The Power of Small Things September 28, 2009
Posted by gerrystarnes in Learnings.add a comment
In disaster movies, when the asteroid is rapidly hurtling toward Earth, most often the first answer is the worst answer: blow it up! Those who should know better usually decide to launch one or many more of our most powerful weapons at the singular threat and thereby create thousands of deadly shards, multiplying the danger.
Sometimes we approach problems the same way, looking for the Big Fix. When we feel stuck, powerless, lost, or afraid we try to find or attract the quickest and least painful way out. Usually, this involves some external power, the White Knight, to take it away. Yet most often, this hope is futile and may lead to ineffective or no action.
Big Fixes generally don’t actually happen, and when they do, the effects are sometimes not as expected. Big Fixes most often come with Big Complications or Big Consequences.
There is another, wiser way. The best way to deal with the approaching asteroid is not to blow it up, but rather to place on it a small rocket engine. It doesn’t have to be very powerful. The meager power of a 60 watt lamp can be all it takes to push steadily, consistently at the asteroid, enough to alter its course.
In the beginning, that small, constant push won’t change the asteroid’s course very much, perhaps just a degree. But over time, it can be enough to make it miss its target entirely.
When you feel stuck, powerless, afraid, or lost, just try something small. Do something. Take a step in any direction. Just one step can change your perspective, can get things in motion, can make you feel a little better, a little stronger. From this new vantage point, see where to step next. And take that next step.
The Eight Characteristics of Shamanism September 8, 2009
Posted by gerrystarnes in General.add a comment
I’m often asked “what is shamanism?” and it’s companion question, “what do you do?” I recently re-discovered this article by Joan Forest Mage. I don’t know her or even where this article was originally published, but I do believe it addresses those questions pretty well!
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As a contemporary shaman living in the urban setting of Chicago, people often ask me, “What is shamanism?” and “How is shamanism different from other forms of meditation and energy work such as Reiki, chi gung, prayer or creative visualization?”
Shamanism is an ancient form of spiritual healing that has been practiced by virtually every culture in the world throughout all of human history. Some people think of it as the origin of all other forms of spiritual expression and energy work. Your image of shamanism may be of indigenous peoples drumming, singing and dancing in rituals to create healing. There are cave paintings in Europe created 40,000 years ago which depict shamanic-style healing rituals, and it’s likely that shamanic practices are even older than that.
Many people think shamanism is exclusively a Native American tradition, but it is actually found all over the world. In fact, the word shaman comes from the Tungus tribe of Siberia. Shamanic practices are well known in India, Korea, Africa, Britain, and Australia, among many other places. Both men and women throughout the ages have been shamans.
Shamanic healing works on the principle of restoring the vital energy, or soul. The classic example is when an individual has lost parts of his or her soul due to traumatic events in life such as accidents, major illness, physical, sexual or emotional abuse or the loss of a loved one. To remedy this, the shamanic practitioner performs a soul retrieval healing, by doing a shamanic “journey” meditation to find and return lost parts of the client’s energy (“soul parts”).
However, shamanic healing is not limited to soul retrieval, or only to the healing of the individual person. It also includes mending the broken ties of community on every level: within human society, with nature and with the spirit realm. This may mean restoring the connection an individual has to her body; encouraging a dialogue among the various soul parts within an individual; introducing a person to his spirit guides; connecting a client to the “more-than-human” matrix of Nature; or helping a person find her expressive “voice” through singing and dancing.
Shamanism shares many traits with other forms of prayer and energy work, but we can identify eight characteristic ways of working in shamanic work. Not every shaman works with all of them, but the more of the “eight” you see in a practitioner’s work, the more that practitioner is shamanic in his or her approach.
The Eight Characteristics of Shamanism
- Working with spirit realm and spirit guides – in shamanic cosmology, the world is filled with spiritual beings and energies: angels, ancestors, totem, animals, gods, goddesses, and nature spirits. These helpful spirits guide us to healing and wisdom.
- Purpose of shamanic work is to solve problems in daily life – shamanic work is not about simply having visions of the spirit realm, but to help self and others gain healing and wisdom in our daily lives.
- Work with soul – shamanism heals the soul or vital essence of individuals, human society and nature. Through healing and restoring this spiritual power, many physical, mental and emotional issues are resolved.
- Travel out of body – shamanic work involves “journeying” out of body into the spirit realm to work with the spirit guides for healing and guidance.
- Grounded in nature – the shamanic practitioner gratefully utilizes the powers of nature for healing, transformation and restoration energy and to stay grounded in the physical plane.
- Grounded in body (cathartic work) – shamanic work is not just about having visions, but also addresses feelings within the body” what psychologists would call psychosomatic issues.
- Utilize expressive arts – shamans throughout the ages have used singing, dancing, drumming and visual art as ways of expressing their visions and creating healing.
- Face shadow side – shamanic work is not afraid to confront the shadow side, drawing out anger, sadness, fear, etc. to create cathartic healing.
Shamanism originated in a time when people lived close to nature. They allowed energies of nature and of emotions to flow through the body, creating transformation. Thus shamanism tends to deal with the energy “in the moment,” often in a physically expressive way such as the arts. The ultimate goal of shamanic work is helping the individual, human society, nature and the spirit realm to come back into a state of balance and increased wholeness.
Filtered Reality September 1, 2009
Posted by gerrystarnes in General.2 comments
“I know that if I think about my boyfriend in a certain way, eventually that’s how he will become. So I don’t want to think he’s cheating on me because I don’t want him to cheat. That’s what happens, isn’t it?”
A whole range of responses flowed through my mind. Clearly, she understood that she was projecting her distrust and fear of betrayal onto him. Yet, it is not that she would force him to cheat because of her thoughts, but that she creates her perception of infidelity from her fear, and that can be even more powerful. Perception is reality after all.
We really don’t deal with each other directly; we interact through a system of preconceptions. We all have filters through which we perceive the world and thereby create our experience, our reality. Our interactions with others are heavily influenced by them, sometimes to the exclusion of everything else. So in that sense, we do create our reality, though sometimes it is a “false” reality.
We are always looking for information that reinforces our view of the world, supporting our assumptions. If she really believes, or even suspects, that her boyfriend is unfaithful, she will automatically sort through every one of his words and behaviors, selecting only those that support that conclusion.
In relating to other people, most of our filters are inaccurate. Some are outright lies. And yet they are how we interpret the world and always have! However, once we know the game, once we recognize how pervasive this systemic perception filtering is, we have a chance to change the rules.
Who Do You Trust?
Most people can easily understand the concept of filtering, yet the next step is often difficult. Changing perceptions takes significant work. Part of that work is to determine whether the filter is accurate or not. It is difficult to know, especially if you do not trust yourself. If you are constantly second-guessing your own wisdom, then that will need to change first.
A trauma survivor once told me, “I don’t trust anyone, but I trust myself.” That is actually quite profound. What it meant for her was that she learned not to walk down blind alleys or get caught in false hopes and promises, and she stopped giving herself away as easily as before. What she did was learn to trust herself and the instinctive wisdom that had tried to guide her all along.
She learned to walk away when her body and instincts said she should, and also to allow the possibility for a “safe” relationship when one appeared. In the process, she earned many friends and colleagues and avoided many pitfalls, though certainly not all of them. No one is perfect.
Changing the Rules
On the whole, in the absence of any other proof and only a budding ability to trust yourself, it may be a good idea to assume that the filter is a lie and test it out.
Once this young woman commits to changing the rules, she needs to catch herself every time she moves into that feeling of distrust of her boyfriend and recognize it for what it is: the result of a filter and probably nothing to do with reality at all. In her case, as with many people with similar issues, the filter has been based on previous experiences, often stretching back to childhood and usually reinforced by past experience.
Indeed, a previous boyfriend did in fact have an affair, and did in fact lie to her about it. Yet that actually has nothing to do with the current relationship unless she makes it so.
There are many ways to address and heal the events that lead to the creation and reinforcement of restrictive filtering. Most of them require some outside intervention. However, a good start can be made with persistence, determination, and creativity … and trust in yourself.
- Recognize in the moment that your interpretation of events is wrong.
- Find a different interpretation than you ordinarily would have, based on trusting your instincts in the moment.
- ACT on that new interpretation. Change the story.
- Actively seek experiences and perceptions that contradict the filter.
It takes a lot of courage to counter the unrealistic though truly powerful effects of filters. After all, you could be wrong and your partner truly may be untrustworthy. As you learn to trust yourself, you may misinterpret what you are sensing. Do not expect yourself to respond perfectly because you won’t. Just do your best and do not “beat yourself up” over misjudgments.
And especially don’t listen to the filter that says, “I can’t change.”
