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July 7, 2002

SPIRITUAL AMBITION: THE MADNESS OF THE NEW AGE

A few years ago during a weeklong workshop, three participants who were troubled about the seating arrangements in the room approached me to complain that they were not getting the most out of the workshop, all because of where they sat. They had been sitting in the back of the room for the first three days of the workshop, and now they felt that the people in the front row should change places with them. At first I didn't know what to say. Was I supposed to agree with them? And if I did, how in the world was I going to approach a group of adults and tell them to pick up their papers and move to the back of the class? I finally told the three of them that if they felt this way, they should share their feelings with the front row crowd and work something out. I sort of felt like that was an Ann Landers type of answer, but anything else would have made me feel like a grade school teacher. I didn't know if anything would come of their interaction, but after lunch, this trio confronted--and it did become a confrontation--the "front row" crowd, expressing their feelings that it wasn't fair that they had to spend the entire week in the back of the room. A compromise was struck, with the understanding that the next day the seating arrangement would be reversed. The next day came, and almost no one in the front row had moved to the back. So much for compromise and compassion.

WELCOME TO THE WITNESS PROGRAM

Perhaps "enjoyment," in the passive sense of sitting back with a bag of popcorn to watch the latest Hollywood thriller, isn't quite the right word either. What I'm really talking about is the excitement that comes of being involved in creative effort, whether it's writing a poem or screenplay, singing in a chorus, cooking a great meal, or building a pond in your backyard. Those activities all take effort, but when you're involved, it doesn't feel like work. One of my favorite spiritual exercises is an ancient practice developed by the Indian tradition known as Vedanta. It has been described in detail by great Hindu saints such as Ramana Maharshi, but in essence it's a simple practice. In any situation, you have the option of allowing yourself to be completely caught up in the action without much consciousness. Let's say somebody cuts you off in traffic or a bank teller gives you a hard time about some minor detail--like getting your money out of the bank! You can give in to your anger and frustration, start yelling and cursing, or maybe express your displeasure in some other way. Or you can step back and look at the scene in front of you with detachment. The person who cut you off or the bank teller from hell may be having a really bad day themselves. On the other hand, this may be a constant thing with them; maybe they get a charge out of irritating other people and feeling powerful for the moment. It really doesn't matter which it is. What does matter is your level of awareness as this is happening. By stepping back and witnessing what is going on -- with detachment rather than heated involvement -- you first of all allow yourself a moment to breathe and let your own anger simmer down to a manageable level. You might even take a deep breath or two. People in our parents' generation sometimes said they were going to count to ten as a way of containing their anger. That's not so far off, although what I'm proposing requires a higher level of awareness.

TAKE A BREATHER

Just now I mentioned the value of taking a deep breath when things get rough. We sometimes do this almost instinctively, and there's a good reason for that. When we're under stress, whether it's emotional or physical, we tend to breathe rapidly and shallowly, almost hyperventilating. But by breathing deeply, we take the air down into the lower part of the lungs, which triggers a kind of tranquilizing effect on the body. Monks and yoga practitioners who train themselves to breathe this way for long periods of time experience prolonged feelings of tranquility and peace. But even 10 or 15 minutes of this kind of breathing can calm the mind and body. You don't necessarily have to do yoga or any other physical movement. In fact, just sitting still, in a chair or on the floor, is the best way to get into this deeply relaxed state.

MAINTAINING A POSITIVE AMBITION

Ambition, as I said earlier, may be a good thing in certain arenas of life, as long as it's kept under control. I mean, those guys who ran companies like Enron, Tyco, and WorldCom were certainly ambitious, but their ambition outran their ethics and their sense of decency. The people who grab the front-row seats at workshops are ambitious in an external way, too, but their secret ambition, as I explained, is really to avoid a head-on experiential encounter with the gale force winds of the Divine. The kinds of exercises I've been passing along here require a kind of positive ambition -- the ambition to stay conscious in the midst of trying circumstances. This calls for a strong will, but not necessarily "hard work" as most of us understand it.

And with that, I'm off to visit my ancestral homeland of Poland. I have no idea what to expect there, but you can be sure I'll have something to say about it after I'm back. I'm still interested in hearing your thoughts on what patriotism means to you, whether you thought of yourself as a "patriot" before 9/11, and the other questions I put out at the close of last month's Salon. And I'd also like to hear whether the kinds of exercises I'm asking you to experiment with are helpful on your journey.

Till I return, and with much love,
Caroline

Sacred Contracts Training

For her first ever weeklong workshop at the Omega Institute, Caroline Myss has designed an intensive training program that will offer an unprecedented level of in-depth, hands-on work based on her book Sacred Contracts. Unlike previous one-day or weekend workshops, the September intensive will give participants the unique experience of going on a journey of transformation with Caroline and a hand-picked team of co-teachers, each of whom brings to the workshop a unique gift in a different arena of consciousness. The overall focus will be on interactive work with individual teachers and between workshop participants to create an unparalleled experience of inner growth.

James Lawley and Penny Tompkins are the authors of Metaphors in Mind: Transformation through Symbolic Modelling. Using a series of practical exercises, James and Penny will invite participants to discover how our Sacred Contract manifests through our unconscious use of metaphor and the symbolic patterns of our language and behavior. Awareness of metaphors in our everyday speech can be a doorway to understanding the personal nature of our archetypes and how they evolve. By recognizing the patterns of our symbolic language, we become free to make choices that are more closely aligned with our Sacred Contract.

Peter Occhiogrosso has been a professional writer for more than 30 years. He has written or co-authored more than a dozen books on world religions, spirituality, and healing, including The Joy of Sects, and has worked closely with Caroline for the past five years. Building on his popular online writing course, Peter will initiate participants into the step-by-step process of creating a journalistic profile of one or more key archetypes, showing how to "interview" an archetype and follow its impact through the course of our lives. By dividing life into seven-year stages, we learn to align each stage with the area of consciousness regulated by its corresponding chakra, as well as the role a given archetype plays in each stage. The result is a deeply involving, hands-on method of working with the archetypal energies that help us fulfill our Sacred Contracts.

Lynn Bell is one of Europe's leading astrologers, and has taught and lectured throughout the world. Author of Planetary Threads and co-author of The Mars Quartet, she lives and practices in Paris, and is a regular teacher at the Centre for Psychological Astrology in London. Drawing on her expertise in psychological astrology, she will provide further insight into the dynamics of the Archetypal Wheel, and how the placements of different archetypes in specific houses interact with each other. Lynn will also discuss the ten basic planetary energies that link different archetypes into families. How do we shift from one archetypal position to the other? What fuels the movement within the Wheel? How do these cosmic principles help in the fulfillment of our Sacred Contract? Addressing these questions and more through active exercises will help participants gain a richer and more profound understanding of their archetypes.

Discover the relationship between the chakras and our spiritual path;
Understand the significance of archetypal imagery in our everyday life; and
Learn how to cast archetypal charts to help with issues ranging from work and relationships to health and spiritual direction.
Arrival/Departure Information: Plan to arrive for check-in on Sunday between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. for an 8 p.m. orientation session. Workshop begins at 9 a.m. Monday morning. Housing begins Sunday night. Meals begin with breakfast on Monday morning and end with lunch on Friday. Dinner is not included on Sunday night; you may purchase light meals and snacks at the Omega Cafe upon your arrival. Commuters may check in from 8 a.m. to 8:45 a.m. Monday morning. Workshop ends Friday at noon. You must be checked out of your room by 9 a.m. on Friday. Depart after lunch. Please note: Workshop schedules are subject to change; further information will be given in your confirmation letter.

Course: 4205-949
September 9, 2002 - September 13, 2002
Rhinebeck Campus: Rhinebeck, NY (US)
Price: $695.00

What Price Includes: Price above is for tuition only. See the housing and meals page for housing/commuter information and fees. See the travel directions page for information on transportation services.

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Join Caroline on the Island of Crete & Greece

Departing October 18th, 2002 with Power Places Tours and Conferences

"Traveling to the Power Places of our planetary community is a way of replenishing our spirit with the vitality of life. Going with Power Places Tours has reminded me that spirituality can be enjoyable and pleasurable. I invite you to take this last opportunity to come travel with me as I will not be doing travel programs next year."
Love,
Caroline

Join Caroline on the sun-kissed Island of Crete, famous for sparking and shimmering sandy beaches. Indulge your body as well as your soul! Luxuriate at your spectacular 5 star deluxe beach-front resort with a nearby European health and beauty spa. Where better to study your own powers and discover your Divine Potential through Sacred Contracts that Crete, where healing traditions stretch back to times lost between history and myth.