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

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

Travel Changes Your Life - Himalayan Yak Story

I wasn't sure about I would write in this blog; that was until I was telling the following story at a workshop I attended this week. We were sitting around a table discussing how travel can literally change lives. One of the group, a young man who had never travelled stated that he had always wanted to trek the Himlayas. When he found out that I had trekked Nepal, especially the Himalayan region he asked me to talk about it.

Rather than talk about the Himalayas themselves which I told him was impossible to describe because of the size and scale of the mountains. I suggested that I would talk about one episode during my trip that showed the beauty of travel. For me travel has changed my life and I believe it changes everybody who travels.  For the most part these changes have not occurred because of the wonderful sights I have seen but the people and the experiences I have had.

The first part of that day’s journey was all downhill. It was like God put thousands of steps in the side of the mountain. We started the day at eleven thousand feet and would finish it much closer to sea level. It wasn’t a day for enjoying the view, as a false step would see us falling thousands of feet to our death. We’d all heard about the stones that were piled up in recognition of Trekkers who had died along the way. By the end of the trip, we would all realise how many Trekkers had died in the Himalayas; it took just one false step.

After four hours of walking, all downhill, we stopped for a well earned lunch. The bread and peanut butter were eaten with great hunger after the exhausting morning's walk. The Sirdar spoke to the group during the lunch about yaks, expounding on how they were one of the main dangers in the Himalayas and how many Trekkers had been pushed off the mountains by them. The key, he said, was to always take the high side of the mountain when the yak comes towards you. The difficulty was that they were stubborn animals, and if they sense any fear on the Trekkers’ part, they’ll push them out of the way. Some have even gored Trekkers.

I could see that Isaac was getting nervous. He had told me that he was scared of animals, especially dogs and cattle, and he wasn’t sure how he was going to handle the yaks. As we walked through day, we came across a herd of yaks, and Isaac immediately tried to walk around them. The yak herder came towards me and held out the whip in his hand. "He wants you to herd his yaks, "said a local, who was walking with the group this morning. I took the whip, which brought a grin to the yak herder's face. I didn’t have a clue what to do, so I looked to the herder for advice. His only reply was a motion to flick the whip and wave his hands.

One of my fellow Aussie Trekkers, came over to join me. "Why don't you use the trick you showed us last night and imagine you’re the yak or the herder? Then you’ll know what to do." I knew that he was half-joking and half-serious, but why not? I used the technique to understand people's intent or feelings, so why not a yak? I took what I imagined to be two molecules of my feeling self and put one into the herder and one into the lead yak. I quieted his mind and opened up to any impressions that were returned. My first impression came from the lead yak, and I soon learned the yak had been with the herder since he was a calf and had become the family pet. He was always looking to the herder for what to do, and whatever he did, the others normally followed.

When the molecule of the feeling arrived from the herder, it brought with it a great sense of calm. The yaks were his pets. He may have looked like a gruff old man, but he loved his animals. They responded more to the soothing sound of his voice than the whip or the waving of his hands, and the old man knew that; the whip and the waving arms were more a show for the others. I couldn’t understand what words the old man used, but I could hear the tones he used when he wanted them to do something. I walked close to him to show the yaks that the old man and I were friends. Then, while walking with him I started to speak using the tones I’d heard the old man use. The yaks didn’t respond at first; they were confused. Soon, though, the yaks responded to the soothing tones that I was using. I was soon guiding the animals with only the sound of my voice.

Although I may have appeared confident, I was more surprised than anyone. I continued walking with the animals and the old man. When we walked down a narrow path, the old man and I immediately took the high ground, and the animals took the lower ground. The old herder must  have impressed with and he gave me a pat on the back. I walked with the yaks for most of day after which the old man took back the whip, a whip he rarely used, then gave me a hug and continued on the journey with his yaks. This was the one thing that I enjoy most when I travel: the ability to be open to new experiences. It was the reason I met most of my teachers, and it was the reason I could see each day as a new day and always be open to what life had in store for me. It is always harder to have these experiences when I am was back in the so-called “normal life”, but maybe it was because I was not as open in the normal world.
   
I could see that Isaac was a little down, so I went over to join him, taking a hot drink and sitting down beside him. Neither of us spoke for a long time, then Isaac opened up. "I was scared when you started to walk with the yaks. I started to get all hot and sweaty, and I could feel myself go into a panic. How could you just take the whip and start herding his yaks?"
"Not sure, really. It just seemed like something I’d never have the opportunity to do again."
"I could never have done that. I would have been scared that they’d gore me or push me off the mountain. I don't like to do anything when I’m out of control."
"Isaac, I said, "this whole trip is about being out of control. We’re in a third world country, trekking through some of the most dangerous territory in the world. Each day, we come across areas where Trekkers have died. The food, the water, or the altitude could make you sick. I don't quite understand how you can do a trek like this and still feel like you’re in control.”
Isaac replied, "Before coming on this trip, I researched who were the safest companies, the food  they served, and their record of keeping people safe. This group was the best and safest, and that’s why I booked with them."
         
For the next six days, each day of the journey was like the one before: early breakfast of porridge, toast, and peanut butter, washed down with a hot cocoa, followed by a four-hour walk in some of the most beautiful country in the world. Stop for lunch, then four more hours of walking before setting up camp, having dinner, then sitting around the campfire under the stars, drinking rum punch. Of course, the rum punch was now a treat, rather than something that was over-consumed. We didn’t need another reason for a headache; the altitude was starting to have an effect on most of us. It was only minor, but it needed watching.

It was on about the tenth day that things began to change - especially for Isaac. I woke at about 7:00am, and as usual, Isaac was already awake and outside the tent. I put on my gear, and walked out of the tent. Surrounding the tent was a herd of yaks. My first thought was, Where the hell was Isaac? I scoured the campsite; Isaac was nowhere to be seen. Then I saw him cowering in the distance behind one of the tents. Before I could get to him, Isaac had made a run for it, only to be chased by one of the yaks. He tried in vain to get away, and in the end he turned towards the yak and screamed at it. This only stirred the animal up even more, and it ran at him, goring him in the stomach. He fell to the ground, and the yak continued to stand over him, excited by his anxiety and the blood oozing through Isaac's T-shirt.

I moved quickly and stood between Isaac and the animal. One of the other trekkers rushed with her medical kit to the aid of the cowering Isaac. She didn’t give any thought to the animal attacking her – and of course, it didn't. I tried calming the animal down using the same voice I had used with the other yaks, but it wasn’t working. The animal had all its concentration on Isaac. It was fixated and couldn’t see that Isaac was no longer a threat. By this time, all the camp was awake and out of their tents. The yak herder had rounded up all the other animals to ensure that they wouldn’t get out of control, but this one couldn’t hear anything. The herder called out to it, but it didn’t move. It stayed fixated, pawing the ground with its hoof. I knew he had to do something and do it quickly because the animal was getting itself ready to attack. I had no idea what to do. The words didn't work. The feeling tones didn't work. I had to get the yak away from Isaac. I remembered the trick that Crocodile Dundee had used in the movie by the same name. I was certainly grabbing at straws. Then, in a flash of genius I punched it in the head, directly between the horns. Confused, the beast tried to shake off the hit. It had lost focus on Isaac, and now its concentration was all on me, I turned calmly and started talking to the animal in the tone of voice of the yak herder and walked it towards the herder and his herd of yaks. The animal now seemed calmer and was happy to follow me back to the herd. The herder took control of the animal, shrugged his shoulders and led the herd away from the camp.

With the commotion of the morning and Isaac's injury, very little ground was covered during the day. After dinner, everyone sat around the campfire with the obligatory cup of rum punch. That even included Isaac, who until this evening had always gone to bed after dinner to get enough rest for the next day’s trek. There were smiles all around when Isaac took his first sip of the nasty concoction. The further we went on their journey, the more the quality of the local bought rum deteriorated - and with it, the quality of the fruits we used in the punch. To be honest, it was bloody horrible. But tonight was a special occasion; it was winter solstice, and it was good that we all came to join in the celebration. The look on Isaac's face was priceless. Everybody laughed;  it was good to have him as part of the group after the day's challenges.

Everyone wanted to know how Isaac was feeling, He replied, "The day has been tough, and I’m still a little sore, but I learned a great lesson. Upon reflection, I realized I wasn’t unluckier than anyone else. I focus on the wrong things; rather than focus on the fear, I’d be better focusing on the experience. In the past, my fears have brought exactly what I feared, and today was the prime example. From this moment on, with your help I would like to be more open to the experiences in life. Forty years of living in fear is long enough. Today is the first day of my new life."
       
We all gave him a cheer and for the rest of the trek Isaac was not the shy introvert who began the journey in Kathmandu.

The beauty of travel is that it forces most of us to live outside our comfort zone; the place where all change can occur.

Blessings and Peace - may travel on any level lead you to a deeper part of yourself

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

Fear and Feeling Tones

Fear is such an amazing emotion. In small doses it stops us from walking into situations where we can be harmed. It would have been great for Neanderthal man as it would have stopped him from being eaten by a lion or a poisonous snake, but in those days fear came with a certain amount of inner knowledge. Our ancient ancestors lived in touch with nature and the elements 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.

Today it is a different story. 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 cities. I am not suggesting that we all pull up stumps and move back to the country or take up a nomadic life, but I am suggesting that we 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.

How can getting in touch with these cycles allow us to reduce or move beyond our fears? I believe that once we reconnect with these cycles that an inner or innate knowledge starts to come alive and we begin to see and feel things before they happen. In my books and some of my blogs I talk about using a molecule of your feelings to send into to situations where you are not sure 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. As I was writing this blog I came to a full stop. I quieted myself for a moment and saw in my minds eyes two roads representing different ways the blog could go. The first road was where I talked about the fear itself and the second where I talked about the energy underneath all things. As I wandered down the first road I could feel an energy that was stuck. I immediately knew that this was not the road to go down. Like many of us I would normally have been inclined to continue down that road not trusting the inner voice, blaming it for being lazy or wanting to take the easy way out. These days my inner voice seems to be louder and more insistent when I ask it these questions.

It is hard to describe to anyone who hasn't experienced it, but let's have a play with it. Let's have a play with the energy in the universe. I want you to look at an area of your life where you have at least two choices on how to move forward. As you begin to practice probably not such a good idea to look at major changes in your life, something smaller to start with. It could be as simple as looking at a menu and decided what to eat. Start small and don't give up. In the early stages of anything new it will feel weird, silly and uncomfortable, but if you have discipline and a little bit of good old tenacity then your efforts will be worth it.

To begin with have you options metaphorically or physically in front of you. I used the technique this morning when I was deciding what to write. My first thought, not a feeling, but my first thought was to work on my third novel The 33rd Sage and the Ancient Ones. I opened the file and sat there looking at the empty page and there was nothing. I typed a few words but soon deleted them. There was just nothing there. It was then that I sat for a moment and stilled my mind. It helped that I was sitting in the garden surrounded by plants and trees and a beautiful blue sky. Still winter in Melbourne it was a bit chilly but I was in touch with nature and I find it easier to still the thoughts of the mind when I am surrounded by trees. It even seems to keep out the noises of cars, trucks and building projects going on in my street. After a few seconds my mind started to become still. If it takes you longer that is okay as I have been doing this technique for many years. Once my mind was still I allowed the feelings to come up from within. In moments a picture appeared of a blank page. My first reaction was that a blank page was what caused the problem in the first place. Then I sent a molecule of my feelings into the blank page and what returned was a feeling of new life. In the early days of my metaphysical 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.

Once I opened a blank page and allowed the feelings and thoughts to flow I was soon looking at these words now before you.

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. My partner notices when I go there and she just smiles and lets me be as she knows that I am in my special place and when I return I will be in very positive state.

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.

Have fun with it. Share your experiences on my blog.

Blessings and Peace and may you higher self whisper to you and share its beauty.

****

A special for all my followers, friends and blog readers. My publisher has offered a special only through my website 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.

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

Creativity Is the Way to God

Creativity is the way to God because just as God created us and everything in our universe, it is our opportunity to take our aspect of God and create something which is uniquely ours. Whether it is a musician, painter, sculptor, cook, actor or a writer like myself we all take an aspect of ourselves and express it in our creative medium. It is like we take the smallest essence of our god given talent and imbue it in a new creation.

For me when I hear a violin or the male tenor voice I get so wrapped in the music that there is a moment when the singer, the instrument and myself are no longer separate but become one. It is a feeling that I experience with all of my body but especially in my heart. There is a point where the beauty of what I am experiencing becomes too much and I am beyond time and space and am connected with all things. In those wonderful moments I am brought to tears. It is in these moments that I can understand why God created us as some would say in his own image. It was to allow a part of himself or herself to go beyond their individual aspect and express itself from the Godforce that we all have within.

We do not have to be a great artist or a musician to tap into this creativity. It is there for all of us. When you are sitting on the beach looking at a sunrise or sunset there are moments when you and the sunset are one. You have connected with the creative aspect inside yourself. The sunset itself is beautiful but it is nothing without your experience of it. Everybody has this amazing innate ability to connect and produce their own god like moments of creativity.

All we need to do is still ourselves and allow the magic we have inside all of us to come out.

Blessings and Peace - May your find your own creative spark and light up the world.

Geof


A special for all my followers, friends and blog readers. My publisher has offered a special only through my website 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.

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 Higher Self

Old Chinese was an energy that came through Marshall Lever to teach a group of students who wanted to move beyond the ego and the Earth plane. His teachings required discipline because he believed it was necessary for discipline for the individual to move beyond the ego; for the ego doesn't like discipline because it wants to have its own way. By providing it discipline it tends to quiet and let the higher self come through and around the subconscious mind. This energy from the higher self allows the individual momentary glimpses of the divine. In those moments when we have this connection with the higher self we are connected to all things. The challenge is that as soon as we recognize these moments of pure creativity coming from the higher self; the ego tries to hold on to it, but in the process of hanging on to it, all that is left is the ego and its self importance. Like the Tao the Higher Self is an energy that is indescribable. We have moments of it enlightening our lives or a situation, but because in most cases these moments are so brief we cannot describe them and in the end the higher self withdraws into itself and our ego believes that it does not exist and that it was an epiphany from our own wonderful goodness or intelligence.

You can recognize that it was your higher self because, it is an energy that you cannot put your finger on. You have a wonderful insight and then it is gone; most times you don't even have a memory of what the insight is.
Through discipline, such as meditation, fasting and time spent in nature you can slow down your ego to the point where these insights increase. You can even ask a question and an insight is immediately given; sometimes in the form of a feeling or a single word; sometimes these insights come from something in the outside world such as a sign or a word that would not normally have this effect on you.
Another discipline that allows your higher self to come forward is the discipline of creativity. It would seem funny to use the words creativity and discipline in the same sentence, but to be truly creative, you must have discipline. It is one of those strange quirks of fate that when you are at your most creative, whether a writer, painter, sculptor or anything that is creative, that in that moment of creation your are extremely focused and yet also in a meditative state. People who meditate regularly will tell you that in those moments when you are in your deepest meditation are the moments when you are connected with everything around you. If you want to feel the energy of the higher self then find what is your stick, what it is that drives you creatively. For me I am at my most creative in three situations; firstly when I am writing, secondly when I am teaching spiritual or metaphysical concepts or when I am meditating. In all these situations it is like there is a little voice that I am not aware in my normal life that comes around my subconscious mind and shares its wisdom. The trick I find is not to try and hold on to the little voice, but allow it to share what it needs to share and let it go. When you try to hold onto the little voice or the concept that is coming through it is only your ego which is feeling full of itself as it believes it was the creator of the idea or concept when in reality it comes from the higher self. But I hear you say that if it is from the higher self does that mean that we cannot create by ourselves. My answer to that would be it is the act of creation that we allow a window between ourselves and the higher self. If we could keep our ego out of it and continue in the act of creation like a little child then these moments of connection with the higher self can become longer.

Blessings and Peace - may your higher self give you a hint of its magnificence

A special for all my followers, friends and blog readers. My publisher has offered a special only through my website 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 Chines Sage might just wander into your life?

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

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/

The Energy Behind the Form

"The key to understanding and fully appreciating all life is to see the extraordinary in the ordinary and the ordinary in the extraordinary," said the old sage. "Go into any hospital and watch a surgeon performing miracles with his knife and we are left in awe of his abilities. The same person does these operations over and over and for him they ordinary everyday occurrences. As very young children we can see the extraordinary in many situations, our first cup of coffee; a new ball; a new bike; the list is endless. We become too trapped in our habits to see the magic in the mundane. I hope in our time together that you can once again see with new eyes, eyes that reveal more than we have come to expect."
    These were the words that greeted Conway, my character in the 33rd Sage, as he wiped the sticky sleep from his eyes.
    "Try today to see the newness in everything that you do. Reach for the magic in everything. If you believe, it will be there for you."
    Rising from his bed, he felt the stiffness in his body. This was something he had experienced for many years, but these days he took little notice, relieving it with a warm shower. He had pictures of rust in the joints and the water was the oil that allowed the joints to move freely. What caused the stiffness? He wasn't sure, but it was probably a build up of lactic acid that required some movement or heat to move it from the joints. He started to think about how the blood was flowing more quickly through the body; now he was moving; through the mechanical heart that kept on beating even while he slept; how the body was in a continual state of dying and rebuilding.
    Chung Fu was right; he had forgotten how to see the magic in the world around him.
    Chung Fu handed him a cup of coffee. The smell was heightened by the newness of it. Had a coffee ever smelt this good; it was the smell and the sharp bitter taste, which first drew him to the beverage, but after so many years and so many coffees; the smell and the taste were something that he had religiously every morning?
But this was different. This was new. He held the white porcelain cup and imagined the time it would have taken and the care to mould this cup into its present shape. His picture was of an old, skilled artisan who put love and care into everything he made. The key to his livingness was to give the best of himself in the making of every article. He could also feel presence of the artist in the fine texture of the cup. The first sip of coffee took Conway to the hills where it was grown. He had become a coffee bean waiting to be picked. Life was a continuum of shifting focus. What became habitual was ordinary, and what was new was filled with magic; by changing his focus ever so slightly he could once again see the magic in the mundane.
    He hoped he would never take anything for granted again, but knew that he would. The difference was that every now and again he would re-experience the extraordinary in the ordinary.
    Even as Old Chinese spoke, Conway watched the magic as the voice came from his lips, words which he understood. What an extraordinary thing the voice was, and the words and language it brought forward. The old man’s voice, his words, were English but with more than a hint of Chinese inflection. Conway watched as the old man’s mouth changed, mirroring the vowels that came forward. His old face lined and marked, changing to express his thoughts and feelings; his arms and hands moved when expressing a point of view or a flourish to add drama to a sentence. The closer he watched the more he could see. The creases in Chung Fu’s face opened and closed, as if they were also mouths offering their own words; his hands forever moving, as he reinforced his stories, creating paintings in the air. Watching just his hands you could get a sense of what he was saying, if not the exact words. When he made a strong emotional point, his hand would cut the air like a knife and when the words described something that was closed off, his fists tightened, strangling whatever blood was left in the veins on the back of his hands.
    The more Conway looked, the more he could see. Beyond the arm waving, he could see the lines and liver spots on the back of Chung Fu’s hands. The deeper Conway looked the deeper he fell. Chung Fu’s whole body was sending out signals. The voice was one level of communication but beyond there were many others, levels we do not even consciously think of. Below the physical level was the level of the aura, where there was even more to be experienced. He had not seen an aura before, but here in front of him were clouds of colour wrapping themselves around the old man's body. As the old man’s mood changed so did the colours: one minute surrounded by blue and violet, the next swirls of red and orange raced around like stairs up a lighthouse. Beyond the colours there was something deeper, more subtle, the originator of the electrical charge that surrounded the body. Its origin was so subtle he had to close his eyes to be able to sense it; his eyes were too gross to sense anything so subtle. With his eyes closed, Conway could feel the energy. He tried to feel what it was telling him, but he could not get any words, only a feeling of one whom was living his life’s purpose. He opened his eyes in the hope of seeing the feeling, but was greeted with swirls of emotional colour encapsulating the old man. He pulled back, the colours disappeared, replaced by the grinning face of Chung Fu.
    "You have seen the energy behind the form. No one can trick you any more. If you focus like you just have, then everyone will be open to you, like a book waiting to be read. Remember to look for the energy beyond the form. First, you must still yourself. Put yourself in a position of none judgment and then allow your own inner sight to lead you to where it knows to go. Do not try to force it, because then it will be coloured by your expectations... It doesn't just have to be with humans that you can use this technique. It is just as successful to use them with animals or plants or rocks. Allow yourself to become an empty space; this will allow the perceptions of the energy behind the form to become one with you, and through your own feelings you will get a strong sense of what is being given out by the other party, whether they be, human, animal or plant. The whole of life is interrelated; by becoming the pause between the notes you can tap into all God's creations."

Today, stop for a moment and experience the energy behind the form. See, do, touch, think or feel something in a way that you have never experienced it before. My old Chinese teacher taught me how to put a molecule of my own feelings into a situation, so that I could feel it for for what it is rather than what it appears to be. This feeling tone allows you to experience the energy beyond the form. At first it will feel silly and uncomfortable, but persevere and soon you will have the ability to see the energy behind any situation. I have used it when I have met people for the first time or when I am in a new situation or walking down the streets of a town or city I have never been to before. When the feeling returns with a negative response I avoid the person or situation. When I get a positive response I know that I can easily move forward.

Of all the techniques that my old Chinese teacher taught me, this was certainly one of the best. Imagine being able to send a molecule of yourself into any situation and knowing if it was appropriate to move forward. If I had known this when I was younger I would have never made some horrible mistakes, such as buying timeshare and many others I would not admit to in these blogs; for you never knows who might be reading them.

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/

The Power of Forgiveness

 The Power of Forgiveness 

One of the most powerful teachings that I ever received from my old Chinese teacher was the Power of Forgiveness. 

How many of us have people or things in our past which have hurt us. Pain which we cannot forget or forgive. These people deserve our rage for what they have done to us. But who are we really hurting. By holding the anger within ourselves we are still being hurt by their actions. I once read a sign which said, 'Holding a Grudge is Like Letting Someone Live Rent Free in your Head.' This sign brought home to me the need to forgive everyone who has trespassed against us and in an earlier part of the Lord's Prayer it says that we should also forgive us our own trespasses. This is not a blog on religion as each of the great religions talk about the power of forgiveness.

I use the word power not in the sense of power over others, but we have the power to release ourselves from the thoughts and hurts of others. It is not until you are able to forgive everyone that you are truly free. This does not mean that you have to accept the misdeeds of others, but if you cannot forgive them then you will carry them with you forever.

There was an old mystic who once said that he who is without sin can cast the first stone. We have all done things that in hindsight that were not for our highest good, but rather dwell on these we should forgive ourselves and release them.

These few quotes do far more than any pages I could write.

Forgiveness is the fragrance the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it

Mark Twain

The Power of Forgiveness. Forgive people who have upset you and you release them and free a part of you for a more creative purpose.

Geof  Spalding

Forgiveness is a gift you give yourself

Suzanne Somers

Forgiveness is the final form of love.

Reinhold Neihbur

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

www.the33rdsage.com
www.33rdsage.com

Twitter @GeofSpalding

Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/

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

The Four Centred Disciplines

The Four Centred Disciplines

I am going to take a break from writing blogs for a couple of weeks while I work on my third book in the 33rd Sage trilogy. I hope you have enjoyed the blogs of the Elements of Man and in a few weeks I will return with some new and exciting blogs and hopefully news on the publication date for the 33rd Sage and the Initiate. In the meantime please enjoy the following parable and the teaching on the four centred disciplines. For those who have read the 33rd Sage, now might be a good time to revisit it as the lessons learnt from reading the Elements will transform your next reading.

Blessings and Peace to you all and may the Godforce that lives inside you point you in the direction of your bliss.

In Old China an emperor called his advisors to him and asked, "Who am I?" They said, "You are the Sun, the light, you are the essence."

"Why do you do what I ask," said the emperor? They answered, "Because you are God and we are followers of God."

"If I am God, then I must be all-powerful," said the emperor, and the advisors said, "That is true."

The emperor asked again, "Why do you do the things I ask you?" The advisors said, Because you are God."

"Why do you not just not do them?"

"Because you would have us put to death."

The emperor realized that there was fear. He said, "If I am God, why does not the flower grow where I ask it?" The wise men said, "We will plant it where you want it."

"Why does it not rain when I want it to rain?" The wise men said, "It does not rain because when you want it to rain, that is not what you really want."

The emperor walked away into his garden and looked at the flowers and the birds; he looked at the small stream, at the little fish within it. He saw butterflies and the greenness of the grass, and the softness of the moss. He thought, if I am God, why did I not create this? What is real? I am only God to the people, not to the plants, or the flowers or birds. If there is a God, there must be a God of all; but the flowers do not follow anyone; they do not go here or there for fear of dying. The butterfly does not fear the frog as it flies by, even though the frog will eat it. What is reality?

He returned to the palace and said to his advisors, "What is real. What is true? What is reality?

In your world there is much beauty. But the beauty that you see, hear, touch or taste is only a particle of the beauty that lies around you. In your world are four disciplines that will allow you to find reality.

1. Physical Discipline 

First is a physical discipline, not exercise of the body, but being proud of what you are, and not of what you want to be. The discipline of being able to look at yourself in a stream or mirror and say, I am proud of what I am. Controlling the body and it's movements and not allowing it to move you is a discipline, realizing that you are a carriage that has within a most important rider.

Physical discipline means walking straight and sitting straight, knowing that when you cross a leg or an arm to someone, you are limiting communication. Physical discipline means not running or hurrying; physical discipline means knowing your body, it's muscles, it's bone. It means exercise, not in a religious sense but realizing that you are the God Force, that your body is what it should be and being proud of it.

2. Health Discipline

Foremost within that is respecting yourself. Above respecting all things is respecting yourself. You cannot respect other things without first respecting yourself, healthwise. The foods that Old Chinese suggests are not prescribed by a religion or a discipline. Old Chinese does not suggest that you should not eat meat because it will get you to your higher self, or from this plane faster. There is no diet, no choice of food for a specific, moralistic cause that will get you closer to your higher self.

We know that you are herbivorous and so meat is foreign to your system. There is no needed to worry about the killing of animals. Since there is no death of anything, you should not worry about it. Old Chinese suggest no meat because it causes damage in your body. Meat eliminates calcium from your system, and many other things. The reason for eliminating root vegetables is that the cellulose in them interferes with the correct digestion of carbohydrates.

The food, diet or health you choose should respect your body first. Of secondary importance is the evolution of spirit within the food, but first is evolution of spirit within yourself. Health discipline is the realization that each and everything that is wrong in your body, or that feels wrong with it, is a mental though form. There are no I curable diseases, only incur able people.

You can learn through the discipline of health that when you have a soreness or a congestion, it is because of your though patterns, because of dealing with a person or a resentment. Thought becomes a very important governor of your disciplined health perspective. Eating sugar and salt are equivalent to eating sand; and gluten flour, or anything that contains it, interferes with assimilation of vitamins in most personages.

Respecting yourself nutritionally is not some faddistic religion, not saying I am doing this so will be better than that person. You are doing this because you respect yourself, and you respect yourself because you are the God Force within you. You are your own reality, and so, by respecting yourself, you recognize what the emperor did not. It is easier for a person who is working on their spiritual evolution, or in essence is trying to come in tune.

3. Harmony

In-tuneness means the ability to perceive, to feel to hear, to touch, to taste everything at each and every moment of the day. This is in-tuneness with everything that is going on around you. When the musical instrument is in tune, it plays a harmonious chord. It is pleasing, it is awareness of what is around, and it allows others to feel harmonious. In tune is to be harmonious with all your surroundings.

It is easier for you to be out of tune in your world, than it is to be in tune. More on your world are inharmonious than in tune. It is easier for you not to have a nutritional body, than have a nutritional body. Most people in your world complain or have something wrong with them. That way, if you are like them, nothing is wrong.

Your world thinks that if you at spiritually disciplining yourself, you should be free from disease. That is not true, for the more in tune you become with your nutrition, the more out of tune those around you will feel. They will centre on you, and find every little thing you are reacting to. Before, when someone said to you, "You are not too smart in certain parts," You would have laughed. Now, like a finely tuned instrument, just a little outward vibration can cause you to come out of tune and play a disharmonious chord. It is easier for you to not be in tune. Those who strive for spiritual nutritional health are like fish out of water. In the water it is easy, but once out of your environment, out of what everyone else is doing, you become not very important.

A harmonious person is one that is aware of everything around them and does not combat things. If someone comes to you in an inharmonious way, and you react to them in an inharmonious way, you only create disharmony. The Nazarene once said, "Resist not evil." Your world thought that meant something else. It meant when evil, or negativity comes to you, do not fight it. If you fight it, you create war, dissension. Relax. Be as the rock on the shore as the wave lashes against it - stand firm - and when the tide goes out, the rock stands alone, beautiful. Watch those things that are thrown in, do not try to combat, or jump against the wave.

Your world finds great disharmony; it is the world of disharmony, or the university of disharmony. In reality, disharmony is one of the great dilemmas of your physical plane. How harmonious are you to yourself? - not to those around you; to yourself. Do you feel the new morning? Do you touch the wind?

4. Balance

The fourth discipline is balance; balance of self. In Old China, there was a teacher who told the student, "If you relax or meditate for four to five minutes each day, you would find great things happening."

The student was enlightened and found that it caused an ecstasy. He returned to the teacher and said, "I was so delighted with the results that I am now meditating twenty four hours a day. And the teacher said, "You are unbalanced."

The person who meditates half a second a day is unbalanced. Those who sleep twelve hours a day are as unbalanced as those who try to maintain on two hours of sleep. Those who eat constantly are unbalanced, as are those who eat not at all.

You have come to be within your world, not to escape it. You have reincarnated to be a part if your world, not to be a recluse, a monk, a mystic or hermit; not to withdraw from community or institutional situations, but to live in your world. By living in it you can maintain a balance. Those who can walk on hot stones, or levitate for hours, or, at a breath, can cause a tree to change from here to there; they too are unbalanced. Why do you need to know how to walk on coals? And what will levitation do for you? It may cause you a nosebleed if it goes too high.

You must have a little imbalance within balance. Approximately 3200 years ago, the creation of yin-yang developed in China, to create a balance of spiritual essence and military difficulties. You should watch this theory that puts negative before positive, and remember, he who walks the middle of the road gets hit from both directions.

Consider your eyes: if your right eye saw equally as your left eye, you could not see. If your left ear hear as equally as the right, you could not hear. If your right arm had the same strength as your left arm, there would be inertia. The same strength in the right and left leg would cause inertia. There must be a little imbalance within the balance. Instead of walking down the middle of your path, go from side to side and you will experience energies of either side without getting off the path.

How do you maintain balance in an unbalanced world? How do you ride a muddy water buffalo? Or shake hands with a tiger? Each individual cries out for balance within, for solitude; not a twenty four hour solitude. Each individual needs no more than one minute per hour of the day, and you can balance. But how? When you fight the subconscious  or the would so hard. Consider these things: First, the higher self projects through you outwardly. Energy comes through you from the higher self, which is a combination of all you are or have been, the God Force. There is no energy returned to it. This is a one-way energy path.

Second, as long as you act subconsciously, energy will try to come through the subconscious mind, which is like trying to pick rice in a rainstorm. The energy - or the power, or the inspiration or the light from the higher self - that activates the subconscious, controlling all of your movements, feelings and moods, will cause impulse instead of intuition. It will cause doubt instead of faith; it will cause negativity. By disciplining yourself for twenty four minutes, you can relax the subconscious and the higher self will circumvent it, bypassing it.

Chung Fu

May the infinite self inside each of you reach out today and touch deeply the heart of another. A new age mystic once said, "Love is the answer, Love is the key."

Take a look at my Book Trailer 

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