The Legend of the 33rd Sage - Chapter 7

Chapter 7 - Moving Beyond

Before sitting down to dinner the old sage sat cross legged on the ground. He took a few deep breaths, holding each one for a moment and then releasing his breath and with it energies from the day that he did not want to hold onto.

"What are you doing," asked the young man?
The old sage smiled and opened his eyes, turning all his attention to his young apprentice. "I am moving beyond the ego. At the end of each day I play the day back in my minds eye and when I come to an event when the flow of my energy is stopped by my ego I take a deep breath, reflect on it for a moment and then release it into the ether."
The young man returned the Sage's smile, but he was still confused; a state he was experiencing a lot since he began his journey with the old man. "What do you mean by the ego and how does it stop your energy flow?"

"There are those that say that the Ego is the mediator between the conscious and Subconscious minds. There are others who say it is our identity. While some say it is what gives us our sense of self worth or self importance. In a way it is all those things, but for me it's greatest weakness is that it stops the flow of information from our higher selves and disconnects us with everything else in this beautiful universe. Think back to the other day when you woke and found me gone. It was your ego that went into a panic. It was only when you calmed yourself down and reconnected with spirit that you became part of all things and at that moment you knew where I was."

"Sage, why do we have an ego if it limits us?"

"The ego gives us a sense of ourselves. It is important in our first few incarnations when we are here to learn lessons of a more earthly nature. It is only after our sixth lifetime when we begin on our spiritual path that we begin to move beyond the ego. The ego is the source of most of our weaknesses. Most of our weaknesses come from the various manifestations of the ego's fear of death. Fear is the ego's weapon that stops us from moving forward in our lives. The ego is lazy. It does not want to try knew things. It would rather stay in an negative state that it has become comfortable with than take a chance on a better life. Change is the death of the ego. Once you start to realize that the ego is holding you back then little by little you can move beyond it to a life where you are in the flow. Where it does not matter what is around the next corner. Whereas the ego will stop you from living, being in the flow will allow you opportunities that you never thought possible."

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My new book the 33rd Sage and the Initiate is available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble and many other wonderful bookstores and online sellers. If you want to read more about 'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' have a look at my website on www.the33rdsage.com or my translatable blog at http://33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/

The Legend of the 33rd Sage - Chapter 6

Chapter 6 - I Am What I Believe I am

After a night filled with dreams of the 33 Sages who are in charge of the 33 dimensions beyond the earth-plane, Huo woke tired, as if he had been traveling all night. And in many ways he had been traveling, as the old sages of the Plum Red Robe were preparing him for his future, but that was still a way off and he woke with little or no memory of their teaching.

Rising from his bed he was welcomed by the old sage who passed him a cup of herbal tea. The smell and flavor of the tea struck at his every sense. He could see in his mind's eye a man on a small farm picking the very herbs that he was now experiencing. He looked to the old man for an explanation. "You will understand that ability to be anywhere in the world as we continue your teaching. Much of what you have to learn has to unfold naturally, as you are your own best teacher. It is my role to give you a gentle nudge when it is appropriate. For the next few days I would like to stay where we are as you begin to search deeper in yourself for the teachings to occur."

Before he could finish the young man interrupted. "I am sorry Sage, but I am not sure that I am ready to teach myself. I am still trying to understand what you taught me last night at dinner. I am not sure I believe that I would have chosen the life I have lived and the concept of the subconscious mind creating my life is just too much to comprehend. I thought that in every instant of my life I could choose what I want to do." 

"That is true my son if you have a clear mind, but so many people are just a product of other people's beliefs."
"What do you mean?" The young boys face was scrunched up, trying once again to come to grips with the meaning in the Sage's few words.

"What we believe to be true has been in many cases borrowed from someone else. Look at your beliefs about the old people in the village or the people of the cities, or about foreigners or even the foods you should and shouldn't eat. Where did they come from? Did you just wake up one day and say that the people of the cities were rich or that they think they are better than the people of the land. Of course not, these beliefs have been fed to you over time from your parents, people of the village, either directly to you, or even in whispers of conversation. Your subconscious mind takes in everything and then creates the world as you expect it to be. When you were born your subconscious mind recorded all the impressions from everything around it. It also recorded the emotions, feelings, attitudes  and language that came from your family, friends and all the other people in the village. But more than that you were born with the inherent vibrations of many previous generations. In fact the only way to be yourself is to start to peel away the thought, feelings and behaviors that are not yours. These same belief patterns are here to protect us and for those who are not spiritually advanced they do a good job of that. As you start to grow spiritually you reach a point where it is necessary for you to release many of these beliefs, so that you can become a spiritual being with your own spiritual destiny. That is the reason we have come together, so we can work with each other to release your beliefs to follow your own quest."

The old sage stopped for a moment to allow these ideas to seep into and start to work their magic in the young boys mind. The old sage knew that a mind once changed could never go back to its old form. It may for a moment try to move back into its old comfort zone, but this would not last as once a mind can see that it is creating its own world it can never again be truly happy with being a victim. He knew the next few days would be a struggle for the young man as he broke free from the beliefs of others which he had made his own. It was now time to create his own life. The old sage knew that it would be difficult to remove all the negative belief patterns but it was necessary if the young man was to become who he was meant to be.

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My new book the 33rd Sage and the Initiate is available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble and many other wonderful bookstores and online sellers. If you want to read more about 'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' have a look at my website on www.the33rdsage.com or my translatable blog at http://33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/

The Real Me - the person behind the 33rd Sage

The Real Me

Hello All,

I have been writing these blogs for a over a year now and in that time I have had thousands of readers from over fifty countries. Firstly I would like to thank you all for dropping in to spend a few minutes reading my blog. I write the blog in the hope that I can share some of the wonderful teachings I have received during my own spiritual quest over the last thirty years. If you have read my first book 'The 33rd Sage,' you will get a feel for what happened to put me on the spiritual path and in the second book 'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' you will gain a deeper insight into my life and journey.
Today I am not here to flog either of my books, although I guess a writer still needs to eat and somedays I like a second Decaf Latte, today I want to give you my dear reader a deeper insight into who I am. I am doing this because of a couple of conversations I have had of late. The first was a person I have known for seven years; someone who I would call a dear friend and someone I could talk to about anything. The funny thing was that when she read an early draft of 'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' she said she learnt more about me in a few short hours than in our seven year friendship. The second person was someone who I still call a friend although I had not seen him in twenty years. We caught up for coffee and after a few minutes of reminiscing about the old days we both shared what we had been up to since we last saw each other. It was in talking about a journey that we took together twenty years earlier; a journey in the search for an indigenous medicine man. We jumped in his car and drove for many hours before arriving at the site where hopefully we would meet our medicine man. Of course we never found him, that was not spirits intention. Later that evening something strange happened in a meditation that still affects me till this very day. Over coffee I shared what had happened to me that evening and my old friend was shocked. He was one of my close friends and he had shared that journey with me and I had not shared with him what had happened.
Both these episodes made me reflect on on why I hadn't shared the real me to even my closest friends.
This story may be about me, but in reality it is about all of us. How much of yourself do you share with those who are closest to you. Do you not share because you are scared of sharing who you really are? Do you think that your friends will think you are mad or if you share everything there will be nothing left? All of these are good reasons, but what if not living in who you are is holding back your spiritual growth. Each of ushas an individual spark of the godforce and I believe it is our duty; more than that, it is our imperative to be who we are in every moment of our time on the earth. I guess that is why I spend a lot of time in my blogs talking about understanding yourself and releasing the beliefs in your subconscious mind that are holding you back from being the beautiful being that you incarnated on this earth to be.
Stop for a moment and ask yourself if you are living the life you always dreamed of living? If you are answered no, then it is never too late. Some of the greatest, writers, painters and inventors did their greatest works in their seventy and eighties. Whatever age you are Spirit is still there to guide you on your way.
A year ago I gave up a well paid job doing something I loved to follow the yearning of my inner spirit to just write. My first book had just been published and I felt proud of my achievement, but there was something missing. People who red it loved it. Many people red it a number of times, each time learning and seeing ideas and concepts that were not there the first time they red it. The interesting thing for me was that when I first wrote it I had not even planned to put many of the concepts in the story. It started out as a nonfiction book about the teachings that I received from an old Chinese teacher. A few hundred words in and there was a change as a character came into my mind and began to tell me the story that became 'The 33rd Sage.' It was not the book that I wanted to write, it was a book that almost seemed to be written through me.
Just before I gave up the job to write I was seeing a couple of naturopaths who were trying to help me sleep better. I had not had a full nights sleep in over twenty years. I would sleep for about ninety minutes and then wake up, soon I would go back to sleep only to wake up another ninety minutes later. It was while treating me that the work they were doing was having a profound effect on me, but not in the way I planned. I still don't sleep any better but that is not why spirit drew me to see them. I started to share with them and others what I was really feeling and stories about my spiritual journey that I had kept hidden. Not only did these stories free up a part of me that was stuck, but they had a genuine affect on the lives of the people I came into contact with. Rather than think I was mad it allowed them to find there own voice or courage to make changes in their lives. It was in the telling of story that I realized I could have the greatest impact with my journey and the more I opened my heart to people the more at peace I became.
It was after their treatment that I had no other choice but to leave my job and write. The second book 'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,'  was the easiest story that I have ever had to write because it was my journey. Once again I started to tell the story as nonfiction with early title of 'My Other Life,' being the life that I had never really shared with people. This time I was about twenty thousand words in when Conway the main character from my first book took charge and made it into his story. He is a cheeky controlling bugger, but I like him anyway. I fought with him for a few chapters but he seemed to have a better memory of my life than I did and in the end I let him tell the story.
When I write now I check in with the heart to see what about I am feeling and allow whatever is within to come out and express itself on the page. It was difficult to express these feelings when I was young because I was dyslexic and had difficulty sharing my stories or thoughts on paper. My old Chinese teacher helped with the dyslexia, but the greatest change in my life came in 1989 when I was given, a very early version of a laptop. It was the most freeing experience of my life. The beauty of the computer was that, although I was only a one finger typist, I was able to keep in memory the thoughts that I wanted to share. This was so different from when I tried to write on paper, when the very act of writing switched off my mind and I could remember nothing of what I wanted to share.
Thanks again to all the readers of books and blogs a you continually inspire me to continue writing and wandering on my spiritual adventure.
Blessings and peace. I only hope my blogs and stories inspire and encourage  others on their own journeys.

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My new book the 33rd Sage and the Initiate is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and many other wonderful bookstores and online sellers. If you want to read more about 'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' have a look at my website on www.the33rdsage.com or my translatable blog at http://33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/

Oprah, Paul Coehlo and Jessie

Oprah, Paul Coelho and Jessie have been three of the greatest influences in my life. In many ways it has been their influence that has made me the man I am today. One who I am only just starting to enjoy. The first two are well known, but who is the Jessie that I refer to? I will put her aside for a moment, although she is the glue that holds this little story or window into the me, the writer, together. We will meet her a little later and the wait will be worth the effort.

Oprah and Paul came to me at a similar time and they both inspired me in oh so many different ways. I was suffering with a disease which today would be called Chronic Fatigue, but in the early 1980's it was barely known and poorly understood. It was at the time when I had only recently met the Old Chinese teacher who I write about in my first book the 33rd Sage. It was a time when I was barely able to move, for the old man's remedies had not cured me physically but they were certainly having an affect on me spiritually.

It was during this period when my spiritual journey was just starting, its first tentative steps, that Oprah and Paul came into my life. They never knew me, but like millions of others I was affected by them. Sitting on the couch, not able to do much else, I turned on the television to be confronted by a young black woman called Oprah. She intrigued me. Over the next few years she inspired me, not only to go beyond my illness, but to make a difference in the world.

After a couple of years of being inspired by Oprah, Paul Coelho waltzed into my life. It was a humble beginning. A friend, who noticed I was changing, gave me a copy of the Alchemist. At first, it lay on a pile of well meaning books given to me by my friends who wanted to help me live a more fulfilling life. I wanted to change; needed to change. Oprah was helping and each day her dose of inspiration kept me going. One day after watching a program about people overcoming their weaknesses;  they encouraged others to take action. I was inspired but I did not know what action to take. It was then that I looked at my pile of books. Maybe that was the place to start, I thought to myself. I picked up the top book because it was the book on top, not for any other reason. It just so happened to be the Alchemist. When I started to read, I was captivated by the young shepherd Santiago and his journey to Egypt, after having a reoccurring dream of finding treasure there. I could not put it down. After a few short hours I sat stunned. When you want something bad enough the universe conspires to help you get it. It was as if the universe was conspiring with me to help me change. I wanted to change. I wanted a more spiritual life and it was occurring. I had not even noticed it occurring. In a matter of a couple of years I had met a number of wonderful teachers and now I was on my own quest, the quest for inner truth. It is a wonderful journey that continues today. A journey which has taken me to over 25 countries and allowed me to meet some amazing people.

What of Jessie I hear you say. Don't worry I have not forgotten her. I was hoping you were hearing her voice through this whole story. Jessie was my mother. She was not famous, but she influenced me in more ways than I could ever describe. It was her that always gave me the courage to fight on, even at my worst times. It was her that gave me the great respect for women; no it was more than that. It was Jessie that showed me how powerful women were and yet most men don't see it because their power is on the inside. One short story that will show the courage and conviction that my mother gave to me was the story around the birth of myself and my twin brother. A twin brother, yes there is two of me running around. We look the same but god made us the mirror image of each other. We were born very premature at about thirty weeks and we were not thriving. In fact one of the daycare nurses told my mother that we would be lucky to survive, let alone thrive. My mother did not argue with the nurse but in her heart she knew she would do everything for her twins. One of her greatest joys was twelve months or so later taking us back to the daycare nurse and showing her two bouncing baby boys. That was the kind of woman my mother was. Whenever things were tough, she would simply put her head down and silently push a little harder.

In my life I have been lucky to have been surrounded by strong females. That is why in my books I always have a strong female character. In life, as in my books, the male character could not achieve his goals without the support of the women in his life.

Nearly everyone of us has heroes that inspired us in our adult lives. It is easy to remember what they taught you. But what of your parents and especially your mother; what did she teach you. If you sit quietly for a moment you will realize that who you are today is a result of what your parents taught you. Your mother or father may never be an Oprah or a Paul Coelho, but look, in the mirror and you will see them in every ounce of your being.

Thanks Oprah, Paul and Mum.

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My new book the 33rd Sage and the Initiate has now been released and is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, good book shops or on my website at  www.the33rdsage.com

The 33rd Sage and the Initiate

“It was 3 days before the Solstice and the sage must prepare him;” was the beginning  of the stunning first spiritual novel by Geof Spalding. In The 33rd Sage and the Initiate, Geof Spalding once again weaves into this story profound elements of spiritual teaching. This modern day fable allows the reader to access worlds and dimensions which have been previously hidden from view, except to those who have been initiated into the mysteries.

Conway's journey begins when he meets an old hermit who allows him access to the teachings of an ancient brotherhood who guide the evolution of the planet. The brotherhood send Conway off on a quest to discover the true story of Jesus and the Holy Graal. On the quest Conway meets many strange characters who help him on his journey; including an old hermit, a Chinese Sage, a Buddhist Monk, the keeper of the Garden Tomb and a being from another dimension. The quest allows Conway a window into his own soul and the discovery of who he had been in a previous life and the reason he incarnated into the planet at this time and place.

“The 33rd Sage and The Initiate,” takes the reader on the ultimate journey of self-discovery; the journey to find their own inner truth. The key to finding other worlds is to first find them within yourself.

This transformational novel is a must read for anybody who has ever asked the big question why am I here and where am I going? Readers will make the journey with Conway as he walks the path of the initiate and is transformed to a person who has a deep understanding of his place in the universe. In a similar vogue to the Celestine Prophecy and the Alchemist this is a story that changes lives.

Come with Conway as his quest takes from the beaches of Bali, to Portugal and the apparition, to Glastonbury and the Graal, to the Himalayas where he finds love and the ancient manuscripts, to Jerusalem and the tomb of Jesus, to another dimension and to Macchu Picchu where he meets the ancient brotherhood and finally understands the reason for his quest.

Earth and mankind are currently going through great changes. The old mystics called it the quickening. It is now more important than ever to take the journey within because during times of transformational change, your infinite spirit will be your best guide on this magical journey.

The Legend of the 33rd Sage - Chapter 5

Chapter 5 To be Connected you need to Detach

"You have had enough excitement for one day, so we will set up camp for the night. You collect some wood and I will get some water from the stream so that I can prepare tonight's meal."
The young man only nodded. It had been a tough day. When he woke this morning and found himself on his own, he panicked. He thought he was alone again, but this time many miles away from the village where he lived. Of course living in the village had been no life, for most of the time, because of his disfigurement, he felt like he was on his own, but he had got used to that way of living. Although he know understood that he was not really living, merely waiting to get older and die the slow horrible death of boredom which he had become accustomed to as his life. There was a moment when he woke when he would have been happy to have gone back to that life. What had happened? It was hard to describe, in fact he could not describe it. There was a moment when he went deep within himself and felt connected to all things. It was while he was going with the feelings that led him to the old sage. It was a strange feeling. In the moment he knew where the old sage was, there was a feeling of joy, such as he had never experienced before in his life. At first he thought the joy was caused by knowing that he would be safe, but on reflection he realized that it was deeper than that. The joy came from knowing that he was truly connected to all things. He had glimpses of it in the few days he had travelled with the old man. He thought the old sage was the reason he had received these glimpses but know he knew that he was the source of this connection to all things.
"How is the wood coming along Huo?"
The young man looked up into the face of the old sage, which was creased with a smile. "You deliberately left me this morning? You knew what what would happen?"
The old sage sat down beside the young man, for it was no longer right to call him a boy, for he had grown so much in the last few days. Not so much physically, although there had even been some changes there, he had grown up spiritually and emotionally. The young man had seen beyond the veil and the energy from beyond was now increasingly flowing through him and giving him insights that would have been impossible with his mindset only a couple of days before.
"Let me tell you a story. 'In Old China an emperor stood upon a very high hill. Spread through the valley below him was all of his great army. He could see where a battle would be fought and where the other armies waited. He had developed an intricate system of commands for the generals and officers of his army and the battle began
'The emperor could signal to the right, and the right would attack. He could signal to the left, and the left would attack, or the middle. With another signal, each would retreat then attack again. The battle went on for hours. When the emperor saw a weakness he sent troops to that area and eventually they overcame the other army.'
"This analogy fits your conscious and subconscious minds. Your conscious mind is the emperor and your subconscious, the army, does not see what is going on. When we are talking of healing, what we are really talking about is the subconscious mind. For it is our beliefs that we store in the subconscious mind which determines our future. The subconscious mind is a wonderful, natural force. It is how we exist in this world. It allows us to have memories of past situations and it is the place where the conscious mind implants all it's beliefs and knowledge. This can can either be a positive or negative experience. If we place in our subconscious the thought that the world and it's people are filled with great beauty, then that is what we will see. On the other hand if we focus on the pain and suffering in the world all we will see is pain and suffering.
"When we incarnate into our bodies before birth or shortly after. What is it that incarnates? Some have called it the Soul others have called it the Subconscious and I would guess that if you look into many of the religions it will be known by many other names. For me I will call it the Subconscious. It is my belief that our higher self sends off aspects of itself in the form of the Subconscious to inhabit a body to increase its experiences in this plane. When the subconscious takes residence in the vehicle it is blank and has no knowledge of other lives or of the Higher Self. This is done so that when it incarnates it comes without any knowledge, so that it can work through the issues that it came here to experience. It is not a hit and miss exercise, as the higher self and the aspect which incarnates understands what are the probabilities for it in the first thirteen years of its life. It understands the parents weaknesses and strengths; it understand the culture it is being born into and it understand what is happening on the world at this time. Yes for it's own experience it chooses to live in a village, in a palace or in a slum. It is only our misunderstanding of the wonderful opportunity that we call life, that we judge people for where they are born, the colour of their skin, their culture and their parenting. Mark my words it is the choice of the incarnated to where and when they choose to incarnate and it is only our lack of understanding that makes us judge others to be different or less than we are."
Huo had a million questions; it seemed like the old man was taking his mind and stretching in a hundred different directions at once. Before he could ask a question the old sage was stretching his mind and beliefs in more directions.
"When we incarnate," said the old sage, "we even choose what Element we will incarnate into as this elemental bias will allow us the best opportunity to experience what we came to earth to experience. When people start to learn about the Elements or deeper understandings of the Subconscious mind it is because they are ready for it. It is time for them to go beyond their Subconscious Mind.
"But what is there to go beyond and how do we do it? Although our subconscious is an empty book when we arrive it comes programmed with our elemental perspective. We have even chosen what health and disease patterns we will experience. Incarnation into the Earth-plane is all about experiences; whether we are human, animal, plant or mineral. If you are attracted to these teachings then you have done at least six lifetimes as human and many in all the other dimensions.
"Even before your were born your subconscious was taking in impressions from your world. The Subconscious mind takes in everything; hundreds of thousands of inputs every minute. Before you start feeling guilty for the garbage that you have fed yourself or been fed by your parents or the world around you. Stop for a moment, breathe and understand that with regards to yourself you can become like the Emperor in our story and start to take control of your Subconscious mind through the Conscious Mind. You choose all the crap that the world has given you. You understood what you were coming here to experience; you chose it; there are no victims. This is one concept that I have had the most difficulty understanding as I watch people in pain and suffering."
Huo was trying take in everything the old sage was telling him. But surely it wasn't possible. Why would he have chosen to lose his parent's in a fire? He looked down at his withered arm; 'why would anyone choose that,' he asked himself? He turned his attention to the old sage. "Why would anyone choose to go through the things that I have been through?"
"That is the reason that you are with me. To find out who you really are, why you have chosen to incarnate into the world at this time and then go beyond it." The old sage went quiet for a few minutes, allowing the young man time to digest everything he had said.
"The subconscious mind has the ability to create in your world whatever you program into it and whatever you program into it is what you will get in return. The key if you want to change your life is to start taking care with what you program into your subconscious.
"Begin today by becoming the observer. Watch how you respond to people and situations. When you meet someone new do you react positively or negatively and why?
"When you get angry. Why are you angry, is it something they did or are you projecting your weakness onto them? Often I find it is when we meet someone who shows what we don't like about ourselves or a weakness we have that we react.
"Over the next few days observe your reaction to everything; take your awareness outside of yourself and watch yourself. If you are reacting negatively to something don't stop yourself but observe and try to understand why.

"If something makes you sad - why?
If you judge something or someone - why?
If you are fearful - why?

"Don't be too tough on yourself; just observe; as you begin to become the observer you start to understand why you respond and then you can rise beyond it. Sometimes it can be a great challenge when you have believed these things for many years. Remember you are here to go beyond your Subconscious mind and have it work for you. It is time to understand your Element and then go beyond it to the Element of Ether.
"We live in amazing times when all of us have the opportunity to be the creative essence we were meant to be. It is your duty to find out what it is that you are meant to do in this life. This is what your apprenticeship is all about. It is called the Way of the Initiate, but by know I hope you have realized that it is an inner journey; a journey few have the courage to make. Let's eat."And so as the sun set, the sage and his apprentice enjoyed the bounty provided by the elements. It was a quiet dinner as they journeyed within to reflect on the day.

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A special for all my followers, friends and blog readers. My publisher has offered a special either through my website or amazon of the ebook version of The 33rd Sage at $3.99. Take advantage of the offer. Apart from being a modern fable it is filled with teachings that you or your family can use for the rest of your life. Who knows if you are open to the possibilities an old Chinese Sage might just wander into your life?

Go to my website http://www.33rdsage.com/index.html and click on buy the book for this special offer to my friends or go to Amazon.

Take a look at my Book Trailer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeNMGhfwtdg

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The Legend of the 33rd Sage - Chapter 4

Chapter 4 - Fear and Feeling Tones

The young man's night was filled with dreams of old sages sitting around a table; each one of them coming forward to teach him about their individual aspect of the thirty three. Of course when he woke in the morning he would remember none of it other than a queer feeling in his stomach that would stay with him forever; appearing when a deep teaching came forward from the Tao or one of the 33 sages.

When he woke he looked around but could not see the old sage. Something wasn't right; the uneasy feeling he had in the stomach made him feel uncomfortable and at the same time he began to feel fearful. Had something happened to the old sage? Had he done something to upset him? In panic, he looked around where they had camped over night but there was no sign of him. He looked over to the mountains and he could see the sun was already peeking over the range. He had slept in; it was well past the time they were meant to be on the road. Had his lack of discipline caused the old sage to leave him behind.

He was becoming more anxious and overwhelmed. What if he never saw the old sage again. Almost voluntarily he took a deal breath, held it for a moment and immediately he began to relax. He took another deep breath and held that for a moment and his attention moved from forest around him to a point deep within himself. In the deepness he could the old sage in the forest, no more than five hundred meters from where he was now sitting. He put his belongings in his pack, put the long staff through the pack and tossed it over his shoulder and then followed the inner feelings, sure that it would lead him to the old sage.

He found the old sage in a clearing where he was sitting around an open fire. The old sage gave Huo a cup of of tea and motioned for him to sit on a log beside him.
"Fear is such an amazing emotion," he said. "In small doses it stops us from walking into situations where we can be harmed. If we are really in touch with these inner feelings the fear or energy that comes forward are not creations of our own subconscious mind but inner promptings from our higher self which can truly can show us the way. Our ancestors, those who lived in touch with nature and the elements, had a sixth sense and so when they went into situations where the fear hairs stood up on the back of their neck they had a reason to listen. Everything in the universe has a feeling or feeling tone, a vibration if you will, that you can tap into or feel.

"Today it is a different story as more and more of our people live in villages and cities. The fight and flight reactions that were hard wired into us in the past are not needed as much and yet when you look at the people around you there seem to be more fears today in our safer world than there ever was. Why is this? I believe it is because we are out of touch with nature and the cycles within nature. Those who still live on the land are still in contact with these cycles and for the most part seem to have less fears than us so called civilized people that populate the villages and cities. We need to get back in touch with the cycles within ourselves and within nature. Most people seem to have forgotten that we are made up of these cycles. There are our biorhythms, our sleep cycles, women's menstrual cycles and even the greatest cycle of all, our conception, birth, death and rebirth and many more. All of these are natures cycles and yet many of us seem so divorced from nature and our own cycles.

"By reconnecting with these cycles an inner or innate knowledge starts to come alive and we begin to see and feel things before they happen. Whenever you go into a new situation or meet a new person send a molecule of your feelings into it or them and allow whatever returns to guide your next move. It starts with a stillness and being able to open yourself up to the answer which lies within.

"All life is energy; so when you meet someone new or meet a new situation then it will have an energy. Get in the habit of stilling your mind chatter and allow the feelings to come forward; these inner feelings will always steer you in the right direction. These feelings are not emotion like anger, frustration etc, but a feeling tone that comes up from deep within. When you woke and found I was not there your initial reaction was to panic and become fearful; that was just your subconscious mind, your ego reacting to the unknown. When you took a deep breath and began to quite the mind you were tapping into the energy of the situation and your higher self allowed you to connect with the feeling of where I was.

"It is hard to describe to anyone who hasn't experienced it, but when you begin to play with the feelings you will be lead to deeper understandings than your rational mind could give you; for your rational mind is trapped in the matrix created by your ego. I want you to practice using your feeling tones whenever you have a decision to be made. In the early stages of anything new it will feel weird, silly and uncomfortable, but if you have discipline your efforts will be worth it.

"To begin with have your options metaphorically or physically in front of you. After a few seconds take a deep breath as you did earlier and allow the mind to become still. If it takes you longer then that is okay as I have been doing this technique for many years. Once your mind is still allow the feelings to come up from within or simply send a molecule of your own feeling into the situation. In the early days of my training I would have just pushed the feeling aside, not realizing that it was the answer I was looking for. When these feelings come forward try not to judge them because this engages the ego and blocks these wonderful gifts which come from your higher self.

"It really is as is simple as that to engage your real feeling centre and allow the higher self to show you where to go. Practice it. Play with it. Make a fool of yourself. Once you get to the stage when you accept the information that comes forward, something happens and you open up a doorway for your higher self to come through more often. To others you may seem like you are in a dream world, but you are in bliss.

"As with all these techniques practice makes perfect. Don't spend all day practicing them as this would out of a balance. Don't talk to others about what you are doing until you feel comfortable with the technique as it will dissipate the energy."

**********

A special for all my followers, friends and blog readers. My publisher has offered a special either through my website or amazon of the ebook version of The 33rd Sage at $3.99. Take advantage of the offer. Apart from being a modern fable it is filled with teachings that you or your family can use for the rest of your life. Who knows if you are open to the possibilities an old Chinese Sage might just wander into your life?

Go to my website http://www.33rdsage.com/index.html and click on buy the book for this special offer to my friends or go to Amazon.

Take a look at my Book Trailer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeNMGhfwtdg

The 33rd Sage is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris and a number of online book stores.

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/

Website www.33rdsage.com

The Legend of the 33rd Sage - Chapter 3

Chapter 3 Flow

The boy woke after sleeping for eighteen hours, with little or no memory of what had happened the day before. After waking he stretched both arms above his head as if to welcome in the day; little realizing that his partially paralyzed left arm was no longer paralyzed, there was still some scarring but during the night it was as if the withered muscle in his shoulder had come back to life. The healing had begun; there was no need for the old sage to acknowledge the changes, for that would be living in the past and there was only the now. He would one day teach Huo about the reality of time, but for the moment he would just allow him to exist in this point and time. The healing had occurred because he had begun to release the pain from the fire; a pain that he had caused himself but there was time enough later for revelations.

The old sage greeted this young apprentice, "From this time forward Huo we will rise at 4 a.m. and walk in the dark and allow our energy to go forth in the day before the animals in the forest or the people in the villages wake and fill the day with their energy. Each day we will let our feelings lead the way. We will rise in silence and stay silent for the first hour of our walk. As part of this exercise I would like you to silently ask the Tao a question you want answered in that day. If you are open to it the answer will come to you in any one of a hundred different ways. It could be a word or vision that comes around your subconscious mind, an answer from nature or someone we meet along the path; be open and the answer will come. Having the courage to give yourself over to the beauty of the higher self allows your life to enter into the dynamic spontaneity of the flow of the universe. It is about taking life as you find it rather than force it into you preconceived notion of the world. By giving the infinity within you credence you empower that same infinity to come into and be a part of your life. Let's now be silent for the next hour while we let spirit be our guide."

The young boy packed up his pack, put the long staff through it and tossed it over his shoulder. There was much he did not understand about the old sage. If there was one thing he was sure about, it was that his life would never be the same again. Until this journey with the old sage much of his time was spent talking to the elders of the village because they were the only one's that did not seem to be scared of his looks. He would sit and talk with them for hours. Most of them were uneducated and simple people, but if you delved deep enough you would find that they had a deep understanding of the cycles within nature and a knowledge of human nature that could not be found in the few books the village possessed. Each of the elders was like their own little library of information and Huo had consumed whatever they taught him. Even as a young boy he was well versed in the art of fishing and carpentry and his understanding of farming was not too shabby either. 'Not too shabby,' he laughed at that last thought because if he had a mirror he would have looked pretty shabby in his worn out clothes.

What question would he ask the Tao to answer? He mulled over that for about an hour, although for the most part it was at the back of his mind while he enjoyed the bounties of nature. It was cold when they first started out, but he loved the cold; in many ways it allowed him to bring forth his own nature. Even as a very young child he had a way of bringing up the fire from within his own being. He was never cold, even on the coldest winter night. All he had to do was imagine a fire and then he could draw the heat of the fire to himself. It was as if at will he could heat himself from within. Of course the ability was a two edge sword and this ability had been at the heart of the fire that had killed his parents. He had learnt early on that the element of Fire was either a boon or a curse depending on how you used it; he wondered momentarily about the other elements, but that soon passed and the element of fire; his element returned. For the first two years after the fire he stopped using the techniques until he realized that it was not the Fire that was the problem and that he would need to be careful when he used the element because he never wanted anybody to suffer at his hands again.

While walking silently and looking back on his life to date, he felt a gentle wind come around him; she caressed him with her icy fingers, not yet touched by the morning sun. He stopped for a moment to fully experience the wind when he realized that the wind was coming from within him. He reached out his hand and watched as the feeling of the wind, from within, wrapped itself around his fingers and then up his arm, until it came all the way up to his head and gently caressed his face. He looked deeply into the energy which surrounded him and knew at that moment that he was the wind. He was not sure yet whether he had created the wind or if he had become one with the wind. It did not matter for in that moment he realized that the illusion of separation no longer held him in her grasp. He had only been with a the sage a few days but in many ways he seemed years older than the young boy who left the village. He had seen the energy behind the form and no longer would he feel separate from anyone.

He took a moment to sit by himself and experience the connection with all things. First it was the Elements dancing around and through him, then it was the forest and the animals who were becoming active, not only could he seem them all he could feel them all and he had become them. It was then that it struck him. Tears began to escape from his eyes as he realized; if he were connected to everything then he was still connected to his parents and he began to understand what the old man had meant when he said "Nothing ever dies."

With tears streaming down his face he realized that the Tao had not only given him the answer to his question, it had done more than that and allowed him to see a deeper connection;  a connection he had with everyone and every thing that had existed or will exist. The concept was too much for his young mind which was being stretched in a thousand different directions.

He looked across at the old sage who was watching the young man with an enigmatic smile on his face. "Welcome to the flow, it is something you will never be able to describe, for to describe it puts barriers around something that is infinite. It is like trying to hold an ocean in a tea cup. The beauty of the flow is to experience it and to know that you are always connected. Now let's take 24 minutes to meditate and reflect on the lessons we have both received this morning."
The young man and the old sage put aside their packs and sat with their backs touching an old tree as they reflected quietly on what they had experienced that morning. Each in their own world, but both connected in ways they were yet to understand.

**********

A special for all my followers, friends and blog readers. My publisher has offered a special either through my website or amazon of the ebook version of The 33rd Sage at $3.99. Take advantage of the offer. Apart from being a modern fable it is filled with teachings that you or your family can use for the rest of your life. Who knows if you are open to the possibilities an old Chinese Sage might just wander into your life?

Go to my website http://www.33rdsage.com/index.html and click on buy the book for this special offer to my friends or go to Amazon.

Take a look at my Book Trailer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeNMGhfwtdg

The 33rd Sage is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris and a number of online book stores.

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/

Website www.33rdsage.com

The Legend of the 33rd Sage Chapter 2

Chapter 2 - The Illusion of Separation

After a restful night sleep the old sage and the young boy enjoyed breakfast of rice as they hung their feet in the winter chill of the stream. The moment they put their feet in the water an icy spike shot up both their bodies. It wasn't an unpleasant feeling because they both felt truly alive. As their feet become acclimatized to the chill of the water, the sun had risen higher enough in the sky to warm their bodies. It was early winter but the element of Fire from the sun was very much alive and giving its gift to them both. A whisp of air caressed them as they filled their bellies with the rice flavored with miso.

The young boy was not aware of it but the old sage was having him experience the elements through his five senses. It was to be the beginning of another teaching, which on some level was being guided by the young boy's higher self; a teaching that the old sage had the ability to tap into. After so many years of training it was just as easy for him to tap into the higher self of another as it was to tap into his own higher self. There was never any thought of judgement or manipulation when he tapped into the mind of another. His days had taught him that we are all connected and to do something to someone else was really only doing to yourself.

After breakfast he took Huo over to a plum tree and told him that today they were going to practice mindful meditation. When the young man gave him a weird look, he just smiled, "Don't worry my boy, it as easy as holding this plum in your hand." With that he gave Huo a plum and asked him to sit under the plum tree. "I want you to close your eyes and focus all your attention on the plum. Think of nothing else; the key to this exercise is to learn all you can about the plum."

Huo closed his eyes and started to put his attention into the plum. 'This is ridiculous,' he thought to himself as mind began to wander. He could hear the wind whistling through the trees, the river babbling in the background, the warm of the sun on his skin. In fact the only thing that he could not focus on was the plum in his hand. He opened his eyes only a little bit to see firstly if the old man was watching him and secondly to see if the plum was still in his hand.

The old sage grinned back at the young boy and mouthed the word 'focus.'
Huo closed his eyes again and tried to focus on the plum. It was still not working, so this time he held the plum in his left hand, while he explored it with his right. He knew what the plum tasted like but being a child he had never held a plum long enough to understand what it felt like. At first it felt shiny, no that was how he expected it to feel. He explored it again, this time pushing out any of his expectations. The skin was tight, but underneath he could feel the liquid, the softness. He began to explore with his feelings rather than his fingers, for he realized that his fingers were showing him what he expected to see. The first feeling which came back was the word refreshing; he went deeper into that feeling and saw a picture of himself in the future as a young man enjoying the juice of the plum as it ran into his mouth. Then his feelings changed and so did the picture in his mind. The feelings had now taken him to the orchard where the plums were grown and he could, see, no it was more than that he could feel the orchard existing in this one plum. Then his feelings went deeper into the plum and he experienced all the elements that went into making the plum; their was the Fire of the Sun, the Water of the stream, the warmth and coldness at the right time of the Air and this all took place in the minerals of the Earth.

His consciousness was expanding too quickly, he had become open to everything, but his mind was not ready to cope with what he was experiencing and he shut down and fell into a deep sleep under the plum tree, with the plum still held in his left hand.
The old man moved over to him and placed his pack under his head. The boy had gone far deeper than he had expected, but he would soon recover and he knew the young boy would never look at a plum in the same way again. Although the young boy may not yet realize it he had learnt that we are not so much we think but are more what we feel. He had begun to experience that the Godforce/Tao was in all things and just as it had been in all things, it was in him and he was just another aspect of the Tao; of course it had all been too much for his young mind; a mind that was not ready to accept that there is only One.

********

A special for all my followers, friends and blog readers. My publisher has offered a special either through my website or amazon of the ebook version of The 33rd Sage at $3.99. Take advantage of the offer. Apart from being a modern fable it is filled with teachings that you or your family can use for the rest of your life. Who knows if you are open to the possibilities an old Chinese Sage might just wander into your life?

Go to my website http://www.33rdsage.com/index.html and click on buy the book for this special offer to my friends or go to Amazon.

Take a look at my Book Trailer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeNMGhfwtdg

The 33rd Sage is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris and a number of online book stores.

Twitter @GeofSpalding

Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/

Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/

Website www.33rdsage.com