Systemic Constellation work - what is it? how might it help?

Family constellation work has been the most transformative modality I have yet to witness and to experience the healing aspects, personally, in my own life. I have been involved in systemic constellation workshops and subsequently, training programs since 2005, experiencing well over half-dozen different facilitators. I would like to provide a brief and concise explanation of how constellations works--what happens, and who might benefit.

Problems affecting families have been passed down, unknowingly, through generations - often due to displaced Love.

Knowing Love has a healing and gratifying effect on us and on those around us. However, unknowing, Blind Love hands down through the generations grief and problems that we live out unconsciously due to unconscious  family loyalties--unknowing, blind love..

 HOW does this happen?

One example: when family members, through the generations, are in any way 'excluded' or lose their place in the family

    --due to wars, early death, miscarriage, stillbirth, abortion, murders, tragic and accidental death, adoption,

   --broken engagement, divorce, victim/perpetrators of injustice, family secrets, disowned family member

this excluded family member's fate is unknowingly taken over and continued by a later member of the family - even a generation or more down the line. The member who takes over the fate of the earlier member has no conscious awareness of this. This is done through Blind love.

This experience of taking over the fate of an earlier member is called an "entanglement". We can also live out unconscious loyalties for our parents or grandparents without realizing this.

What are the possible indicators?

Entanglements show up in our lives as:
 --chronic health or energy issues, relationship issues that repeat,

 ---lack of sense of belonging, sense of isolation, feelings of failure or dissatisfaction with one's life,  --difficulty maintaining relationship, weight issues, eating disorder,issues with money, chronic pain, --psychiatric problems, anxiety, depression, chronic irritability, substance abuse,alcoholism, --schizophrenia....   are all experiences that  may suggest 'entanglements' with ancestors...

How the Family Constellation works:

 
A group of participants are seated in a circle. A person wanting to do a piece of work sits in the empty seat next to the facilitator.

A piece of constellation work starts by this person selecting an issue to be worked on and briefly identifying it with facilitator.
When the issue has been identified - the facilitator asks the person to select, from among the participants, representatives for - for example, the person's own self, mother, father...

In this way, Constellation work sets up a visual method for these entanglements to be witnessed, experienced and starting a healing process. The person selects and places these representatives according to her inner vision of her family members' relationships - on the workshop floor.

 The facilitator encourages the chosen representatives to tune into the wisdom in their bodies and to feel where they are drawn to move, to look... and to notice how they feel. These selected  representatives are  accessing the 'Knowing Field' --accessing this 'Knowing' through their bodies not their minds.

The facilitator observes the process unfolding, gaining information, inquiring into the representatives to speak their inner experiences--accessing awareness of bodily sensations and emotions-- in representing this unknown family member of the other person. Truths are made visible that had previously been unseen. Entanglements made visible can begin a healing process.

Resolution of entanglements is possible when the Love through the generations becomes "knowing" rather than "blind" or entangled... this resolution creates a new image in the client's mind's-eye and a process of healing and fulfillment for the client and the ancestors within that family system begins to percolate within the family soul.

A lovely introduction to constellation work might be setting up a Nature Constellation or a Mind, Body, Spirit constellation. These two constellations beautifully illustrate the workings of the 'knowing field' in a simple way. I will provide an example of a Mind, Body, Spirit constellation - permission was granted to share this:
     The individual (we will refer to as X) selected three representatives from the circle of participants. As this would be a 'blind' constellation - meaning that the representatives, in this case, were not informed as to who or what they would be representing - the mind could be of no help! Instead, X had three pieces of paper, folded up, each one indicated either mind, body, spirit written on the paper - X handed one of the folded papers to each representative who simply held it, remaining folded, in their hand.

 In X's constellation, the representative for Mind (remember - no one knew who was representing which) moved away from where X originally placed this representative and stood apart from the other two representatives.  Mind said, "I feel like I'm in my own little world; I like it here on my own."
Body and Spirit were nearer to each other and each stated their wish that the lone representative would be closer. However, that lone representative appeared to be gazing off into space barely recognizing the other two. The representative that we later learned stood for Body had said that it felt 'cut off' and felt 'out-of-touch'.  The representative for Spirit stated it felt available yet also feeling disconnected.

When each representative unfolded their papers and read their representation, the meaning became more clear to X.  X had a tendency to live in the head - living from the neck up, a safer place to occupy and, therefore, experiencing a sense of being cut off from the body. 

What was remarkable here is that the representatives were able to access wisdom from their own bodies in the 'knowing field' even though lacking, mentally, the concrete information of who they were representing. Constellation work brings visibility to what is true - and we can allow (or not) this wisdom to percolate in our soul.

You are invited to share your own experiences of or questions about systemic constellation work. We find ourselves at a juncture in our history whereby the human family would appear to benefit from healing. Facilitators of systemic constellation work are offering workshops all across the country.

Stones & Rocks Representing Images for Healing

Ordinary, conventional thought asserts that stones and rocks are non-living material because they do not breathe or live and die. From an ancient, indigenous viewpoint, however, stones are not merely inert objects, rather, they were recognized as Stone People and are viewed as allies with ancient wisdom to share with us in a variety of helpful ways. Indigenous people respectfully engaged the healing power of rocks and stones, inviting partnership with this mineral realm.

Recently, I am rediscovering the remarkableness of rocks and stones. As a child I was drawn to rocks, fascinated by what lie hidden in their interior. Having not been taught about the respect of 'asking permission' of all things, I satisfied my curiosity by cracking the rocks open with a sledge hammer. Having gained more understanding, today, I respectfully invite the rocks and stones to work with me as an ally for healing. The rocks and stones 'stand' as representatives for a seeker's family members and ancestors or as a concept or question of which seeker is pondering or having difficult with.

Here is how the stones and rocks serve as allies for us humans. First, we welcome the mineral healing ally with an open heart, not simply seeing the stones as something to 'use'. The seeker will be setting up the structure of her or his family system – exploring the structure and characteristics of four generations of family members. In my good fortune, I have 'found' a good number of rocks and stones—mostly out in nature, and about six to eight “fancy” stones that I bought. The seeker will, in a state of presence and intention, select from four containers, rocks and stones of a myriad of shapes, textures, colors and sizes--from large and 'ordinary' to small, smooth, beautiful, and delicate--to represent specific family members as well as themselves. The generations include one's own sibling generation, the parents are the next generation, then, the parents' parents and lastly, the parents' grandparents. Some members are known while other family members are not known—either they died prior to the seeker's birth or there may have been a disruption in relationship within that family.

Much is revealed when the seeker, with intention, chooses specific rocks or stones to represent family members. Does she or he choose a rock that is large and craggy, or a stone that is smooth with translucent color? How do the characteristics of this rock or stone speak to the seeker in a way that is reminiscent of characteristics of the family member represented?

Once the rocks and stones have been appropriately placed and identified based in the mind's eye of the seeker as to who they are representing, the seeker describes, starting with the rock or stone representing themselves, the characteristics of this mineral that resonate with them as a human and those of their family members. I notice, repeatedly, that the seeker will pick up and hold in their hand each stone or rock as they describe the characteristics that match the family member... looking at it as if they are speaking to it, handling it, turning it over in their palm. A relationship is developing between the seeker and each rock or stone. It appears that each stone has it's own energy and is experienced by the seeker when the stone is picked up. Furthermore, the image of the family member or ancestor appears to come alive in the stone or rock through the seeker's inner image of the mineral.

The seeker may explain, for example: “I chose this craggy rock to represent my father who was alcoholic and angry. I chose this shiny, silver stone to represent me because I am the black sheep in my family. I chose this small, soft pink smooth stone to represent my mother because she is just like this stone—she is soft and quiet, gets along with everyone, very sweet and kind. This big stick-like rock I chose for my grandfather because he was bigger than life; he was solid and he really stood out. These tiny little gray stones—I picked them to represent my great grandparents because I don't know anything about them.” The stones and rocks begin to come alive in the seeker's mind and heart. As the seeker describes an issue with one of the family members it is as though that member is actually in the room; the stone or rock appears amazingly capable of holding the energy of that non-present individual. It is common for a seeker to tear up as she or he holds the stone and speaks of that family member.

After stone representatives are described, the next step is that of identifying the specific issues in the family; questions are explored, for example: who struggles with alcohol, anger, mental health issues, who died prematurely, who suffered from grief/loss, who experienced abandonment, who experienced betrayal, who was excluded or shunned, who was a victim of tragedy, who went unacknowledged (abortions/ miscarriages—little white marbles serve as these representatives). Thin 'sticky-note' strips are then place with each stone identifying the issue(s) of that individual.A theme for a family begins to emerge when all the sticky-notes are placed; a seeker may be struck by one side of a family, multi- generationally suffering from grief & loss (when a father's mother dies when he is 7 years old--and his father loses his wife in the prime of their lives); or when a secret has been suppressed (a great-grandmother gives birth to a child without benefit of marriage...and she is not allowed to marry the father of the child whom she loved...and this secret is suppressed out of shame by her parents...the shame passed on to her...and passed on to the son to whom she birthed...even though he never knew that the man he'd called 'dad' all these years is not his birth father... not until his late 20's did the secret tumble out... leaving him with a host of confusing emotions and sense of betrayal.)

Viewing the stones and their 'tags' from this vantage point, the seeker feels to be standing high on a hillside looking down at the town; more perspective is provided... a larger picture is offered... the ability to witness the interconnection of the inner wounds of family members and ancestors. Taking in this new awareness, along with the conversation with the counselor, one's inner vision of their own familial 'wounds' is offered an opportunity to expand. This is a first step, at least. The seeker may also find a workshop where a group of participants stand, instead of rocks & stones, as representatives for family members... feeling within their own bodies (in the 'knowing field') and articulating the emotions and truths of the seeker's ancestors. The field comes alive evidencing the pain and struggles passed down the generations. With this larger picture, deeper understanding and the budding of compassion may begin to surface.

We may believe we already 'know' the issues of our family generations, and/or that we have already 'gotten over it'; however, I notice a significant difference between 'mind knowing' and heart knowing. The heart-knowing seems to generate inner shifts that seem to allow individuals increased emotional freedom from their 'stories' of what happened. The recounting of the story tend to be more informational; the emotional charge appears absent. On the contrary, I notice a particular emotional 'caught-ness" when a person telling their story is less free, emotionally--the upsetting emotion feels fresh, again.This is usually a good test examining where we may be still caught in the story. Heart-knowing is a process of and supports acknowledging 'What Is' - moving toward deeper understanding and compassion--antidotes for heart-blocking emotions of resentment and blame.

An important aspect of this sort of healing work is acknowledging that which has either been forgotten, not spoken of, or suppressed out of shame or guilt. Allowing the Truth to be seen is the beginning of acknowledging 'What Is' – this is the beginning of healing.

Stones may also be our allies in service to representing a particular 'issue' one wishes to work on. A person I know, who graciously gave me permission to share this story, invited the stones to represent an issue with which she wanted help. We began with her describing and clarifying her issue:

She shared how she has been struggling with using food as a 'comfort' – she acknowledged that addictions ran in her family of origin. She stated she ate when she was stressed, worried, anxious, bored or wanting to reward herself. She also explained that she was facing divorce even though the actual process hadn't started yet. She knew she would have to find another place to live because the house she lives in has too many unpleasant memories for her to remain there. She told me she is also on a job search to find a new job as her present situation is no longer fulfilling for her. She expressed that she is facing so many unknowns at this time—so many aspects of her life are or will be in flux, changing and seemingly beyond her control. She said she frequently feels anxious and afraid; then, she would compulsively eat and over-eat. She told me that she has gone to a number of Overeaters Anonymous meetings and has attended Adult Children of Alcoholics meetings in the past but she was only peripherally involved currently. She stated that a few women had reached out to her regarding sponsorship but that she had not taken that step yet for herself.

Being with the information she was sharing, I received a felt sense of what issues might prove most fruitful in a visual representation. I asked her to, with intention and centering, select a rock or stone to represent herself, a rock or stone to represent the Fear, a rock or stone to represent the Unknown, and one to represent her Recovery. I invited her to place these rocks or stones as feels right to her inner eye in relation to each other. She placed the allies in a row on the same plane – I will illustrate:

             Recovery        Unknown        Fear             Client

                   X                    X                X                  X

We dialogued together about the woman's choice of placement of the stones. I mentioned to the woman that it appears that she is looking ahead to the Unknown through the lens of Fear. We explored together what that was like for her. I shared my observation that her Recovery was furthest away from her – even beyond the Unknown, and invited her to discuss this felt experience. After further exploring I asked her to consider how it might be if she moved the stone representing Recovery and where would she place it. The woman paused for a moment, then she moved the stone representing herself further away from fear and then she placed Recovery in between the representative for herself and the Fear.

            Unknown          Fear           Recovery           Client

                  X                  X                   X                     X

I pointed out to client that she had created an intentional space for her Recovery by stepping back—by moving her stone representative further away from the Fear and placing the stone for Recovery in between the Fear and herself. I, then, noted that the woman would now be able to view Fear and the Unknown through the lens of Recovery program rather than through Fear. This proved a powerful statement for her to realize. Although she did not, yet, have a sponsor I asked her if she might find a stone representative for a potential sponsor. She selected her representative and place it to the side of Recovery. With this visual in front of her she was able to viscerally experience the support and strength of the possibility of this new 'inner vision', support that she recognized was currently lacking in her life. She told me: “You know, we've talked about this for some time now, how important it is to be involved in a recovery program and how important it is to have a relationship with a sponsor for emotional support. All this time it's just been knowledge in my head – I knew about it, but, seeing it here in the flesh, so-to-speak, just makes those concepts Real! What we've been talking about all this time has more meaning to me, now. I feel as though I have a new image of this reality inside me, now.”

In closure, the seeker silently thanks each stone for their representation and releases them from the representation and returns them, each, to their container.

Entanglements show up in our lives as: chronic health or energy issues, relationship issues that chronically repeat without resolution, lack of sense of belonging, sense of isolation, feelings of failure or dissatisfaction with one's life, difficulty maintaining relationship, weight issues, eating disorder, issues with money, chronic pain, psychiatric problems, anxiety, depression, chronic irritability, substance abuse, alcoholism, schizophrenia.... experiences that may suggest 'entanglements' with ancestors...

The experience of taking over the fate of an earlier member is called an "entanglement". Other entanglements, can be living out unconscious loyalties for our parents or grandparents without our realization.

Resolution of entanglements is possible when the Love through the generations becomes "knowing" rather than entangled... bringing visibility to that which has been forgotten or unacknowledged. This resolution creates a new image in the client's mind's-eye and a process of healing and fulfillment for the client and the ancestors within that family system begins to percolate.

Also explore Systemic (Family) Constellation work.

Your comments, questions, sharing are Most Welcome  :)

2012 - What is being Called for?

An Awakened human being is amazingly emotionally available – is someone who is not defending her / himself on the emotional or intellectual level – this being feels completely unguarded, open, available. When we are unguarded, Love flows out of us in a very natural way – it is known as Unconditional Love.

The most reliable sign of an awakened heart is reflected by Loving What IS – for example, Loving people that the personality may not 'like', loving the world as it Is rather than how we believe it Should be – in other words, the heart of an awakened human being loves Everything – because there is no separation—no separate you or me – seeing Everything as itself. This is Unconditional Love.

"Then it was as if I suddenly saw the secret beauty of their hearts, the depths
of their hearts where neither sin nor desire nor self-knowledge can reach,
the core of their reality, the person that each one is in God's eyes. If only
they could see themselves as they really are. If only we could see each other
that way all the time, there would be no more war, no more hatred, no more
cruelty, no more greed... I suppose the big problem would be that we would
fall down and worship each other."

                                             - Thomas Merton

The other evening at satsang, I had the privilege of meeting a woman named Jeannie Zandi, exemplifying an awakened heart. Prior to her conversation with our small group, we sat in a brief silent meditation. As she spoke in response to questions from the participants, there was a sweet stillness that seemed to emanate from her voice. A feeling came over me as I listened – however, I was not responding to the sound of her voice. Rather, an energy was being generated in the room – a gentle, calming, Loving energy. And, even though her words seemed to cut through a participant's mental conditioning with the precision of a scalpel; the energy of her presence was truly Love – the energy was palpable. It's as if her guiding words for the seeker caught in their belief system, to me, didn't even matter – I felt as though I was riding on the wave of the energy of her Being. Often, I simply sat with my eyes closed and enjoyed the flow of her presence—of Unconditional Love.

My heart felt touched. I felt at peace.

On the other hand, the experience of emotional conflict alerts us that we are holding a thought or belief that is not true. All our lives, the mind packages bits of information about experiences that have happened—interpretations, perceptions we made-- and these are stored and, from time to time, become activated. Then we contract and, believing these thoughts, we experience negativity. These experiences are pointers to what is unresolved in our being – however, instead of examining what is being pointed to – we believe the negativity and simply reactivate the stored material creating a deeper groove in the brain. All too often, our activation affects others in our lives – with their package activated, they, too, become negative. This is a prime example of the statement: You are the World.... how we affect the planet.

We are living in amazing times – extreme changes have occurred in the past hundred years. The discovery of oil, the development of the automobile, the airplane, the advancement of electronics have raced our lives forward to a pace we, humans, can barely keep up with. However, with all this technological advancement, it is clear that our spirits have been unable to keep pace with the frenzy of change and the rapidity of daily life and its demands. Many feel pushed and pulled, not enough time in the day to respond to all the demands, never mind find quality time for family and, what about oneself. As a result of these pressures, many feel a nagging sense of emptiness – consciously or unconsciously. What does it look like? you may ask. Some may find this list offensive or ridiculous—because these charateristic behaviors fit into the social norms – in other words, are considered 'normal'. However, the invitation is to take a deeper look:

>> being really busy,--needing to feel 'needed' or 'important' (“I'm really the only one who can do this! Who will do this if I don't”; using food for comfort (carbohydrates, ice cream, excess portions), rapid ingestion of food rather than leisurely experiencing; seeking the latest technological devices, unable to unhook from these devices—constantly checking cell phone, Internet, Facebook, e-mail; acquiring possessions as proof of my value, discomfort in being alone and with unscheduled down-time...

“To allow oneself to be carried away by a multitude of conflicting concerns, to surrender to too many demands, to commit oneself to too many projects, to want to help everyone in everything, is to succumb to the violence of our times.”
― Thomas Merton

How are we to prepare ourselves to best meet these amazing and challenging times? Do we simply roll along with Time and see what happens? Is there anything required of us as human beings living at what appears to be a critical juncture in time? Might there be a necessity to evolve our consciousness? With so much polarity in the world, all we have to do is watch the 'Talking Heads' on the nightly news as they bash the “other side”. Might emerging consciousness be what is called for...co-creating a shift in consciousness—intentionally, leading to an evolutionary shift. Is our current level of consciousness sustainable for human relations, wildlife survival on the planet? Can you imagine an evolutionary shift moving from fear, materialism, greed, and self-center to Unconditional Love, compassion, non-dual consciousness?

Consider becoming aware of inner contraction, the fear, the guardedness. Where and when does my heart close?

...feeling offended, the need to protect, to explain, to be Right, feeling inferior, or it's opposite: superior, shutting down, emotionally, needing to control or direct what is happening...

“The more you try to avoid suffering, the more you suffer, because smaller and more insignificant things begin to torture you, in proportion to your fear of being hurt. The one who does most to avoid suffering is, in the end, the one who suffers most.”
― Thomas Merton, The Seven Storey Mountain

Our culture insists that we must control everything. Not much good comes of letting things simply unfold... is the belief. We hold the belief that the world is dangerous and needs to be controlled...just as we see that man believes that Nature must be controlled, dominated and exploited. Become aware of the moment to moment need to control – or how I object to this or that thing that is happening.

“You do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going. What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment, and to embrace them with courage, faith and hope.”
― Thomas Merton

I read the news and I have a reaction! “Oh, NO!” The SEC is deciding to not hold Lehman Brothers accountable for their participation in the economic collapse of September 2008! Contraction occurs within my heart. I object! I feel incensed! Indignant, I send the article as a 'Share' on Facebook! Perhaps others will read this article as well and may, no doubt, contract and feel disgusted, as well. And, this is how I, we, perpetuate the suffering on this planet.

Instead of hating the people you think are war-makers, hate the appetites and disorder in your own soul, which are the causes of war. If you love peace, then hate injustice, hate tyranny, hate greed - but hate these things in yourself, not in another.”
― Thomas Merton

People are talking about 2012, December 21^st. Is the world coming to an end this year? Better yet, might this be the call to participate in an evolutionary shift in consciousness... discovering how to increasingly embrace the Present Moment, 'seeing' through thought rather than believing thoughts...particularly those "sticky" thoughts -- you know, the ones that stick to us, reactivating our 'story' about...(whatever, from the past) and re-create the same suffering; increasing awareness of all that activates in the psyche—motivating our behavior—in ways that are less than Love. Adyashanti states: “Make no mistake about it—Awakening is a destructive process. It has nothing to do with becoming a “better person” or being happier. Awakening is the crumbling away of untruth...seeing through the facade of pretence. It is the complete eradication of everything we imagined to be true.”

Returning Home to our Essential Nature rather than the constant striving to 'be' what we think others want, or expect.

Your comments and impressions are most welcomed. Let's start a shared discussion.

SHIFTING PARADIGM

Apparent CHANGE typically appears to occur slowly and, therefore, often goes unnoticed or is written off or rationalized in some manner. For example, although we witness extreme floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, intense wildfires, often we don't take much notice of these occurrences happening 'somewhere else'. In 2011 the year was promptly 'kicked off' with the first of many citizen uprising; the entire year has focused on on-going screams for Change! from Tunisia, to Egypt, Libya, and, finally in the U.S. and then Syria. Many of us are more likely to take notice as the sights of demands for change by ordinary people begin to rock our 'own' world. Facebook friends seem more likely, these days, to share political posts than they are to share the frequent trivia that seemed important prior to one year ago.How do we manage to Notice these gradual changes that are occurring while also retaining this awareness in our consciousness so as to see and Remember this on-going puzzle/bigger picture. One possibility may have to do with the degree that "busy-ness" tends to interfere with our Noticing.

A paradigm can be understood as an accepted norm or perception of 'reality' or world view that controls and dictates how [we believe] things work. This view is based on teachings we have received from those who influence the masses from positions of “authority” on a global or national scale on down to what we're taught in our professional life or our church. For example, our current paradigm holds that we are all "unique individuals'. The shifting paradigm, however, is the recognition--from millenia ago -- that we are All One... that there is Only One, that 'individuality' is an illusion. Interestingly, the First People of this land appeared to come the closest to this paradigm whereby their way of life did not tout the individual - rather, they lived in honor of the Collective. There is also the paradigm asserting that God is "out there" or "up there" -- separate from 'us'...  while the shift is moving into the realization that there is Only One - there is No Separation.

Paradigm is formed from a mixture of current scientific ‘fact’, best guesses and the comfortable fictions of belief. Most people are deeply ingrained with their paradigm and changing it in even the slightest way causes deep anxiety and fear. Clearly, groups murder in the name of their sacred paradigms.
Paradigms can be personal or global. Theoretical frameworks exist within a particular paradigm.

Donella Meadows author of Limits to Growth states:

“Your paradigm is so intrinsic to your mental process that you are hardly aware of its existence, until you try to communicate with someone with a different paradigm.”

Examples of paradigm shifts in history:

• Columbus (late 1400's) disturbed and upset the conventional paradigm of his time when he proved by his voyages that the world was not flat.

• Galileo (early 1600's) very much upset the powers-that-be when he proposed, accurately, that the earth along with other planets were orbiting the sun—disrupting the paradigm that the sun and planets orbited the earth. Galileo was in big trouble with the Church for disrupting the accepted paradigm.

• Darwin, (1800's) disrupted the religious paradigm belief of creation by God, but rather proposed how life form evolved over millenia from more primitive forms.

• Two photo images of the Earth from space (1968 & '72) are thought to have created an emotional shift in attitude toward our planet giving birth to environmental issues.

Our present perception of reality may be undergoing a seismic shift. Globally, we are experiencing dramatic revolutions, externally—as we witness in the outer world of appearances. However, more compelling is the possibility for inner revolution—the potential shift in inner world of psyche and spirit. 

Gandhi reminds: “BE the change you want to see in the world.”

The “settled” world view: duality consciousnes – You and Me – we are separate...  of course, we believe this on an emotional level! 

well, just look! I have a body and so do you—and they are separate, so that settles it! Well, not so fast! A growing consciousness over the last several decades has realized the ultimate nature of reality is Oneness, or non-dual consciousness. The world of separate objects, the world of 'Appearances', of things, from this perspective is realized as a superficial illusion, that masks the deeper reality that all is One, Only One.

Many are becoming aware of this truth Intellectually - the question is how to Realize this truth.

Over the past decades New Age ideologies have opened doors for further understanding of the invisible world; however, not without its own form of duality consciousness... for example, supporting the belief that somehow “you caused your illness”, —an unfortunate belief to impose on one who is ill or with dis-ease.

However, on a day-to-day basis with the demands and the rush of the work-a-day world, how do we maintain the mindfulness and deeper truths on the true nature of reality that we 'know' on an intellectual level? 

Also apparent is that the 'powers-that-be' have set up the design for the maintenance of the status quo for the masses. Think about it: How many people do you know who work [too] long hours each day, feeling exhausted, little time for reflection--never mind knowing what they truly need or want, believing they must cart their children around to countless activities in order for the child to be 'productive' or 'well-adjusted', having little time to connect with each other, always yet another thing that must be done or another place to be.

Consider-- if we don't have time to think - and if the super-rich control the political system with their wealth - THEIR democracy is safe -- for they pull the political strings with their wealth and we, the people, have little time to think. This is why the belief that change from the outside is an illusion. Externally, we bounce from one polarity to the opposite. Nothing seems to change - it all seems to be more of the same -- because the Opposites are on the SAME coin!

The [mistaken] beliefs many still find themselves attached to, unwittingly:   that change happens from the outside, that change happens from the top down [certainly not in our political system], or that in time things will improve, or that the body and the mind/spirit are separate. Consider how we tend to compartmentalize our lives—God is for Sundays and a materialistic focus on striving / accomplishing leads us through the rest of our week. The media publicizes that the mind is the brain. Depak Chopra states that contrary to popular hopes, materialism cannot explain cancer or depression. It cannot tell you why talking to somebody can help your free-floating anxiety while tranquilizers may fail, or why memories haunt us. 

Depak Chopra states: “The modern world isn't about to throw science out the window. Instead, science must expand, so that we look at cancer, depression or the Big Bang and say, "Now I see." In particular, the mind-body connection with cancer needs exploring. A worldview succeeds when it explains more than the old one, when it opens people's eyes and when it achieves practical results.” 

And, then there is the whole issue of race--'whiter' skin is considered normative. One topic that continues to be avoided is that of race--one of the most challenging concepts for European immigrants in this country to grasp (or, perhaps more accurately, one that they are most reluctant to grasp) is normative whiteness. The idea behind normative whiteness is that white people are socialized to perceive white skin as "morally neutral, normative, and average," to quote Peggy McIntosh. That is, when white people see other white people in print advertisements, on television and movie screens, on the street, or elsewhere, they do not perceive those white people as having "race". Because whiteness is the default category, white skin does not register as being "raced" in any way.
            Conversely, when white people see people of color, they immediately perceive them as having race because people of color do not fall into the racially-neutral or normative category. However, for white people who have never grappled with issues of race and white-skin privilege, the concept of normative whiteness also challenges their perceptions of themselves as "colorblind," which makes comprehension even more difficult. This issue is hidden deep in the American psyche as a paradigm believing in 'colorblindness'.  Racism is denied in America--perhaps because our country was founded upon the dominant culture's 'rule' over non-whites. This topic is ticklish in a damaging way - and, as long as the topic is avoided, not discussed... the issue does not go away and negatively impacts possible advancements in social justice, employment, legal system, prison reform...to name a few.

Paradigm shift – increasing realization with the idea that All is One, and that "The One" is consciousness. An otherwise difficult concept that Byron Katie has popularized is the notion of 'projection' – everything you believe that you see on the outside is really a projection of your own mind. You are the storyteller, the projector of all stories, and the world is the projected image of your thoughts.

Today, some farseeing speculative thinkers in physics are exploring the possibility that we live in a conscious universe. I recall many decades ago reading about the notion that the outer planets in our solar system were 'vestures of consciousness'. A tiny handful of neuroscientists are grappling with the possibility that the mind controls the brain and not vice-versa. Eastern wisdom has taught of the various levels of consciousness from the ordinary every-day consciousness of the personality and physical body with its five senses to the causal body-- the receptacle and treasure house of all that has been assimilated from the life (at the so-called end)." (Annie Besant, Ancient Wisdom, p. 161)

How do we, individually, participate in this paradigm shift? Is it in part the spreading of new ideas? Is it the shifting of realization? Is it the shifting of behaviors that impact one another and the planet? Your impressions, experiences are most invited and welcome.