Readers of Infinity: Isn’t It Time?

Here is Jeanne’s message to us all for this week and this energetic time. May we all find the means to access the energy of now.

Energetically speaking… this is the energy of now… captured in the early morning light… - Photo by Jan Ketchel
Energetically speaking…
this is the energy of now…
captured in the early morning light…
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

From a place of calmness observe your life, the life you have created as well as the life that has created you. Be honest and open to both truth and possibility so that you may fully know the self. Once the truth of life and self is accessed and accepted—once it becomes the foundations of your awareness of the self in the here and now—then new steps can be taken and progress resumed.

Energetically speaking, there has occurred volatile movement. You may see this all around you. You may hear it, see it, feel it. Maintain awareness of energetic energy separate from the solidly human self. Put aside your head, your reasoning and judging self, and simply observe this energy in the same manner that you might put aside your thinking, judging self to observe your physical life.

With the two truths of physical and energetic self acknowledged and in hand, you are now equipped to move onward into a new phase of life. In sobriety of self, fully accepting of all that you know and observe, I ask that all of you humbly take full responsibility for who you are and who you have the potential to become, i.e.: the higher self. Accepting who you are in a humble manner opens the doorway to accessing that higher potential self.

You may experience your potential as a mere idea or ideal, but keep in mind that everything is energetically possible. Keep in mind that aside from your solid human form, you are energetically comprised of everything you need to reach your fullest potential. Isn’t it finally time to embrace the energetic self and advance to a new level?

I encourage all of you to leave judgments behind—of self and others—and, as you challenge the self to move on, challenge others to do the same, knowing that by your humble example you offer the greatest means and the greatest help.

Universal energy abounds, ready to be shared equally. You alone have the potential, within your own life and your own circumstances, to utilize it in a new positive way and set a new momentum going for all others to hook into, those in your life, but all others in the world as well. A potential for a new movement is always present, but now more than ever. Even if you have no ultimate vision in sight, it is enough to begin a new trend in the direction of good. Strive always for that and you will be well on your way to solving the issues that now plague you and hold you back.

Seek the good inside you, even while you seek joy in your life. Energetically speaking, in combination of joyousness and goodness, you cannot go wrong! With those two energetic companions accompanying you through life, your outlook for a brighter future is well on the way to being fulfilled.

You are the change you seek. Without fear face your future and know that it is waiting for you, just as you wait for it, with open arms. Fuller life is there in your future, but you must head out to meet it. It cannot find you without your help, physical and energetic help alike. You must be fully present for that to occur, active and alert. In taking action, all that you wish for will become a reality. That is the secret to taking responsibility for the self: take action on your own behalf!

Chuck’s Place: An Opening

Our ancient reactions are like old walls of defense, but they can be taken down… one breath at a time… -Photo by Jan Ketchel
Our ancient reactions are like old walls of defense,
but they can be taken down…
one breath at a time…
-Photo by Jan Ketchel

When we are met with a smile, a nod, or a gentle welcoming gesture, we are programmed to soften, feel safe, relax our defenses and breathe freely. This innate archetypal bodily response to accepting supportive validating gestures may be inhibited by a history of traumatic interruptions that threatened safety; however, these bruises in human interactions can heal and, over time, allow us to relax into our innate capacity for love. We never lose our innate capacity to give and receive love.

The journey to freeing our innate capacity to receive the world, and express our full presence in it, is multilayered but largely physical. The bruises of trauma generate archetypal bodily defenses far more ancient than the archetypes of human interaction.

Failures in human interaction trigger an intrinsic self-driven defense system that functions independently of the behavior of others. If others cannot be trusted then the self alone becomes the source of safety.

The body turns on its own vigilant guard to protect the boundaries of the self. Sleep may be light or infrequent as a result of such vigilance. Muscles remain taut, shoulders tight, breathing shallow. All bodily systems, in fact, stay on heightened alert to possible danger, cautiously anticipating, planning, and avoiding potential trouble. This completely self-reliant defense system is ancient and highly useful in times of real danger. In our evolutionary history there was a time when it alone insured survival. Though less necessary in the modern world, it can be activated in a heartbeat should we be confronted with serious danger.

A major challenge in healing from trauma is turning off this ancient defense system when it has been activated unnecessarily. Here the human ability to reflect and choose a new action is particularly useful.

We can employ the mind, with its ability to observe and reason, to assess whether we are indeed really, in the here and now, in danger. The realization that we are not in danger in no way lessens the grip of this ancient defense that protects us through its control of our body, but it does give us a point of awareness, within our body, that alerts us to where the true work lies.

Reason alone has little to no impact upon the body’s defenses. We can, however, intentionally direct our awareness to our body and notice the state of our muscles and organs—heart, stomach, throat, etc.—as well as our breathing. We can, with awareness and intention, begin to direct our breath to various parts of our body that we notice to be clenched or shut down. We can, for instance, progressively soften and loosen our solar plexus or heart as we gently direct our breath into it. Similarly, we can begin to release tension in our shoulders and legs, or wherever we find tension in the body, by intending ourselves to do so. The body quite obediently listens and responds to our intentions.

As we consciously release the grip of vigilance in our body, our brain receives different messages from our body self that lies separate, beneath the head of reason. If our muscles and organs are relaxed, our brain concludes that we must be safe. The brain is then freed to stop its own vigilant story making that had given definition to the worrisome messages that it had been receiving from a tense, defended body.

Every time we release the tension of a clenched part of our body we change the message to the brain and the brain, in turn, changes its message back to the body. Over time, the brain can send the message that it’s okay to relax; we are safe. With safety comes receptivity, and our inherent archetypal ability to engage in deeper human connection opens. Smiles, nods, and warmth are able to be more safely received and expressed. We open.

This process of opening is indeed multifaceted and includes the journey of recapitulation, but it can be supported and enhanced, at any time—even in this moment—with one gentle directed breath.

Breathing away,
Chuck

A Day in a Life: There’s Weird Energy Out There

Cold energy entered the room… - Photo by Jan Ketchel
Cold energy entered the room…
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

Here is an account of what happened to me last week: I’m sitting in a yoga class, in sweet pose, a comfortable meditation pose. I intend to keep my energy to myself, innerly calm and protected. I don’t want to be affected by outside energy and so I do not turn my palms up but keep them face down. I do not wish to receive from without but only to hold sacred space within.

Placing my hands palms down on my knees, in chin mudra, with thumb and forefinger together, I think about entities, that they are everywhere. I am not interested in engaging them. Within seconds of silently declaring this intent, I feel a burst of cold air sweeping past me on the right, as if a window has suddenly sprung open. Swirling around, it hovers nearby, a strange sort of mini tornado. In the next second, cold energy hovers over my right hand, as if someone has placed a cool wet hand over mine. The sensation lasts at least 30 seconds, perhaps longer.

I have time to consider that perhaps the teacher has gotten up and is walking around the room, that he is doing some kind of energy work, but even so the rush of cold air that I’m feeling seems impossible to be made by anyone walking past, and I very much doubt that his energy would feel so cold. This energy has an otherworldly feel to it. I peek at the teacher just to be sure. He is sitting calmly in front of the class, eyes closed. Obviously he has not moved. Then I think: “It’s an entity. There’s an entity in the room.” And I am certain that it has come to convey the truth of my own insinuation, that there are indeed entities everywhere. It pays to be careful.

That night I dreamed. In the beginning of the dream, I am at an art gallery opening. The room is crowded. I slowly weave my way through the crowds, avoiding contact. I do not want to engage anyone. Seamlessly, I flow like water through the room and out the door. Once outside, I’m glad that I did so well at protecting myself from outside energy. Now I have to cross a stream. The water is fairly deep. I look down and see that four men, each dressed the same and looking remarkably alike, are lying in the water. They form a log-like bridge for me to walk across. I don’t want to go near them, for I am aware that they are entities, but at the same time I know I must cross the stream.

“Come on,” they say, “cross over. You have to.”

“I don’t want to step on you,” I say, concerned. “I’ll hurt you.”

“No you won’t,” they say. “Just do it!”

And so I do. I run as fast and as lightly as possible, still worried, however, that I might hurt them or that I might be infected by their energy. As soon as I get to the other side of the stream they immediately hop out of the water and surround me, standing in the four directions—North, South, East and West—facing me.

“I don’t want entities attached to me,” I boldly say.

“You need us,” they say. “You have to encounter us and you have to engage us. We are your entities, and you can’t get away from the fact that we exist.”

“You won’t advance until you accept us,” they say. “You won’t get anywhere without us.”

Like water I intend to keep flowing… - Photo by Jan Ketchel
Like water I intend to keep flowing…
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

I know I must acquiesce, for I know the truth of what they say. I am fully aware that everything that is placed before me must be encountered and dealt with, that indeed, I need it in order to advance. I am aware, as I dream, that these four beings will be with me now, my very own entities. I am aware that I must learn about them, who they are and how they operate. I must befriend them and make them my allies, as don Juan Matus discussed with Carlos Castaneda. I must utilize them to my advantage.

I am struck, as I awaken from this dream, how my intent to avoid contact with outside energy—both in my yoga class and in my dream—has resulted in my being presented with exactly what I was trying to avoid. There is great meaning in that. I am also struck by the fact that my entities, inorganic beings, as the Shamans of Ancient Mexico call them, all look exactly alike. And why are there four of them? I surmise that this is part of their teaching methods, tricksters that they are. I expect to be fooled by them until I no longer need to be.

Carlos Castaneda, in The Art of Dreaming, describes his own encounters with inorganic beings. Don Juan tells him he must make friends with them. “They have singled you out themselves,” don Juan says. “When they do that, it means that they seek an association. I’ve mentioned to you that sorceress form bonds of friendship with them.”

Don Juan goes on to explain that a friendship “consists of a mutual exchange of energy. The inorganic beings supply their high awareness, and sorcerers supply their heightened awareness and high energy. The positive result is an even exchange. The negative one is dependency on both sides.”

I am already aware of this exchange of energy. In fact, as I mentioned, I was not interested in engaging in such an exchange. In fact, I have always sought to avoid it. But now I understand that my inorganic beings have come to help me. If I am to advance, I know I must engage them. But I also fully intend to not become dependent. Even in my dream, I was aware that our association will be temporary, only as long as is necessary. I don’t know if that’s possible, or how it will come about, but that is my intent, for I fully anticipate moving on, advancing, which they also implied would happen if I engaged them. But perhaps they were only tricking me. I’ll have to wait to find out!

Watery beings are given more to excesses,” don Juan tells Carlos, as he explains the two kinds of inorganic beings, water and fire. “The old sorcerers believed that they were more loving, more capable of imitating, or perhaps even having feelings. As opposed to fiery ones, who were thought to be more serious, more contained than the others, but also more pompous.”

From this description, I know that my four inorganic beings are water energy. This makes perfect sense to me, as I am a water sign, and because my own energy has always been watery, flowing for the most part, just like I did in my dream as I flowed out of the gallery. But water, though capable of gently simmering, is also capable of great force and power. And so I am both cautious and intrigued.

What does your inorganic being look and feel like? You never know!- Photo by Jan Ketchel
What does your inorganic being look and feel like?
You never know!
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

When Carlos asks the meaning of his own two entities, don Juan replies: “The meaning is too vast to discuss at this time. My recommendation is that you vanquish fear from your dreams and from your life, in order to safeguard your unity.” He tells him that he himself refused the inorganic beings, because he did not want to be at the mercy of any entity, organic or inorganic. He tells Carlos that his inorganic being wants his energy and he warns: “It will come to you for more.”

From this exchange, I intuit the necessity of remaining independent, to maintain my unity, my wholeness. But I must also learn how best to use these four watery energies for my advancement. The fact that they all look alike, capable of imitating, as don Juan tells Carlos, is going to be quite a challenge. I see that already. In fact, i believe they entered the yoga studio, invited in by my first challenge, my intent to avoid them. They saw an opening and they took it. “Be extremely careful,” don Juan tells Carlos, and that is exactly what I intend to be: Extremely careful!

Alert to what may come next,
Jan

Quotes from: The Art of Dreaming by Carlos Castaneda, pp 52-55.

Readers of Infinity: Something Different

Here is the channeled message from Jeanne, beginning a week that she indicates is set to be full of surprises, if we are alert and open. Good Luck!

Changing time. Drying calendula and marigolds, at one season's end… But another's beginning… Photo by Jan Ketchel
Changing time.
Drying calendula and marigolds, at one season’s end…
But another’s beginning…
Photo by Jan Ketchel

Progress must become a key word in your work, progress toward an evolving self being of the utmost importance. Please note that progress can only be achieved as you allow the self to change, to accept that you may not always have all the answers, and as you soften and allow new ideas to seep into your awareness and offer something different.

As the world shifts into a new phase this week, allow the self to experience something different. This can be a deliberate decision on your part to act, partake, or be involved in something new, or it can be a subtle intent to be open to that which comes to you unbidden.

In being open, one must learn to relax the body and mind. One must release the self of the normal judgments, the habitual thoughts and behaviors that one automatically engages in without thought or discrimination. One must stop the rote activities of living and live with greater awareness. Even the slightest intent to be alert may be enough to open the self to greater awareness of how you think, act, and react. When the old self calls out, asking for things to stay the same, turn away from that old self and look in a new, different direction. With open heart ask the self to trust the universe for a change, to trust that life itself has enough to offer you to guide you along. And then see what happens.

See what pops up in your life to show you the new direction you must take. It may be a subtle suggestion, a hint of something new, or it may be a hard knock over the head. But all of you, if you are to take advantage of the new time of renewed energy and spirited evolution, must be open—and being consciously open and expectant helps a great deal.

Awareness that a shift is already in action will, I hope, aid you in your endeavors. All you need is one tiny suggestion of hope and change, of shift in energy, and you could be off and running.

Let the energy of now guide you. Be open with discernment, knowing your heart’s true intent. For if you skip that part of who you are, your endeavors will be futile. This is not a time for foolish ignorance, nor hasty leaping, but a deepening of your innermost process in a flowing manner that is right, that is gentle, loving and kind to the self and others.

I am asking all of you to let your hearts guide you now, to really listen and pay attention to that which is truly right for you, at the deepest level. Who are you? Perhaps that is the first question to ask as you begin your entry into the energy of now. Who are you really? What do you most desire—in alignment with that true self—for yourself, in your evolving life? Begin there.

Be soft and open. Greet the day with gentle breaths, and then wait and see what comes.

Chuck’s Place: Reconciliation Of Retrograde

Trickster energy… - Photo by Chuck Ketchel
Trickster energy…
– Photo by Chuck Ketchel

It’s 6:21 AM. I’m driving slowly along the windy hilly roads to work. My mind is preoccupied with the experience Jan and I had last Friday at the VA Hospital in Albany. We’d been invited to present on PTSD. We decided to give an experiential presentation for which I’d brought my EMDR light bar. There was a delay getting into the conference room, as a prior meeting was spilling over into our time. Our presentation time was compromised, as another presenter was to follow immediately after us.

Once we finally entered the room, I quickly attempted to set up the equipment. Suddenly we entered a cartoon-like dream. Everything we touched, although meticulously packed, fell apart. The tripod literally fell into pieces, impossible to reassemble.

“Okay,” I resolve, “I’ll hold the light bar without the stand.” As I go to clip the control switch into the bar I discover that the clip is broken. There is no salvaging the equipment now! That’s it, I decide, the trickster shaman’s world trumps. The Magical Breathing Pass of Recapitulation will have to be the main experiential feature. And so, about 25 people learned and experienced this ancient Magical Pass and it’s application to PTSD.

As I continue to drive to work, I recall that the time crunch of the presentation also precluded a brief group hypnosis that Jan was to give at the close of the talk. Suddenly, my awareness is abruptly drawn back to the present moment: a young deer is staring at me, frozen in the road. I slam on the brakes—a near miss!

The symbol for Mercury...
The symbol for Mercury…

What does it all mean? For the past several days, I’ve been experiencing and observing opposition and retrograde. We exist and are composed of fields of competing energies. Mercury, the trickster energy, is indeed in retrograde. At the VA we experienced the ancient shamanic energy opposing and trumping the modern mechanical/technological world. At the moment I recalled the opposition of time and trance—no time for a group hypnosis—I was awoken from my own highway hypnosis to not kill a deer. Here was the opposition of time and timelessness: being present in this moment to not kill a deer vs being lost in the timeless world of the mind’s meanderings.

We all struggle with oppositions within the self. Carlos Castaneda relates in Magical Passes how don Juan Matus explained this in a metaphorical sense: “…that we are composed of a number of single nations: the nation of the lungs, the nation of the heart, the nation of the kidneys, and so on. Each of these nations sometimes works independently of the others, but at the moment of death, all of them are unified into one single entity.” (pp. 103-4)

Our challenge in this life is to reconcile those oppositions within us, the trickster included, into an integrated whole, in a process that Jung termed individuation.

Sometimes the nation of the stomach craves that which the other nations of the body reject. Sometimes the neocortex—our rational brain—rejects the impulses and needs of our limbic system—our animal brain.

When my neocortex confronted the frozen limbic response of the deer in my headlights, it managed to direct my body to hit the brakes. My own limbic system worked in concert with my neocortex to supply the rapid response to react physically to the crises at hand. This is an optimal response—nations of the self unified, acting in concert.

In times of retrograde, Mercury, the trickster, can confound all attempts at collaboration. Mercury laughed as I fumbled with the equipment at the VA. Rather than fight, I read the signs and immediately shifted. Acquiescing, I flowed with the energy of the moment and instead taught deep bodily knowledge.

Opposition is within us all...
Opposition is within us all…

When I asked the I Ching for guidance regarding this period of retrograde, it once again, not surprisingly, produced the hexagram of Opposition, #38. The moving lines—in the third and fourth places—depicted a wagon with oxen being dragged backwards. Now there’s a retrograde image! The guidance reads: though humiliation might occur, sit tight, wait, align with a likeminded person who can be trusted. In the case of the faulty light bar, I turned to my neocortex, which acted in concert with spirit: Go with the flow, trust the Magical Pass.

In shaman’s terms, the guidance is to suspend judgment, to look beyond the impasse. Reconciliation lies in the deeper meaning of the trickster’s intent—to reveal a deeper truth: The ancient Magical Pass of Recapitulation is all you need to be freed of PTSD.

We can reconcile with all our retrograde energies if we accept their opposition with patience and perseverance, not falling for the trap of self-blame. The deeper meaning of Mercury’s retrograde lies in the wings of Mercury—our freedom to fly—achievable if we don’t get caught in the heaviness of opposition.

Flowing on the wings of Mercury,
Chuck

Chuck Ketchel, LCSWR