March 2021 — Shamanic Meditation Studies – The Imagined!
I am aware that everyone I sit in circle with is aware of their true nature as the Dreamer (God). It is also clear that we are all also playing this game of hide and seek. Right here in the web of duality, aka, the "dream of the planet."
Why are we here in this relatively ignorant and impermanent dream? Perhaps, so that we can knowingly choose to reside here (as) the Quiet Attention "behind" thought.
This month, I will post a series of homework exercises designed to bridge the gap between our beliefs and experiences of the nature of reality.
1. On my YouTube site there are four videos at the end of my Shamanic Meditation Studies playlist. Please invest at least 15 minutes viewing "Abundance Gate." The point of working with this particular audio/visual is to allow the movement of life to come to, and through you! Take in the feel of being the object of attention. Part two is to sit in a room in your house and allow the flow of energy to effortlessly flow through. Post what you experience.
2. We need to establish some common ground. I will offer out exercises designed to stop looking at life from an egocentric perspective (similar to the conversation between Krishna and Arguna).
3. While walking through a room, consciously allow the room to move through you. Who we think we are is totally unequipped to handle this shift in attention. Post what you experience.
There will be several sequential exercises to play with this month. Imagine that you are God bored with eternal bliss and you consciously decide to play a game of hide and seek. What bread crumbs have you left along the path to "remind yourself of your True Nature?" Play with all of the exercises as they arise!!
George Lisi ‘The Home of Light’
this day reveals
the intimacies of earth
the places where the snow
is last to melt
where spring yet stretches
soft and folded
in her sleep.
~4/15/14
a robin fat
and red
and belly full
of promised spring
~4/2/14
the world
I see
is brewing
up another batch
of slightly modified eternity
~4/24/14
Namaste. Love.
Depending on what I am doing on social media it can invite me into awareness or pull me out. When it pulls me out, when I take it personally, I have found it takes only seconds to remember that I have slipped into a me defending me. I am generally the most at peace when there is no input regarding the dream of the planet, starring me. Which often means being still enough to “hear” or feel what is coming from silence.
Challenge accepted and met.
Here’s what I noticed.
1.I grabbed my phone out of habit
2.Almost every time I looked at my phone, I dropped out of presence.
3.Breaking the habit, I resisted common social media but remembered how almost everything online from the news, shopping, games and research had that same sticky pull.
4.I found it was easier just to stay off my phone and computer.
5.I was more aware and present, enjoyed new things.
As far as taking things personally, staying away social media helped reduce drama, conflict and negative thoughts. While I still found myself taking things personally, they seemed to release when I remember it’s not personal.
Thank you for your gratitude and presence Braveheart, it is always noted and full of creativity … finding more D Whyte interviews I heard
“ Listening on the Great shores of Silence”
Another invitation Keshav to get off the devices… Namaste. Love.
See you on the other side.
I’ll take that challenge.
Braveheart, et al: I challenge you to stay off of social media for at least 24 hours. During that period keep a captain's log of every time you take things personally.
During the last Saturday group, Keshav asked ways we are being creative during this pandemic. I mentioned gratitude and presence.
Here are a few more.
Finding more ways to be of service:
*Wearing a mask and limiting exposure.
*Reaching out, listening and supporting others
*Thanking everyone for being there
Becoming more observant
*Breathing in peace, allowing in fear
*Noticing the sky and plants, feeling plant spirits
Refocus, reuse, reduce, recycle
*Focusing on what is truly important
*Reorganizing and redecorating by reusing, reducing, donating
*Less screen time, more music, books, laughter
Sitting outside, I realized I didn’t have my phone. I resisted the urge to get it. A moment later two hawks flew over, side by side – followed by a third.
If I had gone inside for my phone or was on my phone, I would have missed them. Instead I saw two and taking that in, saw the third.
Our true nature, as God, is to create from the Now, consciousness. When we create from the dream of the planet, the illusion of separation, we ultimately create suffering. I am at last grasping that there is only one moment. As our spirits move from formless to form to formless, there is no birth and no death. There is only the one moment, with the one consciousness moving in and out of form.
I believe we take form and develop an ego so that we can learn. We learn from our mistakes, from our misunderstandings. We learn compassion from suffering. We understand love from the illusion of hate. Without the yin and yang how would we appreciate anything? Yet, in the moment, in consciousness from Source we can experience truth, love, oneness, support, clarity and true creativity.
Prayers for Boulder…
I see so clearly at this moment how structured knowledge or beliefs leave little room for ‘other’. To shed ego is to shed smallness; and opening to ‘other’ is to open what is vastly ‘more’. So much seems to become possible when I embrace the unknown. It is wonderfully humbling.
What a treat it is to experience myself through everyone that contributes to the Integrity of the circle. Thank you for this afternoon!
Lori, I too found the center light seemed to disappear and when it did, I would feel what Joe described and ‘self referencing’ came and went. Objective mind then
Subjective mind and back and forth.
I worked with The Abundance Gate using Donna’s and Betty’s suggestion of being closer to the screen. This time I found that the center light disappeared, replaced with what seemed to be a vibrating doorway. Whenever mind kicked it however, the doorway disappeared and the light reappeared. I played with that disappearing light for a while, then stayed with the still vibrating energy.
Yes! And taking glasses off, who needs clarity in vision to truly see and feel! My large poster of the Grand Canyon became 3D when I looked up and everything was fluid.
I’ve been stepping back and stopping at the bird feeder after filling them, and using this technique. Not looking around but creating an unfocused view and noticing what comes, and it seems to not interfere with the birds as much! Namaste.
I, too, put my iPad right up to my face. Depending on where it was I felt pulled straight into the center or or pulled sideways into the center.
I played around with viewing Abundance Gate several different ways. First, I sat with the screen about 20” from my face. It was nice but wasn’t long before visual distractions in the environment caught my eye so I put my hands up to face and made like I was looking through binoculars to narrow the visual field. That was pretty cool but it wasn’t until I removed my actual eyeglasses that something began to change. There was an impulse to get closer to the video so I brought the laptop up to my face and as close to my eyes as possible. Being this close to the screen took away all peripheral distractions leaving nothing between my self and the pulsations of light and sound. The boundaries soon disappeared, the idea of separateness began to vanish and the light in the center of the visual was no longer visible. The energy wave vibrations came, passed through and rippled on. That transitioned to feeling like consciousness was riding a wave as it expanded further and further away from center while simultaneously feeling like it never went anywhere at all.
This morning I experienced my very first MRI for my back and leg issues. While in the tube I attempted a Shamanic Journey to the Lower Worlds, got on my Eagle and it took me to the Upper Worlds and for a while I just floated around observing space. Nothing exceptional happened and I consciously said hello to my mom, dad and newly crossed over brother, John. I had been asking Eagle to show up for me these last few days and I was happy to ride my Eagle into the Upper Worlds. Then, I came home and decided to check out Community Share and went on to view the Abundance Gate. Wow! I immediately saw Bald Eagle come forth in the abundance of the tiles in the form of white light. It seemed to emerge from the Star of David with the circles around the 6 points. Wow. What a beautiful meditation. I also realized that I have an abundance of love all around me and that all I need to do is to open up to experience more abundance in the form of money-I need to bust some of the beliefs I have had in the past about money which may have been blocking it from coming to me in abundance-things like "I am not worthy", "Wanting money is greedy" You know what I mean I am sure if you experience this as well. Time for a trip to the Mall to observe all the abundance in the stores. Thank you Keshav for this Abundance Gate exercise. I will watch it often. Namaste, Diane
Ditto Betty!
Thankful that all roads lead home. We simply cannot screw things up, even though we think we have. So glad all of our roads converged.
Happy Birthday, Carol!
Happy Birthday Carol!!
Missy. I am inspired by your work with your "indoor" apple tree. Several weeks ago, I took a real chance at hacking down most of my grapefruit tree – to try and save it. Thank you Missy for inviting me to trust myself when dealing with fruit trees. Spring is start to spring here in Tucson, and the new grapefruit leaves are more than an inch long. I am very excited!
All roads lead home…
Yay Missy! You have teenage ladybugs/gentlemenbugs! Aren’t they cool looking? Could you take a photo and send it out as most people have never seen ladybugs at that stage. And you not only heard you listened, saving them and letting nature take it’s course. I had a hard time resisting moving a spider plant on the window this winter. I believed the cold would be too much for it but it looked happy so I left it. Noticed today that it is looks even happier and healthier with many shoots and lots of blooms and babies.
Keshav and Betty, I’ll do the exercise again, relaxing into the energy more. Thanks.
Plant awareness or? Have a question for you …. Ok so I bring in my nicotiana/tobacco plants and have been caring for them with aphids and gnats. These past couple months I got lazy and left my 3’ tobacco alone , kept saying I’ll get to you! I did water them tho, just didn’t deal with the flys, and it got covered. So this weekend I finally gave it a good shower before I took one, and noticed bigger black things on the under leaves! So I put on my glasses and having almost wiped them off I heard No! Look closer.. so we have the winter ladybugs and they are nymphs! If I had been diligent in cleaning I wouldn’t have them, I’m always moving ladybugs to the plants, so has anyone ever felt like a Plant has made you change your habits and it’s for the better? It was pretty subtle but I really kept Not doing anything, and it looked healthy. Curious. I do have to start some Datura seeds again, that Mama finally lived it’s lifecycle. Namaste!
I also feel an influx of undifferentiated energy when I open up the aperture of awareness. This is particularly evident in my fingers, lower legs, and toes. I also notice that those body parts are not resisting the energy, they seem to be making adjustments and allowances, accordingly. Surf's up!
Lori, I noticed with both meditations I tried that my feet were so full of energy, the first time which I stayed with longer, they were vibrating. And when I tried walking my hands were tingling.
Lori – I am so grateful that you accepted the invitation to take in life from a new perspective. This dream we share together is highly intimate. I am grateful to play the role of teacher for people like you that are willing to challenge what they believe to be true. I cherish your feedback.
I notice that attention naturally relaxes when I consciously decide not to label anything that my perceptions are allowing in. My heart naturally opens to receive wisdom, particularly when I soften my gaze enough to root in the Presence of the moment. I do not do that, I simply allow myself to feel the moment's vibrancy.
The simple (not always easy) intent to hold my ground in the here and now, takes a powerful commitment to forget everything I think I know, in order to receive an unfiltered experience of Now. It always happens with I call off the search for peace and freedom in the next moment (or the memory of a past moment).
Meanwhile, here in the moment, the space between objects of attention (particularly thoughts) is vibrating faster, and brighter, than the objects themselves. Taking another breath, I allow myself to float in, and as, the flow of energy instinctively creating (and destroying) a bridge between form and formlessness.
What a perfect time to hold up a mirror, and gaze into the timeless eyes of my beloved Self.
Great posts. Thank you for sharing. I made sure I was rested and ready to sit to really take in the Abundance Gate video. At first I found it was a lot to take in visually.
Staying with it – opening to it, the visuals changed. The outer colored bands faded away as the center light's colors changed to a light blue/green. As the center light expanded, across the screen and out of the computer, energy radiated out. I could feel the energetic connection and see the center light reaching out.
More than the Magic eye book pictures, the energy was visceral. It felt like my core was being filled with energy but after a while, as the energy flowed in, my arms and legs would simultaneously jump – like bacon in a hot pan. Was that form resisting the energy?
After, I shifted my gaze to the room, I noticed that the doorway and the opposite wall appeared as a flat surface, with no space between them or them and me. There was also a golden light around all previously viewed edges. Then I fell asleep for over an hour! A wonderful dreamless, restful nap.
Subsumed.
I loved your post, Missy. I felt like I was there with you!
Yes, you all write it best, coming and going while sitting still, things aren’t the same as I use to think, they aren’t even Things anymore. Shadows create around the space, a noise comes and goes, it softens as a whole, shifts and moves.
Outdoors when I’ve tried it, nothing is the same, expectations drop, labels drop. Today we skied downhill and the wind was a big factor and became fun to play with. I was laughing as I skied by the end, I had dropped all judgement, and on the last run I just let go into a strong wind tunnel of very cold air not slowing down till I got to the car, swearing and laughing, flying and floating I guess too!
That Space in that moment had a hold of my movement/ awareness? and I felt something was in control of getting me down the mountain and totally gave up all of my control and had a blast! Namaste.
While doing this exercise I also notice a feeling of being pulled through the space. There was an effortlessness that made walking and driving feel like floating.
I have been playing with the assignment. At first I found the visual distracting, so I stared at my bureau instead. Eventually it looked “dusty” and then I could see white “particles” moving around rapidly, occasionally shooting across. When I went back to the visual on the screen, it had changed to a pattern similar to what I was seeing in front of the bureau, except it was in gold. I was using the music as a timer, not realizing it is a very long meditation. My first thought about letting the room move through me was remembering the time when Keshav was doing energy work on me and asked me how my feet felt. I told them they felt like Swiss cheese and asked him why he had asked me that. He answered that they looked like Swiss cheese. I also found the magic eye videos and played with them a bit. I think after a few more times I will be able to let go enough to be able to feel the room move through me.
What a wake up call! I went to the YouTube site to listen to “Abundance Gate” but I didn’t see it. In fact, the ENTIRE Shamanic Meditation Studies playlist was missing! Apparently, I have been looking at an older “Bookmarked” version of the site!!! Found the playlist and so much more when I did a new search with fresh eyes. It’s amazing all the “new” videos I didn’t see even though I was looking.
I was surprised to see how much my presence changed when allowing the room to come to me. My eyes relaxed, and I was taking in the moment without a filter. I would compare the shift to a magic eye book. The space feels much more inviting.