Feeling Good

The slenderest knowledge that may be obtained of the highest things is more desirable than the most certain knowledge obtained of lesser things. - Thomas Aquinas

I recently attended a basic shamanism workshop put on by the Foundation for Shamanic Studies.  The course was designed to impart the knowledge needed to take the “shamanic journey” that’s often associated with healing among indigenous cultures all over the world.  I plan to make several posts detailing my experiences in the workshop but it seems appropriate to begin with a few definitions and some background information regarding shamanism. 

First of all, let’s address a few definitions and some basic concepts.

• An internet search of the term shaman seems to indicate that the term was “…derived from the Tungas language of Siberia, it is a generic term for healers and spiritual leaders in tribal societies. Traditional shamans induced trance states through drums, dancing, ingesting hallucinogens, self-mutilation and deprivation and virtually any means by which one might achieve an altered state of consciousness. While in such a trance, the shaman crosses over into another world to get information for his people such as the cause of illnesses and other misfortunes. The shaman is the peoples’ link to the spirit world.”
• Considering the preceding definition, the concept of shamanism can be considered the practice of the shaman as he or she carries out the work brought to them by the tribe.
• The shamanic journey is the activity which takes place while the shaman is in an altered state of consciousness
• The shaman will journey to one of three spirit worlds depending on the work or information the shaman is seeking.
  • The Lower World is where a shaman will go to meet power animals or other spirit guides.  The Lower World is accessed via a hole in the earth such as a hole created by a burrowing animal or a natural hole like a spring or cave.  It’s important to note that the shamanic Lower World cannot be equated to the concept of Hell as eternal damnation is not the purpose of the Lower World.
  • The Middle World is the world that is most like what we know as the physical world.  This world is accessed by the shaman for the purposes of obtaining information needed in our physical existence, like the location of lost items.
  • The Upper World is where a shaman will travel to meet teachers and other helping spirits.  The Upper World is accessed via an upward movement such as a stairway, escalator, or elevator.  During the upward journey a barrier, like clouds, is usually encountered and must be passed through to enter the Upper World.  Additionally, just as the Lower World cannot be equated to Hell, the Upper World cannot be viewed as Heaven.  The concepts of Heaven and Hell belong to modern religion and are not part of the shamanic traditions.

Moving on to the workshop, I was, first of all, quite surprised at the size and makeup of the class.  I had been expecting a small handful of mature gentlemen with more grey hair on their faces than on top of their heads.  I was shocked to find that of the 20 individuals in attendance, I was the one with the least amount of hair!  Further, both genders were adequately represented and the ages ranged from 22 on up.  This was a very diverse and interesting group covering occupations from computer programmer to teacher.

The weekend workshop was an absolute blast and when all was said and done we experienced several wondrous shamanic journeys.  Stay tuned for the continuing story of how this workshop unfolded in future posts.

By believing passionately in something that still does not exist, we create it. The nonexistent is whatever we have not sufficiently desired. –Franz Kafka

A friend recently emailed me asking about happiness and how to manifest his desires.  He said, “I really do want to be happy with my life. I wonder if the problem is that I want too much and am never satisfied ( I was up until 2am last night thinking about my future and where I can go from where I am currently at today. Is this the peak of my life/career? From here on out, it this as good as it’s going to get?)”

The following is an excerpt from my response to him:

Basically, Law of Attraction says that “thoughts become things” and everything in our physical experience begins as thought.  First we think it, and then as we live with that thought the Universe goes to work to bring you what you are thinking about.  There have been all kinds of examples of this throughout history and if you think about it you will find examples in your own life of the same principle at work.  It is this reason that so many people never see much change in the patterns of their lives.  They continually reflect on the way things exist for them in the moment and the Universe keeps bringing them more of what they have which may not be what they really want. 
 
So let’s apply this to your situation.  You want to be involved in a career that’s different from the one you are currently in.  You think to yourself, “I would really like to do X, but I’ve got it pretty good and there are so many people who don’t have as much as I do.” Following Law of Attraction, the Universe responds to “…I’ve got it pretty good…” and sends you more of what you have which leaves you right where you’ve been all along.
 
So then you think, “I wonder if the problem is that I want too much and am never satisfied.” In short, the answer is no.  It is our nature to want more than we have no matter what that may be.  And there’s nothing wrong with that.  That desire for more is what keeps us growing.  We don’t have to worry about getting more than our “share” because the Universe can supply an unlimited amount of resources.  In other words, just because we are getting more does not mean that someone else must get less.
 
The single biggest stumbling block for most people is that they can’t get past the way things “are” in the moment.  If you want the Universe to bring you something more than you have then you must “ignore” the way things are and focus on the way you want them to be!
 
The way to know if you are moving in the right direction is with your emotions.  If you feel good about whatever it is you are thinking about then you are moving in the right direction for you and what you are focusing on is making its way to you!  If, on the other hand, you are feeling bad when you think about something, then you are moving away from what you want.  It’s that simple. 
 
The key to all of this is something of a balancing act.  You must be happy (feel good) with what you have in order to move in the direction of what you want while not being completely satisfied and continually wanting more.  As far as being happy with what you have, the easiest way to move in that direction is to learn to be thankful for what you have.  Find something about your current situation that you can truly be thankful for and offer that up to the Universe.  Seek out more and more things to be thankful for and offer those up at every opportunity.  In the end, the ironic part is that the more you “hate” what you have, the more difficult it is to move on and this is true of any situation be it a job, a relationship, or whatever.  Conversely, the more thankful and appreciative you are for what you have, the easier it is to let it go and receive more of what you want!

Life leaps like a geyser for those who drill through the rock of inertia. –Alexis Carrel

Ok, so I’ve been feeling so good lately that I started to wonder just how to reach for something better when I couldn’t possibly have any way of knowing what “better than I’ve ever been” would feel like.

Now, stay with me for a minute, I realize you may not be at this point on your path. In fact, you may be wondering how you will ever feel anything other than bad. You may not be able to imagine anything close to what you think I’m talking about. But, I submit to you that where you are is not that much different than where I’ve been lately.

I’m moving in a particular direction and, as such, I experience the inertia, or “vibrational escrow”, of the direction I’m moving. You know, “A body in motion tends to stay in motion.” So the motion I’ve created keeps me moving in the direction I’ve been going (sound familiar?) so that more of that situation shows up in my experience.

So the question becomes, “How do I reach for something I don’t understand in the first place?”

The answer is nothing new. “Ask, Believe, Receive,” or however you want to say it. Simply put, it starts with your desire to want something more than what you have. That’s it. It’s as simple as that. You know what you don’t want. So just turn that around and state it as what you do want. Here’s the “difficult” part, assuming there is a difficult part (doesn’t the simple thought that it’s “difficult” make it so? –you should be shaking your head in the affirmative). Because we are moving in a particular direction that inertia (vibrational escrow) that we have built up will keep us moving in that direction and we will have to make deliberate attempts to keep our thoughts on what we want until the time arrives where we’ve “purged the buffers” and can begin to receive that which we are now creating!

So, we’ve started to focus on what we want and we’ve maintained that thought even in the face of the “reality” in front of us. So what happens now?

Something or someone shows up in your experience that demonstrates to you, without any doubt, what you need to think/feel/do in order to move to toward that new direction.

In my case, I met an individual who stirred something in me unlike anything I have felt before. This individual helped me understand what to reach for by providing the necessary contrast between the way I have been feeling and the way I could feel. And, interestingly, it wasn’t about anything that was said but simply about the feeling. In case you’re wondering what it felt like, the only word I can come up with to describe it was “awe” but this doesn’t seem adequate somehow.

Today I am grateful for the arrival of this individual in my experience for I now know how it will be possible to feel better than I currently do.

The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world’s problems. –Mahatma Gandhi

Have you ever felt a “nudge” to do something that you didn’t do but later realized you should have?  I’ve recently had a couple of those experiences and in both cases found out that a lot of good could have come had I only followed that little voice that was telling me, in very specific terms, what I should do.

I was driving to work the other day when I noticed someone who seemed to be having car trouble on the side of the road.  As I approached, I got the distinct impression that this was a new friend of mine from work.  As soon as I passed, I immediately started rationalizing by thinking to myself, “Nah, that wasn’t him, he works an earlier shift than I do and he would have been at work long before now.”

I realized as soon as I walked in the door at the office and he wasn’t at his desk that I had rationalized my way out of an opportunity to help my new friend.  As he relayed the story to me the following day, his statement that, “The entire day went wrong,” struck home as I knew that he might have had a very different day had I listened to my inner voice and stopped to help.

Over time, I have learned to trust these moments of “knowing” but I will admit that while I have learned how powerful these messages can be, I am still working on learning to give completely in to them.

How about you?  Have you been holding yourself back from really following that inner guidance? Imagine what may be possible if only we take that extra few moments and completely give in.

If I could solve all the problems myself, I would. -Thomas Edison, when asked why he had a team of twenty-one assistants

As some of you are already aware, the Tampa Law of Attraction Meetup Group recently became an affiliate chapter of the Gathering Projects. This organization, founded by Andrew Adler, was “…created as a gathering place for those who share the common interest of changing the world one person at a time through spiritual growth and enlightenment.”

Andrew has asked that I share some information regarding an upcoming event that he’s involved with and I’ve chosen to do so by simply including his words below:

To all Gathering and Affiliate members,

On July 8th at 5:00 PST, I will be interviewing David Wilcock, who professes to be the incarnate of Edgar Cayce, on Law of Attraction Talk Radio.

David will be giving scientific information on why there is a shift of consciousness to be eminent in the year 2012. To find out more about David Wilcock you can go to his website Divine Cosmos.

This is also an interesting show for I have been selected as a finalist in the co-host contest. If you would like me to be the permanent co-host you can vote for me after the show. If I win this gives the members of the Gathering Project now a voice over the airways. Where possibly if you are doing something related to the Law of Attraction I suppose I could find a way to talk about you.

With us already having our own website at www.thegatheringprojects.com where I list what you do so that I can promote you, this would just be another way to let people know about you. Remember this is about us as a group of light minded people that want to empower others, and to impact the planet in a positive way. If you have not joined the Gathering Project website please do so it is all free. Wishing you all a happy and safe 4th of July.

To tune in on July 8th 2007 at 5:00 pm PST and 8:00 pm EST go to Law of Attraction Tools.

Andrew

I personally find this to be a very interesting topic that Andrew will be discussing with Mr. Wilcock as from the very first time I heard of the “Mayan-calendar-end-of-times” scenario, I immediately thought of a consciousness shift!

We must not, in trying to think about how we can make a big difference, ignore the small daily differences we can make which, over time, add up to big differences that we often cannot foresee. -Marian Wright Edelman

I’d like to propose a question to you. If by spending only one hour out of your week, you could make a difference on a global scale, would you take that one hour to do so? Furthermore, if I said that you only had to make a firm commitment to do this just once, would that ease the decision for you?

Well, here’s your chance to do just that. Simply spend one hour of your time and help create global change.

For those of you in the Tampa area, this is a very special event taking place on 7/17/07 @ 7:11 AM EDT. Donna Moldovan, the proprietress of Mind, Body and Spirit located at 13141 N. Dale Mabry, is coordinating a local gathering for a group meditation that represents a “…global attempt by the inhabitants of this planet to send our Love to the center of mother earth to help her to restart her heart (so to speak) to counter act the effects of global warming, pollution, and many years of man’s neglect.”

Fire the Grid is the website that kicked this off and you can obtain more information there including where to seek out a gathering should you happen to live somewhere other than Tampa.

Man is a tool-using Animal…. Nowhere do you find him without tools; without tools he is nothing, with tools he is all. -Thomas Carlyle

In a recent post I mentioned that I’ve chosen to be more open to the Law of Attraction tools that come my way and during the most recent meeting of the Tampa Law of Attraction Meetup Group, I had the wonderful opportunity to be exposed to one of those tools courtesy of one of our group’s newest members, Patricia Hoover.

Patricia introduced us to Cymatherapy, which is a “non-invasive sound therapy that may help to restore the body to its optimal health.”

Cymatherapy is based on sound and sound technique research with the aim of applying said research to the field of holistic healing. The application method for Cymatherapy is a sound-generating device called the Cyma1000.

Using the research as a starting point, the Cyma 1000 was designed to emit different tones based on the vibrational level of healthy tissue/organs/emotions. Put another way, a healthy heart, for example, would vibrate at a particular rate while the feelings and emotions associated with self-confidence would vibrate at a different rate. Utilizing Law of Attraction where like attracts like, the tones emitted by the device are said to aid in the energy alignment of the desired tissue/organ/emotion thereby promoting the body’s natural healing abilities. The Cyma 1000 has a multitude of pre-programmed tones (which are actually comprised of a series of simultaneous tones) that can be used to address any number of concerns.

Currently Patricia is the only Health and Wellness Counselor in the state of Florida offering Cymatherapy treatments so if you would like additional information please feel free to contact me and I will be more than happy to put you in touch with Patricia.

As we enter what I believe is a new era of spiritual thought, it is my belief that alternative healing methods, like Cymatherapy, will continue to grow and evolve as we continue to unlock the mysteries of ourselves and the Universe. We are living in such an exciting time! I can’t wait to see what happens next!

I’ve once again been tagged by Vickie at Contemplate This in the latest game going around the Law of Attraction blogosphere where each tagged individual makes a post on “Songs that make your heart sing”.

It seems that most people are choosing one song but I’m going to break with tradition and choose two:

First, a song that I’ve known of for some time but not many people I come across have heard it. I love what it has to say about our “mistakes”. It was written and recorded by David Wilcox.

Leave it like it is

Now when the paint jar tipped
Off of the table
You watched as it started to fall
Glass popped, shattered and splattered
And paint spray hit the wall

Bright, blue glossy enamel
Across the kitchen floor
You said, “Good God, look at that pattern
I’ve never seen that before”

Leave it like it is
Never mind the turpentine
Leave it like it is
Its fine

Now when the paint dried
You gave it a title
You called it “Kitchen Blue”
A white frame painted around it
And gallery lighting too

Rich folks come over to dinner
They all want one of their own
They say “How much? Who’s the artist”
And, “My what a beautiful home”

Leave it like it is
Never mind the turpentine
Leave it like it is
Its fine

Now most folks suffer in sorrow
Thinking they’re just no good
They don’t match the magazine model
As close as they think they should

They live just like the “paint by numbers”
The teacher would be impressed
A life-time of follow the lines
So it’s just like all of the rest

Leave it like it is
Never mind the turpentine
Leave it like it is
Its fine

For my second choice, I am going to select a song that, if you’ve watched much television at all during the last few years, you have no doubt at least heard the opening. It’s called “Somewhere over the rainbow/What a wonderful world” recorded by Israel “Iz” Kamakawiwo’ole.

Somewhere over the rainbow/What a wonderful world

Somewhere over the rainbow
Way up high
And the dreams that you dreamed of
Once in a lullaby
Somewhere over the rainbow
Blue birds fly
And the dreams that you dreamed of
Dreams really do come true
Someday I’ll wish upon a star
Wake up where the clouds are far behind me
Where trouble melts like lemon drops
High above the chimney tops is where you’ll find me
Somewhere over the rainbow bluebirds fly
And the dreams that you dare to, oh why, oh why can’t I?
Well I see trees of green and Red roses too,
I’ll watch then bloom for me and you
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world
Well I see skies of blue and I see clouds of white
And the brightness of day
I like the dark and I think to myself
What a wonderful world
The colors of the rainbow so pretty in the sky
Are also on the faces of people passing by
I see friends shaking hands
Saying, “How do you do?”
They’re really saying, I…I love you
I hear babies cry and I watch them grow,
They’ll learn much more than
We’ll know
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world
Someday I’ll wish upon a star,
Wake up where the clouds are far behind me
Where trouble melts like lemon drops
High above the chimney tops is where you’ll find me
Somewhere over the rainbow way up high
And the dreams that you dare to, … why, oh why can’t I

Well those are my choices, so on the game goes…

• Lor at Lor’s Blog
• Susan at Sanctuary for Change
• Julie at The Truth of You

All the races and tribes in the world are like the different colored flowers of one meadow. All are beautiful. As children of the Creator they must all be respected. -Taken from the Native American Indian Traditional Code of Ethics. Inter-Tribal Times, 1994-OCT

This week I was having lunch in a Mexican restaurant and heard two religious leaders at the table behind me discussing how their spiritual answers would benefit the masses if only those masses would ascribe to their thought processes. Mind you, I was by no means eavesdropping. As a matter of fact, I would not have needed to in order to hear this part of their discussion for they, consciously or not, slipped into their “stage” voices during those particular moments. Before anyone misunderstands, allow me to say that I have absolutely no issue with either of these individuals or any of their religious counterparts. More than that, I believe that they are on the absolute correct path…for them.

As I was reflecting on this, the Universe chimed in and delivered the following message in my email:

Physical man gets into an uncomfortable place when he concludes, “I and those like me have come to the right decisions, and everybody that’s living outside of these right decisions is wrong.” And then he spends his life pushing against all those “wrong” decisions and cutting himself off from the Life Force that would help him have joy in his, what he concludes to be, right decisions. There is no one right path. There are endless paths, and the differences in the paths are what make them more and more, and more, perfect. The same old path no longer serves.

-Abraham via Esther Hicks (Excerpted from a workshop in Orlando, FL on Saturday, February 3rd, 2001)

There has also been much said recently about being ever so careful of the vibrational level of the people around you. I believe that thought process is really not that much different than that of the religious leaders that had lunch at the table next to me. I submit that there’s really nothing to “guard against” but only choices to be made.

As for my choices, I choose to believe that each of us has our own path to walk and that each path is just as unique as we are. Because each one’s path is unique, I choose to accept each one where he or she is at any given moment. I choose to be okay with each just as they are and not concern myself with how they may affect me — for I choose to believe they can only affect me if I allow them to. I choose to articulate my beliefs with my words and demonstrate them with my actions. I choose to laugh, play, and live with all those who come my way regardless of what they may have to offer in return.

Above all, I choose to Love each “flower in the meadow”.

And when you strip any of the world’s major religions to their respective cores, that is the one common denominator!

One only needs two tools in life: WD-40 to make things go, and duct tape to make them stop. -G. Weilacher

If you’ve been to the Tampa Law of Attraction Meetup Group that I organize or have read very much of this blog you will no doubt know that my intention for these activities is to create an inviting space for like minded people to share ideas and grow as each of us walk our own path. To this end, I have been careful about how I present myself and this blog so as not to give any false impression that I’m doing any of this for any personal reasons other than the joy I receive when helping others and the information that I am able to use for my own continued growth.

As such, I’ve been somewhat resistant to talking about or addressing products and services within this realm (”resistant” - as I write it, it seems so ironic!). What has occurred to me over the last few days, however, is that these products and services essentially represent nothing more than tools which we can each choose to utilize or not depending on whether we resonate with them at any given moment.

I think that books are an excellent example of tools that can help us along our path. The reason so many books can be sold on a given topic like Law of Attraction, is due to the fact that each of us is following a different path and, as such, the same material presented in different ways could potentially resonate with different people. The information at it’s core may be very similar but the presentation could make the difference for one individual versus another.

So, I’ve made an internal decision to be more open to the tools that may come my way which could potentially prove to be beneficial to those I seek to serve.

As a first step in that direction, I would like to point you to a free collection of ebooks that contains a “who’s who” of authors who were writing, almost a century ago, about what we now call Law of Attraction. There are several books in this collection that I have read and finding them all in one collection like this is quite exciting!

I would also like to say a special “Thank You” to Lyman Reed at Creating a Better Life for posting a link to this particularly impressive collection!

Happy Reading!