Post by XANTO on Aug 10, 2011 8:42:40 GMT
I have been thinking about the act of giving that Lynne McTaggart briefly suggests in Living The Field for a while and the quote that has been hovering around my mind - "the secret to living is giving." I remember reading something so well put by David Spangler in his Laws Of Manifestation book. He explains in our case that manifestation is not like the 'the law of attraction' - the new mainstream buzzword of today - rather it is a result of the collective thought influence that someone has that manifests their reality.
"I use Gaian as an adjective to refer to an awareness of systems and wholes, just as the planet itself is a whole. The word comes from the name for the Greek goddess of the earth, Gaia, and was used by the scientist James Lovelock in his book The Gaia Hypothesis to refer to the earth as a living organism. To perceive and to think like Gaia is to think in terms of relationships and interconnectedness and what the cybernetics and anthropologist Gregory Bateson called "the patterns that connect."
A system is a complex whole acting as a single unit but made up of interconnected parts that mutually influence each other in dynamic ways. Our body is a system made up of organs, tissues, cells, and the like. Often, as in our body, the parts that make up a system are themselves systems." - David Spangler
David talks about holism (Gaian) in the context of manifestation in the book. He talks about how our effect of manifestations/intentions affect the system as a whole. For example if everybody had a huge western appetite and decided to manifest material things such as cars then that will have a huge affect on the oil companies, factories, and anything that could be depleting the earth's health. These companies will consume, consume until as Lao-Tzu said;
"When man interferes with the Tao,
the sky becomes filthy,
the earth becomes depleted,
the equilibrium crumbles,
creatures become extinct".
In the same verse Lao-tzu expresses;
"The pieces of a chariot are useless
unless they work in accordance with the whole.
A man's life brings nothing
unless he lives in accordance with the whole universe.
Playing one's part
in accordance with the universe
is true humility".
Giving is the most obvious part of living as part of the whole. If you do not contribute you die, if you contribute the most you are most likely praised. But ego aside, the most anonymous contribution is the act that fulfills one's soul. The ego has needs that are temporary but the soul I believe wants two things; to grow and to give. This is what nature does. From a Darwinist approach you see the world as a battlefield for the survival of the fittest. Paul Bailey believes that evolution is intelligent choice rather than a natural selection. He explains that life is evolving as one dynamic, interconnected whole. "The basic Darwinian model has missed the central importance of this key evolutionary step: the evolution of systems rather than components; the evolution of holism through the evolution of connections, networks and processes". In strong beautiful ecosystems each organism works in conducive productivity to flourish as a whole. You can find so many connections in the ecosystem that depend on other organisms. If one element becomes extinct, the whole suffers - it would be a bit like taking the RAM out of a computer and finding it would not be able to load the operating system.
I believe there is a lot of competition between all organisms in scarce areas of the world. But when organisms work together scarcity becomes abundance. This is the magic of holism and this is due to intelligent choice not natural selection. The components in rich ecosystems contribute to each other to flourish in beauty. They grow in contribution. Humans are the same. Although a lot of people talk about contributing or giving, when it is done anonymously it feels great and you get a sense of growth within you. This feeling of growth is the same when you do a simple act of watering a beautiful house plant. You know that your act of contribution is dependent by the plant to grow strong. Then when the plant finally blooms in it's almighty delight, it is because of your attention and care.
Around the world humans are not living in accordance with nature or much themselves. Self growth comes from the contribution and growth of the whole. I have always remembered the saying "what you give out you get back," and I have found that to be true in my life and in context it is an intention to give and ultimately reap back. So if you are busy intending and manifesting for yourself then you will find yourself to be stuck. When your intention is to grow as part of the whole you will find you will gain flow and integration with the field. There is something magical about giving. You feel the magic inside and see it happen outside. I am not saying that all your desired intentions should be selfless, because to give is to give to yourself also. If you want something for yourself you can bring it about in a way that benefits the whole.
The most obvious and enjoyable way to think like Gaia and integrate as a whole is to be sociable and to be kind and compassionate with all people that you meet. I remember watching the Dali Lama on a documentary and admiring the way he will go up to anyone and talk to them with his full heart and interest. Having time to talk to each person. His own unique personality gives people a contagious smile and light laugh.
So to intend with a heart of compassion and contribution is vital to grow and flow in a life of fulfillment and effectiveness. To work to gain for yourself is just to be separate from the flow and it stunts the growth of happiness. On your deathbed you are not going to be glad that you spent your time working hard and being self centered. It is usually said that people wished they had changed more people's lives for the better in their life and had more of an impact. This is the wish of your soul to grow and give. If you think about it, how great would you feel if you knew you have dramatically grown in every way in the past five years? The more you grow the better you feel. If you have also contributed towards the growth of other people or living things that would make you feel even better.
To consume all the time and not contribute back out of instinct is insanity. If every component of a whole did that then it would not work. Sadly that is what is happening today between man and earth. Imagine what it would be like to bring our strong compassionate intelligence into the growth of the whole. Take the time and effort out of war (separateness) and direct it towards the growth of the richly diverse world we live in. I believe to enrich the beauty of nature with the equal ability we have to create weapons would cause a beauty beyond our current imagination.
If we look at technology and try to imagine what people would think 200 years ago about having a tool that fits into your pocket that connects to you anybody in the world, I bet that they would find it hard to properly conceive of the idea of our iPhone 3G and it's amazing tools. Our evolution of technology has increasingly exploded in the past century and imagine what an obsession like that could do if it were in complete harmony with nature. Right now I think it would be hard to conceive. Imagine everyday a new invention was released that contributed towards the growth of the whole world. For example, a new mall opened and the building was completely energy self sufficient. All the products in the mall did not consume any electrical energy but indeed was also self sufficient and it gave out waist that was conducive to nature. Possibly all the wrappings for food was biodegradable and full of nutrition for the environment. Each little things made a little bit of a difference. The world would be a different place before you would even think to look.
How on earth would that be possible? How on earth was the idea of the internet possible from the judgment of a 1800s citizen? It was possible back then but they just didn't know how to do it. We are in the same position now. It comes from belief and optimism. Before Roger Banister ran the 4 minute mile experts said it was impossible. They said that his muscles would rip and he would surly not make it. Before the race he made a shift in his mind and he made a shift in the evolution of man's belief. Now days the belief is so common to run the 4 minute mile. You or I could do it if we practiced. It is no big deal now but back then they thought it was impossible. The way to get it done is to believe it. That is the only way to get peace done.
I would also like to add that technology is being developed in the way I explained and it is called biomimicry. There are great innovations and ideas all the time.
What are your ways or ideas to give or to contribute?
xanto
"I use Gaian as an adjective to refer to an awareness of systems and wholes, just as the planet itself is a whole. The word comes from the name for the Greek goddess of the earth, Gaia, and was used by the scientist James Lovelock in his book The Gaia Hypothesis to refer to the earth as a living organism. To perceive and to think like Gaia is to think in terms of relationships and interconnectedness and what the cybernetics and anthropologist Gregory Bateson called "the patterns that connect."
A system is a complex whole acting as a single unit but made up of interconnected parts that mutually influence each other in dynamic ways. Our body is a system made up of organs, tissues, cells, and the like. Often, as in our body, the parts that make up a system are themselves systems." - David Spangler
David talks about holism (Gaian) in the context of manifestation in the book. He talks about how our effect of manifestations/intentions affect the system as a whole. For example if everybody had a huge western appetite and decided to manifest material things such as cars then that will have a huge affect on the oil companies, factories, and anything that could be depleting the earth's health. These companies will consume, consume until as Lao-Tzu said;
"When man interferes with the Tao,
the sky becomes filthy,
the earth becomes depleted,
the equilibrium crumbles,
creatures become extinct".
In the same verse Lao-tzu expresses;
"The pieces of a chariot are useless
unless they work in accordance with the whole.
A man's life brings nothing
unless he lives in accordance with the whole universe.
Playing one's part
in accordance with the universe
is true humility".
Giving is the most obvious part of living as part of the whole. If you do not contribute you die, if you contribute the most you are most likely praised. But ego aside, the most anonymous contribution is the act that fulfills one's soul. The ego has needs that are temporary but the soul I believe wants two things; to grow and to give. This is what nature does. From a Darwinist approach you see the world as a battlefield for the survival of the fittest. Paul Bailey believes that evolution is intelligent choice rather than a natural selection. He explains that life is evolving as one dynamic, interconnected whole. "The basic Darwinian model has missed the central importance of this key evolutionary step: the evolution of systems rather than components; the evolution of holism through the evolution of connections, networks and processes". In strong beautiful ecosystems each organism works in conducive productivity to flourish as a whole. You can find so many connections in the ecosystem that depend on other organisms. If one element becomes extinct, the whole suffers - it would be a bit like taking the RAM out of a computer and finding it would not be able to load the operating system.
I believe there is a lot of competition between all organisms in scarce areas of the world. But when organisms work together scarcity becomes abundance. This is the magic of holism and this is due to intelligent choice not natural selection. The components in rich ecosystems contribute to each other to flourish in beauty. They grow in contribution. Humans are the same. Although a lot of people talk about contributing or giving, when it is done anonymously it feels great and you get a sense of growth within you. This feeling of growth is the same when you do a simple act of watering a beautiful house plant. You know that your act of contribution is dependent by the plant to grow strong. Then when the plant finally blooms in it's almighty delight, it is because of your attention and care.
Around the world humans are not living in accordance with nature or much themselves. Self growth comes from the contribution and growth of the whole. I have always remembered the saying "what you give out you get back," and I have found that to be true in my life and in context it is an intention to give and ultimately reap back. So if you are busy intending and manifesting for yourself then you will find yourself to be stuck. When your intention is to grow as part of the whole you will find you will gain flow and integration with the field. There is something magical about giving. You feel the magic inside and see it happen outside. I am not saying that all your desired intentions should be selfless, because to give is to give to yourself also. If you want something for yourself you can bring it about in a way that benefits the whole.
The most obvious and enjoyable way to think like Gaia and integrate as a whole is to be sociable and to be kind and compassionate with all people that you meet. I remember watching the Dali Lama on a documentary and admiring the way he will go up to anyone and talk to them with his full heart and interest. Having time to talk to each person. His own unique personality gives people a contagious smile and light laugh.
So to intend with a heart of compassion and contribution is vital to grow and flow in a life of fulfillment and effectiveness. To work to gain for yourself is just to be separate from the flow and it stunts the growth of happiness. On your deathbed you are not going to be glad that you spent your time working hard and being self centered. It is usually said that people wished they had changed more people's lives for the better in their life and had more of an impact. This is the wish of your soul to grow and give. If you think about it, how great would you feel if you knew you have dramatically grown in every way in the past five years? The more you grow the better you feel. If you have also contributed towards the growth of other people or living things that would make you feel even better.
To consume all the time and not contribute back out of instinct is insanity. If every component of a whole did that then it would not work. Sadly that is what is happening today between man and earth. Imagine what it would be like to bring our strong compassionate intelligence into the growth of the whole. Take the time and effort out of war (separateness) and direct it towards the growth of the richly diverse world we live in. I believe to enrich the beauty of nature with the equal ability we have to create weapons would cause a beauty beyond our current imagination.
If we look at technology and try to imagine what people would think 200 years ago about having a tool that fits into your pocket that connects to you anybody in the world, I bet that they would find it hard to properly conceive of the idea of our iPhone 3G and it's amazing tools. Our evolution of technology has increasingly exploded in the past century and imagine what an obsession like that could do if it were in complete harmony with nature. Right now I think it would be hard to conceive. Imagine everyday a new invention was released that contributed towards the growth of the whole world. For example, a new mall opened and the building was completely energy self sufficient. All the products in the mall did not consume any electrical energy but indeed was also self sufficient and it gave out waist that was conducive to nature. Possibly all the wrappings for food was biodegradable and full of nutrition for the environment. Each little things made a little bit of a difference. The world would be a different place before you would even think to look.
How on earth would that be possible? How on earth was the idea of the internet possible from the judgment of a 1800s citizen? It was possible back then but they just didn't know how to do it. We are in the same position now. It comes from belief and optimism. Before Roger Banister ran the 4 minute mile experts said it was impossible. They said that his muscles would rip and he would surly not make it. Before the race he made a shift in his mind and he made a shift in the evolution of man's belief. Now days the belief is so common to run the 4 minute mile. You or I could do it if we practiced. It is no big deal now but back then they thought it was impossible. The way to get it done is to believe it. That is the only way to get peace done.
I would also like to add that technology is being developed in the way I explained and it is called biomimicry. There are great innovations and ideas all the time.
What are your ways or ideas to give or to contribute?
xanto
