A few days ago it was the anniversary of the ‘continuation’ of Thich Nhat Hanh — affectionately known as ‘Thay’, (teacher) — Zen Master to some, Ascended Master to others. In any case, a very significant being whose whole life was a teaching – both in his books and talks and in the way he lived.
I thought it was an appropriate time to post this video — one of many thankyou Age of You Tube! — that reminds us that power is in the present moment. Thay shows us that just by taking one mindful breath we can arrive ‘home’ to ourselves. Much as the technological age is useful in many ways (like being able to listen to Thay’s teachings) it is also a thief of consciousness.
If you are glued to a screen, then you are not in the present moment and you have lost the chance to be aware of yourself, what is happening round you and, more importantly, what you can do about it!
There are so many reasons to be out of it these days, but if we are to have a chance at taking back the world then we need to be in it – and, more particularly, in our bodies.
It might seem all very well to advise people to be in their bodies and in the moment when that moment is horribly painful. I acknowledge that this may very well seem impossible to some, so I’d like to offer an alternative.
For me, just watching Thay and hearing him speaking puts me into a very calm, relaxed and more mindful state. So, if you can’t be in your body and experiencing that painful moment right now, why not find Thay on You Tube instead?
His presence is still available through these talks and interviews and, as his followers would tell you, in many other places! We’re damn lucky to have it – so exploit that free resource. You’ll feel a lot better right in that moment — and that’s what it’s all about!
Have you noticed that a lot of people you see on the street don’t seem aware of their surroundings – and not just because they are walking along with their head in their mobile phone!
Dan and I call them Bubble People, not that you’re allowed to call anyone anything these days 😉 but nevertheless, I think it’s quite a good way to describe them. The idea is that they live in a very small bubble that only includes themselves – and maybe their other half, or their children (but not always!)
In conversation, you might notice that they only talk about themselves. They appear to have no interest in what you’re doing or how you’re feeling. You sometimes wonder whether they’d notice if you suddenly sprouted horns! 😉
But this isn’t a rant against Bubble People. After all, it’s not really their fault. They have just got caught up in an energy field that is very prevalent these days. Smartphones and social media encourage us to lose ourselves. Literally. In the same way as we lose ourselves in a TV programme or film, we can lose ourselves in constant scrolling. It’s a kind of addiction and very easy to do, so I’m not preaching as I’m no exception and have to keep a watchful eye on myself at all times!
As humans, it is in our nature to seek out and explore, so scrolling Facebook or Instagram on our devices plays into this. Even watching a film can take us into a different world and there is so much incentive to get away from reality, especially at the moment!
There is nothing wrong with watching tv or using social media but try to be more mindful about what it is doing to you. Try to notice when you are using an activity as a kind of addictive substitute for an undefinable something else.
When you seek to escape reality by not being present in the moment and not fully experiencing things, it has the unfortunate side-effect of making you feel less secure which can increase anxiety. Whereas, being fully aware and in control, actually helps you feel more secure.
It won’t necessarily be a conscious process, ironically, (as humans are a complex mixture of subconscious and conscious patterning) but on a deeper level your body will feel more secure and adjust accordingly.
After all, the body is physical. Yes you have other ‘bodies’ – the mental spiritual and emotional ‘bodies’ but the one that is in charge of your complex hormonal and homeostatic systems is pretty important too, so you need to pay attention to its needs.
So, yes, it’s easy to be a Bubble Person, even for short amounts of time, but what us non-full-timers can do to help is be as present and aware as possible. That’s more easily said than done of course, as so much of what we do is autopilot; making tea, doing the shopping, taking the kids to school etc. But what if you used those things that you do every day as a way to practice being more present?
An easy way to start is every time you have a hot drink be conscious of filling the kettle, rather than doing it while thinking of something else. Take each sip mindfully, and if your mind wanders off, don’t be discouraged, just bring it back. (You’re bound to get lots of practice at that! – but it’s not a bad thing.)
Being more consciously aware of what we do (even in small ways) can help us to become more grounded and then, in turn, demonstrate that for other people.
You might think others don’t care or notice what you do, or don’t do, but subconsciously they are picking up the change in your energy. As with critical mass, the more of us that are fully present, the more we will trigger other people to do the same.
So, the next time you realise you’re on automatic pilot, stop for a minute and come back to full conscious awareness. You might be surprised what a difference it makes.
If you’ve been surfing anywhere in the metaverse you will have come across talk of ascension – something, we should all be aspiring to because, apparently, all the world actually needs is for humanity to ‘rise up.’
Isn’t that great? Take a look at humanity. There are a lot of good people in the world, but do you actually see them ‘rising up?’ No, neither do I. It would take a miracle. And if you’ve been watching the world over the last few decades you’ll realise we are about all out of those!
But what about God? Angels and archangels. Higher vibrational beings. Aliens from outer space. Are they helping us at all? Well, yes, actually. There are a ton of higher vibrational energies being directed at earth and have been for a while.
All sorts of beings are working to raise the vibration of earth and trying to help humanity, which is great. Unfortunately, there seems to be a problem.
These helpful energies are bouncing off, or getting stuck, before they can ground down into the lower and more physical vibrations. And why is that? Well, suffice it to say that unfortunately, good is not the only energy out there!
That is a problem, because in order to manifest things into the world we need to bring our visions down from the clouds of our imagination to a level where they can become physical.
We might all have a ‘higher self’ but ultimately we’re here in physical bodies. So we need help at the physical level. And quite frankly, if all we’re doing is thinking about attuning to higher vibrations and how to ascend, then we’re doing the wrong thing!
I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with tuning in to higher vibrational energies and beings, but on its own, it’s just all too airy fairy to do any actual physical good.
I realise this might all sound rather negative and yes I am absolutely having a rant, but never fear, there is some very good news!
The energies that the planet and its people need in order to become more enlightened as a species are already waiting for us. And instead of ‘rising up’ to meet them, we need to pull them down — or ground them in — to our level.
Imagine them as balloons. If we float up to meet them, we can hang there in the sky, being about as helpful as a chocolate teapot, but if we grab their strings and pull them down, then all that peace, love and pure intent can manifest through us into the physical world.
So if you really want to do some good in the world, for god’s sake don’t float off into the ether. It might be nice up there but it’s a total cop out. The world needs you and it needs you down here, in the present moment, in your physical body acting as a grounding force for these wonderful energies that are being directed at the planet.
There’s nothing to say you can’t pop out and in and take an occasional trip in a balloon 😉 but at the end of the day you came to earth for a physical experience and earth needs you here and present to usher in the new age of love and light, that everyone is talking about.
So, walk barefoot on the earth, go on a digital detox, be mindful and conscious of being in your body. Tune into those wonderful energies hovering over the planet and deliberately draw them down onto the planet where they are so desperately needed.
One word of warning however — not all the energies aimed at the planet are as pure they ought to be — so use your discernment. If you are absolutely sure what you are grounding in, then do it.
If not, you can help by staying as grounded as possible in your physical body. We all watch TV and scroll mindlessly on our phones, but be aware, and try to keep it down.
Do more exercise, go out in nature, don’t spend every minute looking at a screen (she says while typing – but bear with me!) and, above all, try to be mindful of being in your body and in the present moment.
This is what the world needs right now. Tempting as it is to just float off away from everything, hang on in there and you can help humanity usher in a new age.
The last few months have been absolutely frantic for Dan and I as we have gone back to being students of a new healing modality called D codes. This has been a wonderful learning curve and added a new dimension to our healing work. It hasn’t been easy though. The energy demands although they weren’t huge, were enough to send me into complete overwhelm after week 1!
This meant that I couldn’t interact or engage as much as I would have liked and as time crept on, the pressure only increased what with the course being shortened by a month halfway through, and assessments coming upon us faster than we had anticipated.
Now, as every good D coder knows, you need to be flexible enough to roll with change. And yes, we rolled accordingly – but outside of D-codes other demands and responsibilities were piling up even higher and heavier than before.
By mid-January, I emerged from overwhelm enough to throw myself into the last four weeks of the course. I learnt a s##t ton and thoroughly enjoyed the experience, but it was a massive relief when it ended. Woo hoo and FREEDOM!
Except – NOPE! – outside pressures were still nearly flattening us and then… war started up. Wow! By this time, I was squashed flat under the weight of circumstances and the horrific events happening in the outside world just made it worse. As for feeling free… it was a very distant memory.
However, I had been listening to various You Tube talks by Thich Nhat Hanh during this time and was very aware of my lack of meditation practice and the need to get grounded and back to the present moment.
He advocates something called walking meditation; walking slowly and deliberately, in silence, feeling the ground under your feet. On one of our local walks there was a time when Dan was talking but I (for once!) was not. Yes folks, it can happen! Anyway – I decided to concentrate on taking one step at a time and appreciating the world around me, instead of letting my mind (or mouth!) wander.
I was 4 steps in when I got distracted. Yes I am a terrible student of mindfulness! 😉 BUT that’s all it took for me to notice a difference. Thich Nhat Hanh was right. Freedom is possible if you dwell in the present moment, rather than the past or the future. Somehow in those few moments of mindfully taking each step I experienced the feeling of pure and absolute freedom. It was a revelation!
It was the understanding that right in that present moment – “the only moment” as ‘Thay’ would tell us – that I realised that nothing else existed. Not my worries about the future, or the heavy weight I was carrying – not my criticisms of self, or the stress of the world situation. Right in that moment I was completely free. And every time I wanted to feel that, I just had to be present for the next moment, and the one after that and the – wait – was that a squirrel?!
But anyway, the great thing about the present moment is that you can keep coming back to it over and over again and something like walking, which is repetitive, can help to remind you to return back to it with each step.
For all the Buddhists and mindfulness students out there, this may not be news! But for me it was an ephiphany. Freedom was right there within my grasp all the time. However heavy the burdens you carry, however big your problems, you can still escape it all for a moment, in each moment, in every moment.
When we exist in the present moment, we are completely free. It is what some might call the zero point field. The space where everything exists as potential and everything is possible. That is the true nature of reality.
It’s hard to remember when things are tough, so get into the habit of including some mindful steps when you’re out and about; it’s an easy way to connect with self and with the limitless field of potential that you really are.
Multi-Dimensional Healing 