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Dogboy
USA
2195 Posts |
 Posted - Feb 23 2018 : 5:01:01 PM
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 keep being you! |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Feb 24 2018 : 04:45:42 AM
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Yes, I think I'll celebrate the I-ness.  |
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lalow33
USA
966 Posts |
Posted - Feb 24 2018 : 7:05:57 PM
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Cody,
It's challenge time! I challenge you to pick up a perspective of someone you disagree with for at least 3 days. If you agree, I'll do the same.
Nevermind. It's something I need to do. I choose my youngest sister, which you have heard about. |
Edited by - lalow33 on Feb 24 2018 8:33:01 PM |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Feb 24 2018 : 11:34:59 PM
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| Hmmm...interesting. I shall marinate upon the thought experiment. |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Mar 08 2018 : 11:37:16 AM
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It's Our Time
https://www.codyrickett.com/single-...Its-Our-Time
What is an emotion? Is it where the intangible mind meets the physical body? Is it an energetic substance produced by the heart space? Is it something vital to life--like the elements of earth, water, fire, or air?
One time I was sitting on the train tracks, waiting for a text response from a girl I had asked out on a date. I remember how much the suspense was killing me. If only she would say yes. If only my wishes would come true. If only...
Well, she did say yes, and the date turned into a relationship, but in a matter of a few months, I found myself sitting on the train tracks again, but this time wishing for a much different result, albeit with a similar intensity of wantingness. Please disentangle me from this relationship. Please let me be single again. Please let me be free.
Emotions...they can be fickle, can't they? Desire, in particular, is a volatile animal.
I've succumbed to a few errant desires--impulses that have led me astray, ideas that have gone wrong, actions that have brought about confusion and despair. Who hasn't?
Even so, I'm not quite ready to throw out the baby with the bathwater, as they say. I still believe in the purity of desire, in its fertility and divinity. When desire is stretched out over a long period of years/decades/centuries, we call that devotion. And devotion is beyond whimsical moods and rash decisions, isn't it? Devotion endures the self-beatings, survives the tragedies, transforms the raw into the refined.
I think if I'm devoted to any higher ideal, it would probably have to be the actualization of heaven on Earth. Not heaven in the next life (nothing wrong with that, of course), but heaven in this life. How heavenly can I become in this body?--that is the question. Naturally, I have my own perception and imagination in regards to what heaven means, and my heaven on Earth is surely not the same as everybody else's, but there must be a few out there who are envisioning my kind of playground. And when mine and yours intertwine and merge, then the space becomes ours.
As Mikey said in The Goonies: "Down here, it's our time. It's our time down here."
So, with that utopian ideal perpetually on the horizon of my mind, all emotions (no matter how base or noble) can be directed to actualizing that reality. That is the only formula I think will work, because it's the formula that's been working for time immemorial, if you review the history books.
Vision + Desire + Action = Achievement (with persistence and consistency being the underlying qualities on the left side of the equation)
Thank you for reading. Be still, and flow. |
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lalow33
USA
966 Posts |
Posted - Mar 08 2018 : 1:24:29 PM
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I'm more negative than others, but can't god be in crap. The crappiest of crap.
Utopian ideals aren't really here dealing with what's going on. Let's just move and create our small world and the leader become powerful. |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Mar 08 2018 : 1:35:15 PM
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I agree with you 100%. God is in crap. I would say God even has a streak of evil.
I believe progress is real. Utopia is a place for me to imagine betterment—beginning here and now, and working from there. |
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lalow33
USA
966 Posts |
Posted - Mar 08 2018 : 1:38:27 PM
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| There's a post by Yogani that says that people think this a Hell realm or a Heavenly realm and neither one is true. I wish I could find it. That's one of favorites. Of course, I could be taking it out of context. |
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Dogboy
USA
2195 Posts |
Posted - Mar 08 2018 : 4:56:03 PM
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quote:
How heavenly can I become in this body?--that is the question.
Ask this regularly, in all types of situations. Just by asking, the spirit responds. |
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jusmail
India
491 Posts |
Posted - Mar 08 2018 : 6:33:08 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by lalow33
There's a post by Yogani that says that people think this a Hell realm or a Heavenly realm and neither one is true. I wish I could find it. That's one of favorites. Of course, I could be taking it out of context.
Lalow, I wonder if it is this post?
https://aypsite.org/forum/topic.asp...ID=1182#8091
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Mar 09 2018 : 1:47:29 PM
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@Dogboy
Heard and resonated with.
"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened."
@jusmail
I like that old post of Yogani's. It makes me want to dig through those early posts, where specificity and personal narrative seemed to be more common than in recent years. |
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lalow33
USA
966 Posts |
Posted - Mar 10 2018 : 5:24:13 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by jusmail
quote:
Originally posted by lalow33
There's a post by Yogani that says that people think this a Hell realm or a Heavenly realm and neither one is true. I wish I could find it. That's one of favorites. Of course, I could be taking it out of context.
Lalow, I wonder if it is this post?
https://aypsite.org/forum/topic.asp...ID=1182#8091
That ain't it. |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Mar 22 2018 : 3:50:28 PM
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Shallow ~ Deep
https://www.codyrickett.com/single-...Shallow-Deep
The mind seems to have a space of its own, apart from the land we walk upon, or the sky we fly through, or the ocean we dive into, or the fire we burn.
So if I were to tell you...I went deeper into my mind...that's not as clear-cut as saying, for instance, that I walked 3 miles on Bayshore Boulevard, adjacent to Tampa Bay in the State of Florida.
The trouble with describing the territory of the mind seems to come from a lack of fixed positions, standard metrics, and precision in general. Nevertheless, there is plenty of universal scenery within the mind that allows for us to communicate effectively and create some kind of loose map of consciousness.
I'm not even going to entertain the notion that the mind is contained solely within the brain, so let's set those parameters right off the bat. The brain is a complex physical organ that is intimately linked to the mind, surely. However, I know—at such an intuitive level, and through a variety of experiences—that the mind, and my broader consciousness, is not limited to the physicality of the brain. The mind is within the heart as well, and in every cell of the body, and well beyond the confines of muscle, bone and blood.
Earlier today, I was meditating with a friend in a quaint Catholic church, and I felt inner space grab ahold of me. It's a delightful sensation that happens from time to time, especially during meditation. Essentially, what happens is that my limited sense of awareness (centered in the body, and observant of the mind's activity) begins to be stretched by a seemingly infinite source that is both within and without me. Space, stillness, a void. And my mind rejoices at this union. Everything about the sensation is welcoming. It is a shift from limitation to limitlessness.
Here's the tricky part.
As much as I would like to grab ahold of That, and to be rollin' in the deep as soon and as often as possible, the rules of the game seem to operate on principles which prohibit grabbiness on my part. That is why I said: Inner space grabbed ahold of me (and not the other way around). I surrendered to That, by virtue of easily favoring the mantra and allowing my shallow scenery to unfold in a non-forceful way.
The lesson here is: To get deep, we often have to spend due time in the shallow water first. For me, that means tolerating the inner, narrative voice of Cody, who wants to comment on, and shout about, a great many things. For you, it might be slightly different, but I will suggest one thing on the matter: The journey of meditation is not one of fighting the ego, but befriending it.
Often, when I accept my shallow perception, and take full advantage of my feeble faculties, that is when God swoops by like a thief in the night and engulfs my mind in a maneuver of transcendence and grace.
It really makes sense if you think about it. There is an order, a sequence, an alignment to personal development and enlightenment. First things first. The shallow before the deep.
Thank you for reading. Be still, and flow. |
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sunyata
USA
1507 Posts |
Posted - Mar 22 2018 : 5:12:05 PM
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Dogboy
USA
2195 Posts |
Posted - Mar 22 2018 : 9:10:09 PM
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Mar 26 2018 : 02:24:13 AM
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McBeast Mode
https://www.codyrickett.com/single-...McBeast-Mode
My addiction to disc golf was once again validated when I drove to Brooksville, Florida today to watch the final round of the Throw Down The Mountain tournament.
Now, in case you didn't know, there are no mountains in Florida. In fact, the highest point in all of Florida is a measly 345 feet above sea level. If you compare that to our neighboring state of Georgia—with its highest point being 4,784 feet—you can then start to comprehend the substantial difference between our respective terrains and elevations. Georgia has mountains; Florida has a few hills. We're pretty flat. We kind of melt into the Gulf of Mexico on the west side, and dissolve into the Atlantic Ocean on the east side, and there are no staggering cliffs or jagged peaks on either side to interfere with this merging of our soft shoreline with the warm, welcoming saltwater.
Brooksville happens to be one of the few places in Florida that contain a treasure trove of rolling hills, so it's a nice Floridian anomaly. Therefore, as a tournament name, Throw Down The Mountain is a bit of an exaggeration, but not a complete misnomer.
The whole reason that I've devoted 2-and-a-half paragraphs to emphasizing Florida's flatness is because I want to dramatize the sensation I felt when I saw the one, the only, 4-time world champion Mr. Paul McBeth launch a disc off a cliff—50 feet above the fairway from where I was watching down below. Remember, since I am Floridian (born and raised), even a 50-foot cliff will catch my eye, especially when a round piece of plastic is torpedoed off that precipice at a speed of about 75 miles an hour—making a terrific buzzing noise as it soars nearly 600 feet in horizontal distance and cuts through the air like some kind of ultra-versatile, miniature UFO.
And what's even cooler was that I got to share my bewilderment and awestruck appreciation with fellow onlookers. In particular, I began to talk to a father and his eager son. They, too, couldn't behold the spectacle without their jaws dropping at least a smidgen. Once we walked down the grassy fairway to the target basket, I gazed backwards towards the original blast-off point, which seemed miles away, and so far beyond my capability of disc-throwing.
The father discerned my residual amazement and said: "You still can't get over Paul's drive, can you?"
"No," I admitted. "I'm looking back there, and I would barely be able to cover half the distance."
"Yep, it's pretty incredible," he empathized.
Needless to say, McBeast won the tournament, as he's done so many times before. Like a true champion, not only of the sport but of the fans, he stuck around to sign discs and take pictures, even after the sun had set and the darkness was upon us. I got a buddy to snap a picture of me standing next to him.
Precious memories, tenderly held onto.
McBeast is a specimen of what we would call stillness in action in AYP. His physical fluidity and poise are a reflection of his sublime mental state, which in turn is a reflection of the quality of his shining soul.
Sorry to get all spiritual with this hippie, grassroots sport, but I can't help it. I've read too much Walt Whitman.
Thank you for reading. Be still, and flow. |
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jusmail
India
491 Posts |
Posted - Mar 26 2018 : 09:25:59 AM
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Thanks for the lovely writing.
Be still and THROW
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Mar 26 2018 : 11:11:02 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by jusmail
Be still and THROW
Love it. If I ever start a company that sells disc golf products or services, I think I'm going to steal that motto, Jusmail. I promise to give you some royalties.
On the note of throwing from stillness/silence, that's one of the finer points of the sports I enjoy. At a pro event like the one yesterday, when a player is on the teepad and preparing to throw, the gallery of fans always gets dead quiet. It's the coolest thing. You can hear the proverbial pin drop. I soak in those moments of silent reverence.
Be still, and throw. |
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jusmail
India
491 Posts |
Posted - Mar 27 2018 : 02:36:48 AM
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| And you could be a disk golf coach too |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Mar 30 2018 : 01:19:14 AM
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You know what's funny, Jusmail? After you posted that, I was thinking: Yeah, that would be cool. Then yesterday, I was out in a park throwing discs, and a couple of young lads came up to me and asked if they could throw. I showed them some of the basics, and it was a great time. Nothing better than teaching the youth. Thanks for planting the seed in my mind.
Samyama works.
Creativity
https://www.codyrickett.com/single-...0/Creativity
As I sit here in my underwear on the couch, late at night, getting ready for bed, I wonder: what is creativity?
How is that we can create something from nothing?
How does a song come to the lyricist; how does a bird chirp with an array of melodies; how do thoughts bubble up in the mind?
I don't know, and I don't care too much, because getting lost in the dynamic is enough for me—at least for now. As Ms. Janis Joplin sang: You know you got it, if it makes you feel good!
So this cycle/spiral/endeavor/exploration is a Mystery that invites We, the Seekers of Mysteries, to indulge in a dance of innocence with our perpetually enticing Source.
[As I'm typing on my laptop, I hear a train in the distance, and I immediately recall Mr. Paul Simon's lovely observation: Everybody loves the sound of a train in the distance. Everybody thinks it's true.]
The Muse is the Mother of all Creation and feeds Her Children with morsels of inspiration, genius, compassion, connectivity.
[OK, forgive me. I've used way too many capital letters and proper nouns—not to mention all the fluffy adjectives.]
I do believe that creativity will solve the bulk bonanza of our trifling troubles, and let me end this blog with some stuff from
the bender of rules, grammatical and societal,
ee cummings:
i thank You God for most this amazing
day: for the leaping greenly spirits of trees
and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything
which is natural which is infinite which is yes
(i who have died am alive again today,
and this is the sun’s birthday; this is the birth
day of life and of love and wings: and of the gay
great happening illimitably earth)
how should tasting touching hearing seeing
breathing any—lifted from the no
of all nothing—human merely being
doubt unimaginable You?
(now the ears of my ears awake and
now the eyes of my eyes are opened) |
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Charliedog
1625 Posts |
Posted - Mar 30 2018 : 03:16:05 AM
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| Creativity is Stillness in Action |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Mar 30 2018 : 09:38:48 AM
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| I second that. |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Apr 05 2018 : 11:37:24 AM
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Holding Space
https://www.codyrickett.com/single-...olding-Space
I think I got something figured out when it comes to bodywork.
Much of the success of a session hinges upon the therapist's ability to hold space, and upon the client's receptivity in allowing the therapist to fulfill that role. What I mean is: The more secure and stable I feel, literally, in a bodyworker's hands, the more inclined I will be to let go. And as we all know, there is no better feeling than letting go...falling into our inner world, cascading through stillness, arriving more in the vast, expansive center of our being.
The particular technique being used—whether that be reflexology, Swedish, Thai, or anything else from the cornucopia of modalities—is almost secondary to the more primary foundation of holding space effectively for the full duration of the appointment. I don't care if you're thumb-walking, doing cross-fiber friction, compressing the muscles, stretching limbs, or gliding in a stroke of pure effleurage—it's the native stillness behind the effort (or non-effort, shall we say) that will make the biggest difference.
Of course, depth and pressure are always a fickle thing in bodywork. There's such a wide range of preferences when it comes to what people want. Some clients want to be shredded and ripped into; others want the lightest of touch. So, in order to hold space effectively for you, yes, I have to line up with your preferred style of bodywork. But the question still remains: Can we access inner silence together, even amidst motion and movement?
Fortunately, the answer is yes. Both client and practitioner can be in touch with boundless, inner space, which is available both at the center and periphery.
Ironically, I think one of the best gifts I can give to a client is none other than my disappearance. I know this because I've been on both sides of the coin. When I'm a client, and the therapist is plugged into me, and then we both disappear and melt into a field of consciousness, I don't necessarily have to focus on their physical, or even energetic, touch. It's an option, but not a requirement that's being demanded of me. And that is freedom. The freedom to drift in and out of levels of consciousness...feeling safe and secure in the wandering.
At the same time, it's not advantageous for me as a therapist to be absent-minded or overly detached in the giving, because part of what conveys a secure feeling to the client is the sensation that I am staying aware of the surface details, so that they don't have to. Hence, holding space is really a deep, unspoken agreement based on trust and latitude. By establishing trust and familiarity, an increased latitude of consciousness is achieved.
Holding space is not a strain, but an equanimity, a poise, a balance. It is the bubble in the middle of the carpenter's level.
Practices like Deep Meditation cultivate the optimal condition for holding space across multiple platforms (personally, professionally, socially, and beyond).
Thank you for reading. Be still, and flow. |
Edited by - Bodhi Tree on Apr 05 2018 11:43:43 AM |
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lalow33
USA
966 Posts |
Posted - Apr 05 2018 : 1:02:32 PM
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| Hmmm... I thought " Holding space" was a made up term by alternative psychologists. You are using the term differently. If you and the client stay in the physical is it not okay? |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Apr 05 2018 : 2:44:37 PM
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Are you asking if it's OK if the awareness is limited to the physical body only?
I would say that's totally OK. The whole point is to allow the awareness to be where it naturally wants to go, so if that is entirely physical, it's all good. If it's a mix of physical, emotional, and more subtle states of mind, that's fine too.
It's a wide spectrum. Some clients really prefer the physical, while others lean more towards the non-physical, and everything in between.
As to the origin of the term holding space, I'm not really sure who coined it, but it has a broad context, obviously. Much like the dynamic of easily favoring, I find holding space to be a matter of returning to center, and riding that paradoxical wave of bringing something new to the experience, while also relying on a bit of structure and routine. So, if I'm holding space effectively, it's a BOTH/AND scenario. I'm both connecting with the person in a fresh way, while also relying on experience from the past to guide me towards the ideal. |
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© Contributing Authors (opinions and advice belong to the respective authors) |
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Cody Rickett, LMT, RYT
