Subtle Energies – Meditation 101

We all have different levels of awareness and attunement to the world around us. Even throughout an individual’s life our signature set point will fluctuate as various moods, emotions, energies and awarenesses ebb and flow. What we eat, our hormones, our age, health condition and other physical circumstances will all have various degrees of effect on our abilities to process the environment and our perceptions of it.

Because we’re human we are forever questioning our progress through our lives. We note our position in an array of hierarchies we deem to be important — most of which have nothing significant to add to our physical well being. These tendencies get in the way of our natural inborn abilities to just be. We’re often projecting, planning and envisioning times that are not the present.

While we are born with an amazingly fine tuned intuition it seems as we acquire language, culture and other of the human life filters we start becoming less aware of how we are instantly changed and affected by subtle energies around us. Apparently those aspects of Homo sapien life that are logical are easier to share overtake those that are more esoteric as we build our consciousness in relation to the world around us.

Not so with animals. After an earthquake what do people report their pets were doing hours before the shaking started? Acting strangely. They are sensing the shake well before any of our scientific instruments can measure it. What are they responding to? Subtle energies is what I’m suggesting. Unhindered animals start seeking higher ground well before any tsunami waves sweep over the land.

What are they sensing that we humans miss?  You’ve heard of dogs who know to alert their epileptic human partners of an oncoming seizure well before the human or her instruments might know one’s brewing? Equine clinician Pat Parelli says “Horses know what happens before what happens happens.”. He uses it in the context of training them to be lighter on the cues – I’m sharing it here because I think all animals know what happens before what happens happens with a lot more consistency and subtly then we usually give them credit for way beyond any formal training session. Until we start paying better attention that is.

The calm of a cat extends out from the physical kitty

It’s as though we’re all driving on Life’s superhighways but while animals stay focused on their travels we people are forever texting. Our acquired preoccupations seem to get in the way of our abilities to really be present in our world. We do a lot of living in our heads is what I’m saying.

Activity

With a Horse

Spend an entire day in the company of a horse or horses. My riding readers will be happy to note that any sort of proximity is perfect – even (maybe even especially) trail riding! Pay attention to your overall mood as the day spent in this way flows on.

• Does you attention shift to other things? What?
• Do you notice different things than you usually do? What?

With a Dog

Spend an entire day in the company of a dog or dogs who are at liberty to exert themselves without leashes or other specific guidelines. Arrange to take them to a dog park or other such place where they can be free as the centerpiece to this day. While you can put yourself in charge of the travel arrangements and logistics to and fro — do not be the boss during the play. Just be one of the dogs. Take their lead. Be like them.

Note: unleashed dogs sort out their rank order quickly and with minimal fuss when left alone to do so — generally it is the trepidation of their human companions who elevate chance meetings to unpleasant end — stay out of it! Dogs know how to socialize, let them.

Note to the Note: Be aware of people who might be present who do not get the concept of dogs being able to take care of their meetings for it is they who will unwittingly spark mean spirited outbreaks at the ol’ dog park.

• Does you attention shift to other things? What?
• Do you notice different things than you usually do? What?

With a Spider

Spiders; weavers, trapeze artists, horrific life-juice suckers are also practitioners of patience and creativity par excellence. They are consummate waiters with a knack for determining which triangulations in space will afford them optimal prospects. Go forth and find webs. Pay particular attention to their locations. Note their symmetry and regularity of the individual strands that make the whole. Then remember these are wee bugs doing this with their butts!

• Locate the web’s architect.
• Pay your respects.
• Find some more.
• Repeat.

Creative Consideration

Draw a picture of your favorite animal’s energy aura. Use your imagination. Play with color, shape and space around and within this creature. Add some glitter, draw yourself in there and have that energy envelop you in it’s effects.

Discussion

• What is it about animal energy that you think might be different from that of humans?
• Can we learn to re-discover our more intuitive responses to such energies? Why or why not?
• Are these energies measurable? How? Or why not?
• Are there similarities with BEing with animals to meditation? What are they?

That last discussion point is completely loaded. Meditation can be learned easily by practicing being present with animals. You don’t have to go all bendy legged and zen. You can just go out and spend quiet time with quiet animals. I think of horses as natural mediators. I have seen the ones I live with totally zoned out on the ickiest of all the weather days and instead of complaining or seeking shelter they seem to enter a state of existence where everything’s all good even though to me it looks simply horrid. Mind you, it’s not like they aren’t happy to come into the barn and eat some oats at that point – but that seems to be its expression of being present. What the heck – meditation isn’t about suffering, it’s about being! And sometimes one is invited to exist with one’s favorite snacks!

Creative Consideration #2

Go fix yourself a delightful snack and be present while you consume it.

Finding Unicorns Part 1

Unicorns have been a part of human folklore for many centuries. Their mystique is captivating. From what I know of equine nature, the practicality of a thousand pound creature with a propensity to skedaddle in perhaps unpredictable directions with a saber coming out of his head is questionable from a handler’s point of view.

“Can I pet your unic—AAAARGHGH!” as the startled equine whips his noggin around to get a gander at his now punctured benefactor. A fresh victim to the unicorn’s flighty nature and gold and ivory head piece.

So I give you “Exhibit A”:

We may not actually want to find unicorns.

I think that we’re after, our ‘Holy Grail” of unicorn seeking is the notion that these marvelous animals are enduring symbols of the fantastic in nature and what we actually hope to find is more evidence of that. In this, with the right attitude, we can never fail. Thus we can be and are ever surrounded by unicorns of every size and color. For the so-enlightened they are ubiquitous throughout every landscape. Every ecosystem is lousy with unicorns! Forests, seashores, mountain tops, gardens, yards, parks, trails, rivers, empty lots, moonscapes, underneath rocks — all loaded with unicorns.

For the really clever among us, the well practiced, the open minded, the seekers of joy — unicorns show up in even more places:

• board rooms
• communication exchanges (letters, email, Facebook posts)
• parties
• in books, magazine articles and blogs,
• the shopping mall
• certainly every farmer’s market out there
• artists’ studios
• stages
• in every melody, drum beat and rhythm
• in math equations
• strange conjectures
• good design
• bad design
• menus
• fashion…..

You get the idea. Wherever there is a garden of ideas in various states of growth or dormancy there are potential unicorns.

Perhaps where we're looking is a bit 'off'...

Beginners Guide

To get up and out of our ‘normal’ selves with our ‘regular’ point of view we’re going to have to get up and out of our conventional routines. This will help set the frame of mind necessary to successfully find these unusual beings.

Prep Activity A

De-Routinize the Day

• Eat dinner for breakfast Starting with dessert
• If you shower in the morning — don’t. If you shower at night — do it now.

Outside Influence

• Do you usually log on, link in, check your email/messages/voice mail, etc? Not today.
• Watch or listen to the news? Nope, not today kiddo.

Positive Armor

• Mix up your clothes. Wear that thing you usually save for special occasions; a pair of shoes out of daily rotation, a necklace that usually sits there waiting for its chance to shine. What I’m talking about here are items that you got because you out and out had to have them — not for any practical purposes really, just delightful ones. These are your own ready-made personal power emblems.

You see, this is the perfectly nonsensical thinking that unicorns find so irresistible!

• You are also encouraged to create your own unicorn finding outfit. Special shoes, jeans, earrings, top, tie, belt, socks you catch my drift.

Prep Activity B

Now plop down and write out all the reasons you will NOT find unicorns. You know what I’m talking about. Stuff like:

Because they don’t exist.

No one’s ever seen one.

They’re invisible.

They’re scared of people.

I don’t know what-all. Go ahead be negative. Give it your best shot. Phew! Feel better? Feel all grown up and smart? Right-o. They can’t say you’re crazy now — look how sensible you are with your list.

Prep Activity C

Argue on paper with your sensible list. If you’re with a group doing this activity, shoot holes in everyone’s ‘realistic declarations’. e.g. “No one’s ever seen one.” YET. “They’re invisible.” So are atoms. So is air. You get the gist. If you don’t get it, just call it “Opposite Day” and go with that for now. The ol’ up is down, left is right routine. You get the drill. After all Rome, and it’s zoos full of unicorns, wasn’t built in a day.

On to Finding Unicorns Part 2

Finding Unicorns Part 2

We left off from Finding Unicorns Part 1 - with you being just about ready to go thither and find unicorns. Below are some pointers for how this can be done.

On a trail or at a park:

• sudden lull in sounds (birds and young children, if present, startled by unicorns)
• a healed gash in a tree truck (old horn would – unis have been known to be a bit clumsy about this)
• faint unaccounted for noises (whip your head around – one’s following you!)
• a weird –but not creepy– sensation that you’re being watched (you are, you are)

In an urban setting

• anywhere there are sparkles – sidewalks in front of old movie theaters, fountain splashes on the sidewalk, near little girls
  

• the sudden flight of pigeons unassociated with loose dogs, loose boys or loud noises.
• carved graffiti tags of a vaguely positive nature
• outposts of hope (those Salvation Army holiday bell ringers are always surrounded by unicorns for starters)
• soup kitchens
  

• groovy coffee shops in blighted areas
• artists’ spaces anywhere
• planted plots
• rescue facilities of any brand
• poles with flyers attached to them
  

“Whoa! Hang on there. We thought you were going to show us how to find unicorns. You know, equine thingies with the one horn in the middle of the forehead sort of creature.”

Yeah, ok, you’re right. What we’re going for here are ways to find their habitats, the places they hang out; the intersections of hope and the will to be, to thrive, to grow. Once there, you see, the unicorns find us! When we come at this search sideways like we are our luck increases exponentially because now we’re not seeking the physical embodiment of a being but it’s far more influential essence. So here’s the thing; unicorns as literal interpretations of themselves are at the very least impractical and at the most just some sort of equines with pointy sticks coming out of their foreheads. Kind of a one trick pony if you know what I mean. Not very interesting after a minute or two, and pretty dangerous almost immediately!

We’re going for something larger. Much larger.

Creating Unicorns

When we expect we will find unicorns we become surrounded by them wherever we are. We create unicorns by seeking them. That is the magic, the alchemy of hope. In its elemental forms optimism inspires possibilities of grand and enduring scale. It reaches depths of existence right into the quantum of what connects us to each other and everything else.

Activities

Habitats of Hope
Reflect on places in your own experience that could well be the natural habitat of hope and hence unicorns. List as many as you can. You don’t have to do this all in one sitting. Come back and add new thoughts as you go. See above for inspiration as to where to get started looking.

Talisman

Acquire a unicorn charm object of one kind or another that is pleasing to you. Put the desire to find it ‘out there’ and see what shows up for you. This is applied unicorn thinking in action. You’re looking for the perfect symbol, so believe it will show up. Make notes of this process. Put it someplace you’re bound to see it every day to remind you of your success in finding unicorns and to get you thinking about finding more!
Collage-a-corn
Using your super powers as a unicorn creator you will now turn ordinary equines into unicorns!

(Note: there is no such thing as an ordinary equine – that was a test). Oh and one more thing: Horses that are descended from unicorn lineage will have a whorl pattern on their forehead where a horn would be. Now you can spot true unis wherever you find horses!

A whorl where a horn would be identifies a horse from unicorn lineage

You’ll need:

• horse magazine(s)
• paper – something nice and stiff
• scissors
• glue stick
• optional – glitter!

Cut out regular horses and stick them to your nice stiff piece of paper. Then cut out separate horn shapes for each head and glue that in place. >viola!< instant unicorns! Add glitter as you see fit. Now put that baby somewhere you’ll notice it so you can remember how awesome you are – awesome enough to be able to transform the ordinary into the extraordinary. Now go out and do that in your head to everything around you that needs some magic.