meaning of Ha-tha (sun & moon) yoga = union.

This six-pointed Star is formed by the intersection of two equilateral triangles. According to Chinese medical notation, the upward pointing triangle represents the quality of yang energies. The downward pointing triangle represents yin.

It is no accident that equilateral triangles are the strongest, most stable of geometric structures. Those who internalize and actualize these realities have the practical means to keep themselves and their communities together.

In the Hindu tradition, the Sri Yantra is similarly constructed of nine interlocking triangles that surround and radiate outwards from a central point.

Sri Yantra

These variations are each based on the same subtle geometry. They express the same inner experience of a central, underlying reality.

To repeat, while on one hand, the universal secret of these interlocking triangles is a profound mystery, on the other, for those familiar with yogic breathing and concentration methods, they are the foundation of practical disciplines with physical, mental and spiritual results.

Given time to refine what is written here, the ideas could be better expressed. But the substance remains as a Christmas gift offered to those prepared to receive it as such.

Arguing and nit-picking would miss the point. The better choice is to bring your own understanding to an urgently important subject and make it your own. It is a key to not only personal survival, but the hope for a better future.