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Are You Ready? – Richard’s Commentary
Rosemary’s opening to her MuseLetter article this week was certainly provocative:
Did you think you could relax because you made it through December 21, 2012? Think again!
The Shift has begun. Time has been speeding up for years and we’re moving ahead at an amazing pace. It’s time to grow, to transform, to evolve. Hold onto your hat!
Yes, the time is now. And I can certainly feel the urgency of the moment. I have been impacted a lot this week as we are in this very old moon energy in Taurus. My body hurts, my mind isn’t functioning at peak performance and my emotions tend to rule my tongue more often than I’d like! Is it just this old moon, impending new moon and solar eclipse coming our way that has me in such a state? And what can I do to “be ready”?
Then we came across this from one of our astrologer friends; we have trusted Steve Nelson’s readings for us and his deep writing for years! Here’s what Steve says about this time in May:
Karma is fate, dharma is destiny. Karma is in the body as chronic muscle tension that holds encoded past emotional memory. Dharma is our divine purpose to be revealed and realized as karma is let go. Past world patterning or karma can be released through exercise (especially yoga), deep breathing and ritual celebration. Collective karma, the shadow of the age, is up for clearing now. As we clear personal karma we clear world karma. Karma is cleared cosmically by New Moons and by eclipses of the Sun and Moon.
…
A solar eclipse is Mother Nature’s most powerful instrument for transformation. When an eclipse occurs above, things get eclipsed and are transformed here below. Whatever needs eclipsing comes up in the days/weeks before a solar eclipse. An eclipse is an opportunity to eliminate patterns of thought and behavior that trouble our world. This is an ideal time to clear away what stands in the way of dreams being realized. The May 9/10 solar eclipse is the subject of another prophecy by Nostradamus in Century 9 Quatrain 83: ”Sun twentieth of Taurus, the Earth will tremble mightily; It will ruin the great theater filled: And so darken and trouble air, sky and land, the unbeliever will call upon God and the saints.”
The May 9/10 solar eclipse in the 20th degree of Taurus may bring a great earthquake as Nostradamus predicted. We’re advised to stay away from crowded theaters on this day. Our old world patterns are broken one way or another; we can hope and pray for the kinder gentler way.
It sounds to me that all the energy I’m feeling is definitely part of this New Moon/Solar Eclipse energy. It may be a doozy. I’ll definitely “hold on to my hat”!
But what does this mean; how do we prepare and “be ready” for major events that may occur? Steve Nelson recommends ritual work. Ritual is a wonderful way to heighten our awareness and bring consciousness and intention to our plans and actions.
And Steve mentions yoga and deep breathing – no surprise here! As you know from my previous posts I am all about yoga, qigong and breath-work!
I am doing everything in my power to be ready for this New Moon/Eclipse this evening (it occurs here on the east coast at 8:29 pm). Here’s what Rosemary has said about it:
This Solar Eclipse ends a cycle and begins a new one. Look back at what was happening in your life on May 10, 1994 for some clues about your personal evolution. We are being invited to release the past, clear negative thought patterns and whatever else might be holding us back from expanded consciousness and evolution. According to The Mountain Astrologer magazine, Eclipses also affect cellular memory, facilitating our awakening and remembrance of our soul’s blueprint.
Karma and dharma: release the past and awaken to your soul’s blueprint!
With Steve I wish you a “kinder and gentler” experience of this powerful energy. May you use it for growth!
ROSEMARY’S EXPLORATION: Are You Ready?
Did you think you could relax because you made it through December 21, 2012? Think again!
The Shift has begun. Time has been speeding up for years and we’re moving ahead at an amazing pace. It’s time to grow, to transform, to evolve. Hold onto your hat!
Sometimes we think about ‘readiness’ as preparing for all the disasters that are possible in the days ahead. My little sister works for the Red Cross and has a masters degree in Disaster Management. She knows about preparing for and dealing with disasters. But are we really preparing for disasters or for greater, more abundant and spectacular Life? Let’s get ready for that and leave the disasters to the Red Cross.
Get ready for the Doors of Opportunity to be opened to you, for they are present in every moment if you just look for them. Your work is to be ready to walk through that open door. Here’s how to get ready.
First, learn to focus your attention in this Present Moment NOW. Are you worried about something that might happen in the future? That possible disaster? Or even that fantasy of something out there at ‘someday’? Bring your attention and, thus, your energy, into this Present Moment, for this is where you live and from whence comes all manifestation.
Next, live your Purpose. Have you learned what your Life Purpose is? Do you know why your Soul chose to incarnate in your particular body with your particular history at this particular moment? Discover your Purpose and live it with Passion. There’s no time now to waste waiting for ‘someday’ to arrive so you can finally live your Purpose. Someday has arrived and you are looking at it now – today.
The third step is to assess your Present Reality. What thoughts are winning your attention and are they negative or supportive of your growth? Are there limiting beliefs at work in your life that are blocking you from happiness and growth? Have you done the personal development work that clears the blocks from your path and are you sure that you are not living out someone else’s expectations for you? Do you have some old tapes playing in your unconscious mind that belong in the past or to someone else? Are you being honest with yourself about who you really are? Have you disowned your power?
The Doors of Opportunity are opening for you. You can see them when you look around you in wonder and awe at the magnificent, abundant Universe that gives to you in ways that are much grander than anything you can imagine. When you search for the lesson in whatever is your present reality you receive the gift that is available to you. Walk through the Doorway and into the Light.
Our friend was in a serious car accident shortly after the actor, Christopher Reeve, had his accident that left him paralyzed. Her injury was similar to Reeve’s but she recovered fully. As she claimed, she was ‘ready for anything and all prayed up!’ She didn’t rail against the Universe for putting her in that situation and she can use that story to help others in their personal development because she looked for the lesson and walked through a Doorway of Opportunity.
Do you know anyone who says that some event in their life that we might judge to be ‘tragic,’ like illness or job loss or financial problems or natural disaster, turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to them? Not everyone can say that about everything that happens, but when you view the event as a gift that holds a Doorway of Opportunity, you want to be ready to walk through that door!
Remember:
- Present Moment
- Purpose & Passion
- Present Reality
Get ready! Do the personal work. And when you see the open door, walk through it!
PS: Do you feel ready for the coming transformations? Are you in the flow and ready for that next opportunity coming your way? If you need answers for questions like “what is my next step?” Rosemary can help. Schedule a FREE Discovery Session with her to be sure you are ready! Schedule Here
INSPIRATION FROM ROSEMARY: Are You Ready?
My video for the week: Are You Ready?
PS: Do you feel ready for the coming transformations? Are you in the flow and ready for that next opportunity coming your way? If you need answers for questions like “what is my next step?” Rosemary can help. Schedule a FREE Discovery Session with her to be sure you are ready! Schedule Here
Will the REAL YOU please stand up? – Richard’s Commentary
I don’t know about you but I was really struck by this message from The Divine Feminine posted yesterday! And I realize part of this message’s impact is the “memory” it hits. I think anyone reading this post knows the truth of this message about themselves! We are all here, now, in this time for a very specific purpose. We are here to be part of an enormous transformation. And it is time for the REAL Us to stand up! Here are the specific instructions from The Divine Feminine:
Expand your Consciousness to embrace the biggest version of YOU that you can imagine and then allow that to continue to expand. The Universe sees YOU as large as you REALLY are. Dissolve the limitations that you have put on yourself and BE THE BIGGER VISION OF YOU.
What does this mean? I have a perfect example of a couple of people doing this very thing. You may or may not know of Deva Premal & Miten, two artists who have made chanting mantras, both in Sanskrit and from other cultures in other languages, not only beautiful art but moving, spiritual experiences. Rosemary and I have all of their albums and listen to them regularly. We have attended their live performances and have been truly inspired. Here’s what they are now doing to embrace their biggest vision: they are offering a completely free 21-Day Mantra Meditation Journey over the internet. It just began on April 23rd and it is fantastic. What a wonderful way to start the day, with 15 minutes of these beautiful human beings introducing and then chanting a new mantra. Deva and Miten have stepped up to a higher level of offering Divine Chanting for the world!
You can still join us in on this journey; sign up here: Deva & Miten
We are all called to Stand Up! The Divine Feminine requests this and Deva Premal & Miten demonstrate a perfect example of what it means and how to do it.
It begins with an expanded consciousness; it begins with a “bigger vision of you.” We all have dreams, wishes, desires. Are these true visions of who we are and what we can be or are these fantasies of the “if only” category? Visions are dreams that can be actualized. They require motivation, planning, resources, scheduling and action. The Divine Feminine are not calling us to dream, they are calling us to Vision and Action. They are asking us to Stand Up!
What is my vision? I have outlined my first Qigong class! I plan to teach a 10-week program beginning in May. I have a marketing flier completed, class syllabus ready to go, sign-up/release form to print and a few ideas for marketing the class to local groups here in Maryland. I am excited not only to be doing this but with the notion that I am moving in a new direction and beginning to “stand up.” OK, a Qigong Class may not sound like a big leap, but it is a step.
And Rosemary and I are moving forward with other plans to expand programs and offer more to our local groups, followers and clients here in the Maryland area. We are also continuing to develop our online plans to bring what we offer to a wider, global audience. Rosemary’s voice already reaches around the world with her services to select international clients. She too, as the “Voice of The Divine Feminine” is stepping up and moving into a much bigger Vision of her Service to Humanity.
It really is time for all of us to Stand Up, to live into that greater vision we all sense about ourselves and the Universe knows about us!
Are you ready to Stand Up?
What’s New with You? — Richard’s Commentary, and the I Ching for the New Moon
One of the thoughts that caught my attention in Rosemary’s “Exploration” yesterday is:
“And what new stimulus is there in your environment to keep you growing? Or are you content with the status quo and resisting forward motion?”
We live in a totally dynamic Universe supplying our need for new stimulus constantly. All we have to do is pay attention to what’s going on and assess and respond to the stimulation around us. For example we are just now in New Moon energy (as of April 10, 2013 at 5:36 AM EDT) and we are just now in a new astrological year with the Sun in Aries. And Aries, the House of newness and action, is really full of stimulating planets right now. This is from our friend Gloria Hesseloff:
“The New Moon in ARIES holds special promise because 5 other celestial bodies are also in Aries! It can rock your world!
“(Note: Seriously, you may have noticed this unique Aries time is impacting many of us or our friends and family, especially those who have prominently in their charts Aries, Libra, Capricorn or Cancer. This energy can feel aggressive, angry, domineering, etc…)”
There is plenty here to stimulate growth, change, expansion, evolution. With all this energy in Aries, Spring time in the North, New Moon, it will be difficult to remain content with the status quo! It is a great time now to capture this energy to assist us in moving forward! Gloria goes on to say now is the:
“Time to reflect on:
- What am I ready to bring to life at this time?
- Where do I need to take a stand?
- How can I take advantage of the unlimited possibilities available to me?
- How can I make changes that are real, not just superficial?
- The Universal energies are supporting courageous action with this New Moon.”
It is with all this Aries energy supporting me that I cast my I Ching Gua for this New Moon to take a look at how the month may play out and how I can best interact with these energies. And I received a surprising pair of Gua. Here is the first:
Note that the second line is a changing line (a nine) which yields a new “Approached Gua”. The initial Gua tells us something about the current energies, the status quo if you will, and the approached Gua tells us something about the changes we can expect. Since I cast these Gua for the month (the next
moon cycle, or “moonth”) we start out with the energy of Gou (Encountering) and end with Dun (Retreat). Here’s the Approached Gua:
And here is my interpretation:
Gou is about encounters with other people. The I Ching expresses caution here, to be careful of these encounters, to not take people as they first appear; not to distrust, necessarily but to reserve judgment. And it is better to meet people in person rather than at a distance (indirectly, e.g. via email!).
The Approached Gua, Dun, indicates a retreat after this or these encounters. This is a positive retreat, one to gather strength for another time (next month perhaps).
Both of these Gua offer caution about “little people” and to avoid inappropriate or unproductive encounters with them. The wise retreat to gather strength and reinforcements. This tells me to not get bogged down with small stuff. Advance by retreating!
And note that if you are following my I Ching readings each moonth that my last Gua was Heng/Long Lasting, which is the Gua immediately preceding Dun. So, after remaining steadfast during the previous month it may now be time to step back to assess and regroup!
With the I Ching timing is everything. I also note that while both of these Gua this moonth urge caution, Gou corresponds to the 5th month (June) and Dun corresponds to the 6th month (July). These will be very productive months for the year. Now is a time to be watchful of encounters and to retreat into planning to prepare for the summer months.
Considering all this energy in Aries, these are very cautionary Gua to received. I will be storing up this energy, putting it into plans and getting ready for a big summer!
Do you use any divination tools in your life? They can help you with the ever-present influences from the environment, help with interpretation and with guidance on using the energies for forward motion, but only when it is advisable!
ROSEMARY’S EXPLORATION: What’s New with You?
Where is the newness in your life? Are you in a rut? In a routine that doesn’t allow you time and/or space to grow?
Now is the time to explore the ways in which you have gotten stuck and are holding yourself back from your expansive greatness. Sometimes it seems easier to stay put, to stay where things are simple, uncomplicated, the same. But are you growing?
If you are alive in a human body then there is something more for you to learn. That’s what the human life is all about. We are learning machines, from the moment we’re born and we have to figure out how to get around in this physical world.
Babies are growing and exploring and trying new things all the time. All those ‘No!’ messages are helping the baby to learn what can and can’t be done, what’s safe and what’s not, what’s accepted and what’s not. As we get older we start giving ourselves those ‘No!’ messages for very different reasons.
What would you like to learn or explore that you are telling yourself ‘No!’ so you will stop exploring? What learning experience are you denying yourself because of a list of reasons that might, possibly, be excuses for maintaining the status quo? How are you holding yourself back?
Brain science is discovering fascinating things about how we think and how we can change our thoughts. Every thought either reinforces a previous thought or creates its new pattern in our brain. The thoughts we repeat deepen the groove of that thought and make it easier to revisit. New thoughts must be repeated to create a deeper pattern and, if left unvisited, will wither away.
What are your patterns of thinking and what would you like to change? There are techniques for making those changes, and to change your mind you have to be conscious of your old patterns and the new patterns that you want to reinforce. You can do this!
And what new stimulus is there in your environment to keep you growing? Or are you content with the status quo and resisting forward motion?
Living a Conscious Life requires that you accept yourself on a path of growth and that you are proactive about seeking to expand your awareness and advance your understanding. You are not the kind of human being who believes you are done learning new things and are content to sit around without exploring any new ideas. You challenge yourself to grow and to explore.
This task is not as easy in a vacuum as it is with a like-minded tribe. Who is your Consciousness Tribe? With whom can you explore ideas, share thoughts without concern about judgment or condemnation? Where are the people who will challenge you to consider a viewpoint that you haven’t considered before? Do you have these folks in your sphere?
Or are you content to hang out with people who represent the ‘you’ of decades ago, who will not challenge you to think outside the box of your old ideas?
Your tribe is yours to find. Sometimes we need a new tribe. Sometimes our tribe grows with us and we can stay with the same explorers while we all expand our consciousness.
Are you being challenged to find something new in your life? Ponder this thought today and then look around you and your day-to-day life. Maybe it’s time to try on something new and see how it fits.
What’s new with you today?
PS: New! Spring Book Special: Get Your Woman On! Embracing Beauty, Grace and the Power of Women – The Amazon Best Selling book that Rosemary co-authored with some amazing women – is available this month at a very special price – $12 with free shipping in the US and some great bonuses! This would be an inspirational gift for Mother’s Day for a woman who would like to read 39 stories of transformation. Here’s how to get your copy: Book Sale
Gates, Thresholds, Departures and Arrivals!
Yesterday I posted a long sequence from my “Morning Pages” (The Artist’s Way) about change. I woke up that morning a bit on the irritable side and my mood was exacerbated by a series of innocuous events that sent me immediately to my pages, often a respite from the world of other people!
I took time to breathe, to reflect and to move into a whole new frame of mind. It was then that I decided to dismiss Mr. Irritation from my life. And one of the triggers that ushers irritation into my life is a violation of the rules, my rules. So, I decided that Mr. Rules needed to be dismissed right along with irritation, since they so often seem to enter my life hand-in-hand.
If you read yesterday’s post you may believe that I finished my pages and skipped across that threshold I describe and swept into Happiness! Well, I don’t know how things go for you, but as soon as I let the Universe know I am moving into a new space, a whole new pattern of being, I am immediately tested!
I re-entered the world of other people, opened the refrigerator to make my morning smoothie and out flew an open box of Yoohoo leaking a chocolate flavored concoction all over the bottom of the refrigerator and the kitchen floor. After a few choice words I tossed the container into the sink, thereby splattering more brown liquid everywhere (OK, my toss was not gentle!).
I took a breath, muttered a bit more about rules and open containers and finally caught myself (and the Universe) in the test of my commitment to a new behavior pattern. Yes, Mr. Irritation and Mr. Rules had not gone far at all and came knocking at their first opportunity. And I was right there at the door to let them in!
Change is not easy! It’s easy enough to write about Gateless Gates, Thresholds of Joy, Departures from irritability and a world of rules and Arrival into a new world of Happiness. I can picture myself in this new world; I can hold the image for long moments, especially while sitting on a cushion or writing or practicing qigong. But remaining there in that new world is a completely different exercise. It takes practice, lots of practice. The old habits influenced so heavily by Mr. Irritation and Mr. Rules are deeply etched pathways in my brain. New habits influenced by those fleeting feelings of joy and happiness barely scratch the surface of the neocortex and evaporate all too easily if not reinforced with awareness, repetition and practice.
Over the last few days I have been practicing often; in other words the tests keep on coming and giving me the opportunities to practice. And this is a good thing! How else will those mere scratches become indelible ruts of good, new habits? And as always it’s all about awareness, catching the old behavior and making the conscious choice to modify it as quickly as possible so the old ruts begin to fade as the new behavior “sinks in.”
Fortunately there are tools to help with this. All “consciousness building” tools can be put to good use: meditation, yoga, qigong, tai chi, journaling, prayer, contemplation, etc. are all methods to help build our conscious minds to come to our aid with awareness of every moment, every breath, to fill that awareness with realization of our True Nature and how to align our everyday behavior with that Nature.
How do you build your Consciousness? What methods do you employ to effect change in your life?
Change, the Brain, and Life Force Energy—Richard’s Commentary
Change has certainly been on my mind lately—can you tell from my posts? Some of this change energy, maybe most of it, is coming from outside sources, including the influences of the planets, stars, heavens, recalling the quotes I used from my astrologer friend, Chris Largent, last week.
It is important to be aware of these outside influences in order to react, reflect and respond appropriately. And this happens on the inside, the only source and cause of true change. We have to consciously step through that gateless gate!
I was still in the middle of all this rumination when I wrote my “morning pages” this past Monday. Here’s what I’d like to share:
Everybody seems to be on edge, maybe a threshold, balancing on that edge, uncertain, teetering forth and back, wondering, hesitant, angry at the hesitance, fearful of the advance. Yet, advance we must straight into April and lovely days ahead to celebrate wakefulness.
It is good to wake up. It is good to be alive. Yes, I have met with irritation today, my old friend. And he is as grumpy as ever, rasping about people in his way, people with attitudes, people not following the rules – his rules. I have met with him and asked him to leave. I have too much to do to deal with irritation. It is a pointless and wasteful feeling. He is gone and I welcome the clear, clean air of April.
And maybe I’m a fool to seek happiness and joy in all things. There is often good reason to be in irritation’s field. But reason doesn’t make it right. The foolishness of joy is not wrong. Maybe it is unreasonable but never wrong.
I will seek out joy today. I would much rather be in his company. Some days I would rather be happy and irrational, living with Pi and Phi, than living in my left brain with the thinker, too often stinker.
Flow, goodness, grace, Tao. These are the way. This is The Way, the Immortal Way. How can an irritable man ever be good company, live as an Immortal? This is not the way!
And so I write, I look for the change. The door to Immortality stands wide open. The threshold of that door is joy. Happiness lives beyond. The simple act of crossing that threshold concludes the Pursuit of Happiness. It is right there, a fool’s paradise, so easy to reach out to, beyond. Just beyond.
Is this an April Fool’s joke I’m playing on myself? Can it really be so easy? And what if it is? Isn’t everything I write about choice? I believe it is. Stepping across the threshold is a choice. And this door of the threshold? It is that gateless gate of Zen. It swings both ways. There is always the “anti-choice” of reversion to old ways, meeting up with irritation again! Why I would want to do that is a mystery but it does happen. But maybe with the support of Heaven it doesn’t have to be that way. Maybe I can stay on the grace and happiness side of the gate. Maybe the world over there is perfect, just as it is. There is nothing wrong on that side of the gate that needs my attention. It is all good, just as it is. All I have to do is see it that way. And maybe some would say this is looking through “rose-colored glasses”. So what? Those who say that covet the glasses!
Is there sickness, old-age and death on that side of the gate? Of course there is! All the people caught up in all their desires are still there. Those still pursuing happiness are still there. It is a gateless gate—there is nothing that gate separates! In this sense nothing has changed. They have not crossed the threshold. It is I who have changed. It all only bubbles up from the inside. The gate that is not a barrier is inside. The threshold of joy is inside. The choice to cross the threshold is made in silence, promised to no one, confessed only in the stillness of every moment.
Change is that simple. And this may be the most difficult vow I can take and keep. Is there any way that I can say goodbye to irritation, dismiss him forever? This is only one step to take beyond the threshold. And from that new place I can hope to say, yes to this promise. One step into the new current is all it takes. And the flow will take me in a whole new direction…I am willing to let that current take me.
This is the water of my life. It is moving now, spinning beyond the stagnant backwater I have been stuck in for too long. This pretty April day with Sun, high sky, light breeze ringing bells is a brand new day for this fool to let go of old companions of irritation and rules and head into the unknown space of happiness flowing with whatever currents will come to jostle, cajole, and rejoin me onward beyond joy!
…so it all came tumbling out! And in tomorrow’s post I’ll offer a sequel to this flow toward change, toward happiness I stepped into this week…
ROSEMARY’S EXPLORATION: Change, the Brain, and Life Force Energy
Breathe into the base of your spine and allow the breath to move all the way up your spine into your brain. If there is any constriction along the spine the breath cannot move energy all the way into the brain and thoughts die.
All thoughts in the brain need the energy of Life Force to be maintained but this energy does not just come from conscious thought. The unconscious mind can also energize thought by repeatedly visiting that thought and giving it power. This is how ‘old tapes’ can remain powerful in one’s life, even at the unconscious level.
What thoughts are gaining power by being revisited at the unconscious level? What do you believe about yourself that you are not changing because you keep reinforcing the old belief?
The only way to change is to change. Change the thought pattern that generated the behavior that resulted in an action. Trying to change without addressing underlying beliefs and thoughts is doomed to failure. ‘Trying’ to change is just that – ‘trying.’ Changing takes real change. Anyone who wishes to change must start by changing something, even one little thing, to signal the brain to embrace the coming change.
If you wish to change your eating patterns and diet, then change something about how you eat. Don’t sit in the same chair, eat at the same time or table, buy at the same grocery store.
If you wish to change how you exercise or move, change the clothes or shoes you wear. Choose a different location, partner or time of day.
If you wish to change work habits then rearrange your work space.
If you want to change the energy at home then redecorate, change lighting, play different music, open different windows, use different doors.
Change something first, then change the brain. Change the brain and you can change everything else.
Your Life Force Energy is within you as a fire burning brightly but sometimes your perception of it is dimmed by the blinders of your thoughts. Ramp up the fire, the flames of Life Force Energy, and burn away the blinders. Shine that Light upon the world around you.
All of this energy relies on an open spinal column through which the energy can flow, from root to crown through the brain. You have the power to open this energy channel through a combination of visualization, physical exercise and energy work with light and color.
The focus is on the column of Light that is YOU, the individual. Use color and light to set the vibratory frequency level that opens you to your own greatness.
Then Be that Unique Greatness – YOU!!!
PS: Do you want some help with the changes you are inviting into your life? Apply for a Discovery Session with Rosemary; it’s easy! Do it here
INSPIRATION FROM ROSEMARY: Winds of Change
Rosemary’s video for the week: Winds of Change
PS: Are you resisting change? Are you holding on to old forms that may no longer serve? It may be time to speak with someone about how the winds of change are blowing in your life! Rosemary offers everyone a FREE introductory Discovery Session where you can meet her and explore ways to work with A Medium, A Muse, A Mystic! Apply Here (it’s easy!)
Men and The Goddess 