Intention Mind: Manifesting Reality

The Path Ahead

The Body of our Ark is being repaired and we are under way. Our mind is clearing as we journey onward. The path ahead may be fraught with uncertainty, but we possess the ability to direct our lives. There may be times when our way is obscured, but doubt and fear have no place in the Peaceful Mind. As the mind quiets, we begin to take notice of our lives. Like taking a moment to peer over the railing of your Ark, you are become aware of the ebb and flow of life and the world as it washes around you.

The Ordinary Mind

The Ordinary Mind is just what it sounds like. It is the state of our normal waking consciousness, that part of the self that is concerned with day-to-day living. It is where all of our likes and dislikes live. It is where our emotions are created and acted upon as we respond to our environment and the other living beings we encounter. The Ordinary Mind is a state of going through the motions of life without being aware of actually living.

Before beginning meditative practices the Ordinary Mind is often a chaotic jumble of fragmented thoughts, emotions, regrets, desires, and memories of past experiences (and of course the nonstop reverberation of advertising jingles…if you haven’t unplugged yet.)

As the Ordinary Mind becomes peaceful we notice an awareness within us. This awareness is our higher self. By bringing peace to the Ordinary Mind we enable that higher self to grow. Usually it is noticed at moments of peak experience when we are tuned into the flow of the present moment. That awareness of the present moment is based on intention.

The Intention Mind

If the Ordinary Mind is the navigation system of our Ark then the Intention Mind is the pilot. The Intention Mind enables us to make choices about how we live and how we act. It has the ability to clearly focus on the path ahead. Intention is a concentrated focus of the mind, causing the occurrence of events in our lives. When you intend to do something, you have the ability to cause it to happen. The action of Intention Mind plants that seed which, if allowed to grow undisturbed, will eventually attract to itself all the conditions necessary for its manifestation in outward tangible form. Learning to stay present is training intention. Training intention creates the potential to be successful in whatever you attempt.

Which brings us to the discussion of…

Manifesting Reality

Manifesting reality is something that sounds absolutely wonderful in theory, but doesn’t always work in practice. The reason for this gap is undisciplined intention and the misdirection of focus.

The Intention Mind provides the focus to manifest a better reality. However, there are challenges. The more scattered and unsettled the Ordinary Mind is, the harder it is for the Intention Mind to stay on course. The undisciplined, unconscious thoughts of the Ordinary Mind are contributing to the manifestation of your reality. It can be like having a monkey running around inside your head. Manifesting anything positive can be rather difficult with the monkey sabotaging your mental process. 

Misdirection of focus is even more troubling. While we actually do have the ability to create our own reality, it is not in the sense that most people tend to focus on. Manifesting reality is not a free pass to fill our lives with monetary wealth or material distractions, yet many people think that truly believing in the object of their desire and focusing on it will lead to that object or goal being realized. Of primary concern should be cultivating peace, joy, happiness, integrity, honor and purpose in life. If you are focused on material gain you are missing the point.

  

Start by recognizing where you are right now. The present reality you are living in is a direct result of the actions, behaviors and thought processes you have engaged in throughout your life. You have created the reality you exist in already. If you don’t like who you are or what you are doing, it may be time to take a long look at the choices you have made and determine the role they have had in creating the reality you are living in. Everything we are is a direct result of our actions and behaviors. Manifesting reality is not something you start doing now to get something in the future. It is what you have been doing your whole life and the reality you exist in now is a result of what you have already manifested.

If you are not happy with the reality you are living in, perhaps it is time to do something different.

Next: Change Your Mind – Doing Something Different

Further Training:

The Inner Sunrise CD is a guided meditation journey that can assist in calming the mind and relaxing the body.

Peaceful Mind: Noticing the Flow

As we continue building our Ark it is helpful to have some idea as to where we are and where we are going. Your mind is the navigation system for your Ark. Having it working properly is essential if you want to get anywhere. Unfortunately, many of us are overwhelmed by the excessive stimulus of our technological society. There is so much out there vying for our attention, it can be difficult to discern what is useful and what is merely distraction.

For many, the practice of meditation instills an ability to gain some control over the, often hectic, thought process of the mind, the success of which is usually in direct proportion to the amount of time actually spent in meditation. If you throw a handful of dirt into a glass of water and shake it up, you have a glass of muddy water. If you set the glass aside and allow things to settle, the dirt sinks to the bottom and the water becomes clear. This is the basic meditation process. The mind is the glass of water, the swirling dirt makes up the myriad thoughts we have filling our heads during every waking moment of every day, and meditation is setting the glass aside to allow the thoughts to settle. It's that simple.
Most of the time we spend our days listening to this nonstop monologue inside our heads. Do this, go there, buy that, eat this, look there, smell that, I like this, I hate that, she’s funny, he’s smart, I wonder if, etc. It never ends. From the moment we wake to the moment we go to sleep, the chatter continues unabated in our heads. On and on it jumps from subject to subject, idea to idea, emotion to emotion, and thought to thought like a butterfly flitting from flower to flower, occasionally stopping to drink more fully of some idea or thought, and then off again. Sometimes, when it finally does stop on one subject it clamps onto it tightly, causing us to think continuously about it, processing the subject from every angle over and over until it borders on or becomes an obsession. We have all experienced this at some point when we have stressed about something so much that it seemed to consume us - maybe it was an unexpected money issue or a personal confrontation with someone. We can get so caught up in the worrying that even eating and sleeping become difficult. Our glass of water can get very muddy...as our Ark starts to drift off course.

Mind Like Water 

In traditional martial arts the concept of Mind Like Water is used to define the state of perfect readiness in preparation for executing a response to any given situation. Imagine a pool of water. If you throw a pebble into the center of the pool, the water ripples out in a totally appropriate response in relation to the force and mass of the input. The water’s reaction is in exact proportion to the size of the pebble. If we toss a big rock into the pool, we get a large splash and bigger ripples. Each and every time the response is exactly as it should be, given what we throw into the pool. The water doesn’t overreact with a huge splash when a small pebble is thrown in. Nor does it under react with a small splash when a boulder is dropped into it. When applied, this concept can be very useful for anyone in the process of navigating through the distractions of daily life.
Water is shapeless. If you put water into a glass it becomes the glass. If you pour it into a bucket it becomes the bucket. It reacts to any situation just as it needs by following the path of least resistance. If you place a large rock in a mountain stream, the water will find a way to flow around the rock and continue on.
Mind Like Water is the process of mindful awareness. When our minds are full of thoughts and distractions, we have difficulty responding effectively to situations that come up. If we have too much stuff going on in our heads, we can miss opportunities or fall into difficult situations. On the other hand, if we are focused on the present moment, we are able to see our situation clearly and react in an appropriate and effective manner. We basically become ready for anything that life puts before us. In this way we are able to bring a sense of calmness and peace to our lives.



Training the mind to flow like water is done with meditation. Find a moment to sit and imagine a gently flowing stream. Breathe and stay present. If a thought comes into your mind, step back from it and visualise it as a leaf that falls to the stream and floats away.  Stay with the breath. It is your link between your mind and body.

A peaceful mind is smoothly able to navigate the landscape of life with all its distractions, interactions and altercations. Then, all we need to do is determine where we are going.

Next: 
Intention Mind: Manifesting Reality 

Further Reading
Perfecting Ourselves contains some in-depth practices for training the mind.
   

Body: Maintaining the Structural Integrity of Your Ark

Your body is the foundation of your Ark. When building any structure, if you want it to last, it needs to have a strong foundation. The pyramids of Egypt and South America have lasted thousands and thousands of years because they are built with a firm, solid base. You wouldn’t start building a pyramid from the top down, or build it upside down with the point on the ground and widening out at the top. Your structure needs to have a foundation that will support everything that you place on top of it. The same goes for the metaphorical Ark we are building to meet the wave of changes that are rolling towards us. You wouldn't build your Ark out of brittle, rotten or termite-infested wood.

Our body is the foundation of our being. It is our physical presence in this world. The better we care for it, the longer it is able to function effectively. Unfortunately, modern society is starting to make caring for our body more difficult. The sedentary lifestyle of our age, brought on by technological innovation and cheap energy, has made everything excessively convenient. We have evolved into a people who spend most of our time sitting at a computer, behind the wheel of a vehicle or blooped out in front of the TV.

But it is not just the sedentary lifestyle that is a problem. Our diets have changed as well. With the population of the planet closing in on 7 billion, food production has had to adapt to meet the growing demand. Sadly, much of the response to the demand has resulted in a massive increase in food with little or no nutritional value. Processed foods, full of chemicals and preservatives, have become our staple diet. And while hopefully most people would agree on this point, the effort and attention it takes to monitor the food we eat is siphoned off by the numbing distraction of all the stuff we are preoccupied with.

Realistically, the eventual outcome from being sedentary and eating chemically processed food is some form of deterioration. Deterioration starts either with musculoskeletal difficulty in the bones, muscles, ligaments, tendons and nerves; or it affects the internal systems causing diabetes, cancer and a host of other non-communicable diseases.

Is your way of living drilling a hole in the bottom of your Ark?

Repairing Your Ark

I-Ching - 18th Hexagram

The 18th Hexagram in the I Ching-Book of Changes is KU - Repair. It is about realizing that some of the perceptions and beliefs we have been taking for granted are incorrect. It is a time of diligence work and assertive action. Repairing your Ark requires sincerity and resolution.
This list provides some basic guides to plugging the hole in the bottom of your Ark, healing your body and reinforcing the structural integrity of the foundation of your being.

1. Breathe More. Breathe Deeper. I know, I repeat this often, but it is necessary. Getting more oxygen and energy into the body is vital to the process.

2. Rotate your Joints. The blood and energy get trapped and constricted in the joints. Rotating your joints opens the passageway for it to flow. Circle your wrists, elbows, shoulders, hips, knees and ankles regularly.

3. Stretch your Muscles. Stretching creates space for the blood and energy to flow into. There are stretches for every part of the body. Feel where you are tight and stretch there...gently.

4. Read the labels on the food you buy. Cut out processed food, chemicals and preservatives. Beware of artificial flavors and colors. Eat Smart.

5. Abandon Fast-Food Forever...really.

6. Go outside and spend time in the natural world. This is vital. We need to remember our connection with the Earth. That connection cannot be found on the Discovery channel. You need to touch it and breathe it.

7. Persevere. Nothing of value is gained without effort. Cultivate the discipline to keep your attention focused. Don’t be Distracted!

Obviously, repairing your Ark is not always necessary if you are already practicing much of the items on the list. However, there may be times when we need a little upkeep here and there.

With the bottom of our Ark on the mend we can begin to focus on our navigation system.

Next: Peaceful Mind: Noticing the Flow

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Ark: Preparing for 2012

While there is much speculation on the precise meaning and significance of 2012, it is not in dispute that 2012 marks a moment in time when a rare event takes place. On the winter solstice of 2012 our Sun and Earth come into precise galactic alignment with the center of the Milky Way Galaxy. This is an event that happens once every 12,960 years. This is not a prophecy. It is not a conspiracy theory. It is a scientific, astronomical fact. It is an occurrence that civilizations of ancient times deemed important enough to track and monitor for thousands of years. While the Mayan calendar is most often cited, Egyptian, Celtic, Islamic and Vedic metaphysical traditions all had knowledge of the importance of such an event.

We, in our modern, technological world have forgotten much of this knowledge. Though it would probably be fair to say that most people 12,960 years ago were probably just as ignorant of the event. It is usually only those who take the time to put all of the pieces together who are able to see the big picture. Be that as it may, it is time to start paying attention.

The idea of 2011 being the time to build an ark for a proverbial flood of 2012 is a metaphor for the age we are living in. Whether we are prepared to admit it or not, fundamental change is upon us as a civilization. Our population has grown to an unsustainable size. The resources of the planet are rapidly being used up. The climate is going haywire. Change is upon us. Most people are probably starting to notice at least something is happening to our planet. As it accelerates, this change is very likely going to wash away much of the excess and overindulgence we have become so accustomed to.

And while this may seem like doom and gloom to those who are attached to the material distractions of an unbalanced world, the changes have the potential to usher in a profound stage of spiritual evolution for the planet as a whole.

Building an ark to weather this change is a logical and necessary process if we want to thrive in the new age we are headed into. For our ark is nothing less than a harmonization of the five aspects that make up our being: Body, Mind, Heart, Soul and Spirit. Refining and polishing these aspects will enable us to more easily adapt to the changes 2012 and the future have in store for us and the planet.

In the next 5 weeks I will discuss each of these in turn.

Next: Body: Maintaining the Structural Integrity of your Ark

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