Tag Archives: inspiration

Looking Within

Posted on by

The Seven Essene Mirrors

~ ADMIN

mirrorGregg Braden – The Essenes constituted an ascetic Jewish group or sect which existed from around 150 BCE until AD 70. They related to other religious-political groups, such as the Sadducees. The name Essene comes from the Syrian term asaya, and the Aramaic essaya or essenoí, all with the meaning of doctor, passes through Greek orum (Greek Therapeutés), and, finally, by esseni of Latin. The Essenian form is also accepted.

The Essenes have left us a beautiful analysis of human relationships. They separated into seven categories the way we relate in the course of our lives.

Wisely, they called these categories “mirrors.” Every moment of life our inner reality is mirrored in the actions, the choices, the language of the people around us.

The First of the Essene Mirrors

Refers to what we send to the one who is closest, in the present moment Do we feel anger, fear?

We mirror anger and fear. Do we feel joy and happiness? We echo joy and happiness. The first Essene mirror of human relationships is that of our presence in the present moment. The mystery of the first mirror is focused on what thing we send in the present moment to the people around us. When we are surrounded by individuals and models of behavior in which the feeling of anger and/or fear dominates, or it can be of joy and happiness, the mirror works in every way, what we see in the first mirror is the image of what we are in the present moment.

The Second of the Essene Mirrors

Subtler than the first, this mirror tells us about our judgments in the present moment. We can say that it refers to what is imposed on us “subtly.” They are the models that are imposed on us. This mirror suggests the question: “Am I mirroring myself at this moment?” The second essential mirror of human relations has a quality similar to the previous one, but it is a bit subtler. Instead of reflecting on everything we are, it shows what we judge in the present moment. If you are surrounded by people in whom the behavior model causes frustration or triggers feelings of anger or bitterness and realizes that these models are not yours at that moment, then ask yourself, “Are you showing me myself in the present moment?” If you can honestly say no, there is a good chance that it is showing you what you are judging at that moment.

The Third of the Essene Mirrors

It refers to that beautiful sensation when we look into someone’s eyes, and we are drawn to it when something magical happens, and we want to spend as much time as possible with this person. The explanation is that we find in these cases something that we have lost, that we leave behind, to survive in this world.

These magical encounters mirror something we have lost, abandoned, or been taken away from. The third essential mirror of human relations is one of the easiest to recognize because we perceive it every time we are in the presence of a person and look into our eyes. Something magical happens at that moment. In the presence of this person, we feel like an electric shock, the hairs are creeping. What happens at that moment? Through the wisdom of the third mirror is allowed access to Innocence, we renounce much of ourselves to survive the experience of life. We can lose without us noticing the self-control exercised by those who have a particular “power” over us.

Sometimes when we are faced with people embodying the same things that we have lost in the past and are looking for to reach our totality, our body expresses a physiological response that we understand as a kind of magnetic attraction for that person. You stand before someone, and for whatever unexplainable reason you feel the need to spend more time with that person, ask yourself, “What is this person have that I have lost or abandoned or been taken away from me?” The answer may surprise you since you have almost always recognized a sense of familiarity with virtually everyone who passes you by. This is the mystery of the third essential mirror of human relationships.

The Fourth of the Essene Mirrors

It is qualitatively different from other mirrors. We talk here about compulsive behaviors and addictions. In this mirror are certain behaviors that give both importance and great value, we eventually reorganize our lives to welcome them. When we talk about addiction, dependence, and compulsion, many people just imagine the drugs and alcohol, which are certainly capable of creating such behaviors.

We are not just talking about them, but some more subtle addictions, such as family control, dependence on sex and others.

The Essene fourth mirror of human relations is somewhat of a different quality. Often over the years, we adopt behavioral models that become so important that we can reorganize the rest of our lives to be able to live with them. Often such behaviors are compulsive and could influence the creation of addiction.

The fourth mirror of human relationships allows us to observe ourselves in a state of dependence and compulsion. Through these feelings, we slowly give up the things that are most valuable to us. That is, as we yield to compulsion and addiction, we slowly give up the things we love most.

The Fifth of the Essene Mirrors

Perhaps the most intense of all mirrors, the fifth mirror refers to the way we live our lives. This mirror shows us how much our parents had influenced our lives. Heavenly Father and Mother, the masculine and the feminine, represent our parents, so everything that refers to how we live our divinity on Earth is related to our parents. Through their relationship or from what we have learned with our parents, our beliefs and vision of God are born. If we always feel judged or have the feeling of “not being able or sufficient in what we do,” it reflects our relationship with our parents.

This allows you to see better and more deeply why we live life in a certain way. The fifth mirror shows us our parents and the interaction with them.

This mirror asks us to admit that our actions about us reflect our beliefs and expectations regarding what is sacred to us, namely our Heavenly Father and Mother, the Sacred Masculine and The Sacred Feminine aspects of our Creator. It is through our relationship with our parents that we realize our beliefs and expectations about God, the creator, or what is most important to us.

The Sixth of the Essene Mirrors

Called “dark night of the soul,” this mirror reflects that through challenges and difficulties we can overcome with grace and ease. Each difficulty shows us the possibility of overcoming and reaching higher levels of mastery. In this mirror, we can lose everything we have, be naked before the “dark night of the soul” to find trust in Life.

The sixth mirror of human relations has a rather sinister name, it is known by Ageless Wisdom as the “Dark Night of the Soul.” It means that every challenge we face in our lives is a test. These are lessons we must learn to “develop” our soul. However difficult it may be, we must always act calmly, wisely and even a little coldly, not reacting to things, so that we can finally learn from that experience we are going through. Is exactly as Albert Einstein said that it is at the time of greatest crisis that we grow and learn more.

The Seventh of the Essene Mirrors

It is the subtlest and often the most difficult mirror to be accepted. It asks us to believe that any experience in our life is perfect. No matter the result, here we are invited not to follow the limits imposed by others. The only goal and point of reference in our life must be ourselves. It is the simplest, and perhaps the most difficult to be believed. The seventh mystery of human relationships shows you that everything that happens in your life is in Divine Order. Just know this and manage your feelings about events. The Universe takes care of everything entirely.

SF Source Rise Earth Aug 2018

from:    https://www.shiftfrequency.com/the-seven-essene-mirrors/

Art Therapy for Calming

Posted on by

10 Easy Art Therapy Techniques To Help You De-Stress

 | By
Posted: Art therapy is a form of therapy that encourages creativity and self-expression as vehicles to reduce stress, improve self-esteem, increase awareness and help remedy trauma. While many other forms of therapy depend on verbal language to express feelings and overcome personal obstacles, art therapy allows for other, more abstract forms of communication. This tactic makes room for elements of the subconscious that perhaps are not yet ready or able to be verbalized come to the surface.

You do not have to be an artist to enjoy the benefits of art therapy. In fact, most of the exercises rely not on the final product you create but on the therapeutic, meditative ritual of the creative process. If you’re intrigued by the process of relaxation through artistic imagination, we’ve compiled a starter kit to get you on your way.

The following 10 suggestions are simple ways to explore your inner creative voice while turning off the negative influences that so often get in the way. They may not all work for you, but hopefully one or more of the following techniques will serve as the artistic equivalent of a long, hot bath.

1. Design a postcard you don’t intend to send

handmade postcard

Whether it’s a love note to someone you’re not ready to confess your feelings to, or an angry rant you know is better left unsaid, sometimes enumerating all the details helps deflate the issue at hand. While writing the text can be therapeutic in its own right, designing the postcard gives even more value to the object. It also allows you to activate different portions of your brain while relaxing in a manner similar to coloring in a coloring book. Once you toss that signed and sealed letter in the trash (or tuck it away in a drawer), you’ll find its message has lost some of its power.

2. Cut and paste a painting to create a collage

cut collage

Create a painting on a material like paper or cardboard. When you’re finished, cut or tear it up. Then use the pieces as building blocks for a new artwork — a collage. See how your original artwork transforms into something new and exciting, something unpredictable. This exercise illuminates the close proximity between creation and destruction, encouraging us to take risks to push ourselves creatively and in other aspects of life.

3. Build an altar to a loved one

folk art altar

Take inspiration from folk art and create an altar honoring a unique relationship between you and another person, living or not. Decorate the shrine with photographs, letters and relics of memorable times spent together, as well as new art objects you’ve created in their honor. Anything can become artistic material, from gifts you’ve exchanged to a candy wrapper you know your subject would love. Building a totem to another person awakens memories and creates a physical manifestation of a relationship that can provide comfort in tough times.

4. Draw in total darkness

simple doodle

So much of the stress we experience when making art comes from the judgments and criticism that seem unavoidable every step of the way. Try creating artwork in total darkness to make art free from that inner art critic inside your head. (Think of it as a form of blind contour drawing.) You’re suddenly freed up to create lines, shapes and patterns simply because you feel like you should. When you turn back on the lights, we suspect you’ll be surprised by what you find.

5. Watercolor your bodily state

watercolor

Lie down and close your eyes. Visualize your body as you breathe in and out. Try to imagine your breath as a particular color as it enters your body, another color as it exits. What do you see? Draw an outline of a body on a large sheet of paper, and inside, create a watercolor based on your bodily state. Think about what these colors mean to you, where they are densest, where they are most opaque. Think of this as the most relaxing self-portrait you’ll ever create.

6. Create a Zentangle-inspired creation

zentangle

Zentangle is a drawing method invented by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas, designed to make drawing meditative and accessible to all. To learn the official method you must be taught by a Zentangle Teacher, but you can recreate the basic idea on your own. Use a piece of paper, cut into a 3.5″ square piece, and draw a freehand border around the edge in light pencil. Then use your pencil to draw a curved line or squiggle within the border, called a “string.”

Now switch to a pen and begin drawing a “tangle,” a series of patterns and shapes around your “string” and voila! You got yourself a Zentangle. The process is designed to encourage deliberate, ritual creation and allow room for human error — no erasing, that’s against the rules. Traditional Zentangles are always black and white but we fully support experimenting with color. The entire process shouldn’t take more than 15 minutes, and can be repeated whenever you feel the urge. Keep some 3.5″ squares handy so you can always create when inspiration strikes.

7. Produce a permission slip

permission slip

Think of the societal and self-imposed pressures you feel on a day-to-day basis, the personal traits you see as faults, the natural slips you see as errors. Choose one of these things and give yourself, in ornamental detail, permission to do just that. Turning one simple defeat into an accomplishment can minimize feelings of self-hatred, allowing you to achieve more of your important goals. Remember, it’s an art project, so make it pretty.

8. ‘Write’ a found poem

refrigerator magnet poem

Don’t consider yourself a poet? Let someone else do the hard part of coming up with the words by grabbing your material from old books, magazines, newspapers or even letters. Cut out words that jump out at or inspire you. Collage your found materials just as you would a visual collage. You can have a topic or story in mind at the beginning, or just get started and see where your word collaging takes you.

9. Craft a mark-making tool unique to you

markmaking

Instead of spending the majority of your time on an actual painting, why not focus a little of that attention on crafting an alternative paintbrush all your own? You can make a mark-making tool out of nearly anything, whether it’s a row of toothpicks (glued to a cardboard base) and dipped in paint, or a DIY paintbrush made from pom-poms and yarn. When you finally get around to actually making a piece with your new tool, you will have relinquished some of your artistic control to your distinct artistic medium, which, of course, is a work of art in itself.

10. Make a forgiveness box

handmade box

If there is a certain person — including yourself — you don’t want to harbor negative emotions toward any longer, try making him or her a forgiveness box. Decorate a small box with soothing images and words that can be either specific to an individual or catered to your desired inner state. You can write the person’s name on a slip of paper and include it in the box if preferred, and the name can be removed and exchanged if needed. The act of making the box will bring up happy memories of whomever the box is for, as well as help you physically work toward a place of forgiveness.

For more enjoyable art techniques for non-artists, check out our childhood art techniques that adults should definitely revisit.

from:    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/11/07/art-therapy-techniques_n_6103092.html?cps=gravity

Consciousness & Sacred Geometry

Posted on by

The Golden Spiral of Consciousness: Inspiration & Enlightenment through Art & Science

Robin Craig Clark

The golden ratio or spiral is a unique relation existing in the universe between the whole and the part and has been in our consciousness for over 4,000 years. It is a ubiquity number widely accepted as a divine proportion and spiritually regarded as the language of the Universe.

This simple fraction has been an inspiration to many artists, musicians, mathematicians and philosophers throughout our history.

Out of the golden ratio rises the golden spiral, whose familiar coil shape can be found everywhere in nature, such as in the structure of our DNA and fingerprints, sunflowers and seashells, storm clouds and tornados—even a star cluster nebula like the Milky Way.

The golden spiral, also called the flower of life, is a twirling pattern that forms out from a rectangle with the golden ratio.

When this rectangle is squared, it leaves a smaller rectangle that has the same golden ratio as the original. When this even smaller rectangle is squared, it in turn leaves a yet smaller rectangle behind—and this process continues until the shapes become so small you cannot see them anymore.

In other words, the process goes on forever.

When you connect a curve through the opposite corners of these concentric rectangles, you form the golden spiral.

The fact that the golden spiral shows up in many growth patterns of plants, animals and even whole galaxies makes us wonder if this unique shape is not indeed the pattern of life.

The principles of the golden spiral also can be seen in the design of buildings and architecture, as well as in art and literature. Golden proportions are to be found in music and even light.

The Greeks, Romans, Egyptians and Chinese all depict the golden ratio in their artwork. The Egyptians were probably the first to combine mathematics with art in the design of their pyramids.

Pythagoras discovered the golden proportions of the human body and this was portrayed by artists throughout Greek art.

Leonardo De Vinci found inspiration in the mathematics of art and nature; and it is almost certain he painted to conform to the golden ratio—especially the proportions set out in the Mona Lisa.

Literature can draw on the golden ratio in the structure of words, sentences, paragraphs, chapters, and pictures.

Just as we see the existence of the spiral in our fingerprints and galaxies and in the creation of pyramids and paintings, the golden ratio also appears inside the pages of a book—and even in a book’s cover design.

This pattern of nature can be seen inside many art forms and has a universally stimulating effect on the mind. Enlightenment may be part of this pattern—a communication that connects consciousness through the language of the Universe.

Look at the soul as being a bridge between your mind and the intangible essence of your spirit, gently guiding your mind through a doorway of transcendence to a higher plane of awareness.

By bringing the flower of life to words and pictures, your consciousness can be encouraged to move toward a realization greater than itself. In other words, the golden spiral can spiral you to soul awakening.

The flower of life transcends itself from the physical-mathematical form by which it is more commonly known (sacred geometry), into a spiritual equivalent we call unconditional love.

This little flower of life transforms into the pattern of love. Truth seekers, poets and prophets everywhere teach love as being at the center of all things.

When your soul connects consciousness with the golden spiral, you become love. Love is the infinite pattern of the Universe. And so are you.

Our world needs to undergo an incredible transformation. We must heal our emotions and weary bodies. We should sincerely connect to spirit and love—the intrinsic nature of everything.

Most cultures throughout history, from the Aztec to the Celtic, have documented a significant correlation between physical form and spirituality, clearly expressed through art and sacred geometry, like the mandala: beautiful, mesmerizing patterns bearing ritual and spiritual significance.

Psychoanalyst Carl Jung said the mandala is a representation of the unconscious self and believed mandalas are a means toward wholeness in personality.

The Mandelbrot Set, named after Benoît Mandelbrot, is a collection of numbers that form fractals. These are objects that display self-similarity at various scales; and so we can journey into the wondrous world of fractal geometry, gliding through never-ending self-similarity repeating patterns arising from a simple definition.

Quantum physicists show us that the substance of our reality is shaped, if not created, by our own consciousness.

Both old and new worlds of thought now come together as science greets spirituality in a uniform field of thought. The Universe speaks to us and we ought to listen.

If you “dream within a dream,” and inside this dream you awaken to unconditional love, which is the origin of all things in and beyond this world, you may find yourself in an infinite spiral with no beginning and no end called eternal life.

Copyright © by Robin Craig Clark. All Rights Reserved.

Robin Craig Clark is a writer of a new generation of spiritual books. Robin’s unique ideas come directly from nature, sacred geometry, Celtic wisdom and the use of holographic narrative, bringing words and art together to create a powerful way to inspire spiritual awakening and transformation. For more information, visit www.peliguin.com.

from:    http://snooze2awaken.wordpress.com/2013/12/15/the-golden-spiral-of-consciousness-inspiration-enlightenment-through-art-science/