<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.blogger.com/styles/atom.css" type="text/css"?><feed xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:openSearch='http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/' xmlns:georss='http://www.georss.org/georss'><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879</id><updated>2010-02-08T10:32:45.785-08:00</updated><title type='text'>Parsbod</title><subtitle type='html'></subtitle><link rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/posts/default'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/'/><link rel='hub' href='http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/'/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email></author><generator version='7.00' uri='http://www.blogger.com'>Blogger</generator><openSearch:totalResults>16</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>25</openSearch:itemsPerPage><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879.post-3761174254518824887</id><published>2009-01-23T09:10:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-11-09T13:20:49.901-08:00</updated><title type='text'>Steps to Peace Consciousness</title><content type='html'>Steps to Peace Consciousness&lt;br /&gt;by Deepak Chopra&lt;br /&gt;chopra. com&lt;br /&gt;_______________________________&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;1. Change doesn't start on the surface. It's generated from consciousness. This has been true throughout history. If both Buddhism and Christianity could begin with one person, let us not think in terms of numbers and odds. It may sound grandiose to compare ourselves to great spiritual guides, but we act collectively, as an alliance. Our strength comes from critical mass.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;2. We aren't here to make the world evolve. We are here to evolve as individuals and then to spread that influence. In the wisdom tradition of Vedanta, the stream of evolution is known in Sanskrit as Dharma, from a root verb that means 'to uphold.' This gives us a clue how to live: the easiest way for us to grow is to align ourselves with Dharma. We don't have to struggle to grow--that would be unproductive, in fact. The Dharma has always favored non-violence. If we can bring ourselves to a state of non-violence, and connect with others who are doing the same thing, we have done a huge thing to reinforce Dharma.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;3. Societies get into the grip of their own self-created story. It's helpful to realize that we can choose not to participate in that story. Realize that national and tribal stories are limited, self-serving, based on the past, reinforced by orthodoxy, and therefore opposed to real change. Stories are incredibly persuasive. Wars are fueled by victimization that runs deep, for example. So let us not try to change anyone's story. Let us only notice and observe ourselves when we buy into it and then let us back away from participating in it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;4. Let us not demand of ourselves that we alone must be the agent of change. In a fire brigade everyone passes along a bucket, but only the last person puts out the fire. None of us know where we stand in line. We may be here simply to pass a bucket; we may be called on to play a major role. In either case, all we can do is think, act, and say. Let us direct our thoughts, words, and actions to peace. That is all we can do. Let the results be what they will be.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;5. Let us realize that engagement and detachment aren't opposite—the more engaged we become, the more detached we will have to be. Otherwise, we will lose ourselves in conflict, obsessiveness, anxiety over the future, and feelings of guilt and inadequacy. Keep in mind that we are pioneers into the unknown, and uncertainty is our ally. When our minds want closure, certainty, and finality, let us remind ourselves that these are fictions. Our joyous moments will come from riding the wave, not asking to get off at the next station.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;6. Since most misery is born of failed expectations let us learn to minimize expectations so that we will feel far less guilt and disappointment.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;7. We aren't here to be good or perfect. We are here as the antennas for signals from the future. We are here to be midwives to something that wants to be born. Good people have preceded us. They solved some problems and created others. As one wise teacher said, "You aren't here to be as good as possible. You are here to be as real as possible.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;8. I know this sounds difficult, but let us try to be tolerant of intolerance. This is a hard one at times, but if you try the opposite—showing a hard heart against those with hard hearts of their own—all we've done is expand the problem. It's helpful (but often difficult) to remember that everyone is doing the best they can form their own level of consciousness. Trying to talk a terrorist out of his beliefs is like trying to persuade a lion to be a vegetarian. All we can realistically do is seek openings for higher awareness.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;9. Let us resist the lure of dualities. These include us versus them, civilized versus barbarians, good versus evil. The good, civilized people of Europe managed to kill millions of themselves, along with millions of "them." In reality we are all in the same boat of human conflict and confusion. Sometimes it helps to admit that the doctor is not far from being a patient.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;10. Let's create an atmosphere of peace around ourselves. Imagine that we are like a mother whose children come home crying about fights at school. Would it be her job to soothe their wounds or to arm them for fighting back tomorrow? Simplistic as it may sound, the male principle of aggression can only be healed by the feminine principle of nurturing and love.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6515877230980466879-3761174254518824887?l=www.parsbod.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/3761174254518824887/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6515877230980466879&amp;postID=3761174254518824887' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/3761174254518824887'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/3761174254518824887'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/2009/01/steps-to-peace-consciousness.html' title='Steps to Peace Consciousness'/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='11597099461640617082'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879.post-1022224830317355247</id><published>2009-01-22T07:31:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-01-22T07:33:42.137-08:00</updated><title type='text'>rejection cause of aggression</title><content type='html'>Visit &lt;a href="http://psychologyforum.us"&gt;the psychology forum&lt;/a&gt; for discussion sbout any topic here&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Rejection Can Trigger Aggression&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Rejection Can Trigger AggressionPeople who feel socially rejected are more likely to see others’ actions as hostile and are more likely to behave in hurtful ways toward people they have never even met.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The findings stem from a new study that may help explain why social exclusion is often linked to aggression – which sometimes boils over dramatically, as in the case of school shootings, for example.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“Prior case studies show the majority of school shooters have experienced chronic peer rejection,” said the study’s lead author, C. Nathan DeWall, Ph.D., from the University of Kentucky.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“And while not everyone who feels rejected reacts violently, we found they tend to act out aggressively in other ways. We wanted to help explain psychologically why this happens.”&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A full report of the study appears in the January issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, published by the American Psychological Association.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;DeWall conducted four separate experiments with 190 participants, all college students.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In one experiment, 30 participants completed a personality test and were given bogus feedback about the results. A third of the participants, the excluded group, were told their personalities would mean they would probably end up alone later in life. The rest of the participants, the control group, were either told they would have many lasting and meaningful relationships or were given no feedback at all.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;All participants were then instructed to read a personal essay supposedly written by another participant, whom they did not know. The essay was about an event in which the author’s actions could be perceived as either assertive or hostile and the participants rated their impression of the author’s actions.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;They were also told that the author was up for a research assistant position and were asked whether they thought the author would be a good candidate, based on what they had read.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Participants who were told they were going to have a lonely life perceived the author’s actions as significantly more hostile and gave a much more negative evaluation than those in the control groups.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The authors also note that the participants’ moods did not seem to differ among the different groups, which led them to conclude that the participants’ emotional response to their personality results did not play a role in how they performed in the experiments.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In another experiment, 32 students underwent the same bogus personality evaluation and rated the same essay from the previous experiment. Again, some were told they would lead a lonely life while others were assigned to the control groups.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This time, participants were led to believe they were playing a reaction-time computer game with another person in the lab whom they could not see and had never met. During the game, the loser of each trial was forced to listen to a blast of white noise through headphones. The participants could set the noise’s intensity level and duration.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Those who were told they were going to have a lonely life blasted a higher level of the painful noise than those in the control groups. “Across all experiments, the participants who experienced some form of social rejection acted in similar ways,” said DeWall.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“This suggests these people feel betrayed by others. In turn, they see otherwise neutral actions as hostile and behave badly towards others.”&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Prior research has examined whether emotions play a role in this type of aggression, but this study’s researchers say their findings do not support this idea.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“Excluded people see the world through blood-colored glasses and it is our hope that this research can lead to a better understanding of why rejection causes aggression and what we can do to prevent such unwanted and harmful behavior,” said DeWall.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6515877230980466879-1022224830317355247?l=www.parsbod.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/1022224830317355247/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6515877230980466879&amp;postID=1022224830317355247' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/1022224830317355247'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/1022224830317355247'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/2009/01/rejection-cause-of-aggression.html' title='rejection cause of aggression'/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='11597099461640617082'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879.post-7472395984106141018</id><published>2009-01-17T04:58:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-01-17T05:00:32.429-08:00</updated><title type='text'>Placebo Treatment in Depressed Adolescents</title><content type='html'>Please visit &lt;a href="http://psychologyforum.us"&gt;http://psychologyforum.us&lt;/a&gt; for discussion about any topic here.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Placebo Treatment in Depressed Adolescents&lt;br /&gt;By Rick Nauert, Ph.D.&lt;br /&gt;     &lt;br /&gt;Placebo Treatment in Depressed AdolescentsIn a national clinical trial, adolescents with moderate to severe depression first given a placebo treatment and then an antidepressant medication — alone or in combination with psychotherapy — responded just as well over the long term as participants who received active treatment throughout the study.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers found that at the end of nine months, children and teenagers first given placebo treatment for 12 weeks and then given active treatment had a response rate of 82 percent, compared to an 83 percent response rate for participants who received active treatment for the entire period.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The study, available in the online advance edition of The American Journal of Psychiatry, is the first to address whether delaying effective treatment for adolescents assigned to initial treatment with a placebo group is ethical in research, said Dr. Betsy Kennard, associate professor of psychiatry at UT Southwestern and lead author of the study.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“We don’t want to put children and teenagers in any treatment that’s harmful, and this shows that these adolescents were well cared for and went on to do just as well as the teens who initially received active treatments,” Dr. Kennard said.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“Without placebo groups, it’s difficult to determine the efficacy of a treatment. Now we’ve shown scientifically that these trials are safe and effective. We do well by these kids.”&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Dr. Kennard did the research as a secondary analysis in the Treatment for Adolescents with Depression Study (TADS).&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;TADS, led by Dr. John March of Duke University Medical Center, treated 439 adolescents ages 12 to 17 from 13 sites across the country with moderate to severe major depressive disorder. About 50 patients were treated at UT Southwestern.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The main study found that 12 weeks of treatment with a combination of antidepressant medication and cognitive-behavioral therapy (a talking therapy that addresses thinking and behavior patterns to modify depressed mood) was better than cognitive-behavioral therapy alone or placebo treatment.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Dr. Kennard then analyzed what happened to those children in the placebo group. For 12 weeks, placebo participants received education, 30 to 45 minutes with a psychiatrist, supportive care and clinical management, just like those in the active treatment groups. They also received a pill placebo. About 35 percent of the participants got better from this approach alone.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“Placebo can be misconstrued as if it’s a bad thing,” Dr. Kennard said. “These adolescents received quite a bit of clinical care, and for some of them, that was enough to help them get well. If at any time a child started to do worse, we would change their treatment no matter what group they were in.”&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;After 12 weeks, most of the 65 percent of the children who did not initially respond to the placebo chose to then receive medication alone or medication combined with cognitive- behavioral therapy.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Researchers evaluated related effects such as risk of harm, suicidal events, uses of outside treatment and dropout rates to see if the placebo group patients fared worse.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“In terms of every possible way that we could look at the patients, adolescents first given placebo treatment performed as well or had as positive a response as those given other treatment for the entire 36 weeks,” Dr. Kennard said. “So it’s OK to consider participating in research, even in a controlled study, because in a well-conducted trial, you receive a considerable amount of clinical care, and there is quite a bit of oversight.”&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Dr. Kennard, with Dr. Graham Emslie, professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at UT Southwestern, is currently doing research that employs a cognitive-behavioral therapy developed at UT Southwestern that was shown in a pilot study to reduce significantly depression relapse rates in adolescents.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The study was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6515877230980466879-7472395984106141018?l=www.parsbod.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/7472395984106141018/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6515877230980466879&amp;postID=7472395984106141018' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/7472395984106141018'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/7472395984106141018'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/2009/01/placebo-treatment-in-depressed.html' title='Placebo Treatment in Depressed Adolescents'/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='11597099461640617082'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879.post-8195306680877133084</id><published>2009-01-07T04:19:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-01-07T04:20:06.816-08:00</updated><title type='text'>tolerance</title><content type='html'>Please visit &lt;a href="http://psychologyforum.us"&gt;http://psychologyforum.us&lt;/a&gt; for discussion about any topic here.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You have the power &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;to tolerate anyone and any situation.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;But tolerance is not just suffering in silence.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It means going beyond &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;any personal discomfort you may feel,&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;and giving a gift to whomever &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;you would tolerate.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Give your time, attention, &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;understanding, compassion, care - &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;all are gifts, which paradoxically,&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;you also receive &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;in the process of giving.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And, as you do, &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;you will experience &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;your own self esteem and inner strength grow.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In this way &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;you can turn tolerance&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;into strength.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6515877230980466879-8195306680877133084?l=www.parsbod.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/8195306680877133084/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6515877230980466879&amp;postID=8195306680877133084' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/8195306680877133084'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/8195306680877133084'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/2009/01/tolerance.html' title='tolerance'/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='11597099461640617082'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879.post-448174716866359727</id><published>2009-01-07T04:17:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-01-07T04:18:41.691-08:00</updated><title type='text'>a knot of light</title><content type='html'>Please visit &lt;a href="http://psychologyforum.us"&gt;http://psychologyforum.us&lt;/a&gt; for discussion about any topic here.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Imagine twisting a beam of light into a knot, as if it were a piece of a string. Now grab another light beam and tie it around the first, forming its own loop. Tie on another and another, until all of space is filled up with loops of light.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Sounds preposterous, but a pair of physicists has shown that light can do just this — at least in theory. Visible light, along with all other forms of electromagnetic radiation, is governed by Maxwell’s equations, and the researchers have found a new solution to these equations in which light forms linked knots. The team is now working to create light in this form experimentally.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It’s too soon to know what the applications of knotted light will be if they succeed, but possibilities include solving one of the problems that make it difficult to produce power from nuclear fusion and manipulating flows in an exotic state of matter called a Bose-Einstein condensate.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Hopf Fibration&lt;br /&gt;The Hopf fibration fills all of space with circles.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“This is very exciting,” says Antti Niemi of Uppsala University in Sweden, who is unaffiliated with the research. “If an observation is made where one sees stable knots in light, that would also tell us a lot about the mysteries of fundamental forces that we still do not understand.&lt;br /&gt;”&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The story begins with a mathematical discovery in 1931. Heinz Hopf found a way of filling up all of space with circles. (More precisely, he made a map from the analogue of a sphere in four dimensions to the circle.) He started with a donut shape, which mathematicians call a torus. He imagined taking a piece of string and wrapping it smoothly around the torus so that the string passes through the “donut hole” once and around the outside once as well. Enough pieces of string placed alongside this first one could cover the entire surface of the torus.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Now he just had to fill all of space with tori. He packed them like Russian dolls, extending forever both inward and outward from the starting torus. The smallest torus would be so skinny that it would simply be a circle. The biggest torus would be so fat that the “donut hole” on the torus wouldn’t be a hole at all — it would form a line extending up so far that its two ends would meet only “at infinity.” By filling space with tori and covering tori with circles, Hopf put every point in space on some circle.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Another VIew&lt;br /&gt;A different view of the Hopf fibration.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Mathematicians were excited about Hopf’s discovery (called the “Hopf fibration”) because it showed that high-dimensional spheres were more complex than imagined. But it wasn’t until 20 years ago that physicists realized the Hopf fibration had implications for electromagnetism: Antonio Fernández-Rañada of Complutense University in Madrid used the Hopf fibration to create a new solution to Maxwell’s equations, and thus an example of how electromagnetism can work. He was in search of a way to build a quantum theory for light without using quantum mechanics. He used the Hopf fibration, but did not consider whether, in an experiment, light could actually be forced to follow the circular paths.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;William Irvine of New York University and Dirk Bouwmeester of the University of California, Santa Barbara stumbled across Rañada’s work around 10 years ago and realized that it might describe a form light could actually take. “The main thing we did is that we took this solution seriously,” Irvine says. The pair figured out how to turn Rañada’s solution into something that might conceivably be produced in the laboratory.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Irvine and Bouwmeester show theoretically that the shape the light rays formed would distort over time, with the individual torus shapes becoming twisted and misshapen. The individual loops the light would follow would also grow larger over time.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In special situations, however, the loops might be stable, such as if light travels through plasma instead of through free space. One of the problems that has plagued experimental nuclear fusion reactors is that the plasma at the heart of them moves faster and faster and tends to escape. That motion can be controlled with magnetic fields, but current methods to generate those fields still don’t do the job. If Irvine and Bouwmeester’s discovery could be used to generate fields that would send the plasma in closed, non-expanding loops and help contain it, “that would be extremely spectacular,” Bouwmeester says.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Rañada, whose work Bouwmeester and Irvine expanded upon, is excited about their discovery. “They’ve done outstanding work,” he says, “which most probably will have some surprising consequences.&lt;br /&gt;”&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6515877230980466879-448174716866359727?l=www.parsbod.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/448174716866359727/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6515877230980466879&amp;postID=448174716866359727' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/448174716866359727'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/448174716866359727'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/2009/01/knot-of-light.html' title='a knot of light'/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='11597099461640617082'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879.post-1125345931511640169</id><published>2008-09-30T23:10:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2008-09-30T23:13:47.739-07:00</updated><title type='text'>synchronicity</title><content type='html'>CATCHING THE BUG OF SYNCHRONICITY&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;By Paul Levy&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Synchronicities are those moments of “meaningful coincidence” when the boundary dissolves between the inner and the outer. At the synchronistic moment, just like a dream, our internal, subjective state appears, as if materialized in, as and through the outside world. Touching the heart of our being, synchronicities are moments in time in which there is a fissure in the fabric of what we have taken for reality and there is a bleed through from a higher dimension outside of time. Synchronicities are expressions of the dreamlike nature of reality, as they are moments in time when the timeless, dreamlike nature of the universe shines forth its radiance and openly reveals itself to us, offering us an open doorway to lucidity.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Synchronicity was one of Jung’s most profound yet least understood discoveries, in part because it cannot be appreciated until we personally step into and experience the synchronistic realm for ourselves. Jung’s discovery of synchronicity was in a sense the parallel in the realm of psychology to Einstein’s discovery of the law of relativity in physics. Because it is so radically discontinuous with our conventional notions of the nature of reality, the experience of synchronicity is so literally mind-blowing that Jung contemplated this phenomenon for over twenty years before he published his thinking about it. Jung’s synchronistic universe was a new world view which embraced linear causality while simultaneously transcending it. A synchronistic universe balances and complements the mechanistic world of linear causality with a realm that is outside of space, time and causality. In a synchronicity, two heterogeneous world-systems, the causal and acausal, interlock and interpenetrate each other for a moment in time, which is both an expression of while creating in the field an aspect of our wholeness to manifest. The synchronistic universe is beginning-less in that we are participating in its creation right now, which is why Jung calls it “an act of creation in time.&lt;br /&gt;”&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;To illustrate what he meant by the word synchronicity, Jung brings up an experience he shared with a patient of his. This particular patient was very caught in her head, and the analysis was seemingly going nowhere. She was stuck, trapped in the self-created prison of her own mind. Jung realized there was nothing he could do. In Jung’s words, “I had to confine myself to the hope that something unexpected and irrational would turn up, something that would burst the intellectual retort in which she had sealed herself.” She had an impressive dream the night before, in which someone offered her a golden scarab – a valuable piece of jewelry. At the moment she was telling Jung the dream, there was a tapping on the office window. Jung opened up the window and a scarabaeid beetle, whose gold-green color closely resembles that of a golden scarab, flew into the room. Jung caught the beetle in his hand, handed it to her and said “Here is your scarab.&lt;br /&gt;”&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The shock of recognition in the synchronistic moment, in which Jung’s patient realized her dream of the previous night was being both literally and symbolically enacted in her waking life, pierced through her resistance and cracked her defensive shell wide open. At the moment of synchronistic transmission, a fundamental shift in perception took place within her which inwardly transformed her and made her receptive in a new way. From that point on, Jung commented, “The treatment could now be continued with satisfactory results.&lt;br /&gt;”&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There was no conventional, linear causal link between the patient’s dream and the beetle tapping on the window the next day. But there was clearly an equivalence and meaningful connection between the two co-related events which was not based on linear causality In addition, the patient, as an active, egoic agent in space and time, didn’t cause or create the synchronicity, which was acausal and happened of its own accord. And yet, in some mysterious way, the beetle tapping on the window was intimately related to her.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;To quote Jung, “Synchronicity is no more baffling or mysterious than the discontinuities of physics. It is only the ingrained belief in the sovereign power of causality that creates intellectual difficulties and makes it appear unthinkable that causeless events exist or could ever exist. But if they do, then we must regard them as creative acts, as the continuous creation of a pattern that exists from all eternity, repeats itself sporadically, and is not derivable from any known antecedents.” This quote by Jung has an interesting footnote which adds the following, “Continuous creation is to be thought of not only as a series of successive acts of creation, but also as the eternal presence of the one creative act.&lt;br /&gt;”&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Synchronicities are cystallizations in linear time of a nonlinear, acausal, atemporal process, windows into the realm outside of time and space, a world in which we ourselves are active participants in and of “the one creative act.” Synchronicities are both timeless and temporal, which is to say they are possessed of a double nature with regard to time. Synchronicities can be deeply religious and mystical experiences, expanding our sense of who we imagine we are and transforming our intimate relationship with ourselves.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Synchronicities are expressions of the dreamlike nature of reality - like with Jung’s patient, our night dreams can manifest in our waking life, but also in the sense that, just like with our dreams at night, our inner process is given shape to through the seemingly outer world. In a night dream, the seemingly outer dreamscape is synchronistically reflecting the internal psyche of the dreamer, as the dream is not separate from the inner world but is nothing other than the psyche within apparently externalized. There is an instantaneous correspondence between the inner and outer worlds not because they are two separate dimensions that are communicating faster than the speed of light, but because they are inseparably united as one seamless, already unified, whole continuum.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Being unmediated manifestations of the dreamlike nature of reality, we can interpret synchronicities just like we would interpret a dream. Mythologically speaking, a scarab is an archetypal symbol which represents, as in ancient Egypt, death/rebirth and transformation. Gold symbolically represents the highest value. Being offered a golden scarab in both her night and waking dreams was a form of synchronistic notarization by the archetype, highlighting its arrival on the scene. The synchronicity was an expression of - as well as the doorway through which - Jung’s patient was personally enacting an archetypal process of the renewal of consciousness. The synchronicity bore the stamp of the excited archetype, revealing to her and making real in time that she was actually taking part in a timeless, mythic drama of death and rebirth. Catapulting her out of the limited frame of reference of the conceptual mind, the synchronistic moment helped her access a deeper part of herself, as well as re-connecting her to the universe at large in which she lived.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Synchronicities are both the vehicle through which and an expression of the fact that we are waking up to the dreamlike nature of the universe. Being genuine wake up calls from the awakened part of ourselves, synchronicities are emanations of the part of ourselves that is waking up projected into time.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;What I call the “deeper, dreaming Self,” is the part of us that is the dreamer of both our night and waking dreams. Being “nonlocal,” which is to say not bound by the conventional laws of space and time, as well as being multi-dimensional, the deeper, dreaming Self can simultaneously express itself through inner experiences such as inspirations and dreams as well as by attracting events in the seemingly outer world so as to coagulate itself in embodied form.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The deeper, dreaming Self was simultaneously the dreamer of the golden scarab in the patient’s night dream, the inspiration for her to tell Jung the dream in their session, the source of the beetle which was tapping on the window at exactly the right moment, the impulse which animated Jung to open the window, catch the beetle, offer it to his patient and say what he said, as well as the patient’s inner, revelatory experience of transformation which was the result. Being multi-faceted and multi-channeled, the deeper, dreaming Self nonlocally arranged all these dimensions enfolded within the field into a singular psycho-physical experiential gestalt in which the oneness of spirit and matter became visible.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Interestingly, the synchronicity with Jung and his patient was an experience in which Jung himself played an active, participatory role. As the synchronistic moment was irrupting into time, he found himself dreamed up by his patient to pick up and play out a role in her dreaming process. At the moment of synchronicity, Jung went from passively sitting in the audience hearing about her process to being drafted into the act and stepping into a scene in the play of his patient’s mind. Not merely witnessing his patient’s synchronicity, he found himself spontaneously enacting it with her, playing his part and saying his lines perfectly, as if sent by central casting. In offering her the precious jewel of a golden scarab symbolizing death and rebirth, Jung spontaneously found himself being an open instrument for the synchronistic universe to manifest itself through him into materialized form and express itself in our world.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Jung and his patient were reciprocally collaborating in dreaming up their shared synchronistic event together. They became “quantum entangled,” interdependently and inseparably merged in the co-creation of each other’s synchronicity. The synchronicity was not monopolized by Jung’s patient, as it didn’t solely belong just to her. Participating in his patient’s synchronicity, Jung was at the same time just as much having a living experience in and of his own synchronicity. Even though the synchronicity was a reflection of his patient’s inner landscape, it was simultaneously a synchronistic reflection of a deeper process taking place within Jung, too. For Jung to be hearing a patient’s dream of a golden scarab and to have a golden scarab fly into his office was an externalized, synchronistic reflection of the archetypal process of death and rebirth which was happening inside of him. It is noteworthy that a synchronistic event can collectively reflect and be mutually shared by more than one person in both similar and singularly unique ways.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;To experience a synchronistic event is to necessarily be changed at our core. No one could have convinced Jung’s patient that her synchronistic experience should be dismissed as a mere coincidence, as she had an inner knowing of its meaningfulness due to how it transformed her. She no longer lived in a dis-enchanted universe.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Synchronicities by their very nature demand our active participation, as they are not something we can just passively watch and remain unaffected by. Imbued with a deeper fragrance of meaning, a synchronistic event is a revelation which contains within it a potency to insinuate itself into our very being and alter us from within. Synchronicities can transform us on a cellular level, as they are crystallizations into and out of the space of consciousness itself that have form-ulated themselves into our dimension as an expression of the part of us that is already awakened. Synchronicities inherent revelatory nature is ultimately offering us the realization that we are playing an active, participatory and hence, co-creative role in the unfoldment of the universe.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Registering the revelation embedded in the synchronistic moment is to necessarily have an expansion of consciousness, as the lens through which we view, interpret and place meaning on the nature of our experience has broadened by and through the very synchronicity itself. Because it is rich in the nutrient of meaning, a synchronistic event affects and deepens our state of awareness and perception, which is another way of saying that synchronicities are expressions of consciousness itself. Just like symbols in a dream, synchronicities do not exist objectively, separate from our own mind.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Synchronistic moments feel like grace, as they induce in us the feeling that we are right where we are supposed to be. Being numinous, synchronicities have a strong feeling component and emotional charge, which is both an expression of while simultaneously flowing into, influencing and altering the surrounding field of consciousness. A manifestation of the field as a whole, synchronicities are a field phenomenon, and to receive their full blessing we need to relate to them as such. Synchronicities are a reflection of the deeper, underlying nonlocal field of consciousness waking up to itself through us. The gift of synchronicity cannot be realized from the point of view which imagines we exist as a separate person who is “other” than the field in which we are arising. Jung and his patient’s shared synchronistic event was a living experience of being connected to something greater than themselves. Synchronicities are acute outbreaks of the archetypal, collective mind-field crystallized into our personal sphere through the third-dimensional medium of time and space.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Synchronicities are glimpses of transcendental unity, what in Latin is called the “unus mundus,” the one world. The unus mundus is the unitary and unifying realm which underlies, pervades and contains all dimensions of our experience. The unus mundus, just like the deeper, dreaming Self, is a psycho-physical reality, a universe beyond time and outside of space in which psyche and matter are inseparably co-joined as interconnected parts of a deeper, unified field. The unus mundus is a world in which we have already woken up. It is a realm beyond duality, beyond the opposites, beyond even the concept of beyond. In the unus mundus, opposites like matter and psyche form the outer and inner aspects of the same transcendental reality. Revealing its designs through events in the outer world as well as the psychic landscape within, the unus mundus is actualizing itself in time as we divine our wholeness through the synchronistic clues encoded within the fabric of experience itself.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Paradoxically, synchronicities are a living, unmediated materialization of our unconscious, while simultaneously being a nonlocalized manifestation of the part of us that’s waking up into a more expanded consciousness. Like a genuine symbol, synchronicities are utterances of the soul, as they contain, are an expression of and unite the opposites. Synchronicities are soul-making in action.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;ARCHETYPES&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Synchronicities occur when we step out of the personal dimension of our experience and access what is called the archetypal dimension of experience. If we are absorbed in and identified with the person-alistic perspective, we person-alize our experience, imagining we exist as a separate person isolated from the space around us. We thus become entranced into a particularized point of view which develops a seemingly autonomous life of its own and becomes a self-reinforcing feedback loop, a true “self” fulfilling prophecy. To become identified with the fixed reference point of the separate self limits our freedom, entraps our creative potency and hinders our compassion. To the extent we recognize the dreamlike nature of our situation, however, we step out of a person-alistic and reductive viewpoint based on linear causality (i.e., the perspective of the illusory skin-encapsulated ego) into a more archetypal perspective in which we find ourselves playing roles in an eternal, mythic and divine drama of incarnation.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The synchronicity with Jung’s patient was revealing something not just about her inner, personal process, but was a revelation of a deep, archetypal process which exists within the collective unconscious itself. The synchronicity was simultaneously revealing a dynamic which is both personal and collective – it is at the moment of being truly deadlocked that a deeper archetypal dynamic within the psyche becomes activated and nonlocally expresses itself synchronistically in and through the canvas of the seemingly outer world, as well as within ourselves. To quote Jung, “The patient with the scarab found herself in an ‘impossible’ situation because the treatment had got stuck and there seemed to be no way out of the impasse…It is this kind of situation that constellates the archetype with the greatest regularity.” What is true individually is also true collectively - when we, as a species, find ourselves in an “impossible” situation with no exit plan, it is this very kind of dilemma which constellates the healing and revelatory archetypal realm to become synchronistically activated.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Though it sounds like a big, fancy word, an “archetype” is something we all experience and know intimately from the inside. Indefinable, an archetype is like a psychological instinct or informational field of influence which patterns our psyche, our experience of the world around us and how we experience ourselves. Jung calls archetypes “typical modes of apprehension.” An archetype is like the underlying grid-line or blue print which in-forms and structures how we perceive, interpret and respond to our experience.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The personal dimension literalizes our experiences, while the archetypal dimension symbolizes, mythologizes and dreams into our experiences with the utmost creative imagination. Archetypes are the image-making factor in the psyche, informing and giving shape to the images in our mind and the dreams of our soul, and as such, they insist on being approached imaginatively.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;When an archetype gets activated within us, it nonlocally constellates itself outwardly in the surrounding field. Conversely, when an archetype is activated in the seemingly outer field, it simultaneously constellates and is a synchronistic reflection of the same activated archetype within ourselves. An activated archetype’s magnetic field-of-force orders and organizes the entire field to synchronistically re-arrange itself so as to embody the archetype “in form.” The archetype is thus pure inform-ation. Archetypes nonlocally exert their in-forming influence through the frictionless and super-fluid medium of the collective unconscious itself. The archetypal, synchronistic realm vaporizes illusory boundaries – revealing spirit - and builds bridges which mediate and connect the inner and the outer, the conscious and the unconscious, and dreaming and waking.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Synchronicities occur at times of deep archetypal excitation in the field, which is to say moments of crisis, transition, creative tension and dynamic intensity. The archetype that gets activated by the field precipitates itself into the field as a synchronistic expression of the very field which activated it. Periods of disturbance in our world are both a manifestation of and trigger for a corresponding archetype in the collective unconscious of humanity to draw to itself everything it needs to synchronistically render itself visible in form. Times of distress, both individually and collectively, catalyze a deeper, self-regulating and healing archetypal process to awaken within the human psyche which simultaneously expresses itself throughout the whole universe.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There is a profound and intimate synchronistic correlation between what is happening deep within the collective unconscious of humanity and what is playing out collectively on the world stage. Just like a dream, whatever we are unconscious of gets dreamed up and out-pictured &lt;br /&gt;When a formless archetype of the collective unconscious is at the point of becoming conscious and incarnating, it has an energetic charge that will seize people, get them in its grip and compel them to act itself out so as to give shape and form to itself. What we are unconscious of and don’t remember, we act out in the outside world.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Like the underlying, invisible axial system is the skeleton of an emerging crystal, the archetypes of the collective unconscious in-form, pattern and structure our unconscious itself. The inner archetypal dimension is revealing itself by influencing and animating our unconscious, causing us to act out and give shape to the archetypal realm in the world theater. This is happening both individually and collectively on the world stage.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Archetypes can possess individuals or whole nations. Archetypes bedazzle consciousness in such a way that it becomes blind to its own assumed standpoint. When an archetype takes over a person, group or nation, they can be said to be the incarnation or the revelation of the formless, transpersonal archetype in human form, as they synchronistically em-body and mirror back to us this archetypal dynamic which exists deep inside of all of us. When the archetypal realm incarnates, something of the eternal, imperishable dimension synchronistically reveals itself to us as it enters the realm of time and embodiment. Synchronicities are revelations in the nick of time. As our present moment in time indicates, whether we continue to destroy ourselves or wake ourselves up depends upon whether or not we recognize what is synchronistically being revealed to us.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;What we don’t remember, we aren’t associated with. Our dis-memberment from our experience and dis-association from a part of ourselves polarizes and empowers our split-off part to project itself outside of ourselves and express itself by acting itself out in the outside world. We will either become possessed by our split-off part and unconsciously act it out in the world, or we will project it out so that we dream up the seemingly outer universe to act it out for us. This is another way of saying that our waking universe is a function of our consciousness, or lack thereof.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;When an archetype synchronistically manifests itself in full-bodied form in the outside world, its full blown localized revelation in time is necessarily correlated to - and an unmediated manifestation of - a more fundamental, nonlocal condition which simultaneously exists both outside of time and inside the timeless part of ourselves. An archetype synchronistically revealing itself in the outside world is a reflection that this same condition is in the process of being inwardly realized. The outer, synchronistic materialization of the inner, archetypal process is itself the vehicle through which the archetypal process both actualizes itself in space and time and is inwardly realized.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The spirit that animates synchronicities, if we can speak of such immaterial matters, is the same spirit which inspires our dreams at night. This spirit, the aforementioned “unus mundus” or “deeper, dreaming Self,” is dreaming our dreams at night, our life during the day, as well as ourselves. The unus mundus/deeper, dreaming Self arranges situations in our life, both micro and macrocosmically as a way of synchronizing itself, which propels us into greater alignment with the implicate field of open possibility, as we refine and re-find ourselves in each moment anew. To the extent we realize the dreamlike nature of reality, the universe becomes a continually unfolding oracle as we become a revelation to ourselves.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In a synchronicity, the conjunction of two cosmic principles, namely psyche and matter, takes place, and in the process a real exchange of attributes occurs as well. In such situations the psyche behaves as if it were material and matter behaves as if it were an expression of the psyche. Synchronicities are emanations of the sacred marriage in alchemy, where the opposites of spirit and matter reciprocally inform each other as they unite in a timeless embrace.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Instead of orienting ourselves one-sidedly just to the spiritual to the exclusion of matter, or material matters disconnected from spirit, Jung felt that the psychological/spiritual task of our unique time in history is to live and incarnate the realization of the unity of spirit and matter which synchronistic events are revealing to us. Instead of, or in addition to the spirit coming down from the heavens above, spirit’s guidance is emerging and rising up from within matter itself and is waiting to be recognized.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;in and as our waking dreamscape. What plays out in one person’s night dream is a reflection of their inner process; similarly what is getting dreamed up by all six and a half billion of us on the world stage is a reflection of a process going on deep inside of the collective unconscious of humanity.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Subjectively, synchronistic phenomena evoke in us the feeling that we are not alone, that there is a silent partner that we share our lives with who is dreaming with us. It is as if there is an autonomous factor deep within us arranging our experiences so as to help us to wake up. Part and parcel of a synchronistic event’s numinosity is its sense of meeting the “wholly other,” whether it be within ourselves or through the medium of the outside world. Paradoxically, through synchronicities we connect with ourselves by becoming introduced to the part of ourselves which is other than who we imagine ourselves to be.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Recognizing the synchronistic matrix which patterns our experience empowers us to be creative, co-operative and active partners in our own awakening process. The more we are open for synchronicities to happen, the more they happen, for synchronicities, just like symbols in a dream, are not separate from the dreamer, which in this case is us. To the extent we recognize the dreamlike nature of our waking universe is the degree to which our life is experienced as synchronistic. Once we become lucid in our waking dream and recognize that we live in a synchronistic universe by our very nature, the universe has no choice but to shape-shift and reflect back our realization by materializing itself synchronistically.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Being initiatory rites of passage, synchronicities empower us to view life synchronistically. Seeing through synchronistic eyes has nothing to do with overlaying a fabricated interpretation upon events to make them appear as if they are synchronistic. Seeing synchronistically simply involves recognizing the underlying synchronistic web which is always weaving itself through our experience. This is analogous to how being inside of a night dream and viewing the dream as if it were a dream would have the instantaneous effect of allowing the dream to more profoundly manifest its dreamlike nature. Changing our perspective within the dream didn’t cause the dream to become a dream; the dream had always been a dream, we just hadn’t recognized it before. Similarly, we live in a synchronistic universe, and by recognizing this, we allow the universe to manifest itself more synchronistically.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Synchronicities are like “cultures” from another dimension which create and enrich culture in ours. Like a bug in the system, synchronicities are cultures which virally propagate themselves through the field of consciousness, which means that synchronistic awareness is contagious. Synchronistic awareness, the consciousness that recognizes the synchronistic nature of the universe and has become lucid in the dream of life, is something we can turn each other onto and catch from one another. Synchronistic awareness is the invocation and revelation of the “eternal presence of the one creative act” in which we are all continually sharing, partaking and participating. Synchronistic awareness activates and reproduces itself in and through the field, as it is self-generating in nature, which is to say it is birthing itself through our consciousness into the world.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Just like Jung, we can help each other catch the “bug” of synchronicity. We can co-operatively cultivate a net-work of allies who creatively collaborate in bringing forth the precious jewel of synchronicity. The archetypal field becomes greatly potentiated for synchronicities when we get “in sync” with other people who are also waking up to the synchronistic universe. A field which is lubricated for stimulating and stabilizing lucidity gets conjured up when we get in phase with each other through the shared, open heart of synchronistic awareness. Co-operatively engaged, synchronistic awareness activates our collective genius and creates true culture in that it effortlessly, endlessly, nonlocally and virally transmits and fractally reiterates itself throughout time and space. Shared synchronistic awareness magnetically draws and attracts the universe into itself, materializing itself in, as and through life itself, creating a revelatory universe in the process.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6515877230980466879-1125345931511640169?l=www.parsbod.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/1125345931511640169/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6515877230980466879&amp;postID=1125345931511640169' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/1125345931511640169'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/1125345931511640169'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/2008/09/synchronicity.html' title='synchronicity'/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='11597099461640617082'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879.post-7515084271202926534</id><published>2008-09-30T23:08:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2008-09-30T23:09:08.376-07:00</updated><title type='text'>honour and dishonour</title><content type='html'>We are a wounded society. We have been for centuries. We abuse each other to the degree that we have helped each other forget that we are great, wise, loving, and infinite beings. We are aspects of the Divine, aspects of God, aspects of Infinite Existence.&lt;br /&gt;And yet how many people among the billions on the planet treat each other, in every moment, as if they were Divine? If a person is seen as Divine, would that person not be honored in every moment?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In this earthly transition, this spiritual evolution, that this earth and its people are going through, one of the most incredibly important keys, if not THE most important key, is the way we treat each other.&lt;br /&gt;We might do well to ask ourselves, what is there to gain from my behavior? What progress, what “prize,” have I acquired when I have caused pain to another? Is this a victory of some sort? When I demean or dismiss or abuse another soul, what does that do to my own soul?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Yes, I am on a “rant.” I blink in shock and stunned silence as I read the news, hear the latest unfolding events, and watch the lies and deceptions being uncovered. I witness this on the worldwide scale and I’m witnessing it in the lives of every person on an individual scale. Regarding the world scale, there are those who are appalled at the people who are “asleep” and do not know what’s going on. I believe they can be forgiven for, in their innocence, they might have assumed that this life was God-given and, that being the case, they would be free to live it without massive suffering and betrayal. (And once again I’ll admit that I am an idealist, yes.&lt;br /&gt;)&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The dichotomies and truths sometimes seem like a tangled mess that will be impossible to unravel. One article may address our own wounds and healing and how, by healing, we can become more of the truth of who we are. Another article may address the human tendency to victimize each other, and in the other half of that article will be the fact that we ourselves victimize ourselves. The human psyche appears to be a mystery. But in order to heal our society it’s necessary to solve that mystery.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The unraveling of our own threads of pain provides the only path we can take to heal this reality, to cause the change we seek. (I am assuming that, for the most part, this society would like to see less pain, less control, less lies, and more truth and love.) From my years of understanding, our own pain is the foundation of why we cause pain to others and why we, as a human society, cannot live in harmony.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Several months ago, during a major visitation, the information given to me was that the lies on this planet would be fully revealed. The foundation of lies that “sustain” this world must disintegrate in order to build a new foundation of truth. It certainly seems that the visitation was absolutely true. The changes in this world / reality are incredible to behold. Every person on Earth is being and will continue to be impacted. We, as an Earth-society, asked for this and not one of us is here by “accident.&lt;br /&gt;”&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;That being the case, what are we, as a complete society, going to do about becoming the change we wish to see? Isn’t it reasonable to assume that the change is within each of us? In my humble opinion, a simple change of perspective could create great change. I sit and look at the sensational souls who are here on my friend’s list, who have befriended me, and I marvel at each one of them, as well as the people who populate my life elsewhere. I see each Soul. And I pray each day that each Soul sees him/herself.&lt;br /&gt;If you saw yourself as the greatness that you are, would you not honor yourself? Would you not demand that every situation be honoring to the truth of who you are?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Our wounds cause us to accept into our lives things that do not honor the truth of who we are. If we do not find and embrace our own truth, we do not honor ourselves. We, as soul, “consciously” choose to bring people and situations into our lives that challenge us to remember who we are, and thus teach us to honor ourselves. The more we honor ourselves, the more we create a reality built on honor, and the more we honor others.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It’s all about honor. Speaking from a personal perspective, it is not honoring to the truth of who I am to allow myself to live with unhealed wounds. And it is not honoring to allow myself to live with pain and lack of honor. Perhaps this is the “shout out” that each of us who desire great change must adopt. I feel rather like I can hear the entire earth society yelling it … we’re made as hell and we’re not going to take it any more.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;What are we not willing to take any more? Dishonor. And allowing a reality built on lies is a dishonor to the great and infinite souls that we are.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6515877230980466879-7515084271202926534?l=www.parsbod.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/7515084271202926534/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6515877230980466879&amp;postID=7515084271202926534' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/7515084271202926534'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/7515084271202926534'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/2008/09/honour-and-dishonour.html' title='honour and dishonour'/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='11597099461640617082'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879.post-5335435855169787032</id><published>2008-09-30T23:07:00.001-07:00</published><updated>2008-09-30T23:07:56.333-07:00</updated><title type='text'>the crystal within</title><content type='html'>he found the first crystal&lt;br /&gt;by the silver river..&lt;br /&gt;those golden days of adventure&lt;br /&gt;still makes my old heart shiver..&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;i was the son of a blacksmith&lt;br /&gt;and he was a vagabond..&lt;br /&gt;and my favorite place in the world&lt;br /&gt;was across the meadow by this little pond..&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;his name was merlin&lt;br /&gt;and he said i was to be&lt;br /&gt;a great and good king..&lt;br /&gt;and every soul grows&lt;br /&gt;to be a god when we find&lt;br /&gt;the crystal within everything.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6515877230980466879-5335435855169787032?l=www.parsbod.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/5335435855169787032/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6515877230980466879&amp;postID=5335435855169787032' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/5335435855169787032'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/5335435855169787032'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/2008/09/crystal-within.html' title='the crystal within'/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='11597099461640617082'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879.post-2325459739923537412</id><published>2008-09-14T11:58:00.001-07:00</published><updated>2008-09-14T11:58:45.677-07:00</updated><title type='text'>demonstrating the peace of God</title><content type='html'>When you are fully present and people around you manifest unconscious behavior, you won’t feel the need to react to it, so you don’t give it any reality. Your peace is so vast and deep that anything that is not peace disappears into it as if it had never existed. This breaks the karmic cycle of action and reaction. Animals, trees and owers will feel your peace and respond to it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You teach through being, through demonstrating the peace of God. You become the “light of the world,” an emanation of pure consciousness and so you eliminate suffering on the level of cause. You eliminate unconsciousness from the world.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This doesn’t mean that you may not also teach through doing – for example, by pointing out how to dis-identify from the mind, recognize unconscious patterns within oneself and so on. But who you are is always a more vital teaching and a more powerful transformer of the world than what you say and more essential even than what you do.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Furthermore, to recognize the primacy of Being and thus work on the level of cause does not exclude the possibility that your compassion may simultaneously manifest on the level of doing, and in effect, by alleviating suffering whenever you come across it. When a hungry person asks you for bread and you have some, you will give it. But as you give the bread, even though your interaction may only be very brief, what really matters is this moment of shared Being, of which the bread is only a symbol. A deep healing takes place within it. In that moment, there is no giver, no receiver.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;But there shouldn’t be any hunger and starvation in the €rst place.&lt;br /&gt;How can we create a better world without tackling evils such as hunger and violence €rst?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;All evils are the effect of unconsciousness. You can alleviate the effects of unconsciousness, but you cannot eliminate them unless you eliminate their cause. True change happens within, not without.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If you feel called upon to alleviate suffering in the world, that is a very noble thing to do, but remember not to focus exclusively on the outer. Otherwise, you will encounter frustration and despair. Without a profound change in human consciousness, the world’s suffering is a bottomless pit. So don’t let your compassion become one-sided.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Empathy with someone else’s pain or lack and a desire to help must be balanced with a deeper realization of the eternal nature of all life and the ultimate illusion of all pain. Then let your peace ow into whatever you do and you will be working on the levels of effect and cause simultaneously.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This also applies if you are supporting a movement designed to stop deeply unconscious humans from destroying themselves, each other and the planet, or from continuing to inict dreadful suffering on other sentient beings. Remember; just as you cannot €ght the darkness, so you cannot €ght unconsciousness. If you try to do so, the polar opposites will become strengthened and more deeply entrenched. You will become identi€ed with one of the polarities; you will create an “enemy” and so be drawn into unconsciousness yourself.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Raise awareness by disseminating information, or, at the very least, practise passive resistance. But make sure that you carry no resistance within, no hatred, no negativity. “Love your enemies,” Jesus said, which, of course, means have no enemies.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Once you get involved in working on the level of effect, it is all too easy to lose yourself in it. Stay alert and very, very present. The causal level must remain your primary focus, the teaching of enlightenment your main purpose and peace your most precious gift to the world&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6515877230980466879-2325459739923537412?l=www.parsbod.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/2325459739923537412/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6515877230980466879&amp;postID=2325459739923537412' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/2325459739923537412'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/2325459739923537412'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/2008/09/demonstrating-peace-of-god.html' title='demonstrating the peace of God'/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='11597099461640617082'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879.post-4653932711298334598</id><published>2008-09-14T11:57:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2008-09-14T11:58:07.406-07:00</updated><title type='text'>personal experiences with the 'Others'</title><content type='html'>"This is the novel for which thousands of 'Star People' all over the world have been waiting -- only they will know from their personal experiences with the 'Others' that Lauren Zimmerman's provocative work is fact, not fiction!"&lt;br /&gt;Brad Steiger, author of 'Starborn' and 'UFO Odyssey'&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"This is a very important piece of work, coming as it does during a time of great change in our world and our acceleration towards the heavens of other worlds. Many of us have not overlooked the significance of events occurring on Earth itself, which includes the thousands of UFO reports from all parts of the globe. We have had to wait until now for the first cracks to appear in our government's secrecy surrounding the subject. As we move into the 21st century, the French and British governments admit that there are objects in our skies suggesting something or someone has 'Called".&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;As I read through this book, it became apparent that there was such resonance to the story that it did more than cement the story into place but registered an eerie kind of message to us.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Current scientific findings and technological advances bring us to a place where we should be thinking constructively about our wider future in the universe. Visions cast today will undoubtedly become reality sometime in our tomorrows. CALLED is a book to be enjoyed, but it shouldn't be taken too lightly either. ..&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A great read, this book will deeply touch people who have had unexplained experiences and who continue to suffer in silence, rather than chance rejection by friends and colleagues. All thinking people will feel the timing of the material. CALLED did not arrive on our bookshelves a day too soon.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;Colin Andrews, author of "Circular Evidence"&lt;br /&gt;and President of Circles Phenomenon Research International&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;+++++&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;CALLED&lt;br /&gt;BY LAUREN ZIMMERMAN&lt;br /&gt;(FIRST CHAPTER)&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;THE DREAM IS SURREAL. The massive craft stretches across the night sky. The empty control room, dimly lit by an unidentified light source, is immersed in unearthly silence. Large black chairs sit solidly in front of a control panel. Small phosphorescent lights blink occasionally. Beyond the expanse of windows above the control panel, the Universe waits silently. Shadows of other-world beings can be sensed moving around behind him. But Paul can't see them. He feels locked in position, his attention captured by the sight of Planet Earth, the size of a pea from the view he has of it. It floats soundlessly in the vast expanse of space and time.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Suddenly a hand touches his shoulder. He turns his head cautiously to look. The hand has only three fingers. He shifts his focus, moving his gaze until he's looking into the solemn, almond-shaped eyes of a small being with ivory skin. An unexplainable rush of peace fills him as memories that he's shared with this being attempt to struggle to the surface of his mind. A flash of light as bright as a sunray burns itself into his brain. Instantly another place and time dominates the dream, sliding him, as dreams often do, into another world.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;He's in a nebulous world full of memories of another life in another time. A loving face, raven-black hair wrapped around his arms and drifting across his chest like clinging seaweed, a love so deep that his soul aches for it. He feels himself sliding away from her the instant he recognizes her. He reaches to hold her, but in vain.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The dream slides away, taking her with it. Suddenly fully awake, filled with bewilderment and conflicting emotions, Paul shook his head. With a dullness born of burdened emotion, he sat up, leaned back against the headboard, and pulled his knees up against his chest. Wrapping his arms around his knees, he accepted, for the hundredth time, that the dreams weren't going away and that somehow he had to find a way to balance his two worlds ... the dream world and the world that made up his days. He knew instinctively that he would never be the same as other people.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;He'd known it all his life, struggled with it daily, and now was doing his best to accept it totally. The dream world felt too real to be fiction. It had been haunting him since he was four years old. But now, at twenty-nine, his emotions had grown too raw for the imbalance of the two worlds, the two realities, to be ignored or played off as just something to be endured. He liked to think that he wasn't afraid of anything but this morning he could feel an unnamed fear stirring up his stomach. He decided to skip his morning coffee for the moment and instead settled into mulling over the dreams of the night.&lt;br /&gt;Dominating his thoughts was the memory of a triangular face with large black eyes, the touch of a cool hand, the hint of a mystery far beyond his present understanding. The dream echoed through his mind, trying to find a place to make itself real.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;He identified a fear deep within himself as he gained full recall of the first part of the dream. Accepting the dream as fact, and knowing that he had been in another place, aboard a spacecraft that apparently hovered somewhere above Earth, wasn't the source of his fear. He probed his discomfort like a sore tooth. His body ached as if he had the flu. A dull pain stood behind his eyes. All of this was familiar to him … including the dream.&lt;br /&gt;It wasn't the unknown that was bothering him. It was what to do about accepting that it was real and that there was a good possibility that something was being asked of him, something he hadn't yet identified. The dreams had been romancing him most of his life, tempting him to remember and accept.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Other worlds, other realities, other universes. Each dream was a nebulous seductress, enticing him to believe in something other than the reality that he was living. The thrill of possibility danced through his spine every time he allowed himself to believe that there was something more, something beyond what everyone accepted as reality.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;No. He wasn't afraid of encountering other worlds and other-world beings. His fear was that now it was time to do something about what he instinctively knew was the truth. The time had come for him to face the challenge of admitting to the world that he was different. But the first thing he had to do was deal with his own acceptance and understanding.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;He readjusted his position, rested his head against the backboard, and stretched his legs out in front of him. The dreams were confirmation of what he had always felt about himself. He was from elsewhere. All of his discomfort, uneasiness, and boredom with life would make sense if it were true that he was from another time and place. What remained for him to do was to decide what he was going to do about it if he could talk himself into fully accepting it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Thoughts and questions flew through his mind. Would his life have been different if he had always been aware of his origins? Would he have been able to stop his father's drinking, his mother's abuse and martyrdom, his brother's rush to fate and death as he escaped into drugs to avoid his pain? Realistically, he knew that he could not have changed the people but perhaps he could have changed his own reaction to his experience.&lt;br /&gt;And by changing his own reaction, changing how he interacted with the members of his family, could things have turned out differently?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;As for his own life … would he have leapt from one woman to the next, seeking that certain someone that he could sense but could not put a face to? Would he have spent his life searching?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Would he have taken so much time and made such an effort to fit in, to attempt to be something that he could never be?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;He had always been athletic and lean. He worked out at the school gymnasium after hours at least three times a week. At 6'1", he weighed 192 and was good-looking enough to be called handsome by the ladies that he'd dated. He thought of himself as an efficient but lackadaisical basketball coach. He'd worked at the high school since his own graduation, walking the few blocks to work every day. He still lived in the city where he'd been born and raised.&lt;br /&gt;He drove a beat-up, old Bronco and, on occasion, tossed a few clothes and some food in the back of it and headed into the nearby foothills on a weekend quest for peace and quiet.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Paul shook his head, realizing that his introspection was serving no purpose. He wasn't getting any closer to figuring out how he was going to begin living his personal truth … that he was an alien in a human body. He threw off the covers and headed for the shower. Later, shirtless and barefoot, he paced the length of his apartment. While he'd been showering, one particular memory had become clearer. He was in the past and in the present at the same time.&lt;br /&gt;Watching himself from a distance, he studied the memory as though it belonged to someone else.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There were five small beings guiding him through the atmosphere of Earth. They ranged between three and four feet tall and had smooth, ivory-colored skin covering their small, thin frames. Their heads were large in proportion to their bodies. Their great, almond-shaped ebony eyes were made even darker by the compassion that poured through them.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Paul was in spirit form, drifting through the atmosphere without effort, flanked by his comrades. The light that was cast by his spirit touched the forms of his five friends, giving them a slightly haunted appearance. Beneath them, the roof of the house where he was going to live loomed black and, to Paul, ominous. Though he had volunteered for this mission, he was not happy about it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;He and his companions merged their cells with the cells of the roof and ceiling and moved easily through the apparent solidity. They were now looming above the sleeping form of a small, four-year-old child.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Learn what you can," Zere said, extending his small, three-fingered hand toward Paul's spirit in a hesitant way, wanting to comfort but knowing that the actuality of Paul's mission was too great to be comforted by a mere touch. Paul nodded and turned toward the body of the sleeping child. Immediately, a small light emerged from the child's body. After emerging, it grew in stature until the full light of a tall spirit stood before them.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Paul nodded in acknowledgment. "Thank you for holding the focus for me." The energy of his thought passed to the one who would be leaving. The tall spirit nodded in return and extended its light to embrace Paul. "I wish you all the best," his thoughts whispered. "I know this won't be easy for you.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A deep sense of dread rushed through Paul. It had been a common emotion since the Council had accepted his decision to incarnate on Earth. Now that the moment of incarnation had arrived, a sense of hesitation and misgiving gripped him. As if all of them were sharing the same thought, everyone exchanged solemn glances. All eyes turned toward Paul. After only a second of hesitation, he nodded slowly. The others resumed their work.&lt;br /&gt;Paul watched without speaking as Zere and the others busied themselves with disconnecting the departing spirit and attaching his to the small body that lay still on the bed beneath them. When the operation was complete, Paul watched as the freed spirit soared eagerly through the ceiling and away. Paul turned to his five companions with a sorrow unmatched. Their eyes reflected his pain.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"We'll be with you," Zere said quietly.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Unable to speak, Paul nodded once again. He scanned the eyes of each of those who were so dear to him. There was nothing more to be said. His decision had been discussed and debated for several months. All of the details had been hashed through, all possible issues that might arise had been addressed and solutions hammered out until, finally, everyone was satisfied that they had done the best they could to prepare for this mission.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;But now that the moment of separation was upon him, Paul could think of thousands of things that could go wrong. And his family would be millions of miles away. He choked back a sudden wave of longing and lifted his eyes to meet theirs. "I will be back with you soon," he said stoutly.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Each of them nodded eagerly. No one, including himself, believed his words at all. His life on Earth would take up nearly eighty Earth years. It would take that long to complete the work that he had assigned himself.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;One by one he embraced them. He watched solemnly as they merged with the ceiling and disappeared from sight. He was alone in a darkened room with a small, foreign body that was going to be his home for the next eighty years. Beyond the door of the bedroom slept the strangers that would serve as his parents.&lt;br /&gt;Outside the walls of the small house sat a foreign world, a world&lt;br /&gt;filled with people who would challenge him in ways that would take all of his strength to master and understand. The very thought of it took every ounce of resolution from his spirit. Exhausted, he allowed the light of his spirit to merge with the darkness of the small body and wearily closed his mind to the future. The cord that now attached his spirit to the body lay across him like an abandoned umbilical cord, dull and unwanted.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The phone beside him rang softly, startling him out of his memory. Unnerved by the sudden call to reality, he scrubbed his long fingers through his sandy-colored hair and picked up the receiver.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Happy summer vacation," Sandi chirped, her pert voice grounding him firmly into the day.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Thanks. Same to you." He realized that he sounded dull but he didn't have the energy to do anything about it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"What do you have planned for the first day of your vacation?" she asked.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Paul frowned at the phone, feeling trapped by the sudden necessity to make plans. He knew that she was falling in love with him. He'd been aware of it for weeks. But she wasn't the woman in his dream, the woman who seemed to be insisting that he search for her. It was time to tell Sandi that he didn't feel the same as she did. It wasn't fair for her to continue to believe otherwise. "I haven't really thought about what I'm going to do," he said. "I wanted to give myself some time." He cleared his throat nervously, thinking about his next words.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Sandi's voice became hesitant. "Oh. Sure. I can understand that.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Paul could feel her back off, like she always did, ever anxious to please him. He felt compassion for her flow through him. He saw her as vulnerable and somehow defenseless in a world that was too large for her, too complicated. He wanted to protect her because she was his friend. But for the first time he accepted that he needed to put his own needs before hers.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Did I wake you?" she asked. "You sound distracted.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Paul shook his head. "No. But I need to tell you something." He hurried .. she could interrupt. "You're a wonderful person and I wish I could be the right man for you. But I'm not.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;He heard her draw her breath in quickly but he didn't stop. It needed to be said. "You're going to find the right one, Sandi." A rush of intuition and vision flooded him. He suddenly knew who the man was. He saw, in his mind's eye, the two of them standing before a minister, exchanging vows. He chose to believe in his vision and hurried his words in order to give her the hope she needed. "You already know him, Sandi. You just haven't opened your eyes to him yet. Think about it. Open your heart to accept him and he'll be there.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Paul closed his eyes briefly, feeling his own sense of loss as he let her go. "You'll be very happy," he said quietly.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Paul?" Sandi said hesitantly.&lt;br /&gt;"Are you all right?"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"I'm fine, Sandi. And you will be too.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"I don't understand you," she told him softly.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"I know," he whispered. He sighed deeply as she gently set the phone down.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6515877230980466879-4653932711298334598?l=www.parsbod.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/4653932711298334598/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6515877230980466879&amp;postID=4653932711298334598' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/4653932711298334598'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/4653932711298334598'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/2008/09/personal-experiences-with-others.html' title='personal experiences with the &apos;Others&apos;'/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='11597099461640617082'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879.post-767605547211019483</id><published>2008-09-14T11:55:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2008-09-14T11:56:53.949-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>Ironically, it was Isha, not René, who first felt the pull of Egypt. Concerned with alchemy, matter, and the evolution of consciousness, Schwaller hadn't thought much about Egypt. But Isha knew they had to go. In 1936, on a visit to the tomb of Rameses IX in Alexandria, Schwaller had a kind of revelation. A picture represented the pharaoh as a right-angle triangle with the proportions 3:4:5, his upraised arm adding another unit. Schwaller thought it demonstrated the Pythagorean theorem, centuries before Pythagoras was born. From the picture it was clear to him that the knowledge of the medieval masons had its roots in ancient Egypt. For the next fifteen years, until 1951, Schwaller de Lubicz remained in Egypt, investigating the evidence for what he believed was an ancient system of psychological, cosmological, and spiritual knowledge.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Most of Schwaller’s work was done at the temple at Luxor, his study of its remarkable architecture and design a natural outcome of his early fascination with the mystery of number. On his first visit in 1937, Schwaller was impressed with a tremendous insight. The temple, with its strange, "crooked" alignments, was, he was certain, a conscious exercise in the laws of harmony and proportion. He called it the Parthenon of Egypt—somewhat anachronistically, since he believed Luxor was concrete proof that the Egyptians understood the laws of harmony and proportion before the Greeks.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Schwaller searched Luxor for evidence of the golden section, phi. If the golden section had been used, that would prove the Egyptians had knowledge of it much earlier than the Greeks, a revelation that alone would cause an uproar in orthodox Egyptology. But as John Anthony West in The Serpent and the Sky (1978), a study of Schwaller de Lubicz, points out, phi is more than a central item in classical architecture. It is the mathematical archetype of the manifest universe, the means by which we have an "asymmetrical" "lumpy" world of galaxies and planets, and not a bland, homogenous sameness, a question that contemporary cosmologists are also concerned with. Schwaller linked phi to the orbits of the planets, the proportions of Gothic cathedrals, and the forms of plants and animals. It was a "form constant," a blueprint for reality, a law of creation. And the Egyptians knew it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Egyptians knew much else: the precession of the equinoxes, the circumference of the globe, and the secrets of pi. The knowledge of the Egyptians indeed made the Greeks seem like children. Their forgotten mathematical wisdom led Schwaller increasingly to realize that Egyptian civilization must be far older than we suspect--the clear evidence of water erosion on the Sphinx also suggests that. He concluded that their knowledge may have been inherited from vanished Atlantis. But more important than any of those conclusions, was his growing conviction that the Egyptians had a radically different consciousness from ours. They viewed the world symbolically, seeing in nature a "writing" conveying truths about the metaphysical forces behind creation—"the Neters," as Egyptian gods are called. It was a vision Schwaller believed we desperately need to regain.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;At the center of this vision was Conscious Man, the King. For the ancient Egyptians, Conscious Man was the crown and aim of the universe, a perception many nature-centered mystics would dispute. But Conscious Man was not "man as we know him." He was the individual in whom the "intelligence of the heart" has awakened, one who has had the experience of "functional consciousness.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Functional Consciousness&lt;br /&gt;Schwaller believed Luxor was a kind of living organism, a colossal compendium of esoteric truth, whose every detail, from its total design down to its very materials, voiced one central revelation: that Conscious Man was the goal of cosmic evolution. "Each individual type in Nature is a stage in the cosmic embryology which culminates in man," he wrote. Different species, Schwaller believed, developed various "functions"—what the Egyptians called "Neters" and we translate as "gods"--which have their apotheosis and integration in Conscious Man.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The essence of Schwaller's evolutionism has to do with what he calls "functional consciousness," an idea we can benefit from understanding, regardless of our opinions of elites or theocracies. And although Schwaller developed his ideas about functional consciousness in an Egyptian context, that context is ultimately not necessary. The essence of those ideas goes back to Bergson and intuition. Needless to say, Schwaller took this basic insight and, with his Egyptian revelations, developed an original, powerful, and imaginatively thrilling symbolic system.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Functional consciousness" is a way of knowing reality from the inside. Schwaller believed ancient Egypt was based on this inner knowing, very unlike our own outer-oriented one. The ancient Egyptians, he argued, were aware of the limitations of purely cerebral consciousness, the Set mind that "granulates" experience into fragments of time and space and is behind our increasing abuse of nature and of each other. Granulated experience produces our familiar world of disconnected things, each a kind of "island reality." From this perspective, when I look at the world, I see a foreign, alien landscape, which I can know only by taking it apart and analyzing it. As the poet Wordsworth wrote, "We murder to dissect.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;But as Schwaller wrote in Nature Word (134), "The Universe is wholly activity." There is another way of knowing, one very similar to Taoist forms of perception, which can heal the ruptures of cerebral consciousness, without recourse to dubious ideas of elites or theocracies. In a section called "The Way" (135), Schwaller advises us to "leave all dialectic behind and follow the path of the Powers.&lt;br /&gt;" Poetically, he continues by calling on us to&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Tumble with the rock which falls from the mountain.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Seek light and rejoice with the rosebud about to open:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;.&lt;br /&gt;.&lt;br /&gt;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;labor with the parsimonious ant;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;gather honey with the bee;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;expand in space with the ripening fruit.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;All of those injunctions are classic examples of the kind of "knowing from the inside" that Bergson had in mind in his talk on intuition. In this way, we participate with the world, rather than hold it at arm's length, objectifying it, as modern science is prone to do. With recent developments in genetics, this "objectification" is now dangerously focused on ourselves.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;My aim is not to reduce Schwaller's remarkable achievement to a simple variation on Bergson. Understanding what "functional consciousness" is and developing methods of achieving it are two different things. Schwaller's immense work on an entire civilization devoted to "inner knowing" entails ways of reaching this deeper perception, and we would be wrong to ignore it. But I think it's important to bring the essence of Schwaller's thought to an audience possibly put off by his talk of elites. The "intelligence of the heart" may be difficult to acquire, but it is something we and the whole world—not only a select group of enlightened theocrats— can benefit from by experiencing. In the long run, Schwaller himself understood this. "To be of the Elite," he wrote (Nature Word 102), "is to want to give and to be able to give . . . to draw on the inexhaustible source and give this food to those who are hungry and thirsty." With his study of ancient Egypt, this is a truth Schwaller de Lubicz took to heart.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6515877230980466879-767605547211019483?l=www.parsbod.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/767605547211019483/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6515877230980466879&amp;postID=767605547211019483' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/767605547211019483'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/767605547211019483'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/2008/09/ironically-it-was-isha-not-ren-who.html' title=''/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='11597099461640617082'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879.post-6565776836646780911</id><published>2008-09-14T11:43:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2008-09-14T11:44:04.172-07:00</updated><title type='text'>The Power of Now</title><content type='html'>"I cannot tell you any spiritual truth&lt;br /&gt;that deep within you don't know already.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;All I can do is remind you&lt;br /&gt;of what you have forgotten"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 6&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"The mind is a superb instrument&lt;br /&gt;if used rightly.&lt;br /&gt;Used wrongly, however,&lt;br /&gt;it becomes very destructive.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;To put it more accurately,&lt;br /&gt;it is not so much that you use&lt;br /&gt;your mind wrongly—&lt;br /&gt;you usually don't use it at all.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It uses you.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 13&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"all the things&lt;br /&gt;that truly matter —&lt;br /&gt;beauty,&lt;br /&gt;love,&lt;br /&gt;creativity,&lt;br /&gt;joy,&lt;br /&gt;inner peace —&lt;br /&gt;arise from beyond&lt;br /&gt;the mind"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 14&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"All true artists,&lt;br /&gt;whether they know it or not,&lt;br /&gt;create from a place of no-mind,&lt;br /&gt;from inner stillness"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 19&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Emotion arises at the place&lt;br /&gt;where mind and body meet.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It is the body's reaction to your mind —&lt;br /&gt;or you might say,&lt;br /&gt;a reflection of your mind in the body"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 20&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"It wasn't through the mind,&lt;br /&gt;through thinking,&lt;br /&gt;that the miracle that is life&lt;br /&gt;on earth or your body were&lt;br /&gt;created and are being sustained"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 20&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"You may not yet be able to bring&lt;br /&gt;your unconscious mind activity into&lt;br /&gt;awareness as thoughts,&lt;br /&gt;but it will always be reflected&lt;br /&gt;in the body as an emotion,&lt;br /&gt;and of this you can become aware.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 22&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Love,&lt;br /&gt;joy,&lt;br /&gt;and peace&lt;br /&gt;cannot flourish&lt;br /&gt;until you have&lt;br /&gt;freed yourself&lt;br /&gt;from mind dominance" - Page 24&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Pleasure is always derived&lt;br /&gt;from something outside you,&lt;br /&gt;whereas joy arises from within"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 24&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Pain is inevitable&lt;br /&gt;as long as you are&lt;br /&gt;identified with your mind"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 25&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Nobody’s life is entirely free&lt;br /&gt;of pain and sorrow.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Isn’t it a question of learning&lt;br /&gt;to live with them rather than&lt;br /&gt;trying to avoid them?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The greater part of human pain&lt;br /&gt;is unnecessary.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It is self-created&lt;br /&gt;as long as the unobserved&lt;br /&gt;mind runs your life.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The pain that you create now&lt;br /&gt;is always some form of nonacceptance,&lt;br /&gt;some form of unconscious resistance to what is.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;On the level of thought, the resistance is some&lt;br /&gt;form of judgment.&lt;br /&gt;On the emotional level,&lt;br /&gt;it is some form of negativity.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The intensity of the pain&lt;br /&gt;depends on the degree of resistance&lt;br /&gt;to the present moment,&lt;br /&gt;and this in turn depends on how&lt;br /&gt;strongly you are identified&lt;br /&gt;with your mind.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 27&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Where there is anger,&lt;br /&gt;there is always pain underneath"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 32&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"The psychological condition of fear&lt;br /&gt;is divorced from any concrete and true&lt;br /&gt;immediate danger.&lt;br /&gt;It comes in many forms:&lt;br /&gt;unease, worry, anxiety, nervousness, tension,&lt;br /&gt;dread, phobia, and so on.&lt;br /&gt;This kind of psychological&lt;br /&gt;fear is always of something that might happen,&lt;br /&gt;not of something that is happening now.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 35&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"an emotion&lt;br /&gt;is the body's reaction&lt;br /&gt;to your mind"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 36&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Power over others is weakness&lt;br /&gt;disguised as strength.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;True power if within,&lt;br /&gt;and it is available&lt;br /&gt;to you now"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 36&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"The most common ego identifications&lt;br /&gt;have to do with possessions, the work you do,&lt;br /&gt;social status and recognition, knowledge and education,&lt;br /&gt;physical appearance, special abilities, relationships,&lt;br /&gt;person and family history, belief systems, and often&lt;br /&gt;also political, nationalistic, racial, religious, and other&lt;br /&gt;collective identifications. None of these is you.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 37&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Death is a stripping away of all that is not you.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The secret of life is to "die before you die" —&lt;br /&gt;and find that there is no death"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 38&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"When you are present,&lt;br /&gt;you can allow the mind to be&lt;br /&gt;as it is without getting entangled in it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The mind in itself is a wonderful tool.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Dysfunction sets in when you seek&lt;br /&gt;your self in it and mistake it&lt;br /&gt;for who you are"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 40&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"To be identified with your mind&lt;br /&gt;is to be trapped in time:&lt;br /&gt;the compulsion to live&lt;br /&gt;almost exclusively&lt;br /&gt;through memory&lt;br /&gt;and anticipation"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 40&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Life is now.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There was never&lt;br /&gt;a time when your life&lt;br /&gt;was not now,&lt;br /&gt;nor will there ever be"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 41&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Nothing ever happened&lt;br /&gt;in the past;&lt;br /&gt;it happened in the Now.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Nothing will ever happen&lt;br /&gt;in the future;&lt;br /&gt;it will happen&lt;br /&gt;in the Now"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 41&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"The quality of your consciousness&lt;br /&gt;at this moment is what shapes the future —&lt;br /&gt;which, of course, can only be experienced&lt;br /&gt;as the Now"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 50&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Unease, anxiety, tension, stress, worry —&lt;br /&gt;all forms of fear — are cause by too much future,&lt;br /&gt;and not enough presence.&lt;br /&gt;Guilt, regret, resentment,&lt;br /&gt;grievances, sadness, bitterness, and all forms&lt;br /&gt;of nonforgiveness are caused by too much past,&lt;br /&gt;and not enough presence"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 50&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"To be free of time&lt;br /&gt;is to be free of the psychological&lt;br /&gt;need of past for your identity and future&lt;br /&gt;for your fulfillment"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 59&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Be at least as interested&lt;br /&gt;in what goes on inside you&lt;br /&gt;as what happens outside.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If you get the inside right,&lt;br /&gt;the outside will fall into place"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 64&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Wherever you are,&lt;br /&gt;be there totally.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If you find your here&lt;br /&gt;and now intolerable&lt;br /&gt;and it makes you unhappy,&lt;br /&gt;you have three options:&lt;br /&gt;remove yourself from the situation,&lt;br /&gt;change it, or accept it totally"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 68&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"You cannot find yourself&lt;br /&gt;by going into the past.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You can find yourself&lt;br /&gt;by coming into the present"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 75&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"...words in themselves&lt;br /&gt;are not important.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;They are not the Truth;&lt;br /&gt;they only point to it"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 85&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Don't get stuck on the level of words.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A word is no more than a means to an end.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It's an abstraction.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Not unlike a signpost,&lt;br /&gt;it points beyond itself"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 90&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"At the deepest level of Being,&lt;br /&gt;you are one with all that is"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 105&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"...the ultimate purpose&lt;br /&gt;of the world lies not within&lt;br /&gt;the world but in the transcendence&lt;br /&gt;of the world"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 117&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"You find God the moment&lt;br /&gt;you realize that you&lt;br /&gt;don't need to seek God"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 122&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"[Relationships] do not cause pain&lt;br /&gt;and unhappiness.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;They bring out the pain&lt;br /&gt;and unhappiness&lt;br /&gt;that is already in you"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 127&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"As far as inner transformation is concerned,&lt;br /&gt;there is nothing you can do about it.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You cannot transform yourself,&lt;br /&gt;and you certainly cannot transform&lt;br /&gt;your partner or anybody else.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;All you can do is create a space&lt;br /&gt;for transformation to happen,&lt;br /&gt;for grace and love to enter"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 131&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Whenever anything negative happens to you,&lt;br /&gt;there is a deep lesson concealed within it,&lt;br /&gt;although you may not see it at the time"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 147&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"It seems that most people need&lt;br /&gt;to experience a great deal of suffering&lt;br /&gt;before they will relinquish resistance&lt;br /&gt;and accept — before they will forgive.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 149&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"You must have failed deeply&lt;br /&gt;on some level or experienced&lt;br /&gt;some deep loss or pain to be&lt;br /&gt;drawn to the spiritual dimension.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Or perhaps your very success&lt;br /&gt;became empty and meaningless&lt;br /&gt;and so turned out to be a failure"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 152&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Nothing out there will ever satisfy you&lt;br /&gt;except temporarily and superficially,&lt;br /&gt;but you may need to experience many&lt;br /&gt;disappointments before you realize that truth"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 155&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Eckhart Tolle -&lt;br /&gt;The Power of Now&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6515877230980466879-6565776836646780911?l=www.parsbod.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/6565776836646780911/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6515877230980466879&amp;postID=6565776836646780911' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/6565776836646780911'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/6565776836646780911'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/2008/09/power-of-now.html' title='The Power of Now'/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='11597099461640617082'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879.post-4203410081992506823</id><published>2008-09-14T11:34:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2008-09-14T11:35:34.251-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Awakening to the meaning of your life</title><content type='html'>Eckhart Tolle&lt;br /&gt;A New Earth Awakening to your Lifes purpose&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This book's main purpose is not to add new information&lt;br /&gt;or beliefs to your mind or to try to convince you of anything,&lt;br /&gt;but to bring about a shift in consciousness,&lt;br /&gt;that is to say, to awaken"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 6&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Only by awakening can you know&lt;br /&gt;the true meaning of that word"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 7&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"An essential part of the awakening is the recognition&lt;br /&gt;of the unawakened you, the ego as it thinks, speaks,&lt;br /&gt;and acts, as well as the recognition of the collectively&lt;br /&gt;conditioned mental processes that perpetuate&lt;br /&gt;the unawakened state"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 7&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"...unless you know the basic mechanics behind&lt;br /&gt;the workings of the ego, you won't recognize it,&lt;br /&gt;and it will trick you into identifying with it&lt;br /&gt;again and again"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 8&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Trying to become a good or better human being&lt;br /&gt;sounds like a commendable and high-minded&lt;br /&gt;thing to do, yet it is an endeavor you cannot ultimately&lt;br /&gt;succeed in unless there is a shift in consciousness"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 12&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"You do not become good by trying to be good,&lt;br /&gt;but by finding the goodness that is already within you,&lt;br /&gt;and allowing that goodness to emerge.&lt;br /&gt;But it can only&lt;br /&gt;emerge if something fundamental changes in your&lt;br /&gt;state of consciousness.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 13&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"All we can perceive, experience, think about,&lt;br /&gt;is the surface layer of reality, less than&lt;br /&gt;the tip on an iceberg.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Underneath the surface appearance,&lt;br /&gt;everything is not only connected with&lt;br /&gt;everything else, but also with the Source&lt;br /&gt;of all life out of which it came.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 25&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"When you don't cover up the world with words&lt;br /&gt;and labels, a sense of the miraculous&lt;br /&gt;returns to your life"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 26&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"The quicker you are in attaching verbal&lt;br /&gt;or mental labels to things, people, or situations,&lt;br /&gt;the more shallow and lifeless your reality becomes,&lt;br /&gt;and the more deadened you become to reality"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 26&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Words reduce reality to something the human mind can grasp,&lt;br /&gt;which isn’t very much.&lt;br /&gt;Language consists of five basic sounds&lt;br /&gt;produced by the vocal cords. They are the vowels a, e, i, o, u.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The other sounds are consonants produced by air pressure:&lt;br /&gt;s, f, g, and so forth.&lt;br /&gt;Do you believe some combination of such&lt;br /&gt;basic sounds could ever explain who you are, or the ultimate&lt;br /&gt;purpose of the universe, or even what a tree or stone is in its depth?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"The unchecked striving for more, for endless growth,&lt;br /&gt;is a dysfunction and a disease.&lt;br /&gt;It is the same dysfunction&lt;br /&gt;the cancerous cell manifests, whose only goal is to multiply&lt;br /&gt;itself, unaware that it is bringing about its own destruction&lt;br /&gt;by destroying the organism of which it is a part.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 37&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"As a spiritual practice,&lt;br /&gt;I suggest that you investigate&lt;br /&gt;your relationship with the world&lt;br /&gt;of things through self-observation"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 38&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Don't take the ego too seriously"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 42&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"How do you let go of attachment to things?&lt;br /&gt;Don't even try. It's impossible.&lt;br /&gt;Attachment to things&lt;br /&gt;drops away by itself when you no longer seek to find&lt;br /&gt;yourself in them"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 45&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"No ego can last for long without the need for more.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Therefore, wanting keeps the ego alive much more&lt;br /&gt;than having.&lt;br /&gt;The ego wants to want more than it wants&lt;br /&gt;to have.&lt;br /&gt;And so the shallow satisfaction of having is always&lt;br /&gt;replaced by more wanting.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 46&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Wanting is structural,&lt;br /&gt;so no amount of content&lt;br /&gt;can provide lasting fulfillment&lt;br /&gt;as long as that mental structure&lt;br /&gt;remains in place.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 47&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"No matter what you have or get,&lt;br /&gt;you won't be happy.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You will always be looking for&lt;br /&gt;something else that promises&lt;br /&gt;greater fulfillment,&lt;br /&gt;that promises to make&lt;br /&gt;your incomplete sense&lt;br /&gt;of self complete and fill&lt;br /&gt;that sense of lack you feel within.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 48&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"The content of the ego varies&lt;br /&gt;from person to person,&lt;br /&gt;but in every ego the same&lt;br /&gt;structure operates.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 60&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Nonreaction to the ego in others is one of the most&lt;br /&gt;effective ways not only of going beyond ego in yourself&lt;br /&gt;but also of dissolving the collective human ego.&lt;br /&gt;But you&lt;br /&gt;can only be in a state of nonreaction if you can recognize&lt;br /&gt;someone's behavior as coming from the ego,&lt;br /&gt;as being an expression of the collective human dysfunction.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;When you realize it's not personal, there is no longer a&lt;br /&gt;compulsion to react as if it were.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 62&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The moment you become aware of the ego in you,&lt;br /&gt;it is strictly speaking no longer the ego, but just an old,&lt;br /&gt;conditioned mind-pattern. Ego implies unawareness.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Awareness and ego cannot coexist.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 64&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"All egoic motivations are self-enhancement&lt;br /&gt;and self-interest, sometimes cleverly disguised,&lt;br /&gt;even from the person in whom the ego operates.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 98&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Awareness is the greatest agent for change.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 99&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Suffering has a noble purpose:&lt;br /&gt;the evolution of consciousness&lt;br /&gt;and the burning up of the ego.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 102&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Accepting means you allow yourself to feel&lt;br /&gt;whatever it is you are feeling at that moment.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It is part of the isness of the Now.&lt;br /&gt;You can't argue&lt;br /&gt;with what is. Well, you can, but if you do, you suffer.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 184&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Unconscious people –&lt;br /&gt;and many remain unconscious, trapped in their egos&lt;br /&gt;throughout their lives – will quickly tell you who they are:&lt;br /&gt;their name, their occupation, their personal history,&lt;br /&gt;the shape or state of their body, and whatever else&lt;br /&gt;they identify with.&lt;br /&gt;Others may appear to be more evolved&lt;br /&gt;because they think of themselves as an immortal soul&lt;br /&gt;or living spirit.&lt;br /&gt;But do they really know themselves,&lt;br /&gt;or have they just added some spiritual sounding concepts&lt;br /&gt;to the content of their mind? Knowing yourself&lt;br /&gt;goes far deeper than the adoption of a set of ideas or beliefs.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Spiritual ideas and beliefs may at best be helpful pointers,&lt;br /&gt;but in themselves they rarely have the power to dislodge&lt;br /&gt;the more firmly established core concepts of who you think&lt;br /&gt;you are, which are part of the conditioning of the human mind.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Knowing yourself deeply has nothing to do with whatever ideas&lt;br /&gt;are floating around in your mind.&lt;br /&gt;Knowing yourself is to be rooted&lt;br /&gt;in Being, instead of lost in your mind.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 186&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"You might say, “I know I am an immortal spirit,” or “I am tired of this mad world, and peace is all I want” until the phone rings. Bad news: The stock market has collapsed; the deal may fall through; the car has been stolen; your motherinlaw has arrived; the trip is cancelled, the contract has been broken; your partner has left you; they demand more money; they say it's your fault. Suddenly there is a surge of anger, of anxiety. A harshness comes into your voice; “I can't take any more of this.” You accuse and blame, attack, defend, or justify yourself, and it's all happening on autopilot. Something is obviously much more important to you now than the inner peace that a moment ago you said was all you wanted, and you're not an immortal spirit anymore either. The deal, the money, the contract, the loss or threat of loss are more important. To whom? To the immortal spirit that you said you are? No, to me. The small me that seeks security for fulfillment in things that are transient and gets anxious or angry because it fails to find it. Well, at least now you know who you really think you are.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 187&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"If peace is really what you want, then you will choose peace. If pace mattered to you more than anything else and if you truly knew yourself to be spirit rather than a little me, you would remain nonreactive and absolutely alert when confronted with challenging people or situations. You would immediately accept the situation and thus become one with it rather than separate yourself from it.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 188&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"If the thought of lack – whether it be money, recognition, or love – has become part of who you think you are, you will always experience lack. Rather than acknowledge the good that is already in your life, all you see is lack.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 190&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"There is the dream, and there is the dreamer of the dream. The dream is a short-lived play of forms. It is the world – relatively real but not absolutely real. Then there is the dreamer, the absolute reality in which the forms come and go. The dreamer is not the person. The person is part of the dream. The dreamer is the substratum in which the dream appears, that which makes the dream possible. It is the absolute behind the relative, the timeless behind time, the consciousness in and behind form. The dreamer is consciousness itself – who you are.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;- Page 209&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6515877230980466879-4203410081992506823?l=www.parsbod.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/4203410081992506823/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6515877230980466879&amp;postID=4203410081992506823' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/4203410081992506823'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/4203410081992506823'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/2008/09/awakening-to-meaning-of-your-life.html' title='Awakening to the meaning of your life'/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='11597099461640617082'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879.post-7787793173405992052</id><published>2008-09-14T09:39:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2008-09-14T09:43:05.283-07:00</updated><title type='text'>MIND-CONTROL &gt; the war on consciousness</title><content type='html'>THE WAR ON CONSCIOUSNESS&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;by Paul Levy&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Are You Dreaming?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"This universe is a mass shared dream&lt;br /&gt;that all six-and-a-half billion of us are&lt;br /&gt;collaboratively dreaming up into materialization.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;When we realize this, we can put our lucidity together&lt;br /&gt;so that we can co-creatively dream a much more&lt;br /&gt;grace-filled universe into incarnation.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This is nothing other than an evolutionary&lt;br /&gt;quantum leap in human consciousness,&lt;br /&gt;unimaginable until now.&lt;br /&gt;"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;- Paul Levy&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;We are truly in a war. It is not the war we imagine we are in, which is the way our true adversaries want it. It is not a foreign war against a foreign enemy. It is a war on consciousness, a war on our own minds. The global war on terror that is being fought around the world is an embodied reflection in the material world of a deeper, more fundamental war that is going on in the realm of consciousness itself.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;We have the most criminal regime in all of our history wreaking unspeakable horror on the entire planet, while simultaneously waging war on the consciousness of its own citizens - US. If we aren’t aware of this, we are unwittingly playing into, supporting and complicit in the evil that is being perpetrated in our name.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A government’s war on the consciousness of its own citizens is by no means unique to the Bush administration. Abusing power over others so as to limit their freedom is an archetypal process that has been endlessly re-enacted by governments throughout history in various forms. With the Bush administration, however, the pathological aspect of this process has become so exaggerated and amped up to such a degree that it is just about impossible not to notice its staggering malignancy. With the Bush administration, the underlying evil that has played out in our government over many years is becoming overwhelmingly obvious for all to see. With the Bush administration, the underlying evil that informs systems of government that are based on “power over” instead of “liberty for” is coming out from hiding in the shadows. Instead of being acted out underground, our government is acting out this evil above ground, in plain sight for all who are courageous enough to look.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Impeaching Bush and Co. ultimately won’t change anything unless we deal with the corrupt powers which control and direct them. George Bush is just a finger-puppet of the hidden hand which animates him. Bush only has apparent power, as he himself is a minion of far more powerful predator-like forces whose nefarious interests he serves. Whether we call it the illuminati, the global elite, a shadow government, or a secret cabal, there is no doubt that there are darker, self-serving forces that have insinuated themselves into and taken over our government. The terrorists that we should be worried about are domestic terrorists who are actually implementing their agendas from deep within our very system of government itself.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The United States Government itself has become a “front” for the underlying military-industrial-financial crime syndicate that animates it. This is not to say that there aren’t many good, well-meaning people in our government – they are simply prohibited by the very nature of the corrupt system they are in from reforming it. Our system of government is rigged in such a way so that there is no way to transform the system within the system itself.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The underlying core of our government has become rotten such that the entire operation simply feeds into and is an expression of the same underlying corruption. All of the scandals continually coming out are like the superficial skin rash of a much deeper systemic disease, like a cancer that is infecting the greater body politic. Citizens who are not aware of our government’s insidious intrusions into our lives are unwittingly feeding the corruption they are looking away from in their very act of looking away.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The “powers” that have taken over our government have become concentrated and centralized in just a few elite hands, proving how easy it is for the few to control the many. They almost control all the levers of power: financial, political and judicial. In this war on consciousness, these powers-that-be are using the most advanced mind-control technology that our world has ever known to make its takeover complete. The essence of mind-control is information control, which is one thing our overly secretive current administration is very good at.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;MIND-CONTROL&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The private interests that control our government have an incredible mind-control/propaganda machine at their disposal in the form of the mainstream media, which if not quite fully owned and controlled, is certainly under their “influence” enough to serve their underlying self-serving agenda. George Orwell once said that omission is the greatest form of lie – this perfectly describes the corporate owned media of today which is nothing other than the propaganda organ of the state. The corporate world and our government are becoming indistinguishable, which is one of the hallmarks of fascism, or more accurately – corporatism.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In addition to information, our government is adept at putting out dis-information, whose intention is to create distractions and confusion so as to cover its tracks and hide its true intentions. It will purposely leak stories that are not true simply to cover-up what it is really doing. By putting out misleading information, the government hides behind its self-generated smokescreen like an octopus squirting ink.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Quite often, right at the moment when people’s focus is moving towards some area of criminality in the White House, the administration will even create a diversionary event for the public to put their attention on. Memories of those color-coded terror alerts that always seemed to happen right when something bad was starting to happen for the Bush administration come to mind. In creating distractions, our government is able to steer our collective attention in directions that allow it to successfully accomplish its malevolent goal of grabbing all the power it can get.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In a diabolical ploy, the administration will even feed stories to a compliant press, and then reference these stories as justification for enacting its pre-planned agenda. One glaring example is when the administration fed Judith Miller of the New York Times stories about Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction. Once this propaganda appeared on the front page of the Times, the administration was only too happy to use it as evidence for why we should go to war.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;WMD could easily stand for “Weapons of Mind Deception”, as our own government is continually trying to “Deceive” our “Minds”, which is the battlefield in which the war on consciousness is being fought. We are all on the front lines in the war on consciousness, whether we know it or not. Instead of shooting us, our government is using cutting-edge mind-control technology to psychically emasculate us. In order to be able to deal with the evil that the Bush regime is perpetrating, we first have to become acquainted with that very same potential evil in ourselves so as to be able to recognize it in the outside world. The way to vanquish our adversary is to be found hidden within the very nature of our own awareness, which contains the key to its own freedom.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The corporate-mainstream media “captivates” our attention, capturing a part of our self-reflective, discriminative awareness, thereby restricting the range of our conscious awareness, which is what hypnotism is all about. Once the attention of the masses becomes entranced, the corporate/government media can then “play with” our mind. This unholy trinity of corporate/government/media can create an obsessive fixation on certain superficial events that “seize” the collective psyche. For example, it feeds the masses sensationalized stories such as Anna Nicole Smith ad nauseam so as to divert our attention from the evil that is being done behind the scenes in our name.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Ex-CIA director Allen Dulles used to say that the most effective way to disguise a secret is to pretend to openly share information. The Bush administration isn’t interested in solving problems as much as creating good PR (Public Relations) for itself. With one hand the Bush administration will try to appear like it is openly sharing information and being transparent, while with its other hand it will be actively obstructing the very process it is seemingly supporting. A vivid example is the government’s 9/11 commission, whose aim was allegedly to shed light on what happened on 9/11, while covertly – behind the scenes – the Bush administration was doing everything it could to hinder the commission’s inquiries (see, for example, 9/11 Commission Report: Omissions and Distortions, by David Ray Griffin). All one has to do is investigate the numerous ties to the core cabal of the neocon Bush administration that the members of the 9/11 commission have and the degree to which it was a deliberate operation to obscure the truth becomes apparent. It was as if the White House was investigating itself; the foxes truly guarding the henhouse. The 9/11 commission and its report, just like the Warren Commission and its report on the Kennedy assassination, was a façade, a show, a display in which it appeared like our government was giving us what we wanted, while actually being part of a deceptive game of smoke-and-mirrors. It is like a magician has hypnotized us, and is stealing what’s in our pockets while they have us under their trance in which we believe they are serving us.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;As if by a perverse Jedi mind-trick, the Bush administration has bewitched us into believing that it controls the national dialogue, when in a democracy the opposite is actually true. One of many examples – when confronted with overwhelming evidence that we have been torturing our adversaries, Bush responds by saying he “rejects” that claim, and the conversation stops right there and moves on to other, more superficial topics. Our government is supposed to represent us, which is to say that they are our employees. Bush has turned this around and put himself in the role of the dictator with us as his subjects. And somehow we have allowed him to get away with this. There is no escaping our individual and collective complicity in this sad state of affairs.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;One difference between what is happening in our country and the state-controlled media of the old Soviet Union, is that in the Soviet Union, most people were quite aware that what was being presented to them by their corrupt government as news was nothing but mind-warping propaganda. Many Americans have fallen so under the spell of the Bush regime’s criminal lies that they don’t even know they are being lied to. It is like we are living in a land of state-controlled zombies who think they are free citizens of a free country.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It is as if millions of our fellow citizens have fallen asleep, as if they have become hypnotized and brainwashed by the powers-that-be‘s incessant “managing” and “massaging” of reality. These powers simply manipulate an already gullible and highly suggestible public into a game of “divide and conquer.” They get rich off of other’s blood - they incite conflict, and covertly support both sides, as they themselves reap the benefit of the conflict.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The corporate war machine, which is co-dependently entangled with our government, profits wildly from our invading other sovereign countries. The government-military-industrial complex’s solution to the very problem that they created by instigating wars – more war! It’s completely sick and totally insane. And we, in our dulled denial – like hypnotized sheep - simply go along and allow the whole parasitic enterprise to be fed by offering our sons and daughters as fodder. To the extent that we are not shedding light on the utter criminality and insanity of what the Bush administration is doing and saying “No,” we are all complicit in feeding our own genocide.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Bush and our Congressional leaders are mouthpieces for the advertising campaign of distortion and falsehood that is being “bomb-arded” into our psyches on a daily basis. Our “leaders” repetitive slogans and incantations brand and imprint themselves deep into our unconscious, where many who do not have enough psychic resistance fall under the spell. (please see Chapter 8 – “Breaking Bush’s Spell”, in my book The Madness of George W. Bush: A Reflection of our Collective Psychosis). People’s ability to discern truth from fiction has been rendered inoperative by our own government’s pattern of routinely taking liberty with the truth. Government propaganda has inverted the perception of what is actually happening, as lies are presented as truths, and up is portrayed as down in a truly Orwellian universe of confounding doublespeak. Through the “Big Lie” – which is based on that the bigger the lie, the harder it is for people to see the truth - the government has transformed myth into seeming fact, and has achieved its goal of muddling our minds so as to dis-empower us.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Many of us haven’t developed the psychic immunity to be able to fully ward off the toxic effects of our government’s covert, fear-based psychological warfare. An expression of the success of our government’s psy-ops against US is the fact that there’s so little awareness about the government’s assault on our minds that it’s hardly even a part of our national dialogue. The insidiousness of the government’s covert manipulation of our minds is even found in the very term “Global War on Terror”. “The Global War on Terror” is a crazy-making, self-contradictory statement, as we can never stop terror with a war – on the contrary, wars induce terror! This term carries with it a false and self-negating premise that if we accept we’ve already given away our power. If we leave this underlying assumption unquestioned, we unwittingly allow them to frame the agenda on their terms. We have then already fallen under their spell without knowing it, as our capacity to think and respond creatively is undermined. Our inability to creatively respond to the war on our consciousness is an expression of being immobilized in fear as if frozen in trauma. The war on terror is really a war on our psyche. The war on terror is ultimately about control – control of our minds.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;What Bush and our Congressional leaders are doing is so morally outrageous that it is literally off the charts of accepted, “normal”, ethical, sane human behavior. In the words of French poet Andre Chenier, Bush and Co. are committing “crimes that make the laws tremble,” as they are covertly undermining our very legal and political system itself. The corruption that has infected our body politic is like a virus that is exploiting weaknesses in our political immune system so as to feed and spread its pathology.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Those of us who are somewhat sane can easily lack the imagination for the depth of depravity that the Bush administration regularly acts out in the world. Our lack of imagination works to the government’s advantage, as it allows them to continue to act out the darkness in a manner which is incomprehensible to us. This is why the great doctor of the soul C. G. Jung counseled us to develop an “imagination for evil,” as being able to imagine the scope of evil that human beings can fall prey to and act out empowers us to see it clearly and thereby deal with it more effectively.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Our government’s lying and criminality is so pervasive that we have become desensitized to their corruption. Their evil has become so “normalized,” that just like someone watching TV becomes numb and anesthetized to the violence, we have become desensitized to the horror of what Bush and his cronies are doing right in front of our very eyes day after day. We’ve learned – or, shall I say, become programmed - to accept the fact that the Bush administration is almost always lying, for, as we are told “All governments lie”.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;DEFRAUDING US OF THE TRUTH&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Bush and Co., with the help of the US Supreme Court and the approval of Congress, rigged the 2000 and 2004 elections (see, for example, Fooled Again by Mark Crispin Miller). Then, with the help of the corporate media which is dependent on the good graces of military and government budgets and operations, Bush and Co. put out mind-numbing propaganda that no such hostile takeover had even taken place, to the point where after a little while most people forgot that anything out of the ordinary had occurred. The government’s propaganda machine plays with our minds, putting us in a somnambulistic state so that we eventually begin to accept the version of reality (in our example, that Bush has been “elected” to be our president) that serves its underlying agenda.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Once the office of “perception management” convinces a critical mass of people of a particular viewpoint, there is a “consensus” or “agreement” that is reached among the masses as to what is objectively true. The agreed upon version of reality takes on a “weight” and becomes the established dogma of what is collectively imagined to be really happening. Like a “religious” truth, it is irrationally believed like an act of faith by its card-carrying members, even if overwhelming evidence points to the contrary. Anyone who doesn’t buy into the arbitrarily established story is marginalized and demonized, and either called crazy, a conspiracy theorist, or even a terrorist (“You’re either with us or you’re with the enemy”).&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If only one person believed the propaganda-created consensus version of reality, they’d be thought of as crazy. If a small group of people believed it, they’d be thought of as a cult. When a certain critical mass of people irrationally believe this fictionalized version of reality (in our case, that Bush has been “elected” by the people) to be objectively true, however, they are considered normal.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Mass psychology then becomes the order of the day, as our species, animated and inspired by fear – which Bush and his regime are only too happy to cultivate - reverts to the primitive psychology of the herd. A collective amnesia ensues, continually fed by a self-generating web of endless denial, as the manufactured consent is recreated anew every moment. A field of force which literally resists conscious reflection becomes conjured up around those who have fallen under the seductive spell of the agreed upon and artificially constructed consensus reality. Anyone reflecting back their unconscious condition is considered to be the enemy. Dissociating from their own darkness, they fight with it outside of themselves as it is projected into and reflected back by the world. Believing the agreed-upon fantasy, they collectively fall into their unconscious together and reinforce each other’s delusions in a self-perpetuating feedback loop, which is another way of saying that they have fallen into a collective psychosis.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Bush was not elected by the people. The military-industrial-financial crime syndicate’s minions and operatives had already insinuated themselves into key positions of power so as to accomplish their long-planned for covert takeover of the government. Some of their cronies had already infiltrated the Supreme Court, where they literally derailed the democratic process and decided, with no basis in law, to unconstitutionally invest themselves with the authority of bestowing the election upon Bush. Bush’s seeming “election by the people” was in fact a strategically implemented political coup d’etat. Very few even noticed this act of violence because of the criminal syndicate’s control of the mainstream media. Their propaganda machine succeeded in managing our perceptions just the way they wanted, which is a polite way of saying they successfully pulled the wool over most of our eyes, or pulled the rug out from under us without too many of us even noticing.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In a diabolical feedback loop, the underlying crime syndicate, by putting out propaganda (that Bush has been elected president) creates the very situation (Bush becoming president) which confirms the truth of their propaganda, like in a self-fulfilling prophecy. Being in a position of power, they are tapping into how they can shape the world in their own image, which they are imposing on the world through forceful means. They have in some perverse way begun to access how they can seemingly manipulate and create “reality”.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Because of their position of power, these sick few can control the masses by manipulating events in the world, as well as playing with our perceptions. They are tapping into how in managing our perceptions, they can literally create events, and in creating events, they can manage our perceptions. This is a divine secret, but in tapping into it with an impure heart, where power is prioritized over love, it is always destined for failure. In the end, these black magicians will ultimately self-destruct, there is no question about this whatsoever. It is simply a question of mitigating the disaster as they create their own ruin.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Another example of our government’s attack on our consciousness: After the 9/11 attacks, there is only one thing certain – the official story put out by our government, itself a conspiracy theory, is not true. There is no question about this to any thinking person who has even minimally studied the evidence.&lt;br /&gt;(see, for example, 911truth. org). The fact that our own government is not telling the truth to us about what happened on 9/11, as well as actively obstructing any investigation into what actually did happen, is a huge red flag – why would our own government be lying, and covering up their lie? Who knows (maybe the shadow?) at this point whether 9/11 was a false flag operation, covertly perpetrated by our own government against us, or whether they knew about it beforehand but simply allowed it to happen so as to gain political advantage? Something’s very fishy about the whole thing. The fact that our country, except on the margins, is not even having an open discussion about what really happened on 9/11 – the official version put out by the government is blindly accepted by millions of people as the objective truth - is another expression of our government shaping our dialogue, both nationally and within our own minds. The government’s distorted story about what happened on 9/11 is itself an expression of the deeper and more general underlying conspiracy of our government to defraud us of the truth.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The last thing this criminal enterprise wants is for us to see what it is doing. These criminal war lords want us to believe that we live in a democracy. For example, in a diabolical sleight of hand, we are given the illusory stage-show of free elections, while there is overwhelming evidence that the elections were rigged. Even to be in a position to run for president you have to be able to raise hundreds of millions of dollars – this itself is the entrance fee to the game. In addition, the only people who would be allowed by these robber barons to be in a position of power such as “Commander-in-Chief” is someone they control. Barack or Hillary? It’s an illusion of choice, a stage-managed distraction from what’s really going on. We are left with the appearance, and a misguided belief, that we live in a government run “by the people and for the people.” In a very real sense, the Democrats and Republicans are simply various factions who are fighting for the right to represent the underlying military-industrial-financial crime syndicate that owns and operates our government. Those who control “our” government want to keep their operations covert, beneath our conscious awareness. For if enough of us become conscious of the evil and depravity that they are perpetrating in our name on the entire planet, their gig is up.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;HOW TO ACHIEVE VICTORY IN THE WAR ON CONSCIOUSNESS&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The powers that have taken over our country will do anything in their sorcerer’s bag of tricks to distract us and keep up the illusion that they are protecting us so as to maintain power. These banking and corporate pirates are willing and more than ready to intimidate, buy off, or destroy any and all critics. It is important for us to realize the depth of evil we are dealing with here – they are willing to kill as many people as needed to accomplish their aims. It is shocking to realize that the very entity that is supposed to be protecting us – our government – is the very thing from which we need protection. It is shattering to realize that our leaders are genuine psychopathic criminals who are trying to take over our planet, impose full-spectrum dominance, enact a new world order and centralize power and control. Instead of this being a conspiracy theory, the evidence is all around us, as it is everywhere we look if we have the eyes to see beyond the carefully crafted and disseminated spell that is being perpetually woven all around us.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;What is happening in our world has more the “feeling” of an invasion from a parallel universe than a physical coup d’etat. This is because the intrusion is taking place on the plane of mind, and only secondarily on the physical plane. If we could stop this covert incursion into our minds it would be much easier to mitigate the outer wars that plague our world.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;These criminals clearly have way more power than we do in terms of guns, tanks, media and technology, but they are no match for us if we activate the inherent brilliance of our consciousness – a force with unlimited potential. Part of the spell they are casting is that there’s nothing we can do, that we are powerless to stop them from doing whatever they want, like when Cheney mentioned it doesn’t make a difference what Congress or the American people want, this administration is not going to be stopped from sending more troops to Iraq.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Bush regime’s worst nightmare is for us to wake up to how we’ve been manipulated, hoodwinked and played by them like fools. The last thing they want is for us to access the natural intelligence inherent in being consciously aware, and connect with each other through the open-heart of lucidity. The powers-that-be’s greatest fear is for us individually, as well as collectively, to connect with our intrinsic God-given power to create.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Once we clearly see what is being perpetrated in our name, we can come together and “conspire to co-inspire” so as to awaken – and mobilize – our collective genius, which is a power greater than any weapon of mass destruction. In actuality, our connecting in shared lucidity is the antidote to all WMD’s – it is what I call a WMC – a “Weapon of Mass Consciousness”. It is what becomes activated when enough of us come together and see (C – i.e., become conscious of) what is happening.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Connecting with each other is crucially important, as the more of us that consciously associate with each other - as if re-membering (putting our “members” back together to form a unified body) - the stronger the field of unified force that we are able to generate. Once enough of us sync up, we become more able to collectively invoke and channel through our expanded awareness a power that is able to dis-arm any WMD: the power of consciousness infused with wisdom and compassion. Genuine compassion can be very fierce, however, as it both demands and empowers us to come together and say “No” to the evil being done in our name. We can step out of the fear-based reality in which we appear to exist separately from each other in any moment and consciously connect with each other through the open-heart of lucidity. When we are truly serving what is best for the whole – for everyone – a world-changing power becomes available to us.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The solution to winning the war on consciousness is for us to RECOGNIZE the nature of the war we are in, which can only happen through the agency of our consciousness. Realizing that the true war we are in is an assault on our own minds is the expansion of consciousness which is itself simultaneously the solution. From a deeper, more expansive perspective, the war on consciousness is itself the very catalyst and instrument for consciousness to awaken to itself.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It is our turn to come together so as to render powerless these sick criminals who have been terrorizing us. We can help each other to access our intrinsic heart-centered power and collectively turn the light of truth upon them so that they have no where to hide from their lies and corruption. For “truth”, to quote the infamous Nazi minister of propaganda Joseph M. Goebbels, is “the greatest enemy of the state.” Bush and the private interests who keep him in power and profit richly from his actions are absolutely terrified of one thing - the truth. As the late Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis said, “Sunshine is the best disinfectant.” Like pouring water on the Wicked Witch of the West in “The Wizard of Oz”, when the true light of awareness is shed on what Bush and the real powers behind him are doing, their illegitimate power over us is dis-spelled as the illusion it always was.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6515877230980466879-7787793173405992052?l=www.parsbod.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/7787793173405992052/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6515877230980466879&amp;postID=7787793173405992052' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/7787793173405992052'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/7787793173405992052'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/2008/09/mind-control-war-on-consciousness.html' title='MIND-CONTROL &gt; the war on consciousness'/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='11597099461640617082'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879.post-7494543150476627506</id><published>2008-09-14T09:34:00.001-07:00</published><updated>2008-09-14T09:34:27.304-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>You eat right, work out and try to do all the right things for yourself and those around you, but it can be extremely difficult to keep your thoughts positive, peaceful, supportive or empowering - when you find yourself surrounded by another person’s negative energy. If you don’t have the right mental and emotional immunity, that contagious bad energy can infect you too.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;THE STRATEGIES for dealing with negative energy may vary; however, the desired result is the same - to maintain an inner state of peace. If you can remain calm and peaceful, then you can respond in a rational manner rather than unconsciously react based on anger or fear. Meditation and inspirational reading (see some of the wonderful books we have to offer) can help you in developing and sustaining a peaceful and positive attitude. These powerful tools can help immensely when negative people and situations threaten to snuff out your positive energies.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;IT’S YOUR CHOICE - The fact is – there’s an awful lot that we have no control over – it is a jungle out there. The one thing we do have control over is our attitude. The way you respond to negative energies directed toward you is your choice. Always try to keep in mind that you are the only one in control of your emotions. Don’t let them “make you” feel badly. Don’t “absorb” the anger they are hurling at you. You are in control, because you are the only one who can decide to react or not to react, to let anger and bitterness seize your heart - or to feel the calm of forgiveness and let it go.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;ANOTHER PERSPECTIVE - Sometimes taking a moment to look at things from another perspective and trying to understand where the negative person is coming from can help. Most often it is a place of hurt and anger, and quite often has nothing to actually do with you at all. They just happen to be trying to cope with their own emotions the only limited way they know how.&lt;br /&gt;But you can rise above that level – you happen to be a little more conscientious (or you wouldn’t be visiting “Our Inner Source” for enlightenment)!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;BE AWARE, that if in fact, the anger or negativity directed at you really is your fault, you would be getting these same reactions from other people in your life as well. If many people are indeed angry at you or criticizing you about the same things in your life, then it’s possible that you really may be partially to blame. You should then take a good look at yourself to see what you can do to remedy the situation and plan to do better in the future.&lt;br /&gt;Don’t go around with a guilt trip weighing you down, you’ll only spread more negativity yourself!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;SPEARHEADING THE SITUATION - Obviously, it’s best to try and avoid negative people as much as possible. Unfortunately, it’s not always so easy, especially if the person dispersing the bad vibes is your spouse or roommate. But in other situations, it may be easier than you think. If you’re at a family reunion and you know your uncle is a big criticizing nitpicker, try to keep away from him as much as you can! Don’t agree with him in his nitpicking or try to defend what he’s criticizing.&lt;br /&gt;You’ll just be adding fuel to the fire!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;THE NEXT TIME someone gets angry at you, criticizes, or starts to pick a fight, take a moment to reflect objectively on the situation. Instead of automatically reacting with your own anger, take a deep breath and attempt to respond calmly.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;RESOLVE to not let anyone destroy your positive mood or warp you perspective. Be forewarned though, that if you decline to react to a negative person, responding with calmness instead, they will most likely magnify the intensity of their assault, and try to drag you down to their level. The best plan for handling this is to tell them that you can discuss things further after you’ve both calmed down, then walk away to diffuse the situation.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;DON'T GET DRAGGED DOWN - Gloom mongers are another story. When somebody attempts to extend their somber mood to you, you might be truly touched by their sadness, but that doesn’t mean you have to wallow in it if you don’t want to. Resolve not to let it drag you down. It’s perfectly possible for you to respond compassionately and be there for other people in their grief or assist them with their problems without becoming gloomy yourself.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;DISAGREEMENTS can be a little tricky. They’re usually surrounded by some degree of negativity, and if you’re not careful, can quickly escalate into full scale arguments and verbal assualts. Naturally everyone has their differences of opinions. Political/religious disagreements can be some of the most volatile. When dealing with disagreements in general, it’s best to keep in mind that arguing will never make anybody agree with you. What it will do is create negative energy. But if you want to take the heat out of someone’s argument and still maintain peace, this will stop them in their tracks: simply say to them “You may be right.&lt;br /&gt;” You’ve still got your own opinion; you’ve just made the choice not to fight about it!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;KILL THEM WITH KINDNESS - Now, if you really want to knock the socks off of your negative attacker – “kill them with kindness”. That’s right - make your positive attitude really work for you (and them). Do something completely unexpected and genuinely positive, but just make sure you are sincere in this gesture for full effect. Decide to do something classy and noble for this adversary of yours (who has obviously invested in a substantial measure of emotion and effort towards you)... do something nice such as compliment them on their ingenuity or cleverness; offer to do a favor for them (nothing extravagant); or thank them for their time and interest in the situation.&lt;br /&gt;You, yourself may end up being the most surprised of all – when you see their negativity start to melt and dissolve before your eyes!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;POISONOUS RELATIONSHIPS - If you spend any kind of significant time with someone who is excessively negative, though maybe not particularly directed toward you, you still need to determine whether it’s best to limit your contact with them or break off the relationship. You certainly can’t tell anyone what or how to think. You can show them the advantages of a positive outlook by demonstrating it in your life, but there’s not much else you can do if they still insist on being filled with negativity.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;On the other hand, if you’re in an emotionally abusive relationship with a significant other, friend, relative or co-worker, then you must seriously gage the situation and determine if it’s worth trying to cope with it or if it's time to move on. Over time, excessive negativity directed toward you can be emotionally and physically poisonous. It’s an unhealthy situation you need to avoid.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;EMPOWERING - Cultivating and maintaining a positive attitude can actually be very empowering.&lt;br /&gt;Once you start practicing some of the strategies in this article, you’ll be astonished to discover how much less affected by the impact of negativity you can be and how capable you really are of sustaining a positive attitude – just what you need to stop negative energy in its tracks!&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6515877230980466879-7494543150476627506?l=www.parsbod.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/7494543150476627506/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6515877230980466879&amp;postID=7494543150476627506' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/7494543150476627506'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/7494543150476627506'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/2008/09/you-eat-right-work-out-and-try-to-do.html' title=''/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='11597099461640617082'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6515877230980466879.post-5159817815730422398</id><published>2008-08-30T00:19:00.001-07:00</published><updated>2008-09-14T12:01:20.428-07:00</updated><title type='text'>The Psychology Forum [example post]</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://psychologyforum.us"&gt;The Psychology Forum&lt;/a&gt; is a discussion forum for people to talk about the subject of psychology. The web master there is a qualified practicing counsellor and mental health worker.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There are many topics related to psychology, psychotherapy and mental health. Psychologists, psychotherapist and students in the field are able to discuss and share their knowledge and experiences with the community. People who have mental health problems can get support and advice from other members.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The forum has been running for less than 3 months and has gathered a small, friendly and active community already.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The psychology forum allows adsense revenue sharing for people who are adsense publishers to earn a dollar too.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If you are interested in psychology, psychotherapy or mental health you can visit the forum at http://psychologyfroum.us&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6515877230980466879-5159817815730422398?l=www.parsbod.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.parsbod.com/feeds/5159817815730422398/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6515877230980466879&amp;postID=5159817815730422398' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/5159817815730422398'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6515877230980466879/posts/default/5159817815730422398'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://www.parsbod.com/2008/08/psychology-forum.html' title='The Psychology Forum [example post]'/><author><name>ellion</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/11242771685321480137</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:extendedProperty xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' name='OpenSocialUserId' value='11597099461640617082'/></author><thr:total xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'>0</thr:total></entry></feed>