Post No. 470 - Reading

G'day, Hello, Howdy, Hi, Zdravstvujtye (some of my work colleagues are Russian, including an absolutely invaluable administrator who has recently taken maternity leave - may she and young one and family be blest), guten Tag (where I have connection owing to a recent past life), sveiki, Czesc (I have friends, not just colleagues, at work who are Polish), bonjour (colleagues at a former workplace were French, and we practised my woeful and limited range of this language), selamat pagi (one of the best junior engineers I ever worked with was Malaysian, and she taught me a few words), annyeonghaseyo, pryvit, Como vai (a friend of mine a few years ago, although not Brazilian, had Portuguese ancestry), ¡Hola (a former work colleague and friend, a VERY talented artist - with a Mexican sensibility to her artwork, particularly around the Day of the Dead - used to teach me Mexican Spanish), Selamat pagi, ni hao (ah, my work trips to Asia, and the many wonderful, wonderful people I have met there - and some excellent work colleagues and friends here, as well),  

Well, it is time for a few more links, but first ... congratulations to Robinsons: I was perhaps spoiled living so close to that store, but I certainly haven't found anything I would regard as a decent bookstore since I moved to the northern suburbs: http://gnwmythr.blogspot.com/2009/12/shades-of-exorcism.html.
Now, this post's reading links ...

• this is a "wow": http://www.upworthy.com/watch-the-first-54-seconds-that-s-all-i-ask-you-ll-be-hooked-after-that-i-swear;

• http://www.shamanlinks.net/Soul_Retrieval.htm#returning pieces (found initially at http://spiritrescue.ning.com/forum/topics/soul-retrieval-great-information-in-this-article), which includes the following:
  "There are various reasons for soul loss.  If a person was in an abusive situation part of one's soul may leave to protect itself from the abuse.  Sometimes as a child, fighting parents may prompt the soul part to hide because the child is scared.  If a traumatic accident is about to occur such as an impact or accident the soul would leave so that it wouldn't be effected by the force of the accident. If a loved one is lost, the soul part may go until the person is ready to deal with their grief. All of these are very healthy mechanisms of protection.  In some cases the soul part will return on its own.  But if it does not realize how to return, or if it does not know that it is safe to return - the shaman may need to assist the return of that missing piece.       Another way to lose ones soul is to give it to someone.  When two people are in love, or when they are in a family, it is sometimes occurs that they will give portions of their soul to their loved ones.  A mother may give some to her child because she wishes to protect him or her.  This type of soul exchange may seem acceptable because of a person's desire to share themselves with another, but it is generally not a good idea.  An individual can't use another person's soul, because simply: it is not their soul.  The person must then deal with this unusable energy in addition to his or her own problems.  In addition, the persons who have given a piece of their soul away have disempowered themselves.  The giver's journey is made more difficult because they are not fully present to do the living of their life.  It is a lose lose situation.       Because we are not taught about soul loss we do this soul sharing unconsciously.  As individuals becomes more conscious of this dynamic they can find more empowering ways of sharing love and affection in their close relationships.  You can see the language of soul loss in everyday speaking, people referring to how they "lost a piece of themselves" when they parted with a lover, or people saying "you stole my life from me."
  The article also recommends "Soul Retrieval: Mending the Fragmented Self Through Shamanic Practice, Sandra Ingerman". See also http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/silencing-the-demons-of-the-tortured-lambs-20130802-2r4lx.html;

• http://spiritrescue.ning.com/forum/topics/symbols-in-the-shamanic-journey;

• very good article: http://paganactivist.com/2013/07/21/ritual-physical-accessibility-transgender-inclusion-and-more/, and I am contemplating posting about those well meaning, patronising idiots who think it is acceptable to use wrong pronouns to stimulate a "discussion" on being trans ... or even just refer to trans matters outright ... the people I've buried because of cretins like them!;

• finally, someone else pushing my line! http://www.llewellyn.com/blog/2013/07/when-theres-nothing-you-can-do/;

• and another one following my arguments :) : http://richardlouv.com/books/last-child/;

• http://www.happyplanetindex.org/;

• http://www.patheos.com/blogs/johnbeckett/2013/07/fate-the-gods-and-free-will.html;

• http://www.llewellyn.com/journal/article/2390, which includes the following
  "Meditation is the practice of complete disassociation of body and thought. It refers to taking the body into a state where you can experience an essence of complete freedom physically and emotionally. When you reach this state, you become aware of a deeper energy that releases you from pain and suffering. Meditation is practiced in different ways: lying down, sitting, or from practicing deep concentration in postures. Meditating can be difficult and requires discipline. The difficulty with meditation is that people try to jump right into it. In order to meditate effectively, there has to be a preparation for silence and stillness. Meditation can be practiced in every moment of your day. By learning how to be mindful of negative and positive behaviors, keeping the body tension-free to sit through meditation, breathing with presence, and practicing concentration, you ease into a meditative state that is natural."
  which I partly agree with, partly disagree with;

• http://www.llewellyn.com/journal/article/2376;

• http://www.llewellyn.com/journal/article/2375;

• http://www.llewellyn.com/journal/article/2390;

• this is not a view that I consider relevant in this case, but it merits some consideration for other situations: http://dilbert.com/blog/entry/the_power_of_a_word/;

• this is VERY GOOD: http://thecocowitch.com/2013/08/dont-wine-and-cheese-your-rites/;

• http://wildhunt.org/2013/08/social-justice-as-spiritual-work-in-paganism.html;

• http://wildhunt.org/2013/08/patterns-histories-and-tendencies-of-place.html;

• read this to the end, and think about the point made: http://wildhunt.org/2013/08/facebook-witch-hunts-and-the-stand-for-human-rights.html - can you think of anything to do, here? Write a letter or email? Light a candle? KEEP doing energy work, perhaps? I've read quite a few other articles about this problem, and it is one of the reasons I won't work in some parts of Africa (which costs the local people my skills around wastewater treatment, sadly, but that is the price of their bigotry/fear);

• some of this I disagree with, actually, but the main point at the end bears consideration: http://paganactivist.com/2013/09/01/hypocrites-culture-of-waste-and-the-environment/;

• very true! http://bansheearts.com/2013/08/whose-ancestors/;

• http://www.incitingariot.com/2013/09/pagans-copyright-infringement-and.html#more;

• http://www.thorncoyle.com/blog/2013/08/29/some-days-love-looks-like-anger/;

• http://www.thorncoyle.com/blog/2013/08/28/choosing-a-dream-of-love/;

• http://paganinparadise.blogspot.com.au/2013/08/harvesting-fruit-of-discord.html;

• http://www.norsemyth.org/2012/05/elf-kerfuffle-in-iceland.html;

• http://www.norsemyth.org/2011/04/almost-interview-with-kenneth-branagh.html;

• http://www.norsemyth.org/2010/09/stephen-hawking-myths-and-critics.html;

• http://www.norsemyth.org/2013/01/questioning-loki-part-one.html and http://www.norsemyth.org/2013/01/questioning-loki-part-two.html, which I don't necessarily agree with, but it is useful for the commentary on historical sources and modern thinking;

• http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2013/09/the_most_important_negotiation.html. 

[1] BPF = Balanced Positive (spiritual) Forces. See here and here for more on this.

[2] Please see here and my post "The Death of Wikipedia" for the reasons I now recommend caution when using Wikipedia. I'm also exploring use of h2g2, although that doesn't appear to be as extensive (h2g2 is intended - rather engagingly - to be the Earth edition of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy"). 

Love, light, hugs and blessings

Gnwmythr 
(pronounced "new-MYTH-ear"; ... aka Bellatrix Lux?)

My "blogiography" (list of all posts - currently not up to date) is here.  

I started this blog to cover karmic regression-rescue (see here and here), and it grew ...  See here for my group mind project, here and here for my "pagans for peace" project, and here for my bindrune kit-bag.

• One size does NOT fit all. 
• May the world of commerce and 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 secret to being (financially) rich is not to have lots of money: it is to have an income above the poverty line, and then make whatever sacrifices are necessary in order to live within 90% of your means.  
• Like fire to the physical, emotions to the soul make a good servant, and a bad master. 
• Armageddon is alive and well and happening right now: it is a battle between the indolence of "I only ..." and/or "I just ..." and/or "Everyone knows ... " and what Bruce Schneier [2] calls "security theatre" on one side, and perspicacity and the understanding that the means shape the end on the other. 
• The means shape the end.  
• Sometimes you just can't argue with a biped that is armed with a sharp stick, a thick head and not too much in the way of grunts.
• Spiritual love is far more than just an emotion - it is a concept, thoughts, actions and a way of living. 
• One of the basics of serious spiritual / psychic work is that the greatest work is that which we do on ourself, which seems trivial to many. Our own Innermost Essence, which is our Higher Self / Soul / Spirit, has the power to do so much, and is actively participating in the creation and sustenance of this physical reality. Some mote of our conscious or unconscious knows that, which is why we seem inclined to be dismissive of Self Mastery - which is a bit like the child who sees an adult spending money to buy toys, and fails to recognise the daily grind of work which has led to having the money. 
• My favourite action movie of all time is "Gandhi". However, I loathe the stereotypical action movie - and, for similar reasons, I loathe many dramas, which are often emotionally violent, more so in some cases than many war films.

Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger [people]. JOHN F. KENNEDY 

The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good [people] to do nothing. (based on writing by) 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.

True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar; it is not haphazard and superficial. It comes to see that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

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

Few men are willing to brave the disapproval of their fellows, the censure of their colleagues, and the wrath of their society. Moral courage is a rarer commodity than bravery in battle or great intelligence. Yet it is the one essential, vital quality for those who seek to change a world which yields most painfully to change." SENATOR ROBERT F. KENNEDY (US Attorney General 1966 Speech)

People I'm currently following or reading, or have considerable respect for, include:

• Red Catherine, a Romani woman living on Artemis, in South Australia; 
• T. Thorn Coyle;  
• Fire Lyte; 
• http://paganinparadise.blogspot.com/; 
• The Wild Hunt;and
  
• the Order of Scathach. 

You can find news sources I use here. 

Tags: activism, anger, attitudes, deities, discrimination, energy, environment, family, free will, happiness, history, honour, love, meditation, myths, reading, rituals, science, shamanism, symbology, 

First published: Manadagr, 9th September, 2013

Last edited: Monday, 9th September, 2013