Friday, 27 July 2012

Post No. 394 - A (minor) dream ...

I had a dream last night (no, that's not unusual :) ), part of which involved people having a party to celebrate something minor. Now, I'm not a party animal: I find the broken and leaking auras, the enforced and unwanted intimacy, the bravado, the jokes at other people's expense and so on all very ... off-putting. Anyway, I started thinking about why people party, and part of the speculation was that it may be an attempt to re-create the experience of being in the astral, which has been remembered on some level.

Being in the astral can indeed be a wonderful experience: in effect, emotional closeness is the astral's version of what we perceive as physical distance. The problem is, trying to enforce it with people who are incompatible is bound to end in disaster. There's no point being upset about it, the thing to do is to learn, and not force or coerce people to come along to a big FAKE event, but rather, have a smaller, GENUINE event.

There is also the issue of celebrating an accomplishment. Most of the time, I don't feel the need for that: if I set out to do something, simply the fact of doing it is enough (maybe that's because I believe in self actualisation, rather than self esteem ...). As a kid, I used to hate presentation of awards in sailing clubs - I was pleased when I learned enough to be reasonably successful at sailing, but the formal presentation and applause was nothing pleasant. A nod of approval from someone I respected was more significant and rewarding to me.

At least part of the dream last night was me being a professional dinghy sailor (yes, people do get paid to sail some boats, but they're big yachts, not off-the-beach dinghies): I think that was possibly a message about finding a way to earn my income from something I love, rather than something I endure. Good - a message of hope.

On that, I'm currently not doing of my artificing (carving a wand, staff and walking stick), as I don't want any of my "down" energy to get into what I am making. That reminds me, I've been doing some thinking about the energy that gets put into buildings by construction workers. We've got a couple of skyscrapers being built near where I work, and - when walking past one of these sites - the energy can be extremely unpleasant at times. It's the same with building a house - or anything, really. After 30 years experience in engineering, I know that there will be arguments and disagreements, and some extremely sour people along the way. All that energy gets put into the building, and then will affect people who move in.

Doing something yourself - literally, personally, physically yourself, I mean: not hiring something to do something you think of - or even, at the very least, cleaning the house/building, will help to dissipate the energy. The problem is, several hundred hours of work will have gone into making that place: no matter that your efforts will be better directed and focused, you will still need to make some very concentrated effort over quite some time in order to flush out the builders energies, and leave the place as truly, energetically, your own.

(This does tend to happen automatically after time; after half a century or so, there would be very little of the original builder left, but there will be the energy opf previous residents.)

The other point to contemplate about this is different levels of energy & sensitivity. I find a lot of people (and cats) like the energy where I am living - to them, it is high energy, but for me, it is often a lower level of energy than I want or am comfortable with. I am use to a lot of energy, and what I find merely comfortable, others may find overwhelming.

Now, a builder's labourer is quite possibly focused on very physical things, and may have little psychic sensitivity (especially if she/he/ze drinks a lot - and no, not all builder's labourers are male), so may be quite genuinely unaware of what they're doing - and is likely to be too indifferent to future residents (they just want to get to the next drunken booze up, more likely) to be dragging energy down deliberately. Nevertheless, the damage they are doing is real. It's like accidentally dropping an object from a high place which then hits and injures (or even kills) someone: it wasn't intended, but it caused some very real harm.

On that (accidents), I've had more crazy incidents happening on the roads (ninja [no lights] cyclists wandering across roads at night, pedestrians dressed in black standing in the middle of the road at night, etc, etc, etc). I can make allowances for people not being aware (they should be!!!), etc, but I've recently started to wonder ... is any of this just simple stupidity?


Basic/Underlying Concepts for this Post:
  •  we have a non-physical, which can survive death and then reincarnate; 
  • in-between incarnations, we exist in the astral (generally!), which is a world of emotions that responds to emotions and thoughts and dircted will, in which the perception of distance is related to harmony of basic frequency, rather than what we describe as physical distance; 
  • our dreams, which often originate from the astral, can be messages (albeit distorted by the shock of returning to the physical) or insights into our state of being, and we can improve that state of being (including improving ourselves); 
  • energy from people affects things they handle, particularly things they handle with intent - such as when they make things; 
  • that energy can affect others, for better or worse; 
  • a lot of things are relative, including energy states (what one person considers good, another doesn't).
OK, time for a few reading links.
And now, a whole host of offerings I have collected from The Age. Please remember I don't necessarily agree with the articles I post - some are to stimulate thought ... YOUR thought :)

Oh, and if you read - whether here or elsewhere - something you don't like or are perhaps upset about, what are you going to do about it?
  • EXACTLY the SAME comments about presumptions and slurs on reputations applies to members of the public - who do not have the massive powers that police do - who are subjected to drug/alcohol checks by these police officers. You're aren't above the law you administer, and your VASTLY greater power require correspondingly greater checks! "Random drug tests a slur on officers: union", 27th June, 2012: http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/random-drug-tests-a-slur-on-officers-union-20120627-211eq.html;
  • My experience as a child who was bullied is why I consider telling the bully how I feel to be an absoute catastrophe, and exactly the WRONG thing to do. This article backs me up, but I'll think about the suggestion with "evil" kids for a while ... one of the problems is that I know my limits, and others also have limits:" it is just as well to say not to disengage, but who has the support to do so? " 'Evil' children not lost cause for caring parents", 21st July, 2012: http://www.theage.com.au/national/evil-children-not-lost-cause-for-caring-parents-20120720-22fm0.html;

Love, light, hugs and blessings

Gnwmythr, Grumpy Crone

(pronounced "new-MYTH-ear") 
My "blogiography" is here. 
May the world of commerce & business be recognised to be a servant, not a master, of the lives of people. 
A home is for living in, not feeling, becoming or being rich or a “better” class than others. 
The International Labour Organisation's definition of "full employment" is wrong, useless and misleading. 
Armageddon is alive and well and happening right now: it is a battle between the indolence of "I only ..." and/or "I just ..." on one side, and perspicacity on the other. 

The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good [people] to do nothing. EDMUND BURKE

Your children are not your children. ... They come through you but ... they belong not to you ... for their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow KAHLIL GIBRAN

We didn't inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we only borrowed it from our children ANTOINE DE SAINT-EXUPÉRY

Like an unchecked cancer, hate corrodes the personality and eats away its vital unity. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

Those whom we cannot stand are usually those who we cannot understand P.K.SHAW

Tags: astral, attitudes, change, discrimination, dreams, growth, Kulin, rituals, society, violence,

First published: Frysdagr, 27th July, 2012

Last edited: Friday, 27th July, 2012
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Sunday, 15 July 2012

Post No. 393 - More Sunday thoughts ...

I've taken a break from my reading, and watched - or tried to watch - the Nicholas Cage film "Season of the Witch".

Bother.

Well, the discrimination and vitriol towards followers of the Old Religion (i.e. witchcraft, which underlies much of what is now termed paganism [I refuse to use the term "Neo-Pagan until Christians accept that they are as equally Neo-Christians], or - to some extent - Wicca) that led to the Burning Times (note: the Wikipedia article is, in my view, slightly wrong - in particular, the term applies to earlier periods than the article claims ... Wikipedia has, sadly, been going slightly "off" of late ... ) is all there, and SOME of what happened in the Crusades is there (the film actually waters that down a bit: I think "The Kingdom of Heaven" does better on that count, but it is worth looking up Wikipedia [and I have a few thoughts here, here, here and here ... and maybe also look up here and here] ... I'm just incredibly thankful that the lifetimes we [meaning, I and my parallels or soul parts] had seemed to have all missed out on the insanity that was the Crusades).

The fear and vilification of wolves (one of my allies - "power animals", as they tend to be referred to now) is there as well. (I refuse to refer to the rune "Wolfsangel" - shown to the right - as that, as what the hooks this rune was named after did, when they were used to capture wolves, was anything but angelic: I deliberately mispronounce this as "Wolfsangle" ... but it is a very powerful and useful rune, and actually one of my favourites)

One thing the film did get right is the possibility of negative influence from various forms of spirits or discarnate entities. Of course, it is mostly earthbound entities, and much is not intended maliciously - but harmful for all that. I've forgotten which source I've read that is good on the draining influence of earthbound entities - I'll look that up.

More significantly, there is, at times, what I consider a dangerous naiveté that the absence of malice means things will be alright. That isn't necessarily so - energies can be, quite simply, incompatible. Disharmonious, if you prefer that word - which is where I think what we term all sorts of things right up to and including "evil" originally came from. Well, more accurately, it came from a failure to have a constructive, or at the very least tolerant, attitude towards difference.

There are entities that are discarnate and can have a negative influence, just as there are entities who are incarnate who can have a negative influence, and entities who are incarnate and discarnate who can have a positive influence - I've written about this previously (here, for instance).

What do you do about that?

Develop your nonphysical strength - which is where some of the New Age notions, much of the pagan notions and possibly my workshop material can be of use (see here). More seriously, what you find helpful is what is helpful - just be as flexible as you can in considering all this.

Going back to the film, it does fall into the trap of thinking that there are special formulae - and hence this special book - which must be said exactly correctly to work. Well, my training is that it is INTENT which matters, not the actual words. Mind you, I do practice the words so I can focus on the intent as I say the words, without having to put mental energy into the words rather than my intent.

Of course, I do believe - no, I KNOW that books can be invaluable as a source of knowledge, and that is more likely to be the significance of such a book in those times ... especially if people could actually read, which most couldn't in those days.

Still, overall, the film was reasonably well made (in my non-expert opinion), and entertaining - a suitable diversion for a cold Sunday morning :)

Basic/Underlying Concepts for this Topic:
  • history is not necessarily as it has been written down; 
  • social mores and norms are taught, and can pass on discriminatory prejudices and biases that become ubiquitous; 
  •  there is more to reality than just the physical: there is a nonphysical component as well;
  • the physical and non-physical can interact, and this can be brought under conscious awareness/control; 
  • just as we have a physical health, strength and wellbeing, so too do we have a non-physical health, strength and wellbeing,and we can work on improving the non-physical as well as the physical;
  • cats do not want me to write posts on Sundays, or any other day they want pats or cuddles - sorry, that was a litle bit of physical world influence :)

Love, light, hugs and blessings

Gnwmythr
(pronounced "new-MYTH-ear") 
My "blogiography" is here. 
May the world of commerce & business be recognised to be a servant, not a master, of the lives of people. 
A home is for living in, not feeling, becoming or being rich or a “better” class than others. 
The International Labour Organisation's definition of "full employment" is wrong, useless and misleading. 
Armageddon is alive and well and happening right now: it is a battle between the indolence of "I only ..." and/or "I just ..." on one side, and perspicacity on the other.

The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good [people] to do nothing. EDMUND BURKE

 Your children are not your children. ... They come through you but ... they belong not to you ... for their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow KAHLIL GIBRAN

We didn't inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we only borrowed it from our children ANTOINE DE SAINT-EXUPÉRY

Like an unchecked cancer, hate corrodes the personality and eats away its vital unity. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

Those whom we cannot stand are usually those who we cannot understand P.K.SHAW

Tags: attitudes, discrimination, misconceptions, paganism, society, Wicca,

First published: Sunnudagr, 15th July, 2012

Last edited: Sunday, 15th July, 2012
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Wednesday, 11 July 2012

Post No. 392 - Magick, books, society and the economy

I think I may have mentioned that I'm doing some re-reading of Katherine Kerr's Deverry series. If I haven't, I'm doing some re-reading of Katherine Kerr's Deverry series :)

As with the Dresden Files series, it's an interesting read from a magickal point of view - in fact, I consider Katherine Kerr's writings to be closer to my work than Jim Butcher's work on the Dresden Files, but the latter is better from the point of view of actual mythology.

One of the aspects that resonated very strongly with me in some of Katherine Kerr's writings (that I missed the first time round) is the reference to "the Light behind the Moon", and "the Light behind the Kings of the Elements". That's very true - I have often felt that many religions share a common source of truth, and have been distorted by humans (male, female and other). I'm very comfortable expressing myself in paganism, particularly the Tel'Ennyn Asur, but I do also recognise that there is a base which is shared by many faiths, and an energy behind the Patron Deities etc that we use.

I'm making this a feature of my next workshop on runes, actually. I'm going to start by pointing out that the Taijitu (the so-called "yin-yang symbol") symbolises the dynamic balance between active and receptive poles, and that this also reflects through into the dynamism of the runes, which are ALL created from fire (Kenaz) and Ice (Isa).

In terms of patron Deities, my conceptualisation (gotta love that word - used it for some lectures I gave at work, and have grabbed it for any other chance I can to trot it out again) is that all are combinations  of facets of the one underlying source of Life and Light - a bit like a jewel has many facets, and light from various facets in this example can be combined to create what we know as Tyr, or Isis, or Jehovah, and so on.

Now, moving on to other matters, I recently (back in February this year) read a narrative history book on the change, in Ancient Rome, from a Republic to an Empire: "Rubicon", by Tom Holland (pub. Abacus, 2010, ISBN 978-0349-11563-4, first pub. Little, Brown, 2003). I consider that, in today's so-called "enlightened" age, to quite an extent all we've managed to do is change the glorification and addiction to war and violence of the Ancient Roman,s to glorification and addiction to the economy - especially the notion of holding economic competitiveness higher than social cohesion and cooperation.

Yes, I know that there are many people who are not like that. Unfortunately, they (we!) are in the minority.

Most people want a "better" home, or more pay, or a promotion - and in today's modern "civilised" societies, that largely comes down to competition in the workplace for a "better" job.

Don't think so? Listen to our leaders - who, like or not, are whoever WE, as a mob, have elected to Parliament. Biggest consistent gripe? Who manages the economy better - which goes all the way back to the Protectionists vs. the Free Traders when Australia first became a quasi-independent (well, everything was still ratified by the Pommie Queen or her representative - still is, actually) Commonwealth.

There is SOME justification to this (we're in a recession/depression in my home state of Victoria, and it is causing considerable pain, but more on that later), but it is the attitude of almost reverence to "the economy" that I object to.

It is important to remember that economic considerations are about how to make people's lives better, not how to come up with a set of numbers that someone or other (especially some faceless "other" in a distant country ... ) likes more.

There is a lot that is lost by this undue and inappropriate emphasis. For me, that loss became clearest when the economic rationalists (long may their bank accounts moulder and attract fees!) introduced massive social changes that led to a harder, less compassionate view towards the less fortunate in life. It stank then, and it stinks now - I have even had experience of a single mother ranting at "all those single mums living off welfare", when that was EXACTLY her situation.

We lose a lot when we lose our humanity or our perspective.

I once wrote a short story looking at the sort of losses society experiences from the people who die in war, or are forever changed by the war - including those who do not go to the "front line" (the story was set in the First World War, before aerial attack took the war well behind the "front line" ... mind you, the USA did that rather well anyway during their Civil War, with Northern generals Sheridan and Sherman's stripping of the Shenandoah Valley and "March to the Sea", and others have also in various sieges and invasions).

I think we also  lose people and potential in the same way as warfare, as a result of economic machinations.

Several times in my (day job) career I have been working on building effective teams, and have had all my work effectively thrown away by the owners of a business selling it, putting it up for sale, or restructuring.

I've now got the same sort of externally imposed changes happening again, in response to the recession in Victoria, and this time I've had enough, and may get into a different field of work entirely.

That's OK for me, but I was hoping to push along the change in wastewater treatment from energy-consuming/Greenhouse Gas-producing aerobic processes to energy-producing anaerobic processes (for the main process, not just sludge digestion) before I got out of this area of work. Ah well, someone else will eventually do that - it'll just be later.

I feel like all my work to date has been a waste, but in truth, I have helped a little to bring that change into existence/consciousness on the physical plane, so maybe it has been some use. That feeling is just the shock, disappointment, and worry about paying the bills & rent & food speaking.

I had also wanted to pass on the knowledge and expertise I have on the use of lagoons for treatment (don't look up the Wikipedia entry on this - it is wrong), but that will have to wait until I pass and can act as a guide to someone else, much as I have been guided in this life in gaining my ability in that area. (On other plans, I also plan on writing a short story looking at the "Saving Private Ryan" theme of "how much is one person's life worth in terms of sacrifices by others, and equating that to a modern life where people may be dependent on others financially: what is the limit of an acceptable price on those doing the supporting?)

So ... what is to be done about all this?

Well, it is not realistic to expect one company to take on the role of changing the world: they have to have a positive income, just as any household has to live within its means, and this particular company has already invested a fair bit to try and get us through to better times (although we, probably somewhat naturally given it is our sources of income that are on the line, think it could have been done better!).

The solution, sadly, lies with the leaders we create - mostly those we elect, but also those we give acclamation to, meaning those pundits in the media who get the attention - and whether they are savvy or not, good or bad, it is the number of hits that matter to the media moguls, and thus the number of hits (i.e., the adulation) that gives a pundit in the media, or more generally on the Internet, sufficient weight to influence society.

Doubt that? Well, even those who garner a flurry of protest have played a role - that of mobilising opposition to whatever it was that they advocated.

When our leaders, the ones we elect at the ballot and the ones we elect by adulation, set a serious direction towards a better world, then, eventually, the world will follow.

Love, light, hugs and blessings

Gnwmythr 
(pronounced "new-MYTH-ear") 

May the world of commerce & business be recognised to be a servant, not a master, of the lives of people. 
A home is for living in, not feeling, becoming or being rich or a “better” class than others. 
The International Labour Organisation's definition of "full employment" is wrong, useless and misleading. 
Armageddon is alive and well and happening right now: it is a battle between the indolence of "I only ..." and/or "I just ..." on one side, and perspicacity on the other.

The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good [people] to do nothing. EDMUND BURKE

Your children are not your children. ... They come through you but ... they belong not to you ... for their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow KAHLIL GIBRAN

We didn't inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we only borrowed it from our children ANTOINE DE SAINT-EXUPÉRY

Like an unchecked cancer, hate corrodes the personality and eats away its vital unity. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

Those whom we cannot stand are usually those who we cannot understand P.K.SHAW

Tags: about me, attitudes, depression, economy, finances, religion, society, spirituality, violence, war,

First published: Wodansdagr, 11th July, 2012

 Last edited: Wednesday, 11th July, 2012
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Sunday, 1 July 2012

Post No. 391 - Lessons from the world of ... money

Yes, Dear Readers, lessons from the world of money, finances :)

Something I have talked to a few young people in the last decade or so is the idea of putting aside a bit of money for the future, and for any hard times that may be coming. It isn't always possible to do, and it requires self discipline (especially during unexpectedly good times), but it is as fundamental and important as balancing your household budget (i.e., "makng ends meet", "living within your means").

The same applies to psychic energy, and karma.

Let's consider the issue of energy first.

If you try to do more than you are physically capable of, you wind up tired, and need to rest. If you don't rest (or are unable to do so), you risk becoming ill, and possibly collapsing.  You also could become vulnerable to illness.

If you try to do more than you are psychically capable of, you wind up tired, and need to rest. If you don't rest, you risk becoming ill, and possibly collapsing.  You also could become vulnerable to illness.

Notice that I remove the "unable to do so" from the second one, about the expenditure of psychic energy. In the context of developing one's psychic abilities, one is always capable of resting. In some real life situations, in some real life psychic situations, that may not be possible.

Of course the other part of this situation is akin to becoming fitter: you have to EXERCISE in order to develop physical strength, fitness, endurance and resilience, and you have to EXERCISE in order to develop PSYCHIC strength, fitness, endurance and resilience.

Which is which in any one situation? Well, you have to use your mind and think about it ...

All the above also applies to karma - which I remind you can be good or bad. Karma is a long term matter, the "momentum", in a sense of all that we do rolling round and back over us. Not many people in this day and age acknowledge that, for instance, if they ask a question, they may simply not have the right to know the answer, but that is the case. You may be better served going out and helping people, than trying to hone already dveloped psychic skills, if you are becoming frustrated over the failure to get an answer.

But I digress.

The same principle I spoke of with regard to energy, also applies to karma (which is, after all, a form of energy). In much the same way that I have posted previously about asking to accelerate your rate of karmic return, it is also possible to ask to save a certain amount of good karma for future times when you need it. As with money, you may not be able to set aside some of the good karma you are generating, but, if you can, you should, in my opinion, consider investing say ... 10% of the good karma you are generating.

There's some considerations and deliberations which have to go into when to call on that investment (especially if you want to send it to yourself in an earlier time, but that gets into a whole realm of time issues that I am better off leaving to Jane Roberts ... ).

Basic/Underlying Concepts for this Topic:
  • psychic energy can be "created" (it may actually come from other levels), and expended 
  • if we over-exert ourselves psychically, we can experience problems just as mch as physically 
  • we can improve our psychic strength and fitness just as we (generally) can for our physical 
  • we can "save" energy in the form of karma

Love, light, hugs and blessings

Gnwmythr
(pronounced "new-MYTH-ear") 
May the world of commerce & business be recognised to be a servant, not a master, of the lives of people. 
A home is for living in, not feeling, becoming or being rich or a “better” class than others. 
The International Labour Organisation's definition of "full employment" is wrong, useless and misleading. 
Armageddon is alive and well and happening right now: it is a battle between the indolence of "I only ..." and/or "I just ..." on one side, and perspicacity on the other. 

The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good [people] to do nothing. EDMUND BURKE

Your children are not your children. ... They come through you but ... they belong not to you ... for their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow KAHLIL GIBRAN

We didn't inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we only borrowed it from our children ANTOINE DE SAINT-EXUPÉRY

Like an unchecked cancer, hate corrodes the personality and eats away its vital unity. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

Those whom we cannot stand are usually those who we cannot understand P.K.SHAW

Tags: accelerating rate of karmic return, energy, finances, karma, strength,

First published: Sunnudagr, 1st July, 2012

Last edited: Sunday, 1st July, 2012
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