3
“Change yourself if you wish to change
this world.”
- The Mother (Seeds of Light).
“We must be the change we wish to
see in the world.” - Mahatma Gandhi.
Medicine Cards: the Discovery of
Power Through the Ways of Animals
by Jamie Sams and David Carson (Bear & Company, NM, U.S., 1988, p.65-67).
Skunk
Medicine:
Reputation (how to attract and how to repel).
Skunk medicine! Go ahead and laugh!
This furry little animal has a reputation that contains a great deal of power.
Due to its distinctive behaviour, humans give this tiny, smelly creature a wide
berth. The key word here is respect.
Unlike
other predatory animals, Skunk does not threaten your life but threatens your
senses. You know this to be true if you have ever been in the vicinity of its
spray. In observing the habit patterns of Skunk, it is easy to notice the
playfulness and nonchalance of its natural behaviour. The ‘I dare you’ attitude
of this four-legged creature commands you, as the observer, to respect its
space by mere reputation alone.
Skunk
is teaching you that by walking your talk and by respecting yourself, you will
create a position of strength and honoured reputation. The carriage of your
body relates to others what you believe about yourself. There is no need to
bully, aggravate, torment, or overpower other beings when your sense of ‘self’
is intact. As with Skunk, the resonant field of energy round your body s
relayed through the senses. Self-esteem permeates the body’s energy, and is
instantly recognises on an extrasensory level by others.
Learn
to assert, without ego, what you are. Respect follows. Your self-respectful
attitude will repel those who are not of like mind, and yet will attract those
who choose the same pathway. As the odour of Skunk attracts others of its kind,
it repels those who will not respect its space.
Skunk
medicine people have the ability to attract others, and they are very
charismatic. At the same time, the other side of their natural power is to
repel those who seek to take energy from them without recycling the gifts they
have taken...
Walk
tall and be proud of the accomplishments you have made. Bear in mind that what
you believe about yourself is your ultimate protection. Project
self-respect!...To balance the causes and effect of your actions and energy
flows, you must decide whether or not you need to spray in the direction of
others to repel their envy, greed, jealousy, or over-amorous tendencies. On the
other hand, you need to always maintain your ‘right to be.’ Self-respect is the
key to all of these situations, whereas ego is merely what you believe yourself
to be.
Skunk
says, ‘If your ego is not your amigo, you know it stinks!’
Through self-respect, one becomes
nonchalant about the negativity of others.
Retrospective
inserts.
“Respect your efforts, respect
yourself. Self-respect leads to self-discipline. When you have both firmly
under your belt, that's real power.” - Clint Eastwood.
“The higher we fly, the smaller we
seem to those living on the earth.” - Nietzsche.
"Death most resembles a prophet
who is without honour in his own land or a poet who is a stranger among his
people.” - Kahlil Gibran.
“All our best men are laughed at in this nightmare
land.” - Jack Kerouac.
“Here's to
the Crazy Ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in
the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They're not fond of
rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them,
disagree with them, disbelieve them,
glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can't do, is ignore them.
Because they change things. They invent.
They imagine. They heal. They explore. They create. They inspire. They push
the human race forward. Maybe they have
to be crazy. How else can you stare at an empty canvas and see a work of art?
Or, sit in silence and hear a song that hasn't been written?...While some
may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy
enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.” – Text
from an image on the net based on the Apple Computer Ad ‘Think Different,’ 1997
(additional words italicised). [1]
"Great spirits have always encountered violent
opposition from mediocre minds. The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit
to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his
intelligence." - Albert Einstein.
"Each time a person stands up
for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against
injustice, that person sends forth a tiny ripple of hope...and crossing each
other from a million different centres of energy and daring those ripples build
a current that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and
resistance." - Robert F. Kennedy.
“Cowardice asks the question: is it
safe? Expediency asks the question: is it politic? Vanity asks the question: is
it popular? But conscience asks the question: is it right? And there comes a
time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor
popular - but one must take it simply because it is right.” - Martin Luther
King, Jr.
"Conscience is the window of
our spirit, evil is the curtain." - Doug Horton.
"A good conscience is to the
soul what health is to the body; it preserves constant ease and serenity within
us; and more than countervails all the calamities and afflictions which can
befall us from without." - Joseph Addison.
‘Love and then do what you will.’
‘Do what you will but do not harm others.’ ‘Do what thou wilt shall be the
whole of the Law’ (Al or L.1. 40) and ‘Love is the Law. Love under Will’ as
Crowley’s The Book of the Law states.
“There is no law beyond Do what thou wilt,” as Ra-Hoor-Khuit via Aiwass
dictates to Sir Aleister Edward Crowley aka The Master Therion and Frater
Perdurabo. This forms the basis of Thelemic gnosis. It means that once we have
sublimated the lower will of the ego to know our true Will as divine beings,
all that we do is an expression of the Source with which we are One. "Thou
hast no right but to do thy will. Do that and no other shall say nay." (Al
or L.1. 42-43: Liber LXXVII, or Liber 77 Oz, (a statement of
human rights in words of one syllable).
"In all
their rule and strictest tie of their order there was but this one clause to be
observed, Do What Thou Wilt; because men that are free, well-born, well-bred,
and conversant in honest companies, have naturally an instinct and spur that
prompteth them unto virtuous actions, and withdraws them from vice, which is
called honour." - François Rabelais (Pantagruel, 1532).
“There is only one rule and that is to express only love. That rule says
it all, does it not? It says to treat your neighbours as you yourself would be
treated. It says ‘make love not war.’ It says ‘be in peace.’ Be caring and
sharing,” says St. Germain (‘St. Germain on the Election,’ YouTube video posted
by mambrophone on 8 November 2008).
“The Will
to Love is the Law to Live.” - Aion 131
(‘An Open Letter to the Esoteric Community,’ 26 December 2011).
“Follow your
heart, that’s the whole law.” – A friend.
“True Will is about looking beyond
all the petty BS and seeing a person's inner light, but that's just my
opinion.” – Ron Adams.
“Everything starts with love,
remember; love is the ultimate law. Then prayer, mercy, grace, follow of their
own accord.” - Osho.
Oh love, thou art not loved
Would that thou weren’t loved
Give me only to love thee
And then do with me what thou wilt.
- Quoted by Catholic traditionalist Bishop
Richard Williamson in his profound sermon on George Orwell’s book Nineteen Eighty-Four in London, 2007.
Possibly attributed to St. Francis de Sales (French saint, 1567-1622) taking
the first line from St. Francis of Assisi. “And that, of course, is putting God
first, where He belongs,” adds Bishop Williamson.
“Love
through will, the only focus we need!” – My friend Helena (another friend, from
a Thelemic lodge, says, “Love the law is” and “Love is over will, and all the
rules have to be broken.” The return of the Goddess).
“’Thy will be done’ was reversed by
a man. And changed it to ‘God’s will be done.’ Instead of God saying, ‘Thy will
be done. Do what you please in this world of illusion. You cannot harm yourself
here. Nothing is born or dies truly.’ Yet, humanity have been taught by those
you call the Church: ‘Thy will be done and I shall be its representative.’ So
not, ‘thy will’ - my will, through, ‘thy will.’ Quite interesting. And humanity
has been suffering ever since. Yet, the tide is changing, since humanity is
waking up. Some are struggling with this awakening. Some are disliking it. Some
are loving it.” – St. Germain (channelled through Ashamarae McNamara, YouTube
video, ‘St. Germain: Illusion and Awakening,’ posted by messagesfromwithin, 29
September 2008. In Studies in Alchemy, channelled through Mark prophet, however,
he suggests that thy will be done not as an ego but as you truly Are, as God.
He also states, in the sequel (p.36), that God is law and that this law does
not exist without love but that, unfortunately, it has been possible for
‘evolving humanity’ to separate the law from love).
Me, talking
to a rude Thelemite in an online forum: ‘So you think that you yourself
"are free, well-born, well-bred, and conversant in honest companies, have
naturally an instinct and spur that prompteth you unto virtuous actions, and
withdraws you from vice, which is called honour"? [a quote from Gargantua by François
Rabelais (1534)].
Doubtful, for now. You're like an Islamist: aligned with Lucifer on the level
of the lower will which divides not that which leads to the oneness of the
Goddess, that which is Love, the one and only rule, the law and expression of
Being itself. You are running before you can walk. Sweet dreams amigo!
You are told: go into the sandpit
and play and you can do as you wish, what you want. Do...however, you will find
yourself in a big mess if you believe that you actually have individual will.
There is only one Will and it is also Love at the same time, indivisible in
Infinite Being. Surrender to the One Reality is your only way out of the Game.
For separate will hath no true power and what you do to others you do only to
yourself. To identify with an egoic semblance to Will without recognising the
blissful oneness of all is to deny yourself the Love that is the nourishment
your soul needs. Life is merely a mirror of your own mind...and with the return
of Love and Light to this world the reflections are speeding up. So be careful
what you wish for as what you believe and what you wilt may just manifest for
you to see the connection and realise that you were lost not found.’
And,
‘You have no mind of
your own. You only think you do. LOL. I said Islam, not the Qu'ran. To identify
with a religion is to be outside of yourself, away, out to lunch, gaga. I'm not
sure how you got in here! LOL. Remind me this and wish me that…yeah I project
far too much! LOL.’
[Retrospective
note: A Sufi friend told me that Islam is feminine whilst Islamic culture is
male-dominated. Well, Islam was founded on the Goddess wisdom but it has
certainly become utterly masculinised now and little remains of that wisdom
even in modern Sufism it would appear. Patriarchal religions are dedicated to
action and rhetoric rather than reflection and true inner communion of the
heart. They are backwards but they quickly step in to set up camp where collective
identity is weak and confused. Nature abhors a vacuum and the danger in Britain
is that people are so anti-Christian they are unable to open themselves to the
possibility of spiritual experience or understanding at all. People from other
countries usually bring something positive to our culture because it is wood
that burns easily and can be integrated into our multicultural society. If the
wood is very hard, however, and there is too much of it, the fire will die
down. Islam, for me, is a slow-burning fire whose central flames do not expand
to consume the wood. Instead, a lot of wood is brought together around the fire
to keep warm, but it remains as collective wood. Where there is greater
individual expression and independence the wood is less dense and therefore
burns better and the potential for spiritual exploration and self-discovery
then exists. Meaning that people are less inclined to be stuck in their ways,
weighed down by tradition or hold narrow-minded views and reject the idea that
they have anything to learn. Working class Britain is also a bit like that as
well, I have to say. We can only burn through a certain amount of wood, or
coal. If the fire is smothered, culture becomes weak and I think that
mainstream television over the past decade reflects that. One hopes that it
will not be extinguished altogether but I, for one, tend to regard Britain as a
sinking ship in its present state. My Muslim neighbours in London managed to
stifle my self-expression and hated being reminded of anything or anyone so far
removed from their narrow cultural influences and pig-headed ignorance. Wood is
collectivist. In its pure form it is tribal but, with a patriarchal fire
controlling and directing it through collective identity, it is tyrannical in
its ambition to suppress freedom and force everyone to conform and be the same,
to bow down to this fake centre of existence that is outside of oneself rather
than the true spiritual Reality that lies within us, the divinity within the
heart].
The
dictum 'Fais ce que voudras' evokes an ancient expression by St. Augustine of
Hippo: "Love, and do what thou wilt."
“I assess the power of a will by how
much resistance, pain, torture it endures and knows how to turn to its
advantage.” - Friedrich Nietzsche.
It is wise,
with a loving heart, to Will that one's willing be in harmony with the
universe. This will grow deeper as we move deeper and deeper into the heart
where Love and Will are One…
“How can
you break through this darkness which envelops you? Only by developing the
divine will in your heart – the will to obey the law of the Christ life. How
are you going to develop this will? Well, we will tell you of a very simple
measure, so simple that you may take little notice of what we say – but every
day and all day seek to obey God’s command to love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and
with all thy mind…and…thy neighbour as thyself. ‘Thy neighbour as thyself’:
this is a very subtle command. It does not say love your neighbour more than
yourself – but your neighbour as
yourself. Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul and with
all thy mind, and thy neighbour. That is all. That is the law. But it is not so
simple.
If you are going to obey the law
you have to do it physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually. This means
you have got to command your thoughts. You have to bring the divine will into
operation. You have to will that you will the will of God not only for yourself
but for all life, so that you recognise the omnipotence which overshadows the
world and also is in charge of your own life.”
- White Eagle (channelled
through Grace Cooke, The Light Bringer. The Ray of John and the
Age of IntuitionThe White Eagle Publishing Trust, Hants., U.K., 2001,
p.136).
"Act happy, feel happy, be
happy, without a reason in the world. Then you can love, and do what you will.”
- Dan Millman.
“The spirit is willing but the flesh
is weak.” - The Nazarene.
“Trust in the not-knowing.”
“Everywhere we go is on our way.”
“There is no path to happiness.
Happiness is.” - Buddha.
“The world is like a ride in an
amusement park. And when you choose to go on it, you think it’s real because
that’s how powerful our minds are. And the ride goes up and down and round and
round. It has thrills and chills and it’s very brightly coloured and it’s very
loud and it’s fun, for a while. Some people have been on the ride for a long
time and they begin to question, is this real, or is this just a ride? And
other people have remembered, and they come back to us, and they say, ‘Hey,
don’t worry; don’t be afraid, ever, because it’s just a ride…’ And we…KILL
those people. ‘Shut him up.’ ‘We have a lot invested in this ride. Shut him up.
Look at my furrows of worry. Look at my big bank account and my family. This
just has to be real.’ Just a ride. But we always kill those good guys who try
and tell us that, you ever notice that? And let the demons run amok. But it
doesn’t matter because: It’s just a ride. And we can change it anytime we want.
It’s only a choice. No effort, no work, no job, no savings and money. A choice,
right now, between fear and love. The eyes of fear want you to put bigger locks
on your doors, buy guns, close yourself off. The eyes of love, instead, see all
of us as one.” - Bill Hicks.
“There is
only fear and love. Time and the Infinite. Fear, the mind, and time, are
inter-connected, as are love, intuition and the Infinite. If you are
established in the heart, fear and the mental fluctuations it engenders
dissolve into an eternal present of love and allowance.” - The Goddess (Conversations with the Goddess by Mark
Amaru Pinkham, Adventures Unlimited Press, ILL., U.S., 1999, p.143).
A
statement I made in a forum thread regarding gun laws in America: ‘If there
were no guns these young critters wouldn't be able to get em. Over here it's
just the odd black drug dealer who's able to get hold of guns and risk using
them. And why? Because they think they're Americans and behave like gangsters.
Remove your gun culture so we can ALL live in peace. Thanks.’
“If you’re not dark inside and you come to this world, it will turn you
dark. You know what I’m saying? And, so, if you really have sunshine in you
it’s not good to play in the dark. It’s just gonna extinguish your fire.” –
Tupac Shakur.
“Love can
compensate for everything, but nothing can compensate for love.” – Traditional
saying.
In Touch with Raynor C. Johnson
by Sheila Gwillam
(Light Publishing, London, U.K., 1996).
p.167-168. “Whenever the light
pushes forward to make itself known then obviously it attracts the dark. If you
are not being very effective in the world then the dwellers of the threshold
don’t bother you too much, but the minute you become an effective worker for
the light then you attract these dwellers on the threshold who will motivate
other beings, who are not controlling their thought-forms, into attacking you
verbally, fortunately, not in any other way. This is where you need a lot of
courage and this is why I stress the need for a firm foundation, a firm basis,
from which to move so that you are sure within yourself of what you say.”
p.171. “You are dropping the
negative thoughts, you are helping to keep the dwellers of the threshold at
bay, you are making their task considerably harder which is all to the good.
Even they have their place in the scheme of things; they test you in a way
because if you make the statement that you are on a spiritual path and wish to
improve you may well be tested, my friends; we usually are.”
"The ultimate weakness of
violence is that it is a descending spiral, begetting the very thing it seeks
to destroy. Instead of diminishing evil, it multiplies it. Through violence you
may murder the liar, but you cannot murder the lie, nor establish the truth.
Through violence, you may murder the hater, but you do not murder hate. In
fact, violence merely increases hate. So it goes. Returning violence for
violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid
of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate
cannot drive out hate: only love can do that." - Martin Luther King Jr.
“If I hate someone it’s either
because they’re an asshole or because I’m an asshole.” – Drarna (on tumblr).
“If you are distressed by anything
external, the pain is not due to the thing itself, but to your estimate of it,
and this you have the power to revoke at any moment.” - Marcus Aurelius.
“Keep away from people who try to
belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that. But the really great make
you feel that you too can become great.” - Mark Twain.
“Don’t
depend too much on anyone in this world, because even your own shadow leaves
you when you are in darkness.” - Ibn Taymiyyah.
An ancient parchment (something I
wrote long ago and recently found during a clear-out):
The wind seemed to want me to phone
you recently. I considered the proposal and then turned round and said, ‘No, I
don’t want to.’ The wind pestered me again today with the same prompting. I
responded to the annoying whispers with a passage from the teachings of
Zhuangzi (translated by Master Ni):
“’It is said,’ replied the
fisherman, ‘that if a person is an appropriate companion, one may travel with
him into the depths of Tao. But if he is not, it is best to remain alone so
that no harm occurs. Perhaps some other time.’”
I was thinking compassionately. You
were simply revealing your anger with the heavens. You’re the one who put a
wall between us!
More retrospective
inserts!
“Everything
happens exactly as it is supposed to, including the seemingly negative and
painful things that you’ve endured. Ask your angels to find the hidden lessons
and blessings within each event, relationship, and situation, and they’ll help
you to find peace and understanding.” – Archangel Michael (from Doreen Virtue’s
conversation with him regarding the year 2011, ‘2011: The Year of the Indigo,’ 2 January 2011, www.angeltherapy.com).
“Because this change that is a-born-ing on Earth shall require
the empowerment and focus of God, it is your hearts in the fullness of their
destiny that can power this shift and power it effortlessly, if you allow this
fire of life to consume you. Yes, that is what I said. If you allow the fire to
burn you up, to become the fire of transformative Love…to take from your ego all that is dross and to leave it as a
crystalline receptacle of God, the place where Heaven and Earth meet. You have
experienced so far the muddy waters of duality, and thus the ego mind is filled
with conflicting images, unfolding in your consciousness as a stream of the
sub-conscious that continues to keep you focused outside of yourself, enacting
old repetitive patterns. But when the fire of the awakened heart is allowed to
burn, is celebrated in its intensity, is experienced as your linkage to the
Moment of Creation that in one grand explosion is the alpha and omega,
the entirety of life itself - when
the fire is done, duality is a concept and no longer an experience you are
having. Instead you are a container for the fiery Will of perfect Love to live
through and be fully expressed in the images of the world.” - From the Messages from God
(channelled through Yael and Doug Powell, ‘Surrender
to the Fiery Power of Love: The
Countdown Is On!’ 30 January 2011, www.circleoflight.net).
“It’s difficult to find an access to
spirituality. But we are, by our nature, spiritual people. If we don’t have
access to spirituality, we suffer as individuals – society suffers.” – Russell
Brand.
“Difficulty, my brethren, is the nurse of greatness - a harsh nurse, who
roughly rocks her foster children into strength and athletic proportion.” -
William Cullen Bryant (www.quotelady.com/subjects/strength.html).
“I
just thought of something even funnier than 24...25!” - Spongebob Squarepants (Spongebob Squarepants, created by
Stephen Hillenburg, Viacom International Inc.).
Foot note
1. The
original text was created by an advertising agency for Apple Computers and is
sometimes confused with Jack Kerouac’s words in On The Road: "The only
people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad
to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn
or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn, like fabulous yellow roman
candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle you see the
blue centrelight pop and everybody goes ‘Awww!’"
