Spirals of Response vs. Circles of Reaction October 15, 2009
Posted by cosmicsandbox in Cosmic Consciousness, Stress Relief, Unity and Oneness Consciousness.add a comment
The spiral shape tends to inspire feelings of openness, freedom and adventure. It appears full of possibility. The circle on the other hand, is a closed system. Whatever you start with you finish with, so there isn’t opportunity for new adventure or imagination.
Circles are very useful, however, which is why they are pervasive in our culture. We have countless variations of the wheel serving all manner of utilitarian purposes. Our Newtonian science is based on the circle of cause and effect, action and reaction in a continuous circle. We don’t seem to have much use for spirals on the material plane of life because it is open ended.
When we use the circle of reaction method in relationships with others and nature itself, it shows itself to be inadequate in dealing with the complexities of life. This is evident in all the conflicts in the world today, which are fueled by individuals and nations in continuous circles of reaction to each other. The old Hatfield’s and McCoy’s feud lives on in different costumes.
It seems to be time to use an expanded paradigm of thinking and relating to each other and the world at large. By opening the circle into a spiral, we give ourselves the opportunity to respond instead of react. What is the difference? REACT means ‘to act in return or opposition or towards a former state’ (like a circle). RESPOND means ‘to answer’ (more open).
Reactions are mostly automatic, like a knee-jerk reaction to stimulus. It is just “a happening”; and therefore, we don’t feel we have any control over it. However, in truth, we do have control and we do have a choice; but we don’t apply it to situations in which our buttons are pushed. Someone attacks us physically or verbally and a primal reaction is triggered. Our society has always condoned reacting by striking back in like kind– no questions asked.
Responding, or answering, on the other hand implies taking time between the initial action and the answer or response. This newly created time space offers opportunity for processing information by listening to the other. It lends a feeling of open-mindedness to consider various alternatives to raw reaction. We have time and space to possibly “walk in the other’s shoes” for a few moments, which would enable one to see a different point of view. This in turn could lead to an understanding of why the other did or said what they did. With understanding comes a space for cooperation, and even compassion in some cases.
A good example of responding is found in the practice of non-violent communication. which uses the “Jack in the Box” method of communication. This is how it works. You place your order at the drive-thru speaker box. Jack responds by repeating what you ordered. Then you respond by affirming whether or not they heard you right. If not, you continue the interaction until you know that Jack in the Box fully understands your order.
If Jack simply ‘reacted’ to your order by giving it to the cook without verifying it with you, your order could possibly be wrong about half of the time. Jack’s owners learned this early on and chose to respond instead of react. They didn’t want employees assuming they understood what the customer said. Assuming is a huge problem with reaction as it is based solely on one’s individual limited perception of the situation regardless of what others are saying or doing.
Do you agree that we need to learn how to change from circles of reaction to be able to flow into spirals of response? To be able to respond we must learn to listen to others with our heart instead of reacting to words with our biased minds. Try this simple exercise. Listen with your heart to your spouse, children, co-workers, fellow students for just one day. Don’t interrupt anyone by talking over them. Just listen. Take a breath. Wait and feel if you need to respond verbally. Many times you will find there’s no need to say anything. Simply by listening with your heart, they felt heard and seen. Your spiral of response has opened up an infinite world of possibilities.
HALLOWEEN – THE ULTIMATE COSTUME PARTY October 29, 2009
Posted by cosmicsandbox in Cosmic Consciousness, Energy Awareness, Religious commentary.Tags: Celts, death and dying, ghosts, good death, Halloween, persecution, Religion, spirits, witches
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Halloween is an offshoot of an ancient Celtic celebration called Samhein, meaning “summer”. Celebrated on October 31st, it marked the end of summer and the beginning of winter on November 1st which was also their New Year. The Celts populated most of Britain, Scotland, Ireland, France, Spain and Asia Minor around 800 B.C. They believed that on October 31st the veil that separated the living from the dead was the thinnest; and therefore, communication with the ancestors was easiest. Spirits crossed over the veil throughout the year, but it was much easier for them to materialize and move matter during the period of Samhein.
After Christianity spread all over Europe, Samhein was changed to All Hallows Eve. November 1st became All Hallows Day and later renamed All Saints Day. Hallows Eve eventually became Halloween.
It has only been since the 19th century that people stopped believing that deceased souls could continue to communicate with souls living on the physical plane. Everyone, up until that time, whether Christian or pagan, was immersed in the sacred and the mystical aspects of nature and the cosmos. They believed everyone was an eternal soul that followed nature’s pattern in the universal ‘birth, death, re-birth’ cycle of creation. They knew that nothing really ‘died” in the sense that it ceases to exist. It just changes form. Science has proven this to be true. However, instead of naming this essence ‘life’ or ‘soul/spirit’ they call it “energy”.
No matter how pervasive scientific theory has become, the sacred, mystical beliefs and practices haven’t died, but are still very much alive. They just change form like water that can become ice and steam. So whether one is living life from the ‘Outside’ in a physical costume on loan from the Cosmic Costume Store, or they’re living souly from the ‘Inside’ without the costume, they are still a living soul.
Prior to the Age of Reason most everyone believed communication with the other dimensions was possible and mostly beneficial. For example, experiences with angelic beings were common. Encounters with nature spirits filled mythologies and fairy tales that we enjoy today. However, after science became the ultimate authority, anything not measurable in a laboratory was considered unreal or unreasonable. This included anything mystical, spiritual or sacred. The established church reigned over the mystical and science ruled everything else.
Unfortunately, the established church at the time decided to demonize any unsanctioned interaction between the living and the dead, even to the point of killing anyone suspected of those ‘unholy practices’. Pagans of all types including herbalists were prosecuted. These judgments prevail today, but souls still come out to play on Halloween. You just can’t keep a good ghost down!
Humanity has known for thousands of years that light and dark, good and evil exist side by side. But since the scientific model took over we separated and judged what we couldn’t see with our eyes and measure or understand. Light was all good and dark was all bad. This view keeps us locked into an ‘either/or’ world of separation and division. These worlds don’t have longevity; but rather, they self-destruct because of the constant conflict that mind set generates. In reality it is a both/and universe, in which the light plays off the dark and vice versa. You can’t see the light without the dark. For example: no one can see a white dot on a white board! Simply put, without the play of opposites there would be no world.
How does all this relate to Halloween? It is a celebration of the dark and non-physical as being an integral part of the light and visible world. It is meant to teach the living how precious life in a physical costume is. Certainly, it is not always a bed of roses. Nevertheless, it is a fantastic ride, a grand ball worthy of our passion to dance till we drop.
As we too approach this winter season of dying, let’s open our minds and eyes to see beyond the veil to imagine what it might be like to not have a costume to play and dance on this physical plane. Listen for the music from the other side to appreciate every single dance step at this our ultimate costume party.