Glad-Sad-Mad-Okay-Presence

So often the way we feel depends on how things are going in our lives. I’m “glad” when nice things happen to me… “Nice” being defined as things that a part of me likes and enjoys… or that something turns out the way ‘I’ hoped it would turn out … At other times, I see someone do well or they are happy and glad about something, and I join in the celebratory mood.

Feeling “sad” can be a similar dynamic in which outside circumstance are not going as I had hoped… or I have lost something I wanted to continue to enjoy. Likewise, when I see things happen in the world that seem unfair, abusive, or harmful in other way, we can feel some empathy on the “sad’ side of the spectrum.

Anger is another emotion in which something happens that goes against some mindset we are holding… It may be an outcome I was hoping for which didn’t occur. It might be seeing something being done to others or myself that seems unfair and harmful.

Emotions are usually based in our mindset and values. When the emotion is present it tells us something about who we are. So emotions are a normal expression that can teach us… if we choose to look… If we think that anything is absolute, then we miss the opportunity to learn and grow. By looking we begin to identify those beliefs and values to which we are most attached and aligned. Self-examination provides the opportunity for greater awareness and choice.

At times there may be a more stoic sense of neutrality… “I’m okay”…neither positive nor negative…. just present… It can be a positive acceptance of what is… an “Okayness”… almost an “I’m okay; you’re okay; it’s okay” moment… a neutral detached, yet engaged and observing presence. This presence is a state of awareness that to others may appear as a detachment from emotions…. It may also be accompanied by a detachment from mental chatter and trying to figure things out or understand a situation… The state of presence just is… being present in a situation with a peace and calmness that allows for clear response.

In reality, there is much more that we do not ‘know’ than what we do know… yet our feelings often point to the underlying assumptions, beliefs, and thought-forms we hold in our egoic mental make-up. We may reflect or mirror someone’s emotions they are sharing with us in empathy and support…yet we do not need to take on their emotions as our own.

At times, I have been seen as aloof or detached, when in fact I may be fully engaged and feeling something quite intense within. Some of us tend to be more process observers. Introverts tend to process things within, often showing less demonstrable reactions to situations. Extroverted folks tend to process things out-loud and prefer the presence of others to share their thoughts and feelings.

It is good to feel our feelings… Its natural… Our emotions are a vital and important aspect of our make-up. They teach us about what is going on and what basic values and beliefs we have. They help us connect with one another… And, we are more than our feelings. We are always much more than we ‘think’ we are…. Stay tuned…

John HutchinsonSundance Center for Conscious Living - www.sunhutch.com
john@sunhutch.com
May 24, 2014

Presence

Creating Consciousness to Grow in Presence Power

 



By Eckhart Tolle


"In ordinary unconsciousness, habitual resistance to or denial of what is creates the unease and discontent that most people accept as normal living... When this resistance becomes intensified through some challenge or threat to the ego, it brings up intense negativity such as anger, acute fear, aggression, depression, and so on. Deep unconsciousness often means that the pain-body has been triggered and that you have become identified with it. Physical violence would be impossible without deep unconsciousness. It can also occur easily whenever and wherever a crowd of people or even an entire nation generates a negative collective energy field.

The best indicator of your level of consciousness is how you deal with life’s challenges when they come. Through those challenges, an already unconscious person tends to become more deeply unconscious, and a conscious person more intensely conscious. You can use a challenge to awaken you, or you can allow it to pull you into even deeper sleep. The dream of ordinary unconsciousness then turns into a nightmare.

If you cannot be present even in normal circumstances, such as when you are sitting alone in a room, walking in the woods, or listening to someone, then you certainly won’t be able to stay conscious when something “goes wrong” or you are faced with difficult people or situations, with loss or the threat of loss. You will be taken over by a reaction, which ultimately is always some form of fear, and pulled into deep unconsciousness. Those challenges are your tests. Only the way in which you deal with them will show you and others where you are at as far as your state of consciousness is concerned, not how long you can sit with your eyes closed or what visions you see.

So it is essential to bring more consciousness into your life in ordinary situations when everything is going relatively smoothly. In this way, you grow in presence power. It generates an energy field in you and around you of a high vibrational frequency. No unconsciousness, no negativity, no discord or violence can enter that field and survive, just as darkness cannot survive in the presence of light.

When you learn to be the witness of your thoughts and emotions, which is an essential part of being present, you may be surprised when you first become aware of the background “static” of ordinary unconsciousness and realize how rarely, if ever, you are truly at ease within yourself. On the level of your thinking, you will find a great deal of resistance in the form of judgment, discontent, and mental projection away from the Now. On the emotional level, there will be an undercurrent of unease, tension, boredom, or nervousness. Both are aspects of the mind in its habitual resistance mode.

So how can we be free of this affliction?

Make it conscious. Observe the many ways in which unease, discontent, and tension arise within you through unnecessary judgment, resistance to what is, and denial of the Now. Anything unconscious dissolves when you shine the light of consciousness on it. Once you know how to dissolve ordinary unconsciousness, the light of your presence will shine brightly, and it will be much easier to deal with deep unconsciousness whenever you feel its gravitational pull. 

However, ordinary unconsciousness may not be easy to detect initially because it is so normal.
Make it a habit to monitor your mental-emotional state through self-observation. “Am I at ease at this moment?” is a good question to ask yourself frequently. Or you can ask: “What’s going on inside me at this moment?” Be at least as interested in what goes on inside you as what happens outside. If you get the inside right, the outside will fall into place. Primary reality is within, secondary reality without.

But don’t answer these questions immediately. Direct your attention inward. Have a look inside yourself. What kind of thoughts is your mind producing? What do you feel? Direct your attention into the body. Is there any tension? Once you detect that there is a low level of unease, the background static, see in what way you are avoiding, resisting, or denying life — by denying the Now. With practice, your power of self-observation, of monitoring your inner state, will become sharpened. Excerpted from Eckhart Tolle’s The Power of Now, pages 72-93. ..."

To access more of Eckhart’s teachings on the extraordinary in the ordinary, click here for this month’s episode of Eckhart Tolle TV.

Life Challenges... Be Here Now....

Life comes with challenges.... as well as times of peace.
Some times we consider challengess and problems as something that has gone wrong with "Life."

If we expect a life without bumps in the road...without issues, problems, challenges, rough times... then we will live a life of frustration that Life isn't what we want it to be...

Is there a way to embrace and accept the rough times along with the easy times?

It is through the rough patches that we are given the opportunity to respond in creative and loving ways.

Today as I talked with a dear friend, she shared the following story, which I repeat here with my intrepretations of course...

A woman was talking with my friend and had come to conclusion that so much was coming up in her life and she was simply overwhelmed with feelings. We will call her Sue. Sue decided to visit a former dance teacher who was in the hospital and was 92 years young. When sue arrived, the teacher's daughter was there and infomed her that her mother was in a semi-coma and hadn't been able to speak in days. Her health was failing quickly and she really was awake to visite with Sue. Well, Sue said that was okay and that would just talk to her and spend a short time.

So, Sue sat with her former teacher and taking her hand, began to share all that she appreciated about their times together over the years. About the time Sue was ready to go, she felt a squeeze in her hand and her teacher opened her eyes and said, "Have fun!"  ... then went back into her rest...

This so affected Sue and she began to cry and release all the emotions that had building up... she could not control and emotional release that continued throughout the day... with those two words, "Have fun," Sue was able to let go all of the weight of emotional baggege she had been carrying with her and indeed began to find the fun in life.

I wish each one of us the openness to accept life's challenges as they are and simply do what we need to to deal with them... and in the process of always being present, may we enjoy Life and "Have fun!"

Sue's former teacher is still her teacher, even as she faces the challenge of releasing this life!

Waiting for .........???

Samuel Beckett wrote a play entitled "Waiting for Godot" in which two characters distracted themselves from the silence while they were waiting for the arrival of this unknown "acquaintance" named Godot. The entire play goes on about the absurd things we do ... waiting....

The word "wait" usually refers to the passage of time in which we are anticipating something else to happen... something other than what is happening in our present moment...

• a child or teacher eagerly waits for summer vacation...
• we wait for the days off, the weekend, the vacation...
• waiting for the "rapture"...
• waiting for the doctor...
• waiting in line...
• waiting for the project to be completed...
• can't wait till Christmas...
• waiting for the kids to grow up...
• waiting for the bus...
• waiting for the next meal...
• waiting for the check to arrive...
• waiting to win the lottery...
• waiting to find out what the Cruise-Holmes settlement will be...
• waiting for ET to return...
• waiting for that special someone to come into our life...
• waiting for things to change...
• waiting for a mission, purpose, or direction to be clarified...
• waiting, waiting, and waiting... on and on... from one to thing to another....waiting for the next big fun thing or the next big crisis... on and on...

Now it seems the biggest problem with the waiting 'aspect' is that it removes us from the present moment to a place of anticipation... the anticipated pleasure or fear of tomorrow's fantasy. Often we find ourselves becoming involved in distractions to "bide our time"...

Then there are time when the "wait" is a good idea...  such as waiting until the light turns green before entering the intersection... So, there are many times in life when waiting may be the best choice... and I would suggest that being in repose or being inactive or being in the silence can be a real act of "Presence" that is not waiting at all... it is simply and profoundly BEING in the present moment. Sometimes we have to "wait"... and this doesn't mean we have to somehow distract ourselves from the present moment... We can enjoy the presence of Life streaming through our every cell and our gift of Life... of being... of being here now.

I have been reading blogs and forums and various comments recently about all that is anticipated to happen in this transition year of 2012. Some people are getting downright angry because things are happening fast enough and they are "tired of waiting"... Letting go of what we thing should happen and when is a first step  in coming back the reality of the present. It is not a matter of being "patient"... I would like to suggest it is a matter of being "Present" with our Life, with Love, and with the Flow of the NOW.  All or at least most of the spiritual lessons I have learned in this incarnation have directed me simply back to this moment... it is the only one there ever will be... and this is where we enter the timelessness of the Infinite Energy of All.

Peace and Much Love to All,
John

"The Past Cannot Survive..."

"The past cannot survive in your presence... Whatever you need to know about the unconscious past in you, the challenges of the present will bring it out. If you delve into the past, it will become a bottomless pit... there is always more...

Access the power of Now. That is the key. The power of Now in none other than the power of your presence, your consciousness liberated from thought forms...

Give attention to the present; give attention to your behavior, to your reactions, mughts, emotions, fears, and desires as they occur in the present. There's the past in you. If you can be present enough to watch all those things, not critically or analytically but nonjudgmentally, then you are dealing with the past and dissolving it through the power of your presence.

You cannot find youself by going into the past. You find yourself bu coming into the present."

[pp. 55-56, Eckhart Tolle, Practicing the Power of Now: Essentials Teachings, Meditations, and Exercises from "The Power of Now"] See more at www.eckharttolletv.com/sunhutch 

Love Energy... Wednesday evening Meditation

Wednesday Evening Meditation - Love Energy

The following meditation is based upon the Essenes' teachings... the daily meditations or communions are designed to be used morning and evening in addition to the noon practice called the Sevenfold Peace. At the beginning of each meditation, the following prologue is recited:

"I enter the spaciousness of this timeless and infinite Garden with reverence to the Source and Energy of Life, to the Earth and all its fullness, to the spiritual teachers of all traditions, to the liberating purity of truth, and with reverence to all who courageously walk the Path of Spirit..."

You are encouraged to spend time sitting with the following statement before continuing to read or write...

"Energy of Love, descend upon this Body, healing and purifying all my feelings."

***********

Loving Source of all Energy... mystery mover of all transformation... beyond words you shower us with love and grace...

You hold the worlds together and guide them on their way... you spin the galaxies and play the rhythm for their dance...

Now... in this mysterious presence of awareness... you are powerful in silence...

The miracle of Life itself is your gift of grace... the voice you give us is a miracle of creation... the sheer immensity on Love that is here now... always transcending all my heart can share...

***********

Imagine the spinning galaxies and all that we can see or imagine. There is cohesiveness or some kind of energetic substance that holds it all together, even in the midst of constant change. I like to think of this Source Energy as Love... Of course when we feel Love in our emotional body, there is joy, and often peace... And this endless sea of love is way beyond feelings or ideas and concepts...

It has been said that God is Love... and we can sense this in the magnificence of creation... Love is one name for the Essence of Life Energy...this awareness is often hidden beneath our identification with the thinking mind, its continuous movement, and its patterns of false impressions and inner voices... The Presence of Love can be as gushing as the connection between two people....and it can be as majestic as sensing the intimate oneness with the universe and all of Life... How much more Love can there be as we come to the still awareness that we and Source are One...

"Energy of Love, spring forth in my awareness, healing and purifying all my feelings, thoughts and my physical body."   Peace be with you!

"Good Relationships" - Relationshipping Series - Part II

Relationshipping Series - Part II

"Good Relationships"

If you 'google' "good relationships" you will receive over 450,000,000 search hits in less than half a second... that is nearly a half a billion pieces of information in almost no time flat!

 I decided not to research all of them since it might take a staff of 100,000 to get it synthesized by the time this article goes out today. And, I did choose a few, maybe 6-8 articles, to produce the following list of qualities and characteristics or 'keys' to "good relationships"...

• Trust
• Self confidence
• Personal Power
• Integrity
• Openness
• Compromise
• Openness to change
• Communication
• Conflict resolving ability
• Honesty
• Respect
• Listening
• Being supportive
• Dependability
• Forgiving
• Admitting mistakes
• Work
• Time
• Giving
• Kindness
• Humor
• Outside interests
• Other relationships

Most of the articles listed a few of the above characteristics or qualities as: "3 Keys to..." or "7 Keys to...", etc... Of course, who can argue with such a list... all can be seen as positive in nature... and most of us like to think that we are master of all of them, right?

So, what I'd like to suggest is that one of the main keys in good relationships is to the acceptance and understanding that there are only relationships... and sometimes they may feel good and sometimes they may feel bad... it probably will not surprise most of you who know me to see me write that one of the keys, in my opinion, is the level of awareness to the present moment that each partner brings... realizing that there are always times of reacting and responding from less than pure awareness and presence... We all have egos and personalities of course... And, openness in the present moment provides both 'space' and 'awareness' of the dynamics we are experiencing.

So, we might look at this from a personal growth perspective as a certain level of learned skills and the mature attitude that comes from actualizing the positive potentials of personal development. From the perspective acknowledging the spiritual dimension, we can call this a centered awareness that observes the personal reactions and interactions along with the varying contents of consciousness such as feelings, thoughts, sensations, body stress or relaxation, etc.

"Good relationships" are in the mind of 'the beholder,' as are most of our judgments and ideas.  I'd like to suggest that, and I don't know if this is true or not, when we have achieved the ability to be the observing awareness, we are also in a better position to see the personal connections and possible dependent or needy negative hooks that can take us off center. Of course all interactions are grist for the mill of self discovery, relationship discovery, and continuing growth. As we all know, the positive feelings of happiness and love can also change to something else... Being open and present... then feeling lost in some "out of sync" energy... brings us to that learning place once again...

It seems important that two people have a certain level of equality in the areas of both personal development and also what we might call "soul development"... and there are always reasons, even if we never know them, why two people connect and make the choice to partner in some way.

It seems as we continue into this year of 2012, there is the need to be open to the co-creation of relationships with integrity and clarity. In this sense there is both adventure and also some possible feeling that accompany the adventure into the unknown. Paths come together and sometimes go apart... Trying to lock the future into some set of rules and expectations will limit the openness that this time calls forth.

Changes continue... I you ask me what is most important at this time, it seems that the deep listening to Spirit... and to the currents and rhythms that are present in the depths of Soul will be our best approach. Trusting the integrity of our own life path will bring us in to connections with others on a similar path... and so "good relationships" will follow in the always present moment.

Of course there are always relationships that are committed to in time for purposes of family structure, business and financial security, exercise, hobbies, sports, and other common interests. These are social contracts that last for varying lengths of time and can be seen as "good" or "not good" often only in retrospection. And the observations or judgments can be useful for learning and they can also be inhibiting if we are not willing to let go of what was...

Which, again, brings us to this present moment... I'm not sure if you have let go of the past... or have not let go of the past... or whether you let go of fantasizing about the future or let go of fear and worry about the future... Either way... we are here now...again....and again... in this all-ways present Now...

With Blessings and Love on your journey,

John

'Tis the Season...

'Tis the Season...

Beyond the purchasing of stuff...gifts to shower on one another... there are a few other things of which I'm reminded...

The presents... I am grateful that people have money and the where-with-all to purchase presents... although I am guessing that much of it goes on credit lines that ensure ties to the economic 'wheel of fortune'...or is it the economic wheel of 'karma'? The movement of spending and giving and getting adds to the playfulness of the monopoly game... And yet the 'presents' reminds me also of "Presence"...

Presence takes us beyond the activities of giving and getting... it brings us back to the present moment of Awareness... Of course we love our family members and friends to one degree or another... the social ties are precious and so important in our journey... Presence can take us to a place of pure awareness where we can notice what is going on within us and around us and the interplay of old and new dynamics... just being aware of the energies that exist... without being pulled or swayed at each change or motion...

And in the Presence, I am reminded that I am more and less than the body's sensations, movements of feelings, thoughts that flit here and there... I am more and less than the flurry of activity in the world around me... and yet a part of all that is...

The flute music fills the air in my living space on this day... and I am grateful that the artist has spent time to become one with his [in this case] instrument....and to use his breath and life energy to create such soothing vibrations... this process occurred over 'time... and yet the fullness of it soothes and serenades in this moment of Presence....of awareness...

It brings a special Presence of Peace... and I am reminded again that in 'this Season' I am grateful for all those who have come before who have reminded us of the spiritual truth of Presence... that we are more than the contents of consciousness and giving and getting...

We are one with Being... the Essence of Life....of Mystery... of "No-Thing"... of All-That-Is... Thanks to all the spiritual teachers and guides that continue to remind us of our deepest nature... In this season of doing and getting and giving, I am grateful for the Essence of Love, Peace, and Joy that is transcendent and lives within all that is...

'Tis the Season... if I could pass out "Presence," I certainly would be doing so....

So... a Sundancing reminder...

So... for many of us, our days are filled with attending to this and that...the stuff of everyday life... and we can find our next step in becoming consciously aware right where we are...matter of fact that is the only place we can find the presence of the moment...


Is Life breathing through you as you read these words? ... I guess it is so!.... the oneness of Life has brought you to and sustains you in this very moment... we use our thinking mind to visit other 'nows'... the nows of the past... and often we are reminded of fears of future nows by our ego's relentless addiction to keep us away from this moment...

But in all of this and that... Life is...we are... being and existence.... the form emerging from the unmanifested ... from the formless...

So in the process of this and that, we pause in the space between thoughts for just a timeless reminder of the blessed oneness of All....

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Peace and Love.... John

Secret to Life...

The secret to life is… to not ‘mind’ what is happening...

The essential energy of Life is always present in the moment…

Moving into presence leaves no room for thinking about it… unless the ego needs to regain control… which it will always try to do… explaining to you that it in your best interest to spend time thinking about it…

It does not mean that we stay in a location no matter what…

In a state of awareness you will act and move without weighing all the options in your mind… you will know to leave, stay, interact, or something else… when in a calm state of presence, you will automatically affect your surrounding and the Life that we are all One with…

Being one with the eternal moment contains everything you need…

Acceptance in the Now aligns us with the only moment that truly exists.