Category Archives: Jan’s Blog

Welcome!

Archived here are the blogs I write about inner life and outer life, inner nature and outer nature. Perhaps my writings on life, as I see it and experience it, may offer you some small insight or different perspective as you take your own journey.

With gratitude for all that life teaches me, I share my experiences.

Jan Ketchel

Jan's Blog

A Day in a Life: It’s A Step-By-Step Process!

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Every morning the sheep leave the barn...they head out into the field. Is that fulfilling enough? - Photo by Jan Ketchel
Every morning the sheep leave the barn…
they head out into the field.
Is that fulfilling enough?
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

If we are to live as conscious, alert beings we must find out who we truly are. If we are to get ourselves out of our stuck places, we must discover how we got stuck to begin with. If we are to be energetically aware and alive, we must free ourselves from old energy that has attached to us and constantly drains our energy.

We might not even know that our energy is being drained, or that we are not fully consciously present and aware until someone points it out to us. We might not know that we are energetically depleted either until we fail or fall down, with absolutely no energy left to go on. Often our ego rushes in to defend us, as we point out to the Truthsayer how perfect we really are, how on top of everything and in control we feel, how we know ourselves better than they do and how impertinent they are to point out to us something that just isn’t so!

It isn’t easy to face what lies at our deepest core and directs our lives, old defenses and personality traits from childhood perhaps that still rule. When we feel stuck, it’s pretty certain that one of those old powerful allies will rear it’s head, asking us to call it forth again, to save us from having to be challenged. Far better to stay the same, it says, safer then. But we are adults now. We’ve all grown up and had to do adult things and so we must fully embrace our adult selves if we are to face our old childhood allies.

In addition, once we realize that we are here to evolve on our spiritual journey, to finally awaken and release ourselves from the cyclical suffering of life on this earth—from samsara as the Buddhists call it—we are going to be challenged to break out of and through our old patterns and behaviors. Once we begin the journey of awareness those challenges will come consistently and unrelentingly, often at the most inopportune of times. Our adult self must stay fully present in the face of those old allies, tell them that the gig is up, that we are leaving them behind, intending to move on now. But how do we do that without suffering even more?

We all land somewhere, but where we go from there is up to us... - Photo by Jan Ketchel
We all land somewhere,
but where we go from there is up to us…
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

Well, it’s a step-by-step process, a one-day-at-a-time kind of thing. It’s painful; no doubt about it. But as we string together those individual days they begin to link into a growing span, a little more golden each day. Over time we begin to see positive change in our attitudes and we notice that we make different choices. Our childhood allies don’t pop up so often and our adult self is more flowing and eager for life. We begin to experience ourselves as changing beings. Eventually a whole new lifestyle develops. Suddenly, one day we realize that we have actually changed a lot! We are no longer the being we once were.

In taking our small steps each day, we are choosing to take a new path, and that alone is good work! We can choose to take that first step right now, or we may decide to wait for the next lifetime. We may even decide that we haven’t fully achieved our highest potential yet. We may desire to come back to fulfill it in our next life.

I once met a woman who discovered a new part of herself late in life. She had healed herself on many deep levels, in the process discovering so many alternative and energetic healing modalities that she had never previously been exposed to. She fully embraced herself as a reincarnated being and knew that she should strive to evolve beyond this realm, yet she had finally discovered something that fit her like a glove. She realized her greatest potential as a human being was as of yet unfulfilled. She decided that she wanted to live another life, and so she fully intended to return as an energetic healer, to help others find their energetic connection too.

She was 84 when I met her more than a decade ago, with a brightness in her eyes and a glowing spirit that could not wait to come back. She declared this with such unbending intent. I lost touch with her, but I hope she fulfills that intent. It felt right when she stated it, and it still feels right. It’s the kind of healing energy the world needs more of!

In the meantime, we all have choices to make. Are we ready to become as aware as that woman became. Are we ready to fully explore our own greatest potential, to declare that we are unfulfilled, or actually quite fulfilled? Are we ready to accept our appointment with what comes next with such unbending intent? Is this lifetime enough; will it be our final one? To find out we must face our deepest truths—that which keeps us stuck—and take back our energy.

The fearless little ant... - Photo by Jan Ketchel
The fearless little ant…
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

It takes gumption and a good amount of fearlessness, but we all have those qualities inside us. We just have to embrace them, one step and one day at a time. In clearly differentiating between and separating our childhood allies from our adult self, we take the first step on our journey to wholeness and fulfillment.

Always taking that next step forward, wondering where it will lead me today,
Jan

Jan's Blog

A Day in a Life: Permission For Retreat Granted

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Seeking beauty in calm surroundings... - Photo by Jan Ketchel
Seeking beauty in calm surroundings…
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

I notice how everything aligns, what I’m thinking about, what happens outside in the world, as well as what happens on a deeper subconscious level. The universes are synchronized.

I’m concerned with energetic and spatial alignment and compatibility. I want things in my life to be in good relationship, to each other and to me, as I live and flow through my life. I want to personally be in good alignment with my environment too, both inside and outside the house I live in, as well as inside and outside my physical body house.

While I seek calmness and balance, I must also challenge myself to go beyond my comfort zone, to be appropriately daring but also to not be foolhardy. There are times when we must push ourselves to try something new, but there are other times when it might not be the right time yet. And so patience is part of the process; it may actually be critical that we know when to be daring and when to wait. And so, we must be willing to question our decisions on a deeper level. Am I holding back for the right reason or am I acquiescing to the old self who just doesn’t want to be disturbed? I’ve noticed that the appropriate answer comes when the right question is asked.

My greater intent is to remain in alignment and in the natural flow of things, whether that flow is calm and sedate or frenzied and difficult. I seek to be adjustable in appropriate ways, giving and receiving when right, but also able to pull back and away when that feels right. Sometimes it just isn’t right to be available, no matter how a decision to not engage may appear to others. Sometimes it’s just time to break the old patterns, expectations, and demands of others, and withdraw. Sometimes it’s even time to permanently sever old ties that no longer serve us.

I’m a dreamer. If you’ve read any of my books, especially the latest one, Into the Vast Nothingness, you’ll have encountered my dreaming self. As I recapitulated I became very adept at analyzing my dreams. As I learned more about my own life and began to understand the symbols that arose to show me the way forward, things in my life evened out. I began to access the calmness and balance I had always sought to maintain. Now, at this point in my life, I’ve achieved more calmness and balance than I ever thought possible. During my recapitulation, I’d momentarily access it but it would be fleeting, as I’d dive back into my process or be drawn back in, as was appropriate at the time. Eventually the process took less of my energy and life took more—real life, new life freed of trauma—as life in alignment with my new self took over.

Lately my dreaming self has been going to classes. The other night I earned my doctorate and graduated into a “day of renewal.” The next night I dreamed that I was back in school again, sitting at the feet of an Indian guru, studying the Upanishads. That same night I also studied intent, holding onto my intent to “see” as the Shamans of Ancient Mexico say, seeing energy as it moves in the universe.

You don't belong here! You can't come in! - Photo by Jan Ketchel
You don’t belong here! You can’t come in!
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

Last night my intent for calmness and balance came through, right in alignment with my greater intent to be in the natural flow of things. I sat in the middle of a solid square comprised of 25 one-foot-square stones, laid out like a patio. This square was my place of power, my fortress but also my place of calm mediation and retreat. Though there were no walls surrounding me, I was totally encased inside this square; nothing could reach me that I did not bring into it. The number 25 was significant. Upon awakening I wondered why 25, but when I drew out the pattern I noted that the 25th stone sat solidly in the center of the perfect square. It was the center of my place of power.

As I dreamed, worry arose again and again. I knew that worry was not necessary, that it signifies something from the past that is done and cannot be undone, or something from the future that has not happened yet and so it was futile and a waste of energy to allow it to have my energy. It was appropriate to withdraw. And so each time worry arose in my dream, I retreated into my square. I sat down on the central 25th stone and grew immediately calm, knowing for certain that it was the right thing to do.

Upon awakening and beginning my day, I carry that sense of calmness with me. It is solid like stone. My fortress is both a spiritual container for my deeper self and protection against all that is outside that wants to get in, the dual aspect of containment that is necessary if we are to achieve and maintain alignment and balance in our lives. In going inside my stone square, sitting at the center of my power mandala, I declare that I am not available right now because my own energy needs rejuvenation and exploration, completely devoid of outside energy.

As we seek to know ourselves on deeper levels, we must learn how to contain our energy for our own use, constantly adjusting so that we can also be available, when appropriate, to share ourselves with others. We all need a center of power to return to as we go about our day.

It is certainly appropriate, and even necessary, to establish a place of retreat, a place where we feel safe and secure, away from the demands of the world and the cogitations of the mind—such as the worry of my dream—but also a place where we can spiritually rejuvenate. This place can be an imaginary fortress like a square or a circle, or it can be a quiet spot inside or outside, removed from everyone and everything. It might even mean sitting in our car for a few moments of breathing before entering back into the fray of life. In offering ourselves even momentary retreat we set the intent to not overextend ourselves or lose ourselves to the outer world, but to give our spirit appropriate time alone.

Like stone, my fortress is solid! - Photo by Jan Ketchel
Like stone, my fortress is solid!
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

As we give ourselves permission to retreat we also give ourselves permission to reenergize and maintain our power to live life on our own terms. It’s something I worked hard for, as many of you do too, and it’s not something I will very easily give up. So I gladly accept the advice of my dreaming self, taking time for spiritual study, retreat and renewal!

From the center of my 25 stone retreat,
Jan

Jan's Blog

A Day in a Life: Transforming Fear

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Is there really anything to fear? - Photo by Jan Ketchel
Is there really anything to fear?
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

It’s surprising how the first reaction to disturbing dreams is fear. It’s the ego trying to assert itself.

When we fall asleep and dream, momentarily exiting the restless body and mind that we inhabit for most of our lives, we access our ethereal body. Absent of ego, we are freed to travel into a world of symbols, archetypes, and energetic possibilities far beyond our waking conscious lives. Though for the most part hidden from waking consciousness, we nonetheless bump into and engage these same meaningful aspects of life as we go about our daily lives. As we live out our psychological makeup and interact with others, these symbols and archetypes live out and interact along with us. In dreaming, however, like bees gathering nectar that they will take back to the hive to produce sweet honey, we too have the opportunity to take what we encounter in our dreams back into waking consciousness for deeper understanding of who we are.

During my recapitulation I dreamed a slew of dreams about snakes. Frightened of snakes, I saw them at first as evil energy until one day I was given a new insight: Snakes are healing! I was so stuck on my fear of snakes that I could only see them as scary and dangerous. How could they possibly mean anything else? How could they possibly be positive symbols?

As soon as I grasped the concept, however, I knew it was the truth: snakes are symbols of healing and transformative energy. After that insight, things began to change rapidly for me, both in my dreaming and my waking life. As snakes regularly shed their skins in a cyclical process of death and birth, so is recapitulation a similar process, a shedding an old self to gain access to a new self. Snake medicine was showing me how the symbols in my dreams were clearly part of my recapitulation and that the recapitulation that I was undertaking in conscious daily life was equally intertwined with my energetic dreaming self. I was being given meaningful symbols in my dreams that were helping me to gain greater understanding of who I was and what was in store for me as I did my deep inner work.

Recently, I dreamed a frightening dream. At least that was my first reaction. This time, however, it was not a snake that jolted me awake but a spider clinging to my nose! In the dream I was standing between two worlds. On the left was a lush forest. A light being lay like the dying Buddha on his side in the trees of this lush forest. On the right, surrounded by shadows, stood a healer, a dark haired man who was a doctor. As the dream began I was emerging from the earth. Covered in dirt, roots, worms and bugs I emerged spitting and shaking from the wet rich soil at my feet. I stood over a square white table and shook out my hair, watching the debris fall onto the white surface. I pulled bugs from my hair, asking each of the beings if they were ticks. Each time I asked the bug would fly off. Knowing that ticks do not fly I was immediately soothed. Neither of the beings answered any of my questions. They simply observed. Suddenly, a large translucent amber-colored spider was clinging to the tip of my nose, spraying venom into my mouth. Spitting and gagging I tried to remove the spider, but it clung tenaciously. I was aware that I did not want to injure or kill it, but I wanted it off! I showed the spider to both of the beings but neither of them reacted, they simply shrugged their shoulders as if to say, “Whatever.” I feared that the venom would be bitter and detrimental, but in fact it had no taste and I was not harmed by it, but still there was another part of me that just wanted the spider off my nose! As I struggled to remove the spider I woke up dripping with water, earth and bugs, totally freaked out.

As I analyzed the dream, it became clear that it was a healing dream and not the poisoning situation that I first reacted to. My ego self was both offended and frightened by the spider clinging to my nose, but I knew it had to be something pretty significant. My first reaction upon awakening was that there was something wrong with me, that I was ill, or putting the wrong foods into my mouth, but then I remembered that in the Hopi creation myths Spider Grandmother was an important figure, as she consciously wove the world. Before long I realized that, much like my snake dreams during my recapitulation, this was a dream about birthing new awareness. I was birthed in full consciousness this time, as opposed to previous lives when I was birthed into life in forgetfulness. As I studied the dream, I began to see its beauty and power, its symbolism clear, the archetypes of which it was made up clear as well. I readily let go of my frightened ego, so eager to reassert its superiority, and sided with my awakened—in more ways than one—spiritual self.

I came away from this dream more thankful for my dreaming process, knowing that our dreams, as much as they take us into other states and other realms, tie directly in with our evolutionary process here on earth. If we are to truly understand the meaning of those other states and realms, we must first figure out the meaning of our lives here and now. From my own experiences, I can only conclude that the meaning of our lives is to become fully conscious of our energetic potential and then use it to evolve.

Everything is cyclical... - Photo by Jan Ketchel
Everything is cyclical…
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

The spider, like the snakes of my previous dreams, represented infinity and the cyclical nature of everything. She really was saying that I must watch what I put into myself, both into my physical body and into my ethereal body, both of them vitally important as I navigate this life. Only healing food and healing endeavors must enter me. There was a soberly calm part of me that knew this even while I dreamed.

In addition, when I looked more closely at who the light being and the dark being were, I knew they were representing both birth and death, past and future, but also that they were one and the same, each representing a beginning and an ending, an opportunity for shedding and birthing. It became clear that those beings were also me, and as I know myself on a deeper level and experience my energetic self, I know there is nothing to fear in those big moments of transition. Like the spider or the snakes of my dreams, those beings were representing my wholeness. They patiently waited for me to answer all my own questions, knowing full well that all the answers lie within. Indeed, everything becomes increasing clear as I study the dream. My ego is further removed now too, not as necessary as it once was; no need to protect. I am on a new journey now.

I am also certain that if we can begin to imagine ourselves as living in a dream all the time, viewing the symbolism of our experiences in life that same way we view the symbolism our dreams offer us, we can more readily gain access to the mystery and magic of our lives as a whole. Fear and the ego play a critical role in how we decide to interpret both our dreams and what happens to us in waking life, but we can decide to use all our encounters with fear and the ego to advance ourselves now. Are we really dreaming all the time? Why wait until the next life to find out?

Doing it now!
Jan

Jan's Blog

A Day in a Life: In The Natural Flow

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All birds are welcome! - Photo by Jan Ketchel
All birds are welcome!
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

We keep some bird feeders going. I’ve noticed that when I’m in the yard, either working in the garden or just sitting and relaxing, the birds react, some dramatically and some less so. The larger birds immediately fly far afield, startled by the mere click of the door opening. The smaller birds take cover nearby. I’m aware that all of them are waiting to see what I’m going to do.

As I enter their territory, their energetic space, I’m aware that eventually they’ll calm down and go about their business as I go about mine. They’ll accept me the same way they accept a passing deer, knowing I will do no harm, that I’m generally a calm energetic presence.

About a week ago, I watched as a robin began making a nest in a fairly small juniper tree tucked up near the house. It’s always a busy bush, handily available for all the small birds to rush into should they need cover. It rustles and shakes with their comings and goings, so I was a little surprised that the robin had chosen it.

I waited to see if it was simply a decoy nest. Our deck at the back of the house suffers from these decoy nests. Straggling grasses and debris hang down from the beams, as the robins and even the phoebes attempt to divert attention. We’ve been onto them for years, but I guess birds of prey, squirrels and other critters still don’t get it.

I’ve observed the birds flight patterns for years too, how they never fly directly to their nests but always in a complicated indirect path, another attempt to divert attention from their real abode and the treasures that lie incubating there.

Beneath the little juniper tree in the front yard is a hose box and so it’s an area that we too frequent often, dragging out the hose and then winding it back up again as we tend to the gardens and flowering pots in the yard. So I was startled to see that indeed the robin’s nest in the juniper tree is the real one, the home they selected for this year.

I found this out when I went to pull out the hose. There sat the robin in her nest. Bearing the tension of my gaze, she stared right back at me. I could feel her fear, the tension in her body, aware that she might fly off in an instant. Not wanting to stress her, I backed off and went about my business. Later, as I rewound the hose I looked at her again. She sat with the same tense readiness.

“Don’t worry; everything is fine,” I whispered in the most soft and gentle voice. “Thank you for coming here, for…” and with that she flew off in a huff, shrieking and bellowing. I realized that my silence was all that mattered. I didn’t need to speak. My voice was intrusive, but my energy was calmer, enough so that though she was edgy she could bear the tension of my presence.

I thank them for coming into my garden... - Photo by Jan Ketchel
I thank them for coming into my garden…
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

Indeed, when I am in the yard working calmly on my gardens, I am in the flow of nature around me. I have my hands in the soil, and yes, I talk to my plants, to the earth, even to the weeds and worms. I welcome them all; I thank them for coming and being part of my life and my garden.

The other day, I noticed that someone had stepped in the garden where I had planted seeds, the tiny seedlings just beginning to pop up. It looked like the person had taken one step in, realized it was a garden and then taken another step out again leaving two big footprints digging into the soil.

“Humph!” I thought, “who did that!” But then I realized it didn’t matter. Don’t waste energy on anger, it doesn’t suit the flow of life, just accept it. The garden will not suffer. Indeed the little seedlings have popped right back up again. The next day I saw that some critter had dug a hole in another area of the garden, also planted with seeds. Here too, my immediate reaction was anger. I got a little grumpy, confronted the futility of it all, of trying to have control! But of course, I realize I have no control. This is nature! And so I accept what comes.

“Okay,” I say in greeting to these intruders, “you are here, I am here, we are all here creating this world and everything we do is acceptable. Each one of us is acceptable. I am no better or worse with my digging and pulling. I too am an intruder and a disturbance. The birds react, the squirrels chatter, and yet they let me do my thing.”

One day a raven flew down low. Its shadow swooped over me, startling me, and I felt the wind of its feathers flying right over my head. It landed on the roof and I got a good look at it. Meanwhile, the birds were in an uproar, squawking and shrieking, sure that they were in danger, alerting all in the neighborhood that a predator was in the vicinity. The same thing happened yesterday when a vulture hovered over the yard. I know that in attracting birds, in making our yard a destination, we are also making it available to other energy as well. The cats come and stalk the birds. Occasionally we find feathers on the ground, a catch made, and we know that all is not always calm beauty in nature, just as it isn’t inside us either.

All in the natural flow... Art by Jan Ketchel
All in the natural flow…
Art by Jan Ketchel

There is always the possibility of the shadow coming; the predator is hungry too, part of nature too, needing sustenance too. And so I must be okay with what I have created. I can’t stop anything from happening. I can, however, be in the flow of it, accepting of what comes without attachment, knowing that it is all nature and that nature will right itself, restore balance, just as I seek to do within myself.

The robin—in both her bearing of tension and in her abrupt flying out of the nest—taught me the significance of energy alone, the only communicator that is really necessary, the natural communicator, one we can all learn to use a little bit more.

We are all telepathic beings and we all have the capability of communicating energetically. We just have to trust it and use it more often. I find that if I am calm and centered, without mental or physical stress, my energetic communication is strong. If I’m stressed or tired, feeling out of balance, then I’m just not as attuned.

I’m just beginning to read a book on feng shui, the natural flow of energy that is in all things, supporting my own experiences. I intend to take some time to be in the garden today, to use my nonverbal communication skills to commune with my plants and birds, with the natural flow of energy all around me.

Just a part of it all,
Jan

Jan's Blog

A Day in a Life: What Is It & How Do You Do It?

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You never know where the path might lead... Art by Jan Ketchel
You never know where the path might lead…
Art by Jan Ketchel

There are many paths to take, many healing journeys. We must find what suits us best and stick with it if we are to overcome our issues and anxieties and evolve.

As Deng Ming-Dao* writes: “We are increasingly aware of the many different spiritual practices all over the world. And new practices are being created out of the resulting diversity. That is right. It only stands to reason that all, even the most tradition-bound practices were originally created at one time. There should be no stigma attached to spiritual practices that evolve in our lifetime—methods don’t have to be from dead people in order to be valid. But once we find a way, we should stay with it resolutely and not have anxieties about other people’s paths.“

He goes on to say: “It is healthy to explore other disciplines. If nothing else, the elements in common can give you fresh and interesting perspectives on your own practices. But we should not flit from one discipline to another. Ecumenical explorations are fine, but they are best done from a firm base of the practices that best suit you.“

No other psychotherapist that we know of has linked the ancient practice of recapitulation in a clinical setting the way Chuck has, a process that naturally evolved as he studied the Magical Passes of Tensegrity as introduced to the world by Carlos Castaneda. Castaneda, for his part, released them to the public, to anyone who was interested. In so doing, he sent them on their way, energetically, into new life. Recapitulation has found new life in a clinical therapeutic setting, even though Castaneda’s group distinctly stated that recapitulation was not psychotherapy. As Chuck discovered, however, it surely does have its place within the context of a holistic therapeutic setting.

We are all spiritual beings, made up of energy. As we are born, grow up, and live our lives in human form we gradually lose touch with the essence of who we truly are. From birth we are indoctrinated with the idea that there is only one reality—this one on earth—and that when we die, if we do things right, we will go to heaven. That’s pretty much the standard fare offered by all religions around the world. But who are we really? What are we really?

We are multidimensional beings. We are thinking, feeling, conscious beings as Chuck wrote about in his last blog. We know ourselves, however, most commonly as dense matter. We can get caught there and forget that we are vibrant energy, awareness eager to escape the confines of the human condition, open to exploration beyond the body and beyond the confines of our indoctrination. Though we all have access to this energetic self in out-of-body exploration as we sleep and dream, our experiences often do not cross over into daily awareness. They lose their magic upon awakening, for the most part lost to conscious consideration. Some people are peripherally aware that there is something else to life, others more so, actually exploring, while still others just can’t quite go there yet, wanting surety, scientific proof. But that kind of proof can only come in daring the self to continually explore and to hold onto the experiences as the truth of who we really are.

The real path is the journey within, into the complexities of the dark and the light of the deepest inner self... - Photo by Jan Ketchel
The real path is the journey within, into the complexities of the dark and the light of the deepest inner self…
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

As I write about in my books, I suffered well into adulthood thinking that there was something wrong with me. Indeed there was! I was caught in my human form. All that it had been through weighed on me like a ton of bricks. I believe we all feel the same way, that we all feel isolated, afraid, ashamed and vulnerable. It wasn’t until I found my way to the process of recapitulation, within that clinical setting that Chuck had realized was possible, that I also began to experience exploration beyond the body in a totally new, acceptably healthy way.

So what is this path of recapitulation? It is a pathway to going into the body self to explore and resolve all issues and beliefs so that seamless, unattached transcendence from the physical self may occur. It is, simply put, a means of shedding the physical form—in all its multidimensionality—so that we may gain access to our awareness, our spiritual essence, the truth of who we all really are. This essence has no form, no belief system, no agenda; it simply is. That might sound pretty abstract, but once the shedding begins all of that starts to make a lot of sense. The big step along the path is the first one, to simply let the self begin the journey, to be open to where it leads.

The Shamans of Ancient Mexico did recapitulation in a cave or other remote dwelling, isolating themselves from the world so they could be undisturbed as they recapitulated. Taisha Abelar,* a cohort of Carlos Castaneda’s, used a cave and then a tree house, writing a fascinating book about her experiences. Victor Sanchez, a controversial progenitor of Castaneda’s works, suggests constructing and sitting in a box. I, on the other hand, believe that we ourselves are the cave, the tree house or the box, that everything we need is inside us, that our human form, that which we seek to transcend, is also the gateway to our transcendent experiences.

It’s pretty impractical for most of us to disappear into a box for any length of time, or to find a cave to repeatedly return to. And, much as we might like to, how many of us are really ready to climb a tree and live in a treehouse for months on end. We may not have been chosen to train in the traditional fashion, but that does not mean that it is not our path as well. We are still free to choose the path of recapitulation if we come upon it and it feels right.

In fact, we recapitulate all the time, in the course of living our everyday lives. We recall memories, get triggered, have sensory experiences. If we think about it, recapitulation is really a natural part of life, flowing through us daily. How often have we sat, lost in a memory, really there, sensing and feeling it again. Recapitulation asks us to do just that, but this time to be the observer as well as the participant, to look at everything from a new and fresh perspective. Over time we begin to see our past experiences as part of the network of our lives, fitting neatly into the fabric of who we are, what has made us the beings we are today. As we weave that network together from a new perspective, a bigger picture develops, and we begin to experience ourselves as more than just our human self and our experiences. We actually begin to experience ourselves as energy.

We all have the capacity to bloom! - Photo by Jan Ketchel
We all have the capacity to bloom!
– Photo by Jan Ketchel

As Deng Ming-Dao states, there are many spiritual paths and we must choose one that suits us. Then we must resolutely walk it. I personally have found my deepest and most rewarding path out of the physical to indeed be recapitulation. I use it daily so that my practice of meditation—my cave/tree/box—takes me beyond the body with ease and gentleness. The physical human form that we all reside in on this plane is our transformational vehicle, yet how can we sit and meditate if we are tormented by a mental state that does not let us sit still for very long!

In my experience, recapitulation offers a most valuable tool. It is the first gateway to accessing our energetic essence. Beyond that, with practice, resolutely walking the path of our choice, we can and will achieve our energetic essence. It’s just a matter of daring ourselves to take the journey, that first step the hardest and most frightening, and then sticking with it!

On the recapitulation path,
Jan

*Notes and Quotes: Deng Ming-Dao’s book is Everyday Tao and Taisha Abelar’s book is The Sorcerer’s Crossing.