7/27/2020 1 Comment Making Room for Your SelfNearly every religion and cultural mythology has within its texts a story of a Great Flood. From the well-known story of Noah within Judaic texts to the story of Manu from the Hindu Puranas and even ancient Sumerian and Babylonian texts, there has existed this story of humanity being overtaken by a Great Flood. Whether the flood stories all point to one particular event or not isn’t completely clear but there is geologic and archeologic evidence that points to a major physical flood. Of course some religious writings are taken literally and others as metaphor so there very well could be multiple levels to this idea of a flood both within our collective psyche and our physical history. In my own life experience I have actually had a recurring dream spanning over at least 2 decades of me standing on the roof of a building and witnessing an unimaginably immense wave coming towards me. In that dream I somewhat surprisingly wasn’t afraid but instead just stood in awe at the power that was so much greater than me. There’s really something to be said for yielding to a power greater than you as most truly religious people will likely attest. I would argue that a big part of what really happens when you yield to that greater power is that you are in a state of letting go. And when you let go, you create space. One of my favorite spiritual quotes is from the late Wayne Dyer who frequently stated, “let go and let God”. At this point, given the title of this article, to some it may appear like a contradiction. A title that talks about making room for your Self (note capitalization) but then seems to shift right into a humble recognition of smallness. However, I think that paradox is inherent to the human condition and the duality within which we exist. So I’ll do my best to share the ways in which I think we can both yield to that greater power and simultaneously take control as the director of our own experience. It occurred to me recently that we are in the midst of a Great Flood of our own and it has been swelling towards this inevitable deluge for perhaps the last century. This flood is of course different from the biblical one but I believe there are some parallels. This flood is one of energy and information. We have over the last half century been exponentially bombarded with news stories, polarized opinions, EMF’s, radio waves and toxic chemicals not to mention cosmic energies of which very few are consciously aware. Our physical bodies, minds and psyche’s are struggling to survive as the overwhelm of energy (all energy = information) floods over us. This energetic wave may even be noticed by the changes to the Earth’s resonant frequency which over the last few years especially has seen spikes as much as six to eight times its baseline frequency. Clearly many are becoming more and more overwhelmed in todays’ world. What happens when we are overwhelmed by something is that there is a fundamental challenge that arises and that is an inability to discern and differentiate information and energies. And this I believe is where letting go and creating space needs to occur. To make use of another biblical water analogy, the way I feel that we can gain clarity in the midst of it all is to metaphorically part the Sea. To me this means embarking on a paradoxical practice that is one part letting go and letting God and one part taking control. Letting go can be in whatever way feels best to you but I think it has to be a true letting go at a fundamental level. Buddhist tradition leans strongly on the idea of non-attachment and in that practice you are acknowledging the chaos around you but also acknowledging the futile nature of trying to change the outer world. So in effect you are completely letting go. Within Christianity the idea of trusting God’s plan stands as a strong pillar of the faith. If no religious perspective aligns with your current view then even without a specific ideology it seems to me crucial that you let go. The second part as I mentioned is taking control. This means you are humble but you are not a victim. Victimhood, based on my research and perspective lays at the lowest level of consciousness at which you view that “life happens to you”. And this is not to be preachy because we are all capable of sinking into that lower state of consciousness at any given moment. But when it comes to creating a life with less or no suffering and to living in accordance with a Mission or Dream greater than yourself, this type of consciousness will not get you there because you will perpetually get tossed around by the chaos. Given that we are inundated within countless stimuli 24 hours a day, it’s no wonder we feel like we can’t take control. Could you imagine not being able to filter out some of the information coming in through your senses? Every single smell, every change in breeze across your skin, every sound within perceivable decibel range, every gurgle of your stomach and every beat of your heart would be coming into your brain all at once. It’s no surprise that when you add on top of this the toxic information and energies coming our way we feel overwhelmed. Luckily our brains are extremely effective at filtering out much of the input and determining what is of importance and what is less important. There is even a system in your brain called the Reticular Activating System (RAS) which is a filter that focuses your attention on things that are important to your survival, things that you’ve been focusing on already, what you believe and think about. Put simply you have 2 parts that make up this system, the Thinker and the Prover. The Thinker functions just as it sounds by generating thoughts about your experiences. The Prover shows you what you are thinking and believing within your environment. The RAS is not just some system that needs to stay on auto-pilot but actually an incredible tool for us to be able to consciously shift and change our experience as well as make adjustments to create more of what we want and need. In order to consciously make use of your RAS and to start having more aligned values, beliefs, thoughts and actions, we need to have mental space to do this. I call these mental and energetic bubbles, Clear Spaces. These are spaces between you and what you are trying to change or observe. Within a clear space you are effectively allowing perspective and perception to occur where you otherwise might unconsciously act or think. Again, imagine having the power to create a bubble of space as a wave is rushing over you. Your fear and emotional reactions disappear allowing you to think clearly and act with conscious intention. As you begin to consciously use them you can make sense of the world, your body and relationships so that you become the co-creator of your life experience.
1 Comment
Karen Lewis
7/29/2020 08:40:21 pm
So beautifully said. And I felt a nice settling in my body and a shift in breathing. Thanks for this
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AuthorDanny Maresca considers himself a philosopher, scientist and teacher but most of all a humble explorer of this reality. This blog covers topics he finds fascinating as they relate to his own interpretation of his own experience of life. He hopes that you will find value in what you read but openly invites deeper and different perspectives to his own. Archives
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