Change: Post III... Entering Change

Last, but certainly not least, I met "AG" at Edmonton Indigo Drinks last night.

This really iced the cake on my evening.

AG, is a writer, editor, and an all-round asset for anyone going into business. Simply look at Noorish Cafe and Yoga Studio for the proof. We spoke briefly on her international travels, and I quickly learned of her connection to the great Master Alfred Huang.

Though it is certain that adversity will come our way in this life, it is equally certain that the best response to that adversity is to simply listen... and then follow that listening...

Connections then follow you.

AG has had the good and permanent fortune of assisting Master Huang in getting his great books to market. And now, only a few weeks into the STA-sis Arts revamp and revitalization, it is my good fortune to see the six-degrees-of-separation principle welcoming me with open arms. As we can see in the case of M1, two posts below: a simple step into your joy keeps ones illumination burning at a right and steady pace. But is this easier for the young?...

Allow me now to say 'no.' ... Which brings me back to Change.

Amid adversity, we do have our best learning. We hear things like this all the time now: All kinds of platitudes and maxims are spurting out their inner wisdom all over billboards and board-rooms, and it is quite possible we are green-washing and even indigo-washing ourselves into a big blob of grey... EVEN THEN, I can now argue, if one keeps close to oneself but a small modicum of hope... a little morsel of faith in oneself... even just a grain of belief of knowing that Life itself sustains you.... your learning... never... rests.

Not for a moment. Not in your sleep. Not in your dreams. Not in hours of media-based stimulation; in spending all your money, expelling all your friendships, whatever it is that you do... Learning cannot stop when there is faith from underneath it. Upon surfacing - and it does come up for air - illumination cannot help itself but want to burst forward into joy; and adversity becomes merely a future power to draw upon.

Adversity bolsters ones reserve.

So whatever barrier we face - or think we are facing - stick with it. Enter your own debate. Enter Change. And I would say: stick with adversity, gently, otherwise you may fall into the pitfall of "being right." That is to say, do not allow suffering to become rigged to identity, as that is truly thee Labyrinth.

And yet, along these lines of listening and observing, the Labyrinth itself, inevitably, becomes its own gift.

Practically speaking now, there is nothing - truly nothing - that a cup of tea cannot solve. (And I do recommend Jasmine!) Eyes closed, deep breathing into the back and belly (in that order), is the best medicine.

Lastly...

Faith, meditation... hope... these things are physical experiences for me. I do not find them in the mind. I do not find them outside myself. I find them in my low back: my ankles, my fingers, my lungs, my eyes.... I find them inside my skin.

They do shine.

They do tingle.


Listen for them :)
Phil.

{Please visit my "Book of Gardens"}

Change: Post II... sudden voyBom!

I had several other interesting conversations last night at Edmonton Indigo Drinks.

M (a third M!) is in a rather enviable spot with Athabasca University, whose perks include free tuition! Talk about a dream job. And a busy time! M's spirited nature is seen clearly in his practice of voyBom. This practice takes me back to my conservatory acting training, and I'd like to say simply that M's findings are true. The psychological and physical resonance which a person has after a session of this work is truly amazing. For those skeptical still on the nature of chakras and physical energy fields... give it a go! Truly, the worst thing that could happen is that you'll make a bunch of friends and have a great laugh!

M3, introduced me briefly to his visual artwork, steeped in the precision and beauty of fractals and sacred geometry. He spoke of the four seasons inherent to the I Ching (and M3, if you are reading this, please feel free to post the four qualitative words you have for them, and link freely to your work). Beat Poets use the 'cut up' to assemble incredible synchronicities, and it sounds as if M3 has discovered a way of finding patterns in negative space by cutting up fractals.

We were also joined by S, of Balancing Spaces Inc., whose long standing fascination and practice of Feng Shui has taken her deeply into these systemic and arguably divine patternings. M3 realized as we were speaking that there is a kind of sign-wave which moves through the rising and falling of yin and yang (young yin to old yin and over to young yang and onward to old, and so on)... to which I postulated that the S-curve inherent to the Tao symbol may also be a sign wave(!)

Well... this stopped M3, S & I in our tracks, moving directly into a spontaneous voyBom! (No: that was NOT an Orwellian sentence!) I have long (loonngggoonngggongongongong) been looking for the exact TERM of that s-curve, as I am truly tired of saying ... "s-curve." I came across this term once, and it got buried in a flurry of wonderment I'm sure. If anyone knows this term, or finds it, I'd drop everything to give you an immediate consultation, and buy the tea!!

Truly: enough of "s-curve." ;)

... Returning for a moment to my earlier post on last evening (posted immediately below)... I knew full well that I was not in a position to give a full reading to M, and certainly a networking event is designed around 'introductions' primarily... I have been thinking on hexagram 49, Change, throughout the evening and into this morning... and certainly these latter conversations were in themselves like following a broader and broader spiral...

It is a true pleasure to grow into this position of offering guidance through the I Ching. Naturally, I intend to bolster this practice into professional practice, but for now I am in the learning seat: my research has been thorough, and the next leg of the journey is getting my understanding into the world. Every opportunity that now comes my way to consult I Ching with others is a gift. A TRUE GIFT. Thank you L, S-S, O, N, T and M. It is an incredible exchange.

{Please visit my Mindfulness page}

Change: Post I...

I went to Edmonton Indigo Drinks last night. This networking event has a similar theme as the Green Drinks which have popped up in Alberta over the last few years, where environmentally conscious people and eco-focused businesses can come together, socialize, and develop their networks further. Indigo, being a latter colour in the rainbow, is a place for holistic practitioners to do likewise within their field, and gain traction with this growing sense of culture.

Naturally, I made sure I had three dimes in my pocket and some STA-sis business cards, and indeed met many an extraordinary individual, including M, who is finishing her piercings apprenticeship while simultaneously practicing her RMT. After our jump-into-the-deep-end icebreaker on the nature of Perfectionism, she graciously allowed me to speak on I Ching, and it wasn't too long before we found a table and asked a question...

This was my first casting 'unarmed.' I did not bring my Book of Gardens, nor any Thomas Cleary to rely upon, but went strictly "with the flow," as M had aptly named it. Her hexagram brought about, 49 Change: fire inside the lake. A brief description of Fire, is that it is flexible on the inside and bright on the outside; Lake, is flexible on the outside, and consistent on the inside. Indeed M, carries herself through the world with a very grounded openness, a sensible and balanced curiosity.

Knowing only a few things about her, namely that she is in her schooling currently, and that her consultation was not in flux (no lines were in a state of transition, but rather, one of arrival) it follows logically that M will be in this state of 'fire inside the lake' for some time to come. I expect that she is a very bright student, with much 'illumination inside joy!'

Later we were joined by one of her closest friends, also M (so let's say M2 for now), and I shared my findings. M2 blushed and confirmed readily of M's steady and 'illuminated' nature, her reliability, and the joy she simply brings to others.

As M had asked, 'What do I need to do to progress?' ... clearly the answer comes: NOT MUCH. You, M, are in the earlier part of the life span as you know, and that you travel through the world with a ready supply of stability, all you need do is truly to continue nurturing that inner light, and continue to pursue your joy. Change and evolution, as we agreed upon at meeting, are the currencies of Life. Your youth gives you a natural advantage to capitalize upon this. But if there is any caution in saying that, it would only be to not put all the wood on the fire at once, thinking that a bigger/brighter flame will bring greater illumination. You'll simply burn through your fuel supply that way, seeing the horizon before you've actually travelled there: so don't get greedy, lest you burn up and leave yourself in the dark(!)

I know you won't do that though. You're in a great spot in life, are much loved by your close friends; there is flexibility in the centre of the inside, and flexibility at the outer reaches of the outside... The remainder of the body of this hexagram is young/unchanging yang. You have many resources to rely upon.

It was a pleasure to be in your company... "M & M" ... I look forward to your next questions. You've both inspired me more than words allow.

{Please visit my Mindfulness page here.}