manitou

Very best wishes to you, Jane - congratulations on finishing your book. I've written a couple and I know what it takes to sit down and actually do it. (Unfortunately, mine were extremely graphic police novels that had to get out of my system, LOL....they were never published, nor did they deserve to be.) But just having the tenacity to do that day by day is quite a feat. Hope you sell lots....

I would suspect that there is a form of reincarnation because of the continual elevation of our collective consciousness. I'm of the impression (please correct me if I'm wrong) that a baby born into these times has a different set of software than one born a thousand years ago. Is this not a type of reincarnation? I dabble in genealogy and I really suspect that any reincarnation that takes place would take place along DNA lines - only because this would be the most logical way for the spirits that Be to arrange it. I don't know so much about people who think they remember they were Cleo in a past life, tho...

This is just about the best example of why anyone decides to quit drinking who's an alkie. One day the tolerance is gone, and then it just doesn't work any more. We try a million different ways to go back to it 'working' - all the different liquor combinations and tricks that everyone's tried and failed - Most often it takes an act of extreme humiliation to drive one over the brink of anything as extreme as 'actually quitting drinking'. In my case I threw up outside my boyfriend's car 30 years ago and the wind blew it back in all over him. That's what it took for me. It didn't take being arrested (by my own police agency), not receiving promotions, or losing a marriage and family. For some reason it just took that one ugly event, above described. But some are truly more intelligent than others. My hat's off to anybody who doesn't have to ride the elevator to the bottom floor. We can get off on any floor. If anyone even wonders, please drag yourself to a couple meetings and see if there's anything there for you. At the very least, I guarantee you'll be surprised at what you hear. It's not what you think.

I think it's really easy to read the entire series and miss the essence of what it's about. The Castaneda path is the path to enlightenment; it goes up that hill - the same one we're all going up. One of the later books is entitled The Power of Silence. When you understand that metaphysically this aligns with the concept of Wu-Wei, surely folks here can relate to that. The Power of Silence (Wu-Wei) is understanding in your soul that when one stops the internal dynamic of one's own participation in something, it not only becomes visible and understandable, but it will resolve on its own if you just keep your hands off it. I can't really begin to describe this in words---maybe others here can. The warrior is the sage. I realized one day as I was looking at one of his book covers that all the covers of his books are cleverly symbolic and contain the lesson of what is inside the book. (Although I've seen some printings that don'e have the same pictures, but the series I have does). The onliest way to understand these, in my opinion (really chuckling out loud here) is to smoke a doobie and really activate your right brain to see them. Unless your really right-brain endowed already.

If CC lucid dreamed don Juan for the entire period of years, what's the difference? The information triangulates.

Best wishes to anyone trying a weaning off process. I tried that for so long I just about became a chemist. One scotch, then one club soda....ad infinitum. If someone is merely a 'heavy drinker' and truly doesn't have the 'ism' (or compulsive) part of the disease, this would no doubt work. It would only work for me for about 3 or 4 days. I think my first clue should have been when I started going through personality changes when I drank. If I was in a bar I never knew which personality would show up - the one who was combative and wanted to choose off everyone in the room - or the one who was a lover and would go home with someone's husband. I'd still be drinking today if life hadn't gotten so damn unpredictable. It was like living the Tao on steroids.

I'm thinking Christ was a shaman or one who knew how to move energy, if in fact he was a historical figure. His folks were Essenes, I think I read? Weren't they the ones who utilized earth magic? The whole concept of a God is such a migrating story in everyone's life, it seems. The concept most of us were handed as children is still alive and well in the part of the country I live in; the midwest. The refrains of "Onward Christian Soldiers" can almost be felt in the vibrations in the air. I find it curious that so many folks back here haven't evolved one iota from what they were taught in Sunday School. (Heck, they don't believe in evolution at all!) But, the interesting thing is that in their simplicity they are so very sure that they are the ones that will be saved in the end; they congregate together knowing that they're God's special children and they are tremendously involved in their church affairs, healings, potlucks, picnics, whatever. I see it as delusional (including my own extended family) and yet there is no denying that there are happy, warm little peas in a pod. These are the same folks who will fight to the death to make sure you don't have an abortion, and then fight to the death to make sure they don't have to pay a penny of health care for that same baby. This is a really interesting part of the country in some respects; they cling like crazy to the mores of yesterday - many men around here drive the same cars they had as kids in the 60's - all fixed up and tricked out. These people are desperately wanting to return to the simplicity of the 60's, and because this is such an incestuous little area where nobody ever moves away from home, their heads are still stuck in the 60's. This is a Tea Party area, which really drives me up the wall; but the really scary thing is that as a voting bloc these folks really have it together and work in unison; the churches seem to be the drawing place for political discussion. There's no denying that there's something inside us that wants to understand more than just what we see. I see this as the real proof of the central force, the God spirit. We're apparently hard-wired with the questions inside us and we're like moths to a flame trying to understand it. But people fashion in their own image what it is that they want to believe. If one is looking for nothing more than Comfort, then I guess Onward Christian Soldiers it is..... There's another part of me that fully understands this too. We used to have a house in Mexico for a few years; the simplicity of the peasant's Catholicism down there was actually very heart-touching. Their icons, their child-like trust in the Virgin - there was something quite beautiful in that too. They had so very little in the way of comforts in this world - and yet their blind faith in the virgin Mary and their religious habits certainly gave them a comfort for living day to day that most of us are missing up in the States. Maybe all this says is that it can be anything you need it to be. We who strive toward Enlightment find that we must walk away from the religions of our childhood and think for ourselves. But there's no denying that we're giving up something too, even if it's only the child-like assurance that everything will be wonderful in heaven once we get there. We must become realists; we must take responsibility for our own actions and our own problems. We must own them. However, the realization that everything is as it should be, once one truly internalizes that, is every bit as reassuring to me as it used to be when I thought about the rapture, back when I was a Krazy Kristian.

Marbles, there's no doubt in my mind that you were a fish in a prior life. You've got the art of being a fish 'down'.

I haven't heard anyone say yet why Mr. Castaneda was a fraud. Or was it don Juan Mateus who was the fraud? As for the suicide, are you referring to Florinda Donner-Grau who killed herself after he died?

CowTao, you are absolutely right here. I apologize to all, especially Veejay, for the stupid statement about him posting elsewhere. Veejay's posts are very knowledgeable and I stand corrected. My bad. Bad bumb. Bad.

Hi Aaron - one thing for sure is that there is a bolt for every nut in the AA meetings - as you well know! I turned into an absolute religious nut job after first finding AA - I'd been out in the 'desert' for so long without any nourishment at all. I certainly framed everything in my mind around a jesus framework for a few years. Then the evolution went elsewhere - into yogi philosophy; and then on and on. The steps as they're written aren't specific to any particular moral framework, even though in some places they refer to it as a moral inventory. In other places, they call it a personal inventory. That stuck in my craw a little bit at first too - but I did manage to get over it because I had to. The AA nomenclature can be a little outdated, due to the program was started in 1935 and much of the literature still has that corny sounding 1930's ring to it. But make no mistake, there is power in trying to dig out our character flaws so that our vision is clear. The way I look at it, the AA structure is one of the best and most expedient ways to do the inner work. It really doesn't take all that long, and then once the 'digging out' process has been put into motion, it remains in motion if you are earnest and sincere. (Let's hear a round of applause for Bill W. and Dr. Bob).

I've been thinking about this a lot lately. I've been a little up in the air for the last couple years because I wasn't sure I wanted to be living where I'm living. We've got a nice little house, a couple cars, and a trailer. But one part of me has been wanting to sell everything, return to California. In essence, totally upset the apple cart, and we're both in our mid to late 60's. Another (perhaps wiser, perhaps not) part of me has recently been asking What the Hell is Wrong with What You've Got???? Absolutely nothing! I'm trying to look at everything with new eyes. I'm starting to feel a little more settled since this changed mindset. We'll see how long it lasts.

I'm thinking this is also alluding to the Yin aspect of nature. The emptiness. Adapting this to our daily lives, I would say this is the dynamic (or non-dynamic) of wu-wei, the "do-nothingness" of using the Tao for the highest purpose. This is the quiescent, the receptive. This is the thing that dwells within and waits for the 10,000 things to rise and fall of their own accord, the perch from which we can observe everything with detachment. How to behave when you're nervous? Breathe, relax, do nothing and see what plays out. When you're angry? Do nothing and see what happens. When walking into a room full of strangers? Do nothing and let it come to you. It works every single time. Then, when addressed, we are genuine human beings not vibrating at an unnatural level; we are our genuine selves. Huge things are accomplished by the refined practice of do-nothing, but most people can't see them happening.

Actually, there is no reason to go to meetings ad infinitum, despite what some say. I've been sober 30 years and went faithfully for the first 10 or so. I never used a sponsor - I didn't want to hand my will over to anyone else at the time (my arrogance was the overriding thing at the time) But the steps are absolute awesome if they're worked earnestly. If they're not done earnestly they're a waste of time. For someone who has turned their life around from total anger and hatred to a life of great peace and joy there is no convincing me that a 12 step program is anything other than miraculous. My old man was a skid row wino in L.A. and today is one of the most spiritually evolved people I know. He's been sober 20 years. The way they dovetail with any of our paths is that the steps are a terrific clearing-house for the obstructions in our psychic chamber. Since a portion of time is spent searching out and writing about our own character defects, it starts the process of internal soul-searching that doesn't really come naturally for us on a daily basis, even if we're stellar people. It's not a brain thing. Most of us here are great thinkers. But working the steps is experiential, not cogitative. The 4th step (personal inventory) is PAINFUL. Relating your inventory to another human being is PAINFUL. It is humbling (not humiliating, humbling...) For many of us it is the first time we actually come face to face with ourselves and really realize that we've become fairly flawed as a result of our reactions to an imperfect world. We walk around with huge buttons on our chest, just waiting for somebody to push one, if we're using alcohol to mask the anger we walk around with. The men are separated from the boys on the amends process. Locating and making amends (sometimes financial, sometimes verbal) is, again...PAINFUL; an experience that truly brings you to your knees. Just thinking about these things is not sufficient. It must be physically done. This is the beginning of a type of self-realization for the alcoholic that can't be read in books. A higher power can be anything. If I were to describe mine, I guess it would be The Void. Or Love. I think they're interchangeable. Very best wishes to anyone contemplating checking those rooms out. I LOVE those rooms - where else can you see a sober skid road wino sharing his wisdom with a Fortune 500 CEO, and see the CEO in tears? You see everything in there. Someone mentioned alcoholism as being an allergy. Very well put. Actually, the way they describe it in those rooms is 'an allergy of the body coupled with an obsession of the mind'. Pretty much says it. I've always been of the belief that if one is on a spiritual path and runs into personal obstructions, the 12 step framework (in particular the inventory and amends steps) are a quick and powerful way to get that stuff out of your psyche. My experience with the program was wonderful. And the funny thing is that most, if not all, of those high-priced recovery places in Malibu and around the country all send their folks out the door with the caveat that they must protect their sobriety by attending 12 step meetings. Jeez, they might as well have just walked into a meeting in the beginning and saved their $20,000.00. That's what we all did before all these fancy places started springing up. But long live the cottage industry, I guess...

Dear friend - My husband and I have walked this path for years and this certainly has not been our experience. Please forgive me if I don't go to the trouble of researching his fraudulent work. My guess is that the path may not have worked for you if you weren't serious about recapitulating your life. That's where most people fall short. It's a personal inventory that purges one's character flaws and develops the warrior spirit; it breeds impeccability in one's actions and thoughts. It is also the very thing that frees us from the blockages that impede our clarity. But most folks don't want to bother with that - it's too hard and too time-consuming. Did you find that to be the case?

Hi Veejay - Have you ever given any consideration to posting on a Buddhist website? You'd have a lot to say to them. My 3rd eye experience is quite different than yours. I don't understand the 'dependent origination / emptiness with the insignts revealing perception past the theistic dimension of experience.' My third eye only enables me to triangulate and See the condition of souls as they pertain to the present circumstances they have created for themselves. Your third eye sounds like it's a lot further reaching. How in the world do you put it to use?

Well, then, you must be right.

Twinner - I was speaking more of the actual inventory and amends process in regards to achieving a degree of clarity. You know, the humbility thing.

Rats. I didn't think he looked wounded, only doing what my dog does gleefully on the rug. More of a joy of living thing? I really don't want an avatar that's been shot by Palin, LOL. If I get too many more comments of this nature, I guess I'll be changing him.....(This is really making me laugh.

LOL. I just realized how well matched my last comment was with my new avatar...

Thank you, Straw Dog, for bringing things back to basics. A man running along a path. Actually, I would say ambling down a path.

Also, most of us when we were young were brought up by the idea that "being good" (as determined by our parents or teachers or churches that we were dragged to) is an evaluation that is made by our superiors (parents, etc). It was something that was determined and outlined by others. To wear the Tao (and strengthen Te) the virtue we practice is one of our own determination, not the determination of others. Our model is the earth and the cosmos. Our model is the law of nature. And our model is the Sage. The words of another can be adopted or rejected as we see fit, because we are our own moral compass. I am "moral" because this is the best way to live. I've lived the other life. I've lived in immorality and selfishness when I was younger. This way is so much gentler, so much kinder, and so much more realistic.

If someone doesn't understand or denies the kundalini phenomenon it just means they aren't kundalini active. If they were kundalini active they would understand that there are not only electrical sensations, pulses, and tinglings that sit and try to untangle knots at the chakras (and other places which seem to make no sense at all), but more importantly there is the direct "seeing" that comes along with the K phenomenon. This goes to not only the development of a third eye (in which one ultimately becomes a seer) but also to the strange awareness that one's brain is somehow evolving into something different; that the thinking is expanded and the One-consciousness is the overriding thing. This awareness is there all the time and I've wondered if at some level there isn't an analogy or relationship between a K-active person's brain expanding and the universe expanding. After all, we're most likely the "creator"....

Fellow bums, I have The Importance of Living by Lin Yutang, written in 1937. Most everyone here will know Lin Yutang was a well-known Tao translator, and a prolific writer. This is the most endearing and engaging philosophical book, and I would like to share some of its contents with you. He seems to have the Tao philosophy intervowen into his thoughts and his humor. - Manitou APPROACH TO LIFE (PAGE 1) "The Chinese philosopher is one who dreams with one eye open, who views life with love and sweet irony, who mixes his cynicism with a kindly tolerance, and who alternately wakes up from life's dream and then nods again, feeling more alive when he is dreaming than when he is awake, thereby investing his waking life with a dream-world quality. He sees with one eye closed and with one eye opened the futility of much that goes on around him and of his own endeavors, but barely retains enough sense of reality to determine to go through with it. He is seldom disillusioned because he has no illusions, and seldom disappointed because he never had extravagant hopes. In this way his spirit is emancipated. For, after surveying the field of Chinese literature and philosophy, I come to the conclusion that the highest ideal of Chinese culture has always been a man with a sense of detachment (takuan) toward life based on a sense of wise disenchantment. From this detachment comes high mindedness, a high mindedness which enables one to go through life with tolerant irony and escape the temptations of fame and wealth and achievement, and eventually makes him take what comes. And from this detachment arise also his sense of freedom, his love of vagabondange and his pride and nonchalance. It is only with this sense of freedom and nonchalance that one eventually arrives at the keen and intense joy of living. It is useless for me to say whether my philosophy is valid or not for the Westerner. To understand Western life, one would have to look at it as a Westerner born, with his own temperament, his bodily attitudes and his own set of nerves. I have no doubt that American nerves can stand a good many things that Chinese nerves cannot stand, and vice versa. It is good that it should be so - that we should all be born different. and yet it is all a question of relativity. I am quite sure that amidst the hustle and bustle of American life, there is a great deal of wistfulness, of the divine desire to lie on a plot of grass under tall beautiful trees of an idle afternoon and just do nothing. The necessity for such common cries as "Wake up and live" is to me a good sign that a wise portion of American humanity prefer to dream the hours away. The American is after all not as bad as all that. It is only a question whether he will have more or less of that sort of thing, and how he will arrange to make it possible. Perhaps the American is merely ashamed of the word "loafing" in a world where everybody is doing something, but somehow, as sure as I know he is also an animal, he likes sometimes to have his muscles relaxed, to stretch on the sand, or to lie still with one leg comfortably curled up and one arm placed below his head as his pillow. If so, he cannot be very different from Yen Huei, who had exactly that virtue and whom Confucius desperately admired among all his disciples. The only thing I desire to see is that he be honmest about it, and that he proclaim to the world that he likes it when he likes it, that it is not when he is working in the office but when he is lying idly on the sand that his soul utters, "Life is beautiful."