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Spiritual Exercise

Mole

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I have two spiritual gifts - I become entranced easily and I have a high response to stimulae.

And the two reinforce each other. So that in a trance my high response is released.

This causes me two social problems - the first is that we all entranced in various ways, but we are not aware we are in a trance.

And my second social problem is that very few have a high response to stimulae, and don't appreciate my high response.
 

Mole

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A Trance Designer

So I am surrounded by those in various stages of trance but don't recognise they are entranced.

For instance, there is the catholic trance, the protestant trance, the judaic trance, the islamic trance, the hindu trance, the movie trance, the trance of books, the TV trance, the internet trance, and the mbti trance.

And these are unconscious trances. To a large degree these trances are taken for granted.

So rather than taking my trances for granted, I want to design my own trances. I want to become a trance designer.
 

UniqueMixture

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Did you ever want anything outside the trance?
 

Mole

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Exquisitely Alive

As I move into my spiritual exercise, I run into my abreaction.

My first impulse is to avoid it. But I tell myself to listen even if it is disorientating and painful, because it is a way, the way, for me to become spiritually whole, to become wholesome, to integrate my whole self.

My second impulse is to externalise my abreaction, and seek to act it out in my everyday life. But acting out in everyday life is foolish and self defeating. So I need to experience my abreation without acting it out - easier said than done.

And although experiencing my abreaction is painful and disorientating, it leaves me feeling more alive - exquisitely alive.
 

Mole

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Not Knowing and Knowing

Yesterday sitting in the library I was approached by an involuntary trance.

At first I was afraid, then I looked this sinuous cat in the eyes and took her to the marble foyer of the library.

As the cat approached, I didn't know what to do. But I knew something profound was happening because I didn't know what to do.

And not knowing what to do, I became afraid. So I took my fear and my 'not knowing' into the large, airy, rather grand, marble foyer. And there I let myself sink further and further into not knowing what to do.

Soon my fear disappeared into the air and I became conscious of the things and even the people around me.

And it was though I was feeding an appetite, it was as though I had a hunger for not knowing.

But not knowing was only the door, the portal, to my deeper inner self that was asking, all by itself, to be fed.

So I fed my inner self in the grand, marble foyer of the library until I was satisfied, then I came back to knowing, refreshed and relaxed.
 

Mole

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Change

My external life is secure and ordered while I have an appetite for my inner life.

So far I have yet to achieve a balance between my external and inner lives.

I do have a spiritual exercise which I believe will teach me, accustom me, to balance my inner and outer.

And although I have worked out this exercise in detail, I am afraid to start.

I am afraid to start because it will change me. And at the moment I am a bit our of balance, but comfortable.

I will no doubt look for any excuse not to start. And perhaps looking for excuses and not starting is part of learning to change myself.

My mother changed me when I was a little baby and now I need to change myself.
 

Mole

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Today at mid-day, taking my life into my hands, no, taking my psyche into my hands, I began my spiritual exercise.

And I only dipped my toe in, to test the waters, and yes, there is a powerful flow. So I will proceed, day by day, slowly and cautiously, fully experiencing each moment of the exercise, and then allowing it to percolate into my life.

I will watch how it changes my view of others as it changes my view of myself. So rather than a room with a view, I have a spiritual exercise with a view - but a view to what? Who knows?
 

CzeCze

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Mod note - thread was posted in wrong category so I moved it to Fluff zone.

:edit: moved again
 
Last edited:

Qlip

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This is the first time that I've noticed that you speak without certainty and that you are applying the concept of change to yourself and not others exclusively. Interesting.
 

AgentF

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I have two spiritual gifts - I become entranced easily and I have a high response to stimulae.

And the two reinforce each other. So that in a trance my high response is released.

This causes me two social problems - the first is that we all entranced in various ways, but we are not aware we are in a trance.

And my second social problem is that very few have a high response to stimulae, and don't appreciate my high response.

the social problems reinforce each other as well. do you agree?

(for what it's worth, i have a high response rate and appreciate yours.)

and, there is a third problem that isn't a problem: as you explore your gifts, your awareness of the social problems deepens. and there isn't any way around that, apart from annihilation of whatever you think is 'you and the few.'

Yesterday sitting in the library I was approached by an involuntary trance.

At first I was afraid, then I looked this sinuous cat in the eyes and took her to the marble foyer of the library.

As the cat approached, I didn't know what to do. But I knew something profound was happening because I didn't know what to do.

And not knowing what to do, I became afraid. So I took my fear and my 'not knowing' into the large, airy, rather grand, marble foyer. And there I let myself sink further and further into not knowing what to do.

Soon my fear disappeared into the air and I became conscious of the things and even the people around me.

And it was though I was feeding an appetite, it was as though I had a hunger for not knowing.

But not knowing was only the door, the portal, to my deeper inner self that was asking, all by itself, to be fed.

So I fed my inner self in the grand, marble foyer of the library until I was satisfied, then I came back to knowing, refreshed and relaxed.

i had a recurring dream as a child, of a panther watching me from the lowest branch of a tree on our front lawn. as i slept, he kept watch over me with emerald eyes. he was strong and still, and had a ying/yang symbol emblazoned on his muscular side. in my dream i rested halfway on my bed near a window, my torso resting on the sill and one arm dangling into the night air.

he seemed as much a part of me as anything else. one watched, the other slept. much later i read the Martyrdom of St Perpetua with some interest, and of the panther who would not finish the work of the pagans or of the church.

Today at mid-day, taking my life into my hands, no, taking my psyche into my hands, I began my spiritual exercise.

And I only dipped my toe in, to test the waters, and yes, there is a powerful flow. So I will proceed, day by day, slowly and cautiously, fully experiencing each moment of the exercise, and then allowing it to percolate into my life.

I will watch how it changes my view of others as it changes my view of myself. So rather than a room with a view, I have a spiritual exercise with a view - but a view to what? Who knows?

another dimension! your posts are souvenirs. :hug:
 

Mole

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Yesterday I dipped in my toe, and today I went in up to my knees and I can feel the current pulling me. When I dive right in I think the current will carry me away. I don't think there is any point in swimming against such a strong current, but there is some pleasure in being swept away.

I can feel the exercise changing me, at one level exciting, and at another level soothing.

At the back of my mind I fear someone or something will stop me, but looking at it logically, I can see nobody or nothing will really stop me. Whoopee!
 

Mole

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the social problems reinforce each other as well. do you agree?

(for what it's worth, i have a high response rate and appreciate yours.)

and, there is a third problem that isn't a problem: as you explore your gifts, your awareness of the social problems deepens. and there isn't any way around that, apart from annihilation of whatever you think is 'you and the few.'

i had a recurring dream as a child, of a panther watching me from the lowest branch of a tree on our front lawn. as i slept, he kept watch over me with emerald eyes. he was strong and still, and had a ying/yang symbol emblazoned on his muscular side. in my dream i rested halfway on my bed near a window, my torso resting on the sill and one arm dangling into the night air.

he seemed as much a part of me as anything else. one watched, the other slept. much later i read the Martyrdom of St Perpetua with some interest, and of the panther who would not finish the work of the pagans or of the church.

another dimension! your posts are souvenirs. :hug:

I do like those with a high response.

And yes, I do agree the social problems reinforce one another, on the other hand as I move into the euphoria and relaxation of my daily spiritual exercise, the social problems do seem to recede into the distance.

And my totem animal is a black panther. So when you look out your lighted window into the dark tree outside, you will see only my eyes burning bright against the pitch black of my coat, keeping watch until dawn finally arrives.

So I am your black panther, le souvenir.
 

AgentF

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it is remarkable that your animal totem is a panther. when did that come to you? i've had that dream since i was a teen. i looked up the meaning of the panther totem and learned that it is, indeed, a protective symbol. it was also interesting to learn that individuals with a panther totem "are very intuitive, psychic, and many are artistically inclined" (interesting combination, in light of the occasional debate/debacle regarding the degree to which intuition and artistic sensibilities co-exist*).

there are a number of ways someone discovers his/her animal totem:


  • having an animal totem bestowed upon them by someone they know and trust, who has experience in the matter. a totem-giver.

i once knew a native american healer who had some rather surprising things to say about me and i would have loved to consult him on this, but he's disappeared somewhere. so i took the (rather ridiculous) test and was told my animal totem is a wolf or perhaps a deer.

what do you think about my wolf or deer totem? we have only interacted a few times, but i'd be curious to know your opinion, and whether another might be more apt. the panther is an interesting one for you. did you choose it or was it given to you? i enjoyed the cat metaphor in your other post...


p.s. i was shocked by the limited number of choices. my true animal totem is something more like this:




*guess what i did today? i read Drawing On The Right Side of The Brain. i only had time to analyze some of the techniques against a portrait i'm currently working on, but i loved what it had to say about drawing upside down, negative space and the beautiful mathematics and symmetry of the human form. and how our prejudices keep us from realizing our artistic potential. find and flip through this book next time you're at the library!
 

Mole

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it is remarkable that your animal totem is a panther. when did that come to you? i've had that dream since i was a teen. i looked up the meaning of the panther totem and learned that it is, indeed, a protective symbol. it was also interesting to learn that individuals with a panther totem "are very intuitive, psychic, and many are artistically inclined" (interesting combination, in light of the occasional debate/debacle regarding the degree to which intuition and artistic sensibilities co-exist*).

there are a number of ways someone discovers his/her animal totem:


  • having an animal totem bestowed upon them by someone they know and trust, who has experience in the matter. a totem-giver.

i once knew a native american healer who had some rather surprising things to say about me and i would have loved to consult him on this, but he's disappeared somewhere. so i took the (rather ridiculous) test and was told my animal totem is a wolf or perhaps a deer.

what do you think about my wolf or deer totem? we have only interacted a few times, but i'd be curious to know your opinion, and whether another might be more apt. the panther is an interesting one for you. did you choose it or was it given to you? i enjoyed the cat metaphor in your other post...

p.s. i was shocked by the limited number of choices. my true animal totem is something more like this:


*guess what i did today? i read Drawing On The Right Side of The Brain. i only had time to analyze some of the techniques against a portrait i'm currently working on, but i loved what it had to say about drawing upside down, negative space and the beautiful mathematics and symmetry of the human form. and how our prejudices keep us from realizing our artistic potential. find and flip through this book next time you're at the library!

There are three spiritual buildings in Manuka where I live. The first is the Catholic Cathedral; the second is the Anglican Cathedral; and the third is the Movie Theatre. And if truth be told, I worship in the Movie Theatre, and it was in the Movie Theatre that I fell in love with the black panther.

I can't make head nor tails of your wolf and deer totems - they seem to be a little at odds. Perhaps I could fancy your totum as a koala bear, or perhaps a platypus or even a wombat - although a potaroo seems to stand out.

And I'll look for the book, "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain".
 

AgentF

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they are at odds, aren't they? which makes sense to me.

i actually got to cuddle a koala once, in an animal preserve outside of sydney. very sweet, gentle, good-natured and with surprisingly strong claws. :) i do like a koala bear totem. thank you, victor.
 

Mole

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they are at odds, aren't they? which makes sense to me.

i actually got to cuddle a koala once, in an animal preserve outside of sydney. very sweet, gentle, good-natured and with surprisingly strong claws. :) i do like a koala bear totem. thank you, victor.

I understand there is a sweet, good-natured koala, just outside of Sydney, who says he cuddled Agent Furrina.
 

Lark

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Mod note - thread was posted in wrong category so I moved it to Fluff zone.

:edit: moved again

Are you sure this isnt Victor's blog? I mean I took it to be a blog when I read it, I dont think that trances are spiritual gifts and I dont understand the bit about response to stimulae.
 

Stanton Moore

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[MENTION=3325]Victor[/MENTION]: have you been reading about the attributes of 'giftedness'? You seem to possess several.
 

Mole

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[MENTION=3325]Victor[/MENTION]: have you been reading about the attributes of 'giftedness'? You seem to possess several.

Actually I have been reading about interval training. You know, where you exercise for a brief period then rest. And I discovered there are now many studies on the effectiveness of interval training and they all show it is effective across a wide range of fitness needs.

And it just happens that my spiritual exercise is physically like interval training but with a spiritual intent.

So I am encouraged to continue with my spiritual exercise, knowing though that it does have a very big effect on me. So I really need to learn to integrate it into my daily life.
 
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