Your Idols are Your Godliness

From Sita Sings the Blues by Nina Paley

When I was 13 I had a fierce obsession with the teen-pop trio - Hanson. Mmm Bop caught my ear like a dog whistle and sent me straight into a solid 9 months of pure boy-band worship.  The three adorable teens with their unabashedly long hair and pure Oklahoma souls reflected the joyous nights my sisters and I would sing our way through our after-dinner chores, and tackled every need my pubescent soul had for love, acknowledgement, and joy.  I was so enthralled by the trio that no matter how embarrassed other people told me I should be, I was completely immune to the harassment. My elder sister would not-so-sneakily bring her friends to my bedroom to laugh at my shrine of teen magazine prints covering every inch of my walls… blonde, gap tooth boys grinning innocently in their pukka shells and leather wrist bands. They would point and laugh and I would beam at my collection; I was truly in love.

How powerful an idol can be, when even in your most vulnerable condition (peer pressure on a 13 year old girl!), you are immune to the effects of the world.  My story and my kindship with my idols was so solid in my mind, nothing could break me down.  As years passed and I moved on to other obsessions (boyfriends), the leaflets and magazine articles of Isaac, Taylor, and Zac fell away to make room for teenage romantic love and plenty of identity crises.

During my time on my spiritual journey I’ve been criticised for leaping from teaching to teaching, and have been absolutely baffled by the groupie followings that some teachers or either self-proclaimed or fandom named “Gurus” have acquired.  I think my first lesson with Hanson was a great gift in acknowledging the ephemerality and projection of the Idol.  During a wonderful session with Ram Dass and Eckhart Tolle in 2011, Eckhart brought up the point where Oprah asked Eckhart “You’re not a Guru, are you?”. Eckhart was fully tickled by the thought of it, and answered “No of course not, but I have learned of people having my photo on their desk, and it surprised me”.  He continues to explain he has a photo of the Indian sage Ramana Maharshi that gives him a sense of deep stillness and peace. “But I also knew that was not the form I was looking at, that was me… It acted like a mirror... What you see is your own essential reality, reflected to you”.

A Guru can serve as wonderful image of projection, but we must remember that the holiness and deserved-worshipness comes from our own selves, our own stories, our own ideas of who these beings are. Every reflection of oneness and love from the image of Jesus or Buddha or your Guru or Pop-Idol comes from a place within you that recognizes that talent, that skill, that genius, and that wholeness within yourself.  A separate being cannot impose upon you a definition of themselves or of any purpose. It is our interpretation of these other things that give them their power, and when we are able to recognize this ability, we can realize that power is within ourselves. That Guru looks at you through that picture on the altar to remind you, just as Mufasa did for Simba through the thunderclouds on the Saharan horizon, “I live in you”.

When the Bible warns us against worshiping false idols, as does A Course in Miracles, the meaning lies in the interpretation that your idol holds some power that you do not, so you wish to be close to that idol to somehow learn or accumulate the healing you think you need. In A Course in Miracles, the Christ says (the formlessness/consciousness of the person Jesus) “I have nothing that you don’t have, it’s just that I have nothing else.”.

In Reality, the power the idol holds is only recognizable because you already have it, and if you assume the Other is needed to achieve that state then your ego is keeping you separate from your Oneness. Your ego is keeping you from recognising your own holiness, your own godliness.

So next time your Guru or Pop Idol comes into your view and you swoon or fall on your knees in desperate worship of the joy they bring to you, remember they are just there to remind you of the power you already hold within yourself.  You are the fierceness and power and genius that they hold. Your witness to it makes it so.

Namaste. Om Mani Padme Hum. Bless you. May the force be with you. Mmm Bop. Amen. 

You might as well enjoy.

Lesson 72 in the course of miracles:
Holding grievances is an attack on God's plan for salvation.



I still struggle from time to time with the Christian language in A Course in Miracles, but I followed today's lesson instructions and chanted "What is my salvation, Father? Help me know my salvation".
This was a frustrating meditation because I don't know what salvation means, and I don't understand talking to a "Father". But I meditated. I gave myself more than 15 minutes because I had to keep reminding myself to stop chanting in my head and just LISTEN. I listened. I listened to the washing machine tumble and the de-humidifier hum. I heard thoughts and let them go. I flexed all my brain muscles to dis-engage with thought. I heard the birds chirping and the cars drive by outside. I heard a voice in my head get really frustrated and say " This is just a mind game! This is stupid! There's no god, there's no magic hippy spirituality, this is a mind game. This is a puzzle. This is all about your perception and letting go of story and seeing the truth with your mind. Let's go back to non-spirit. Let's go to non-duality. Let's go to where none of this stupid meditating stuff matters." Then I cleared my head again and sat quiet. And the answer was so clear and smack-dab-stupid-easy.
I heard a bird chirping right outside the window and a car drive by, and with clarity I heard "nothing matters. none of this matters. in the human experience everything is so very very dramatic, but here, HERE, nothing matters, so you might as well enjoy. "



And the peace, the clarity, the Knowing was there. I felt suddenly freed up of energy, empowered, and absolutely delighted to take on the contrast of problem and solution in this human life experience. This isn't an apathetic, "nothing matters", this is an energetic, endless possibility of "nothing matters". What an invitation to play.



Amen.



And then I received Mike Dooley's email, A Note from the Universe:


Courageous is the soul, Jenny, who adventures into time and space to learn of their divinity. For while they cannot lose, they can think they have, and the loss will seem intolerable. And while they cannot fail, they can think they have, and the pain will seem unbearable. And while they cannot ever be less than they truly are - powerful, eternal, and loved - they can think they are, and all hope will seem lost.




And therein lies their test. A test of perceptions: of what to focus on, of what to believe in, in spite of appearances.




Tallyho,

The Universe

Mother

Self-Consciousness

It was the early years of puberty when I first remember experiencing moments of self-aware consciousness. I would be surrounded by my pre-teen cosmetics, looking in the mirror, attempting to turn myself into a model from Seventeen, when suddenly my thoughts would stop and it would just be me, vulnerable, freckle-faced, cone-headed, big eared, 12 year old Jenny, staring back at me.

My stories of being a Barbizon model or Indiana Jones or Peter pan were all instantly gone, and I was alone with myself. It was terrifying. I became extremely "self conscious", completely convinced that the Jenny I was seeing was entirely inadequate for the world in which I lived. I had to live in stories in order to pretend I was some how capable of "making it".

 I look back now, after nearly 20 years of extremely challenging experiences that catapulted me (as they do) into higher awareness and self exploration, and I'm baffled by the sense of dread that overcame me when I was in consciousness with my selves (the self that saw me, and the self that was aware of seeing me, and the self that was extremely offended that I had to be exposed to seeing me).

 Now when I have consciousness of my self, I see all those things I love and aspired to be. I am Harry Potter and Britney Spears and Iron man. I am Sailor Moon and Samwise Gamgee and Reese Witherspoon. Through the years of self-discovery I can see now that everything and every story that  cherish and enjoy is an integral part of what makes me Jenny in this human experience, and I love every bit of it.

Our first experiences of self-consciousness can be terrifying because we're suddenly exposed to the stories we are forcing ourselves to live up to; and we're suddenly awake on the surface level to all the fears that we have about our inadequacies. We're trying to be something we aren't, because we're convinced that who we really are is a fraud, here by accident, and if you can just pretend long enough that you're as good as everyone else, maybe you'll be invited into the tribe and people will take care of you when you're sick or old or dying.

If we're willing to continue to re-visit our own self-awareness; if we're willing to see those fears and understand them and work through them; if we're willing to burn in our humiliation to the point where burning is just kinda something we all do and isn't it funny and look how we all burn the same and boy do I feel closer to you now that I know we're all burned up... then the comfort and joy we sought in our stories will become our reality.

My lesson today from A Course in Miracles is Lesson 33: There is another way of looking at the world.
I'm aware that one part of me sees the world as an exhausted, adrenaline addicted, neurotic, materialistic, and unconsciously humming machine, where anyone who needs help is an excessive expense, a burden, a hinderance on the progression of society.

I'm also aware that part of me sees the potential for a world where there is plenty and time and space for joy, comfort, and healing.  I see a world where everyone is so well taken care of, that when someone is ill or needs help, everyone else has so much and is so contented, that they all have plenty of time and resources to attend to this person who needs help. Where "here, have this, I don't need it anymore and it's taking up space anyway, so you'd actually be doing me a favor by taking it" is the norm, where resources and energy flow so efficiently that everyone starts to believe very quickly that their needs will be met when they arise. And then, every self-conscious person will look in the mirror and know that they are not only adequate, but that they are an integral, joyful, meaningful, and purposeful part of the human tribe.




And also maybe Superman.

Election Prayer

I posted this photo on Valentine's day as a reminder of Love (Chapter 6 from A Course in Miracles), and came across it again today when I needed it most.... when debating politics. We know what we believe is right, and sometimes feel it is our duty to make another see the "error" in their ways, and this passage reminded me to not only give up the belief that I can be attacked and also take responsibility for the attacking I may also be doing myself. Thus a prayer is in need, as I have written as follows....

Dear God, The Universe, Krishna, Buddha, Jesus, Albert Einstein, Aliens and honorary creatures, to the part of myself that is greater than the parts of myself;

During this argumentative time of the USA Presidential Elections, I pray that you help keep me present and out of ego, and help me to stand awash in the light of truth. 

Let me not be swayed by lies or tempted by tricks. Let me see truth and speak truth. 

I pray for the utmost benefit for all man kind, 

I pray for the wealth and health of all men who should seek it or need it.  

I pray that those who cannot give should not be asked to give, and I pray that those who wish to serve are awakened to their chance to serve.  

I pray for the healing of those who are ill, I pray for prosperity, success, and happiness for all who seek it in their lives. 

 I pray that I may not leave my senses and revert to insanity if I should feel personally attacked by anothers' beliefs.  

I wish to be reminded that I can never be truly attacked.

I pray for my brothers and for myself. 

I pray for what is righteous and what is true, in whatever form you see fit to manifest.

May I serve how you would have me serve. 

May I work how you would have me work.

May I speak as you would have me speak.

And OH! my infinitely generous and loving reality, May I receive as you would have me receive!

Amen

My Favorite Inspiration

As an unconventional student of Spirit I'm always looking for open-minded inspiring resources... I'd like to share with you some of my favorites. As well as being a student of A Course in Miracles, I also always sign up for the Chopra Center's seasonal meditation challenges, devour books by Martha Beck, Marianne Williamson, and the Dalai Lama, and continue to take part in my mind-body healing journey (striving for full health after 6 years with Post Viral Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome or ME/CFS) with The Optimum Health Clinic.

Facebook is a fantastic way for me to get inspirational quips all day long that keep me coming back to the light when things get tough.. here are my favorite Inspiring Facebook Pages!

Access Consciousness
Dr. Dain Heer
That Guy Who Loves The Universe
A Course In Miracles
Colors of Our Life
Marianne Williamson
Let Me See Love

Enjoy!!! =D

A Course in LOVE

I have been studying A Course in Miracles (slowly.. this book is freaking enormous), and how quaint and appropriate that I've now fallen on Chapter 6, Lessons in Love, just a day before Valentine's Day. It probably doesn't have a lot to do with romantic love, but I'm sure it corresponds quite nicely to Marianne Williamson's Enchanted Love, which I am now almost finished with. The lessons that Marianne is teaching me through her interpretations of A Course in Miracles towards relationships just fills me with a big "YES" of recognition and truth.  Let's stay in the light! Let's stay in the ecstasy! Let's stay in the glory!
I love that Chapter 6 corresponds to the 6 card in the Tarot.. The Lovers.

"When two hearts join in ecstasy and rapture, an army of light ascends and the world is brought closer to heaven. Literally.  The beloved's hand on us, like a baby's hand, holds power that is straight from God. Heaven is, in metaphysical terms, the experience of our oneness. The world is a holographic universe, with every piece containing the whole. An enchanted love between any two people is a blessing on the entire world."

How lovely.

I love this painting from http://martanael.deviantart.com/ .