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Chuck’s Place: The Discipline of Awe

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Find the pot of gold in every dream…
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

Suspend judgment, and entertain this dream, the current consensus reality, with the Discipline of Awe:*

An incredibly aggressive, take no prisoners energy, has swept control of world leadership. Mightily, it rests the validity of its case upon the strength of its heated economy, the ultimate defense against want and need.

Meanwhile, the Earth heats up, as the oceans rise and the lands tremble. Denial is the proffered tool of this new consensus reality, promised to stave off all disruptions to normal life. Can that really work?

Enter stage East, the coronavirus, in the home of the heart of world manufacturing. Could a tiny virus seriously challenge the very financial  order that upholds world leadership? Will aggression, denial, and science be able to circumvent collapse? What’s going to happen next?!!!!

The greatest defense against anxious infection from the dream we are in, our current consensus reality, is to rest upon the perch of Awe, which for shamans is the very definition of discipline. Awe is the calmness of Buddha, as he faced, without resistance, but also without attachment, all the extreme dreams of Maya, as they presented themselves to him.

The potential trapping generated by the dream of current reality lies in how powerfully it invites fear and offense. As soon as one succumbs to those emotions they lose their edge. To spend one’s emotional energy in bursts of extremes actually feeds the consensus reality of that dream, a dream dependent upon the energy of both unbridled and tortured emotion.

Yes, the dream we are in now may be experienced as utterly ruthless. Yet, as monstrous as that dream interpretation might be, the current dream’s medicinal value lies in its ability to test us; to drive us to greater awareness, if we refuse to relinquish our emotional energy to it.

Of course, this lands one in a lonely, inadequate position. Because, if one separates oneself from the tenets of the dream—the consensus reality it constructs—one is excommunicated from the safety of the party line. One is sentenced to think for oneself; an overwhelmingly lonely and fragile task.

It’s not that one loses one’s connection to emotion through the discipline of awe, but one does lay claim to one’s emotional self. One is no longer a victim of the formula that siphons one’s energy, but instead becomes totally responsible for one’s own energy.

For example, when we watch a movie, we suspend judgment and temporarily enter the consensus reality of the story. While watching the movie, we will likely have the emotions prescribed by the archetypal theme being dramatized. However, generally, soon after we leave the movie, we are restored to our familiar selves, detached from the characters or emotions of the movie. We reclaim our emotional autonomy and reaffirm our interpretation of reality.

To take possession of one’s emotional self is to have one’s emotions, without subscribing to upholding the reality being presented. In this respect, one exercises one’s ability to have a romance with emotion, without attaching to the dream or story as my agreed-upon reality.

By grabbing onto one’s personal intent, one is freed from the framework and limitations ‘imposed’ by the consensus dream. With intent, one is freed to respectfully change dreams. This is in no way a denial of the consensus dream; it remains quite real. However, it is experienced as only one of many alternatives. There are other consensual realities to join, or perhaps just visit, as a warrior-traveler, embarked upon the definitive journey of freedom.

To remain fully in this consensus dream, the current reality, but to refuse an interpretation of it that renders one a depleted victim, is a form of changing dreams. To see its predatory dominance as an expression of the true condition of life, one that can be used to sharpen awareness by getting over self-importance, transforms the dream into an evolutionary opportunity.

One does not have to agree to attach to a glum interpretation of this consensus dream either; that’s the true course of freedom. That’s the real revolution:  to refuse to be a victim of the consensus dream; to not attach and to not allow one’s emotional energy to be offended, thus sinking into a hopeless interpretation of reality.

The shift beyond this consensus dream is aided by using death as an advisor. Indeed, it is the ultimate shamanic maneuver. In the Tensegrity workshops I attended for many years, every speaker would introduce themselves by stating their name, followed by the qualifier, “…a being who is going to die.”

I have to admit that my own self-importance interfered with my being able to mimic this style of introduction. I never could do it; it seemed rather trite and morbid. However, like all things those shamans did, there was a truly pragmatic value to this ritual.

For one thing, shamans state their names to affirm their full presence in the reality or particular dream they are currently embodying. Secondly, when they remind themselves of their impending deaths, they are accessing being present to this living moment from the perspective of a dying being, a being who is transitioning into a new reality, seeing the ultimate relativity of the dream they are exiting.

From that perspective of relativity they are freed from an all-consuming attachment to present reality; as it is seen as just a moment—albeit significant, as all moments are—unfolding into the greater unfolding of oncoming time, that which is infinity and beyond! Such an encounter with infinity borrows a perspective from beyond this dream that tempers the emotional energy expended in holding onto, or compulsively needing to change, the outcome of the present dream.

Present reality is merely a dream that exists, with equanimity, among an infinity of dreams, all of which offer golden nuggets of awareness. Exploit the current opportunity to the fullest, regardless of outcome. Defeat and conquest are meaningless outcomes next to an infinity of dreams waiting to be lived.

With this expanded perspective, we’ve come full circle, back to awe, the coveted position from which to truly resume, unfettered, our magical journey, appreciative of all the gifts from our many, rich and colorful dreams.

beingINTENT upon AWE,

Chuck

*As with all my blogs, my ideas presented here are deeply influenced by my experience and appreciation for the path of heart Carlos Castaneda gifted the world.

Chuck's Blog

Chuck’s Place: A Shift of the World’s Assemblage Point

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Being Intent, no matter what…
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

Carlos Castaneda faced the most ego-crushing fact. His role, as dictated by Spirit itself, was to end rather than continue his shamanic lineage, a lineage that had spanned twenty-seven generations.

Carlos’ dilemma mirrors the energetic configuration of our time, a time of endings.

Earth herself is in a time of major reshaping as she violently shakes free of the shackles of inertia that have bound her in place. Shamans would call the place of her frozen fixation, the world’s assemblage point, the place where the Earth’s energy is assembled into a consensus reality, the everyday world as we have known it.

The Earth abounds now with dismantling events, be they earthquakes, Senate trials, or viruses. Reality, as we have known it, is being rocked at its core. Institutions are falling like dominoes. Many dreams are vying to become the new consensus reality, the world’s new position of the assemblage point.

As I see it, the destructive phase of now will not be of short duration. The dream currently dominating is the ultimate completion of a one-sided American dream. That dream demands full expression. Perhaps that is the true contribution of our time, to not suppress and pass along that unfulfilled dream for future generations to have to complete. I believe this current dream has been long in the making. That dream spares not even a brush with apocalypse to fulfill its hunger for power and domination.

More comprehensively put, America is completing the ultimate ego over everything dream. This is actually a universal dream, not just America’s. The universality of that dream reflects a world developmental process that tests the viability of fixation at the level of total narcissism.

The current strain of the coronavirus has presented a most interesting challenge to the most populated country on Earth, China, the ancient home of the Book of Changes, the I Ching. Could an alternative dream be unfolding where China shakes off its materialistic dew and gets down to its Taoist roots, action in accordance with Inner Truth (hexagram #61)?

A totalitarian regime has chosen to lose face. No hiding its blemish; it is currently the home of a deadly virus. Superhuman efforts are being made to construct necessary hospitals, isolate large masses of people, and provide accurate safety precaution to all. Economic considerations pale next to the cooperative needs of survival.

Who knows what will happen, but at present this unfolding dream appears to attempt to stalk a position beyond the narcissism of damage control to face the actual danger, with rationality untempered by narcissism. Planet Earth is steadily insisting on a movement that assembles such a reality.

More dreams will  fill the world stage in the coming months; these are the trials of transformation. When Carlos Castaneda was confronted with deciding what to do with the hidden knowledge of his shamanic lineage, as he closed its door, he dreamed forward Tensegrity, offering anyone who wanted it the practical knowledge of the Shamans of Ancient Mexico.

Carlos, while still in this world, would marvel at Tensegrity workshops, that he was able to observe perhaps a thousand people practicing in unison the Magical Passes of his lineage. This was a sight no other Nagual—the shamanic leader of a group of no greater than 16 apprentices in each generation—had ever witnessed: the power of the mass impact of these Magical Passes performed in unison.

Carlos Castaneda believed that the time had arrived where a new power of the mass, spirit warriors from all nations and traditions, would energetically combine their forces of intent  to shift the world’s assemblage point to a new, more comprehensive position to ensure a solid foundation for survival.

The ending of Carlos’ line marked the end of the self-importance of any one tradition holding the exclusive keys to the kingdom. The mass movement of this growing collective intent is fueled by truth, love, and pragmatism. It includes movements such as minimalism, clean energy, small cooperative organic farming communities, respect for the Earth as a living planetary being, as well as the all-inclusive values and practices of all spiritual traditions, none excluded.

The traumas upon the face of the Earth now, though tragic, reflect a shaking loose of the current heavy inert fixation of the assemblage point that has long been preparing for a necessary move. Carlos demonstrated the necessity of letting go of old ways, particularly the dominance of the narcissism of self-importance, to make room for a new position grounded in the greater common good.

We are lured to give over our attention, our hopes and fears, to quick fixes or idealistic dreams that could stem the tide of this destruction. Best to do this with what shamans call controlled folly: detached passion; rather than deplete one’s energy through futility and defeat. Much more important is to place one’s intent upon joining with the Earth’s intent, as she aggressively shifts her own body to a new and necessary position of the assemblage point.

May all beings join in the intent of this new position of the assemblage point, where reason is stripped of its narcissistic veils and applies itself wholeheartedly to the pragmatism of world survival.

being INTENT,

Chuck

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Chuck’s Place: Spirit is an Equal Opportunity Employer

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Spirit in the flow of everyday change…
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

Every being upon this planet is exposed to the identical pressure of Earth in radical transition. The term transition highlights the growth potential that accompanies the obvious destructive side effects of these far reaching changes.

This pressure, or egalitarian touch of the Spirit, offers all beings an opportunity to evolve. How we interpret this pressure will determine how we respond to this opportunity, which is presented equally to all.

As individual humans we are beings of two minds, the mind of everyday life and the mind of the Spirit. The everyday mind is largely of extrinsic origin, being the product of  the internalized forces of socialization. Though experienced as deeply personal, this is the judging mind of the internal dialogue that tells us who we are and what is what, according to our deeply internalized party line.

The fixation of everyone’s everyday mind is an overarching concern about the self, or by extension, me and mine. That mind interprets the world through the narrow narcissistic lens of being offended, or validated, by all the actions of others, or simply by the world-at-large.  At present, the world is being treated to a mighty reflection of this everyday mind, as mirrored by world leadership.

As the Earth proceeds along her mighty path of transformation, it becomes increasingly obvious that the dominance of the everyday mind is headed for extinction, at least in its current form. How can this self-serving approach to reality possibly survive the absolute necessity of a more comprehensive concern for the survival of the entire planet?

The mind of the Spirit is directly linked to the deeper truth of Earth’s profound transformation. However, this knowing of the Spirit is largely veiled by the mind of everyday life, with its fixation of total energy and attention placed upon its self-centered, worrisome, everyday concerns. From its perspective, my survival, regardless of altruistic verbiage and activity, is as far as it can really see.

The mind of Spirit speaks softly but honestly beneath the dense layers of the everyday mind. Shocks in the everyday flow of life, such as the tragic untimely death of Kobe Bryant, offer glimpses of Spirit.  The far greater outer calamities of the Earth are also messengers of Spirit, inviting a wider audience to hear its truths, as evidenced in the current coronavirus.

Fascinating to watch how quickly the everyday mind restores itself following its rupture by knocks of the Spirit. In Piaget’s nomenclature, assimilation that refuses to accommodate the greater truth is not real adaptation. At best, it’s a temporary sand fortress, soon to be dissolved by the next wave.

Finally, Spirit offers the highest form of adventure. To ride honestly, with knowledge of our transience, and being respectful of our temporary home, while we simultaneously thoroughly take the journey of preparation for the next leap in our journey, is the true path of heart.

This is the call of our Spirit now, our true evolutionary destiny. And Spirit is an equal opportunity employer. All who turn to it in earnest are immediately hired, on a true mission from the Universe.

Employed,

Chuck

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Chuck’s Place: Being Intent

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Woke up at midnight to a powerful headache. So begins the internal dialogue: “You didn’t take care of yourself. You brought this on. You won’t be able to sleep well. Tomorrow will be compromised. There is no way this headache will go away. Well, maybe if you took some Motrin. Some healer you are. You are powerless to change this pain…”

Stalking healing intent…
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

The impact of this messaging stirs anxiety and fear, and a general belief of defeat and failure, accompanied by a somewhat depressed mood.

The net effect of this internal dialogue is to securely embody a definition of self as flawed, limited, and of low value. To stalk such an experience is to add an impartial observer alongside this internal dialogue, with the intent to separate itself from these negative wrappings, and unleash the fullness of possibilities.

From this impartial place of awareness, the observer suspends judgment, awaiting other possibilities. Suddenly, a vague memory appears with some certain knowledge: “You can relieve your headache through your own agency, through your own intent.”

Immediately, the internal dialogue chips in: “That experience you think you remember was a fluke, maybe it didn’t really even happen. There’s no way you can eliminate your headache short of 1000mg of Motrin. Some healer you are.”

The stalking observer decides to place its full attention upon the details of its prior self-healing experience. Recapitulating that experience, it knows it began by placing full awareness upon the sensation of pain in the exact locale of the head from which it pulsated. From there, the command had been issued to release and relax, deeper and deeper.

The stalker decides to apply this method. The inner dialogue casts its aspersions, but the stalker finds inner silence, by simply placing its full attention upon the sensation, and giving the command to release and relax. No attention is given to the internal dialogue nor any other thought thread. The stalking observer then fully merges with the intent, into a state of being intent.

Within minutes, as relaxation and release deepen, the head becomes completely spacious, as inhaled breath flows freely through its caverns. The headache is completely erased! It never returns. Being intent has operationalized and fully realized its intent.

Don Juan Matus joked with his much younger apprentice, Carlos Castaneda, about how much physically older Carlos appeared than he. Don Juan attributed his youthful vitality to his refusal to uphold physical agreements he had never signed up for.

Socialization shapes and limits what we believe we are capable of physically changing. The body itself is governed by inherited archetypal intents, in the form of subconscious programs. The internal dialogue upholds these ‘facts’ of physical life. These facts are rarely challenged by consciousness.

Yogis, for eons, have demonstrated that full consciousness can be brought to, and take control of, every organ and biological system in the body. Being intent is the active agent of that consciousness. The key is to suspend the judgments of the internal dialogue, leading to inner silence, and then shifting into being intent.

The Sorcerers of Ancient Mexico became such masters of being intent that they turned their prowess into defying death, staying in human form indefinitely. Modern seers, though they appreciate such feats, see them as traps, as all beings must eventually change form through physical death, the destiny intent of the human form.

Nonetheless, being intent certainly opens the door to possibilities in human form, which are well-worth exploring. To be able to erase a full blown headache and slip into deeply rejuvenating sleep is deeply appreciated. It may not always be possible, but my motto, taken from my earliest mentor, Dr. Efren Ramirez, has always been: Anything is possible, until proven otherwise.

May all discover the possibilities of being intent for themselves.

being INTENT,

Chuck

Chuck's Blog

Chuck’s Place: Stalking the Ego in the New Era

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We are in the dawning of a New Era…
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

An animal stalks its prey, waiting patiently, instinctively knowing the best moment to strike. Shamans regularly stalk a new identity, when the time has come for them to transform and move on into new life. In this New Era we find ourselves in, we must all stalk a new identity.

To stalk, we must first turn to the ego’s behavior and study its habitual patterns in order to know which to strike to ensure survival in this New Era. Stalking requires pragmatic objectivity to be effective. Belief systems that superimpose their interpretations upon reality miss the mark of what truly is. To stalk is to be a true scientist.

The salient quality of ego is its decision making capability. Though all species may be said to make decisions, only humans have the ability to act contrary to their instinctive programs. Humans, therefore, have functioned as the deliberative brain of planet Earth, altering instinctive programs at will. As a result, Planet Earth has entered into a period of revolt; in striking out the ruling human ego she stalks her own new identity.

We watch, every day, as Planet Earth continues her drastic transformation; evident currently in the fires of Australia, earthquakes in Puerto Rico, volcano in the Philippines, and tornadoes and early summer in different parts of mainland America.

If we stalk the governing ego of the world at present, in human form, what is revealed is an inflated sense of self-importance that blatantly denies the reality of climate change, and is focused on the total exploitation of the Earth, for the material gain of itself. This ego stance is intent upon completely imposing its will upon the Earth, positioning itself as the master of all of nature.

How can such a ruling attitude adapt to the multitude of changes happening daily before our eyes? At best, we might call it a valiant attempt to hold onto the dominating feature of the old era, in what we might characterize as, “ego’s last stand.” But, like buildings being toppled by earthquakes, this exaggerated attitude will, of necessity, collapse amidst the growing imperative of Earth’s transformation.

Ego, as the active side of decision making, is critical to survival in this New Era. However, ego must align itself with the true needs of the self, and the planet. This requires a perspective that considers the interdependent relationship of all things, what could be called the energetic oneness of everything.

The byproduct of this oneness, the glue that holds it all together, is love. Thus, for ego to align itself lovingly with the interconnected oneness of everything would be the correct attitude to stalk, as we inevitably go with the flow of the changes of this New Era.

Our New Era is replete with violation. Violation is the catalyst that opens the portal to new worlds. Trauma survivors and shamans alike know the transporting effect of violation ushering in unknown worlds.

What was once the restricted province of shamans and unwitting victims is now the everyday reality for the entire human race: violation and entry into new worlds of possibility. Blame for  violation, at this stage, cannot contain the deeper truth, that we are all part of a collective shamanic journey now, our evolutionary destiny. We are not victims but adventurers forging a new path in a New Era.

Clearly, it is nature herself leading the charge of violation in this New Era, as Planet Earth reshapes herself. Current human ego decision making, at the highest levels, reflects nature’s ruthlessness. But here the analogy ends. Ruthlessness rooted in narcissistic injury is isolated and immature. Only ego, in the service of the greater good, can safely navigate this New Era we are in. Only ego in alignment with what is truly right for all can lead us safely forward.

As individuals, we are being asked to stalk our personal ego’s attitudes, decisions, and actions to determine their true intent. Is my ego aligned with interconnected reality and the greater good? On the local level of everyday life, in the body, is my ego in alignment with the true needs of the self? Does my ego cater to the special interest groups within the self that demand habits that undermine the health of the self?

The New Era we have entered requires a consensus reality to fortify its stability. That consensus reality is built upon a mass of individuals upholding a heart-centered loving foundation for ego to act from. This begins with stalking the ego in one’s everyday life, and striking from its repertoire self-centered thoughts, decisions, and behaviors.

The cumulative effect of a mass collective intent, lovingly bent upon the greater good, will be to arrive at the right attitude with which to live and lead this deeply reconfigured Planet Earth of the New Era. Make your own worthy contribution by first and foremost stalking your own ego, lovingly.

Stalking,

Chuck