A Response to the Bishops' Statement on Reiki by William Lee Rand

A Response to the Bishops' Statement on Reiki by William Lee Rand On March 25, 2009, U.S. Catholic bishops issued a statement advising Catholic hospitals, health care facilities, and Catholic chaplains not to support the use of Reiki sessions. The statement was issued by The Committee on Doctrine, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and titled: “Guidelines for Evaluating Reiki as Alternative Therapy.” The statement was based on research the committee had done over a period of several months involving information found on the Internet and in Reiki books. Based on these sources, they concluded that Reiki came from Buddhist texts and has a religious basis; that Reiki healing energy is directed by human thought and will; that Reiki is not validated by scientific studies and has no scientific explanation, and that Reiki is not accepted by the medical community. When considering the value of the bishops’ statement, it’s important to note the sources they accessed. Much of their research came from information published on Internet Web sites. Overall, the Internet isn’t a good source of factual information because there is no requirement that information published there be checked or approved for accuracy. Anyone can set up a Web site and publish anything they wish. What often happens is that authors of sites copy from each other, so if inaccurate information is published on one site, it can easily spread to many sites across the Internet. If one makes use of the Internet for research, one must use a developed set of selection criteria that limits one to only the most respected and reputable Web sites. Otherwise, one runs the risk of accepting rumor and misinformation as fact. This is especially true for Reiki Web sites. Reiki information has been riddled with inaccurate ideas from the beginning of its practice in the West. Many Reiki practitioners, teachers and authors fail to check the accuracy of the information they base their teaching and writing on, and this has had a detrimental effect on the quality of information published both on the Internet and in Reiki books. The best information on Reiki comes from those who have researched the history and practice of Reiki professionally by conducting research in Japan, reading original documents, and interviewing members of the founding Reiki organization in Japan. If the bishops who wrote the statement on Reiki had interviewed several of these experts, they would have realized that much of the published information on Reiki is inaccurate, and they would have had accurate, verifiable information on which to base their conclusions. Origin of Reiki One of the stories told by Mrs. Takata about the origin of Reiki indicates that the founder, Mikao Usui discovered the secret of Reiki n Buddhist texts.1 This story has been repeated over and over in Reiki classes, on Internet Web sites and in many Reiki books. Yet we know this isn’t true. For many years, Mrs. Takata was the only source of information about Reiki for those in the West, and most practitioners accepted her statements without question. Language, cultural, and organizational barriers in Japan made research difficult for those who wanted to learn more about the origins and practice of Reiki. It wasn’t until the end of the 90’s that a few researchers were able to make breakthroughs. Researchers, including Toshitaka Mochizuki, Hiroshi Doi and Frank Arjava Petter, made contact with the original Reiki organization, discovered Mikao Usui’s grave, translated the story of Reiki inscribed on his memorial stone, and uncovered an original document written by Mikao Usui about the nature of Reiki. These sources indicate that Mikao Usui wasn’t seeking to discover a method of healing, but that the ability to heal came to him spontaneously during a spiritual experience on a sacred mountain. Furthermore, in his Reiki Ryoho Hikkei (Reiki Healing Art Handbook), Mikao Usui states: “My Usui Reiki Ryoho (healing art) is original, never before explored, and incomparable in the world.” These facts indicate that Reiki couldn’t have come from Buddhist texts, nor could it be connected to any religion or belief system. In addition, Japanese Reiki Masters who have knowledge of Buddhism have indicated that they can find nothing from Buddhism in the practice of Reiki and that Reiki is religiously neutral.2 The Nature of Reiki Healing One of the first things I noticed after I took my first Reiki class and began to practice Reiki is that Reiki healing energy directs itself. I was unable to direct it with my mind or will and realized this wasn’t necessary as Reiki had its own form of guidance that was superior to my own. This experience has been verified by other professional Reiki practitioners and forms the basis of one of the important keys to using Reiki: If you want Reiki to provide the best healing experience, it’s necessary for the practitioner to set their own desire, will and ego aside, and allow the Reiki energy to guide itself. Scientific Explanation for Reiki There is a scientific explanation for Reiki that is based on scientific studies and factual information. This explanation has been presented as a testable hypothesis by James Oschman, Ph.D. Dr. Oschman is a scientist with a conventional background who became interested in the practice of energy medicine. Through research, he discovered a number of important scientific studies that point to a scientific basis for energy medicine based on the laws of physics and biology. These findings are discussed in an interview, “Science and the Human Energy Field,” published in the Winter 2002 issue of Reiki News Magazine. The electrical currents that run through every part of the human body provide the basis for Dr. Oschman’s hypothesis. These currents are present in the nervous system, organs, and cells of the body. For instance, the electrical signals that trigger the heartbeat travel throughout all the tissues of the body and can be detected anywhere on the body. Ampere’s law indicates that when an electrical current flows through a conductor, an electromagnetic field is produced that reflects the nature of the current that created it. Tests with scientific instruments indicate that electromagnetic fields exist around the body and around each of the organs of the body, including the brain, heart, kidneys, liver, stomach, etc. The heart has the strongest field, which has been measured at a distance of 15 feet from the body. The fields around each of the organs pulse at different frequencies and stay within a specific frequency range when they are healthy, but move out of this range when they are unhealthy. The hands of healers produce pulsing electromagnetic fields when they are in the process of healing, whereas the hands of non-healer do not produce these fields. When a healer places his or her hands on or near a person in need of healing, the electromagnetic field of the healer’s hands sweeps through a range of frequencies based on the needs of the part of the body being treated. Faraday’s law indicates that one electromagnetic field can induce currents into a nearby conductor and through this process, induce a similar field around it. In this way, a healer induces a healthy electromagnetic field around an unhealthy organ, thus inducing a healthy state in the organ. A detailed explanation of this hypothesis, including descriptions of the scientific studies, diagrams, and references is presented in the interview mentioned above. Acceptance by the Medical Community Although Reiki is not universally accepted within the medical community, many medical professionals, hospitals, and healthcare facilities recognize its benefits and accept it as an adjunct therapy. In Holistic Nursing, A Handbook for Practice, Chapter 2 “Scope and Standards of Practice,” the American Holistic Nursing Association (AHNA) lists Reiki as an accepted form of treatment.3 In addition, according to the American Hospital Association, in 2007 Reiki was offered as a standard part of patient care in 15% or over 800 hospitals across the US.4 Doctors have recommended Reiki to their patients for amelioration of various health-related conditions. Surgeons make use of Reiki practitioners prior to, during, and following surgery. As an example, Dr. Mehmet Oz, one of the most respected cardiovascular surgeons in the US, uses Reiki during open-heart surgeries and heart transplants. According to Dr. Oz, “Reiki has become a sought-after healing art among patients and mainstream medical professionals.”5 Ethical Implications To refuse Reiki treatment to patients that request it creates an ethical issue. According to the AHNA statement in response to the bishops’ statement, the practice of holistic nursing is not subject to regulation by the Catholic church and it would be an ethical violation for a member of the AHNA to withhold Reiki treatment from a patient who requests it; this includes those working in Catholic hospitals. Scientific Studies There are a number of reputable scientific studies that provide evidence that Reiki is therapeutic. These studies can be found by using one of the professional medical databases such as PubMed or Cochrane Collection.6 Studies meeting medical and scientific standards are usually published in peer-reviewed journals. There are over 20 such studies on the therapeutic value of Reiki. A review of some of these studies, “An Integrative Review of Reiki Touch Therapy Research” by Anne Vitale, Ph. D., can be found at http://www.nursingcenter.com/pdf.asp?AID=732068. While the Reiki studies conducted to date are preliminary in nature, they do provide support for additional studies. One well-designed Reiki study is “Autonomic Nervous-System-Changes During Reiki Treatment: A Preliminary Study.”7 Forty-five subjects were assigned randomly to three groups. One group received no treatment, another received Reiki treatment by experienced Reiki practitioners, and the third group received sham treatment by a person with no Reiki training who used the same hand positions as those receiving real Reiki. Measurements were made of heart rate, cardiac vagal tone, blood pressure, cardiac sensitivity to baroreflex, and breathing. Heart rate and diastolic blood pressure decreased significantly for those receiving Reiki, but not for those receiving sham Reiki, or no treatment. This study indicates that the body does respond to Reiki energy and that this response isn’t purely psychological. It also indicates a potential therapeutic effect for Reiki. “Reiki Improves Heart Rate Homeostasis in Laboratory Rats”8 is another valuable study. The value of using animals in this type of study is that they are not affected by belief or skepticism regarding Reiki. In addition, highly accurate telemetric implants were used to transmit the biometric data. White noise was used to increase the heart rate of three implanted laboratory rats. The rats were treated by a Reiki practitioner and by a sham Reiki practitioner prior to being exposed to white noise and after exposure. The procedure involved the practitioner directing their hands toward the caged rat at a distance of four feet. The rats that received Reiki experienced a significant reduction in heart rate, both before having their heart rates elevated by white noise and after, whereas those treated with sham Reiki did not. This is one of the most rigorous Reiki studies to date and demonstrates that Reiki reduces the heart rate in both stressed and unstressed animals and promotes homeostasis, both of which promote healthy heart function. Reiki is practiced by followers of many religious traditions. Although some practitioners integrate Reiki into their existing religious beliefs, Reiki is not a religion, doctrine, or dogma. Reiki is grounded in the principle of compassionate action, which is common to all religious traditions. While each religion has the right to create its own rules, it’s within the nature of human dignity and free will for each person to decide which path to follow and what activities are appropriate for them. 1 Paul David Mitchell, The Blue Book, revised edition for The Reiki Alliance (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho: 1985), page 13. 2 Personal communication with Japanese Reiki practitioners Hiroshi Doi and Hyakuten Inamoto. 3 page 56. 4 http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2008-09-14-alternative-therapies_N.htm and www.reikiinhospitals.org 5 http://healthcare-research.suite101.com/article.cfm/reiki_in_hospitals 6 http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/ PubMed is the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) free digital archive of biomedical and life sciences journal literature. http://www.lib.umb.edu/node/1353 The Cochrane Collection provides access to a collection of databases, which focus on the effects of health care and evidence based medical practice. 7 Nicole Makay, M.Sc., Stig Hansen, Ph.D., and Oona McFarlane, M.A., The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, Volume 10, Number 6, 2004, pp. 1077–1081. This study is also discussed in “The Science of Reiki” by Nicole Mackay, Reiki News Magazine (Summer 2005). 8 Ann Linda Baldwin, Ph.D, Christina Wagers, and Gary E. Schwartz, Ph.D., The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, Volume 14, Number 4, 2008, pp. 417–422. William Lee Rand is president of the International Center for Reiki Training and executive editor of the Reiki News Magazine. He has studied with five Reiki teachers, including two from Japan, and has made three trips to Japan to research the history and nature of Reiki. Rand has practiced Reiki since 1981 and has taught full time for 20 years.

The prize doesn't always go to the most deserving!
The prize doesn't always go to the most deserving!
 
It goes to those who want to push the agenda.

See below and you will see why


Irena Sendler

There recently was a death of a 98 year-old lady named Irena.
During WWII, Irena, got permission to work in the Warsaw Ghetto, as a Plumbing/Sewer specialist.
She had an ' ulterior motive ' ...  She KNEW what the Nazi's plans were for the Jews, (being German.)
Irena smuggled infants out in the bottom of the tool box she carried and she carried in the back of her truck a burlap sack, (for larger kids.)
She also had a dog in the back that she trained to bark when the Nazi soldiers let her in and out of the ghetto.
The soldiers of course wanted nothing to do with the dog and the barking covered the kids/infants noises.
During her time of doing this, she managed to smuggle out and save 2500 kids/infants.
She was caught, and the Nazi?s broke both her legs, arms and beat her severely...
Irena kept a record of the names of all the kids she smuggled out and kept them in a glass jar, buried under a tree in her back yard. After the war, she tried to locate any parents that may have survived it and reunited the family. Most of course had been gassed.  Those kids she helped got placed into foster family homes or adopted.
Last year Irena was up for the Nobel Peace Prize...
She was not selected.
* Al Gore won, for a slide show on Global Warming.
LET'S SEND THIS ONE AROUND THE WORLD!!!!!!!!
GOD BLESS HER
May she rest in Peace.

events at the Chalice well

James Twyman: Tuesday 19th May - http://www.chalicewell.org.uk/index.cfm/glastonbury/Events.Details/event_id/52

Art Exhibition: Friday 5th to Tuesday 9th June - http://www.chalicewell.org.uk/index.cfm/glastonbury/Events.Details/event_id/55

 

Jonathan Kay: Monday 8th June - http://www.chalicewell.org.uk/index.cfm/glastonbury/Events.Details/event_id/86

 

Dances of Universal Peace: Tuesday 9th June - http://www.chalicewell.org.uk/index.cfm/glastonbury/Events.Details/event_id/85

 

Clarinets by Arrangement: Friday 12th June - http://www.chalicewell.org.uk/index.cfm/glastonbury/Events.Details/event_id/102

 

Beckett: Saturday 13th June - http://www.chalicewell.org.uk/index.cfm/glastonbury/Events.Details/event_id/103

ON TRANSPARENCY AND THE WIZARD OF OZ
Dear Friends

I hope you are all well and good.

Here is one of my longer pieces, plus a couple of book recommendations, an announcement and an extract from United Nations news.


ON TRANSPARENCY AND THE WIZARD OF OZ

A writer recently contacted me about a book he was putting together of truthful stories about the challenges of the spiritual path. He said that he was tired of all the teachings that suggested the journey was easy or pretended that the teacher had achieved some spiritual status and was special.

I agreed to see him immediately.

This business of false or exaggerated claims is not a new problem. The great world religions assert or imply that their way is the best way. That has been, and still is, a source of conflict. It is not much different in shamanic and tribal traditions where there can be uncomfortable arguments, for example, about what elements should be placed in the four directions. Esoteric and occult study groups have been notorious for their exclusivity.

And, of course, as I often like to remind people who get spiritually earnest, there are also the great men’s hair-do debates. If women think they have a problem with their hair, it is nothing compared to some spiritual men for whom their hair is a sacred gateway to the divine. What will it be today, sir? We have several choices. Completely shaven for humility. A tonsure so the soul can escape through the crown chakra. Abundant hair and beard, each strand an antenna picking up spiritual vibrations. A top knot so that the spirits can lift you up into heaven.

But religious hats are also entertaining. The bigger the hat, the bigger the spiritual status. Bishop’s mitres. Tibetan Buddhist top hats. Great feathered bonnets. Animals’ heads. Fantastically decorated hoods and crowns

In fact, first year anthropology students learn that you can recognise religious artefacts, because they are only used by special people on special occasions.

So the logic here is that if you get the right hairdo, the right sacred hat and the right special objects, then you will have attained spiritual status. You can see this in spiritual traditions all across the world. Big chief always wears the best and loudest outfits.

This is all rather like the Wizard of Oz. He appears to be extremely powerful, lord of thunder and lightning — until Dorothy pulls back the curtain and reveals a small insecure man pulling levers and pressing buttons. It is all show and no substance.

Plus there is the added problem that these people in special clothes assert that they have all the special answers.

And then there is the even greater problem — that people want to believe them.

INTRIGUING PARADOXES

This can create a difficult position. I do not want to offend anyone or deflate their spiritual path, but I also don’t want to collude in giving respect to a spiritual teacher or teaching just because they have the clothes and the status, or appear to be confident and certain.

Sometimes people like me – your friendly meditating writer and freelance mystic – are given status because we have books published or write in an enlightened manner.

Sometimes status is given just because someone is teaching spirituality or preaching or leading ceremonies.

But inside the status is just another human being, another Wizard of Oz. That’s me. That’s you. Of course, it can be lovely and reassuring to have status, but those of us in the spiritual biz need to beware of ever taking it seriously. Power corrupts. The more emotionally insecure we are, the more likely it is that we will believe that our own status and power are true and meaningful. I won’t name names, but I imagine you yourself can think of a few people like this. (It might even be you! Or me!)

This is made more difficult because there are many people who are looking for a perfect mother-father figure who will make them feel safe in a challenging world.  So you end up with insecure followers following insecure leaders, which is a typical and very human group-soup to be found in all areas of life especially in religious and spiritual teaching.

It is also often made even more confusing because many of these insecure or pumped up teachers also bring through and carry a blessing. This is one of the most intriguing spiritual paradoxes: a flawed human radiating a blessing. This will be the subject of a future column.

REALISM

What I want is a spirituality that is realistic about the human condition.

I want leaders and teachers of spirituality to be honest and open about their own internal challenges and weakenesses, and to stop pretending they are special or perfect. I am tired of the pretence. It is also emotionally exhausting and unhealthy for the teacher.

The traditional justification for all this pretence was that the masses needed the stability and reassurance of an established and authoritative spirituality. This was the way to control the rabble and maintain a stability. This was, and often still is, the justification for all that pomp and false dignity. Often of course it is a cunning argument used to justify the abuse of power.

We know better.

It is now over 150 years since Sigmund Freud was born and founded contemporary psychology. The most profound insight of his psychology, which has coloured the way that all of us today understand the human condition, is that beneath our conscious mind and behaviour are unconscious thoughts, feelings and instincts that are really driving us.
What a powerful revelation! We are not really what we appear to be, what we present to the world or even who we think we are. We are highly strung creatures seeking to survive, driven by primal needs and defence patterns, putting on a front. (Of course, we are not only that – but we forget those unconscious realities at our peril.)

Freud is often presented as hostile to spirituality, but his major revelation gives tremendous support to our spiritual development, mapping how we create our own unreality and how we are conned by our own thoughts and emotions.

This richness of the human condition — the weakness and the courage, the insecure neediness and the cosmic consciousness — is the source of great art. I often opine that it is artists, not spiritual teachers, who really understand the human condition. Look to Shakespeare or Beethoven for a fuller understanding of all that we encompass – the tragic-comic mask.

So let me finish this column by recommending a wonderful compassionate novel, which some of you may have read, about the early days of psychiatry and neuro-science, Sebastian Faulkes’ 'Human Traces'.

There are no easy answers, but compassionate and insightful enquiry into the human condition is a good start.


BOOK RECOMMENDATION

As well as Sebastian Faulkes’ novel 'Human Traces', I would like also to recommend Ursula King’s new book 'The Search for Spirituality — Our Global Quest for Meaning and Fulfilment'. She is professor of theology at Bristol University. This is an inspiring, relevant and very thorough overview of different approaches to spirituality. It is the perfect book to give to someone who is still a bit cautious about contemporary spirituality and would enjoy a safe and scholarly read.


YOUR HEROIC JOURNEY — PSYCHOLOGY OF SPIRITUAL EMERGENCE

If you want to understand the psychological dynamics of spiritual awakening, growth, challenge and integration, then my next weekend workshop on this subject is coming up in Glastonbury over the weekend of 6/7 June. More information


UN DRIVE TO PLANT 7 BILLION NEW TREES

Ahead of World Environment Day, celebrated globally on 5 June, the United Nations today announced an ambitious tree-planting target in a bid to push governments into reaching agreement on a climate change pact in Copenhagen this December.

The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) has appealed to the world to help its effort to plant seven billion trees by the end of the year, coinciding with the UN Climate Change Conference which aims to draw up a successor pact to the Kyoto Protocol and reduce global greenhouse gas emissions.

To date, some 3.1 billion trees have been planted in 166 countries, and “whether you choose to plant one tree or thousands,” UNEP would like you to register your tree planting pledge on its Billion Tree Campaign website
 
The World Environment Day global tree-planting drive is the first in a series of mass participation events planned as part of the UN-led “Seal the Deal!” campaign in the lead-up the UN climate change meeting in Copenhagen.


All my love.

William

14 May 2009

www.williambloom.com

What Is Arising Now

What Is Arising Now

What is arising now is not a new belief system, a new religion, spiritual ideology, or mythology. We are coming to the end not only of mythologies but also of ideologies and belief systems. The change goes deeper than the content of your mind, deeper than your thoughts. In fact, at the heart of the new consciousness lies the transcendence of thought, a newfound ability of rising above thought, of realizing a dimension within yourself that is infinitely more vast than thought.

A New Earth Eckhart Tolle Pages 21-22

From William Bloom

Dear Friends  — Greetings and Love
 
Most this newsletter consists of a wise piece of writing on the recession from my friend, David Spangler. Some of you may want to do one of his online courses, which I highly recommend.


AN APOLOGY - AND FROM THE HEART

An apology from me because recently the booking section of my website was down for a nightmare 10 days as techies and financial security people did an upgrade. It all went wrong. If you experienced any frustration trying to book, my apologies.  Myself, I had a choice between wallpapering the wall with my brain or going serenely into my heart. Having experienced a few moments of frustration, I chose the latter.

And speaking of the heart, I received some emails about the Master in the Heart Exercise I mentioned in my last newsletter — people asking where it came from. I first came across it in the study papers of the Arcane School of the Lucis Trust and rewrote it as The Perfect Being in the Heart Exercise (non-gender specific title, very PC) in my book, Meditation in a Changing World twenty years ago. The exercise itself, as many of you will know I am sure, can be found in many different forms in many spiritual traditions. It is a core spiritual exercise, softly focusing down into the heart and creating/radiating/embodying perfect love, compassion and wisdom.


THE UNIVERSE IS MADE OF ENERGY AND SO ARE YOU

My Glastonbury workshop The Sword and the Chalice - The Essence of Energy Medicine is coming up this weekend. More... 


And I'll be doing a four-hour Endorphin Effect workshop at the London Mind Body Spirit Show on Wednesday 20 May at 4.00pm. More...


DAVID SPANGLER'S LETTER
 
THRESHOLDS
 
I want to tell you about three phone calls I've had recently. The first was from a man I know slightly and whom I had not heard from for several years. It was a distressing call as he was facing total ruin in his life as a result of the current economic meltdown.  He had just lost his job, was deeply in debt, and was facing losing his home.  He was staring into a very scary, unknown future rising like a wall before him towards which he was hurtling, and he was filled with panic.  He needed to talk to someone and reached out to me. 

The second call was from a man I knew a little better but also whom I had not seen in several years.  The last we had talked he had become ill but then I heard no more other than that he had moved with his family from the area.  Now he was back, and he told me a harrowing story of his descent through a most dark time of extreme pain, illness, financial loss, and family crisis.  His whole life had been turned upside down and inside out and in the process he had discovered resources of inner strength and calm. He had found an inner light and creativity he had not known he had possessed.  He wasn't quite recovered but he could see his way back. Having lost almost everything, he was now discovering and building a whole new life that was more attuned and wonderful than what he had had before.

The third call was from a close friend who had also been going through a very difficult time.  I had not heard from him for close to a year and didn't know the extent of his troubles. But he called not with a tale of woe but with a report that having been on the verge of bankruptcy, his business had suddenly taken off. In the midst of the growing recession, he was unexpectedly and suddenly prospering because his particular skills and services were valuable to businesses that were facing economic problems.  And everything else in his life was alchemically coming together as well in a new alloy of joy and wholeness.

These three calls were from people facing, moving through, or emerging from a threshold of transformation.  In this they seemed to me to represent the nature of the times in which we live.  These are threshold times for all of us as humanity faces profound forces of change at work in the world today.

 Interestingly, the threshold in all three calls was essentially the same. It was a threshold of dissolution and loss:  loss of power, loss of livelihood, loss of home, loss of habitual ways of doing things, and in a deep way, loss of a familiar identity. The instinct when confronted with such losses is to hold on, to wrap around and cling to all that's familiar as one is hurtled forward.  The river of one's life becomes frighteningly turbulent as it crashes against unexpected boulders and twists around unforeseen bends, and we grip all the more tenaciously and rigidly to the form of the boat we've been riding.  But like a birth canal, often the channel of transformation towards which we are racing is navigated most skillfully if we can relax and let go and let the momentum carry us through.  Floundering and striking out or fighting back with denial and anger only increases the likelihood of bashing against the boulders.

Not all thresholds are transformative in this way or have to be navigated through loss and pain, but I think given the tenor of the times, we will be seeing more and more of these kinds of experiences.  Humanity has accumulated a lot of baggage that it will have to give up to win through to a more humane and blessing-full future, not least of which is its sense of identity as something special for whom the planet is a plaything and piggy bank to do with as it wishes.  The current economic downturn is only a shadow of what may happen as we run up against climate change and finite limits to natural resources.  This morning the news was full of speculation on the possible crippling impact on the already battered world economy if a full pandemic of the swine flu virus erupts, never mind the potential loss of millions of lives.

I am by instinct an optimist, and my inner experiences are unfailing in giving me faith in humanity's innate goodness and spiritual capacities.  At the same time, incarnation is the soul's version of an extreme sporting event, one filled with thrills and chills as we measure ourselves against the challenges of evolution and the rush of unfolding new potentials.  My oldest son likes to hurl himself off the sides of mountains wearing only a thin set of paragliding wings, and I have friends that like to put themselves in small boats hurtling down river rapids.  They deliberately bring themselves to thresholds of challenge because of the expanded sense of self that emerges on the other side.  Souls do the same thing with life itself, I'm convinced!

So in addition to my optimism about the future, I think we are at one of those places in planetary and human life where the ride is about to get very fast and very interesting indeed.
           
If this is so, what can we do?
           
The first step is not to fear the thresholds.  This is easier said than done of course, especially when the threshold threatens to take everything from us that we think of as ourselves, maybe even our physical life, and also when it comes upon us unexpectedly, as such thresholds can do.  But fear is additional baggage we don't need to carry while navigating the rapids of change.  The anchor of denial and resistance only makes us less maneuverable, not more.
           
In talking to the gentleman of the first call, there was little I could do for him in a practical way; he lives thousands of miles away.  My first task was to listen as he poured out his fear, anger and despair.  And just telling him not to be afraid, I knew, wouldn't be very helpful as from his perspective he had every reason to be afraid.  His fear was a center around which he was coalescing himself; that is, in a paradoxical way, it gave him a sense of stability, albeit a painful one. 
           
A trained counselor might have been able to help him a good deal more than I could, for my perceptions are not psychological but energetic. So I couldn't give him mental or emotional techniques to help him deal with his fear. But I could ask him to take some time to honor himself and his fear and to deliberately grieve over what he was losing. Part of his familiar life was dying, and to deny it was to lose touch with the transformative energies at work in his life.  Taking time to deliberately stop and listen to his fears would, I knew, give the turbulence of his energy field a chance to steady itself and be held by his own attentiveness.  Just flailing about mentally and emotionally with a fearful energy doesn't go anywhere, but focusing on the fear and making it speak coherently and calmly to oneself helps to shift one's inner experience from feeling helpless to feeling a sense of power, at least the power to listen, which is a start.
           
As he began to listen and to calm, he began to list positive things he could do, and each time he came up with a fearful objection to doing those things, I asked him to go back and honor the energy of the suggestion he had made.  It might not work out but taking a positive step in a helpful direction was better energetically than doing nothing.
           
What I felt was my most important suggestion was that while looking for new employment he also seek out some form of volunteer work he could do to help others in a similar position as himself.  If we can find an inner generosity to help others, it keeps our own creative energy from collapsing and constricting around the hard knot of our personal fears. Such constriction only makes our own process of manifestation much more difficult energetically.
           
Had his phone call been the last one, I could have told him the stories of the others.  Part of his challenge was that he was at the start of the process, just facing the threshold and unsure of himself and his future.  But the other two men had gone through experiences at least as bad and in one case much worse than what he was facing, and they had come out the other side feeling more powerful than before. They were different; they had been reborn. And they showed that a threshold is not the end. It's a passage, not a destination.
           
In our times, that may be the most important knowledge of all.


David has online classes that you can check out on the Lorian website: www.lorian.org


All my love

William

5 May 2009

www.williambloom.com

Moon Times Newsletter
Topic: archive newsletters

Moon Times Newsletter

Subject: News from Moon Times; new products, the connection with the moon & events. Please forward this newsletter to any friends, family or colleagues who may be interested!

www.moontimes.co.uk

Hello, its lovely having warmer weather and some sunshine! I hope you are getting in to your gardens and soaking up some vitamin D! Below are some new Moon Times Products, and article on the Connection to the Moon and events for your dairies! Well I have been very busy rewriting my Menarche booklet and getting it published- its got a beautiful front cover by the artist Dorrie Joy (whose postcards are also on my website) See Postcards The Menarche Book will be added to the Books section very soon!! Books Menarche- a Journey into Womanhood- book for young women; including menarche (first period) stories, the connection to the moon, understanding your cycle, menstrual tips, books and poems. Starting your period is a natural process however; initially it can be a little scary. You may know what your period is, but still be a little frightened when it starts. This book is a chance to explore your feelings, thoughts, creativity that comes from being a bleeding woman, it will help you understand how your cycle and body are influenced by your hormones and the ebb and flow of the moons cycles. Tuning in and listening to your body is the key to self empowerment and well- being!   I have also created Moon Cycle Mala beads to chart your cycle! For women who want to chart their cycle naturally Moon Cycle Malas are a string of mala beads coloured to help you identify the days in your menstrual cycle where you are likely to become pregnant if you have unprotected sex. These Moon Cycle Malas come with full instructions on how to use. RED mala beads mark the days you are not likely to become pregnant CLEAR mala beads mark the days you are most likely to become pregnant. Moon Cycle Malas can o Assist you in understanding and connecting with your body o Assist you in learning to track your menstrual cycle o Assist your partner in feeling more involved in family planning   What else is new? See Shop for featured products and new stock!   We have some great Kits & Gift sets healthy woman kit, moon maiden kits (2!) for girls, Mooncup and Moon sponge kits, a Relaxation kits, Lunar Eclipse for women nearing menopause….also incontinence pads now have their own page and patterned pads can be chosen by the pattern now! We have also begun to stock Moon Sponges fro prolapse Prolapse Sponges A more natural alternative to the hard pessaries some women use. Diva Cups have been reduced by 10% as well as a few other items- some pads and pad bags are on sale!     Well I think that’s it…I just want to finish with a plug for Sacred Arts Camp- I met my husband at this camp and fell in love with both him and the camp life! The highlight for me has always been the tribal menarche ceremony held for the young women….its amazing! See their website and perhaps I’ll see some of you there! Sacred Arts Camp  much love and blessings, Rachael at Moon Times xxxx

The Connection to the Moon

We know the tides of the oceans are caused by the magnetic pull of the moon. Scientific evidence shows that our biological cycles are connected to the moon and the tides, they work together with the electromagnetic fields of our body and affect our physiological responses.   The average woman’s menstrual cycle is 29.5 days- the same length of the moons cycle. It takes 29.5 days for the moon to wax from new to full and wane from full to new again.   There are many parallels between the moons cycle and our menstrual cycle; the introspective dark energy of the new moon is similar to the time of menstruation and the outward fullness of the full moon is similar to ovulation.   Research has shown that women living without artificial lights (home lighting, street lights etc have created an unnatural disconnection to our natural relationship with the light of the sun and moon) and who don’t eat foods that contain artificial hormones naturally bleed at the dark/new moon and ovulate with the full moon.   Many Tribal peoples refer to the moon as ‘Grandmother’ and admire her as an ancient wise one. Keeping track of the moon in your journal may invite some of the wisdom of Grandmother Moon in to your life!   A note about the Thirteenth Moon There are Thirteen Moon Cycles in one solar year, The Mayans used a thirteen month calendar- when the patriarchal Gregorian Solar Calendar was created the Mayans said women had been ‘robbed of their moon and their power.’   “Transformation begins; the wheel of life turns around the centre of spirit. It dances and flows with the rhythm of my cycle - within me. Turning, ever turning. The Cycle of Life”   So watch for that month that there are 2 full moons and perhaps you have 2 bleeds. “Our failure to attend to the menstrual cycle as a vital and vitalising psycho-spiritual process deprives women of a fundamental layer to their process of maturation and empowerment including preparation for the profound psycho-spiritual challenges of pregnancy, birth and mothering. Unless we address this issue our healing, psychological and spiritual disciplines will constantly fall short in speaking to and nourishing women today. Our spiritual, psychological and physical wellbeing will continue to be undermined”. Alexandra Pope

EVENTS Moon Times will be at...pencil in to your diaries....   CANCELLED- due to credit Crunch L The Goddess Show: Bath Show Ground, 7th June     The Garden Festival, Hellens Manor, Herefordshire 13 & 14 June   A wonderful festival celebrating all that’s green: from plants, to hand carved wooden objects, woven baskets, clothes, brick a brac and much more…well worth a visit! Garden Festival   Quest Natural Health Show, Newton Abbott Race Course, 2-5 July A wonderful weekend of workshops and stalls and music Moon Times will be there with a stall and Moon Lodge and Joanna who created the Daughters In Flower Cards will be offering readings! Quest

It is not our intention to send out spam or unwanted mail, if you DO NOT wish to receive mailings in future, please reply to this e-mail and type REMOVE in the subject line. Your address will be removed from the list immediately. ALL outgoing e-mail is virus checked

 

30 days to a greener you!

http://www.intent.com/green

Earth Day reminds us all of the little things we can do to help save our perilous planet. Now more than ever, many of us are making a conscious effort to incorporate earth-friendly practices into our everyday lives.  This Earth Day, April 22, Intent will run a month-long series, 30 Days to a Greener You.  Gauge your eco-savvy-ness with quizzes; weigh in on polls (do you know what ‘vampire energy’ is?); listen to interviews with green experts; and learn to how to compost and how to make organic beauty products and earthy-friendly household cleaning products.

Rex Weyler, original director of Greenpeace and contributor to 30 Days to a Greener You encourages us to adopt “personal and social strategizes to ‘relocalize’ society.” We don’t need government mandates, tax incentives or super-heroes to make a difference, but rather “ordinary heroes and common decency.”

During these next 30 days, Intent will be speaking to the ordinary hero in all of us. You’ll learn how to make changes – from the small to the significant – to lead a greener life. You’ll minimize your carbon footprint by making easy modifications to your exercise and beauty regimes, your parenting and pet-owning styles, your grocery list and your dinner menus.

You'll find that investing in the planet means investing in you -- in your health, relationships, finances and creativity! 

Here’s what the series will cover: 

Part 1: Introduction to Living Green 

• 30 Days to A Greener You By Mallika Chopra
• How Eco-Savvy Are You? By Jeff McIntire-Strasburg

Part 2: Green Approaches to Food

• 6 Steps to a Greener Diet By Curtis Cook
• Improve the Quality of Your Water (Without Costing the Planet) By Norma Lehmeier Hartie
• The Benefits of Vegan Cuisine & A Southwest Tempeh Chili Recipe By Mark Reinfeld
• How to Go Vegan & A Shepherd’s Pie Recipe By Mark Reinfeld
• Vegan Baking & A Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe By Mark Reinfeld

Part 3: Green Approaches to Self Care

• 10 Frugally Green Workout Tips By Linda LaRue
• When It Comes to Beauty -- It Ain't Easy Being Green By Angie Provost

Part 4: Green Relationships & Personal Life

• 9 Green Date Ideas By Alex Blackwell
• Eco-Parenting in 8 Simple Steps By Curtis Cook
• Giving a Gift? Increase Its Impact by Choosing Green By Tommy Rosen
• Curb Your Pet’s Carbon Pawprint! By Doreen Pollack
• Protect & Care for Your Pet the Green Way By Doreen Pollack

Part 5: Green Travel, Home & Work

• How to Travel Green -- Across the Neighborhood, or Across the World By Jeff McIntire-Strasburg
• Want to Go Solar? Cut Your Energy Use First By Deep Patel
• 5 Simple Alternatives to Toxic Cleaning Products By Annie Bond
• Make Your Office a Little Greener By Curtis Cook
• When You Flush, Don't Flush Our Planet By Simran Sethi

Conclusion:

• A Green Yogi Puts It in Perspective By David Romanelli
• How You Can Save the Planet By Rex Weyler

Podcasts:

• Deepak Chopra's Earth Day Message (Exclusive) By Deepak Chopra
• Fighting the Good Fight for Mother Earth with Simran Sethi By Mallika Chopra

 

WE ARE ALL THE MESSIAH NOW
WE ARE ALL THE MESSIAH NOW  William Bloom

There is an idea that I love. It suggests that people emerge out of planet Earth in the same way that leaves emerge from trees.

I like to view the great spiritual teachers in this way. They were not transported in from some other star system or dimension, but also emerged from Earth. Christ and Buddha, Mary and Kuan Yin, emerged as examples of humanity's fulfilled potential for compassion and consciousness.

One of the most common and recurring religious themes is that humanity will be saved and brought to its next stage of evolution through the appearance of a yet another great prophet or world teacher. In Christianity, Christ will come again. In Buddhism, the Maitreya Buddha will incarnate. In Judaism, the Messiah. In Islam, the Imam Mahdi. And across the new age movement, there are all kinds of prophesies about new gurus, avatars and interventions.

I am open to all these ideas — I always welcome help! — but to be honest I am also suspicious of them. These prophecies suggest that humanity is dependent on outside intervention and that we cannot make it by ourselves. Maybe so, but I have another experience. I know the world is full of selfishness and suffering, but over and over again I see people growing and transforming. Especially in crises and challenges I see people developing. I therefore have faith in our species to achieve spiritual maturity and fulfilment based in our own efforts.

So I prefer another idea and prophesy, which is that humanity as a whole is the new saviour and that collectively we are the new Messiah. Or to put it in another language, the Christ consciousness, the Buddha consciousness, the Gaia consciousness, will not be manifest through just one single person, but will manifest through many of us. It will be a group event.

*****

This collective event is sometimes described with words like 'higher vibrations' and 'ascension'.  It is also sometimes described as an event that will be restricted to a small elite and that the rest of humanity will perish. I remember once hearing a spiritual teacher suggest, drawing on the symbolism of the New Testament, that we should all welcome a nuclear third world war because it would result in 144,000 special irradiated people who would pioneer a new humanity on a new earth in a new dimension. Scary.

But that is only one example of the many melodramatic prophesies about humanity's future. As my readers will know, I am happy to contradict any prophesies which suggest some kind of global disaster. I may be wrong, but I am suspicious of any kind of spirituality that is communicated with threats. More than that, the history of religion is very sobering. It shows that decade-by-decade, almost year-by-year, there has always been some group warning that the end of the world is nigh. "The end is nigh! Prepare to meet thy doom!" This has been the source of many wonderful cartoons.

*****

There is another way of understanding a collective change in humanity, which many other teachers, such as Alice Bailey and the Orbs, describe. Some of you may be familiar with the classic meditation exercise called the Master in the Heart. In some spiritual schools, this is the very first technique that is taught. In it we slowly and calmly build up a picture and sense of a perfect being.  We then place and develop this being in our hearts, allowing it to radiate to influence us and the world around us.

Done every day over a period of time, this is a powerful exercise. Gradually the practitioner absorbs the vibration of the exercise and integrates its influence. It becomes increasingly real. The individual indeed develops an open and radiating heart.

An open and radiating heart! Now that, for me, is a real change in vibration and in consciousness. Watch anyone, including you, opening their heart. The atmosphere immediately becomes more caring and compassionate. Our consciousness expands and there is instinctive generosity.
Opening our hearts is perhaps the single most important thing that any of us can do.

It is not noisy behaviour. It does not glitter and it does not seek attention. The 'higher' vibrations of the heart are not, in my opinion, intense or electric. They are softer, deeper, more considerate and caring. And powerful.

*****

I began this piece by saying that I liked the idea that the Earth births us in the same way that a tree births leaves.  To follow this metaphor, when a heart opens it is like a bud opening on a tree. In fact, esoteric anatomy describes the heart chakra as being like a flower with several petals that open and then begin to spin, radiating heart energy. Each petal of the heart chakra represents a different aspect of love: compassion, care, attention to detail, service, self-sacrifice, courage and so on.
When all the petals in our heart chakra are spinning, when our hearts are fully open, then we are not only channels for compassion and love, we ourselves are actually generators of compassion, power stations of goodwill.

This is like a tree blossoming in Spring. One new leaf, one new bud, is a miracle of nature. But it is the destiny, the essential nature of the tree, to be full with blossom, a whole canopy of tiny flowers creating a single image of beauty. Deep roots, a powerful trunk and a celebration of radiance.

This too is surely the destiny for the whole of humanity. Not just the occasional visiting messiah. Not just the occasional emergence of a saviour — but the collective opening of our hearts. Like a tree in full Spring blossom.

Have a wonderful Spring.


All my love to you and yours.

William

www.williambloom.com