I thought I should share a few thoughts since I've now had three sessions at the dojo. I see the truth of Aikido and count myself lucky to have had the good fortune that the sequence of events, even those well before my conception in this life,  directed me to this place. One event, that I have knowledge of only second hand, is the chance meeting of my parents at a Thanksgiving Day dinner in Syracuse NY. I don't have all the details, but what I have been told of this event is that father while learning the Russian tongue in his first year in the US Air force, probably in the year 1964, was invited to Thanksgiving by a family who was hosting soldiers for the holiday. It so happens that my mother was there where the two met. My father could have been given a different house to go to, my mother could have gone home for the holiday in New Paltz NY only 3.5 hours away or any number of other circumstances that would have kept this meeting from happening. 

I joined the US Army in 1991. My wife Sarah, who is the reason I live in Boise, joined that same year, three months before me. After Monterey, where we were literally within a mile of each other and two other schools, Sarah left just prior to my arrival at each, and another year and half at Ft. Riley, where we were stationed, we finally met, wed and started a family. After our tour was up we came to Idaho in 1995. All chance happenings. Or were they?

There were many seemingly insignificant events that lead to my arrival at the dojo, but each of them are just as important as the ones I consider major.  Everything in it's own time, and now the time has come to take my consciousness to some different places. Or perhaps it's time to connect with places/energy I haven't yet tapped. 

One philosophy I embrace is that the universe is a plentiful place and it will provide what is needed when it's needed. Apparently it's time to return to the training I quit more than 30 years ago. 

Aikido is the avenue by which my consciousness will begin anew to unfold. While I'm sitting in the dojo my mind is extremely quiet and the words and actions of the sensei seem to wash over me like a wave. I am fully attentive and comprehension and understanding are taking place, and I remain quiet; inside. A word that comes to mind is "atonement (at-one-ment)."

This is only a beginning. I feel my inner vision expanding already. I'm in the here and now. I'm amazed at the peace and happiness that has expanded since I started at the dojo. I was peaceful and happy before, nevertheless, it's a much deeper and calmer feeling. Life seems to be moving at a slower pace as well. I'm calmly and patiently waiting to see where this leads; not in any hurry at all. 

I look forward to getting to know you all and practicing together as one.

Origato,

George 

Morphic Resonance from The Mission of Art by Alex Grey

Morphic resonance is a theory developed by Rupert Sheldrake that states that each member of a species draws on the collective memory of the species, tunes in to past members of the species, and may in turn contribute to the further development of the species. Sheldrake cites the inexplicable simultaneous development of habits in geographically separate species, and even points to the fact that after a particular kind of crystal is grown in one laboratory, it becomes easier to grow throughout the world. Each thing has a morphic field, an organizing, form-shaping field that brings its singular field into "resonance" with the habits of the collective field. The more often an action is repeated, the more powerful and influential, and the easier to access, is its morphic resonance. The morphic field of the individual has the potential to influence the collective through creative acts... The creative spirit is in turbulent resonance with the collective morphic field. Part of the job of creative persons is to challenge traditional habits of thought and behavior and develop new expressions to surprise and reinvigorate the collective mind-set. pp130-31

 

 

You know how you have the ability to imagine something to such a degree that you lose awareness of your body?  To totally get caught up in a movie such that you do not notice any of the sensations your body might be experiencing?  Or when you are thinking about something so "skillfully" that you are completely lost in thought and a ufo could land in front of you and you wouldn't notice it?  -- This actually might not be a good thing.

Let me share with a you a suggestion which greatly assisted my own life.

Feel your body while engaging in other activities.  If you decide to do this and practice for awhile, you will notice some activies cause you to forget that you were practicing.  It might be helpful to avoid those activies somewhat until the new way-of-being becomes a little more habitual.  You will find that you have to relearn to perform activies while also having an awareness of the body.

Make a note not to lose the "noticing the sensation of having a body" as much as possible, even while thinking, etc...

Rather than describe the benefits of doing this, or otherwise trying to talk you into it, try it out for yourself and see if there is reason for me to have typed this.

Hello everyone!

Well, I should hopefully be coming back here soon, in the process of moving to a new appartment, just got through with a VERY tough semester, and financial hardships.

I have missed class terribly, but will hopefully be able to get back into the swing of things. Hope everyone is well!

-CW Reed

I would love to have a discussion with you all about this video.  It sheds light on consciousness and the roles of the two hemispheres of the brain.  It's presented as an amazing personal experience shared by brain researcher Jill Bolte Taylor.  I had a similar personal experience through deep meditation.

 http://www.microclesia.com/?p=320 

 

"This is an absolute must-watch. Set aside 18 minutes and prepare to be floored. Consensus among TED’sters is that this may be the most memorable and important TED Talk ever. It was certainly the most talked-about presentation among those at TED2008. Enjoy and share with others. And let Jill’s experience inspire, motivate, and change the way you look at life."

 

 

Missing all of you at the dojo - I'm trying to be conscious of how much gas I charge to my credit card these days! 

Peace and Love,

Sunny 

 

As many of you know I have dedicated much of my time and energy to the Department of Peace Campaign.  I tell you I'm working to pass legislation in Congress to create a cabinet level Department of Peace and Nonviolence (HR 808).  Do any of you think to yourself "That sounds great!" - but you really have no idea what this is about. 

The NW Regional Conference is an opportunity to:

• Learn about the DoP campaign - a grassroots movement on all 50 states!
• Learn about the legislation in Congress
• Be inspired by programs that work!
• Hear from incredible keynote speakers like Raine Eisler and Marianne Williamson
• Join together with people throughout the Northwest to make peace more than a possibility
• See the Gift of Peace Play
• Participate in "Art for the Sky"
  
• Have Fun!  (Take a road trip with friends from Boise!)
  

Please see the full schedule at our CONFERENCE WEBSITE

Registration fees are on a sliding scale based on income - see website for details.






 



I swear I will not dishonor my soul with hatred, but offer myself humbly as a guardian of nature, as a healer of misery, as a messenger of wonder, as an architect of peace.  -- Diane Ackerman

It isn't enough to talk about peace.  One must believe in it.  And it isn't enough to believe in it.  One must work at it. -- Eleanor Roosevelt


The way we spend our money shapes the world. Are you willing to invest an amount between $15 and $100 per month to shape a more peaceful world? Or can you make a one-time donation? Join us in our "Invest in Peace" campaign by donating here .   A generous donor has offered to double every donation to the national campaign until we reach $25,000!

Moroccan Tangine

 

Stuff you will need:

4 C Water

2 C Cous Cous (I use the rainbow  cous cous  because it's pretty)

2 cubes Wylers chicken bullion (this is what I used cuz it’s what was on hand however,  there is  also a  Vegan,  faux  chicken base that  you can use or vegetable base if you prefer)

¼ C Butter  (or Soy Margerine / Olive oil for  Vegan dish)

¼ tsp Cinnamon

¼ tsp Ground Cumin

1 tsp Garlic Powder (use more if you like)

¼ tsp Chili Powder

1 tsp Paprika

S&P to taste

1 C Grapes (whichever you prefer, table grapes work well, smaller ones work better)

1 C Apples peeled, cored, diced

½ C Pine nuts, toasted (use your favorite…cashews, almonds, walnuts) I toasted them in the oven for about 2 min using the broil setting

            (other dried fruit or fresh herbs…see notes)

 

Directions:

Using a large heavy pot with a cover, bring water, bullion cubes with a dash of salt to a boil.

Add the cous cous, butter, and spices, stir until all of the butter is melted and the dish returns to a boil

Reduce heat to low and cover for about 5 min (the cous cous will absorb all of the water)

            Depending on the size of your pot, you might have to transfer the cooked cous cous to a large bowl

Add apples, grapes, toasted nuts, and mix well

 

Notes:

You can add raisins, or any dried fruit you like for instance papaya, mango, cranberries

If you like a fresher flavor you can add chopped fresh herbs at the end like cilantro, tarragon or parsley

This dish is usually served at room temperature as an accompaniment, but if you like it better hot or cold, do that

You can use olive oil in place of butter (I would recommend the darker variety for the flavor)

Cous cous is a very versatile food to make.  It works well with curry, Spanish, or Italian spices, add your favorite spice mixtures to it.

Play,     Experiment,     Eat,     enjoy

 

 

Peace

 

Patrick

 

 

Often times when we experience a paradigm shift it occurs during or shortly after an extreme emotional event where we are forced outside of our current way of thinking or perceiving our personal reality. 

 Often referred to “bursting the bubble”, such extreme times of stress push us beyond what we think is possible for us to endure and force us to find a new explanation for what is happening to us.  These times, though difficult and often unpleasant, can be beneficial if not essential for growth.

  Symptoms of frustration lead to anger and often to aggression or aggressive behavior.  This pain and inability to deal with it appropriately, sends us searching for a cause outside of ourselves to help us feel better.  Often blaming others and finding fault with all that is.  Perhaps we will even take a tiny piece of the actual reality and pin some blame on it (of course it will be wrapped neatly in our own little story in order to keep the hallucination in tact and the ego safe). 

 Perhaps we will instead mask the symptoms with ___ (insert the method of choice here) chemicals, other stronger emotions, numbing out or avoiding, through activity, the situations which lead us to feel this way.  This is where the habit mind comes in to play.  Oftentimes people, when bombarded with strong feelings or emotions, will “check out”.  Overwhelming feelings, those that make it seem like we can’t handle reality as it is can cause us become vacant, in which case we relinquish our power. 

 Awareness is clearing the veil of assumed realities and seeing it for what it truly is.  How do we respond when we find ourselves in the middle of uncertainty, feeling like we have lost control or power in our lives?  What choices do we decide to make in these times.  When we are not present and aware we act from habit or conditioning and are no longer consciously choosing what we pay attention to.

 I see power and control (in the way we usually think about these energies) as hallucinations.  It is these mirages that we overlay onto our environment to create a manageable reality.  It’s a trick of the mind in order to give us a sense of security, stability or cohesion to our lives.  Without these measures, we are left with the unavoidable truth.  This truth is that our lives are utterly out of control. By the nature in which we typically perceive things, there is no safety or security.  Everything is up in the air so to speak. 

 We can never truly know what will happen in our lives.  Often we barely know what is happening AS it is happening.  So the question arises “what will happen next”?  (or “What will my next thought be?” if you prefer).  If we examine this closely we can see that in fact there is no “next” to rely upon.

 This truth of chaos is actually the good news although the ego doesn’t like it.  The ego cringes at the thought of being out of control the ego will fight to put “it” all together or keep “it” together.  In fact the egoic consciousness will do whatever it can to keep things (seemingly) as they are.

 Essentially we see that this type of existence is not beneficial to anyone.  Ultimately I think it is more beneficial to opt for a clear view of reality.  A really accurate description of what is happening right now. 

 The only power we truly have is the power of choice.  In fact we can easily see that our lives have turned out exactly as we have chosen them to be.  It is through our choices in every moment that we create a seemingly cohesive existence.  Stringing together moment upon moment in this linear way we appear to have a history and through interpretation and projection, a future.  Choosing what we pay attention to in the moment is an act of liberation.  Choosing how we act within our environment frees us from habitual, cyclic existence.

 If we can see our emotions arise and know that they are symptoms for some part of reality that we are struggling with or that the ego does not want to look at (cannot assimilate).  Then we have a place from which to begin to look deeper into what truly is.  And from this place we can deal directly with the condition of reality and not with the symptoms of how this reality makes us feel or react.

 My question is now; What is this assumed reality that we share and what exactly keeps it going?  What agreements have we made in secret to take part in this little experiment?  What have we just gone along with for the sake of getting along?  What power, what part of ourselves do we give away to keep it going?  How does it serve our “higher purpose” to keep perpetuating this version of reality or cyclic existence? 

How do we burst our own bubble on a continuous basis?  How do we foster this paradigm shift response without having to go through the struggle?  How do we allow ourselves to fluidly change and grow with what is?  Is it possible to allow our shifts in consciousness to evolve without the pain?  Or is this simply the way it is and has always been constantly dying and being reborn into every moment?

    In asking these and other questions can allow us to see where we have been placing our attention and what choices we have been making (consciously and subconsciously).  When we begin to discover our choices we can begin to understand the basis of our decision making process.  Through this process we then can uncover our world view and the assumptions by which we have been leading our lives. 

            From a space of awareness we can enact real change through the power of choice and understanding, through wisdom and method. When we act in accordance with the way things are, we align ourselves with the great nature to bring about balance and healing in our own lives and liberate ourselves from the cycle of suffering. 

 As we begin to liberate ourselves we can, through our actions and choices, begin to liberate others by conferring this power of gentle awareness upon their consciousness.  The demonstration of what is possible can be imparted like a seed that will begin to slowly grow and flourish in time.  Through this propagation of awareness, wisdom, and consciousness eventually, the whole universe can be brought into accord with itself.

 Only now I realize that I haven’t realized anything

 May peace prevail on Earth

 Dzogchen

I thought I would share this with you: 

A woman who read my first book Dance of Power once asked me how I had kept going, why I had not stopped or given up as I proceeded on my path. She said there were many points as she read my book that she said, "If that had happened to me I would have quit." The best answer I had for her at the time was that I just knew I had to continue, quitting was just not an option.


A few days later I was sitting in the sanctuary of a Catholic church meditating. As I opened my eyes a group of children came out of the back room. All, except one, were bouncing along as children do. One little boy was very mindfully carrying a bottle of oil. He looked at it reverently as he walked silently along. I wondered what his life would be like, I wondered if he would be able to hold on to his sacred connection. I closed my eyes and continued to meditate.


The question of how I had made myself continue, how I had gone on when others would have quit surfaced. Over the years I have seen so many people quit when they were at the verge of a major break through. Just before they would have achieved a deep sense of peace and freedom they stop doing the very things that were leading them toward that freedom. At that very moment they were about to experience a miracle people frequently become convinced that they need to do something else, or they need more time for themselves, or . . . the reasons are endless. What stopped me from doing that?


I know we are all the same, we all have the ability to achieve freedom. I am no better than the next person. Why is it I went on when others didn't? I was sitting near a statue of Jesus and I began to wonder what he did, how did he achieved personal freedom? The sense that I got was his personal freedom was rooted in a deep sense of love and compassion for himself and others. I know we all need to be gentle with ourselves, we need to accept our process and honor where we are before we can move forward. Love and compassion are far better motivators than fear and judgment.


I realized that great teachers like Buddha, Lao Tse, and Jesus we totally dedicated to experiencing and sharing their divinity. In my classes I often talk about the need for discipline and dedication, two words we often hate to hear. They had the discipline to overcome any odds because they knew the prize was well worth it. They saw themselves as God had created them rather than as their minds perceived them.


How had they gotten to that place of knowing. My sense was by making certain things non-negotiable. They prayed and meditated on a regular basis. They did what ever it took to maintain a deep and clear connection to their spiritual self. That connection became like the very air we breath - a non-negotiable part of life. Einstein once said that the most important decision a person could make was whether we lived in a friendly or hostile universe. From direct experience they knew God was all loving, they knew the universe was a friendly place. When I finished my meditation I realized I had a much better answer for the question of how did I go on. I made certain things non-negotiable. I prayed and meditated daily. I had a loving mentor who told me to find a place I could talk to God and go there ever day. For me the place I connect most fully with the energy of the Creator is the beach. Every morning I would go to the beach and pray. For me my prayer was very simple - please love me. I would open my heart and let that love in, then I would go about my day.


As much as possible I would maintain an attitude of humility. Whenever I was unsure of what to do or how to do it rather that guessing I would say I don't know. As soon as I admitted I didn't know I became teachable and the answers could come to me. When I felt totally hopeless and didn't want to go on I remembered that quitting wasn't an option and I couldn't go back. Besides not being an option going back could never lead me to where I wanted to go.


I remember many nights getting out of my warm bed to finish my list of non-negotiable things. In the corner of my mirror on a small white index card was a list of four things. The first was to stand in front of the mirror, look deeply into my eyes and talk loving to myself twice a day. The second was go to the beach and pray. The third was meditate and the forth write in my journal.


After at time I remembered to pray in the morning because the beach was cold and lonely late at night. I never allowed myself to stay in bed and do them tomorrow because after all doing them was non-negotiable. Non-negotiable means no room for negotiation, none what so ever. We never negotiate our need for air. We never put off our next breath because it is inconvenient or we'll do it later. If we want to continue to live, breathing is non-negotiable. My hunch is Buddha, Lao Tse, and Jesus were all very well acquainted with discipline and dedication and the concept of making things non-negotiable. They also said they were no different from us, we could do the same things and even better, if we wanted to.


Do you want your life to be full of happiness and joy or pain and struggle? The choice is yours. And it all depends on how willing you are to exert discipline and dedication and to make things non-negotiable.


from my new book
The Toltec Way
Dr. Susan Gregg

We are constantly changing. From moment to moment we are transforming. As we are changing from moment to moment the only thing keeping you from truly changing is our ability to allow ourselves to transform or accept that it is a real possibility for us to become more than what we have believed.

We can realize our true nature and transform into that ever changing being that we truly are. Realize there is no solid form to our existence or, at the very least, that we may exist in a very different way from what we have known or perceived to be real.

Realize that all we have become is a product of what we have thought. Abandon the stories that we have created in order to keep our reality in tact. Abandon the premises and assumptions we have about how the world works and is designed and our place within it.

Instead, we could perceive everything directly as it is. Refrain from placing all of our experiences and relationships into a mold that supports our current existence. This activity supports the delusional reality that we have created. This activity allows us to continue to experience the world through the assumptions we hold so dear.

We have an opportunity right now, in this perfect moment, to free ourselves from delusional existence and dissolving our stories about how our lives are

 

Everyday is an adventure

Every moment is brand new

Experience Everything for the first time