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Dream Adventuring On With Stoics, Skeptics, and Cynics - and a New Traveling Companion
Aug. 30th, 2009 | 01:39 pm
Image by striatic via Flickr
Wow! Before dawn I woke up in mid-dream...wondering why a loud anachronistic circle of ancient Stoics, Skeptics, and Cynics had been shouting at me back in a mix of lifetimes during the Golden Age of Greece. What do these philosophical ancestors of mine want this go round?
Even weirder, I was remembering, a pale speckled parrot-like bird with a stoical expression had been perched on top of a severely pruned tree at the center of the circle the whole while, talking stories with happy endings, all but drowning out anyone else. This strange but wise and old bird often barked and head-tilted side to side to punctuate the performance.
"All religion is for the birds!" is the only - unusually pedestrian - message my brain kept chirping as I searched for deeper meanings and profounder interpretations. This sketchy dream scene is all I recall but I suppose more will come back to me later.
Or, maybe not. Other messages might have arisen from my inner well of knowing and been delivered though symbolic packaging while I was being distracted.
Or maybe my new bird buddy will reappear and tell more. Or 'all of the above' might happen, bit by bit, and I will accept it - no matter what - as part of the wondrous fun of life.
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Non-ordinary connections wide open...Ordinary connections slower
Mar. 2nd, 2009 | 11:26 am
The topic I am pondering today is connections. My internet connection has become tricky. I chose mobility over speed and now use a USB 3G AT&T laptop connect device called the Mercury. When I travel it works well with the 3G signal but here at my usual location there is usually trouble. This sanctuary is a radio wave dead-zone and that might be considered a non-ordinary connecting 'feature' by some.
Here in this space I can get a more stable but slower 2G connection which allows me to browse but times out when I am using advanced blogging platforms. This post is a test of 2G here.
Or, I can pack up and stroll a few blocks to connect with WIFI (free many places or included with my plan if the WIFI is AT&T). Today I am amid planning a new strategy and routine, how to best reorganize my work day based around frequent short-distance travels to whereever I can set up shop and use WIFI to get my publishing and writing done - or maybe connect with the Mercury if I can find spacetime coorinates where it can pick up the faster 3G signal better. I cannot afford both DSL (or cable) and the mobile connection and I must have the ability to connect on the road. So...
With a name like Mercury, I might have forseen these challenges! Mercury is a trickster but connects happily and harmoniously while were traveling.
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Ordinary everyday shamanic journeys and jaunts
Feb. 14th, 2009 | 07:58 am
Previous assignment from Philosopher Zeno:
I am to create a piece of shamanic art blending symbols for "happy stoicism, compassionate cynicism, and serene skepticism" and await further instructions. [Here is the Link to that previous post.]
I did create a shamanic mask expressing those qualities to go with the healthy, invigorating drink I invented for Crates. I am still dancing with the mask and drink, amid this ceremonial shamanic attitude shifting process. When I am finished I will upload a picture.
New ordinary-reality mini-challenge: My 3G internet connecting device includes Trickster, in the software or the hardware - probably in both! In Shamanic Shift Center's space this USB-wand device receives and sends from one sacred place (and direction and height) only. WIFI connecting options are plentiful around this east side Milwaukee neighborhood. Maybe I am being guided to shift out of here and into public cafes for planned ahead periods of blogging, Squidooing, and other content production and correspondence.
This coming week I will test the 3G device as I travel out of town on a few short jaunts, that can be shamanic jaunts for gaining understanding around and within this situation. This may be an opportunity to learn more from Trickster. Also, while the window of opportunity for exchanging this particular 3G laptop-connect device is open, I will test it in as many places as I can.
ATT tech-support put in a trouble ticket because the agent became convinced the unstable internet connection I am getting is a network issue. I am supposed to get a follow-up call in a day or so about that. I agree there is a signal reception issue of some sort but I am almost certain that the device and communications manager have Trickster in them too.
Other networking and connections: I am looking to reach out more purposefully though social networks and shamanic organizations. But I know I must begin dropping some memberships and web presences to make spacetime in my schedule to link up some new - and hopefully more creative, harmonious, and effective - community shamanizing connections.
Wow, Milwaukee is blanketed with snow again!
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Zeno introduces me to his teacher Crates of Thebes
Nov. 30th, 2008 | 11:49 am
Image from Wikimedia Commons
They made my day too. After weathering a troubling ordinary reality encounter this holiday weekend with Trickster(s) under the from of two habitually, maybe even sociopathically dishonest (perhaps conscienceless) young businesswomen who just moved less than a mile from here I required soul healing. After weathering this challenge well and learning from the mistakes I made and repairing damages which were minimal, thank Spirit and Spirits, I know and feel that a medicinal infusion of sweet, jolly, weird, compassionate, original cynicism is what my inner soul-doctor is ordering!
Bitter cynicism is easy to find in our age in this world, especially on the internet, but the sweet, jesting, healing varieties seem all too rare - possibly endangered. My assignment from Crates was to help anchor and restore the original beneficial cynicism in our world (through me, by just that much) by creating, concocting, and consuming a health strengthening hot beverage today. In creative chaos every little shift has the potential to make big waves.
So now, guided by Spirit and Spirits, I am mulling old fashioned cynicism and spiced apple cider, 1000% of everything vitamin powder, honey, and several other secret ingredients. Mmmm.
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Shamanic dream visit with Zeno
Nov. 24th, 2008 | 08:12 pm
Shamanic Travels in the Golden Age of Greek Philosophy Update:
Last night I awakened within shamanic dreaming and realized I was in the Stoa Poecile. (Caution: This is the best link but it is a page of a blog about artistic Erotica!) I was shocked awake by the bright colorful paintings decorating that place but already I have forgotten the specific images and themes.
I remember that the original Stoic, Zeno of Citium had been teaching a crowd. Then before departing he singled me out and called me over to him. I remember we walked a ways as he gave me a shamanic action to carry out in ordinary-reality, and eventually the internet and some other middle realms.
I am to create a piece of shamanic art blending symbols for "happy stoicism, compassionate cynicism, and serene skepticism" and await further instructions.
Last night I awakened within shamanic dreaming and realized I was in the Stoa Poecile. (Caution: This is the best link but it is a page of a blog about artistic Erotica!) I was shocked awake by the bright colorful paintings decorating that place but already I have forgotten the specific images and themes.
I remember that the original Stoic, Zeno of Citium had been teaching a crowd. Then before departing he singled me out and called me over to him. I remember we walked a ways as he gave me a shamanic action to carry out in ordinary-reality, and eventually the internet and some other middle realms.
I am to create a piece of shamanic art blending symbols for "happy stoicism, compassionate cynicism, and serene skepticism" and await further instructions.
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Update on my shamanic journeying through Ancient Greece
Nov. 8th, 2008 | 05:56 pm
Update on my shamanic journeying to the Stoics, Cynics, and Skeptics: My shamanic travels though several centuries of Ancient Greece now happen as dream-journeys, mostly during my sleep at night, but now and then during naps. Several philosophers are taking turns accompanying me and the Shamantic! spirit-team on spacetime middle-realms excursions through their Greece and their world, around various topics and themes.
Last night I visited Delphi! The philosophers have expressed happiness that I have finally demonstrated an interest in their throughts, words, and deeds, and the other benefits of connecting to their Golden Age. I wake up in a state of ecstatic amazement but even though I attempt to jot notes immediately, I forget most of these adventures until the dream-journeying picks up again.
My thoughts and emotions and moods have shifted for the better anyway. I expect that I shall be able to remember more later. I do recall that within these dreams I am constructing carefully some weird shamanic device or container for remembering.
Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons, by inyucho
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On Shifting Shamanic Shift Center
Oct. 28th, 2008 | 08:14 am
Update on the notion of shifting Shamanic Shift Center: Even as I signed the lease for another year (11/01/08 - 10/31/09) here at the corner of North Astor and East Knapp Streets on the east side of Milwaukee, WI, in the historical building known as Montgomery House, as I was guided by the Spirit-Team at the end of August, I still sensed energy-flows rising for GO-ing as I wrote earlier this year. But these stirrings and burblings were still a ways within and beyond this ordinary spacetime and the moment of action.
Ongoing problems with this building's maintenance have kept me from feeling complacently comfortable here, though I have been able to shamanize all concerns effectively towards better so far. Building problems have provided a series of convenient opportunities for practicing shamanic shifting.
This office/sanctuary/home is an unusual mixed-use rented space where I can operate a shamanic circle 'church' (office and small sanctuary) and also live on site as the minister. I still raise and donate over 50% of Companions Circle's expenses through other self-employment projects, and meeting the medium-range goal of having Companions Circle become self-supporting including providing the minister's room and board would be easier here financially than in any 2-rent arrangement.
So I have been hoping that the dreams and images of Companions Circle and Shamanic Shift Center (this micro-church's main mission) moving are symbolic, meaning a bigger consciousness and life shift than usual in approach to this project rather than a literal location change. But I have been doing my best to keep my mind, heart, and gut open. On this Dark Moon day during the darkening days of the year I dream and journey for new lights on this subject!
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Middle-Realm shamanic consultation with Greek philosophers, still continuing
Oct. 24th, 2008 | 11:56 pm
Extended historical shamanic journey and dream update: So far...I know that I and the Shamantic! Spirit-Team will be receiving attitude adjusting and energy-flow re-balancing 'symbol-power-container' gifts for me and this world - which could be anything - from several Greek philosophers who lived over an ordinary-reality span of 300 years or so during the often so-called and variously defined Golden Age of Greek Philosophy, a period that is also often defined in reference to the life of Socrates.
The areas I wish to explore in ancient Greece are still variously roped, gated, or fenced off but the shamanic journeying portal vehicle shapeshifts various all-terrain features as needed. I am moved by Spirit and Spirits to stand fast and wait longer - before attempting to storm through.
Within this transitional, border realm I have been - for several non-ordinary days and nights- conferring and negotiating with an enigmatic 'Pre-Socratic' guy who seems to bridge the Mythological and Pre-Socratic ages. Even though I appear to be detained, as if I present a problem to the beings within, I already sense beneficial, freeing shifts in my everyday thoughts, emotions, and attitudes around the modern false stoicism, cynicism, and skepticism I keep encountering journeying the WWW or city's narrow streets, the intention of this extended shamanic journey and dreaming. I must be receiving gifts in secret while I rest here.
During the latest episode of shamanic dreaming I found myself startled awake in the dream, shocked to find myself (my 'self') floating and treading liquid in the fatal dose of Hemlock consumed by Socrates! Myth or fact, this poison and decision to swallow must be - for me, somehow - a remedy and a key.
Photo by Georgios Pazios (User:Alaniaris) from Wikipedia
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Historical shamanic dream-journeying to ancient Greece continues
Oct. 17th, 2008 | 06:49 am
In my dreams... A deep distant ancestor appears on the non-ordinary border territory where I am still detained and entertained and remonstrates with Pherecydes, my challenger and would-be guide. I have not determined the gender of this rainbow-cloaked personage, also a traveler, who seems to be vouching for me and the Shamantic! spirit-team.
Now that I am awake to ordinary-reality I understand that permission for passage has been granted for a new shamanic-journey attempt to visit and converse with the original Stoics, Skeptics, and Cynics, the intent of this attitude-shifting shamanic excursion. Pherecydes and the Mystery-Advocate will both be guiding us into ancient Greece, to Athens soon. But at this moment I am distracted by wondering over the identity of the rainbow-cloaked Mystery-Advocate.
This is a shamanic journey and a shamanic dreaming not a Bible story or RPG experience, so the powers of the rainbow cloak may go beyond what I have heard of or imagined. I sense and suppose that this seamless garment is a connection to extraordinary non-ordinary potentials and possibilities. I notice pulsing from the lightning-struck journeying stick I customarily bring - which is both two and one and two in one stick(s) - a gift-treasure from the non-ordinary peoples who danced with me and the Shamantic! spirit-team on an extended series of shamanic-journeys in 2002-2003 into the non-ordinary reality of the land of the General Mitchell International Airport (GMIA) in Milwaukee, WI (MKE).
When this lighting-stuck stick pulses I know transforming and healing power is being transferred and released around the shamanic journeying intention for me, for us, and for all interconnecting beings, places, events, and situations. I am certain that this threshold will be crossed soon, but of course this will not be the only boundary or edge separating me and the ancient Philosophers I am hoping and desiring to consult. Today I will study these philosophers and their teachings more in ordinary reality, while I wait for the right spacetime coordinates and resonances to open the shamanic portal-vehicle again for so I can continue this shamanic adventure.
It is unusual for me to be held up for even this matter of a few days during a shamanic journey process. So I know I have much to re-balance and restore in this past. During a shamanic journey much can be cleared up and re-balanced symbolically without much need for intellectualizing, Background education gives Spirit and Spirits more to play with and is a way of making an energy-offering and demonstrating respect.
Credit:
Image from Wikipedia
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Shamanic journeying to the Athenian Golden Age, continued
Oct. 13th, 2008 | 03:07 pm
A Challenge of Sorts: But there is a delay. I am still negotiating, on the outskirts of this non-ordinary land, with a prospective guide for me and Spirit-Team Shamantic! for there is no Athenian Golden Age specialist spirit among us. The challenger and potential guide appears to be Pherecydes of Syros. He seems to be a mysterious, tricky, mystical type of fellow who looks a lot like the guy in this picture - and through a game of clues he spelled out PHERECYDES.
At first the letters were to be written in Classical Greek (which I did take up in college) but after I couldn't finish spelliing the name this 'shaman-philosopher' took pity and compassionately switched to the Latin-English alphabet. Only after I - with the help of several spirit-team helpers - discovered the letters of his name would he converse with me. This letter-game challenge began during the shamanic journey but continued into shamanic dreaming later.
The equivalent of a spirit-realms reference, background, and credit check is being done on me to determine if a spirit-visa into the Athenian Golden Age will be granted. Yes I am somewhat lacking in spiritual companionship in this non-ordinary realm - or perhaps I have unwittingly offended someone here!
So I am doing my best to wait patiently and respectfully: I expect to have to jump through some hoops - not flaming hoops I hope. I am also requesting red-tape cutting tools from my spirit-helpers and deeper research into connections to other spirits who might help our cause at this gateway. Let this adventure go on a ways!
Image credit: Wikimedia Commons
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Shamanic-journey to the original Stoics, Skeptics, and Cynics
Oct. 8th, 2008 | 10:41 am
Preparing for a shamanic-journey into history: After noticing many pseudo-sarcastic and pseudo-cynical comments and mini-reviews, at StumbleUpon and Digg for examples, after noticing more effete whinings and inchoate grumblings around the WWW than I usually do - which I would call grammar-less philistinian spewings, instances of witless rudeness, and chronic complainings, undifferentiated type, rather than smartly dashed-off mini-rants - I felt and witnessed my inner state of being shifitng from sad, incredudulous, exasperation towards resigned yet happy stoicism. Let go and get going. Live and let live. (This common, old, pedestrian slogan can never become banal, IMO - I mean imHo.)
So then I decided to journey back to the Golden Age of Philosophy and gain direct insights from the inventers of open-ended wondering and speculating...about what is, what we know, how we know, and how to live. I understand that whatever I notice, whatever seems to distract me, is really LIFE attempting to lighten me up - and I want to get a grip on this knowledge!
I am preparing my shamanic-journeying portal for this non-ordinary middle-realm excursion into our 'western' history carefully. My preparations may take a 2 o4 3 days and include more background reading. I must wait to be guided to the best symbols that I have here besides pictures and books. Yet I may be surprised by Spirit and Spirits and spontaneously dream-journey part of the way tonight.
I can hardly believe that I have never shamanic-journeyed to Socrates, or Plato and Aristotle, or the original Stoics, Skeptics and Cynics!
Image: Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain
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Ready...get set...GO..."Big Bang" experiment!
Aug. 27th, 2008 | 12:34 am
Hi! This was a test of the blog-it tool at Digg before I edited it and added on....a test post about a mini-universal test soon to begin. Avoid those stray micro black holes!
"Tests have cleared the way for the start-up next month of an experiment to restage a mini-version underground of the "Big Bang" which created the universe 15 billion years ago, the project chief said on Monday..."
read more | digg story
"Tests have cleared the way for the start-up next month of an experiment to restage a mini-version underground of the "Big Bang" which created the universe 15 billion years ago, the project chief said on Monday..."
read more | digg story
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How strange...an imaginary mirror tree!
Aug. 16th, 2008 | 10:30 am
Imagine A Mirror Tree!
Sculpture in progress by ECP, August 2008
Imagine a mirror tree!
Imagine...wandering into a forest of trash dunes and urban driftwood wands
and city-beachcombiing for a day of unstructured fun....
then, after hours, suddenly coming upon
A mirror tree with a lantern - how strange, how wondrous -
enlightening
WHAT...?
The next quick question, a new old direction, a momentary disturbance of the forces of be-ing,
a dissolution of a fearful throught's worth of reality binding
glue...
and one leaping renewal spark of COURAGE!
OK, go back...run home now....enough fun for today,
but please retrun...soon,
as soon as an instant instance of idle innocent imagining flows and fires up under
foot!
by ECP
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Shifting purpose and mission for Companions Circle
Jun. 30th, 2008 | 08:45 am
Visions and messages of more drastic than usual changes are becoming or seeming more probable: I am being shown pictures and sung songs by Spirit and Spirits in the summer tree branches and leaves, hinting that the purpose and mission of Companions Circle - Shamanic Shift Center here in Milwaukee is shifting radically. I am percieving a new purpose and mission and maybe a move, though probably not a physical move from this rented space.
There has always been a calling to incarnate a 'circle church' here - but not an institution, not even a tiny one, and not an authority-source, not even a flexible one. So why live as a circle-church at all and why live here?
The underground and emerging 'church' paradigms did attract me in years long past, but only fleetingly as I realized that whatever I am being called to (and now whatever is called for here) is more subtle and even farther off the mainstreams of religion, spirituality, and community. It is also flowing away from the newer mainstreams of spirituality and religion, including the western revival of shamanic ways.
This energy-flow spirals into new territory at a new-fangled angle. This energy-pattern and mission is leaning farther and further out and away from even the alternative mainstreams of the 'post-' and 'new' and 'complementary and 'alternative' and 'emerging''.
Will this dream-seed that has been growing skyward and earthward and spreading gradually here really shift and pull up roots and walk onward instead of just bending and swaying at this crossroads? I do not know yet if this is a message these new shamanic sights and sounds are vibrating between earth and winds, interpreted and passed along to me by the trees around here. I seem to be hearing 'stay' and 'go' at once!
I must gaze and listen longer to understand these messages.
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June shifts at Shamanic Shift Center - Milwaukee WI
Jun. 6th, 2008 | 09:23 am
June shifts: The Friday 7PM Shamanic Circle resumes with a purpose-shift...community and global transformation towards the best rather than individual healing issues. The circle will continue to be for shamanic shifting of reality through contemporary, adapted, and innovative shamanic ways - not any traditional or aboriginal shamanisms. A few more circles will be study and discussion circles instead of ceremonial circles and there will still be occasional special activities related to our purpose and mission.
Is this an open circle? The Friday night circle is 'open' to contemporary shamanizers who are in resonance with our community and global shamanic shifting purpose and mission, who call or email ahead every week by Thursday to pre-register. Elizabeth and a non-ordinary reality/cyberspace circle of 20 or more do circle around for our intentions every week whether or not the Friday night circle gathers in materially-energetic spacetime on the east side of Milwaukee WI. So if you cannot form and stick to a strong enough intention to call or email ahead to attend the ordinary reality Friday shamanic circle, just intend and attend circling around wherever you are, as you are, through whatever you are doing.
And...On weeks when no one has called to pre-register by Thursday there will likely be no formal, ordinary reality Friday night shamanic circle, although Elizabeth and the non-ordinary/cyberspace circle will meet as usual. Shamanic Shift Center's Friday circle is 'ad hoc' (on purpose) and more informal than many circles (by design), but intention, attention, and follow-though are essential to effective shamanizing anyway, so pre-registering is mandatory.
Please do not just 'show up' in person at the last moment 'just in case' there might a formal circle because others set aside spacetime in their schedules for shamanizing in circle and called or emailed ahead. From attending shamanic circles over the years I know I am not the only shamanic circle facilitator around the Milwaukee area who has found that only one or two individuals can consistantly set aside these particles and waves of matter, energy, and spacetime for shamanizing before they get overbooked.
True...the 'Hey let's go for it!' at the last minute approach works ok with some spiritual methods, especially larger group unifying activities such as Kirtan (which is also often available in our neighborhood) and in many individual shamanic moments (for someone who lives on purpose). I have learned that the 'last minute' attitude does not help me to host a shamanic circle effectively so I will insist upon pre-registration even if this policy results in Shamanic Shift Center's ordinary realtiy circle staying tiny.
What is happening with Shamanic Shift Center's Milwaukee mission contradicts several of my earlier expectations, assumptions, and opinions...and I am happy to be surprised. The non-ordinary-cyber-and-longer-distan
Connecting: Visit our monthly events and updates weblog for information. Open an email conversation. Call 414-289-8661.
Also: The Rev. Elizabeth is an ambassador for the Gaia Community again. Join us at Gaia too!
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Considering what I am bottling up and sending every day
Mar. 5th, 2008 | 09:03 am
As I stroll the windswept dunes I notice
many message-less bottles,
tossed away by who knows who,
who used to be living somewhere, but who knows where...
to float and roll around our world almost forever!
So many message-less bottles!
The circumstances behind and before the whys
and hows and the "Who cares?" of their coming
to rest before my feet and eyes
among crypto-crystals and macro-weeds
began tingling the depths and edges of my imagination...
Almost half full with murkey water...yet
almost two thirds empty with air and mystery...
That silly thought paused me
long enough on the garbage strewn sands
to begin to dream and hear many faint and clear unbottled messages!
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Universal shamanics - parascientific or transpersonal or both or beyond?
Feb. 6th, 2008 | 08:27 am
Universal shamanics - Universal shamanics is all shamanisms and shamanic ways beyond boundaries, traditions, and systems (that nevertheless are lived within the context of boundaries, traditions, and systems). Universal shamanics are lived open-endedly by some who simply must live them, in the fringes and on the edges of all current fields and disciplines of philosophy, science, and art without 'belief' or belief-systems taking hold. Spirituality and religion develop in the wake of a shaman-shamanizer living new shamanics, bridging spacetime and mystery. The waves of the wake left behind by the shaman's boat sailing away also mean what happens after the funeral of the shaman.
Ages ago the religious arguments began...and continue...so many, too many, futile attempts to define (make finite) what is always and all ways much more than the highest order of infinity...probably because defining is one of Ourkind's natural quirks - or gifts - another side-effect or by-product of human language development, isurviving patterns encoded in genome and culture, passed generation to generatiion. I am actively, purposefully supposing that the parascientific might fall anywhere along the continuum that ranges from pre-rational magical thinking through frontier paradigm-shifting science and on through the trans-rational (which is supposed to include and go beyond science and reason). It will stay difficult, IMO, if not impossible to tell which is which for quite a while. So I keep allowing for overlapping and interlinking...and I keep experimenting.
A shamanizer must grasp all of the above (and below). A shamanizer must grasp it all yet let it all go...and flow.
Both/and! The transpersonal (or spiritual) and the pre-rational (or 'magical thinking' as superstition) and everything between all may be hardwired into Ourkind's brainy consciousness by Nature's evolutionary processes. Or maybe these features and talents of human nature are mental-emotional software we develop. A universal shaman must incorporate as much of this continuum as possible (and many continuums woven together) and perform 'shamanics' in resonance with each audience and spectator to catalyze the most beneficial life-shifting potentials and possibilites for the best to happen - now and next.
And/or magical-spiritual experience may be - or someday be demonstrated to be concrete and the mysterious will be explained out of shamanic. Probably part of mystery will be explained and more will remain mysterious. But there is no need for the realms of the shamans in this multi-universe to be anything more (or less) than Dreaming and Imagining. Cousin-Grandma Teal teaches that ecstatic imagining and purposeful dreaming shift reality so effectively that miracles appear - appear to happen (to be explained in scientific terms later) or appear mysteriously (unexplained yet or fully unexplainable). Either way, shamanzing works - and plays - wonders.
Shamantic! (and Cousin-Grandma Teal) teach that 'miracles' - and signs and wonders - may be the ultimate extraordinary building blocks of natural ordinary reality!
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Mini-mult-media shamanics and science class
Jan. 29th, 2008 | 08:46 pm
So far an experiment I started recently is going well...As the calendar new year turned I decided to teach shamanic ways in a separate class only to those few to several who were able to demonstrate enough enthusiasm and committment to the project in advance to convince me to go ahead with it. I am continuing to develop my interviewing and testing process for selecting participants. The class is meeting 'secret school' style so I won't tell much detail.
Mini-multi-media? I have educational entertaining DVDs and CDs but only a laptop screen and portable stereo here. I have been rather old fashioned for a while. Still, there are plenty of percussion instruments and scarves and pillows...and plenty of art and costuming supplies...as well as a stove and refrigerator.
Shamanics and science: We will explore all topics through the methods of both shamanics and science in turns. Tonight's presentation was exciting for me - and for the class too as far as I can know - and we ate biscuits too.
Old fashioned: I included this weird photo from imageAfter.Com because it reminds me of the first TV my family owned. I used to watch both the electric and reflected pictures superimposed in that screen too because it sat in the glare from the floor to cieling glass patio doors. But of course that first TV in my life was black and white.
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My shamanism of wonder, wondering, questioning, and questing...and what else?
Jan. 4th, 2008 | 10:02 am
I don't know what this picture is showing me. It looks a little like a meteorite...but of course it isn't. So far I know this is a photo of a rock...of Earth minerals...which I could make educated guesses about. It also shows me another wonderful mystery...and a sample of sacrament (outward, visible, material 'container' of Spirit and Spirits also made of Spirit and Spirits incarnating)...and a reminder of last night's Quadrantids and Aurora Borealis. This photograph shows a beautiful chunk of 'What Is' that could be investigated and interrogated for more wisdom, knowledge, and understanding...or simply enjoyed in joy.
Ecstatically living in wonder and wondering...and questioning and questing on through inward shamanic and outward scientific ways is my shamanism, essentially. Now and then I begin considering how I might advertise the shamanic circle and my shamanic practice differently, to indicate better what my shamanism is...and is not. I haven't found or received the right words yet.
Update:
Characteristics of my shamanism...not in order of importance......and not implying that I live up to them either...
- Ecstatic imagining
- Living inside out, upside-down, and backwards on purpose
- Knowing light through the darkness
- Radical earth-universe centered incarnating
- Co-creative and re-creative dreaming and shapeshifting
- Acknowledging all as interconnecting and wholing
- Questioning and Questing...Quest-I-On!
- Adventuring and returning to sing and tell
- Outward funning and prophetic pretending...inward FUNning (fun & freedom unfurling universal unity new now) and alchemical changing...and shifting reality for the better and toward the best
- Indiviudal direct experiencing
- Spiritual companionship of two or three or more sacred circling and flowing attention and energy around an agreed upon intention at any living crossroads...of self, cyberspace, spacetime, soul, all the way to mystery
- Facing fear, besting challenges, traveling with Trickster, and dancing with Death
- Accessing unlimited potential and infinite possibilities through all ways, ordinary and non-ordinary, inward and outward...all beings, places, situations, and events...all doors, windows, roads, and modes...all realms, directions, quadrants, scales, levels, dimensions, orders, and processes
My shamanism has as little to do as possible with any specific aboriginal or indigenous tribal shamanisms, religions, spiritualities, or traditions or with any organized or even loosely organized religions or religious movements of any kind, whether mainstream or alternative, eastern or western, popular (or unpopular) or esoteric, new or old.
I do my best to keep my shamanic practice childlike...and avoid seriousity. Now and then I begin to grow serious over all the serious shamansims I notice in the world. So I know seriousness is an important challenge for me to best.
Now and then I grow sad over how few folks I seem to be able to help. Discouragement is a key challenge on my shamanic journey as I get better at detaching from outcomes I may never know of.
I unabashedly embrace both foolish and cyber- shamanism.
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Cyber-shamanic connection changes happening
Dec. 17th, 2007 | 05:23 pm
Ordinary reality change tonight: I finally chose wireless over the land-line...and tonight my voice-service phone number, the one advertised on fliers, business cards, and the websites, is being ported over to a wireless phone...and more significantly, I will be saying 'thank-you and good-bye' to the professional speed DSL service. I chose wide ranging mobility over top speeds...and I will be connecting to the internet through a wireless card from early tomorrow AM on...at speeds ranging from faster dial-up to indistinguishable from DSL depending upon my location and the condition of the network. Shamans stay connected while traveling, so this change fits in with my vocation.
I will miss the seeming instantaneity I have enjoyed. But I can always go to a WIFI hot spot if I need a faster connection because my only computer is a laptop which came with WIFI capability built in. With the wireless card I will be thrilled to be able to continue online shamanizing while visiting my folks in Madison WI, which I am making a point to do more and more often these days.
This evening I am going to download ahead a collection of great pictures from ImageAfter.Com to illustrate future blogging. While I traveled in California this last October I got amazingly great reception in Davis and even better in San Francisco...but so-so reception in Sonoma. Slower connecting teaches me planning and patience, I tell myself. I am excited, looking forward to disconnecting the mass of cords and cables behind this makeshift desk. (It is an organized mass, not a mess, but it isn't pretty.)