Introductions/Backgrounds/Intentions

i would like to give people a chance to introduce themselves, offer bits about their backgrounds and intentions. no need to have some glorious background with tons of experience. this is an opportunity to share with others a bit about how you have come to what you have come to and what is motivating and inspiring some of your work and actions and your interest in participating in this group.

i think to have some different things be discussed in this group allows us all to more consciously engage with one another and hopefully meet needs and desires better - ie. if you are new to things and looking for dialogues about the soul specifically then knowing that may inspire further threads from people or people to post things they come across related to that theme. if you have a lot of understanding around a particular side of global issues and offer that info then it may have others ask questions and explore inquiries they would not have thought to do so.

it would seem this thread could have the potential to more fully meet the individual and collective needs/wants more fully as well as support the possibility of interactions that can come from the heart further because people will have further understanding of people here as people vs. just their latest post.

Re: Introductions/Backgrounds/Intentions

Hello - just out stumbling around zaadz today and seeing all the new members and stuff that's been put up.  This looks to be a very great pod that could sprout some great discussions. 

Saying a quick Hi right now and will set notifications and check back to see what's happening.

Blessings, David

Re: Introductions/Backgrounds/Intentions

hi david…

welcome to the group. you are welcome to read through the past threads and add your thoughts/comments as well as to post topics and discussion which you may want to explore. and of course welcome to introduce yourself on this thread as well.

om…
d

Re: Introductions/Backgrounds/Intentions

Hello, Jason here, I am a massage therapist, a student (BS in health education, I graduate in May) Then I start acupuncture college in Sept.

I love the healing arts, touching people, listening, creating environments of peace and relaxation. Just to be there for someone, sometimes a complete stranger, and know that an exchange of kindness has occured…That, is what drives me to be in this field of health.

My spiritual journey began with Shirley MacClaine's book Out On A Limb. So many of my questions and thoughts were brought out of the closet because, finally ,somebody else wrote a book about their experience and I knew I was not alone in this place of wonderment.

Then I went to work at the Light Institue with Chris Griscom in Galisteo, NM. She just blew me away with her sweet charm and mystical nature. She would so often answer a question with a question. I would get sooooooooo frustrated. JUST TELL ME THE ANSWERS! he he he. Now I appreciate that gift she gave me. I question things, then I question the question, then I get it…or I don't lol and that's cool too.

Since then I have explored many religions and schools of thought and having all these pieces I can sort of put a bit of the puzzle of my life into context. I am loving how it is coming together.

Thank you David, yet another teacher on the path. I like how you think.

Jason

Introductions - David's Intro

hi jason… thanks for posting your introduction. fun to have this thread started. others as well of course are invited and encouraged to post here as they may be drawn, no matter where in the journey they are. helps to know who is watching the threads and interested.

here is my intro -

i am still sorting out what my role is now and moving forward. i have been reading this book called 'a simpler way' and it talks about the self organizing nature of the universe particularly in regards to groups and organizations. very much enjoying it. at some point in the book they (a man and woman co-authored the book) discuss how in a self organizing universe we cannot so much see ahead much of the time so much as where we have been, so here is where i have been and the pieces i have at the moment.

first, one can look at my current profile and see a lot of the divisions of my life and comments from the angle that i offered there. my life has been an exploration of a lot of different things and in the process it seemed somewhat random and disjointed. over time i think of it more like a fabric that has woven itself together and/or is in the process of doing so.

the last number of years i have done extensive reading about the soul, consciousness, energy, buddhism, hinduism, mysticism, art, design, and a variety of other topics. over time it seems like i am essentially focused on being a catalyst for others. on being a johnny appleseed of sorts. planting a lot of seeds. exposing people to books. helping leaders see where they can use consciousness and just essentially working to have what one friend called 'God's eye view'. for me i don't use that term egocentrically and ultimately i don't feel like i have that view so much as a view that is a bit more expansive than working within any one system. seeing how systems are interfacing and what patterns have happened through history and what challenges we are facing now that may be new or similar.

my interest is where possible to glean from the past while still embracing the present and the future where useful and relevant. i am interested in all sorts of topics and applying ideas around consciousness and energy to them and issues within those realms. i am interested in patterns and themes that emerge both within individual areas and within systems as a whole. i am interested in finding ways of drawing on modern societal opportunities and structures while really grounding our spirits and souls where possible. i find these times both challenging and stimulating creatively. very exciting times in many ways. a lot of flux occurring and i find myself drawn to understand to the best of my ability what is occurring and to help others do the same especially those in positions of leadership and service, but really i think this information is useful to just about anyone who may be interested and willing to learn and consider things.

a lot of what i am interested in is tying together a lot of the wisdom of experience of so many different people in so many different fields. synthesizing the information in ways that are practical and accessible at least for the right people. that is a somewhat complex task and i think that my audience may in fact be certain people whose audiences are others and they understand the needs and perspectives of that particular group better than i can as an individual.

beyond that i love connecting people to different things. pointing them to a yoga center or a book or a teacher who may be of use to them. i love working with people who have strong roots in one path and helping them glean key pieces for their path that will suit them and help them and others within their path. increasingly i have the key people i work with in life around me. people who have been with me in one form or other for years as friends and confidants and collaborators and they have those in their groups. sometimes one falls away and others come in or one who i have worked with naturally takes time to focus on other things. so far i haven't had anyone die on me thankfully, but i expect at some point that will occur as well. some may consider that 'negative' thinking. i consider that to be conscious in the journey of life beyond the moment and to align efforts accordingly. to appreciate what we have when we have it and to live life to the fullest often means at least to me to know the impermance of it all, particularly the impermanence of us as individuals. as such i work to share what i have and to build structures that go beyond myself as an individual.

also, i figure if the buddhists and hindus are right and i reincarnate then the more seeds i plant in more places, the better off i am as far as finding what has been so useful to me in this lifetime.

so far i have not been compelled to learn other languages, although at times it seems i may be called to learn french which has been a language of interest to me since a child. that said, it seems that i have many friends who do speak other languages and i hope that the seeds spread that way to the places they need to be as they need to be there.

ultimately my hope is to be the flow for the energy that is called through me at any given point. for now i am called to share and learn as much as possible where i am called to do so. i expect i will ultimately be writing books and continuing to teach and work with people and the issues that come up along the way. to be where i am called to be when i am called to be there. doing what i am called to be doing. if that is art by myself in the desert then fine. if it is reading in my small basement bedroom where i am now (my modern yogic cave) then that is fine. if that is sharing ideas about food and cooking then fine. whatever it may be along the way my interest is to surrender as best i can and to be an instrument of spirit.

that would essentially be where i am at the moment. as i said, my profile includes further for those interested and my current blog has information as well at the moment (i delete and change both up as called to do so, so you may suddenly find a clear blog or a clear profile). yes i know many enjoy archives, but it hasn't been what i am called to do thus far around the blog, although sometimes i revisit similar subjects from similar and/or different angles.

Re: Introductions/Backgrounds/Intentions

 Thanks for having this pod David. I hope to continue exploring and contributing to Soul here…

OK…um…yeah…about me…well, up till the last 2-7 years I've really been asleep, closed-minded and narrow-focused. My ego consciousness was the only lens through which I could see, attempt control or define  the world and 'Reality' with…I was polarized and held much in contempt.  I didn't “get” art, myth, poetry, symbolism (I still don't, but am now in love with it!), and generally speaking anything metaphorical…The world of metaphor now connects me with a wider world of possibilities & potentials! I'm now waking up, and opening up!

What changed? Well, my father passed away Christmas eve, 2001(that was a major milestone). Then, about 2 years ago after turning 41 (officially mid-life) and nearing imminent first time fatherhood I knew I needed depth therapy…I had classical existential angst, financial debt & dread, general depression and occasional suicide fantasies… Previously, I sought therapy (many times in the last 23 years or so) but it never got through. Then I read Robert Johnson's “Owning Your Own Shadow” and a tiny mustard seed was planted. Things started to change.

I doggedly pursued Jungian analysis and finally got in with a great analyst and we started going deep into my psyche (well, a hell of a lot deeper than I ever ventured anyhow). Now I'm hooked! It's helping but…

…there's a lot of hard life stuff I'm facing like the fact that I'm a non-degreed “engineer” in the high-tech world of defense aerospace industry where lay-offs always loom; have a HUGE outstanding 6 figure student loan (my wife's) hanging over our heads, major IRS debt, live paycheck-to-paycheck with limited secondary income from my wife's jobs; we don't own a house (renting…for life); I'm often stressed out dealing with lots of negativity at work, trying to raise a little pterodactyl two-year old son and…bitch, bitch, bitch - you get the picture.

Anyhow, I'm so taken with Jung that I've started a local club where we gather to explore Jung's thoughts, concepts & writings (also a lot of audio/visual materials recorded on film, video & CD/tape). It's only 2 months old but we have a half dozen folks meeting in a quaint used bookstore twice a month…

I'm a big fan of Thomas Moore's recorded lectures & writings on the soul. Also seriously studying James Hollis' lectures, books and work on asking important questions of ourselves, not necessarily seeking hard & fast answers; second half of life issues, and the vocatus our soul or Self is calling us to live our life apart from our social roles (i.e. individuation). I'm enamored with the late poet John Keats' term, 'Negative Capability':
“…I mean Negative Capability, that is when man is capable of being in uncertainties, Mysteries, doubts without any irritable reaching after fact & reason…”

That's enough for now.

Re: Introductions/Backgrounds/Intentions

yay! love it jung at heart! love it.

love it when people start delving into their inner depths. love that you have started a group. i as well have been taken by the jungian ideas, but not really through jung directly which i have found fascinating. has all been through the people who were his proteges essentially (james hillman, arny mindell (aka arnold mindell), and robert a. johnson.)

parenting is this whole experience that i don't have in quite the same way. sometimes i think that has its pluses and minuses. i have a lot of friends who are gay fathers though. friends who married, had kids and then faced the fact that their lives were not working and well, that was access to their crisis that woke them up a bit more to the process of individuation.

debt can be an intense thing to go through. i personally found myself filing for bankruptcy following 9/11 and its effect on my business which i had already been managing the funds poorly for. spending money under a lot of delusions. partly chasing a fancy life much of which was motivated by a desire to keep up with the jones's which in my case were friends who happened to be older than i and further along in their careers by 10 or more years and much of which was just purely looking to fill the emotional void with shopping and of course our culture is only too happy to help us do that. i had creditors happy to help me hang myself essentially. when i was fighitng to not have to file bankruptcy after 9/11 i was told by one creditor calling me as often as they could (daily or every 2-3 days), that they didn't care if i filed bankruptcy because they were insured. made me angry that not only do they collect the interests rates they collect, but they are also insured. so for them it was in their interest that i either pay soon or file bankruptcy, which i resisted a while and then did.

not saying that is your answer, and that answer didn't handle the whole equation for me certainly.

i think it is admirable that you did put yourself in therapy. living paycheck to paycheck is an interesting thing. has a certain stigma socially and yet so many do it. in traditional cultures there wasn't really exactly paychecks, there was soil to plant and all that fun stuff, so they lived season to season for the most part. not sure to what degree you are integrating spirit into your journey and things like prayer/meditation/chanting, but i have found for me that they mix well with the jung stuff. i was doing all that prior to my experience with the jungian ideas and approaches.

modern culture is challenging for a lot of people to have any sense of soul in. challenging for people to take the time to do inner work and there is this assumption that one should get through it and be done among so many, or that if one is doing it that one 'has problems'. so we are faced with a lot of cultural resistance and social obstacles on our journeys. jungs ideas are not fast easy ideas and they give a different experience than a lot of other ideas.

before i was formally exposed to the ideas around jung i was exposed to hinduism and tibetan buddhism which both were wells that jung seemed to draw from and certainly are wells that his followers have drawn from.

as far as your mention of your challenges, i would encourage you to relate to them a bit differently than you seem to be, but a lot of that would need a spiritual framework, even if just the hindu deities as myth/metaphor like many use them. the idea that these are opportunities for the transformation of your consciousness. the fear and resistance to your circumstances seems to be as much or more the issue than the circumstance itself at least thus far as you mention it.

i have very unique circumstances that i have feared and resisted the past few years. i have a genetic eye disease so i can't drive like i once was able to. i have felt called to live in utah where i cannot make money like i could in nyc, but for my own healing process and time with family and other issues i have felt called to stay in utah. i have been supported by friends and family which is not something i advocate for everyone, but yet in other cultures was embraced and is embraced much of the time. italians often are supported by family and living with them well into their 30's, and it can be good for the soul to coexist. or you see indian families sharing residences throughout their lives. i know for some of my friends support in these ways has been their answer at least short term. one friend went to med school in his thirties, and had to do his pre med work and wound up staying with a professor friend of his (who i also got to know) who put him up in his basement for a few years and helped cover the expenses of my friend and his partner as he did the coursework.
i like joseph campbell's view of following the strands of energy and how doors will open. he never had a degree formally, but got an honorary degree and wound up as a professor himself. i think your fear of not having a degree may limit your ability to follow from within or at least i don't hear you talking along those lines so far.

i may start a thread or two to discuss some ideas like that if we don't already have them going in which case i may add to them. but definitely feels like some things worth exploring within the group. if you would like to discuss at least a bit of that with me individually feel free to e-mail me personally here and i would be happy to explore that a bit as far as how that may apply to things specifically and more personally. not that i necessarily have 'the' answers or 'your' answers, but maybe at least some options and perspectives worth exploring and/or adding to your mix.

energetically speaking the fear and angst though are a contraction of the energy and shut you down in different ways that you probably don't want to be shut down and experiencing things.