Letting Go

“You cannot understand life and its mysteries as long as you try to grasp it. Indeed, you cannot grasp it just as you cannot walk off with a river in a bucket. If you try to capture running water in a bucket, it is clear that you do not understand it and that you will always be disappointed, for in the bucket the water does not run. To "have" running water you must let go of it and let it run.”   Alan Watts from The Wisdom of Insecurity.

Over the last several months, I have been working on understanding the Buddhist concept of “attachment”, and at the same time, I have been working on understanding all the things that I am attached to. I am finding that attachment comes in many forms.  It does seem to be about being attached to things being a certain way.  If I can get to a point where I accept all things and allow them to be as they are without my ideas of how they should be, then I will be free of attachment.  I hope to get there by letting go of one attachment at a time.

As human beings we all want to be happy and free from misery.  We have learned that the key to happiness is inner peace.  The greatest obstacles to inner peace are disturbing emotions such as anger and attachment, fear and suspicion, while love and compassion, a sense of universal responsibility are the sources of peace and happiness. 
~Dalai Lama

Many Blessings,

Judy 

Black Squirrel on Bounty

A while ago, I was driving my husband to his conference, and we saw a big, black squirrel. It was running across the road, and before it reached the other side, it stopped and looked at us intently, then hurried away, and up a tree.

Surprised by it’s actions, I thought about Squirrel, and all the various things that Squirrel is about.  I thought about the Proverb, “Even a blind squirrel finds an acorn sometimes”.  And then, I wondered why a Squirrel would be blind.  The Squirrel that crossed the road was not blind.  It seemed to see exceptionally well.  A picture of a peanut, and then a chunk of bread crossed my vision.  Squirrel was connecting to me across the ethers.  I made my husband peanut butter on seed muffins for a snack later in the morning.

Now that we were on the same frequency, Squirrel sent me a series of rapid images that may be translated as a message.  She was saying that where we live is soon going to be filled with bounty.  This is a change from the historical, dry, arid conditions that Calgary has had.  With the rain, all things are growing lush, even gardens that looked to be drowned out at one point.  Squirrel says to get ready to deal with our bounty.  Find ways to use it and share it.  Squirrels have a history of hiding what they find, concerned only for their own well being.  She tells us that the only way humanity will continue is if we learn to share because most humans do not know how to forage like the squirrels forage. 

Blessings,

Judy

You Are Of The Earth

Buddhists believe that every human contains four elements, Earth, Water, Air, and Fire.  These four elements make up our physical body, and allow us to feel the energies associated with each of them.  We will talk about those energies in a minute.  What is clear, is that these four elements can help us to stay grounded.  However, it seems that many people choose to be ungrounded, that is, they feel “spaced out”.  And rather than try to change this feeling, the individual seems to encourage the feeling.

          This great picture comes from www.meta-synthesis.com

When we feel “heavy” when we are walking or running,  or “sleepy” or “full” after a meal, then we are feeling the effects of our Earth energy.  The Earth energy is working to pull our bodies – physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual – back into the confines of our physical center.  Sometimes our bodies are not pulled back in all the way, so we feel “off center”. It is our Earth energy that allows us to taste and to touch.  When we feel solid, or stiff, or smooth, or hardness, then we are using our Earth element.

When we feel constrained and our movement seems stiff, or we seem without fluidity, then we know our Water element is blocked.  When we feel sticky and emotional and want to cry for no reason, or if we feel depressed, we are feeling Water energy.  Congestion and phlegmy coughs tell us that our Water energy is out of balance.  If we see people in need, our Water energy cries out to support them, to be in service.  It is our Water energy that allows us to see and to make assumptions or judgements around situations.

We know that when we hear things and feel the mental energy of our brain working that the Air Element is in play. Or, when we have visions, or words come to us unbidden, we may find that our Air Element is changing, and with the change, bringing us new information.  Those with a strong air element like to be entertained and to solve puzzles and quizzes.  When we are caught up in our Air element, we float on “cloud nine”.  Playing, pushing, pulling, and all movement are showing us how we use the Air element.

The Fire Element shows up as heat in our body, as passion and anger.  When somebody wrongs us, or we feel something is unfair, then we tend to “burn up” with rage or indignation.  We use the heat we carry to show love and affection, to show protection.  Healers talk about the amount of heat that is generated when they are working with a client. Attraction heats up with the Fire element.

We have all these great sensations that tell us so much about our bodies and that show us that we are in the present moment.  Then, we lose this information by getting into our mind, into our ego, and analysing the information so that the info of the present moment becomes useless. 

If you have some time today, meditate on the Nature of your body, and how the Earth changes may affect how your body feels in the Earth element.  Meditate on the Oneness, on finding peace in the present moment, and on the Ancestors, who have already experienced the circle of life.  Find a prayer that helps you relax, and that slows down your mind.  Allow yourself to be here, now, in the present.

Blessings,

Judy