Be Honourable - Higher Self 13

Today's chapter from the Way of the Initiate is about being honourable. I hope you enjoy. The book has been written as a parable to be read but also more importantly the parable can be read to children with the parent or reader creating their own magic when telling the story. I would love parents to engage their children in the story telling by either asking the kids what they see or experience when listening to the story. Or even better they could have their kids draw, paint or do anything that allows them to express their own creativity.

I thought long and hard about whether to give more descriptions but then I realized that what was important was not my journey but the journey of everyone who reads this parable and takes their on journey down the path of the Initiate.

Be Honourable


"Honour is the nobility of the soul. It is about being consistent in your every thought, word, and action," were the words that broke Huo free from his sleep. He opened his eyes to see the old man standing above him. "Today we will begin a new exercise. Meet me outside the pagoda in ten minutes, and we will begin."

Huo splashed water on his face to wake himself up. He was tired; surely, it was not time to get out of bed. There were times when the disciplines of the old sage seemed downright ridiculous. He hoped that whatever the old man had planned, it would have some value. Huo's thoughts and motivations were not quite right this morning; he had travelled with the sage for nearly ten years, his life had been full of experiences, and along the way he had helped many people - but what of him? What was he getting out of it? Where would it lead him? Even Sages have their bad days, and for some reason that Huo was not able to understand, this was starting out as one of his. It was what it was. He had learnt by now neither to suppress any of the feelings that came up nor react to them, but instead to observe them, as they would be his teacher. That was all well and good, but this morning he could have just as easily walked away from his apprenticeship. What of having fun with friends his own age or finding a woman to fall in love with and marry? Since they had been staying in the Pagoda in the city, he had seen others his own age enjoying their lives and having fun. Sometimes a normal life had its advantages.

Out in front of the Pagoda, all was quiet. There was no noise in the city, as everyone except he and the old sage were asleep; even the shopkeepers, who woke early to prepare for the daily market, were still asleep. What madness did the old man have planned for this day?

Huo found the old sage at the side of the Pagoda, where he was carrying rocks from the front of the Pagoda to the garden on the left side. The old man simply looked up, and with a wave of his hand expected Huo to follow his example. So for the next two hours, they shifted hundreds of rocks from the front of the Pagoda to the garden. By the time the sun had risen, hundreds of people had walked past the Pagoda, many laughing at the old sage and his apprentice moving the rocks to the garden. Huo was becoming angry at the passers by, but the old man's demeanor never changed; he simply greeted their laughter with a nod and a smile and continued moving the rocks. By the time they had finished moving the rocks, Huo was sweaty, tired, and exhausted. He tried on many occasions to question the sage, but each time he received no response. In the end, he gave up asking; he knew better than to waste his time trying to get the old man to talk when he was in one of his focused, silent moments.

Once they were finished, the old man suggested that they clean up and meet again in the garden after they had meditated and broken their fast. Without another word or explanation, the old sage walked back towards the entrance to the Pagoda, where he bowed three times, removed his shoes, then entered the sacred space.

All the way through the meditation and breakfast, Huo could not help thinking about why they had moved all the rocks during the middle of the night. Maybe it was to be a surprise for the monks in the Pagoda, or maybe the old sage wanted to do it because he had something special planned for the day. Millions of thoughts ran through the young man's mind, so many that he had not even noticed that the old man did not meditate with him or that his breakfast had been improved by extra helpings of many local delicacies, thanks to a young girl in the kitchen who had taken a shine to him. If he had been in the moment, rather than worrying about the future or the past, he would have noticed these things, especially the young girl who served him his breakfast - for if I do say so myself, she was very beautiful with her jade green eyes and blue black hair that she wore back in a long ponytail. But then I may be biased, as she was also to become the apprentice of an old sage, a fact that Huo was totally unaware of.

When he had had his fill of an excellent breakfast – which, to be honest, was wasted on him - Huo wandered out to the garden. There, waiting him for him in the garden, was the old sage. The moment Huo arrived was the moment the old sage began to work. Huo watched in a measure of horror and mirth as the old man picked up a rock from the garden and carried it back to the front of the Pagoda. Shaking his head, Huo joined in, and over the next few hours - amongst swearing and other unkind words - the two of them moved every rock from the garden back to the front of the Pagoda.

It was while carrying the last rock that Huo totally lost it. It was not in the way you would think (for two hours he had ranted and raved), but now while carrying the last rock he began to laugh, finally understanding why the old sage had them doing what to anybody else would have seemed ridiculous. After he placed down the last rock, he went over to the old man and gave him a hug; it was the first time he had really shown this type of affection to the old man. In that moment, the future and past drifted away and he was totally in the now. The old man smiled, and a tear escaped from his left eye. It had taken ten years, but now the young man's heart was fully beginning to open. At last, he was honoring who he was and what he had become; he was honoring the process of life.


Blessings and Peace and may you open up to your own innate creativity and honour every person or animal you meet along the way.

Blessings and Peace
Geof

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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

Discipline Is The Doorway To The Infinite Self

In my stories the lead character goes through the process of transformation. What they believe their dramatic need to be changes as the story develops. In the end the character is different from the one who starts the story and many times these differences are internal. They are the differences that allow us to enjoy the adventure that is life. I am currently writing a screen play about a young boy who believes that other worlds and dimensions exist. It his dramatic need to prove these worlds exist, even though his parents and friends do not believe him and he has become an outcast, he continues to believe. As he moves through the story the dramatic need changes where he ends up is a far different place than he would have believed. This concept of transformation is what drives all our lives. We have certain dramatic needs that we want from life and they are the basis of what we are and do. Have you ever stopped for a moment and thought about why you are here and why you do and act the way you do? Just like the character in my screenplay I have always believed these other worlds existed and now I spend my life sharing these stories with others.

In the screenplay the entrance to the mirror world is a energy that my old friend Stuart Wilde called the Morph. He described it like misty rain falling. People and objects that go into the morph disappear and then reappear. I have seen the morph on many occasions but as yet I have never stepped into it. Not from fear but because I am not quite ready. In the past it has always moved away from me, but over time it has come closer and closer. When I opened my eyes after a meditation it was directly in front of me. I stretched out my hand only to see the morph collapse in on itself.

If there is one thing that I have learnt on this journey it is that the only way to know these other worlds is through discipline. There are many who take the easy way through drugs, but ultimately these drugs drag them into what some have called the astral worlds. I personally believe that the drugs take them into the shadow self and because they do not have the training or the discipline they ultimately get stuck in these worlds and live a life of hell.

So if you want to experience aspects of your Higher Self or have a window into these other mystical worlds I would suggest that you learn to discipline your mind and body. In today's chapter of the story the young Huo learns that discipline is the doorway to the infinite self. I hope you enjoy.

Discipline Is The Doorway To The Infinite Self


It was just after 4.a.m when the old sage shook the young man awake.
"Huo, after what happened yesterday, I want to change your training. Rather than continue to work on connecting you with your inner self, which seems to be taking on a life if its own, I believe it would be best to work with your physical self. Today, we will begin your lessons in martial arts, as well as in meditation. If your inner life continues to develop at the current rate, it is important that you learn physical and mental discipline to be able cope with the changes."
"Master, how will martial arts help with my inner life?"
"Your inner world expresses itself in your outer world, and unless we discipline your mind, body, and emotional responses, then you will create your outer world based on your childish reactions to what you perceive as external influences. Everything in the outer world is only an expression of what is first created in the inner worlds. As you open yourself up to the inner worlds, you will get messages from your higher self, and if you are not a clear channel, then these messages will be distorted by your ego and emotions. When the  message tells you to go forward, your ego may tell you the opposite. It is only through discipline that we can quiet the ego and clear the subconscious mind of its previous programming.”

The old sage moved into the horse stance, took a deep breath, then closed his eyes. "Now, Huo, I want you to attack."
"But, Master, you have your eyes closed, and you are so old. I am afraid that I will hurt you, as I will be too quick for you."
The old sage smiled; the young man was much like he had been those many years ago.
"Yes, you are probably right, but please do this as a favour to an old man. Attack me."
Huo faltered for a moment, then he moved forward, dancing around the old man, flicking out an odd punch; it was more of a test to see if the old man would respond, rather than trying to hit him.
The old sage never moved.
Huo's confidence began to grow. He decided that he would not hit the old man hard; just a light tap on his head to teach him a lesson and show him how fast he was. Before the fist reached its target, however, Huo could feel himself being thrown in the air. As he struck the ground, feeling every bruise, he replayed in his mind what had happened. His fist was about a hand’s length from the old man when the old sage moved inside the fist, grabbed his arm - and in what seemed like an impossible move, went underneath him and launched him into the air.
"Teach me," was Huo's only reply.
And that was when his Martial Arts training began. Each day, well before sunrise, the nocturnal animals would gather around in a circle to watch the old man and his young apprentice practice, using stances the animals themselves used and working with the energy of the elements to understand how to read your opponent. More importantly, though, Huo learned how to understand and observe himself, ultimately moving to the stage where there was no reaction; for it was in the reaction that the old sage knew that you moved out of the flow.
Month after month, they practiced. First it was Martial Arts, then it was daily meditation, one minute of meditation for each hour of the day. At first the young man could not hold his emotions in check as he reacted to the strikes of the old sage, which always ended up with him getting another bruise or landing on his backside. He was progressing well with the physical aspects of the training, but he could not move beyond his emotions, which was something he would need to do to move on to the deeper aspects of the old sage's teachings.
The old sage was not worried, for "it was what it was; it was neither good nor bad." He knew the young man would move beyond the ego in his own good time. It just meant that he would have to slow down on the inner work.
It was after a particularly bad session when the young man had received far more bruises than normal that the Sage's inner voice suggested they do their daily meditation by a stream that ran a few hundred meters from their camp. As soon as he saw the stream, he understood what his inner voice was trying to tell him. Even after all these years, it was the inner voice from his Higher Self that was always there when needed. The key, as always, was to be open enough to listen.
They sat beside the stream, only this time the old sage asked Huo not to close his eyes, but rather stare into the water and allow it to take him into a meditative state. The young man watched the stream, not quite sure how this was going to help him go into a meditative state. All the same, after a few minutes he found himself very calm, and he released the frustration he had experienced from the early training session where once again the old man had made him look stupid. It no longer mattered, for he began to understand that he was not fighting against his Master, but himself. That one realization released any anger he had stored up in his body, and all at once his body healed itself, the bruises disappearing along with the aches and pains. He even noticed that his paralyzed left arm was now completely free from any pain and that he now had full use of it. He looked to the old sage for an answer, but the old sage had disappeared. Unperturbed, he looked back into the water, for in that moment he knew that it was his teacher that morning.

He watched as the water flowed on by kissing the bank and giving its life force to the plants and animals that lived along the stream. He looked into the middle to see a large rock rising out of the water. The water did not seem to fight against it, but simply flowed around the rock. It did not need to react; it just found another, simpler course. He understood that in time the water would defeat the rock, but it would be done in a calm, balanced way. The water had so much power, yet at the same time it gave life to everything around it. He had never looked at the elements in this way before, but from that moment on he would begin to observe more, for there was far more to this world than he had previously thought possible.

Blessings and Peace and may you become the water and may your essence give life to those around you.

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 mid 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

Nothing Is Ever Lost - Higher Self 9

Nothing is ever lost that apart from the first draft of my screenplay which refuses to open. I even tried a technique I learned from Uri Geller when my old computer had up the ghost. It was another occasion when I did not have a copy of manuscript I had been working on for months. I had a computer expert look at it and he could do nothing. What did I have to lose. I thought of what Uri had said and I held down the start button and repeated three times, "Work, work, work," and then I released the button. Nothing happened. What did I expect. Then the computer whirred into life and still works to this day some four plus years later.

I even tried it on the screenplay document but I guess spirit wants me to work on other things.

Today's post is that Nothing Is Ever Lost. I am referring to mor esoteric things than my screenplay but even with respect to the screenplay it is also true. Either I will be able to open it or I won't, but the one thing I am sure about is that information in the screenplay came from me so I will be able to find it again and maybe it will be even better this time.

Today let's join Huo on his journey where he learns.......


Nothing Is Ever Lost

"Nothing is ever lost. Everyone who has ever lived and everything they have ever created," said the old sage as he reached out his open right hand, "is there for anyone. All you have to do is open yourself up to the vibration, and you become a channel into the past, present, or future. When you go into your inner self, you connect with everything that has been or will be. All the geniuses or masters are waiting for you to tap into their energy. If you want to be a great artist, all you have to do is imagine in your inner being that you are that great artist, then allow him or her to open up their genius to you.
"When I was studying to be part of the 33 Sages of the White Brotherhood, I would sit for hours and open up myself to the sages who had come before me. I would learn in days what would have normally taken lifetimes to understand."
"Teach me," said the young man, whose mind was already opening itself up to the Cosmic Mind, which held the memory of all things. The young man soon found himself wandering through the hallway of a large castle. At the end of the hallway was a doorway. From beyond the doorway, Huo could see a blinding light forcing its way around the edge of the wooden door. His ego mind was telling him not to go any further. He hesitated for a moment, then continued walking. His ego spoke louder, almost screaming for him to stop. In that moment, he understood what the old sage had taught him about the ego's fear of death. He took a deep breath and stepped through the door and was immediately enveloped by the light and transported to another time and place.
Once Huo's eyes became accustomed to the light, he was aware that he was surrounded by thousands of people, many of whom who looked exactly like him. One young man came towards him. At first he pulled back, for a moment not realizing that it was another part of him from another dimension. The shock sucked him out of his body and back into the present, where he was sitting by the fire with the old sage.
At first he could say nothing, for he was truly in shock; a part of him now existed in the other world, and he could feel it pulling on his being. He was no longer sure what was real. Until a few minutes ago, he believed the world he lived in was reality, but now he was no longer sure. He had been to a world where there were thousands of beings just like him. In his feeling self, he knew they had all come from different dimensions and worlds to meet together in the world that existed beyond the doorway. Would he be able to go back there? Did he want to go back? For that matter, did he have a choice? For he felt like there was a part of him that now existed totally in that other world, and he was not sure whether or not he needed to go back and retrieve it or if that was the way it was meant to be. Was he, in fact, drawing from his other selves all the time, or maybe it was a way for him to experience other worlds and other parts of his eternal self?
He looked across at the old sage, who was quickly making a pot of herbal tea. He had never seen the old sage rush with anything. Huo sat there, experiencing his own infiniteness. He no longer felt shock; no, now what he was feeling was a sense of calm, but beneath the calm was another feeling: it was the sense of wonder. No longer could he look at anything the same way again. He picked up a beetle that was scurrying beneath his feet. The beetle stopped scurrying and looked into the young man's eyes, and for a moment they shared a piece of each other.
The old sage had never seen anything like it. He quickly poured the cup of herbal tea in the hopes that the events of the past few minutes would not make the young man mad; it was more than anyone could stand without years of meditation and discipline. He need not have worried, though; by the time he offered the tea to the young man, he was calm and serene. In fact, he was more than that. The old sage watched as the young man connected with the beetle in a way that he would not have thought possible, standing in awe as the beetle and the young man became one. It was not in a philosophical sense, though, for they had truly become one; the aura of the young man and the beetle had entwined, and now each one’s individual energy and memories were now available to the other. The old sage was not sure, however, how the beetle would cope with the memories and teachings the young man had given him, for he was no longer sure who was actually the teacher. The old sage was trying to teach the young man that he could draw from the teachings of the masters in previous times, but the young man had gone beyond that and was now showing the old sage that he could learn from his infinite selves, and even from the insects of the Earth. He knew the young man was special when he had seen him in his dreams those many years ago, but now he was beginning to see how truly special he was.
It was now important for him to speed up the teaching he was giving the young man, as he was growing far quicker than he would have ever thought possible - which in itself was a wonderful thing, but it also had its downside. Did the young man have the mental capacity to cope with what was occurring?

Blessings and Peace and may you connect with the other parts of your self.
And me with my screenplay.

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 mid 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

Moving Beyond the Ego - Higher Self Part 8

It has been a few weeks since my last post and I am not sure why. Everything was going brilliantly for me creatively and now everything has seemed to stop. Even my work on my first screenplay was going well. It seemed that every time I would ask a question, I would meet someone with the answer, or I would find it in a book I picked up or a bus passing by. It was like I had a direct connection to my higher self, but sadly over the last few weeks it feels like that connection has broken. Since the death of one of my old teachers Stuart Wilde I no longer feel the Higher Self in and around me. It has got to the point that even when I am about to go somewhere on a bus or tram they do not even stop for me any more. It has even got weirder with the first draft of my screenplay completed I am not even able to open the document and even my back up copy is corrupted.

Having been ranting and raving a bit since, having tried everything I know to open the document, I thought it was time to take time out and write this blog post. Interestingly the next part of the 'The Way of the Initiate,' I was to share was about moving beyond the ego. Perfect timing because I am stuck right in my own ego and that is why I cannot hear the voice of my Higher Self. They say we always teach what we need to know. Maybe spirit is telling me to take a step back and allow the next step in my journey to be unveiled.

Have a read of the short chapter below and I will hopefully meet you on the other side.

Moving Beyond

Before sitting down to dinner, the old sage sat cross-legged on the ground. He took a few deep breaths, holding each one for a moment, then released his breath, and with it energies from the day that he did not want to hold onto.
"What are you doing?" asked the young man.
The old sage smiled and opened his eyes, turning all his attention to his young apprentice. "I am moving beyond the ego. At the end of each day, I play the day back in my mind's eye, and when I come to an event when the flow of my energy is stopped by my ego, I take a deep breath, reflect on it for a moment, and then release it into the ether."
The young man returned the Sage's smile, but he was still confused, a state he was experiencing a lot since he began his journey with the old man. "What do you mean by the ego, and how does it stop your energy flow?"
"There are those that say that the Ego is the mediator between the conscious and Subconscious minds. There are others who say it is our identity, while some say it is what gives us our sense of self-worth or self-importance. In a way, it is all those things, but for me, its greatest weakness is that it stops the flow of information from our higher selves and disconnects us from everything else in this beautiful universe. Think back to the other day when you woke and found me gone. It was your ego that went into a panic. It was only when you calmed yourself down and reconnected with the spirit that you became part of all things, and at that moment you knew where I was."
"Sage, why do we have an ego if it limits us?"
"The ego gives us a sense of ourselves. It is important in our first few incarnations, when we are here to learn lessons of a more Earthly nature. It is only after our sixth lifetime, when we begin on our spiritual path, that we begin to move beyond the ego. The ego is the source of most of our weaknesses. Most of our weaknesses come from the various manifestations of the ego's fear of death. Fear is the ego's weapon that stops us from moving forward in our lives. The ego is lazy. It does not want to try new things. It would rather stay in the negative state it has grown comfortable with than take a chance on a better life. Change is the death of the ego. Once you start to realize that the ego is holding you back, then little by little you can move beyond it to a life where you are in the flow, where it does not matter what is around the next corner. Whereas the ego will stop you from living, being in the flow will allow you to experience opportunities you would never think possible."

As I thought I have allowed my ego to take me out of the flow. When I look at what has been happening such as the death of Stuie, and thinking about my own future I have allowed the fear of death and the fear of the future to creep into my own life. Time to have a chat to my ego and tell him kindly to piss off and open up to the flow that courses through all of us. Time to take my own advice and be open again to what the universe has to offer.

See you again soon.
Blessings and Peace and may the real you manifest what it needs, to take you where you need to go..

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


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 mid 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

In Memory of Stuart Wilde

In Memory of Stuart Wilde

I received news that my old friend Stuart Wilde passed away after a massive heart attack. I call him friend even though I have not seen him since about 1990. In the late eighties I was one of his support team on an experiential workshop called the Warrior's Wisdom. It was a weekend workshop where he taught us about mysticism and the way of the warrior. It was an amazing workshop, one I was lucky to support him on a couple of times. I loved the man like a father and yet in the short time that I spent with him I was changed forever. Many people just got to see Stuart Wilde the performer but it was Stuie the man that I will never forget.

There are many instances of the man, I loved, I could call to mind but one in particular occurred at the end of the Warrior's Wisdom weekend in Sydney Australia. As I previously stated I was one of the support team on the workshop. We were waiting for the participants to arrive, so we could guide them to their rooms where they were staying for the weekend or to the many resources spread around their accommodations. While we were waiting Stuie came up to me and asked how it was going. When I told him that everything was going fine he suggested that we not give them all the information they needed as it would help develop their perception. We laughed and over the next hour or so we sent people off into the forest to find their rooms, or in the opposite direction, some we even told that we could not help them as their names were not on the list. It was hilarious watching these so called spiritual people totally lose their shit. After that first episode the support team did support everyone in any way they possibly could.

Over the next three days I worked with and helped many people as they came to grips with what Stuart was teaching them. He was possibly the greatest showman I have ever seen. When he came on stage his manner and voice would capture an audience in seconds and leave them spellbound.

It was on the last night of the workshop where I got to see and experience the Stuie that I came to love and respect. We had just finished the fire-walk where over a 150 people walked on hot coals. The only people to be burnt were two of the support team (me included), we had seen the thermometer melt in the fire. Well anyway after the firewalk we had the closing ceremony. As usual I was at the back or out the back making sure that everything was running smoothly, when Stuart asked us to all to come in for the closing ceremony. I stood at the doorway ensuring that everyone had come in and then locked the door.

After talking to the group for a few minutes we did a meditation and Stuart called me over. Thinking that he needed something for the ceremony I went over and asked him what he wanted. He said he wanted me to join him in the middle of the circle. I was taken back and a little embarrassed as many eyes looked upon me. I sat as far away from him as I could but he insisted I come a little closer. I moved within a few feet of him and while everyone was getting ready for the meditation we had a lovely little chat (he was British after all). He had seen everything I had done for people over the last few days and it was his way of honoring me for the support I gave him.

I did a few more workshops with the old bugger and was even part of a circle who would gather weekly to listen to the teachings of his old Chinese teacher. One workshop which I will call the 33 Steps was a workshop about the 33 energies that guide this planet. I was awe struck and would spend the next twenty plus years working to understand the concepts. My upcoming book the Way of the Initiate is based on these teachings. In the book a young disfigured and disabled boy becomes the apprentice of an old sage and the book is written like a parable of their journey together. In many ways. I feel like it has been my own journey and Stuie was the old sage. Still, there is not a day that goes by that he is not teaching me something. I will miss the old bugger but for anyone who has met the real Stuie we will always have our memories.

Stuie may you rest in peace and give them hell wherever your journey takes you.

www.stuartwilde.com a place of real knowledge


 ************


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

The Way of the Initiate will be published mid 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