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Chuck’s Place: Co-Creation Via Voluntary Control

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Co-create your beautiful wholeness…
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

Victor Frankl gave us the freedom to choose the attitude we take toward any reality we are confronted with. Jack Schwarz took us to a subtler dimension, giving us the ability to alter our physical reality through the voluntary control of the mind.

Both Frankl and Schwarz were interned in the death camps of the Holocaust. Both were able to survive and refine their psychic abilities through their encounters with, and mastery of, the pain and suffering they endured. Their gifts are fundamental to healing from trauma and assuming voluntary control of the co-creation of one’s life.

Co-creation implies collaborating with creation. “I am” is a fact I can become conscious of. I might even have access to remembering my prior journeys through infinity. But how “I” was initially created appears to have originated from a source beyond myself.

With consciousness, however, I truly can become a co-creator in that life of “I”. Co-creation is conscious partnership with one’s created self in the evolution and fulfillment of one’s life. Co-creation is assuming full responsibility for one’s life.

The created self is instilled with inborn instructions that control the human psyche, through instinctual patterns called archetypes, as well as through physical laws governed by genetic code. We can live a full life of instinctual fulfillment and a biologically determined physical course without conscious participation, but this would be a life devoid of co-creation.

Under traumatic conditions the archetypes and laws of ordinary life are severely interrupted, leading to experiences of non-ordinary reality. These glitches in the expectations of normalcy awaken consciousness to latent, but previously unrealized, abilities. This is the birth of the potential for co-creation.

Thus, the ability to visualize a loved one or a pleasant scene, simultaneous with being in a condition of torture, can enable one to displace one’s consciousness into an energetic state separate from the physical body. This distancing of oneself into a separate reality allows one to survive one’s physical ordeal in an out-of-body state. The co-creation of this act is the voluntary control of where one places one’s attention.

Of course, the full reentry of consciousness back into the physical body may be delayed for decades, until the mental plane is ready to endure the truth of the emotional and physical pain awaiting it in its body. Nonetheless, the discovery of life beyond the body awakens one’s ability to voluntarily control the placement of awareness in more subtle dimensions beyond physical reality.

Jack Schwarz gained access to what Jung called the “psychoid” dimension, what I call the subconscious mind, where spirit meets matter and directly impacts it. Creation dictates the activation of subconscious default programs to manage the impact of one’s experiences. These might be fight/flight/freeze programs with hormonal releases, as well as physical and mental responses.

Co-creation is consciousness assuming responsibility for creating new programs, or the willful exercise of existing programs. Thus, consciousness might employ the breath and autogenic messages to calm the mind and body as it processes its experiences.

Under strict laboratory conditions, supervised by Elmer Green at the Menninger Foundation, Jack Schwarz was able to push a large sewing needle through his own arm, remove it, stop the bleeding and completely heal, with absolutely no pain. (See video link below.)

This extreme, if not bizarre experiment, demonstrated the potential power of the mind to direct the course of matter, the matter of one’s own physical body, in rationally unthinkable ways!

In today’s parlance, we speak of the the ability to manifest and the power of intent. We all have the latent ability to become co-creators of our lives. However, to access this heightened state of realization, in a balanced integrated way, we must first fully inhabit the body we are in.

To be fully in-body we must process all the trauma the body has held for us while we lived somewhat outside the body. This is the process of recapitulation that enables union of body and mind. This is the night sea journey where consciousness awakens to, suffers through, and gets comfortable with the fullness of all its prior experiences, inside and outside of the body.

Freed of our triggering shadows we are able to explore—without the limitations of blocking beliefs, self-depreciation, or the narrow limits of rationality—the extraordinary abilities of the mind to manifest the physical reality it intends. This is accomplished through intention, mantra, self-hypnosis, prayer, visualization, etc.

Our global reality is priming us for this next stage of evolutionary advancement. Our time is rampant with trauma. We all suffer from it, but we are also all free to assume a positive attitude toward the events we all encounter in our everyday lives, on a regular basis, by grounding ourselves in calmness.

In facing the full truth of necessary changes, we are freed to intend, visualize, and manifest those changes, as we co-create, via voluntary control, the seeds of new life.

Begin with the self. Choose to sow within, and then sow without.

Co-creating with Self,

Chuck

Jack Schwarz: Mind over Matter

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Chuck’s Place: Astralogy

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Astral & Physical in coincidence…
– Photo by Chuck Ketchel

I define Astralogy (‘As-tral-o-gy) as the study of all things astral. My studies in the exploration of consciousness—from shamanism, depth psychology, to spirituality—led me to the utility of this ancient Hindu knowledge in identifying the known dimensions of life beyond the physical body. The astral body is the essence of human life during its entwined sojourn with its earthly traveling companion, the physical body.

The astral dimension is the first subtle, or spirit, dimension beyond the physical dimension of everyday life. The astral body is the soul body, directly attached to the physical body, which is capable of disengaging from the physical and partaking in activity on the subtler spirit dimension of the astral plane. This is often the activity that takes place in dreaming.

When fully attached to, or in coincidence with, the physical body, the astral body aligns, through its chakras, with the nervous centers of the physical body, as it runs every aspect of human life from its mental and emotional dimensions.

The life force energy that sustains physical life has been called prana. Prana is taken into the physical body through food, breath, and the astral body, which absorbs prana more freely when in the astral plane, disengaged from the physical. This energy is then transmitted through the chakras to the physical body.

The astral body has many names, including: the double, the soul, and the dream body. The designation of double refers to its shape, the exact replica of the physical body, composed of subtler energy, appearing visually as phosphorescence or luminosity, such as appears when seeing an aura. When fully in-body, the astral and physical bodies cozy up to each other as intimate symbiotic partners.

The assignment of the designation of soul refers to the fact that at the time of physical death the cord to the physical is broken and the astral issues forth, unattached, into the astral domain. This soul body that leaves contains the mind, emotions, identity and experiences of the life just lived. Much like a crustacean sheds its limiting outer shell to expand, the human physical body is shed at death, as its companion soul launches into infinity.

The astral body functions as the dream body when we sleep, as it separates from the physical body in a process called discoincidence, often experienced as a falling sensation when drifting off to sleep. From this disengaged place, the astral body is freed from its limited function when in-body, which is to literally conform itself to running the operations of the physical body, largely through the subconscious, which is housed in the mind of the astral body.

The dream body in this discoincident state both recharges in a greater field of prana from the astral dimension and has the capacity to become conscious and project itself, through intent, to various physical locations throughout the universe, as well as to locales in the astral dimension. This is the basis of out-of-body travel, channeling, and remote viewing.

Waking experience of the astral body reflects in our thoughts and feelings. Anyone in deep concentrated thought is generally in a frozen, barely-breathing state, impervious to physical surrounding. Although this would register in certain brainwave states, with activity obvious in a brain scan, in this case, the brain is merely the hard drive for the mind, which is seated in the astral body. The absentminded professor is literally an astral body fumbling through the physical world.

Activated emotional states issue from subconscious defense or offense programs in the astral body as well, spurring the physical body to activity. Some of that ‘will to action’ is at the behest of the conscious ego, which itself is part of the astral body, however the subconscious will is the true engineer of both physical and astral movement.

What distinguishes conscious from subconscious will is its ability to tailor its suggestions to the subconscious will. The subconscious will lacks this intentional ability, it acts simply by the power of suggestion, be that originating from desire, habit or archetype. However, it is the subconscious will that turns on the body programs of action, wherever the suggestion might originate from.  All things mental and emotional, regardless of how physically experienced, originate from and are part of, the astral body.

All forms of dissociation in waking life depict slipping into the astral body, out of phase with the physical. This can happen in blunt trauma, where the astral is protected by projecting itself a distance away from the physical upload of overwhelming sensory data, observing from a detached distance.

This can happen while walking, running or driving, when the astral subconscious takes over the operation of the body, while the dream body projects into the astral territory of thought and fantasy. Just look into the eyes of someone you are talking to and ask yourself the question: Are they really listening or are they elsewhere, in astral-land, with their subconscious directing their ‘knowing’ nods?

Though many seek to explore the far ranging possibilities of discovery and encounter in astral travel, it is perhaps best to begin by getting to know the astral in its everyday presence in physical life. After all, we have all of infinity to partake in the unfolding discovery of everything, but in this moment in time and space we decided to partner, intimately, with a physical life.

That partnership deserves the fullest recognition and exploration, as the limits it offers provide extraordinary experience that we will carry with us into infinity to great advantage.

In coincidence,

Chuck

Chuck's Blog

Chuck’s Place: Forget not Your Physical Body

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Take a walk, you never know what Mother Nature might present…
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

Mother Nature is pushing us deeper into our own energetic nature now, as our access to physical travel, physical objects, and physical contact is greatly restricted. This, however, does not exempt us from taking deep care of the physical body, as it is the source of our energetic potential while alive in this world.

Consider trauma. Frequently, when an individual is confronted with a trauma they are automatically sent into their energy body for safe refuge. In this defensive state of dissociation the physical body embodies and stores the experience. The body as storage unit is burdened with the limitations and physical symptoms of this unprocessed trauma.

Generally, an individual thus burdened experiences life mainly on the mental plane, defending against encounters with the issues tucked away in the body. In such a state, the body might present any number of physical symptoms to the mental plane, seeking to awaken it to its hidden mysteries. Unfortunately, rather than see the concrete missives from the body as keys to access trapped energy, we often find ourselves in the emergency room, seeking relief.

Recapitulation is frequently initiated by body symptoms impervious to medical diagnosis and treatment. Once an event is recapitulated the body is freed of its burden, and energy is released both to the physical body and the energy body. On the physical plane the body moves more freely, perhaps gaining or losing weight according to its needs. Life in the body becomes an experience of sensual delight. The energy body is also freed to journey with awareness, not held in check by the defensive constraints of the mental body.

Although many psychics have great access to the subtle planes of the energy body, they are not necessarily themselves fully in their physical bodies. To be fully in body, without restriction, is the foundation for the greatest freedom in the exploration of life beyond the physical body.

As Mother Earth pushes us inward as she progresses with her own grand healing crisis, let us first attend to the strength and well being of our own physical bodies. To be in peak performance in body, we must nourish ourselves well and utilize our body, actively, throughout the day. Equally important is that we address the issues the body may be carrying, as it embodies our acute and longterm conflicts, the stuff of psychosomatic medicine.

A note of caution here: to be in peak physical condition through a discipline that ignores or overrides the issues stored in body, can be as dissociative as giving no attention to the body at all. Here the body is not seen and experienced as the traveling companion that it is, but as an object to be controlled and mastered. Love thy body, treat it with respect.

Greater access to life in the energy body while still in physical form is our evolutionary thrust  now. The human spirit, with its hunger for adventure, is only beginning to discover its unlimited potential in energetic life. However, to fully equip ourselves for these fantastic voyages we must attend to the matrix of our energy body here on earth, the physical body.

In this respect, all of us, men and women, are mothers to our own energy bodies. Be good mothers to your physical bodies, that you might cultivate your energy body, to have all your dreams come true.

Let the dreams begin,

Chuck

Chuck's Blog

Chuck’s Place: Harmony

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Let’s get those chakras in alignment…
– Photo by Chuck Ketchel

Harmony is created when the primal energies of heaven and earth move into union with each other. Heaven, whose natural movement is upward, places itself beneath the earth, whose natural movement is downward, creating a true meeting of their respective influences.

Heaven corresponds to the mental/spiritual plane in a human being, the upper chakras starting at the heart center. Earth corresponds to the physical plane, including the instincts, emotions, and inherent archetypes of the collective unconscious that dominate human behavior. These are the core lower chakras in the human body starting at the solar plexus downward.

When the mental plane respectfully places itself beneath the physical it attends to the sensations and emotions of the body as important messengers of necessary actions. Thus the mind attends to a body discomfort vs. cutting it off and acting on its own agenda.

Cutting off the body through imposition of the will is a form of dissociation. In this case heaven/mind is above, lifting into space far removed from the body/earth, which sinks in the opposite direction, their influences completely disconnected from each other.

Harmony requires connection and balanced integration of opposite tendencies. The I Ching reveals to me that this is the necessary action of now, for the time we live in. Further, it emphasizes that body/emotion defer to mind/reason at present . As well, it asks of mind/reason to defer to the more inclusive mind/Self. Consciousness in alignment with truth is called upon to further the individuation of the whole human being.

Understand that all human beings, regardless of gender, are a mixture of Yin and Yang, body and spirit. In effect the I Ching asks Yin/earth to receive the initiative of Yang/heaven. Truth received with affection is harmony. The operative word here is truth: that which emanates from the heart center of the body, home of the spirit Self. Initiative that emanates from the ego/mind lacks the rootedness and comprehensive truth of the Self.

We are faced now with a world of breakthrough conditions whether it be the hot lava in Hawaii or the protests in Gaza. In the midst of the chaos we are guided to seek peace and harmony through tuning into the guidance of the truth of the heart.

Truthful guidance is always accessible if we still ourselves, breathe into our heart center, and intend genuine harmony. Regardless of outer conditions we can always find peace and harmony within and act upon what is truthfully necessary to do and not do now. Thus, may we all be restored to harmony in the eye of our present storms.

Finding harmony,

Chuck

Chuck's Blog

Chuck’s Place: Lucifer

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The Moon and Venus...in alignment Early morning 11/09/15 - Photo by Jan Ketchel
The Moon and Venus…in alignment
Early morning 11/09/15
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

As the story goes, Lucifer was God’s brightest star—literally, the morning star, Venus. As the brightest light, Lucifer could see into God’s plan: to incarnate in human form. Lucifer could not bear the painful vision of pure spirit incarnating in animal body, saddled with the suffering of life and death, a virtual crucifixion of the spirit.

With this piercing light of awareness, Lucifer refused God’s plan, bypassing the wounding of his innocence via incarnation in the flesh. Lucifer broke away from God and, along with other “fallen angels,” sought refuge in his own hell. Thus this brightest of stars is actually the patron saint of protecting innocence from the trauma of incarnate life, that is, life in the body.

In psychological terms, protection from life in this world is called dissociation. In dissociation, wounded innocence is swept away from life, deeply shielded from consciousness, relationship, or experiences in this world that could further injure and soil the purity of its innocent soul.

How can we argue the absolute necessity for such a splitting, fragmenting defense? Without it, the innocent soul would indeed be completely destroyed in its repeated encounters with trauma. However, what is the fate of the soul that is kept from its intended incarnation in this world?

Innocence is protected in dissociation, but ultimately innocence kept from life is innocence kept in bondage, in its own private hell.  What makes it suffer is the frustration of its longing for life in the body, genuine connection in the world, its rightful journey.

What once served as an angel of protection soon becomes the devil border guard that dissuades any trespass into dangerous life, that is, any attempts at bringing innocence back into the physical world.

The border guard is negative, critical, and nihilistic. Its intent, at heart, is pure protection, but its refusal to allow entry into life extends beyond its protective reach to become the critic that freezes all sparks of potential life.

Ultimately, that which once was a lifesaver becomes the prison guard that must be defeated to allow innocence its rightful journey in this world. The truth is, however, as Lucifer rightly saw, to incarnate in this world is to indeed suffer a crucifixion. The ego must be willing to suffer the wounding of innocence, stay present to the traumatic experiences that once caused fragmentation, healing the split, and help innocence to live in a world where it will suffer both the joys and pains of incarnate life.

Only when the ego, or adult self, is ready to take the full journey to recover its lost innocence—as well as stay present with it, as together innocence and ego navigate a dangerous world—is it time to take on these deeply protectionist defenses. If the ego is not ready for that level of responsibility, it is perhaps more appropriate to leave its vulnerable self in the protective hands of its Luciferian defenses, as it survives in its more manageable hell of a defense.

On the world stage, America finds itself struggling with this dilemma as it struggles to protect itself yet continue to live and be part of the world community in the wake of growing terrorist threat.

America is, historically, notoriously protectionist in its isolationism, hence Luciferian defense, in the presence of world threat. The current drive to seal up the borders and keep the dangerous world at bay sweeps the nation. Yes, we must protect our vulnerable innocence and yet, as John McCain states: “all children are God’s children.”

McCain, as one who has suffered incarceration in war, knows that protectionism that cuts us off from deep love and compassion is a hell we don’t want to live in. And yes, to fully enter life, to incarnate, we will suffer.

To allow refugees into our homeland is offering life to all of God’s children. But it requires a maturity that America is now challenged to rise to. This is the maturity Stephen LaBerge speaks to when he states, ” I don’t need to see your reality papers before I act with love.”

Of course, we must be sensible and cautious as to whom we let in, but we must also be willing to suffer potential danger to allow life to live, and that includes ourselves. If we arbitrarily seal the borders we sentence ourselves to hell and world condemnation, as we shirk our responsibility of leadership in a world on the brink of madness.

We must arrive at responsible compassion that allows us to navigate the perils of current danger. This is the collective maturity mirrored in the individual ego’s journey to rescue and bring into life its own lost soul. If we live without our soul, as individuals or as a nation, we merely exist to smolder in our own private hells.

While fully appreciating Lucifer’s insight, and at times necessary intervention, we must turn our gaze from this bright morning star to that of the full sun, which enlightens us to the fuller picture and nurtures all of life regardless of race, religion, or gender—all of God’s children.

Chuck

I wish to thank Donald Kalsched whose work has stirred my imagination.