Winter Solstice

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.

The sages travelled the countryside, walking from village to village, teaching and healing people and helping in whatever way they could. They had great wisdom and 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 it was important for them to live with the Elements. Some taught agriculture and animal husbandry, while 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 heralded in the birth of the new. From the 19th through to the 23rd they would perform a wonderful ceremony. Over these days the sages would drink plum wine, while one of their order would take it in turn to bang bone knockers on a table. Each glass of wine would be followed by a glass of water. The sages did not get drunk and some would have you believe that during the ceremony they would travel of into other worlds and dimensions to receive teachings of their own. 

The Winter Solstice is a special time to throw of the cloaks of the old year and look with joy at the year to come.

I ask you all at this time to raise a glass of plum wine to celebrate your year to come and also to say thanks to the year just gone.

As a special gift for all my friends I am offering you a copy of my next book 'The Way of the Initiate,' which is to be published in Feb 2014. All you have to do is go to either of my websites and send a message to the Author.

www.33rdsage.com 
Or
www.the33rdsage.com

Blessings and Peace
Geof

Life is Sacred - Higher Self 17

Today's blog is about life being sacred. As I write this I am waiting for an open casting for a television miniseries. It is amazing when you can see the beauty in the mundane that life can lead you off in many directions. Never did I ever think I would be writing screenplays let alone acting but here I am doing both. The acting, like many things I am doing at the moment is so I can better understand the film making process and improve in my writing and screenwriting skills.

I love film, because of its immediacy and also the impact a good or great film can have on a person's life. In many cases this impact is at the subconscious level. How many of you have walked out of a great film and been a different person than the one walking in?

I felt that way when I first saw Star Wars, or Casablanca or Lost Horizons. Each of these films impacted in ways that even today many years later are still evident. Books can do it as well but usually on a more conscious level.

"Use the force Luke," has always been a part of who I have become and sent me off on my on mystical journey. The concepts of the force or the Tao has been concepts which I have been searching and researching for all my life. Each of those moments from those film have been sacred in my own life and probably for many others who have seen these and other films.

It is now later in the afternoon and I am sitting in the front garden As we near spring, the flowers are starting to bloom and the rain now falling and the heat in the air will only see this marvel of nature increase over the coming weeks. My dogs are with me for company as the sun breaks through the rain clouds. Beatrice my muse sits proudly on the chair beside me, nudging me every now and again for a pat or to stop writing and give her more attention. The other dog Horatio sits by the front door waiting to go back inside. Just like people all animals have their own distinct personality.

I am not a vegetarian but sometimes wish I could be. If you have ever looked in the eyes of a cow or a pig you will see their own distinct personality shining through. My wife will tell you that I don't even like picking flowers because I like to see them in their natural beauty. I tried vegetarianism for about seven years but it did not suit my body type. I do my best to see all life as sacred and express gratitude for each little blessing that I receive.

The rain has stopped and the birds are now out chirping. Both the dogs have gone to sleep and in my current state I might soon join them for a nap in the sun and reflect on the magic of this day.

Life Is Sacred

Huo wandered through the countryside for many months with one goal in mind: to find the Forest of K'an and journey to the mystical Lake of Li. The old sage had talked often about this magical lake and the forest. Over the last two days, he had found the Forest of K'an, and now he was heading towards the lake. He knew intuitively where the lake was; he could feel her presence with every part of his being.

On the journey to find the lake, he had many adventures and had met many strange people, the strangest being the badger that could talk; well, talk was not quite right, but he could communicate with Huo in the most unusual way. It happened over a month ago, when Huo first thought of finding the Lake of Li in the Forest of K'an. He had been sitting by a stream, meditating, when a picture of the Lake of Li came into his mind. He knew it was the Lake of Li because of the description that he had received from the old sage. He could even see the large rock that Chung Fu used to sit on when he was teaching his students. In the meditation, Huo could imagine himself sitting on the rock and staring into the Lake of the Li. The more he stared, the more real the picture became; it was so real, if Huo had wanted to, he could have transported himself there in an instant, but of course, he was not yet aware that he had those abilities. He opened his eyes with the knowing that came from deep within that the next part of his journey would take him to the lake the old sage had talked so much about.

He returned to his camp to the find a badger, a big fat badger fossicking through his pack for what little food he had left. Years ago, he would have become angry to lose the little food he had, but he was different now. He understood that the Tao gives and the Tao takes away; so, rather than express his anger, he sat down on a log of wood and watched the badger, for the inner part of him knew that the badger had a message for him.
Badgers are very independent by nature, and this one was no exception. The badger turned to look at Huo, but the look was brief, and he went back to eating the food and destroying Huo's pack. He was certainly an individual. Huo knew that badgers were very different from most animals in the forest, and they did not seem to care what humans and other animals thought about them.

Huo sent a molecule of himself into the badger, and what returned did not surprise him. He could almost hear the badger talking to him.

"Walk your own path at your own pace. Don't defend yourself. You are what you are, so be proud of it. If someone attacks you, don't defend; just walk away. You are an infinite spirit walking your own journey; be proud of yourself, but at the same time do not judge others because you do not know what their journey is or where it will lead. You don't have to explain to anyone what you are doing. You are following your inner spirit, and to explain it would be impossible; allow it to lead you in ways that you would not think possible."

Huo was not sure if the words were coming from the animal or just the workings of his own mind. It did not matter, though, for the teaching was the same. It was time for him to go back into the world and take what he had learnt to the people who were drawn to him.

He looked down at the badger and offered thanks for its teaching. For its part, the badger gave him what appeared to be a grin, then scurried off into the forest without any apology for destroying Huo's worldly goods.

No longer encumbered by any Earthly goods, Huo continued on his journey to the Lake of Li in the Forest of K'an.

Blessings and Peace
Geof

************

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris, a number of online book stores and on my websites.

The Way of the Initiate will be published late 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

The Tao Owns Everything - Higher Self 16

We have almost reached the halfway point in the Way of the Initiate which is based on the 33 steps that my old Chinese teacher shared with me. I wonder if those of you who have been reading my blogs have been practicing some of the steps like Huo in the story. If you have I would love to hear feedback on what has been happening in your world.

As I write this I have finished the first draft of my screenplay The Merlin Key and as I look back I can see the amazing changes that I have experienced in my own life since taking the first steps on the path of the Initiate. A path that will continue till the day I either walk out of this dimension or become food for the maggots. One of the greatest changes that occurred on this journey has been the need to express my inner creativity. If this was the only reward for the years I have spent on the path then that would have been enough, for in tapping into my own inner creativity I have experienced a joy, a connection that is almost impossible to explain.

If you are reading these blogs and you have just read  the chapters of The Way of the Initiate as a story, then hopefully you have enjoyed it and on some level it has touched you deeply.

Today Huo begins to understand that everything is owned by the Tao and that we have it on loan, so rather than hold onto it, enjoy it and share it, for one day it will go back to the Tao.

The Tao Owns Everything

As he walked from the town, he understood he had lost nothing because everything belonged to the Tao. Everything he had experienced had been given to him by the Tao; it was as if it had been on loan. Also, because he was able to release everything he had, he knew more would be given to him, so there was no need to hold on to anything. He walked into the forest a rich man, rich in the knowledge that he was abundant in all areas of his life.

He soon came to a fork in the road. He looked off down the left fork and felt nothing; however, when he looked down the right fork, he noticed the road seemed lighter. He closed his eyes and sent his energy off in the distance to feel a royal carriage coming towards him. He turned and walked down the right road; the spirit wanted him to go in that direction, so who was he to disagree with the feelings coming from deep within his inner self?

About a half-mile down the road, he came across a carriage carrying members of the Emperor's family. As with everyone he met, he showed his respect, giving a short bow from the waist. Immediately, a woman called out for them to stop the carriage, then called the young man over. As Huo walked slowly towards the carriage, the woman dressed in beautiful silks with her jet black hair tied in a bun on her head, attached with a jade pin, addressed the young man.

"Sir, can you tell me if there is a healer in the town up ahead? My son is gravely ill and needs immediate attention."

"Great lady, my old Master Chung Fu is in the town ahead, and he is a great healer." Huo caught sight of the young man in the carriage and knew instantly the boy would never make the journey; he could see that his inner spirit was about to leave his body.
Huo was at a loss regarding what to do. He did not want to infringe on the young boy, as he did not know what lesson he had come here to learn. Maybe he had incarnated to die early and teach his mother the great lesson of loss, for he understood that some highly evolved spirits came in service to die in their first thirteen years. What he did know for sure was that the child would never make it to the town. For a brief moment, he went within his inner self for an answer, only to meet the spirit of the young boy. The young boy was confused and not sure what was happening, so Huo went inside his inner self and asked him if he wanted help. The boy said yes, and in that moment Huo could see the future of the young boy, particularly how he would grow up to be a mighty ruler who would be loved by his people.

Huo turned his focus back into the outer world and said to the Emperor's wife, "Your Highness, I fear that your son will never make it to the town. If you allow me, I will give him a healing right here that will enable him to travel to town, where my master can finish the healing process."

The Emperor's wife was beside herself with fear. She looked down at the young man who was dressed in little more than rags, but there was a plum red sash around his waist that brought back a childhood memory. When she used to go with her father into the Emperor's garden, he would often meet a monk who also wore a plum red ribbon around his waist. It was the monk that helped his father build a garden that pleased the Emperor so much, she was plucked from her life of servitude to now be one of the most powerful women in the court – and she eventually to became the number one wife of the Emperor.
She faltered for a moment, but it was just a moment. "Please, help my son."

She opened the carriage door, and Huo, dressed like a beggar, climbed in. He went straight to the boy, who had a very high temperature, then looked to his mother, who said, "He came down with the fever last night, and I was at a loss what to do. We have tried everything. He has a bite mark on his left arm."

Huo examined the wound with his eyes, but with his inner senses he saw that the young man had been bitten by a spider. He reached into his pack, took out some herbs, and made a poultice to put on the boy’s arm, then used some other herbs to make a drink for the young man to sip while they made the journey to his old master at the Pagoda. He held his hands over the young boy and allowed the energy from his own being to enter the young man and take on the poison. It was not something he had been taught; it was just something that happened naturally when he inhabited the body of the young boy.
In only a few minutes, the young boy opened his eyes; the fever had been broken. Huo felt the shock of the poison in his own body, but he soon released it through his breath to the air that surrounded them.

The Emperor's wife had never seen anything like it. She worried that Huo was not a healer, but a black magician. It is funny how even when people see something with their own eyes, they cannot believe it to be true.

Huo smiled at the Queen, and somehow his smile put her at ease.
"What is your charge for healing my son? I will pay anything."
"My Queen, it is an honour to do it for you. I do not require any payment, as I have everything I need."

The queen looked at the young man before her, dressed in little more than rags with no carriage, no money, and only a poor pack to carry his herbs. "You say you have everything you need, but surely some money would help you on your journey? Or I could give you a servant to look after your needs, or you could come back to the palace where you could be my personal physician?"

"Thanks for the offer, my Queen. It would be a great honour, but I am on a great journey, the journey of the inner self, and I have all I need. Look around: I have the sun, the forest, the animals, and the seasons to keep me company. If I want food, I will find it in the forest or in a stream. If I want companionship, I can walk into any village and find someone to talk to. If I need a bed, I can rest wherever I choose. As you can see, I have everything I need."

"I can see that you are a strange man, a man who I will always be grateful to. If ever you need my help, just come to the palace, and I will give you what you need."
Huo thanked the queen for her offer. Then, just as he was about to take his leave, a thought crossed his mind. "Your Highness, there is something you could do for me."
"Name it," she said, hoping it was not a ploy by the young man to get more than she was willing to offer; she need not have worried.

"My Queen, there is a young girl in the village by the name of Qing. If you could give her a small piece of jewelry and tell her I love her, that would be a most special gift."
The queen pulled the green jade pin from her hair, which allowed her blue black hair to cascade over her shoulders. "Will this be a suitable gift?" she asked.

"Thank you, my Queen. Now take your son to the next town and ask for my old Master Chung Fu at the Pagoda, and he will ensure that your son is fully healed."
Huo bowed to the queen and winked at the young boy, then took his leave of them both and continued on his journey.

The queen, her son, and the long retinue of servants watched as the strange young man walked back into the forest.

The queen took her son to see the old sage, who professed he could do no more for her young son and that if he continued to drink the herbs given by the young man, he would soon regain his full strength.

The queen fulfilled her part of the bargain, and much to Qing's delight, she gave her the green jade pin and words of love from Huo. What Huo did not know was that the queen took such a shine to Qing that she gave her a position as her own personal servant, a position that would see wondrous things happening for the young girl - but that is another story, one I am sure will be told one day.

Blessings and Peace
Geof

************

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris, a number of online book stores and on my websites.

The Way of the Initiate will be published late 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

Connection with your Higher Self - Part 12

In each one of us lies a spark of what some would call, God, spirit, soul or one of many other names. It is that small part of us that connects us with the I Am What I Am or for that matter is our aspect of the I Am. As I travel along my own path I find that the more I work on myself and with the creative spark that I have inside me the more that I open myself up to the possibility of what it is like to be a human.

We are all humans and we have all been blessed with this wonderful creative spark, but how many of us can honestly say that we have the courage to follow where that inner guidance takes us. Like many I have been sidetracked along the way on a number of occasions but for some reason, god, great spirit, my higher self or just plain luck keeps dragging me back on the path.

Now this path has led me to screenwriting and the film process. It is not that I have lost the love of writing or sharing esoteric stories, it is just that my inner being is always wanting me to stretch myself. Something that is not so easy when I am fifty nine and society expects me to be preparing for retirement. The call of spirit has been incredibly strong in my fifties. It was there in the earlier decades but I perhaps was trying not to listen.

My brother's heart attack and finding out I had the same cardiovascular problem certainly made me stand up and take notice. In the nine years since I have written three books, completed a degree in Health Sciences, an MBA, traveled to the lands of the Maya to research my forth book and experience the end of the world on 21/12/2012 at Palenque.

So the end of the world did not happen I hear you say. Are you so sure. How has your life changed in the last seven months? Have you been noticing any changes. Are you still happy with the life you are leading or is there something nagging you to change.

When I arrived back from the lands of the Maya I finished my third book, the soon to be published 'Way of the Initiate,' a parable about reconnecting with your higher self. Since then spirit has taken me in a whole different direction. I have started to write screenplays, and to do so I have opened up to be involved in all aspects of filmmaking to better understand the process. I have even started taking acting classes. This change in the way I write and tell stories has opened me up to worlds that I would never have thought possible.

What is your inner spirit telling you? Listen and follow it an I will promise you a life that is never boring. At times it will challenge what you believe about yourself and others, but if you can keep pushing the boundaries you will live an extraordinary life.

Today's chapter of the Way of the Initiate deals with the inner self. I hope you enjoy.



I Am That I Am


Over the next couple years, the old sage and his apprentice travelled all over the countryside, stopping every now and then when the sage would heal people or teach children about nature and the Elements.

It was during one of these stays in the village of Te Dang that the old sage asked the young man to begin teaching children about the inner self. The old sage knew that to master a subject, one needed to teach it to others in order to allow the teaching to come from within and be expressed as an aspect of the young man in the outer world.

The young man had been nervous all day. In the years he had spent with the old sage, he had always been the student, never the teacher. Although from time to time he would aid the old sage in his healing of the sick, he never led anything, instead always serving in a support role. This would be the first time he would take the lead, and it was exciting and daunting at the same time. He had watched the old man engage his audience in a matter of seconds, and although he sometimes spoke to hundreds, it always looked like he was speaking to each one of them individually.
How could he ever be like that? The old man had a magic about him, the magic of the Initiate. He never put himself above anyone, and he never engaged anyone in an argument. He never foisted his opinion on anyone, preferring only to answer questions as they were asked. He always accepted without question what each day would bring, he never asked for anything and yet his needs were always provided for.
He remembered back to the day when his pack and the dragonfly pendant were stolen. It had been a horrible day; yet, as he looked back on it, it was one of the best teachings he had ever received. Since that day, he had become the observer, and like the old sage, he was now taking each day as it came.
As he relived that day, he tried to remember what the old sage had taught him. What had the old sage said? He was having difficulty remembering. Huo took a deep breath and held it for a moment, and in seconds he could feel the calmness and all-knowing of the Initiate come around him. In his mind's eye, he could now see the old sage sitting deep in meditation.
Although he still seemed to be in a deep trance, all at once he opened his eyes and words fell from his mouth. The words that fell from his lips were from a deep part of the old sage, in a voice that was very different from his normal voice.
"It is important that you believe that you are already the Initiate and that you have this power within you. You need to make it a part of your now and not off-in-some-distance future. You need to create the Initiate within before it can express itself in the outer world. It is in the mirror worlds of the inner self where all creation takes place. What happens in the outer world is but a mirror to what you have created within. If you want to understand what you are creating with your thoughts and feelings, all you have to do is look at what is happening in the outer world. If you do not like what is happening, then you need to change what you are feeling and thinking. To be the Initiate, you have to be able to believe in a life that you cannot hear, touch, or taste, but rather a life that you will eventually begin to feel. It is strange that by believing and opening yourself up to being the Initiate and walking the way of the Initiate, something inside you opens up to the possibility.
"As you walk the path, you will begin to understand that the love that comes from the Tao or God is impartial. Although this energy does not care what you do with your life, it is possible to direct the energy and create whatever you want in your life. I do not mean that if you have a wishy washy thought that you want something that it will come into your life, because it won't. You first have to create the feeling of already having it in the inner worlds, and then this energy will be expressed and delivered in the outer world and the godforce will manifest what you already believe is yours."
Huo felt re-energized. The words of the old sage coursed through his entire being, then out into the audience before him. Children who were loud and raucous only minutes before were sitting quietly, waiting for the young man to speak.
"Let me tell you a story," said the young man, and the children hung on his every word. "It is the story of a young boy  who was taken in and became an apprentice to an old sage. The old sage taught him about nature and the seasons. He taught him how to connect with the animals and become their friend. He taught him how to sit in the forest and connect with his inner self and to understand that everything in the universe was connected."
As he went deeper into the story and the teachings he received from the old sage, he could see the connection he was having with his young students. Their eyes started to bulge as they took in everything he said - and even more than that, they could take in everything he felt. In many cases, they could not understand what he was saying with their logical minds, especially the younger ones, but on some level they all understood.
As Huo was talking, a picture began to form in his mind. He continued to teach the children, but a deeper part of himself was focused on the picture that was building in his mind. It was a scene from what looked like the future. As he focused deeper, he could see himself as the old sage. Following behind him were a number of apprentices, but the landscape was different - and this certainly was not China because many of his apprentices were definitely not Chinese. As he went deeper into the picture with his feelings, he knew it to be true. Was he creating this future because of his belief in being the initiate, or was he growing into a life that was predestined?
Those thoughts and feelings disappeared as he put his attention back on the children before him. He may have had a glimpse of his future, but it was what he was doing in the present that would determine what he would become.

Blessings and Peace and may you open up to the wonders of the journey that is your journey.

Blessings and Peace
Geof

************


The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris, a number of online book stores and on my websites.

The Way of the Initiate will be published late 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

Become the Observer - Higher Self 11

Become the Observer

The old sage told Huo that they were going for a walk in the forest rather than doing their meditation and martial arts training. The boy was a little confused and out of kilter, as he had become accustomed to the training in the morning, which started his day. His first thought was to pick up his pack and take it with them, but he faltered and put it next to the old man's pack instead.

"So it shall be," said the old man.

Huo felt uncomfortable. He had a queasy feeling in the pit of his stomach that he ignored, simply putting it down to the change in routine.
The old sage led him in the dark on a walk through the woods. It was pitch black, the new moon shining no light on their journey. Still feeling queasy, Huo banged his head on a low lying branch, the same branch the old sage ducked under. The old man knew that it was going to be a tough day for the young man, but he had chosen it by not listening to his inner feelings. It would be a great lesson in many ways.

"Huo, if you do not want to get another bang on your head or lose more skin off your arms, I would suggest that you walk with your feelings; obviously, your eyes aren't much help in the darkness.” With that, the old sage took out a piece of cloth and tied it around Huo's head. "Now you will have to go with your feelings."

The young man panicked. He tried to remove the blindfold, but the old sage reached across and grabbed his arm. "Relax," was all he said, and the young man took a deep breath and began to imagine what it would be like to walk in the forest blindfolded. At first he could not imagine it, but as he became more relaxed, he could actually see the forest in his inner mind. He took a few tentative steps, then a few more; soon he was walking at the same speed as he would fully sighted on a bright sunny day. He continued to walk easily through the forest, trusting nothing but his inner sight and his feelings.

It was then that the nausea returned. He continued to walk, trying not to think about the nausea, but the nausea would not disappear, and it was not long before he bumped his head again and started losing bits of skin as he walked into more bushes and trees.

Huo stopped and removed the blindfold. It was still dark, although a hint of sun was coming up over the hill. He sat down, closed his eyes, and centered his feelings in the nausea. After a couple minutes, a picture began to appear in his mind. It was a picture of their camp, and he could clearly see their two packs leaning next to each other. He wondered why he was seeing that particular image when all of a sudden the picture changed and a band of men walked into the camp and were soon rifling through the packs for anything of value. Huo's heart sank when he realized that the dragonfly pendant, the one that was given to him by his parents before they died in the fire, was in the pack and that his last physical memory of them was about to disappear.

He jumped to his feet; maybe he still had time to get there and fight the men for the pendant. No sooner had he had those thoughts, though, did he realize that in his vision of the men it was still dark; it must have happened hours before, and he knew he would never get there in time.
He slumped to the ground in resignation. If he had only brought the pack with him. If he had only tapped into the feeling of nausea earlier, it could have been different. After a few minutes of self-pity, he sat upright and centered his awareness. As he took a few deep breaths, a picture of the bandits appeared in his mind. He sent them love and forgiveness, and all the anger that he was holding towards them drifted away. They obviously needed what was in the pack more than he did. It was unfortunate to lose the pendant, but his mother and father were deep in his heart. He had learnt a great lesson from the loss of the pendant, and that had made it even more special. The old man had taught him to become the observer, but now he knew it was just as important to observe what was going on on the inside. He thanked the Tao for his great lesson and sent a feeling of love out into the world. It was such an expression of love that anybody who had the awareness would have been bathed in its beauty.

Huo opened his eyes, and there sitting beside him in deep meditation was the old sage. He waited while the old man finished his meditation, then came back into the present time and space. While he waited, he reflected on what he had learnt that day. One surprising observation he made was of the incredible control he had allowed others to have on his life; whether it was the bandits who robbed him or the village people who had made him who he was today, everywhere he looked, he could see others trying to control what he thought and did. He realized that by not reacting to others and what they did to him, being the silent observer of his own life, and forgiving himself and the others who trespassed against him, he was free to be person he wanted to become.

The old sage just smiled; his apprentice was now free from the emotions and expectations of others. One day he might even give him back the pendant he removed from the pack when they left the camp that morning.

Blessings and Peace and may you become the observer of yourself and become the person you were destined to become.

Geof

************

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris, a number of online book stores and on my websites.

The Way of the Initiate will be published late 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

The Legend of the 33rd Sage - Chapter 31

Chapter 31 - Riding the Dragon

Time seemed to speeding up and yet he was not aging. The old sage was now in his late sixties and yet if you met him he would have appeared to be a man in his early to late thirties. It was not his diet that made the difference, although these days he needed to eat little to maintain who he was. As he made the journey from Ego to Spirit he realized that he no longer had any real needs. He accepted life for what it was; somedays he would eat, other days he would not. Some days he would stay in a Pagoda, other days he would sleep under the stars. To him it mattered not; from the quieting of the ego he understood that he was all things and he would draw to him what he needed on his journey. Of course there would come a day when the journey ended and he would shake of his mortal body and enjoy the freedom and lightness of being that he experienced in the spirit world.

There was a part of him that would have been quite happy to go to sleep one night and for his physical body not to wake up; for he knew that he was Eternal, Immortal and Infinite. It was with those thoughts that he went to sleep next to an open fire, with the full moon and all the nocturnal animals for company.

He drifted down in his levels of consciousness to the point where he was in a deep sleep. It was the level he experienced in his deepest meditations; the level where all things are connected. It is the level where the heartbeat that can be felt is the heartbeat of creation, which is accompanied by a song not unlike that of a bird song. Some mystics had called it the sound of the earth, but it was far deeper than that and Huo had remembered hearing the sound when he went up the tunnel and into the spirit world.

In what appeared to be a dream he was once again sucked up the tunnel and spat out into the spirit world. For a few moments he floated around the world and reconnected with some of the places and people he had seen and met previously. It was such a freeing experience to throw off the physical body, part of him wondered why we ever incarnated in human form. He knew the answer was to experience a life of emotion and the ego; to understand its strengths but also it's weaknesses and ultimately to transcend the human condition.

In many ways he was already more spirit than ego; he had seen the energy beyond the form; had experienced the wonders of the Tao and been one with nature. But deep in his heart centre he knew that his journey was not over. There was much more that he had to do in this world. Maybe this journey to the spirit world would give him some more answers or at least send him on the next part of his journey. In his inner self he asked to be shown where to go next on his journey.

He stopped floating through the air when he came to lake which reminded him very much of the Lake of Li, in the Forest of K'an. He floated down to the shore of the lake and there to greet him was the old log, from the real Lake of Li; the log where his students would sit when he would teach them.

He sat upon the log as if he was visiting an old friend. To him the log was very sacred. It reminded him of all the students he had ever taught and how their faces would light up when he told them one of his stories; stories which often came from so deep within him that he did not know the story himself until he began to tell it.

He was sitting on the log when he heard a sound coming from the water of the Lake of Li. The sound was off in the distance from the other side of the lake. He watched as a wave of water rushed towards him. Rather than being scared, he was mesmerized by the rising wave of water. Beneath the sound of the oncoming wave he heard another, deeper sound, it was almost guttural like the sound of an animal clearing its throat.

He watched in awe as the wave crashed over the top of him. Drenched, he did not try  to move or run as he could feel the energy in the wave. When the wave crashed back into the lake there left behind was a twenty foot dragon. Huo could not believe it. In all his wonderful life he had never seen a dragon. The dragon was red in colour, with shinny skin that glistened in the sun; skin that kept changing in colour from red to blue, brown and green. It had five claws on each foot.

The dragon seemed to be smiling at him.

He could sense its power. Rather than be scared of it the sage moved towards it. By the time he had reached the dragon it was sitting, relaxed as it did not fear him.

Anybody watching from a distance would have thought the sage and the dragon were sizing each other up, ready to strike. That could have not been further from the the truth, for within both of them was a deep respect for the other. Normally the dragon would put the person, who came before them, through a number of trials to see if they were worthy. The dragon knew this one was worthy; he could feel it with every ounce of his being.

He wondered why the sage had called him into being, for he could see that the sage was already well on the way towards his spiritual goal. The dragon opened up its feeling centers and allowed itself to enter into the old sage.

The sage could feel the energy as the dragon entered him. He opened himself up to allow the dragon to see all of him; even those aspects that he had hidden from the rest of the world.

In moments the dragon was reliving the sage's life. It was an ability that dragons had, so it was fruitless to try and hide anything from them. Everywhere the dragon looked there was a lightness to the Sage's being. The dragon could feel that Huo had wanted something but he could not feel what it was. In all the lightness there was one small shadow. This must be what the sage wanted help with.

He sent his energy into the shadow. It was as if a bright purple light was shone into the darkness revealing all there was to be seen.

The sage felt as if his heart was being ripped apart. The intensity of the pain forced him to look deep inside his heart. Without the purple light he would not have been able to do it; it was as if the purple light somehow made it more bearable. What the purple light was really doing was to increase his own vibration for a few short moments so he could become one with his shadow; for to go to the next stage he would have to be free of his shadow, his ego, otherwise the energy would destroy him.

Huo stepped into his shadow and there waiting for him were his parents and the love of his life Quing. All four of them embraced and Huo experienced a great release as he realized that he had was still feeling guilty for what had happened with his parents in the fire that many years ago. He could see that they were still very much alive and the guilt just fell away. It was in that moment that he understood the true power of forgiveness was to forgive yourself.

He turned to face Quing, although older she still looked beautiful. They stared into each others eyes for the longest time, seeing other lifetimes they had shared together and lifetimes in other dimensions yet to be shared. "Till we meet again," said Quing.

Huo watched as the loves of his life moved out of the shadows and back into the light where they belonged.

Huo awoke far calmer and more peaceful than he had ever felt in his life. Although it may have only been a dream, he realized that there had been a great release of energy while he slept and he was now different from the man who went to sleep.

He looked around himself and everything seemed different, lighter somehow. It was not just the landscape which looked lighter, he felt lighter himself, like he had been released by a burden which he had carried for years.

He put his hand inside his robes and removed the dragonfly pendant that had given him so many good memories. He looked at the pendant and a smile came to his face. In his mind's eye he could see his parents, Quing and Chung Fu they were all smiling and laughing and with a gentle wave they all turned and walked away from him.

The old sage was overcome with joy, rather than lose the greatest influences in his life he know understood they were always with him. All he had to do was look inside his heart; they were always there. There was no more guilt; he was what he was and in doing so he had taken the most courageous journey that anyone can take the journey within, the journey of the warrior sage. His life was sacred and he was dedicated to his own journey.

He stood, gathered his pack and continued on, free from the voices of the ego which had always tainted how he had seen the world.

As he walked away anyone watching would have seen him hang the dragonfly pendant on the branch of a tree.

Later that day spirit would ensure that a young girl on her own journey would walk past the tree that day and the pendant would come into her life.

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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 30

Chapter 30 - Spiritual Discipline

After a year of listening to other philosophers and their philosophies the old sage found he was becoming even more silent; it was not that he did not disagree with what others said, he found it easier for him to be just what he was. He understood that he was not his mind or his body but an eternal, immortal and infinite being who had chosen this lifetime to evolve. From day to day he continued to wander the land every now and then he would sit for a while and teach or tell stories or just talk to people. Wherever he found himself was where he was meant to be.

He understood that he was an infinite being who had cloaked himself in a body to experience life in the earthplane. His daily discipline was focused on what he could do to transcend this experience and be able to understand his journey better. He would open himself up to where spirit wanted him to be on this day.

As he wandered he thought about writing down some of the stories he told to his students and others that sat and listened, but he soon realized that the story itself was the key and it was a story that should evolve over time. In this way it would keep the essence of the story alive but allow for the story teller to share it through their own instrument. This would allow the story to grow and evolve in ways that the original storyteller would not think possible. Huo thought to himself that it was very much like what happens to humans who incarnate to add to their own story to the library of the Godforce; a story that is written each time on an empty soul adding to the Godforce in ways that the Godforce may not even have thought possible. Here we all were insignificant in our own way and yet at the same time without us the universe would be different. As Huo pondered this he was both humble and overawed at the same time.

Who would have thought a poor disfigured boy would have grown into a humble sage who travelled the countryside telling stories, teaching and healing. He wondered where the Tao would lead him next, but he didn't need to wait long as his next journey was as close as his next decision.

As he contemplated where to go next he was overcome by a feeling of nausea. At first he thought it might be the rice he had eaten night the night before, for it had been in his pack a long while, as he had not met anyone or had any fresh food for many days. As the nausea waves enveloped his whole body, he felt a strange shift in his being and all of a sudden his consciousness was ripped from his physical body and transported through a long tunnel into a place of exquisite beauty. The bright light and the sheer beauty was almost too much for him that he had to close his eyes. As he became used to the energy that surrounded he opened his eyes again and surveyed the landscape.

The picture before him reminded him of one of the landscapes painted by prince Heng, for there was a flowingness in all objects that could not normally be seen with the naked eye. In the past the sage had only been able to perceive this aliveness or flowingness out the corner of his eyes. Now he could see it with all his being as his consciousness was no longer weighed down by his physical body.

He floated around the new world. He could have walked but with is new found lightness of being it seemed more appropriate to float and allow the energy of heaven to lead him through this new land. He wondered for a moment where he was, but it did not matter it was just one more experience given to him by the Godforce. Some would have called this place heaven, others might have seen it as a resting place between lifetimes.

Just when he stopped to contemplate where he was, he was picked up on a beam of light and transported out into the universe. He looked back to see the earth rushing away from. It was a humbling experience. The earth which had seemed so big was now less than the size of a pin head as his consciousness continued its journey across the galaxy. He soon could see galaxies by the millions rushing by. The universe was far bigger than he could ever comprehend. In his feeling centre he could feel voices talking to him, telling him that there was an infinite number of universes and he himself was existing in all of them at the same time.
The words, images and feelings continued to flow into him at such an extraordinary rate that he could not keep up with them. He tried to understand what he was seeing, hearing and feeling but it was all too much. The nausea increased and he was shot back into his body.
He opened his eyes.

He was back on earth, on the side of a mountain, sitting in a lotus position, trying to comprehend what just happened. He realized his ego was trying to hold on to the experience, so he turned his focus away from the experience and onto the feelings of nausea that he was still experiencing. The feelings were not unpleasant. It was like there had been a shift in who he thought he was and the nausea was either a reminder of the change or his resistance to it.

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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 29

Chapter 29 - Philosophical Discipline 

Finding philosophers was the next part of the Journey for Huo. He had been taught in the ways of the Tao. His connection with nature had seen it become a teaching in itself. Everywhere he went he would rise before dawn and wash himself in the water of a river or lake to refresh himself with the life giving waters of the Tao. Then he would meditate for about twenty four minutes; one for each hour of the day. It was important to stay in a balance and not spend all day meditating, like some monks, which was out of a balance. It may have made the practitioner more spirit than human but also it had a way of disconnecting him from other humans and Huo understood that his life's mission was to inspire others through his stories and he could not do that meditating in a cave.

The next year of his life he dedicated to studying other philosophers and philosophies. It was not that he wanted to move away from his Taoist practices; it was that he wanted to understand what it was to be human and in each of the philosophies he came into contact with, there was an element or kernel of truth that he may not have come across in Taoism.

It was a strange and wonderful time. Strange because, he once again became the student rather than the teacher, but in reality whenever he taught or told his stories he was ever the student, learning as much from his stories, as any of the participants in his ever growing audience. But for a year he chose not to teach at all but become the student. It was wonderful because he learnt so much in a number of ways. Of course he learnt from the great philosophers, but he also learnt from those who were listening to the teachings and the questions they asked. Because he could also see their auras he understood what they were saying at a deeper level than the mere words themselves. He also learnt a great deal from his reactions to the teachers, both from an intellectual and also a feeling level. Occasionally when he did not agree with what was being said, his ego would want to speak up and show how special he was.

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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/

Tikal Part and the Fire Element.

Tikal

As I walked into Tikal I realized that after all these years that I was walking the path of the 33rd Sage. I was immediately overcome by feelings of great joy and I was brought to tears by the sheer emotion of it. I had come to complete what was my initiation. Is there any wonder that since I booked on the Maya trip that the Legend of the 33rd Sage had begun to materialize; for it was my story. In the story I was the young Huo who had been badly disfigured and paralyzed by being molested as a child. It was only through studying with the old chinese sage that this disfigurement and paralysis on many levels has disappeared.

It was standing in front of group G and the mouth of the Dragon that I realized why I was not able to finish the book. I had not stepped in through the mouth of the dragon and into myself. It was just like the character in my book I had to step through the dragon's mouth and this mouth just happened to be in Tikal. It was in the mouth of the dragon where I would come face to face with the other me; the me that I was to become.

I was drawn to the Maya trip because I knew that the Elements would allow me and those in the group to go through all of them and release the negative aspects of each of the emotions. In Palenque it had been easy as I must have done the Water Element in many previous incarnations. Standing in the monsoonal rain for hours while we did a number of ceremonies it was easy to allow the water to wash over me and clear me of any emotions of frustration.

If Water was easy the next day at Yaxchillan was more difficult but not greatly so. We arrived at the Earth Element site only to be greeted by the sound of Howler Monkeys. For those not fortunate enough to have heard their sound, it is like the sound of whaling banshees or the devil. For those who were Earth and dealing with the element of fear there were scared shitless. Then on top of that we had to walk through a dark tunnel which we later found out was called the Labyrinth. For the Earth Elements they had to led go of the need to control and step into the dark. It was not easy for some and even for me the first couple seconds there was a momentary panic before I gave over to spirit and walked in the total blackness. When I appeared out the other side I felt free of the need to be in control.

If Yaxchillan was a challenge then Tikal just blew me away. We arrive at group 4 and there before us was the mouth of the dragon. I immediately began to shake as I felt this was to be an Important moment in my life. I knew why I had not been able to finish the final three chapters of the legend of the 33rd Sage. I had to walk into the mouth of the dragon and experience myself. When I came out through the other side I was changed forever. It was in that moments that I realized that the legend of the 33 rd Sage was all about me. I was the young boy Huo in my story. Twenty eight years of living and working with the Elements and much of that time on the path of the Initiate. Tears began to run from my eyes and I was sighing and gently sobbing as I realized that the story was always about me. The essence of the 33rd sage is something that we can all tap into; for the 33 sages of the plum Red Robe exist within all of us.

Later on I was meditating standing in front of the Jaguar Temple when all of a sudden the heads which I had seen in visions and meditations over the last few days rushed at me again, only this time it was only one head and it was the head of the king of the Jaguar Temple and immediately he began downloading information to me. Information that was all too much and I spaced at completely. Although physically I was okay, I was mentally exhausted. Who knows what the future will bring. All I know is I have to finish the Legend of the 33rd Sage.

 

The Legend of the 33rd Sage - Chapter 28

Chapter 28 Mental Discipline

Judgement was the one emotion that the sage had the most difficulty giving up. As he wandered from village to village he always wondered why some people seemed to have so much and why others had so little. It was in these situations that he sometimes allowed anger to cloud his thinking.

There were many things he had learnt on his journey and one was that if you judge something then you don't understand it. For him it had always been an intellectual concept rather than a true feeling; he understood that the reason he was still judging poverty and the difference between the rich and poor was because there was something about poverty that he did not like about himself.

As he sat in the middle of the village and was surrounded by children he started to realize what it was. The picture of the children took him back to the village of his childhood. He was just like these children, barefoot and poor, but it was his disability that made him feel less than the other children. It really had nothing to do with the poverty. What he really wanted were guarantees. Seeing himself as disabled and disfigured he thought he was less than the other children and he wanted a life of guarantees as all he could see in his future was a life of suffering and judgement; the same judgement that he now proffered on others.

Now he understood, the Tao did not give guarantees. With the benefit of hindsight he could see that it was these difficulties in his earlier life which had given him the experiences and set him up to be the person he would become. It was difficult to watch suffering but with his perception he could see that it was what people needed to grow.
It was difficult to explain to others because they always made the same comment, 'But I would never have chosen that or no one would choose that.' The longer he walked the silent path of the Initiate the less he would come from logic; for logic was often blinkered by the ego and the more he came out of feelings; for it was in feelings that the higher self dwelled.

A young boy in ragged clothes, covered in dirt and snot running from each nostril approached the sage. In the background some of the adults yelled for the boy to leave the sage alone. As the sage looked towards them he could feel that they were embarrassed by the child; for he was from the poorest family in the village, a family so poor that they had no food, or land or even a place to call their own.

The young boy whose name was Quang sat down before the sage. For the longest time the sage did not say anything, preferring to watch the boy and wait for him to speak. The young boy did not know he was poor, only that his parents did not have things to give him like the other children received. To him it did not matter; he was always happy and playful even though he was bullied by the other children and I am sad to say some of the adults. But it mattered not to the young boy. He sat fascinated by the old sage, fascinated by his energy, for the one thing the young boy could feel was energy.

Quang smiled as the energy of the old sage enveloped him. It gave him a warm inner glow. "Tell me a story," asked the young boy his green eyes opened to whatever the sage had to say. The sage looked deeply into the boys jade green eyes and the impression which he received in that moment would last with him forever. He could see a soul that was far older than his, a soul in need of redemption. In a previous lifetime Quang had been a great Emperor who misused his power and the money of his people. He had treated his people without any regard for their needs, taxing them more than any other Emperor in the history of China. In that lifetime he had everything and he was here to redress the imbalance by having nothing in this lifetime.

It is for this very reason that when the soul incarnates that it comes as an empty book, as the good or bad deeds of a previous life, if remembered, would influence what we would become in this lifetime. Anyone with this knowledge may have judged the young boy and wished he suffered like he had made the others suffer in that past lifetime, but not the sage for he could see beyond the one or two lifetimes and what he saw was an eternal, immortal and infinite being who had incarnated at this time to learn lessons that only he and his higher self understood.

The sage smiled to himself; there was no higher or lower only infinite expressions of the Tao.

The sage told him the story of a young by who had been disfigured in a fire and whose disabilities made him the embarrassment of his village. And how one day a great sage came into the village and began to tell him stories and then the young boy became the apprentice to the sage and they travelled all over the country sharing in many adventures.

"Will that ever happen to me," said Quang?
"Who knows said the old sage. If you believe in something enough then anything is possible.

From that day forward the young boy would come and listen to the words and stories of the sage. One morning he arrived wearing clean clothes, they were not new but in much better condition than the old tatty clothes he normally wore. The next day he arrived with a pair of old sandals, but even stranger he arrived with two other young boys who wanted to listen to the old sage. Evidently the young boy had been sharing what he remembered of the Sage's stories with some of the children and for his kindness they shared some of their old clothes with him.

A few more weeks and many of the children from the village were coming to hear the stories and words of the sage. Stories which were shared with the adults by the children around the dinner table. Little did the sage know that these stories were having an effect like the ripples on a pond, directly into the hearts of anyone who heard them.
It was about this time that Quang's father gained work in one of the shops in the village and another person gave him a small house on his farm while he earned enough to rent or buy a place of his own.

The children and now some adults came to hear the old sage's stories. Many stories which were modeled on the many experiences he had as he traversed the land. Over the months that followed the young Quang started to tell stories of his own; mystical stories of dragons and Emperors. The more Quang stepped forward, the more the old sage stepped back. It was as it should be. His original stories had awakened the hearts of the people in the village and Quang was learning about kindness and through his stories he would educate millions of children in the future. He would never become a rich man, but in the way of the Tao, all his needs were met as he wandered the countryside to become one of a handful of legendary storytellers who lived in Ancient China. Stories filled with such heart and tenderness that they have become well known as parables even in our current day.

Stories which take us on the greatest journey that we will ever take, the journey from the head to our heart.

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The Legend of the 33rd Sage - Chapter 27

Chapter 27 - Emotional Discipline

It was during a late afternoon meditation that his thoughts turned to Love. It was not the kind of love that he felt for his parents or even the kind of love that he felt towards Qing; even though he had not seen her in many years, his love for her was still strong. The love he was feeling was not those kinds of love, but a love deeper than any emotional love. Emotional love was attached to something but the love he was experiencing in the meditation had no attachments.

The thoughts soon disappeared and were replaced with the feelings of love. He put his attention into his heart and the feeling became stronger and deeper. Something told him to open his eyes and as the sun was setting he saw it for the first time. He had always been able to see auras around people, animals and even plants but this energy was nothing like this. He continued to watch as great swathes of energy, purple in colour were emanating from his heart and connecting with everything around him. He watched as the purple energy first connected with the trees, then the animals and then to the mountains beyond. It was surreal, the purple energy which was emanating from his heart was also returning from the beings who had felt it from his heart; there was a real connection between all things.

In a matter of minutes he was surrounded by the animals of the forest, there were birds of every description, badgers, field mice and a whole feast of insects, but it was the color and magic of the butterflies and the dragonflies, surrounding him, which took his breath away.

Nature had come alive for him. It was nothing he could tell anyone; in his silence he could only experience the beauty of a love that connected all things.

The more he went on his journey the more silent he had become. It was a strange and wonderful thing. The more he knew the less he physically shared it with people and yet by internalizing it, more people received his teaching than if he had shouted it from the mountain tops.

His life had become about detachment, which is a little weird when you consider he was more connected with everything than he had ever been in his life. This was not about a detachment from life, it was about being detachment from the ego's emotions, so he could see the world as it was rather than the ego's limited perspective.

To others he would have seemed like he was on drugs or having a mental episode, but he had never been more present because he was seeing and experiencing the energy behind the form. He held a butterfly in his hand and just by his inner perception he could see every lifetime this butterfly had experienced; he was surprised to see that it had experienced over fifty lifetimes as light. He opened up to the butterfly and she allowed him to experience those lifetimes of light. Huo felt humble in the presence of the butterfly, a being who had experienced so many lifetimes on the earth plane. It was then that he understood that there was nothing higher or lower than him in the universe, they were just different expressions of the same energy, that some would call the Godforce and others would call the Tao. Even by naming it people had tried to capture its essence but no words could describe the 'all that there is.'

It was by going beyond his emotions that Huo was able to peek into the Tao. He did not try to understand it logically, as he knew that could not be done. Even experiencing it for a moment could never be explained; for as soon as he started to explain what he had experienced he knew that it would be his ego explaining it and trying to hold on to the experience in the hope it could make itself more important.
The beauty of the Tao was in the experience of it.
It would soon be time for the sage to come down off the mountain. There was a point in the experience of the 'all there is' meditations that the ego would start to see him as special and that was when it was time to move and change to another discipline.
The way of the initiate was all about silent power and discipline.

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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 26

Chapter 26 - Physical Discipline

The sage continued his journey; each day he would get up well before the sun rose, practice his martial arts, which he had never used, and meditate before allowing his inner spirit to guide him on where he would go for the day. Each day was filled with new adventures and new people to meet.

After a couple of months on the road he felt fitter than he had in all his life. The walking up and down mountains, through forests and around lakes had been physically demanding and his body was the better for it. He had begun to feel muscles in places where he never thought he could get muscles. His diet was very spartan and apart from the odd egg, it was mainly vegetarian, which helped inform the lightness of being that he now expressed.

As well as diet, exercise and meditation the sage had received a copy of the 'The Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic,' from a Taoist healer that he had met and treated along the way. Each day for about an hour before the sun would go down Huo would open the text and read along as the discourse occurred between the Yellow Emperor and his trusted ministers. He would read for the hour and then after dinner he would sit and contemplate on what he had just red. For the most part the information aligned to the teachings he had received from the old sage Chung Fu. He reveled in the beauty and simplicity within the text and he could see it was littered with Taoist principles.

It was only when he read about the five elements that he realized the classic must have been copied from an earlier document and changed to suit the writer. For in the beginning the Taoist monks of the Plum Red Robe spoke and taught of the four elements; elements which aligned to the seasons. The five element theory although brilliant was a misunderstanding of the mixtures of the four elements. What the writer saw as metal, Huo knew to be a combination of Fire over Earth and what was called wood was a  combination of Air over Earth.
The Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic was a great starting point but for any healer it was more important to practice the art of going within and allowing the higher self to come forward, to allow the healing to occur.

He no longer read the Inner Classic preferring to use that time in meditation and connecting with nature and his own higher self.

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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 Mayan Cities of Light

The Mayan Cities of Light

In a weeks time I will be off on a trip to the five cities of light in Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras. These five cities of light which include the famous sites of Palenque, Tikal, and Copan are the setting for my next book the The 33rd Sage and the Ancient Ones. It is the final book in the 33rd Sage trilogy, stories based on the teachings I received from my old Chinese teacher and later by other members of an ancient brotherhood.

The trip to Central America will be the culmination of a teaching that I have been receiving, bit by bit, for almost thirty years. Sometimes I wonder why they could not have just given me the teaching in one foul swoop, rather than having to follow the little messages they have left for me all over this and other worlds. I understand that we are all eternal, immortal and infinite and it should not matter how long or over how many lifetimes the searching or the journey takes, but my ego self would like to have all the information and get on with life. But as the higher self understands, that is the life that I have chosen to live this time. To others I would seem like a wanderer, as I have constantly changed jobs only to reach a certain level of success before once again, there is that little nagging from the inner worlds and I am drawn again into another quest in a different country.

The five Mayan Cities of Light have been whispering to me for a while to come and play and it seems like a good time to do it as the Mayan Calendar comes to a close. It is not as some believe to be the end of the world, although if you have any perception at all you will have felt the quickening that has taken place over the last twenty years. A quickening which could lead to amazing changes on the inner level of our consciousness. Some have called it Ascension and others transcendence. One of my old teachers called it the quickening. Whatever you label it, there is something happening at many levels across the worlds, both inner and outer, and many of us can get caught up in others egos or we can make a choice and listen to our own inner being. It is difficult to believe that we have the answer, when we are unsure of ourselves or our egos and the ego's of others are telling us that it is the end of the world or that we are all going to ascend; or even worse some are saying that we should follow their teachings if we want to ascend. If Ascension is real then I believe it is an inner process that we all take. It is the journey from the head to the heart and from the outer being to the inner being. It is only a short journey in terms of distance but a monumental quest that we all have to take at some stage in our various incarnations. It is the point where we become more spirit than a physical being. It is when we start to see the energy behind the form. When we see what is real.

Your individual journey is your individual journey and should never be done at the beck and call of another. If someone tells you they know the way, then run like hell for they have no clue. Your journey is a sacred thing and only comes through YOU getting in touch with who you are and then following your inner guide to where it shows you where to go.

When I write my books I am sharing some of my journey through the characters that inhabit my mind. It is no one else's journey but mine. Sure you can follow some of the teachings that I share in my stories or blog posts; teachings which have been taught for thousands of years, but ultimately you have to start to follow your own inner teachings and become your own silent spirit warrior, a silent warrior who is on the path of your own initiation or whatever word you would call it.  There is a point in all great adventures when the protagonist has to go deep within themselves to find the answers. On the early stages of this great adventure it is okay to follow a teacher or teaching because that helps us to turn within, but the final leap into the unknown has to be done on our own.

Find a teacher or a teaching that empowers you and gets you going on the greatest adventure that you will ever experience, the journey to your higher self and the keys to the kingdom. On the way be gentle to yourself and others. Have a lightness of being and be benevolent to your fellow man or woman. Respect where they are on their journey and don't infringe, don't judge and do not get angry. There is a point where you will have to detach from your ego and your emotions because they only separate you from others. Strangely it is only through detachment that we can become connected. We are all aspects of the one energy, all on our own journey, a journey which is different from anyone you will ever meet, so be kind to them and allow them to walk on their own path. If they ask for your help give them what you can, but don't hold them up or make them follow your teachings for they may not be ready, and in many cases what they have to learn in this lifetime is completely different from what you have to learn.

We are all like books in a library, each one has a different story, but ultimately no book is any more special than another.

Hopefully, while I am in the lands of the Maya I will find a wireless connection here and there, so I can share some of my experiences.

Have a lightness of being and reach down inside yourself for your own answer. In life there are no guarantees; the key is to trust in the process. Stuie Wilde one of my old teachers and a wonderful scallywag has written a beautiful article on Trust and I have included a link here.

http://www.stuartwilde.com/2012/12/trust/

Blessings and Peace
Geof

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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/

If you or a friend is just starting off on your spiritual journey I would recommend my first book The 33rd Sage or one of Stuart Wilde's early books as a great introduction. The teaching in both comes from a similar energy. For those who are well down the path I hope you have been reading the Legend of the 33rd Sage in my blog posts, although it is only a first draft, it has a wealth of information within the story. If you like me learn well from story I would also recommend Plum Red by Stuart Wilde. I believe it is the best book he has ever written; a number of Taoist tales from Old China and it is perfect for reading to your children at bed time.

The Legend of the 33rd Sage - Chapter 25

Chapter 25 - The Teacher, Teaches by Example

It was during the final month of their third year together that the prince no longer came to the Forest of K'an. The sage had waited, but deep down he knew that the prince was no longer his student. There was a genuine sadness as the sage had enjoyed teaching the prince about this spiritual aspects of man, but now it was up to the young prince to become his own teacher and it was time for the sage to move on. It was time for him to refresh himself and live in the spontaneity of the Tao.

He woke before the sun and gathered his small pack and walked out the door of the home that had been his for the last three years. He did not look back for the energy of the house was no longer there. He walked past the Lake of Li but even she had lost her glow. He walked out the Forest without another thought. The Tao had given and now it had taken  away.

He came to a fork in the road. Many years ago he had chosen the road that seemed the brightest, but now as he looked down both roads there seemed little to distinguish them. With no clear feeling on which way to go the sage sat under a plum tree and enjoyed the warmth provided by the early morning sun. He sat and watched as travelers passed by, most increasing their pace when they came near him, but the occasional one would stop and sit for a while. Some would talk to the sage but most just rested awhile under the shade of the plum tree. Those who stopped and sat under the plum tree with the sage, noticed that they soon became energized and were again ready to begin their travels.

The sage went into a meditation to ask his higher self what his next step was to be. After a long meditation he was none the wiser; it seemed like the Tao had forgotten him. Of course he knew better than that and if the feelings did not change he would just sit and enjoy his rest under the plum tree. When he opened his eyes he noticed that travelers had left food and some of their wares for him.

It seemed like he had received his answer. For now he would sit under the plum tree and be in the moment. He had never been so abundant in all his life. In a matter of days he had more of anything than you could think of; more than he would ever use in a hundred lifetimes.

The sage was at a loss to understand why?

When another traveler left more goods and food for him the sage said, "Why do you leave these wondrous gifts?"

The woman who left them replied, "Sage it is to thank you for healing our son. The other day we were on our way to a great healer and my son who was very ill needed a break from the travel; so we sat with you under the plum tree and when we were ready to leave he was completely healed. So this is our gift of thanks." With that said the woman bowed to the sage and walked away and back to her village.

Over the next few days others recounted similar healing stories but most who came and sat with the sage, just seemed to feel better, more refreshed from just sitting under the plum tree and listening to the stories that he had begun to tell the children.

The children themselves started coming in their hundreds as they heard of the sage and his wonderful stories. Each day in the early afternoon the children would arrive and sit around the sage in a circle under the shade of the plum tree and he would tell them a story. After which they were free to take one of any of the gifts that were left behind.

Over time the stores of the goods left for the sage did not diminish as you would think but grew and grew. It seemed like everyone in the village and the surrounding villages were stopping, to add to his ever growing supply of food and handmade goods.

And so began the legend; each night while all the villagers were asleep the sage would walk into town carrying armfuls of food and other gifts that he had received under the plum tree. He would stop at each house; send a molecule of his being into the house to understand the needs of each person and when they awoke each person would find what it was they needed to aid them on their own journey.

This continued on for many months and when some of the villages realized what the old sage was doing they would come to plum tree late at night and help the old sage distribute the goods. This happened every night and in the morning the right gift was there for the right person, whether they were just hungry or on a spiritual journey; it was if the Tao knew what they wanted and delivered it at the most appropriate time. Even the villagers who helped Huo would wake to find food and gifts left at their houses. It was wonder that people never got used to.

The day came when it was time for the sage to leave. Never had he seen such abundance. It was as if in the giving that people received more. This years harvest had been the best the countryside had ever seen.

In the days that followed children continued to come to the plum tree to listen to the sage tell his stories and even though he was no longer there, one of the adults or the children themselves would tell stories that the sage had taught them. Occasionally they would make up stories about where the old sage had gone and who he was helping now; for the legend continued to grow.

People still left their excess goods and come nightfall some of the adults from the village would come and distribute out what had been received. It was in the giving that everyone received. Without knowing it everyone was giving and receiving as they should, out of their abundance in line with the teachings of the Tao.

Of course the best teachers never teach they just do and the example of the sage continues to this day in many villages around the land even though people could not tell you why they are doing it.

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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/