The 33rd Sage

The Mirror World

2016-06-09T02:37:00.004-07:00

It's been a long while since I posted on this blog. I have been writing a number of screenplays over the past two years and time seems to have gotten away from me.

There is so much happening at an energy level on the planet I decided to write some screenplays that will connect the viewers with what I believe is happening. Below is a link to a short film called the Mirror Man. Have a look and you will get a feel for where my stories are heading.

The Mirror Man https://vimeo.com/146845963
The level three parallel universe hypothesizes that when we make a decision, especially a major one we head of in one direction but in parallel universes we make other decisions. These universes exist in the same space and time as our own.

This concept is difficult for many to understand so I am currently working on a feature film which explores this concept. At this stage I have interest from a number of producers and will soon make a decision on who to sell the script to.

As we move towards the winter solstice in the Southern Hemisphere it is a wonderful time think about what you would like to achieve in the next year. If you want to find out more about the power of the solstice go back over my previous blogs.

Have a great solstice
Blessing and Peace
Geof

Blessings and Peace

2014-01-15T15:12:00.001-08:00

Four days in a row of over 40C or 108+ F and patience was wearing a bit thin, then I started to think about how many people had it far worse off than I did. It makes you wonder how often we live with thoughts of lack rather than with thoughts of the beauty of what we really have.

Taking my dogs for a walk this morning I thought I would honor every person I met, silently, with a 'Blessings and Peace.' I was amazed and a little shocked that I judged every person before I gave them a blessings and peace. After 30 years on my spiritual journey I thought I had a handle on non judgement but I guess not. How quickly we judge others without understanding their life or their journey. As the Native Americans say, 'Walk a mile in their moccasins.'

My wish for 2014 is to continually offer blessings and peace to everyone I meet and hopefully reduce my judgement of others. It would be nice to think that my offers of blessings and peace will in someway give energy and a little bit of me to every person I meet.

Blessings and Peace to you all.

Love Geof

Winter Solstice

2013-12-20T17:33:00.000-08:00

The 33 Sages of the Plum Red Robes were an order of Old Chinese Taoist monks who lived over 2500 years ago. The Taoist sages revered the Winter Solstice as their most sacred day of the year. The Winter Solstice marked the longest night of the year, where the sun is then reborn, bringing in a new energy.

The sages travelled the countryside, walking from village to village, teaching and healing people and helping in whatever way they could. They had great wisdom and had reached that elusive point in their knowledge that many on the inner journey strive for: an ego-less state of spirituality and consciousness where one's sense of self and the eternal nature of things are one. The sages were greatly revered.

It was their tradition to go out and travel the land and teach; they all knew it was important for them to live with the Elements. Some taught agriculture and animal husbandry, while others taught writing, painting, and literature; still others were knowledgable in matters of science and astronomy, and there were those like the 33rd Sage who were healers and spiritual teachers. Each travelled and taught what they knew, but all taught their students about the inner journey.

It was their tradition for all 33 Sages to return to the monastery in time for the Winter Solstice, which was the most spiritual and sacred time of the year. It marked the lowest ebb of the old sun and heralded in the birth of the new. From the 19th through to the 23rd they would perform a wonderful ceremony. Over these days the sages would drink plum wine, while one of their order would take it in turn to bang bone knockers on a table. Each glass of wine would be followed by a glass of water. The sages did not get drunk and some would have you believe that during the ceremony they would travel of into other worlds and dimensions to receive teachings of their own.

The Winter Solstice is a special time to throw of the cloaks of the old year and look with joy at the year to come.

I ask you all at this time to raise a glass of plum wine to celebrate your year to come and also to say thanks to the year just gone.

As a special gift for all my friends I am offering you a copy of my next book 'The Way of the Initiate,' which is to be published in Feb 2014. All you have to do is go to either of my websites and send a message to the Author.

www.33rdsage.com
Or
www.the33rdsage.com

Blessings and Peace
Geof

Life is Sacred - Higher Self 17

2013-09-11T18:18:00.001-07:00

Today's blog is about life being sacred. As I write this I am waiting for an open casting for a television miniseries. It is amazing when you can see the beauty in the mundane that life can lead you off in many directions. Never did I ever think I would be writing screenplays let alone acting but here I am doing both. The acting, like many things I am doing at the moment is so I can better understand the film making process and improve in my writing and screenwriting skills.

I love film, because of its immediacy and also the impact a good or great film can have on a person's life. In many cases this impact is at the subconscious level. How many of you have walked out of a great film and been a different person than the one walking in?

I felt that way when I first saw Star Wars, or Casablanca or Lost Horizons. Each of these films impacted in ways that even today many years later are still evident. Books can do it as well but usually on a more conscious level.

"Use the force Luke," has always been a part of who I have become and sent me off on my on mystical journey. The concepts of the force or the Tao has been concepts which I have been searching and researching for all my life. Each of those moments from those film have been sacred in my own life and probably for many others who have seen these and other films.

It is now later in the afternoon and I am sitting in the front garden As we near spring, the flowers are starting to bloom and the rain now falling and the heat in the air will only see this marvel of nature increase over the coming weeks. My dogs are with me for company as the sun breaks through the rain clouds. Beatrice my muse sits proudly on the chair beside me, nudging me every now and again for a pat or to stop writing and give her more attention. The other dog Horatio sits by the front door waiting to go back inside. Just like people all animals have their own distinct personality.

I am not a vegetarian but sometimes wish I could be. If you have ever looked in the eyes of a cow or a pig you will see their own distinct personality shining through. My wife will tell you that I don't even like picking flowers because I like to see them in their natural beauty. I tried vegetarianism for about seven years but it did not suit my body type. I do my best to see all life as sacred and express gratitude for each little blessing that I receive.

The rain has stopped and the birds are now out chirping. Both the dogs have gone to sleep and in my current state I might soon join them for a nap in the sun and reflect on the magic of this day.

Life Is Sacred

Huo wandered through the countryside for many months with one goal in mind: to find the Forest of K'an and journey to the mystical Lake of Li. The old sage had talked often about this magical lake and the forest. Over the last two days, he had found the Forest of K'an, and now he was heading towards the lake. He knew intuitively where the lake was; he could feel her presence with every part of his being.

On the journey to find the lake, he had many adventures and had met many strange people, the strangest being the badger that could talk; well, talk was not quite right, but he could communicate with Huo in the most unusual way. It happened over a month ago, when Huo first thought of finding the Lake of Li in the Forest of K'an. He had been sitting by a stream, meditating, when a picture of the Lake of Li came into his mind. He knew it was the Lake of Li because of the description that he had received from the old sage. He could even see the large rock that Chung Fu used to sit on when he was teaching his students. In the meditation, Huo could imagine himself sitting on the rock and staring into the Lake of the Li. The more he stared, the more real the picture became; it was so real, if Huo had wanted to, he could have transported himself there in an instant, but of course, he was not yet aware that he had those abilities. He opened his eyes with the knowing that came from deep within that the next part of his journey would take him to the lake the old sage had talked so much about.

He returned to his camp to the find a badger, a big fat badger fossicking through his pack for what little food he had left. Years ago, he would have become angry to lose the little food he had, but he was different now. He understood that the Tao gives and the Tao takes away; so, rather than express his anger, he sat down on a log of wood and watched the badger, for the inner part of him knew that the badger had a message for him.
Badgers are very independent by nature, and this one was no exception. The badger turned to look at Huo, but the look was brief, and he went back to eating the food and destroying Huo's pack. He was certainly an individual. Huo knew that badgers were very different from most animals in the forest, and they did not seem to care what humans and other animals thought about them.

Huo sent a molecule of himself into the badger, and what returned did not surprise him. He could almost hear the badger talking to him.

"Walk your own path at your own pace. Don't defend yourself. You are what you are, so be proud of it. If someone attacks you, don't defend; just walk away. You are an infinite spirit walking your own journey; be proud of yourself, but at the same time do not judge others because you do not know what their journey is or where it will lead. You don't have to explain to anyone what you are doing. You are following your inner spirit, and to explain it would be impossible; allow it to lead you in ways that you would not think possible."

Huo was not sure if the words were coming from the animal or just the workings of his own mind. It did not matter, though, for the teaching was the same. It was time for him to go back into the world and take what he had learnt to the people who were drawn to him.

He looked down at the badger and offered thanks for its teaching. For its part, the badger gave him what appeared to be a grin, then scurried off into the forest without any apology for destroying Huo's worldly goods.

No longer encumbered by any Earthly goods, Huo continued on his journey to the Lake of Li in the Forest of K'an.

Blessings and Peace
Geof

************

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris, a number of online book stores and on my websites.

The Way of the Initiate will be published late 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

The Tao Owns Everything - Higher Self 16

2013-09-07T19:41:00.000-07:00

We have almost reached the halfway point in the Way of the Initiate which is based on the 33 steps that my old Chinese teacher shared with me. I wonder if those of you who have been reading my blogs have been practicing some of the steps like Huo in the story. If you have I would love to hear feedback on what has been happening in your world.

As I write this I have finished the first draft of my screenplay The Merlin Key and as I look back I can see the amazing changes that I have experienced in my own life since taking the first steps on the path of the Initiate. A path that will continue till the day I either walk out of this dimension or become food for the maggots. One of the greatest changes that occurred on this journey has been the need to express my inner creativity. If this was the only reward for the years I have spent on the path then that would have been enough, for in tapping into my own inner creativity I have experienced a joy, a connection that is almost impossible to explain.

If you are reading these blogs and you have just read the chapters of The Way of the Initiate as a story, then hopefully you have enjoyed it and on some level it has touched you deeply.

Today Huo begins to understand that everything is owned by the Tao and that we have it on loan, so rather than hold onto it, enjoy it and share it, for one day it will go back to the Tao.

The Tao Owns Everything

As he walked from the town, he understood he had lost nothing because everything belonged to the Tao. Everything he had experienced had been given to him by the Tao; it was as if it had been on loan. Also, because he was able to release everything he had, he knew more would be given to him, so there was no need to hold on to anything. He walked into the forest a rich man, rich in the knowledge that he was abundant in all areas of his life.

He soon came to a fork in the road. He looked off down the left fork and felt nothing; however, when he looked down the right fork, he noticed the road seemed lighter. He closed his eyes and sent his energy off in the distance to feel a royal carriage coming towards him. He turned and walked down the right road; the spirit wanted him to go in that direction, so who was he to disagree with the feelings coming from deep within his inner self?

About a half-mile down the road, he came across a carriage carrying members of the Emperor's family. As with everyone he met, he showed his respect, giving a short bow from the waist. Immediately, a woman called out for them to stop the carriage, then called the young man over. As Huo walked slowly towards the carriage, the woman dressed in beautiful silks with her jet black hair tied in a bun on her head, attached with a jade pin, addressed the young man.

"Sir, can you tell me if there is a healer in the town up ahead? My son is gravely ill and needs immediate attention."

"Great lady, my old Master Chung Fu is in the town ahead, and he is a great healer." Huo caught sight of the young man in the carriage and knew instantly the boy would never make the journey; he could see that his inner spirit was about to leave his body.
Huo was at a loss regarding what to do. He did not want to infringe on the young boy, as he did not know what lesson he had come here to learn. Maybe he had incarnated to die early and teach his mother the great lesson of loss, for he understood that some highly evolved spirits came in service to die in their first thirteen years. What he did know for sure was that the child would never make it to the town. For a brief moment, he went within his inner self for an answer, only to meet the spirit of the young boy. The young boy was confused and not sure what was happening, so Huo went inside his inner self and asked him if he wanted help. The boy said yes, and in that moment Huo could see the future of the young boy, particularly how he would grow up to be a mighty ruler who would be loved by his people.

Huo turned his focus back into the outer world and said to the Emperor's wife, "Your Highness, I fear that your son will never make it to the town. If you allow me, I will give him a healing right here that will enable him to travel to town, where my master can finish the healing process."

The Emperor's wife was beside herself with fear. She looked down at the young man who was dressed in little more than rags, but there was a plum red sash around his waist that brought back a childhood memory. When she used to go with her father into the Emperor's garden, he would often meet a monk who also wore a plum red ribbon around his waist. It was the monk that helped his father build a garden that pleased the Emperor so much, she was plucked from her life of servitude to now be one of the most powerful women in the court – and she eventually to became the number one wife of the Emperor.
She faltered for a moment, but it was just a moment. "Please, help my son."

She opened the carriage door, and Huo, dressed like a beggar, climbed in. He went straight to the boy, who had a very high temperature, then looked to his mother, who said, "He came down with the fever last night, and I was at a loss what to do. We have tried everything. He has a bite mark on his left arm."

Huo examined the wound with his eyes, but with his inner senses he saw that the young man had been bitten by a spider. He reached into his pack, took out some herbs, and made a poultice to put on the boy’s arm, then used some other herbs to make a drink for the young man to sip while they made the journey to his old master at the Pagoda. He held his hands over the young boy and allowed the energy from his own being to enter the young man and take on the poison. It was not something he had been taught; it was just something that happened naturally when he inhabited the body of the young boy.
In only a few minutes, the young boy opened his eyes; the fever had been broken. Huo felt the shock of the poison in his own body, but he soon released it through his breath to the air that surrounded them.

The Emperor's wife had never seen anything like it. She worried that Huo was not a healer, but a black magician. It is funny how even when people see something with their own eyes, they cannot believe it to be true.

Huo smiled at the Queen, and somehow his smile put her at ease.
"What is your charge for healing my son? I will pay anything."
"My Queen, it is an honour to do it for you. I do not require any payment, as I have everything I need."

The queen looked at the young man before her, dressed in little more than rags with no carriage, no money, and only a poor pack to carry his herbs. "You say you have everything you need, but surely some money would help you on your journey? Or I could give you a servant to look after your needs, or you could come back to the palace where you could be my personal physician?"

"Thanks for the offer, my Queen. It would be a great honour, but I am on a great journey, the journey of the inner self, and I have all I need. Look around: I have the sun, the forest, the animals, and the seasons to keep me company. If I want food, I will find it in the forest or in a stream. If I want companionship, I can walk into any village and find someone to talk to. If I need a bed, I can rest wherever I choose. As you can see, I have everything I need."

"I can see that you are a strange man, a man who I will always be grateful to. If ever you need my help, just come to the palace, and I will give you what you need."
Huo thanked the queen for her offer. Then, just as he was about to take his leave, a thought crossed his mind. "Your Highness, there is something you could do for me."
"Name it," she said, hoping it was not a ploy by the young man to get more than she was willing to offer; she need not have worried.

"My Queen, there is a young girl in the village by the name of Qing. If you could give her a small piece of jewelry and tell her I love her, that would be a most special gift."
The queen pulled the green jade pin from her hair, which allowed her blue black hair to cascade over her shoulders. "Will this be a suitable gift?" she asked.

"Thank you, my Queen. Now take your son to the next town and ask for my old Master Chung Fu at the Pagoda, and he will ensure that your son is fully healed."
Huo bowed to the queen and winked at the young boy, then took his leave of them both and continued on his journey.

The queen, her son, and the long retinue of servants watched as the strange young man walked back into the forest.

The queen took her son to see the old sage, who professed he could do no more for her young son and that if he continued to drink the herbs given by the young man, he would soon regain his full strength.

The queen fulfilled her part of the bargain, and much to Qing's delight, she gave her the green jade pin and words of love from Huo. What Huo did not know was that the queen took such a shine to Qing that she gave her a position as her own personal servant, a position that would see wondrous things happening for the young girl - but that is another story, one I am sure will be told one day.

Blessings and Peace
Geof

************

Higher Self 15

2013-09-02T00:08:00.001-07:00

When I started to think about what I was going to write about the topic of today's chapter I was a little stuck, for in the words of this chapter is everything I wanted to say. Sometimes in the simplicity the real teaching comes from your own stillness.

The Sage Does Not Infringe

After the meditation one morning, when all the students had gone back to their homes, only Huo had stayed behind with the old sage to help him clear up the space they had used in the Pagoda and clear the energy from the meditation; sometimes even after the meditation, the unclear thoughts that had dropped away from the participants needed to be cleared away from the sacred space to allow anybody who used it later to find a space that was open and clear of any negativity. The old man always made sacred anything he did. It did not matter whether it was getting dressed in the morning or teaching a student; everything the old man did, he would do it in a sacred way - for to do any less would mean that something was less than the other.
The young man had not understood it at first, but as he began to practice the technique of making everything sacred, he soon realized that it was what connected him with everything. It was in the act of judging something to be less important or less sacred that disconnected him from the One or the Tao. It was interesting to watch his own life, to observe the difference when he did things in a sacred way.
He remembered the first time he had created a sacred space before he meditated. At first it felt silly and uncomfortable, but of course that was only because he was coming out of judgement and the reason he was judging it was that he did not yet understand that everything is sacred. It was that one realization that changed him forever. Just like the old sage, he was now doing everything in a sacred way, and the most surprising thing was that because he made everything sacred - even things like washing, dressing, and eating, which had been mundane - they had now taken on a new quality: a quality of freshness.
The world had come alive for him. When he put on his clothes in the morning, he could sense, almost feel, the man or woman who had made the garment and what they were feeling at the time. As he would give thanks to the person who had created the garment for him, he started to realize how abundant he was. Others would see him as a penniless young man because they came from their own judgement, but if they could only look deeper, they would see a young man who had all his needs met. Huo was so in touch with the Tao that he wanted for nothing; it was in his gratitude that he understood that he was receiving so much.
In clearing the space in the Pagoda, he could see what energy the students had left behind, which would instruct him and the old sage on what to teach the students the next day. He looked across at the old sage, who was sweeping the space they had used, ensuring that on all levels it would cleaner and clearer than when they first entered it. As the old man swept, a beetle crawled into the space. To anyone else it would have been a nuisance, but not to the old sage, who saw it as one of God's creatures and an extension of himself. He picked up the beetle and took it out to the garden, where he spoke gently to it before putting it down on the ground.
When the young man, who had followed him out into the garden, questioned him on what he had said to the beetle, the old man replied, "I thanked the beetle for allowing me to have a break from my cleaning and experience the beauty that existed in the garden. It is easy for us get caught up in our own world, and sometimes it takes the beauty of nature to show us that we are all connected. And to do some kindness - to even something that appears as insignificant as a beetle - can return to you a bounty far in advance of the act you performed. Look at the garden: it is teeming with life, all the plants and insects working together to create the moment we are now experiencing, which is a moment only you and I can share. It is only by living in the now and treating everything as sacred that we get to see the beauty in the world. It is through non-judgment that we can truly see the beauty that is inside us all, then experience it when it is reflected in the outer world."
"Chung Fu, you are the wisest person I have ever met, and each day you deepen my wisdom and knowledge of the Tao, but I never see you sharing this wisdom without being asked. Many times, I am sure you could have helped people when they needed your assistance. Why is that?”
That was the first time in many years he had called the old sage by his name. It was good that Huo had gone beyond the master-apprentice relationship because the old sage could see that the young man was already a very wise sage himself.
"I was going to answer that question, but then the spirit prompted me to ask what you think."
Huo's ego was immediately taken in by the compliment, but the real Huo - the eternal, immortal and infinite Huo - understood that it was now time for the teaching to come totally from within. By going beyond the need to judge, he allowed a higher awareness to come through.
In that moment, he understood that he was no longer the apprentice. He answered his own question by saying, "I know that one word from you could change a person's life, a person's evolution. Who are we to decide what a person has incarnated in this life to learn? To give them help without asking is infringing on their journey. It is to treat them as a finite being, rather than the eternal, immortal, and infinite being that they are."
The young man stopped for a moment as he allowed another impression to come forward; he knew it was time. Before he could even voice the words, he had felt it when Chung Fu had suggested that he answer his own question.
"I have defined our relationship as you are the Master and I am the apprentice, but now it is important for me to experience life rather than be defined by our old relationship. It is time for me to move on. I am sure I could learn much more from you, but in my heart I know that I am to become my own teacher. It is time for me to wander the lands and learn from my interactions with all the aspects of the Tao. I thank you from my heart for all that you have taught me, but it is now time for me to go."
Tears escaped from both their eyes as they both knew it was time for Huo to go. Chung Fu had chosen well; the student was now the teacher. The old sage reached into his pocket, pulled out the dragonfly pendant, and gave it to the young man.
Huo took the pendant, which was now more special than ever, for when he held it or looked at the pendant it would now remind him of more than his parents; it would remind him of his time with the old sage. In losing the pendant, it had become an even more sacred object.
After saying his goodbyes to the old sage, he went to find Qing. She was in the kitchen, preparing their breakfast. He took her in his arms and kissed her full on the lips. At first she tried to pull away, not because she did not want to kiss him (she had wanted it more than life itself), but because it had shocked her that he had been so bold. After pulling slightly away, she eased back towards him and joined him in a passionate kiss. During the kiss, she could feel that they had come closer together, but on some level further apart. She looked at him for some kind of explanation; he could feel it, too, and he explained to her that although he loved her with all his heart, he had to leave her and the old sage so he could continue his inner journey. He promised he would come back for her one day, but he was not yet ready; his journey was leading him elsewhere.
She tried to talk him out of it with talk of their life together and what their life would be like, but she soon realized that she may as well have been taking to the wall of the Pagoda; his spirit was already on the journey, and it was his body that needed to catch up.
That evening, they held a banquet in his honour, but before the speeches were finished, he had quietly slipped out the side door, collected his small pack, and walked away from the town.
He looked back a few times, but only to remember what the town looked like; the people, Chung Fu, and Qing were forever in his heart, and he would never forget them.
Blessings and Peace and infringe no one.

Blessings and Peace
Geof

************

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris, a number of online book stores and on my websites.

The Way of the Initiate will be published late 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

Take Responsibility for your Life - Higher Self 14

2013-08-22T17:43:00.000-07:00

Today's chapter is about taking responsibility for your life. It is a simple chapter but hidden within it are a gold mine of gifts and teachings.

With this in mind I have to share with you a little bit of what is happening in my world. I first noticed that I was nearly hit by a number of cars as I walked across the road and then my wife got two fines in a short period of time, which is unusual because she had for many years an unblemished driving record. Many people would see this as bad luck but knowing that we create everything in our lives on some level. I became the observer and watched Anna and Myself and how we were connecting with the world. It soon became obvious that we were constantly judging the drivers in the area that we live.

This set off alarm bells because I know what you judge you bring into your life. It is as if by focusing your attention on something that you vibrate at the same level and allow or bring it in to your life.

What are you causing to happen in your life?

Take Responsibility For Your Life

Qing, the young girl from the kitchen of the Pagoda, had started to join Huo and the old sage for their early morning meditation and the talks the old man often gave. Some mornings, there were as many as ten students who came to be with the old man. This morning, there was only Huo and Qing, and neither of them seemed to mind as their friendship, if you could call it that, continued to blossom since the time the old sage brought Huo to the Pagoda. Huo missed living in the forest with the animals and nature, but if he were truly honest with himself, Qing had more than made up for what he missed.

Meditating while sitting in a triangle, the old sage began to speak. "People are not interested in generating energy for their own survival and security; they want someone else to guarantee their security, and in doing so they lose their power, shifting it away to someone else, family, friends, religion, or the king and his government. We are continually transferring the responsibility and the blame for our lives onto others rather than understanding that what life has given us is what we have created.

"To be a part of the graceful beauty of the Infinite self, you first have to take responsibility for where you find yourself in life. Once you do this, you will see that the pain you are suffering comes from your reaction to life's circumstances, not from the circumstances themselves."
Huo looked down on his left arm, which had been badly burnt during the fire that consumed his mother and father; it was once withered and paralyzed, but now - apart from one or two small scars - his left arm was almost normal. He ran his fingers over his face; although he had not looked in a mirror for years, he knew that the scarring on his face had almost disappeared. It was only when he started seeing the beauty that this life had to offer that he could see the beauty that existed in everything. A young child paralyzed and disfigured, with the support of the old sage he was able to see the beauty that existed in himself.

By accepting who he was and disengaging from his emotions, he was able to see that he was not his emotions, nor was he responsible for other people's emotions. He understood that the way it was was just the way it was; rather than fight the circumstances he found himself in, he could accept them and then move on. Most times when he gave up the resistance, two amazing things happened: either the problem just fell away, or in some cases it was the circumstance themselves that taught him a wonderful lesson about himself.

In his own little dream world, he had not noticed that the old sage had stopped talking and that Qing was staring at him while at the same time trying to stifle a laugh that was wanting to burst forth from her being.

"You will have to get used to that," said the old sage. "Sometimes Huo goes off to other worlds and dimensions that only he has the key to."
They all laughed, although Huo's laugh was accompanied by a rather red face as he blushed at Qing's beautiful smile.

"Now that we are all back in the present, let me finish this session by saying: remember the teaching of the Tao; nothing is long or short, hot or cold, good or bad. Once you disengage from the need to judge, then you are free to be satisfied with the world and see the beauty in all things.”

Blessings and Peace and take responsibility for what you have created in your life.

Blessings and Peace
Geof

************

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris, a number of online book stores and on my websites.

The Way of the Initiate will be published late 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

Be Honourable - Higher Self 13

2013-08-22T05:15:00.000-07:00

Today's chapter from the Way of the Initiate is about being honourable. I hope you enjoy. The book has been written as a parable to be read but also more importantly the parable can be read to children with the parent or reader creating their own magic when telling the story. I would love parents to engage their children in the story telling by either asking the kids what they see or experience when listening to the story. Or even better they could have their kids draw, paint or do anything that allows them to express their own creativity.

I thought long and hard about whether to give more descriptions but then I realized that what was important was not my journey but the journey of everyone who reads this parable and takes their on journey down the path of the Initiate.

Be Honourable

"Honour is the nobility of the soul. It is about being consistent in your every thought, word, and action," were the words that broke Huo free from his sleep. He opened his eyes to see the old man standing above him. "Today we will begin a new exercise. Meet me outside the pagoda in ten minutes, and we will begin."

Huo splashed water on his face to wake himself up. He was tired; surely, it was not time to get out of bed. There were times when the disciplines of the old sage seemed downright ridiculous. He hoped that whatever the old man had planned, it would have some value. Huo's thoughts and motivations were not quite right this morning; he had travelled with the sage for nearly ten years, his life had been full of experiences, and along the way he had helped many people - but what of him? What was he getting out of it? Where would it lead him? Even Sages have their bad days, and for some reason that Huo was not able to understand, this was starting out as one of his. It was what it was. He had learnt by now neither to suppress any of the feelings that came up nor react to them, but instead to observe them, as they would be his teacher. That was all well and good, but this morning he could have just as easily walked away from his apprenticeship. What of having fun with friends his own age or finding a woman to fall in love with and marry? Since they had been staying in the Pagoda in the city, he had seen others his own age enjoying their lives and having fun. Sometimes a normal life had its advantages.

Out in front of the Pagoda, all was quiet. There was no noise in the city, as everyone except he and the old sage were asleep; even the shopkeepers, who woke early to prepare for the daily market, were still asleep. What madness did the old man have planned for this day?

Huo found the old sage at the side of the Pagoda, where he was carrying rocks from the front of the Pagoda to the garden on the left side. The old man simply looked up, and with a wave of his hand expected Huo to follow his example. So for the next two hours, they shifted hundreds of rocks from the front of the Pagoda to the garden. By the time the sun had risen, hundreds of people had walked past the Pagoda, many laughing at the old sage and his apprentice moving the rocks to the garden. Huo was becoming angry at the passers by, but the old man's demeanor never changed; he simply greeted their laughter with a nod and a smile and continued moving the rocks. By the time they had finished moving the rocks, Huo was sweaty, tired, and exhausted. He tried on many occasions to question the sage, but each time he received no response. In the end, he gave up asking; he knew better than to waste his time trying to get the old man to talk when he was in one of his focused, silent moments.

Once they were finished, the old man suggested that they clean up and meet again in the garden after they had meditated and broken their fast. Without another word or explanation, the old sage walked back towards the entrance to the Pagoda, where he bowed three times, removed his shoes, then entered the sacred space.

All the way through the meditation and breakfast, Huo could not help thinking about why they had moved all the rocks during the middle of the night. Maybe it was to be a surprise for the monks in the Pagoda, or maybe the old sage wanted to do it because he had something special planned for the day. Millions of thoughts ran through the young man's mind, so many that he had not even noticed that the old man did not meditate with him or that his breakfast had been improved by extra helpings of many local delicacies, thanks to a young girl in the kitchen who had taken a shine to him. If he had been in the moment, rather than worrying about the future or the past, he would have noticed these things, especially the young girl who served him his breakfast - for if I do say so myself, she was very beautiful with her jade green eyes and blue black hair that she wore back in a long ponytail. But then I may be biased, as she was also to become the apprentice of an old sage, a fact that Huo was totally unaware of.

When he had had his fill of an excellent breakfast – which, to be honest, was wasted on him - Huo wandered out to the garden. There, waiting him for him in the garden, was the old sage. The moment Huo arrived was the moment the old sage began to work. Huo watched in a measure of horror and mirth as the old man picked up a rock from the garden and carried it back to the front of the Pagoda. Shaking his head, Huo joined in, and over the next few hours - amongst swearing and other unkind words - the two of them moved every rock from the garden back to the front of the Pagoda.

It was while carrying the last rock that Huo totally lost it. It was not in the way you would think (for two hours he had ranted and raved), but now while carrying the last rock he began to laugh, finally understanding why the old sage had them doing what to anybody else would have seemed ridiculous. After he placed down the last rock, he went over to the old man and gave him a hug; it was the first time he had really shown this type of affection to the old man. In that moment, the future and past drifted away and he was totally in the now. The old man smiled, and a tear escaped from his left eye. It had taken ten years, but now the young man's heart was fully beginning to open. At last, he was honoring who he was and what he had become; he was honoring the process of life.

Blessings and Peace and may you open up to your own innate creativity and honour every person or animal you meet along the way.

Blessings and Peace
Geof

************

Connection with your Higher Self - Part 12

2013-08-11T03:09:00.000-07:00

In each one of us lies a spark of what some would call, God, spirit, soul or one of many other names. It is that small part of us that connects us with the I Am What I Am or for that matter is our aspect of the I Am. As I travel along my own path I find that the more I work on myself and with the creative spark that I have inside me the more that I open myself up to the possibility of what it is like to be a human.

We are all humans and we have all been blessed with this wonderful creative spark, but how many of us can honestly say that we have the courage to follow where that inner guidance takes us. Like many I have been sidetracked along the way on a number of occasions but for some reason, god, great spirit, my higher self or just plain luck keeps dragging me back on the path.

Now this path has led me to screenwriting and the film process. It is not that I have lost the love of writing or sharing esoteric stories, it is just that my inner being is always wanting me to stretch myself. Something that is not so easy when I am fifty nine and society expects me to be preparing for retirement. The call of spirit has been incredibly strong in my fifties. It was there in the earlier decades but I perhaps was trying not to listen.

My brother's heart attack and finding out I had the same cardiovascular problem certainly made me stand up and take notice. In the nine years since I have written three books, completed a degree in Health Sciences, an MBA, traveled to the lands of the Maya to research my forth book and experience the end of the world on 21/12/2012 at Palenque.

So the end of the world did not happen I hear you say. Are you so sure. How has your life changed in the last seven months? Have you been noticing any changes. Are you still happy with the life you are leading or is there something nagging you to change.

When I arrived back from the lands of the Maya I finished my third book, the soon to be published 'Way of the Initiate,' a parable about reconnecting with your higher self. Since then spirit has taken me in a whole different direction. I have started to write screenplays, and to do so I have opened up to be involved in all aspects of filmmaking to better understand the process. I have even started taking acting classes. This change in the way I write and tell stories has opened me up to worlds that I would never have thought possible.

What is your inner spirit telling you? Listen and follow it an I will promise you a life that is never boring. At times it will challenge what you believe about yourself and others, but if you can keep pushing the boundaries you will live an extraordinary life.

Today's chapter of the Way of the Initiate deals with the inner self. I hope you enjoy.

I Am That I Am

Over the next couple years, the old sage and his apprentice travelled all over the countryside, stopping every now and then when the sage would heal people or teach children about nature and the Elements.

It was during one of these stays in the village of Te Dang that the old sage asked the young man to begin teaching children about the inner self. The old sage knew that to master a subject, one needed to teach it to others in order to allow the teaching to come from within and be expressed as an aspect of the young man in the outer world.

The young man had been nervous all day. In the years he had spent with the old sage, he had always been the student, never the teacher. Although from time to time he would aid the old sage in his healing of the sick, he never led anything, instead always serving in a support role. This would be the first time he would take the lead, and it was exciting and daunting at the same time. He had watched the old man engage his audience in a matter of seconds, and although he sometimes spoke to hundreds, it always looked like he was speaking to each one of them individually.
How could he ever be like that? The old man had a magic about him, the magic of the Initiate. He never put himself above anyone, and he never engaged anyone in an argument. He never foisted his opinion on anyone, preferring only to answer questions as they were asked. He always accepted without question what each day would bring, he never asked for anything and yet his needs were always provided for.
He remembered back to the day when his pack and the dragonfly pendant were stolen. It had been a horrible day; yet, as he looked back on it, it was one of the best teachings he had ever received. Since that day, he had become the observer, and like the old sage, he was now taking each day as it came.
As he relived that day, he tried to remember what the old sage had taught him. What had the old sage said? He was having difficulty remembering. Huo took a deep breath and held it for a moment, and in seconds he could feel the calmness and all-knowing of the Initiate come around him. In his mind's eye, he could now see the old sage sitting deep in meditation.
Although he still seemed to be in a deep trance, all at once he opened his eyes and words fell from his mouth. The words that fell from his lips were from a deep part of the old sage, in a voice that was very different from his normal voice.
"It is important that you believe that you are already the Initiate and that you have this power within you. You need to make it a part of your now and not off-in-some-distance future. You need to create the Initiate within before it can express itself in the outer world. It is in the mirror worlds of the inner self where all creation takes place. What happens in the outer world is but a mirror to what you have created within. If you want to understand what you are creating with your thoughts and feelings, all you have to do is look at what is happening in the outer world. If you do not like what is happening, then you need to change what you are feeling and thinking. To be the Initiate, you have to be able to believe in a life that you cannot hear, touch, or taste, but rather a life that you will eventually begin to feel. It is strange that by believing and opening yourself up to being the Initiate and walking the way of the Initiate, something inside you opens up to the possibility.
"As you walk the path, you will begin to understand that the love that comes from the Tao or God is impartial. Although this energy does not care what you do with your life, it is possible to direct the energy and create whatever you want in your life. I do not mean that if you have a wishy washy thought that you want something that it will come into your life, because it won't. You first have to create the feeling of already having it in the inner worlds, and then this energy will be expressed and delivered in the outer world and the godforce will manifest what you already believe is yours."
Huo felt re-energized. The words of the old sage coursed through his entire being, then out into the audience before him. Children who were loud and raucous only minutes before were sitting quietly, waiting for the young man to speak.
"Let me tell you a story," said the young man, and the children hung on his every word. "It is the story of a young boy who was taken in and became an apprentice to an old sage. The old sage taught him about nature and the seasons. He taught him how to connect with the animals and become their friend. He taught him how to sit in the forest and connect with his inner self and to understand that everything in the universe was connected."
As he went deeper into the story and the teachings he received from the old sage, he could see the connection he was having with his young students. Their eyes started to bulge as they took in everything he said - and even more than that, they could take in everything he felt. In many cases, they could not understand what he was saying with their logical minds, especially the younger ones, but on some level they all understood.
As Huo was talking, a picture began to form in his mind. He continued to teach the children, but a deeper part of himself was focused on the picture that was building in his mind. It was a scene from what looked like the future. As he focused deeper, he could see himself as the old sage. Following behind him were a number of apprentices, but the landscape was different - and this certainly was not China because many of his apprentices were definitely not Chinese. As he went deeper into the picture with his feelings, he knew it to be true. Was he creating this future because of his belief in being the initiate, or was he growing into a life that was predestined?
Those thoughts and feelings disappeared as he put his attention back on the children before him. He may have had a glimpse of his future, but it was what he was doing in the present that would determine what he would become.

Blessings and Peace and may you open up to the wonders of the journey that is your journey.

Blessings and Peace
Geof

************

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris, a number of online book stores and on my websites.

The Way of the Initiate will be published late 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

Become the Observer - Higher Self 11

2013-07-25T18:50:00.000-07:00

Become the Observer

The old sage told Huo that they were going for a walk in the forest rather than doing their meditation and martial arts training. The boy was a little confused and out of kilter, as he had become accustomed to the training in the morning, which started his day. His first thought was to pick up his pack and take it with them, but he faltered and put it next to the old man's pack instead.

"So it shall be," said the old man.

Huo felt uncomfortable. He had a queasy feeling in the pit of his stomach that he ignored, simply putting it down to the change in routine.
The old sage led him in the dark on a walk through the woods. It was pitch black, the new moon shining no light on their journey. Still feeling queasy, Huo banged his head on a low lying branch, the same branch the old sage ducked under. The old man knew that it was going to be a tough day for the young man, but he had chosen it by not listening to his inner feelings. It would be a great lesson in many ways.

"Huo, if you do not want to get another bang on your head or lose more skin off your arms, I would suggest that you walk with your feelings; obviously, your eyes aren't much help in the darkness.” With that, the old sage took out a piece of cloth and tied it around Huo's head. "Now you will have to go with your feelings."

The young man panicked. He tried to remove the blindfold, but the old sage reached across and grabbed his arm. "Relax," was all he said, and the young man took a deep breath and began to imagine what it would be like to walk in the forest blindfolded. At first he could not imagine it, but as he became more relaxed, he could actually see the forest in his inner mind. He took a few tentative steps, then a few more; soon he was walking at the same speed as he would fully sighted on a bright sunny day. He continued to walk easily through the forest, trusting nothing but his inner sight and his feelings.

It was then that the nausea returned. He continued to walk, trying not to think about the nausea, but the nausea would not disappear, and it was not long before he bumped his head again and started losing bits of skin as he walked into more bushes and trees.

Huo stopped and removed the blindfold. It was still dark, although a hint of sun was coming up over the hill. He sat down, closed his eyes, and centered his feelings in the nausea. After a couple minutes, a picture began to appear in his mind. It was a picture of their camp, and he could clearly see their two packs leaning next to each other. He wondered why he was seeing that particular image when all of a sudden the picture changed and a band of men walked into the camp and were soon rifling through the packs for anything of value. Huo's heart sank when he realized that the dragonfly pendant, the one that was given to him by his parents before they died in the fire, was in the pack and that his last physical memory of them was about to disappear.

He jumped to his feet; maybe he still had time to get there and fight the men for the pendant. No sooner had he had those thoughts, though, did he realize that in his vision of the men it was still dark; it must have happened hours before, and he knew he would never get there in time.
He slumped to the ground in resignation. If he had only brought the pack with him. If he had only tapped into the feeling of nausea earlier, it could have been different. After a few minutes of self-pity, he sat upright and centered his awareness. As he took a few deep breaths, a picture of the bandits appeared in his mind. He sent them love and forgiveness, and all the anger that he was holding towards them drifted away. They obviously needed what was in the pack more than he did. It was unfortunate to lose the pendant, but his mother and father were deep in his heart. He had learnt a great lesson from the loss of the pendant, and that had made it even more special. The old man had taught him to become the observer, but now he knew it was just as important to observe what was going on on the inside. He thanked the Tao for his great lesson and sent a feeling of love out into the world. It was such an expression of love that anybody who had the awareness would have been bathed in its beauty.

Huo opened his eyes, and there sitting beside him in deep meditation was the old sage. He waited while the old man finished his meditation, then came back into the present time and space. While he waited, he reflected on what he had learnt that day. One surprising observation he made was of the incredible control he had allowed others to have on his life; whether it was the bandits who robbed him or the village people who had made him who he was today, everywhere he looked, he could see others trying to control what he thought and did. He realized that by not reacting to others and what they did to him, being the silent observer of his own life, and forgiving himself and the others who trespassed against him, he was free to be person he wanted to become.

The old sage just smiled; his apprentice was now free from the emotions and expectations of others. One day he might even give him back the pendant he removed from the pack when they left the camp that morning.

Blessings and Peace and may you become the observer of yourself and become the person you were destined to become.

Geof

************

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris, a number of online book stores and on my websites.

The Way of the Initiate will be published late 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

Discipline Is The Doorway To The Infinite Self

2013-06-15T19:27:00.000-07:00

In my stories the lead character goes through the process of transformation. What they believe their dramatic need to be changes as the story develops. In the end the character is different from the one who starts the story and many times these differences are internal. They are the differences that allow us to enjoy the adventure that is life. I am currently writing a screen play about a young boy who believes that other worlds and dimensions exist. It his dramatic need to prove these worlds exist, even though his parents and friends do not believe him and he has become an outcast, he continues to believe. As he moves through the story the dramatic need changes where he ends up is a far different place than he would have believed. This concept of transformation is what drives all our lives. We have certain dramatic needs that we want from life and they are the basis of what we are and do. Have you ever stopped for a moment and thought about why you are here and why you do and act the way you do? Just like the character in my screenplay I have always believed these other worlds existed and now I spend my life sharing these stories with others.

In the screenplay the entrance to the mirror world is a energy that my old friend Stuart Wilde called the Morph. He described it like misty rain falling. People and objects that go into the morph disappear and then reappear. I have seen the morph on many occasions but as yet I have never stepped into it. Not from fear but because I am not quite ready. In the past it has always moved away from me, but over time it has come closer and closer. When I opened my eyes after a meditation it was directly in front of me. I stretched out my hand only to see the morph collapse in on itself.

If there is one thing that I have learnt on this journey it is that the only way to know these other worlds is through discipline. There are many who take the easy way through drugs, but ultimately these drugs drag them into what some have called the astral worlds. I personally believe that the drugs take them into the shadow self and because they do not have the training or the discipline they ultimately get stuck in these worlds and live a life of hell.

So if you want to experience aspects of your Higher Self or have a window into these other mystical worlds I would suggest that you learn to discipline your mind and body. In today's chapter of the story the young Huo learns that discipline is the doorway to the infinite self. I hope you enjoy.

Discipline Is The Doorway To The Infinite Self

It was just after 4.a.m when the old sage shook the young man awake.
"Huo, after what happened yesterday, I want to change your training. Rather than continue to work on connecting you with your inner self, which seems to be taking on a life if its own, I believe it would be best to work with your physical self. Today, we will begin your lessons in martial arts, as well as in meditation. If your inner life continues to develop at the current rate, it is important that you learn physical and mental discipline to be able cope with the changes."
"Master, how will martial arts help with my inner life?"
"Your inner world expresses itself in your outer world, and unless we discipline your mind, body, and emotional responses, then you will create your outer world based on your childish reactions to what you perceive as external influences. Everything in the outer world is only an expression of what is first created in the inner worlds. As you open yourself up to the inner worlds, you will get messages from your higher self, and if you are not a clear channel, then these messages will be distorted by your ego and emotions. When the message tells you to go forward, your ego may tell you the opposite. It is only through discipline that we can quiet the ego and clear the subconscious mind of its previous programming.”

The old sage moved into the horse stance, took a deep breath, then closed his eyes. "Now, Huo, I want you to attack."
"But, Master, you have your eyes closed, and you are so old. I am afraid that I will hurt you, as I will be too quick for you."
The old sage smiled; the young man was much like he had been those many years ago.
"Yes, you are probably right, but please do this as a favour to an old man. Attack me."
Huo faltered for a moment, then he moved forward, dancing around the old man, flicking out an odd punch; it was more of a test to see if the old man would respond, rather than trying to hit him.
The old sage never moved.
Huo's confidence began to grow. He decided that he would not hit the old man hard; just a light tap on his head to teach him a lesson and show him how fast he was. Before the fist reached its target, however, Huo could feel himself being thrown in the air. As he struck the ground, feeling every bruise, he replayed in his mind what had happened. His fist was about a hand’s length from the old man when the old sage moved inside the fist, grabbed his arm - and in what seemed like an impossible move, went underneath him and launched him into the air.
"Teach me," was Huo's only reply.
And that was when his Martial Arts training began. Each day, well before sunrise, the nocturnal animals would gather around in a circle to watch the old man and his young apprentice practice, using stances the animals themselves used and working with the energy of the elements to understand how to read your opponent. More importantly, though, Huo learned how to understand and observe himself, ultimately moving to the stage where there was no reaction; for it was in the reaction that the old sage knew that you moved out of the flow.
Month after month, they practiced. First it was Martial Arts, then it was daily meditation, one minute of meditation for each hour of the day. At first the young man could not hold his emotions in check as he reacted to the strikes of the old sage, which always ended up with him getting another bruise or landing on his backside. He was progressing well with the physical aspects of the training, but he could not move beyond his emotions, which was something he would need to do to move on to the deeper aspects of the old sage's teachings.
The old sage was not worried, for "it was what it was; it was neither good nor bad." He knew the young man would move beyond the ego in his own good time. It just meant that he would have to slow down on the inner work.
It was after a particularly bad session when the young man had received far more bruises than normal that the Sage's inner voice suggested they do their daily meditation by a stream that ran a few hundred meters from their camp. As soon as he saw the stream, he understood what his inner voice was trying to tell him. Even after all these years, it was the inner voice from his Higher Self that was always there when needed. The key, as always, was to be open enough to listen.
They sat beside the stream, only this time the old sage asked Huo not to close his eyes, but rather stare into the water and allow it to take him into a meditative state. The young man watched the stream, not quite sure how this was going to help him go into a meditative state. All the same, after a few minutes he found himself very calm, and he released the frustration he had experienced from the early training session where once again the old man had made him look stupid. It no longer mattered, for he began to understand that he was not fighting against his Master, but himself. That one realization released any anger he had stored up in his body, and all at once his body healed itself, the bruises disappearing along with the aches and pains. He even noticed that his paralyzed left arm was now completely free from any pain and that he now had full use of it. He looked to the old sage for an answer, but the old sage had disappeared. Unperturbed, he looked back into the water, for in that moment he knew that it was his teacher that morning.

He watched as the water flowed on by kissing the bank and giving its life force to the plants and animals that lived along the stream. He looked into the middle to see a large rock rising out of the water. The water did not seem to fight against it, but simply flowed around the rock. It did not need to react; it just found another, simpler course. He understood that in time the water would defeat the rock, but it would be done in a calm, balanced way. The water had so much power, yet at the same time it gave life to everything around it. He had never looked at the elements in this way before, but from that moment on he would begin to observe more, for there was far more to this world than he had previously thought possible.

Blessings and Peace and may you become the water and may your essence give life to those around you.

Geof

************

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris, a number of online book stores and on my websites.

The Way of the Initiate will be published mid 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

Nothing Is Ever Lost - Higher Self 9

2013-06-01T23:46:00.001-07:00

Nothing is ever lost that apart from the first draft of my screenplay which refuses to open. I even tried a technique I learned from Uri Geller when my old computer had up the ghost. It was another occasion when I did not have a copy of manuscript I had been working on for months. I had a computer expert look at it and he could do nothing. What did I have to lose. I thought of what Uri had said and I held down the start button and repeated three times, "Work, work, work," and then I released the button. Nothing happened. What did I expect. Then the computer whirred into life and still works to this day some four plus years later.

I even tried it on the screenplay document but I guess spirit wants me to work on other things.

Today's post is that Nothing Is Ever Lost. I am referring to mor esoteric things than my screenplay but even with respect to the screenplay it is also true. Either I will be able to open it or I won't, but the one thing I am sure about is that information in the screenplay came from me so I will be able to find it again and maybe it will be even better this time.

Today let's join Huo on his journey where he learns.......

Nothing Is Ever Lost

"Nothing is ever lost. Everyone who has ever lived and everything they have ever created," said the old sage as he reached out his open right hand, "is there for anyone. All you have to do is open yourself up to the vibration, and you become a channel into the past, present, or future. When you go into your inner self, you connect with everything that has been or will be. All the geniuses or masters are waiting for you to tap into their energy. If you want to be a great artist, all you have to do is imagine in your inner being that you are that great artist, then allow him or her to open up their genius to you.
"When I was studying to be part of the 33 Sages of the White Brotherhood, I would sit for hours and open up myself to the sages who had come before me. I would learn in days what would have normally taken lifetimes to understand."
"Teach me," said the young man, whose mind was already opening itself up to the Cosmic Mind, which held the memory of all things. The young man soon found himself wandering through the hallway of a large castle. At the end of the hallway was a doorway. From beyond the doorway, Huo could see a blinding light forcing its way around the edge of the wooden door. His ego mind was telling him not to go any further. He hesitated for a moment, then continued walking. His ego spoke louder, almost screaming for him to stop. In that moment, he understood what the old sage had taught him about the ego's fear of death. He took a deep breath and stepped through the door and was immediately enveloped by the light and transported to another time and place.
Once Huo's eyes became accustomed to the light, he was aware that he was surrounded by thousands of people, many of whom who looked exactly like him. One young man came towards him. At first he pulled back, for a moment not realizing that it was another part of him from another dimension. The shock sucked him out of his body and back into the present, where he was sitting by the fire with the old sage.
At first he could say nothing, for he was truly in shock; a part of him now existed in the other world, and he could feel it pulling on his being. He was no longer sure what was real. Until a few minutes ago, he believed the world he lived in was reality, but now he was no longer sure. He had been to a world where there were thousands of beings just like him. In his feeling self, he knew they had all come from different dimensions and worlds to meet together in the world that existed beyond the doorway. Would he be able to go back there? Did he want to go back? For that matter, did he have a choice? For he felt like there was a part of him that now existed totally in that other world, and he was not sure whether or not he needed to go back and retrieve it or if that was the way it was meant to be. Was he, in fact, drawing from his other selves all the time, or maybe it was a way for him to experience other worlds and other parts of his eternal self?
He looked across at the old sage, who was quickly making a pot of herbal tea. He had never seen the old sage rush with anything. Huo sat there, experiencing his own infiniteness. He no longer felt shock; no, now what he was feeling was a sense of calm, but beneath the calm was another feeling: it was the sense of wonder. No longer could he look at anything the same way again. He picked up a beetle that was scurrying beneath his feet. The beetle stopped scurrying and looked into the young man's eyes, and for a moment they shared a piece of each other.
The old sage had never seen anything like it. He quickly poured the cup of herbal tea in the hopes that the events of the past few minutes would not make the young man mad; it was more than anyone could stand without years of meditation and discipline. He need not have worried, though; by the time he offered the tea to the young man, he was calm and serene. In fact, he was more than that. The old sage watched as the young man connected with the beetle in a way that he would not have thought possible, standing in awe as the beetle and the young man became one. It was not in a philosophical sense, though, for they had truly become one; the aura of the young man and the beetle had entwined, and now each one’s individual energy and memories were now available to the other. The old sage was not sure, however, how the beetle would cope with the memories and teachings the young man had given him, for he was no longer sure who was actually the teacher. The old sage was trying to teach the young man that he could draw from the teachings of the masters in previous times, but the young man had gone beyond that and was now showing the old sage that he could learn from his infinite selves, and even from the insects of the Earth. He knew the young man was special when he had seen him in his dreams those many years ago, but now he was beginning to see how truly special he was.
It was now important for him to speed up the teaching he was giving the young man, as he was growing far quicker than he would have ever thought possible - which in itself was a wonderful thing, but it also had its downside. Did the young man have the mental capacity to cope with what was occurring?

Blessings and Peace and may you connect with the other parts of your self.
And me with my screenplay.

Geof

************

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris, a number of online book stores and on my websites.

The Way of the Initiate will be published mid 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

Moving Beyond the Ego - Higher Self Part 8

2013-05-28T18:25:00.001-07:00

It has been a few weeks since my last post and I am not sure why. Everything was going brilliantly for me creatively and now everything has seemed to stop. Even my work on my first screenplay was going well. It seemed that every time I would ask a question, I would meet someone with the answer, or I would find it in a book I picked up or a bus passing by. It was like I had a direct connection to my higher self, but sadly over the last few weeks it feels like that connection has broken. Since the death of one of my old teachers Stuart Wilde I no longer feel the Higher Self in and around me. It has got to the point that even when I am about to go somewhere on a bus or tram they do not even stop for me any more. It has even got weirder with the first draft of my screenplay completed I am not even able to open the document and even my back up copy is corrupted.

Having been ranting and raving a bit since, having tried everything I know to open the document, I thought it was time to take time out and write this blog post. Interestingly the next part of the 'The Way of the Initiate,' I was to share was about moving beyond the ego. Perfect timing because I am stuck right in my own ego and that is why I cannot hear the voice of my Higher Self. They say we always teach what we need to know. Maybe spirit is telling me to take a step back and allow the next step in my journey to be unveiled.

Have a read of the short chapter below and I will hopefully meet you on the other side.

Moving Beyond

Before sitting down to dinner, the old sage sat cross-legged on the ground. He took a few deep breaths, holding each one for a moment, then released his breath, and with it energies from the day that he did not want to hold onto.
"What are you doing?" asked the young man.
The old sage smiled and opened his eyes, turning all his attention to his young apprentice. "I am moving beyond the ego. At the end of each day, I play the day back in my mind's eye, and when I come to an event when the flow of my energy is stopped by my ego, I take a deep breath, reflect on it for a moment, and then release it into the ether."
The young man returned the Sage's smile, but he was still confused, a state he was experiencing a lot since he began his journey with the old man. "What do you mean by the ego, and how does it stop your energy flow?"
"There are those that say that the Ego is the mediator between the conscious and Subconscious minds. There are others who say it is our identity, while some say it is what gives us our sense of self-worth or self-importance. In a way, it is all those things, but for me, its greatest weakness is that it stops the flow of information from our higher selves and disconnects us from everything else in this beautiful universe. Think back to the other day when you woke and found me gone. It was your ego that went into a panic. It was only when you calmed yourself down and reconnected with the spirit that you became part of all things, and at that moment you knew where I was."
"Sage, why do we have an ego if it limits us?"
"The ego gives us a sense of ourselves. It is important in our first few incarnations, when we are here to learn lessons of a more Earthly nature. It is only after our sixth lifetime, when we begin on our spiritual path, that we begin to move beyond the ego. The ego is the source of most of our weaknesses. Most of our weaknesses come from the various manifestations of the ego's fear of death. Fear is the ego's weapon that stops us from moving forward in our lives. The ego is lazy. It does not want to try new things. It would rather stay in the negative state it has grown comfortable with than take a chance on a better life. Change is the death of the ego. Once you start to realize that the ego is holding you back, then little by little you can move beyond it to a life where you are in the flow, where it does not matter what is around the next corner. Whereas the ego will stop you from living, being in the flow will allow you to experience opportunities you would never think possible."

As I thought I have allowed my ego to take me out of the flow. When I look at what has been happening such as the death of Stuie, and thinking about my own future I have allowed the fear of death and the fear of the future to creep into my own life. Time to have a chat to my ego and tell him kindly to piss off and open up to the flow that courses through all of us. Time to take my own advice and be open again to what the universe has to offer.

See you again soon.
Blessings and Peace and may the real you manifest what it needs, to take you where you need to go..

************

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris, a number of online book stores and on my websites.

The Way of the Initiate will be published mid 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

In Memory of Stuart Wilde

2013-05-07T23:00:00.000-07:00

In Memory of Stuart Wilde

I received news that my old friend Stuart Wilde passed away after a massive heart attack. I call him friend even though I have not seen him since about 1990. In the late eighties I was one of his support team on an experiential workshop called the Warrior's Wisdom. It was a weekend workshop where he taught us about mysticism and the way of the warrior. It was an amazing workshop, one I was lucky to support him on a couple of times. I loved the man like a father and yet in the short time that I spent with him I was changed forever. Many people just got to see Stuart Wilde the performer but it was Stuie the man that I will never forget.

There are many instances of the man, I loved, I could call to mind but one in particular occurred at the end of the Warrior's Wisdom weekend in Sydney Australia. As I previously stated I was one of the support team on the workshop. We were waiting for the participants to arrive, so we could guide them to their rooms where they were staying for the weekend or to the many resources spread around their accommodations. While we were waiting Stuie came up to me and asked how it was going. When I told him that everything was going fine he suggested that we not give them all the information they needed as it would help develop their perception. We laughed and over the next hour or so we sent people off into the forest to find their rooms, or in the opposite direction, some we even told that we could not help them as their names were not on the list. It was hilarious watching these so called spiritual people totally lose their shit. After that first episode the support team did support everyone in any way they possibly could.

Over the next three days I worked with and helped many people as they came to grips with what Stuart was teaching them. He was possibly the greatest showman I have ever seen. When he came on stage his manner and voice would capture an audience in seconds and leave them spellbound.

It was on the last night of the workshop where I got to see and experience the Stuie that I came to love and respect. We had just finished the fire-walk where over a 150 people walked on hot coals. The only people to be burnt were two of the support team (me included), we had seen the thermometer melt in the fire. Well anyway after the firewalk we had the closing ceremony. As usual I was at the back or out the back making sure that everything was running smoothly, when Stuart asked us to all to come in for the closing ceremony. I stood at the doorway ensuring that everyone had come in and then locked the door.

After talking to the group for a few minutes we did a meditation and Stuart called me over. Thinking that he needed something for the ceremony I went over and asked him what he wanted. He said he wanted me to join him in the middle of the circle. I was taken back and a little embarrassed as many eyes looked upon me. I sat as far away from him as I could but he insisted I come a little closer. I moved within a few feet of him and while everyone was getting ready for the meditation we had a lovely little chat (he was British after all). He had seen everything I had done for people over the last few days and it was his way of honoring me for the support I gave him.

I did a few more workshops with the old bugger and was even part of a circle who would gather weekly to listen to the teachings of his old Chinese teacher. One workshop which I will call the 33 Steps was a workshop about the 33 energies that guide this planet. I was awe struck and would spend the next twenty plus years working to understand the concepts. My upcoming book the Way of the Initiate is based on these teachings. In the book a young disfigured and disabled boy becomes the apprentice of an old sage and the book is written like a parable of their journey together. In many ways. I feel like it has been my own journey and Stuie was the old sage. Still, there is not a day that goes by that he is not teaching me something. I will miss the old bugger but for anyone who has met the real Stuie we will always have our memories.

Stuie may you rest in peace and give them hell wherever your journey takes you.

www.stuartwilde.com a place of real knowledge

************

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris and a number of online book stores.

The Way of the Initiate will be published mid 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

Connect with the Wisdom of your Higher Self - Part 6

2013-05-07T22:22:00.000-07:00

To Be Connected, You Need To Detach

In part 6 of How to Connect with the Wisdom of your Higher Self I thought I would let the chapter from the upcoming Way of the Initiate tell the story and allow the reader to make their own connections to the teachings that lay underneath. As my old teacher said there is no spiritual journey without inner work, so I guess it is time for you to go to work. The title says it all 'To be Connected, You Need to Detach.

I will see you on the other side of today's story.

"You have had enough excitement for one day, so we will set up camp for the night. You collect some wood, and I will get some water from the stream so that I can prepare tonight's meal," said the old sage.
The young man only nodded. It had been a tough day. When he woke that morning and found himself on his own, he panicked. He thought he was alone again, but this time many miles away from the village where he lived. Of course, living in the village had been no life, for most of the time, because of his disfigurement, he felt like he was on his own, but he had gotten used to that way of living - although he now understood that he was not really living, merely waiting to get older and die the slow, horrible death of boredom that had become his life. There was a moment when he woke when he would have been happy to have gone back to that life. What had happened? It was hard to describe; in fact, he could not describe it. There was a moment when he went deep within himself and felt connected to all things. It was going with his feelings that led him to the old sage. It was a strange feeling. In the moment he knew where the old sage was, there was a feeling of joy such as he had never experienced before in his life. At first he thought the joy was caused by knowing that he would be safe, but on reflection he realized that it was deeper than that. The joy came from knowing that he was truly connected to all things. He had glimpses of it in the few days he had travelled with the old man. He thought the old sage was the reason he had received these glimpses, but now he knew that he was the source of this connection to all things.
"How is the wood coming along, Huo?"
The young man looked up into the face of the old sage, which was creased with a smile. "You deliberately left me this morning? You knew what would happen?"
The old sage sat down beside the young man, for it was no longer right to call him a boy; he had grown so much in the last few days, but not so much physically (although there had been some changes there), more spiritually and emotionally. The young man had seen beyond the veil, and the energy from beyond was now increasingly flowing through him, giving him insights that would have been impossible with his mindset only a couple days before.
"Let me tell you a story. In Old China, an emperor stood upon a very high hill. Spread through the valley below him was all of his great army. He could see where a battle would be fought and where the other armies waited. He had developed an intricate system of commands for the generals and officers of his army, and the battle began.
“The emperor could signal to the right, and the right would attack. He could signal to the left, and the left would attack, or the middle. With another signal, each would retreat, then attack again. The battle went on for hours. When the emperor saw a weakness, he sent troops to that area, and eventually they overcame the other army.
"This analogy fits your conscious and subconscious minds. Your conscious mind is like the emperor, and your subconscious, the army, does not see what is going on. When we are talking of healing, what we are really talking about is the subconscious mind, for it is the beliefs that we store in the subconscious mind that determine our future. The subconscious mind is a wonderful, natural force. It is how we exist in this world. It allows us to have memories of past situations, and it is the place where the conscious mind implants all its beliefs and knowledge. This can either be a positive or negative experience. If we place in our subconscious the thought that the world and its people are filled with great beauty, then that is what we will see. On the other hand, if we focus on the pain and suffering in the world, all we will see is pain and suffering.
"When we incarnate into our bodies before birth, or shortly after, what is it that incarnates? Some have called it the Soul; others have called it the Subconscious. I would guess that if you look into many of the religions, it will be known by many other names. For me, I will call it the Subconscious. It is my belief that our higher self sends off aspects of itself in the form of the Subconscious to inhabit a body to increase its experiences in this plane. When the subconscious takes residence in the vehicle, it is blank and has no knowledge of other lives or of the Higher Self. This is done so that when it incarnates, it comes without any knowledge so that it can work through the issues that it came here to experience. It is not a hit-and-miss exercise, as the higher self and the aspect that incarnates understand what are the probabilities for it in the first thirteen years of its life. It understands the parents’ weaknesses and strengths, it understands the culture it is being born into, and it understands what is happening in the world at the time. Yes, for it's own experience, it chooses to live in a village, in a palace, or in a slum. It is only because of our misunderstanding of the wonderful opportunity that we call life that we judge people for where they are born, the colour of their skin, their culture, and their parenting. Mark my words: it is the choice of the incarnated as to where and when they choose to incarnate, and it is only our lack of understanding that makes us judge others to be different or less than we are."
Huo had a million questions; it seemed like the old man was taking his mind and stretching it in a hundred different directions at once. Before he could even ask a question, the old sage was stretching his mind and beliefs in more directions.
"When we incarnate," said the old sage, "we even choose what Element we will incarnate into, as this elemental bias will allow us the best opportunity to experience what we came to the Earth-plane to experience. When people start to learn about the Elements or deeper understandings of the Subconscious mind, it is because they are ready for it. It is time for them to go beyond their Subconscious Mind.
"But what is there to go beyond, and how do we do it? Although our subconscious is an empty book when we arrive, it comes programmed with our elemental perspective. We have even chosen what health and disease patterns we will experience. Incarnation into the Earth-plane is all about experiences, whether we are human, animal, plant, or mineral. If you are attracted to these teachings, then you have lived at least six lifetimes as a human and many in all the other dimensions.
"Even before your were born, your subconscious mind was taking in impressions from your world. The Subconscious mind takes in everything; hundreds of thousands of inputs every minute. Before you start feeling guilty for the garbage that you have fed yourself or been fed by your parents or the world around you, stop for a moment, breathe, and understand that with regards to yourself, you can become like the Emperor in our story and start to take control of your Subconscious mind through the Conscious Mind. You choose all the crap that the world has given you. You understood what you were coming here to experience. You chose it; there are no victims. This is one concept that I have had the most difficulty understanding as I watch people in pain and suffering."
Huo was trying take in everything the old sage was telling him, but surely it wasn't possible. Why would he have chosen a life where he would lose his parents in a fire? He looked down at his withered arm. Why would anyone choose that? he asked himself. He turned his attention to the old sage. "Why would anyone choose to go through the things that I have been through?"
"That is the reason that you are here with me: to find out who you really are, why you have chosen to incarnate into the world at this time, and then go beyond it." The old sage went quiet for a few minutes, allowing the young man time to digest everything he had said.
"The subconscious mind has the ability to create in your world whatever you program into it, and whatever you program into it is what you will get in return. If you want to change your life, the key is to start taking care with what you program into your subconscious.
"Begin today by becoming the observer. Watch how you respond to people and situations. When you meet someone new, do you react positively or negatively, and why?
"When you get angry, why are you angry? Is it something they did, or are you projecting your weakness onto them? Often I find it is when we meet someone who shows us what we don't like about ourselves or a weakness we have that we react.
"Over the next few days, observe your reaction to everything; take your awareness outside of yourself and watch yourself. If you are reacting negatively to something, don't stop yourself, but observe and try to understand why.

"If something makes you sad - why?
If you judge something or someone - why?
If you are fearful - why?

"Don't be too tough on yourself; just observe. As you begin to become the observer, you start to understand why you respond, and then you can rise beyond it. Sometimes it can be a great challenge when you have believed these things for many years. Remember, you are here to go beyond your Subconscious mind and have it work for you. It is time to understand your Element, then go beyond it to the Element of Ether.
"We live in amazing times, when all of us have the opportunity to be the creative essence we were meant to be. It is your duty to find out what it is that you are meant to do in this life. This is what your apprenticeship is all about. It is called the Way of the Initiate, but by now I hope you have realized that it is an inner journey, a journey few have the courage to make."
“Let's eat." And so, as the sun set, the sage and his apprentice enjoyed the bounty provided by the elements. Dinner was quiet as they journeyed within to reflect on the day.

*************
Hello again. I hoped you enjoyed today's chapter. It could take you years to unravel the teachings within this chapter. I wrote it and even I learn something each time I read it. One simple thing you could do to make great changes in your future is to begin to observe your reactions to life and to all the people you come into contact with. Be like the young boy Huo, "Over the next few days, observe your reaction to everything; take your awareness outside of yourself and watch yourself. If you are reacting negatively to something, don't stop yourself, but observe and try to understand why.

"If something makes you sad - why?
If you judge something or someone - why?
If you are fearful - why?

"Don't be too tough on yourself; just observe. As you begin to become the observer, you start to understand why you respond, and then you can rise beyond it. Sometimes it can be a great challenge when you have believed these things for many years. Remember, you are here to go beyond your Subconscious mind and have it work for you. It is time to understand your Element, then go beyond it to the Element of Ether.

Blessings and Peace and may your simple observations open you up to teachings from Iyour Higher Self.

************

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris and a number of online book stores.

The Way of the Initiate will be published mid 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

Connecting with the Wisdom of your Higher Self - Part 5

2013-04-16T02:33:00.000-07:00

Fear And Feeling Tones

On the next step in learning how to connect with our Higher Self I thought it would be appropriate to look at fear and what I call our feeling tones.

Fear is such an amazing emotion. In small doses it stops us from walking into situations where we can be harmed. It would have been great for Neanderthal man as it would have stopped him from being eaten by a lion or a poisonous snake, but in those days fear came with a certain amount of inner knowledge. Our ancient ancestors lived in touch with nature and the elements and so when they went into situations where the fear hairs stood up on the back of their neck they had a reason to listen.

Today it is a different story. The fight and flight reactions that were hard wired into us in the past are not needed as much and yet when you look at the people around you, there seem to be more fears today in our safer world than there ever was. Why is this? I believe it is because we are out of touch with nature and the cycles within nature. Those who still live on the land are still in contact with these cycles and for the most part seem to have less fears than us so called civilized people that populate the cities. I am not suggesting that we all pull up stumps and move back to the country or take up a nomadic life, but I am suggesting that we get back in touch with the cycles within ourselves and within nature. Most people seem to have forgotten that we are made up of these cycles. There are our biorhythms, our sleep cycles, women's menstrual cycles and even the greatest cycle of all, our conception, birth, death and rebirth and many more. All of these are natures cycles and yet many of us seem so divorced from nature and our own cycles.

How can getting in touch with these cycles allow us to reduce or move beyond our fears? I believe that once we reconnect with these cycles that an inner or innate knowledge starts to come alive and we begin to see and feel things before they happen. In my books and some of my blogs I talk about using a molecule of your feelings to send into to situations where you are not sure and allow whatever returns to guide your next move. It starts with a stillness and being able to open yourself up to the answer which lies within. This one technique has given me more information than I could ever have received from a mountain of books.

All life is energy; so when you meet someone new or meet a new situation then it will have an energy. Get in the habit of stilling your mind chatter and allow the feelings to come forward; these inner feelings will always steer you in the right direction. These feelings are not emotion like anger, frustration etc, but a feeling tone that comes up from deep within. As I was writing this blog I came to a full stop. I quieted myself for a moment and saw in my minds eyes two roads representing different ways the blog could go. The first road was where I talked about the fear itself and the second where I talked about the energy underneath all things. As I wandered down the first road I could feel an energy that was stuck. I immediately knew that this was not the road to go down. Like many of us I would normally have been inclined to continue down that road not trusting the inner voice, blaming it for being lazy or wanting to take the easy way out. These days my inner voice seems to be louder and more insistent when I ask it these questions.

It is hard to describe to anyone who hasn't experienced it, but let's have a play with it. Let's have a play with the energy in the universe. I want you to look at an area of your life where you have at least two choices on how to move forward. As you begin to practice, probably not such a good idea to look at major changes in your life, something smaller to start with. It could be as simple as looking at a menu and decided what to eat. Start small and don't give up. In the early stages of anything new it will feel weird, silly and uncomfortable, but if you have discipline and a little bit of good old tenacity then your efforts will be worth it.

To begin with have you options metaphorically or physically in front of you. I used the technique this morning when I was deciding what to write. My first thought, not a feeling, but my first thought was to work on my third novel The 33rd Sage and the Ancient Ones. I opened the file and sat there looking at the empty page and there was nothing. I typed a few words but soon deleted them. There was just nothing there. It was then that I sat for a moment and stilled my mind. It helped that I was sitting in the garden surrounded by plants and trees and a beautiful blue sky. Still winter in Melbourne it was a bit chilly but I was in touch with nature and I find it easier to still the thoughts of the mind when I am surrounded by trees. It even seems to keep out the noises of cars, trucks and building projects going on in my street. After a few seconds my mind started to become still. If it takes you longer that is okay as I have been doing this technique for many years. Once my mind was still I allowed the feelings to come up from within. In moments a picture appeared of a blank page. My first reaction was that a blank page was what caused the problem in the first place. Then I sent a molecule of my feelings into the blank page and what returned was a feeling of new life. In the early days of my metaphysical training I would have just pushed the feeling aside, not realizing that it was the answer I was looking for. When these feelings come forward try not to judge them because this engages the ego and blocks these wonderful gifts which come from your higher self.

Once I opened a blank page and allowed the feelings and thoughts to flow I was soon looking at these words now before you.

It really is as is simple as that to engage your real feeling centre and allow the higher self to show you where to go. Practice it. Play with it. Make a fool of yourself. Once you get to the stage when you accept the information that comes forward, something happens and you open up a doorway for your higher self to come through more often. To others you may seem like you are in a dream world, but you are in bliss. My partner notices when I go there and she just smiles and lets me be as she knows that I am in my special place and when I return I will be in very positive state.

As with all these techniques practice makes perfect. Don't spend all day practicing them as this would out of a balance. Don't talk to others about what you are doing until you feel comfortable with the technique as it will dissipate the energy.

Have fun with it. Share your experiences on my blog.

Blessings and Peace and may you higher self whisper to you and share its beauty.

****
I have included the chapter on Fear and Feeling Tones from my upcoming book the Way of the Initiate. Much of what I have written above comes from this book but for some of us the best way to learn is through story. I hope you enjoy the story of Huo the young disabled boy who begins to walk the path of the Initiate.

The Way of the Initiate
Fear and Feeling Tones

The young man's night was filled with dreams of old sages sitting around a table, each one of them coming forward to teach him about their individual aspects of the thirty three. Of course, when he woke in the morning, he would remember none of it other than a queer feeling in his stomach that would stay with him forever, appearing whenever a deep teaching came forward from the Tao or one of the 33 sages.

When he woke, he looked around but could not see the old sage. Something wasn't right; the uneasy feeling he had in his stomach made him feel uncomfortable, and at the same time he began to feel fearful. Had something happened to the old sage? Had he done something to upset him? In a panic, he looked around where they had camped overnight, but there was no sign of him. He looked over to the mountains and could see that the sun was already peeking over the range. He had slept in; it was well past the time they were meant to be on the road. Had his lack of discipline caused the old sage to leave him behind?

He was becoming more anxious and overwhelmed. What if he never saw the old sage again? Almost involuntarily, he took a deep breath, held it for a moment, and immediately began to relax. He took another deep breath and held that for a moment, and his attention moved from the forest around him to a point deep within himself. In the deepness, he could see the old sage in the forest, no more than five hundred meters from where he was now sitting. He put his belongings in his pack, put the long staff through the pack, and tossed it over his shoulder, then he followed the inner feeling, sure that it would lead him to the old sage.

He found the old sage in a clearing, where he was sitting around an open fire. The old sage gave Huo a cup of of tea and motioned for him to sit on a log beside him.

"Fear is such an amazing emotion," he said. "In small doses, it stops us from walking into situations where we can be harmed. If we are really in touch with these inner feelings, the fear or energy that comes forward is not a creation of our own subconscious mind, but inner promptings from our higher self, which can truly show us the way. Our ancestors, those who lived in touch with nature and the elements, had a sixth sense; so, when they went into situations where the fear hairs stood up on the back of their neck, they had a reason to listen. Everything in the universe has a feeling or feeling tone, a vibration, if you will, that you can tap into or feel.

"Today it is a different story, as more and more of our people live in villages and cities. The fight-or-flight reactions that were hard-wired into us in the past are not needed as much, and yet when you look at the people around you, there seem to be more fears today in our safer world than there ever was. Why is this? I believe it is because we are out of touch with nature and the cycles within nature. Those who still live on the land are still in contact with these cycles and for the most part seem to have fewer fears than us so-called civilized people that populate the villages and cities. We need to get back in touch with the cycles within ourselves and within nature. Most people seem to have forgotten that we are made up of these cycles. They are our biorhythms, our sleep cycles, women's menstrual cycles, and even the greatest cycle of all, our conception, birth, death, rebirth, and many more. All of these are nature’s cycles, and yet many of us seem so divorced from nature and our own cycles.

"By reconnecting with these cycles, an inner or innate knowledge starts to come alive, and we begin to see and feel things before they happen. Whenever you go into a new situation or meet a new person, send a molecule of your feelings into it or them and allow whatever returns to guide your next move. It starts with a stillness and being able to open yourself up to the answer that lies within.

"All life is energy, so when you meet someone new or meet a new situation, it will have an energy. Get in the habit of stilling your mind chatter and allowing the feelings to come forward; these inner feelings will always steer you in the right direction. These feelings are not emotion like anger, frustration, etc., but rather a feeling tone that comes up from deep within. When you awoke and found that I was not there, your initial reaction was to panic and become fearful; that was just your subconscious mind, your ego reacting to the unknown. When you took a deep breath and began to quiet the mind you were tapping into, the energy of the situation and your higher self allowed you to connect with the feeling of where I was.

"It is hard to describe to anyone who hasn't experienced it, but when you begin to play with the feelings, you will be lead to deeper understandings than your rational mind could give you, for your rational mind is trapped in the matrix created by your ego. I want you to practice using your feeling tones whenever you have a decision to be made. In the early stages of anything new, it will feel weird, silly, and uncomfortable, but if you have discipline, your efforts will be rewarded.

"To begin with, have your options metaphorically or physically in front of you. After a few seconds, take a deep breath as you did earlier and allow the mind to become still. If it takes you longer, then that is okay, as I have been doing this technique for many years. Once your mind is still, allow the feelings to come up from within or simply send a molecule of your own feeling self into the situation. In the early days of my training, I would have just pushed the feeling aside, not realizing that it was the answer I was looking for. When these feelings come forward, try not to judge them because this engages the ego and blocks these wonderful gifts, which come from your higher self.

"It really is as simple as that to engage your real feeling centre and allow the higher self to show you where to go. Practice it. Play with it. Make a fool of yourself. Once you get to the stage where you accept the information that comes forward, something happens and you open up a doorway for your higher self to come through more often. To others, you may seem like you are in a dream world, but you are in bliss.

"As with all these techniques, practice makes perfect. Don't spend all day practicing them, as this would push you out of a balance. Also, don't talk to others about what you are doing until you feel comfortable with the technique, as it will dissipate the energy."

***********

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris and a number of online book stores.

The Way of the Initiate will be published mid 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

Connecting with the Wisdom of your Higher Self - Part 4

2013-04-11T03:40:00.000-07:00

The Concept of Flow

Today I want to talk about the concept of flow or being so open to the universe that you always seem to be in the right place at the right time. In my book The 33rd Sage and the Initiate the lead character Conway begins to understand the meaning of being in the flow and it leads him further and deeper on his quest.

The concept of flow is fascinating; right throughout the universe there is a conscious energy that is to connected to all things. It is this concept that allows faster speeds than the speed of light or the ability to remote view through time and over amazing distances. Some have called this non local. I would prefer to see it as a local effect because everything we do and are is connected to the great flow that occurs within this and other universes. Even the concept of an expanding universe which occurred after a big bang is a scientific understanding of something far greater. The difficulty for scientists is that they try and reduce things and it is only the genius of an Einstein who has the ability to step back and see what is really there. Have you ever thought of the idea that the universe is not so much expanding but is in the breathing out process. Having breathed in over fourteen billion years ago and then then started to breath out. From our limited perspective we would see an expanding universe. Do this, stop for a moment and take a deep breath and then breathe all that air into a ballon and what you will see is what is happening to the universe. The universe is a living thing and it expresses itself in the breathing in and out of its own energy. This cycle continues over and over and from our limited ego selves we cannot see the truth that lies before us. If human beings are so smart then what of the energy of the universe; surely it's consciousness would have a depth and knowledge far beyond our own.

When one of us mere mortals has a religious moment or that beautiful moment of being connected to the all that is, what we are doing is tapping into the flow that is the universe. The experience and the beauty does not last because we try to rationalize it with our ego mind, rather than accept the experience for what it is, a moment of being in the flow, of being one. It is something that cannot be explained; it can only be experienced and once having experienced it you cannot put words to what you have felt, but you know in that moment you have been changed forever. Even though your ego will again take control, there is a bit of you that will stay forever connect to the all that there is and it is this little part that makes it easier for you to connect with the all that is in the future.

The more we live in the flow the more the universe reveals its secrets. To others you will appear that you are drifting through the day without a care or a purpose but you will have never have been so connected. You will see the magic in the mundane. You will pick up a flower, a child, an animal and see the greatness of what some of us call god flowing through it. Everything has this beauty and life force in it, it is just that not all of us have the eyes to see it or are not connected enough with our hearts to feel it. I wrote in another blog how I believed that creativity was the way to God and that is because when we are creative we open up ourselves to the experience of creation and is those moments we can experience momentary glimpses of the One, the all that there is.

The key is to be open to the experience. For me writing or travel has been the touchstones which allowed me to connect with the One. As a male I was a little slow and it took many years of meditation before I began to experience the connection. These days the connection can happen at anytime. Today I am writing this as I sit in the beautiful sunshine in the garden and it is as if my heart has simply opened and these words and thoughts have flowed onto the page. At my feet is my gorgeous little dog Beatrice whose name means bringer of Joy and she has certainly been that in the five years she has been with us. She is not the sharpest tool in the shed, unlike our other dog Horatio, but these is a sensitivity and a beauty that I have never seen in all my previous dogs. When we first got her she should have been put down because she was incredibly unwell, but even then there was a beauty that I still can't describe. I find if I look into her eyes I am still brought to tears by this one of the most sensitive of God's creatures. Over the years of good food, exercise and countless homoeopathic remedies she now has almost perfect health and there is not a day goes by where she does not repay us a thousand times for our kindness.

Having never been blessed with children of our own I wonder what an amazing thing it is for parents who can see the act of creation at work in their own children. For the rest of us to feel and connect with the one, a creative outlet is another way to go.

There are other ways to begin touch with the flow and one of the best is meditation. There are many forms and practice of meditation; for me the easiest is more relaxation rather than meditation. There are some meditation practices where they have you practice by focusing on a candle or a single object or thought or chant; these are all helpful but I find for most people when they stop saying the chant or focusing on the candle that there mind is once again full of the mind chatter that they had before the meditation. For me the object of meditation or a relaxation technique is to still the mind to allow the higher self to come through and enlighten your day.

The easiest way to do it is to listen to relaxing classical music or sounds of water or even better than that if you can listen to the sounds of an alpha or theta meditation. Rather than try to focus your mind I would prefer you trust listen to the sounds and allow the mind to relax itself. Initially your mind will be full of a thousand thoughts, but then just imagine that these thoughts are actually sitting on a river and rather than focusing on them allow them to float on by. Your ego will want to deal with them and every now and again they will come up again for your attention, but just allow it to be and let it float down the river. Now I don't want you to spend time concentrating on the river; it is just an avenue for your thoughts to float away. You will find over time that there will be spots in the river where there is no thoughts and then eventually feelings, impressions or pictures will come from your higher self to inspire you or lead you on the next part of your journey.

You will know when you get input from the higher self as there will be a change in your feelings; for some it will be a few moments of complete calm, for others a smile might break out across their face and occasionally that moment when you know you are One. They won't last because your ego will try to hold onto them because it wants to feel special. Don't fight the ego, just allow it to be and in time it will not feel threatened by these moments of connection with the One or the higher self. In turn these moments will come more often and for longer periods of time; although the concept of time will definitely feel irrelevant.

Play with it and don't expect to see God in your first meditation; like all new skills it takes practice. The practice here is to let go. In time you will be able to quickly go deep in your meditation and then you can begin to ask questions which will often be answered in the meditation itself in the form of symbols, pictures and feelings or the answer may come in the hours after the meditation in the form of a chance thought or a moment of synchronicity when the actual question you asked is answered by a comment on the radio or a sign on a bus going by. The more you accept that we are all connected the more you will see these connections and begin to be a part of the flow. It is a courageous to give your life over to the concept of flow. Never knowing what is around the next corner but being truly open to the beauty of life and truly living your life as it was meant to be lived.

My old teacher taught me that it was like being a warrior sage or silent warrior, because it is in the silence, in the stillness that the universe reveals itself to you. I won't say the journey is easy, that is unless you can simply let go of any preconceived thoughts and ideas; yes then it will be simple and easy. For most of us it will take discipline as we release the thoughts that don't allow us to see the beauty of the world and every creature in it.

Blessings and Peace and may your connection with the higher self bring a smile to every cell in your body and reflect it in the world around you.

Here below for your enjoyment is the chapter on Flow from my upcoming book The Way of the Initiate.

The boy woke after sleeping for eighteen hours with little to no memory of what had happened the day before. After waking, he stretched both arms above his head as if to welcome in the day, little realizing that his partially paralyzed left arm was no longer paralyzed; there was still some scarring, but during the night it was as if the withered muscle in his shoulder had come back to life. The healing had begun, but there was no need for the old sage to acknowledge the changes - for that would be living in the past, and there was only the now. He would one day teach Huo about the reality of time, but for the moment he would just allow him to exist in this moment in time. The healing had occurred because he had begun to release the pain from the fire, a pain that he had caused himself, but there would be time enough later for revelations.

The old sage greeted his young apprentice. "From this time forward, Huo, we will rise at 4 a.m. and walk in the dark and allow our energy to go forth in the day before the animals in the forest or the people in the villages wake and fill the day with their energy. Each day, we will let our feelings lead the way. We will rise in silence and stay silent for the first hour of our walk. As part of this exercise, I would like you to silently ask the Tao a question you want answered in that day. If you are open to it, the answer will come to you in any one of a hundred different ways. It could be a word or vision that comes around your subconscious mind, an answer from nature, or someone we meet along the path; be open, and the answer will come. Having the courage to give yourself over to the beauty of the higher self allows your life to enter into the dynamic spontaneity of the flow of the universe. It is about taking life as you find it, rather than forcing it into your preconceived notions of the world. By giving the infinity within you credence, you empower that same infinity to come into and be a part of your life. Let's now be silent for the next hour while we let our spirit be our guide."

The young boy packed up his pack, put his long staff through it, and tossed it over his shoulder. There was much he did not understand about the old sage, but if there was one thing he was sure about, it was that his life would never be the same again. Until this journey with the old sage, much of his time had been spent talking to the elders of the village because they were the only ones that did not seem to be scared of his looks. He would sit and talk with them for hours. Most of them were uneducated and simple people, but if you delved deep enough, you would find that they had a deep understanding of the cycles within nature and a knowledge of human nature that could not be found in the few books the village possessed. Each of the elders was like their own little library of information, and Huo had consumed whatever they taught him. Even as a young boy, he was well versed in the art of fishing and carpentry, and his understanding of farming was not too shabby either. Not too shabby. He laughed at that last thought because if he had a mirror, he would have looked pretty shabby in his worn out clothes.

What question would he ask the Tao to answer? He mulled over that for about an hour, although for the most part it was at the back of his mind while he enjoyed the bounties of nature. It was cold when they first started out, but he loved the cold; in many ways, it allowed him to bring forth his own nature. Even as a very young child, he had a way of bringing up the fire from within his own being. He was never cold, even on the coldest winter night; all he had to do was imagine a fire, then he could draw the heat of the fire to himself. It was as if he could heat himself from within at will. Of course, the ability was a two-edge sword, and this ability had been at the heart of the fire that had killed his parents. He had learnt early on that the element of Fire was either a boon or a curse, depending on how you used it. He wondered momentarily about the other elements, but that soon passed and the element of fire, his element, returned. For the first two years after the fire, he stopped using the techniques until he realized that it was not the Fire that was the problem and that he would need to be careful when he used the element because he never wanted anybody to suffer at his hands again.

While walking silently and looking back on his life to date, he felt a gentle wind come around him; she caressed him with her icy fingers, not yet touched by the morning sun. He stopped for a moment to fully experience the wind when he realized that the wind was coming from within him. He reached out his hand and watched as the feeling of the wind, from within, wrapped itself around his fingers, then progressed up his arm until it came all the way up to his head and gently caressed his face. He looked deeply into the energy that surrounded him and knew at that moment that he was the wind. He was not sure yet whether he had created the wind or if he had become one with the wind; it did not matter, though, for in that moment he realized that the illusion of separation no longer held him in her grasp. He had only been with a the sage a few days, but in many ways he seemed years older than the young boy who left the village. He had seen the energy behind the form, and no longer would he feel separate from anyone.

He took a moment to sit by himself and experience the connection with all things. First it was the Elements dancing around and through him, then it was the forest and the animals who were becoming active; not only could he see them all, he could feel them all and had become them. It was then that it struck him, and tears began to escape from his eyes as he realized: if he were connected to everything, then he was still connected to his parents. He began to understand what the old man had meant when he said, "Nothing ever dies."

With tears streaming down his face, he realized that the Tao had not only given him the answer to his question, it had done more than that and allowed him to see a deeper connection, a connection he had with everyone and everything that had ever existed or will ever exist. The concept was too much for his young mind, which was being stretched in a thousand different directions.

He looked across at the old sage, who was watching the young man with an enigmatic smile on his face. "Welcome to the flow. It is something you will never be able to describe, for to describe it puts barriers around something that is infinite. It is like trying to hold an ocean in a tea cup. The beauty of the flow is to experience it and to know that you are always connected. Now, let's take 24 minutes to meditate and reflect on the lessons we have both received this morning."

The young man and the old sage put aside their packs and sat with their backs touching an old tree as they reflected quietly on what they had experienced that morning. Each of them was in their own world, but they were both connected in ways that they were yet to understand.

Blessings and peace and may you begin to see how you can connect with the flow in every moment of your life.
Geof

*************

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris and a number of online book stores.

The Way of the Initiate will be published mid 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

Connect with the Wisdom of your Higher Self - Part 3

2013-04-08T17:03:00.000-07:00

The Illusion Of Separation

How did you go with practicing seeing the energy that exists in all things and playing around with the exercises and concepts in Part 2? I did the exercises myself and allowed myself to experience them as if it was the first time. What I noticed was that in allowing all preconceived ideas to fall away I could truly experience it like it was the first time. It was with childish glee that I saw my etheric dancing between my fingers, but then I noticed something else, not only was the etheric connecting my two fingers it also spread out to the tree that I was sitting next to. It was a cool moment when I experienced again the connection with all things. Today I am going to share with you another excerpt from my upcoming book The Way of the Initiate, in this section the young boy learns about the illusion of separation.

After a restful night’s sleep, the old sage and the young boy enjoyed a breakfast of rice as they hung their feet in the winter chill of the stream. The moment they put their feet in the water, an icy spike shot up both their bodies. It wasn't an unpleasant feeling because they both felt truly alive. As their feet became acclimatized to the chill of the water, the sun had risen higher enough in the sky to warm their bodies. It was early winter, but the element of Fire from the sun was very much alive and giving its gift to them both. A whisp of air caressed them as they filled their bellies with the rice flavored with miso.

The young boy was not aware of it, but the old sage was having him experience the elements through his five senses. It was to be the beginning of another teaching, which on some level was being guided by the young boy's higher self, a teaching that the old sage had the ability to tap into. After so many years of training, it was just as easy for him to tap into the higher self of another as it was to tap into his own higher self. There was never any thought of judgement or manipulation when he tapped into the mind of another. His days had taught him that we are all connected, and to do something to someone else was really only doing it to yourself.

After breakfast, he took Huo over to a plum tree and told him that today they were going to practice mindful meditation. When the young man gave him a weird look, he just smiled. "Don't worry, my boy. It’s as easy as holding this plum in your hand." With that, he gave Huo a plum and asked him to sit under the plum tree. "I want you to close your eyes and focus all your attention on the plum. Think of nothing else; the key to this exercise is to learn all you can about the plum."
Huo closed his eyes and started to put his attention into the plum. This is ridiculous, he thought to himself as his mind began to wander. He could hear the wind whistling through the trees and the river babbling in the background, and he could feel the warmth of the sun on his skin; in fact, the only thing that he could not focus on was the plum in his hand. He opened his eyes, only a little bit, to see firstly if the old man was watching him and secondly if the plum was still in his hand.
The old sage grinned back at the young boy and mouthed the word 'Focus.'
Huo closed his eyes again and tried to focus on the plum. It was still not working, so this time he held the plum in his left hand while he explored it with his right. He knew what the plum tasted like, but being a child, he had never held a plum long enough to understand what it felt like. At first, it felt shiny; no, that was how he expected it to feel. He explored it again, this time letting go of any expectations. The skin was tight, but underneath he could feel the liquid, the softness. He began to explore with his feelings rather than his fingers, for he realized that his fingers were showing him what he expected to see. The first feeling that came back was the word ‘refreshing’; he went deeper into that feeling and saw a picture of himself in the future as a young man enjoying the juice of the plum as it ran into his mouth. Then his feelings changed, and so did the picture in his mind. The feelings had now taken him to the orchard where the plums were grown, and he could see - no, it was more than that: he could feel - the orchard existing in this one plum. Then his feelings went deeper into the plum, and he experienced all the elements that went into making the plum: there was the Fire of the Sun, the Water of the stream, the warmth and coldness at the right time of the Air, and this all took place in the minerals of the Earth.
His consciousness was expanding too quickly; he had become open to everything, but his mind was not ready to cope with what he was experiencing, and he shut down and fell into a deep sleep under the plum tree with the plum still held in his left hand.

The old man moved over to him and placed his pack under his head. The boy had gone far deeper than he had expected, but he would soon recover, and he knew the young boy would never look at a plum the same way again. Although the young boy may not yet realize it, he had learnt that we are not so much what we think, but more what we feel. He had begun to experience the Godforce/Tao in all things, and just as it had been in all things, it was in him; he was just another aspect of the Tao. Of course, it had all been too much for his young mind, a mind that was not ready to accept that there is only One.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter and the teachings imbedded in it. For next couple of days why not practice putting your focus into the world around you; start to truly experience things for the first time, whether it be your morning coffee, a sunset, the food that you eat or even the touch of your lover, allow all of your senses to be fully alive and see if you can experience the feeling that everything exudes. When I first tried this with a cup of coffee it was like I had never drank coffee before, it gave it a freshness and a vitality that the thousands of coffees that I drank before did not. There was even a point in my mind's eye where I caught a vision of where the coffee was being grown. This may sound a little weird but over the years I have discovered that there is an infinite level of information that you can receive when you become one with all things. In my second book The 33rd Sage and the Initiate the main character Conway has many such experiences while on his quest. I would like to think that we are all on that quest, but only that our journeys are different.

Blessings and peace and may you begin to see the infinity in every experience.
Geof

*************

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris and a number of online book stores.

The Way of the Initiate will be published mid 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

Connect with the Wisdom of your Higher Self - Part 2

2013-03-22T01:55:00.000-07:00

As I said in my previous post the information or guidance from the Higher Self can take many different forms. In the early stage when we are not really open to the words, feelings and pictures from our Higher Self, much of this guidance can come from something in the world outside ourselves. Things such as a book that falls of a shelf; the sign on a bus driving past or the words of a stranger. There are an infinite number of ways that the information can come to us.

The key is to be open to the information when it presents itself. In the early stage of your journey you will miss much of the information from the Higher Self because of the influence of your ego/subconscious mind and you will misinterpret what you have seen heard or felt. Don't lose heart, it is like learning any new skill, it takes time. Even now after 30 years I still miss the messages.

At the moment I am going through a flat spot in many areas of my life, whereas in others, especially creatively, things are great. I was walking the dogs early in the morning when I asked the question of why things were not working as well as normal or in the flow as I call it. No sooner than two minutes had passed when along came a tram with a large sign on the side which said Convert Your Thinking. As I reflected on that sign I realized that in the areas of my life that were not working I had allowed negative thoughts to appear and my outer world was only reflecting what I was experiencing on the inside. It was time to convert my thoughts. Obviously the best way to do that is only have positive thoughts, but for most of us that is impossible; so if your are like me and the odd negative thought creeps in then immediately replace it with something positive. A simple example of this was this was when I was at the park with the dogs and a woman let her dog loose and it ran around annoying all the other dogs, while she proceeded to talk on the phone and ignore the dog. I found myself judging her and the lack of discipline for her dog. It was a small judgment but one of many that I had been letting creep into my life. Rather than deny what I had just done I converted my thinking by looking at the positive and saw that she was taking her dog out for exercise and socializing. Who knows what else was going in her life and who was I to judge. The moment I changed my energy the dog relaxed and seemed to be more social and less annoying and became one of the pack.

Interesting. How many times in a day do we have these negative thoughts? And so what I hear you say, they are not hurting anyone, but in fact they are hurting you the thinker of these thoughts because they begin to create a world where more and more seems to be negative. So rather than see the immense beauty this world has to offer we see only weeds. Convert your thinking by changing a negative into a positive. When you see something negative look for the positive within it. If your are open the positive is always there.

To me the first step on my journey was to realize that there is an energy within all things and this energy never dies. To look at this topic I have chosen a section of my upcoming book (The Way of the Initiate) when the young disfigured boys goes off on the apprenticeship with the old Chinese sage.

After a long walk, the Sage and his new apprentice stopped to make camp by a river. The sun was beginning to set and the air around them was beginning to cool rapidly, as it was the night before the Winter Solstice. They set about creating a fire to warm themselves. The crackling of the fire was a good sound that highlighted the beauty of the element of Fire. In a balance, it could keep you warm and provide life, but out of a balance it could destroy, as the young boy had already experienced many years ago. In their time together, the old sage would teach the boy many things, but the most important teaching would be to understand and work with the power of the Elements.

They had not talked at all during the day, both preferring to keep to their own counsel, which for a young boy would normally be very difficult; but this young boy was different. On their journey, he watched the forest coming to life and how the different animals and insects appeared at different times during the day. Each of the creatures of the forest seemed to have their own cycle of when to be active and when to rest. The dragonflies that had landed on his shoulders in the village had seemed to follow him throughout the day, and every now and again they would appear in tandem to keep up his spirits. The long walk had been tiring, but on an emotional level he felt a joy he had not felt in years. He did not want to dwell on it, though, as it would have made him remember his parents and the pain of losing them, which was still very much alive. Better he enjoyed what the day and the forest had to offer.

The old sage prepared for them a simple meal of rice and the few vegetables that they were given by the people of the village. It was enough food to last them a few days, but the old sage was not worried; nature always seemed to provide what was needed.
They were eating in silence when it was broken by the gentle tones of the young boy's voice. "What do I call you?"

The old man smiled; he was not used to having company and had never really thought about introducing himself. "My Name is Chung Fu. It was the name given by my old master when I was about your age. It is the 61st hexagram of the I Ching, and it means ‘Inner Truth’. I suppose we will have to give you a new name, a name that will represent this new journey that you are on. I have thought long and hard about what we should call you, and the same name or picture kept appearing to me all day. It was a picture of a fire, a fire that was here to warm the world. From this day forward, you will be known as Huo shi wennuan: 'The Fire that Warms’.”

The young boy nodded to the sage; he could not speak, as his eyes had filled up with tears. Although it was a great honor to be given a name by an old sage, the name itself brought back memories of that fateful day when his parents died in the fire. He sat with his head bowed, reliving the horrible event as more tears escaped from his eyes, coming in ever increasing volume. Then there were the sighs of grief upon the realization that he would never see his parents again.

The old sage, who had the gift of inner sight, understood what the boy was feeling; he could see it in the astral field that surrounded his body. "Nothing ever dies," he said with such gentleness and tenderness that the boy could not help but look up into the eyes of the old sage, who was also crying. He could feel the young boy's pain, and he wished he could just wish it away, but as in everything, there is and was a teaching.

"What do you mean, ‘nothing ever dies’?" said the young man as he wiped the tears and snot from his face.
"Tell me about you parents. Can you describe them?"
The tears flowed again as the young boy described his parents. He described them in such detail and with such emotion that the old sage could see that they were still alive in his heart. They were the sort of memories that would never die; memories filled with emotion, memories that lived forever.
"That is good. The memories you have will be with you always, but just like your memories, the energy that is your parents will never die. Their physical bodies may no longer exist, but their eternal, immortal, and infinite spirit will live on forever." The boy looked a little confused, so the sage changed tack. "Put your hand up in front of your face. Now move it away from your face, slowly, so that you are still looking at it as it moves away from your face. Now I want you to soften your sight; don't look at your hand directly, but almost look at it out of the corner of your eye. What do you see?"
The boy did as the sage told him. He held the hand in front of his face, then as he began to move it away from his face, he softened his look and turned his head slightly, as if trying to perceive it without his direct vision. At first he saw nothing, but then his focus changed to the point where he was not concentrating too hard or too little. Then it happened. At first it scared him, then it disappeared. He tried again, but in the trying, nothing appeared. Without really knowing what he was really doing or why he was doing it, he released the need to see - and of course, the moment he released it was the moment it reappeared. Watching his hand and moving it ever so slightly, he could see the aura as it wrapped itself around his hand. Even as he moved his hand, the aura changed shape but stayed with him.

"That is the energy that some called God; others call it the Tao. It is the energy that gives life to all things, and when our physical bodies die, this energy moves on." He picked up a rock and held it out to the boy. "Even this rock has the same energy running through it. Once you realize that this energy is in all things will be the moment you begin to realize that you are a part of all things. You will begin to see that you and the Great Tao are one. It will also be the moment when you realize that the word ‘Tao’ is only a pale rendition for the energy itself, for the Tao is unknowable and indescribable. It is everything, and again it is nothing; it is the highest, and also the lowest. It is the 'I am that I am.'
"Now, lift both your hands up and put them in front of your eyes. Put your pointer fingers a couple of inches apart, hold them there for a moment, then move them a little closer. Use the same soft vision that you used when you were looking at your hand. Relax, and allow the magic to happen."
The young boy did as he was told. For a moment nothing seemed to happen, then almost involuntarily he took a deep breath, held it for a moment, then breathed out. A smile lit up his face as first he saw the energy envelop each of his fingers, then shoot from the finger on his right hand and connect with the energy in his left hand. For the next two minutes, he played with the energy, watching it dance between his hands. The more he played with it, the stronger the energy became.
The dragonflies that had followed the young boy on his journey moved closer to the light and became part of the game. Seeming to sense the energy passing between Huo's fingers, the dragonflies played their own game, spiraling in and out of the energy that connected his hands. There was a moment when the aura of the dragonflies connected with Huo's aura. It lasted only a few seconds, but in those seconds Huo felt a strong connection with the dragonflies, so strong that it not only enveloped the boy and the dragonflies, but the fire, the old sage, and everything within a hundred metres as well.
The old sage smiled to himself; he had chosen well. Huo was the one who would eventually take over his role as the 33rd Sage; already he was connected at a deeper level with the Tao or Godforce than any other child he had ever seen. His biggest challenge was to go beyond the ego and see the death of his parents for what it really was, but there was plenty of time for that. It would not be easy, but there would come a point in the teaching where Huo would be able to pull back from the ego's view of the world and see his and his parents’ lives from an infinite view; by being able to detach, he could allow the healing process to occur.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter and the teachings imbedded in it. For next couple of days why not practicing seeing the energy that exists in all things and play around with the exercises in the story above. When I first tried I almost collapsed in shock when I could clearly see the energy around a tree and then around a person. It was the day I opened up to this wonderful quest I am on.

Blessings and peace and my you spiritual journey always be playful and filled with joy.
Geof
*************

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris and a number of online book stores.

The Way of the Initiate will be published mid 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

Connect with the Wisdom of your Higher Self - Part 1

2013-03-21T14:02:00.000-07:00

Thirty two years ago, I had chronic fatigue syndrome, and overnight was transformed from a high class athlete and company executive to someone who could barely stay awake more than an hour at a time. Through strange circumstances, I met a teacher who taught me about the Taoist teachings of an old Chinese man. He said that if I listened intently to the teachings and lived with them, there would be a day when I would look at someone and truly know them. I would understand instantly their emotional pattern, their health patterns and even know what words to use to communicate to them in their own language (much of which I share in my first book the 33rd Sage).

After three years of studying these techniques, I met an old Chinese sage on a beach in Bali who became my mentor and taught me a deeper understanding of man and the seasons. He would make me sit for hours at a time in the snow or on the beach on a hot summer's day so that I could see how the seasons changed from moment to moment and day to day. By watching the seasons, I gradually came to understand these same cycles within man and mankind.

The old Chinese sage sent me on a quest. The quest was to research the real story of Jesus and the Holy Graal and in the process I discovered more about who I was and set me on the search for my Higher Self. This quest took me on many adventures across many lands, and although my old Chinese friend is no longer there to guide me, the quest continues. My book 'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' is a fictionalized version of that journey. On the cover is a set of stairs which lead up to an open doorway to the light. For me this was representative of the Initiate's journey or the journey to the higher self. It is a journey that anyone can take and a journey where the door is always open. This is not a journey that needs to take place in a mystery school or under the guidance of a guru; in many cases these teachers and teachers can stop you from discovering that to connect with your Higher Self or become the initiate you need to eventually go alone on the inner journey.

The first thing that you need to do is commit to the adventure which is just another word for Initiation. By having the courage to commit to a life where what is around the corner is unknown your next step will appear as if by magic. I say that because every one of us has a different and individual path to connect with the wisdom of our Higher Self. In these writings I will share some of the steps that I have taken on my journey, but remember they are not your steps; you may find that your journey will take you in a completely different direction.

If you feel attracted to some of the steps I share, then work with them but engage with them in your own way. All the time checking in with your feelings to decide whether it is right for you. When I use the term feelings I am not talking about emotion; emotion is the reaction to where we put our focused attention. When I talk about feeling I mean the energy that is expressed by all things. Everything in the universe, whether it be human, animal, mineral or even a situation gives off a feeling tone. When you come into any situation where you are not sure, simply go into your feeling centre and see what feeling arises in you. If you have a strong positive feeling move forward. When you have a strong negative feeling withdraw and in the case of a feeling that is neither positive or negative, stay where you are and wait for more information. Generally in these cases it is because you do not have all the information, so just wait and if you are open to it the information generally appears.

This information or guidance from the Higher Self can take many different forms. In the early stage when we are not really open to the words, feelings and pictures from our Higher Self, much of this guidance can come from something in the world outside ourselves. Things such as a book that falls of a shelf; the sign on a bus driving past or the words of a stranger. There are an infinite number of ways that the information can come to us.

The key is to be open to the information when it presents itself. In the early stage of your journey you will miss much of the information from the Higher Self because of the influence of your ego/subconscious mind and you will misinterpret what you have seen heard or felt. Don't lose heart, it is like learning any new skill, it takes time.
If you are not already I would suggest that you meditate each day. I can hear many of you now but I can't meditate, I cannot focus on my breath and anyone of a million excuses. Whatever you think of meditation it is important for your physical and spiritual health. I am not expecting you to be as good as a Buddhist monk. All I want you to do is meditate or just relax for 24 minutes per day. Listen to the sounds of nature or classical music, it does not matter, what you are trying to achieve is to slow down the brain to work at a lower range. I will explain all the details for the intellectuals in another blog.
For now, all I want you to do is find a place where you won't be interrupted and take 24 minutes of relaxation. If you can do it in nature or before sunrise that is even better. By relaxing in the early morning you set up a calmness that can continue throughout your day.

If anything happens in your meditation or you get a great insight, thank your Higher Self and go back into the relaxation.

For those who are already great meditators take a step back and do it as if it is your first time. Some of us get so caught up in the mechanics of meditation that we do not live in the moment.

Enough of me for now. In the next post we will look at some exercises to increase your awareness and connect to the Godforce which exists around all of us.

Blessings and Peace.

Any questions leave them in the comment box.

Geof

*************

Connect with Your Higher Self

2013-03-17T18:04:00.001-07:00

Some people who read the original post asked me to go into more depth about the Higher Self; what is it and where does it exist? I will do that but I have included the original post for those who have stumbled upon it for the first time.

In the 1970's and 80's there were many channelers, channeling information from a number of great teachers such as Seth, Ramtha and Old Chinese. When the channelers went deep into trance these energies would come through them and teach the students that were drawn to them. For the most part when they came out of trance the channelers would have no idea what information had been channeled.

It is my belief that these beings were coming through their Higher Self and as Old Chinese once taught that when a message comes from our higher self that the ego or subconscious mind would have no memory of what was coming through. If the channeler had a fully memory of what had come through then it was because it was created by his ego to make him or her more special.

In the twenty first century there seems to be many individuals who seem to be channeling information from the gods, Angels, beings from other planets and other dimensions or from great teachers of the past. What makes them different from channelers of the past is that in many cases they have a full memory and understanding of the channeled information. Normally I would have let these teachings go as manifestations of the ego, but I have seen and met many of these, so called, channelers and modern day mystics who have access to the inner worlds. Although much of this information appears to be coloured by the thoughts and belief of the channeler, there appears to be wonderful information that is coming from the area of their Higher Self which is connected with everything.

My old teacher quite often talked about the spiritual quickening which was going to take place on the planet in the last twenty years of twentieth century and on into the twenty first century. I wonder whether this quickening includes greater access to the information that is stored in our higher selves.

Old Chinese was an energy that came through Marshall Lever to teach a group of students who wanted to move beyond the ego and the Earth plane. His teachings required discipline because he believed it was necessary for discipline for the individual to move beyond the ego; for the ego doesn't like discipline because it wants to have its own way. By providing it discipline it tends to quiet and let the higher self come through and around the subconscious mind. This energy from the higher self allows the individual momentary glimpses of the divine. In those moments when we have this connection with the higher self we are connected to all things. The challenge is that as soon as we recognize these moments of pure creativity coming from the higher self; the ego tries to hold on to it, but in the process of hanging on to it, all that is left is the ego and its self importance. Like the Tao the Higher Self is an energy that is indescribable. We have moments of it enlightening our lives or a situation, but because in most cases these moments are so brief we cannot describe them and in the end the higher self withdraws into itself and our ego believes that it does not exist and that it was an epiphany from our own wonderful goodness or intelligence.

You can recognize that it was your higher self because, it is an energy that you cannot put your finger on. You have a wonderful insight and then it is gone; most times you don't even have a memory of what the insight is.

Through discipline, such as meditation, fasting and time spent in nature you can slow down your ego to the point where these insights increase. You can even ask a question and an insight is immediately given; sometimes in the form of a feeling or a single word; sometimes these insights come from something in the outside world such as a sign or a word that would not normally have this effect on you.

Another discipline that allows your higher self to come forward is the discipline of creativity. It would seem funny to use the words creativity and discipline in the same sentence, but to be truly creative, you must have discipline. It is one of those strange quirks of fate that when you are at your most creative, whether a writer, painter, sculptor or anything that is creative, that in that moment of creation your are extremely focused and yet also in a meditative state. People who meditate regularly will tell you that in those moments when you are in your deepest meditation are the moments when you are connected with everything around you. If you want to feel the energy of the higher self then find what is your stick, what it is that drives you creatively. For me I am at my most creative in three situations; firstly when I am writing, secondly when I am teaching spiritual or metaphysical concepts or when I am meditating. In all these situations it is like there is a little voice that I am not aware in my normal life that comes around my subconscious mind and shares its wisdom. The trick I find is not to try and hold on to the little voice, but allow it to share what it needs to share and let it go. When you try to hold onto the little voice or the concept that is coming through it is only your ego which is feeling full of itself as it believes it was the creator of the idea or concept when in reality it comes from the higher self. But I hear you say that if it is from the higher self does that mean that we cannot create by ourselves. My answer to that would be it is the act of creation that we allow a window between ourselves and the higher self. If we could keep our ego out of it and continue in the act of creation like a little child then these moments of connection with the higher self can become longer.

Interestingly last night I had one vision and one dream. The vision occurred during my meditation. When I was completely relaxed what appeared to be a tunnel could be seen off in the distance. At first I thought it was the tunnel to what some have called heaven, but which is in reality a tunnel which can take you to the spirit world and a number of other dimensions based on our belief patterns. Unlike the normal tunnel which usually appeared right beside me this one appeared off in the distance and I found myself just staring at it - not sure whether to go towards it or not. It was then that my spirit guide Bartholomew (great name for a guide - he is also sometimes called Nathaniel, but that is a story for another time) entered my meditation and told me that the tunnel in front of me was the connection to my higher self. Connection was not quite the right word though because we are all connected to our higher self. What Bartholomew explained was that each of us has the opportunity to open up and enter into our higher self, where we will have the knowledge and understanding of what we have ever been and ever will be. I immediately felt nauseous and was almost spat out of the vision. As I opened my eyes I had a feeling that we are not meant to strive towards this connection with the higher self, but through our work on ourselves we draw the higher self to us.

That same night I had a dream where their was a group of us sitting around a table and I was teaching them how to connect with their higher selves. It was fascinating as I was sharing stories and teachings that I had been receiving and yet most of what I was teaching was from my upcoming book 'The Way of the Initiate,' a book that was written in parable form about a disfigured young boy who becomes a wise old sage and an Initiate of an ancient brotherhood.

As I have described elsewhere the higher self is like a library in which each of our lives are equivalent to a book. The Higher Self is an eternal, immortal and infinite energy with the role to grow in knowledge by having experiences in this and other dimensions to allow its knowledge to grow and further add to the knowledge and the experiences of the all that there is or as some would call Tao or God.

The Higher Self does not differentiate between what is good or bad because, like the Tao, it has no understanding of those concepts, because to do so would stunt its own evolution and it would then only choose experiences that fit in with it's own biases. So wherever you find yourself is where you are meant to be, because where you find yourself is the greatest opportunity for you to learn and or experience the lessons that you came to the earthplane to learn. If we came with knowledge of these other life's and experience then we would not achieve what we have come to learn. There is an opportunity given to us in our incarnations where we can experience aspects of the Higher Self and that is when we have memories of who we have been before, but they are only dream like glimpses or the feelings of deja vu when we experience something that we have experienced before. Like walking through a city we have never been to and immediately knowing where everything is or memories of having walked these streets before.

There is even a point in some of these incarnations when due to work on self you open up a doorway between your individual aspect and the Higher Self. In the beginning this door will appear off in the distance but energy will leak from the higher self and you will experience more and more insights about this and other lives or experiences across this an other dimensions. It is difficult to describe the experience because it is one of those things that can only be understood by doing the inner work and having the experience itself.

What I am sharing is what I have learnt from my teachers and glimpses I have had beyond what one called the hidden doorway. My experience will not be your experience because it is clouded by my own belief patterns. The cool but frustrating thing in the early stages of this inner work is that you will suddenly have insights or epiphanies from your higher self, but then you cannot remember what happened, other than strange recollection that something important happened.

After thirty years of working to open up the doorway to my Higher Self I have realized that it is always open; it is just that we are not open to the information coming from. That is why it is important to work on your inner self if you really want to see and connect with what was always there. Of course in the early stages of your journey you will have to believe in an energy that you cannot see and probably do not understand.

It is for this reason that I have written "The Way of the Initiate," it is based on the techniques and teachings that I have followed over the last 30 years. Although it is written as a parable, I have tried to simplify each of the steps so that anyone could follow them for you don't need a great intellect to connect with your Higher Self. All you need is the courage to take the road of the Initiate.

Over the next few months I will share with you some of the steps that I have used along the way. Although these steps have been helpful on my journey and I believe they will be helpful for others on the path, they are not the only way, but one of many.

Blessings and Peace - may your higher self give you a hint of its and your magnificence

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris and a number of online book stores.

The Way of the Initiate will be published mid 2013

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

The Doorway

2013-03-09T23:42:00.001-08:00

Everyone has inside them a doorway which leads to the Higher Self. It is not a doorway that you walk towards it is a doorway that comes to you. In fact it is a doorway that is always there and exists within each one of us. The difficulty is and has always been that we tend to put things on the outside and journey towards them, but in truth the reality is on the inside and we create this reality first in our mirror world then it is displayed as an external experience in the outer world.

If you want to change your experience in the outer world you first need to change your experience in the inner world.

The funny thing about these mystical worlds and dimensions is that you first must believe in them before you can actually see or experience them. This in itself presents a problem because in the process we all create different inner worlds because of the beliefs that we hold. An old mystic once told me that to see the real truth you need to get rid of your beliefs. At the time I did not understand what he meant but over the past thirty years as I have travelled to the inner worlds and my inner self I have begun to understand that the form and shape of these inner worlds has been created by me. And yet it is because of these beliefs that the experiences of the higher self and for that matter the energy that we call God is expanded by our own individual journeys.

What is real and does it really matter? If the whole reason for our incarnation to the earth-plane is to gather experiences which can be added to the library called the Higher Self, then it does not matter what we experience; their is no good or bad only our thinking and beliefs make it so.
If we have no beliefs we can see the emperor without his clothes and then experience the all that there is. Have you ever sat in nature, by a lake or in front of a sunset and had a mystical, I am connected with everything, moment? If you have, what happened when you tried to describe it. Did you find that your words did not match the experience? It was because your whole being including your higher self experienced that moment but in the telling it is only your ego which is sharing its experience and this will never be the experience, so that in reality it is impossible to share. That is why it is so important for our spiritual beings to experience as much as life as possible and in that I am not saying we should have more things because that is only the ego. Real experiences are when we are living in the moment and we experience something will our whole being.

One of the simplest ways to experience it is called mindful meditation or being fully present in the moment. In my upcoming book "The Way of the Initiate," the sage teaches the young disfigured boy the art of being in the moment by having him hold a plum and describe what he is feeling. The young boy realizes that with his eyes open he will only see what he expects to see; so he closes his eyes and feels the plum for the first time and it takes him on an experiential journey he would not have expected.

To fully be in the experience sometimes it is necessary to see the experience from a different perspective than you would normally. Each of us has our preferred way in which we experience the world, but these filters we use sometimes stop us from seeing what is truly there.
Blessings and Peace and may your experiences open up a doorway in you that will lead you to your Higher Self.

Geof Spalding

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris and a number of online book stores.

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

Your Higher Self

2013-02-20T19:57:00.004-08:00

In the 1970's and 80's there were many channelers, channeling information from a number of great teachers such as Seth, Ramtha and Old Chinese. When the channelers went deep into trance these energies would come through them and teach the students that were drawn to them. For the most part when they came out of trance the channelers would have no idea what information had been channeled.

It is my belief that these beings were coming through their Higher Self and as Old Chinese once taught that when a message comes from our higher self that the ego or subconscious mind would have no memory of what was coming through. If the channeler had a fully memory of what had come through then it was because it was created by his ego to make him or her more special.

In the twenty first century there seems to be many individuals who seem to be channeling information from the gods, Angels, beings from other planets and other dimensions or from great teachers of the past. What makes them different from channelers of the past is that in many cases they have a full memory and understanding of the channeled information. Normally I would have let these teachings go as manifestations of the ego, but I have seen and met many of these, so called, channelers and modern day mystics who have access to the inner worlds. Although much of this information appears to be coloured by the thoughts and belief of the channeler, there appears to be wonderful information that is coming from the area of their Higher Self which is connected with everything.

My old teacher quite often talked about the spiritual quickening which was going to take place on the planet in the last twenty years of twentieth century and on into the twenty first century. I wonder whether this quickening includes greater access to the information that is stored in our higher selves.

Old Chinese was an energy that came through Marshall Lever to teach a group of students who wanted to move beyond the ego and the Earth plane. His teachings required discipline because he believed it was necessary for discipline for the individual to move beyond the ego; for the ego doesn't like discipline because it wants to have its own way. By providing it discipline it tends to quiet and let the higher self come through and around the subconscious mind. This energy from the higher self allows the individual momentary glimpses of the divine. In those moments when we have this connection with the higher self we are connected to all things. The challenge is that as soon as we recognize these moments of pure creativity coming from the higher self; the ego tries to hold on to it, but in the process of hanging on to it, all that is left is the ego and its self importance. Like the Tao the Higher Self is an energy that is indescribable. We have moments of it enlightening our lives or a situation, but because in most cases these moments are so brief we cannot describe them and in the end the higher self withdraws into itself and our ego believes that it does not exist and that it was an epiphany from our own wonderful goodness or intelligence.

You can recognize that it was your higher self because, it is an energy that you cannot put your finger on. You have a wonderful insight and then it is gone; most times you don't even have a memory of what the insight is.

Through discipline, such as meditation, fasting and time spent in nature you can slow down your ego to the point where these insights increase. You can even ask a question and an insight is immediately given; sometimes in the form of a feeling or a single word; sometimes these insights come from something in the outside world such as a sign or a word that would not normally have this effect on you.

Another discipline that allows your higher self to come forward is the discipline of creativity. It would seem funny to use the words creativity and discipline in the same sentence, but to be truly creative, you must have discipline. It is one of those strange quirks of fate that when you are at your most creative, whether a writer, painter, sculptor or anything that is creative, that in that moment of creation your are extremely focused and yet also in a meditative state. People who meditate regularly will tell you that in those moments when you are in your deepest meditation are the moments when you are connected with everything around you. If you want to feel the energy of the higher self then find what is your stick, what it is that drives you creatively. For me I am at my most creative in three situations; firstly when I am writing, secondly when I am teaching spiritual or metaphysical concepts or when I am meditating. In all these situations it is like there is a little voice that I am not aware in my normal life that comes around my subconscious mind and shares its wisdom. The trick I find is not to try and hold on to the little voice, but allow it to share what it needs to share and let it go. When you try to hold onto the little voice or the concept that is coming through it is only your ego which is feeling full of itself as it believes it was the creator of the idea or concept when in reality it comes from the higher self. But I hear you say that if it is from the higher self does that mean that we cannot create by ourselves. My answer to that would be it is the act of creation that we allow a window between ourselves and the higher self. If we could keep our ego out of it and continue in the act of creation like a little child then these moments of connection with the higher self can become longer.

Interestingly last night I had one vision and one dream. The vision occurred during my meditation. When I was completely relaxed what appeared to be a tunnel could be seen off in the distance. At first I thought it was the tunnel to what some have called heaven, but which is in reality a tunnel which can take you to the spirit world and a number of other dimensions based on our belief patterns. Unlike the normal tunnel which usually appeared right beside me this one appeared off in the distance and I found myself just staring at it - not sure whether to go towards it or not. It was then that my spirit guide Bartholomew (great name for a guide - he is also sometimes called Nathaniel, but that is a story for another time) entered my meditation and told me that the tunnel in front of me was the connection to my higher self. Connection was not quite the right word though because we are all connected to our higher self. What Bartholomew explained was that each of us has the opportunity to open up and enter into our higher self, where we will have the knowledge and understanding of what we have ever been and ever will be. I immediately felt nauseous and was almost spat out of the vision. As I opened my eyes I had a feeling that we are not meant to strive towards this connection with the higher self, but through our work on ourselves we draw the higher self to us.

That same night I had a dream where there was a group of us sitting around a table and I was teaching them how to connect with their higher selves. It was fascinating as I was sharing stories and teachings that I had been receiving and yet most of what I was teaching was from my upcoming book 'The Way of the Initiate,' a book that was written in parable form about a disfigured young boy who becomes a wise old sage and an Initiate of an ancient brotherhood.

Blessings and Peace - may your higher self give you a hint of its magnificence

The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, Xlibris and a number of online book stores.

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/
Book Websites 'The 33rd Sage,' at www.33rdsage.com
'The 33rd Sage and the Initiate,' at www.the33rdsage.com

Healing and the Subconscious Mind

2013-02-10T14:49:00.001-08:00

Healing and the Subconscious Mind

"In Old China an emperor stood upon a very high hill. Spread through the valley below him was all of his great army. He could see where a battle would be fought and where the other armies waited. He had developed an intricate system of commands for the generals and officers of his army and the battle beganThe emperor could signal to the right, and the right would attack. He could signal to the left, and the left would attack, or the middle. With another signal, each would retreat then attack again. The battle went on for hours. When the emperor saw a weakness he sent troops to that area and eventually they overcame the other army."

Chung Fu

This analogy fits your conscious and subconscious minds. Your conscious mind is the emperor and your subconscious, the army, does not see what is going on.

When we are talking of healing what we are really talking about is the subconscious mind. When we look at the physician analogy in my previous blog it is important to understand that our subconscious mind is a wonderful, natural force. It is how we exist in this world. It allows us to have memories of past situations and it is the place where the conscious mind implants all it's belief and knowledge. This can can either be a positive or negative experience. If we place in our subconscious the thought that the world and it's people are filled with great beauty, then that is what we will see. On the other hand if we focus on the pain and suffering in the world all we will see is pain and suffering.

Many of my readers will have an understanding of what I mean by the Subconscious Mind or the Subconscious as it has also been called. Before we go into more detail on how to get the best out of and work with the Subconscious I would like to give my quick explanation of what I believe it is and why it is so important.

When we incarnate into our bodies before birth or shortly after. What is is that incarnates? Some have called it the Soul others have called it the Subconscious and I would guess that if you look into many of the religions it will be known by many other names. For me I will call it the Subconscious. It is my belief that our higher self sends of aspects of itself in the form of the Subconscious to inhabit a body to increase its experiences in this plane. When the subconscious takes residence in the vehicle it is blank and has no knowledge of other lives or of the Higher Self. This is done so that went it incarnates it comes without any knowledge; so that it can work through the issues that it came here to experience. It is not a hit and miss exercise as the higher self and the aspect which incarnates understands what are probabilities for it in the first thirteen years of its life. It understands the parents weaknesses and strengths; it understand the culture it is being born into and it understand what is happening on the world at this time. Yes for it's own experience it chooses to live in Africa, Indonesia or America. It is only our misunderstanding of the wonderful opportunity that we call life, that we judge people for where they are born, the colour of their skin, their culture and their parenting. Mark my words it is the choice of the incarnated to where and when they choose and it is only our lack of understanding that makes us judge others to be different or less than we are.

When we incarnate we even choose what Element we will incarnate into as this elemental bias will allow us the best opportunity to experience what we came to earth to experience. When people start to learn about the Elements or deeper understandings of the Subconscious mind it is because they are ready for it. It is time for them to go beyond their Subconscious Mind.

But what is there to go beyond and how do we do it? Although our subconscious is an empty book when we arrive it comes programmed with our elemental perspective. We have also chosen our genetics because that will offer us the right environment in disease and health patterns to experience what we came here for. Incarnation into the Earth-plane is all about experiences; whether we are human, animal, plant or mineral. If you are attracted to these writings then you have done at least six lifetimes as human and many in all the other dimensions.

Even before your are born your subconscious is taking in impressions from your world. The Subconscious mind takes in everything; hundreds of thousands of inputs every minute. As the old computer saying goes, "Garbage in, garbage out." Before you start feeling guilty for the garbage that you have fed yourself or your children. Stop for a moment, breathe and understand that with regards to yourself you can become like the Emperor in our story and start to take control of your Subconscious mind through Conscious Mind. With regards the children you will have to wear that one. Sorry only kidding. Remember that your children chose you for all the crap that you and the world around you has given them. They understood what they were coming here to experience; they chose it. They get their revenge though. Every child feeds back to their parents and society what it taught them in the first thirteen years. We always blame the teenagers, but maybe we should look closer to home and be thankful that our loving teenagers are giving back to us what we taught them, so that we can deal with our own stuff. Scary thought that. Remember there are no victims. This is one concept that I have had the most difficulty understanding as I watch people in pain and suffering.

The subconscious mind has the ability to create in your world whatever you program into it and whatever you program into it is what you will get in return. The key if you want to change your life is to start taking care with what you program into your subconscious.
Begin today by becoming the observer. Watch how you respond to people and situations. When you meet someone new do you react positively or negatively and why?

When you get angry. Why are you angry, is it something they did or are you projecting your weakness onto them? Often I find it is when we meet someone who shows what we don't like about ourselves or a weakness we have that we can react.
If something makes you sad - why?
If you judge something or someone - why?
If you are fearful - why?

Don't be too tough on yourself; just observe; as you begin to become the observer you start to understand why you respond and then you can rise beyond it. Sometimes it can be a great challenge when you have believed these things for many years. Remember you are here to go beyond your Subconscious mind and have it work for you. It is time to understand your Element and then go beyond it to the Element of Ether. If you want to learn more about the Elements my first book 'The 33rd Sage,' is filled with the teachings I received from my old Chinese teacher.

We live in amazing times when all of us have the opportunity to be the creative essence we were meant to be.

Blessings and Peace and May your god give you the strength to realize how wonderful you are. One day you may even discover that the God or the Godforce that you seek has always been inside you.

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The 33rd Sage and my second book The 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons, and a number of online book stores. Bricks and mortar stores can order the books through my publishers, Xlibris and Dog Ear Publishing.

Twitter @GeofSpalding

Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/

Websites www.the33rdsage.com and www.33rdsage.com

Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/

Pentecost

2013-02-02T17:29:00.002-08:00

Oh where do I begin? Have you ever had a moment when you felt a change occur right throughout your body? This was not a change because I had taken a drug. This was a change which occurred at every level of my being and if the truth be known it effected me in every dimension that I exist in.
Not the way I would normally start writing but I had to prepare you for what actually happened and if I did that by just telling you then you may not have realized how big it was. I was about to walk outside with my iPad and begin writing for the day when all of a sudden my body began to shudder. It lasted only for a few seconds, during which time I experienced an energy enter my being. It was not like I was possessed or anything like that. It was more like an energy from without released something inside me. While I was experiencing the transformation a word appeared in my mind and the word was Pentecost. A word which I had heard before because of my Christian upbringing, but not one I was full au fait with. It was weird but at the same time uplifting. I felt like my whole being had been transformed and somehow uplifted beyond this earthly dimension.

Moments later it was all finished and I was left euphoric and confused as my ego mind tried to understand the experience and hold onto it. But like all mystical moments it did not last and soon I was even doubting that anything had even occurred.

I opened up a page to write but there was nothing forthcoming. I even tried to edit some existing work, but nothing. Then I thought about writing out a parable or two to keep my conscious mind busy and allow what ever was happening to take care of itself. But I could not even copy pages from a book.

I sat there for a moment wondering what to do or if there was anything I needed to do to understand the moment. As I sat there in the front garden reflecting on what I had experienced another thought briefly entered my mind; it was to read.

I fought the thought for a moment, but it was only a moment, for the longer I had been on this spiritual the more I began to listen to these little voices and the quicker I responded to them.
I opened the kindle on my iPad and scanned what books I had to read. I downloaded a couple of books a week and in some cases I never read them. I usually read when I need a break from writing. As I scanned the titles to see if any caught my attention I was shocked to find that one was titled 'Pentecost.' My body began to shudder again and within a millisecond the energy returned and I could feel it through my whole being.

When I came back from where this energy took me I quickly googled the word 'Pentecost.' I was shocked when I read that it was the Christian festival celebrating the descent of the holy spirit on the disciples of Jesus after his Ascension. Shocked because I had just returned from Central America where many people had the belief that we were going to ascend after the end of the Mayan calendar on 21/12/2012. I had never really believed in Ascension and was drawn to lands of the Maya, not in the hope of ascending, but because I knew there was a once in a twenty six thousand year alignment between the sun and the centre of the galaxy and I wanted to be at the sacred Mayan site Palenque when it happened. Not so much because I thought something would happen, although I was hopeful that something major would happen. But I knew if anything was going to happen it would be far more subtle and it would be something that would take years, possible decades before any massive changes would occur or so I thought.

It was during a ceremony when we were at Palenque on the 21/12/2012 that I first saw a vision that I now believe was the opportunity to bring in the new world age.
As we stood in the circle to celebrate the solstice and the end of the Mayan calendar, the rains began to fall and when I say fall it was like the gods were emptying every last drop of water from the sky upon our head. Palenque was definitely the water element aspect of the Five Cities of Light and we were all experiencing the element in all it's glory. Amazingly not one person broke from the circle as ceremony continued; funny how each time a new person came into the centre to lead another part of the ceremony, the rain just got heavier. We stood there for hours getting drenched in the Element of Water and not one person complained or showed their frustration. The negative emotion of the Water Element person is frustration and although we were being challenged not one person showed the least frustration. They were all being challenged by the element and each and everyone of the circle seemed to be able to step above the emotion and see the beauty of water for what it provided. For without water there would be no growth, no life.
When the ceremony was finished most of just laughed and like children we splashed our way around Palenque, enjoying the water falls that appeared on the temples and the rivers that were flowing through the site.
Aluna made the comment that we were here to create our new selves, that our old selves would not be taken into the new world which we and others were creating. As usual my inner self always like to make a physical statement when there is a new teaching for me to learn. It is always great for my story telling but sometimes it gives me wonderful challenges and opportunities for change. When we arrived back in villa after walking the few kilometres from Palenque the first thing I noticed was that there was not one thing that I was wearing or had in my pockets or in my backpack that wasn't wet except for my IPad. Seems that God still wanted me to write.
When I took out my money much of it looked like it was actually made from water and I attempted to squeeze the water out of it and then tried to dry it with a hair dryer. Strangely two weeks later some of the money was still wet. Worse than that was my passport which resembled a sponge and when I looked at the passport photo it looked like my face was dripping away. So much for creating a new me; even my passport was expressing what was happening in the inner worlds.
When we were be drowned in Palenque I had a vision of the two pyramids joined at the base, one pointing into the air and the other into the ground. Inside the two pyramids was one sphere which seemed to fill up the space. Also in the pyramids and I believe emanating from the sphere was what I could only describe as coloured lightening. The lightening was flicking at the sides of the pyramid and each time it struck the sides of the pyramid, the pyramid seemed to lose its shape, not collapse but to be able to morph or change its shape.
Over the next couple of days every time I closed my easy I would see what looked like stone heads come rushing towards me. Over time these heads started to come alive and appeared to be trying to communicate with me. I was a little too thick to understand what they were communicating. When we were in Tikal I meditated in front of the jaguar temple. One minute in and the faces started to come again but this time it was only one face and it kept telling me to be open as it had information for me. To date the only realization I have had is that the pyramid in Palenque was some type of a doorway.
After having spent 30 plus years on my own journey I was quite used to the odd mystical occurrence but since Palenque or 21/12/2012 they seem to have been speeding up.
After what I will call the Pentecost incident I went for a walk through the streets around my home to understand what had happened to me or was still happening to me. While still in the euphoria of the feelings and trying to hold onto the memory of what happened, my attention was drawn to a red car which was parked off to my right. I looked at it out the corner of my eye and the rear passenger door appeared to go all weird and the metal seemed to break down into swirls of colours. I turned towards the car expecting the experience to have disappeared, but to my shock it was still happening. I walked closer to the car and observed the effect for a few more seconds before it disappeared and reestablished itself as a red car door. It was weird but not unusual as I have seen this breaking down of matter a number of times in the last few years. It just seems that since 21/12/2012 things are happening a lot more often.
I can only wonder what will happen over the next three years when the sun breaks through the influence of the dark rift that it has been crossing for the last 30 years, funnily enough about the same time that my spiritual journey began in this lifetime. The end of 2012 was for many seen as the end of a major cycle and the beginning of the next age of man.
What I believe is more important is what we do in the next three years before the sun moves out of the dark rift in 2016; for as we are in the next three years will have a major impact on the next 5,125 world age. It is daunting but also a wonderful challenge to think that what we do in these next three years will set the stage for what happens in the next world age which officially began on the 22/12/2012.
Not only do I believe that it is important for each of us to continue on our own spiritual journeys, but we need to be available to support others on theirs. This is not in the way of telling others what to do because we are all here at this time to experience our own journey. It is important to respect the journey of others and not infringe as we have no way of knowing what they have come here to learn. At the same time if they ask for your help, give them all you have and allow them to take what they need and continue on their journey.
My old teacher said it was the time of the quickening and for those who have the eyes to see or the ears to hear you can see this quickening in every aspect of our lives.
One of the reasons I have been feverishly writing my new book 'The Way of the Initiate - The Legend of the 33rd Sage,' is because I wanted to offer through story a simple guide to help others on their journey. It was also written like a parable with children in mind because I believe many young ones who have incarnated at this time are here to experience this quickening and be the leaders in the early years of the next world age. Unlike some of us they do not have to spend thirty or forty years to reawaken their spiritual beings. Many have come ready to hit the ground running, so to speak, and what they need is parents, teachers and mentors who understand what is occurring and can support them on their journey.

Blessings and Peace and may your connection with the higher self bring a smile to ever cell in your body and reflect it in the world around you.

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The 33rd Sage and the 33rd Sage and the Initiate are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Watersons and a number of online book stores or ask you local bookstore to order them in for you.

Twitter @GeofSpalding
Official Author Blog - the33rdsage.authorsxpress.com/
Translatable Author Blog - 33rdsage.blogspot.com.au/

Website www.33rdsage.com
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