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

Legend of the 33rd Sage Part 2

The sage made the journey from the Forest of K'an to the village of his birth. It had taken him twenty long days and yet he did not feel tired. There were days when he was offered food by the farmers or those he met on the path and there were days when he either met no one or was offered nothing. It was neither good nor bad for it was just as it was. He slipped into the town in the dead of night and rolled out his sleeping bag in the village square and went to sleep.

During the night without his knowledge he was surrounded by ruffians who were about to attack him and steal what provisions he had. If it had happened it was not good or bad, it just was. I say if it happened because the most amazing thing occurred. As they came closer to him animals came from the forest and surrounded the old sage. The ruffians had never seen the like of it before. The leader ordered his men to attack, but no sooner had they moved forward than the wolves growled and the water buffalo pounded their hooves ready for a charge. It was weird, mortal enemies, the wolf and the water buffalo were standing side by side defending the old sage. The closer they ruffians came the more the animals growled and stamped their feet. In the end it was too much for the ruffians and they ran away leaving their leader to either fight or run. Of course he ran, as something you fear holds no power when you can go beyond it.

The old sage smiled to himself and continued his deep sleep. In his deep sleep he was more aware than when he was fully awake. It was in those moments when he was closer to his higher self and his higher self knew everything and was even connected with the animals in the forest who came to protect him.
The old sage knew there was a child who had been watching him from behind the barn;  a child he would meet in the morning.

As the sun came up over the village the old sage woke to find himself surrounded by many of the villagers. He smiled to himself. How people feared what they did not understand. As he stood all the villagers took a pace back, while at the same time they held out swords, axes, wooden staffs and anything else they could find for protection.
"Why is it that you fear me," the old man asked?

At first there was no reply as the villagers took another step back. Then the crowd separated and from the crowd ventured a young boy. When people looked at the young boy the villagers could only see his disfigurement. When the old sage looked at the boy he did not see the scars on the boy's face or the slight crippling of his left arm; what he saw was the beauty of the spirit in the boys heart.  As the villagers turned their eyes away from the boy he spoke, "Old man they are scared of you because they think that you are a magician who will trick them out of all their money and possessions."

"What about you young man; what do you think?"
The boy looked at the old man for a few seconds. He rubbed his chin as if pondering on the question. "I would think that you would be a traveler, who slept here overnight and are just passing through. You have no carriage or animals so even if you were after our possessions you would have no way of carrying them. Your robes are not those of a great magician but the robes of a monk." The boy smiled and moved closer to the old sage and sat down next to the old man. As he did so two dragon flies flew from the forest and landed on the young boys shoulders.

The old sage looked down at the young boy and smiled. He was the one he had come to find. "How is that you know such things my son?"
"My mother, before she died in the fire," he said a tear escaping from his left eye, "would tell me great stories about travelers like you who wandered from town to town and country to country teaching people the most wondrous things. When I saw you in the square last night surrounded by all the animals I knew it to be true. I was going to come to you then but you looked so peaceful when you slept that I did not want to wake you."
The old sage sat down next to the young boy with the dragon flies on his shoulders and for a few minutes they just stared into each others eyes. The villagers moved closer, still holding their weapons, still not sure whether the old man would harm them or trick them.
It was looking into the young man's eyes that the old sage began to recognize who the young man really was and who he had been in lives long past.  A tear escaped from the old man's eye. The young boy had suffered greatly in his life but it was because of that suffering that the young boy could show such tenderness to people and the animals around him. The old sage felt like he had truly come home and he was blessed by the great Tao to find the student he had been looking for all his life; a student who would eventually take over his teachings and share them with the world. This was not the time to share such a great burden with the young boy, for it it would be the young boy's decision to become his apprentice and follow the way of initiation. We all have free will and it has to be our choice to follow the inner journey of the Initiate. The old sage remembered back to when he was a young boy and how the old sage had come into his village and asked him did he want to be his apprentice. For some reason he did not even need to think about it. He knew even before being asked that he would follow the old sage; for he had seen the old sage in his dreams and he knew when the sage arrived in the village that the dreams were true and he had already packed up his small pack and told his uncle that he would be going with the sage.

What of the young boy? What was he thinking? The old sage looked again into the young boy's eyes. "When do we leave," asked the young boy?
"What about your parents; your family will they not miss you?"
"I have no family, they both died in the fire, which for many years I wish had taken me as well." More tears escaped from the young boys eyes; tears that were half, tears of sadness and yet tears of joy. He was sad to be leaving the village, not because of the villagers who for the most part would be happy to see the end of the little disfigured boy who reminded them of their own pain when the fire had killed many in the village. For many the sight of the young boy and his scars was too hard to bare because it just kept bringing back the grief of that night years ago. He was sad to be leaving the place of his birth for it had good memories as well; memories of his childhood before his parents died when everything had seemed perfect. The tragic loss had taught the young boy many good lessons, but the most important was to live in the moment and things that happened were not good or bad they just happened.

The villagers pretended to fight to keep the young boy in the village but in reality they were happy to see the back of him and so after a few half hearted attempts to talk him out of it, the young boy and the old sage, both with packs on the end of long sticks left the village never to be see again. Well that is not quite true as the young boy returned many years later, but that is a story for another time.

Chapter One - I am that I am

After a long walk the Sage and his new apprentice stopped to make camp by a river. As the sun was beginning to set, the air around them began to cool rapidly, as it was the night before the Winter Solstice. They set about creating a fire to warm themselves. The crackling of the fire was a good sound that highlighted the beauty of the element of Fire. In a balance it could keep you warm and provide life but out of a balance it could destroy as the young boy had already experienced those many years ago. In their time together the old sage would teach the boy many things but the most important teaching would be to understand and work with the power of the Elements.

They had not talked at all during the day both preferring to keep to their own counsel, which for a young boy would normally be very difficult but this young boy was different. On their journey he watched the forest coming to life as they left the village in the morning and how the different animals and insects appeared at different times during the day. Each of the creatures of the forest seem to have their own cycle of when to be active and when to rest. The dragon flies that had landed on his shoulders in the village had seemed to follow him throughout the day and every now and again they would appear in tandem to keep up his spirits. The long walk had been tiring but on an emotional level he had felt a joy he had not felt in years. He did not want to dwell on it as it would have made him remember his parents and the pain of losing them was still very much alive. Better he enjoyed what the day and the forest had to offer.
The old sage prepared them a simple meal of rice and the few vegetables they were given by the people of the village. It was enough food to last them a few days, but the old sage was not worried, nature always seemed to provide what was needed.

They were eating in silence when it was broken by the gentle tones of the young boy's voice. "What do I call you?"

The old man smiled, he was not used to having company and had never really thought about introducing himself. "My Name is Chung Fu, it was the name given by my old master when I was about your age. It is the 61st hexagram of the I Ching and means Inner Truth. I suppose we will have to give you a new name, a name that will represent this new journey that you are on. I have thought long and hard about what we should call you and the same name or picture kept appearing to me all day. It was a picture of a fire; a fire that was here to warm the world. From this day forward you will be known as Huo shi wennuan - 'The Fire that Warms.'

The young boy nodded to the sage as he could not speak as his eyes had filled up with tears. Although it was great honor to be given a name by an old sage; the name itself brought back memories of that fateful day when his parents died in the fire. He sat with his head bowed reliving the horrible event and further tears escaped from his eyes. They came in ever increasing volume and then there were the sighs of grief as he knew he would never see his parents again.

The old sage who had the gift of inner sight understood what the boy was feeling, he could see it in the astral field that surrounded his body. "Nothing ever dies," he said with such gentleness and tenderness that the boy could not help but to look up into the eyes of the old sage who was also crying. He could feel the young boy's pain and he wished he could just wish it away, but as in everything there is and was a teaching.

"What do you mean nothing ever dies," said the young man as we wiped the tears and snot from his face?

"Tell me about you parents; can you describe them?"
The tears flowed again as the young boy described his parents. He described in such detail and with such emotion that the old sage could see that they were still alive in his heart. They were the sort of memories that would never die; memories filled with emotion; memories that lived forever.

"That is good, the memories you have will be with you always, but just like your memories the energy that is your parents will never die. Their physical bodies may no longer exist but their eternal, immortal spirit will live on forever." The boy looked a little confused so the sage changed tack. "Put your hand up in front of your face, now move it away from your face, slowly, so that you are still looking at it as it moves away from your face. Now I won't you to soften your sight, don't look at your hand directly but almost look at it out the corner of your eye. What do you see?"

The boy did as the sage told him. First he held the hand in from of his face and then as he began to move it away from his face, he softened his look and turned his head slightly as if trying to perceive without his direct vision. At first he saw nothing, but then his focus changed to the point where he was not concentrating too hard or too little. Then it happened. At first it scared him and then it disappeared. He tried again, but in the trying nothing appeared. Without really knowing what he was really doing or why he was doing it, he released the need to see and of course the moment he released it was the moment it reappeared. Watching his hand and moving it ever so slightly he could see the aura as it wrapped itself around his hand. Even as he moved his hand the aura changed shaped but stayed with him.

"That is the energy that some called God, others call it the Tao. It is the energy that gives life to all things and when our physical bodies die this energy moves on." He picked up a rock and held it out to the boy. "Even this rock has the same energy running through it. Once you realize that this energy is a part of all things is the moment that you will begin to realize that you are a part of all things. You will realize that the great Tao and you are one. It will also be the moment when you realize that the word Tao is only a pale rendition for the energy itself; for the Tao is unknowable and indescribable. It is everything and again it is nothing; it is the highest and then the lowest. It is the 'I am that I am.'

"Now lift both your hands up and put them in front of your eyes. Put your pointer fingers a couple of inches apart, hold it there for a moment and then move them a little closer. Use the same soft vision that you used when you were looking at your hand. Relax and allow the magic to happen."

They young boy did as he was told. For a moment nothing seemed to happen and then almost voluntarily he took a deep breath, held it for a moment and then breathed out. A smile lit up his face as first he saw the the energy envelop each of his fingers and then the energy shot from the finger on his right hand and connected with the energy in his left hand. For the next couple of minutes he played with the energy, watching it dance between his hands. The more he played with it the stronger the energy became.
The dragon flies that had followed the young boy on his journey moved closer to the light and became part of the game. Seeming to sense the energy passing between Huo's fingers the dragon flies played their own game spiraling in and out of the energy that connected his hands. There was a moment when the aura of the dragon flies connected with Huo's aura. It lasted only a few seconds, but in those seconds Huo felt a strong connection with the dragon flies; so strong was the connection that it not only enveloped the boy and the dragon flies, but the fire, the old sage and everything within a hundred metres.

The old sage smiled to himself; he had chosen well. Huo was the one who would eventually take over his role as the 33rd Sage; already he was connected at a deeper level with the Tao or Godforce than any other child he had ever seen. His biggest challenge was to go beyond the ego and see the death of his parent's for what it really was, but there was plenty of time for that. It would not be easy but there would become a point in the teaching where Huo would be able to pull back from the ego's view of the world and see his and his parent's life from an infinite view; by being able to detach he could allow the healing process to occur.

********

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 and the Initiate's Way

Over the next month or so I would like to share with you some of the Legend of the 33rd Sage and the Initiate's Way or Way of the Initiate. As I share each of the stories I would love your feedback on what you liked; what you didn't and what you would like to hear more of. Much of the story will done in a parable format - please remember that this is only a first draft and so as it grows and develops the overall story will change and the quality of the writing should improve and tighten up. I would love to have my readers on this journey. In my second novel The 33rd sage and the Initiate (published this October 2012) I was luck enough to have a number of friends come along for the journey during the writing process and it was very rewarding and it gave me sense of belonging to something bigger. Anyway I hope you enjoy.

The Legend of the 33rd Sage and the Initiate's Way

The 33 Sages of the Plum Red Robes were an order of Old Chinese Taoist monks who lived over 2500 years ago. The Taoist sages revered the Winter Solstice as their most sacred day of the year. The Winter Solstice marked the longest night of the year, where the sun is then reborn, bringing in a new energy.

They travelled the countryside, walking from village to village teaching and healing people, helping in whatever way they could. They had great wisdom. They had reached that elusive point in their knowledge that many on the inner journey strive for; an ego less state of spirituality and consciousness where one's sense of self and the eternal nature of things are one. The sages were greatly revered.

It was their tradition to go out and travel the land and teach; they all knew that it was important for them to live with the Elements. Some taught agriculture and animal husbandry, others taught writing, painting and literature; still others were knowledgable in matters of science and astronomy and there were those like the 33rd Sage who were healers and spiritual teachers. Each travelled and taught what they knew, but all taught their students about the inner journey.

It was their tradition for all 33 Sages to return to the monastery in time for the Winter Solstice, which was the most spiritual and sacred time of the year. It marked the lowest ebb of the old sun and it heralded in the birth of the new.

Legend has it that when it was time for the 33rd Sage to give up his position and move on to other dimensions, he chose to stay and walk the earth and teach students about the power of nature and the infinite self.

The old sage put on his plume red robe and cinched up his plum red belt. Walking through the forest, tears escaped from the old man's eyes as he knew this would be the last time how would ever see his beloved Forest of K'an. It was not like he was dying, for in many ways that would have been easier to deal with. It had been his own choice; a choice he had made after many years of contemplation. It had been time for a new sage to take his place. As the 33rd Sage he could have stayed in the Forest of K'an, by the lake of Li for the rest of his life. But the time had come when he realized that there was still more he had to do and it was to be done in the world of real people, not in the protected world of the brotherhood.

He had come from the people of the land and to the people of the land he would return. It had been over fifty five years since he had been taken in by the Brotherhood as a young student. It was now time for him to take this teaching out into the world. There were some amongst the Brotherhood who were against him going back into the world of people. There was much he could teach them that would change their evolution and some of the other sages believed man was not ready to hear these teachings. The sages of the plum robe, suggested that he should stay with them, even though he had relinquished his position as the 33rd sage and only go out amongst the people in short spells where his energy would lift them, but still allow their evolution to take place at a slower rate.
The old sage had seen the future and he understood the need for the quickening. Man was coming towards the end of a world cycle and without the quickening there would a great cataclysm. There was still time but man had to learn a new way, they had to learn to reconnect with nature and the higher spirit in themselves. The other members of the White Brotherhood, as they were also known, wanted man to take responsibility for what they had created. But the 33rd Sage was different, he was human, unlike many of the brotherhood who had incarnated in from other dimensions. He loved his fellow humans and saw beyond their fear, frustration, anger and judgement. He could their true potential in the heart of each one of them. It was a hard decision to leave the brotherhood, but his kind, his people, his beloved fellow men and women were at stake.

'It was three days before the solstice and the sage must prepare them.' It was a saying that was well known. It was a saying he used on many occasions although most times it was used in conjunction with preparing one student. Now time was short; he would have to find many students and then after teaching them they would go out into the world and teach others. He stopped by the lake of Li for one last look and could not help but sit, once again, upon the old rock he had used when he had taught his students, but there would be no teaching today, in the Forest of K'an by the Lake of Li, for this was the last time he would ever look on the lands that been his home for fifty five years.
Sitting by the lake of Li, in the Forest of K'an the old sage started to daydream back to a time when he first came here with the previous 33rd Sage to learn about the seasons within man and mankind. It seemed so long ago, but in his minds eye it was as fresh as yesterday. 'Where has the time gone,' he asked himself?  But as the sun went down over the Lake of Li in the Forest of K'an the old man began to remember other lives and other dimensions. The Lake of Li had always been his touchstone, whenever he gazed into her lapping waters he could always look into a deeper part of himself. He used the lake like many of the magicians used crystal balls. He would just sit and stare and then his focus went within. All at once his awareness seemed to change and there would be pictures forming in his mind. He wondered whether he would be able to still have these moments when he left the Lake of Li, in the Forest of K'an. With that thought tears began to stream from his eyes. There would have a time, once, when he would have chastised himself for such emotion, but now it was what it was. There was no longer any need to deny who or what he was.

The rest of his life; and it would be an extremely long life would be spent walking the earth meeting students by accident and sharing his teachings and changing their lives forever.

********

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 Concept of Flow

The concept of flow is fascinating; right throughout the universe there is a conscious energy that is to connected to all things. It is this concept that allows faster speeds than the speed of light or the ability to remote view through time and over amazing distances. Some have called this non local. I would prefer to see it as a local effect because everything we do and are is connected to the great flow that occurs within this and other universes. Even the concept of an expanding universe which occurred after a big bang is a scientific understanding of something far greater. The difficulty for scientists is that they try and reduce things and it is only the genius of an Einstein who has the ability to step back and see what is really there. Have you ever thought of the idea that the universe is not so much expanding but is in the breathing out process. Having breathed in over fourteen billion years ago and then then started to breath out. From our limited perspective we would see an expanding universe. Do this, stop for a moment and take a deep breath and then breathe all that air into a ballon and what you will see is what is happening to the universe. The universe is a living thing and it expresses itself in the breathing in and out of its own energy. This cycle continues over and over and from our limited ego selves we cannot see the truth that lies before us. If human beings are so smart then what of the energy of the universe; surely it's consciousness would have a depth and knowledge far beyond our own.

When one of us mere mortals has a religious moment or that beautiful moment of being connected to the all that is, what we are doing is tapping into the flow that is the universe. The experience and the beauty does not last because we try to rationalize it with our ego mind, rather than accept the experience for what it is, a moment of being in the flow, of being one. It is something that cannot be explained; it can only be experienced and once having experienced it you cannot put words to what you have felt, but you know in that moment you have been changed forever. Even though your ego will again take control, there is a bit of you that will stay forever connect to the all that there is and it is this little part that makes it easier for you to connect with the all that is in the future.

The more we live in the flow the more the universe reveals its secrets. To others you will appear that you are drifting through the day without a care or a purpose but you will have never have been so connected. You will see the magic in the mundane. You will pick up a flower, a child, an animal and see the greatness of what some of us call god flowing through it. Everything has this beauty and life force in it, it is just that not all of us have the eyes to see it or are not connected enough with our hearts to feel it. I wrote in another blog how I believed that creativity was the way to God and that is because when we are  creative we open up ourselves to the experience of creation and is those moments we can experience momentary glimpses of the One, the all that there is.

The key is to be open to the experience. For me writing or travel has been the touchstones which allow me to connect with the One. As a male I was a little slow and it took many years of meditation before I began to experience the connection. These days the connection can happen at anytime. Today I am writing this as I sit in the beautiful sunshine in the garden and it is as if my heart has simply opened and these words and thoughts have flowed onto the page. At my feet is my gorgeous little dog Beatrice whose name means bringer of Joy and she has certainly been that in the five years she has been with us. She is not the sharpest tool in the shed, unlike our other dog Horatio, but these is a sensitivity and a beauty that I have never seen in all my previous dogs. When we first got her she should have been put down because she was incredibly unwell, but even then there was a beauty that I still can't describe. I find if I look into her eyes I am still brought to tears by this one of the most sensitive of God's creatures. Over the years of good food, exercise and countless homoeopathic remedies she now has almost perfect health and there is not a day goes by where she does not repay us a thousand times for our kindness.

Having never been blessed with children of our own I wonder what an amazing thing it is for parents who can see the act of creation at work in their own children. For the rest of us to feel and connect with the one, a creative outlet is another way to go.

There are other ways to begin touch with the flow and one of the best is meditation. There are many forms and practice of meditation; for me the easiest is more relaxation rather than meditation. There are some meditation practices where they have you practice by  focusing on a candle or a single object or thought or chant; these are all helpful but I find for most people when they stop saying the chant or focusing on the candle that there mind is once again full of the mind chatter that they had before the meditation. For me the object  of meditation or a relaxation technique is to still the mind to allow the higher self to come through and enlighten your day.

The easiest way to do it is to listen to relaxing classical music or sounds of water or even better than that if you can listen to the sounds of an alpha or theta meditation. Rather than try to focus your mind I would prefer you trust listen to the sounds and allow the mind to relax itself. Initially your mind will be full of a thousand thoughts, but then just imagine that these thoughts are actually sitting on a river and rather than focusing on them allow them to float on by. Your ego will want to deal with them and every now and again they will come up again for your attention, but just allow it to be and let it float down the river. Now I don't want you to spend time concentrating on the river; it is just an avenue for your thoughts to float away. You will find over time that there will be spots in the river where there is no thoughts and then eventually feelings, impressions or pictures will come from your higher self to inspire you or lead you on the next part of your journey.

You will know when you get input from the higher self as there will be a change in your feelings; for some it will be a few moments of complete calm, for others a smile might break out across their face and occasionally that moment when you know you are One. They won't last because your ego will try to hold onto them because it wants to feel special.  Don't fight the ego, just allow it to be and in time it will not feel threatened by these moments of connection with the One or the higher self. In turn these moments will come more often and for longer periods of time; although the concept of time will definitely feel irrelevant.

Play with it and don't expect to see God in your first meditation; like all new skills it takes practice. The practice here is to let go. In time you will be able to quickly go deep in your meditation and then you can begin to ask questions which will often be answered in the meditation itself in the form of symbols, pictures and feelings or the answer may come in the hours after the meditation in the form of a chance thought or a moment of synchronicity when the actual question you asked is answered by a comment on the radio or a sign on a bus going by. The more you accept that we are all connected the more you will see these connections and begin to be a part of the flow. It is a courageous to give your life over to the concept of flow. Never knowing what is around the next corner but being truly open to the beauty of life and truly living your life as it was meant to be lived.

My old teacher taught me that it was like being a warrior sage or silent warrior, because it is in the silence, in the stillness that the universe reveals itself to you. I won't say the journey is easy, that is unless you can simply let go of any preconceived thoughts and ideas; yes then it will be simple and easy. For most of us it will take discipline as we release the thoughts that don't allow us to see the beauty of the world and every creature in it.

Blessings and Peace and may your connection with the higher self bring a smile to ever cell in your body and reflect it in the world around you.

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 Elements - A Farewell For Now

With the end of winter in the southern hemisphere it is now time to think of the things of spring; a time of new growth, a time when our emotions get stirred up with thoughts of love and new beginnings. It is time for the spring clean; time to clear out what was no longer needed. Stuff that really should have been cleared out in the Autumn, but we just needed to hold onto them them through one more winter in case we needed them.

If you are in the northern hemisphere it is time to enjoy the harvest that you brought in in the summer; store what you need to get you trough the winter to come and more Importantly release what is no longer serving you, whether that be thoughts, habits or material things that you no longer need. By doing this you will empty your cup so it can be filled again when the next cycle begins for my Northern friends in the Winter.

For the Southern hemisphere it is time to cut away and spring clean the thoughts and habits that no longer serve us. The world really is a beautiful place but many of us do not have the eyes to see the beauty that stands before us. It really is time to remove the blinkers that stop us from seeing the world as it is. In the blogs on the Elements of Man that we shared over the last few months I have tried to make you aware that we see the world not as it is, but through our own genetic or elemental biases. Now that you are aware of these weaknesses of judgement, anger, fear and frustration you are better placed to go beyond them.

Let me tell you up front that it is not easy and will take discipline on your part to move from your element to the element of Ether and yet the discipline itself is easy; it is just your resistance that will stop you from going beyond where you are. My old teacher taught me that you needed discipline to quieten the ego. For the ego mind does not want to do things that it feels are difficult or take away from its specialness. One of his disciplines was to have the student walk at 4.30 am ever morning in the Forrest or a park. This was done everyday no matter what the weather. The ego soon bitches and moans when it is cold and wet, but persevere and their comes a time when the ego begins to quieten and it is in those moments when the magic occurs. It is in those moments when you start to experience the real beauty of nature and your human existence. It is in those quiet moments that the higher self will begin to show itself.

If you do not like walking in the cold and dark at that time in the morning then it is definitely a discipline you need to do. As my old teacher used to say that if you didn't want to do something then that was the reason that you should do it. If on the other hand the thought of walking in the park on a cold winter morning is easy for you then it is not your discipline. One way to quiet the ego mind is to keep feeding it new things to do so that it begins to realize that you want to live your life differently. It may even help to do some ridiculous  things. If you continually worry about your looks or what other people of think of you then it is time to make a shift, for the initiate does not care what other people think about them. They walk with a quiet power that says, 'I am what I am, and what I am is infinite, powerful and eternal. I remember once when I dressed for a day in a long black dress. What was even weirder than my outfit was the fact that once I had given up worrying about what other people thought, was the moment when people no longer seemed to even notice I was wearing a dress.

I am not suggesting that you should wear a dress, but if your mind is resisting then maybe you should. This silent power that you have inside is more important today than it ever was. It seems that in the celebrity society that we live in, how other people see us is more important than ever and yet as we evolve spiritually in this time it is more important than ever that we walk in our own silent power.


    "The Emperor and the sage walked, and the Solstice came and the Emperor said, ‘I have learned much about people. I think that I can rule my empire in growth.’ As they walked toward the edge of the Forest of K'an, he said, ‘But sage, what happens when you know these things?’
‘Ah...that has shown you have learned,’ the sage said. ‘When you know how to conquer and work with loving self, when you know how to deal with those that are deep in emotion and they throw fear at you, judgment and anger and frustration; and you let them, and you are able to calm it within yourself. When you are able to allow your ministers to throw at you the logicalness and intricacies of, ‘this is the way you should do it’; and you are not a thinker. When you are able to understand the balance of the earth and plant and mineral and animal. When you are able not to feel the sexual energy overpowering you and the material causing you difficulty, then you become the fifth element, Ether. Then the etheric, or the positive dimension, forms.'
    The Emperor asked, ‘What happens when one reaches that stage?’
“’Ah, come with me,’ said the sage. And he took his hand and they walked across the lake of Li into the waterfall and into the cavern and he took his hand and they walked across the Lake of Li into the waterfall and into the cavern. And there he showed him a dimension of people that saw all things in the positive mode, that were able to balance and not be involved in those things that he had taught, that understood the Winter, that understood the Spring, the Summer and the Fall. And who were able to walk equally through those and not be affected by them; who could learn all and know that they were not higher or lower, that they were in the dimension of the etheric. And who were able to see all that went on but were not able to be seen. He pointed to them saying, ‘These help you. There are some within your world. There are some working within this plane, in the positive mode, negativity not seeing them, not involving them within what they are doing; but they can see and feel it, yet do not become subjected by it.’
    “The Emperor said, ‘I have heard many teachings. My ministers, my magicians and sages have told me I should go this way and that. What is the right way?’
And the sage said, ‘There is no one way. The only way is within self, with understanding the Winter, the Spring, the Summer and the Fall, the Nature of things. If an individual says, "My communication or what I am doing is better than yours," know that it isn't. For the individual that has good and sound teaching does not have to say that he does. Listen to those around you as they tell you. If they say theirs is right, know that you must step back.’
“The Emperor shook his head and said, ‘The dimension of ether... the etheric...’ “The sage said, ‘It is not hard, it is easy; it is as easy as walking from the Winter Solstice to the Equinox of the Spring, the Solstice of the Summer to the Equinox of the Fall.’ Then he left.
    “The Emperor said, ‘Come with me to the palace. Be my teacher. Help me rule my people.’ Looking around, he said, ‘Old man, where have you gone? Old man, where are you?'
“And a voice said, ‘I am here. Why can't you see me?’

Chung Fu
Peace


That is the end of the Elements of Man teachings for now. It is time for you to go within and let the elements become your teacher. Time spent in nature watching and reflecting is time well spent.

Blessings and Peace to you all, may the livingness that is within all things share its great gift with you. In the time ahead I will do my best to write blogs that will help you move through the times ahead.

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