A Good Book

"A good book is the life blood of a Master Spirit." I am not sure who said or wrote that. Whomever it was, the person was brilliant. I am not one who reads a lot anymore. I used to read voraciously when I was in University. But after 4 years of reading on demand, I kind of burned out. I went for years after that with just reading what was absolutely necessary. By that I mean things like street signs and tax forms. Gradually I got so that I could pick up a book and not feel anxious. I began reading for something that I had not done for years and years....pleasure. Eventually I was able to read things that were just for my interest and personal growth. That was when I began noticing books on shamanic topics and on magic and witchcraft and such. It was like entering a candy store!

I am currently re-reading "The Prophet" by Kahlil Gibran. We have a library set up in the bathroom. This is where, according to my eldest daughter, all the best books can be found. I figure that if I am going to be sitting there anyway, why not enjoy a good book. Now, I have never been one that is so literary that I can pull quotes out of my head during conversation. Frankly, I have much preferred to be more original than that. And although you will find quotations in this blog site and through some of my other writings, I don't speak that way. Sometimes I wish that I could speak the way Kahlil Gibran writes. It is absolutely beautiful. I would highly recommend his material as a good read.

I enjoy books for what they are...an accumulation of knowledge. This knowledge does indeed feed my spirit, and it allows my mind to soar. Wisdom, however, I find to be a different thing. Someone can be very book learned and still be a blockhead. Knowledge is the accumulation of information. Wisdom is the appropriate use thereof. So, for example, I might know that certain things in my home could be combustible. Wisdom would dictate that I keep those things in a place where they are safe from heat sources so that I don't accidentally start a fire. Wisdom would also dictate that I do not create a bomb out of these things. Just because we know how to split an atom does not mean that we must create an A-bomb. Unfortunately, wisdom is not common sense either. I find that forward thinking people are the most wise. They see what there is for potential and challenge the contemporary paradigms. This is not common sense. Common sense, unfortunately, can be limited to what is conventionally thought of as true. Yet when we look at some of the conventional thought systems, many of them have more to do with what we have been told to believe than what is actually real. Forward thinkers break apart these beliefs and force the rest of the world to address reality beyond comfort zones and belief systems.

Blessed Be

Trent

www.deerhornshamanic.com

Giving and Receiving

Lau-Tzu said,"If you would take, you must first give." This is a very basic law of the universe, yet one that eludes many. I remember being bullied in Junior High and then, later, taking up martial arts. My instructor, also an accomplished acupuncturist and practitioner of Chinese Medicine, asked me why I wanted to learn how to hurt and possibly kill. My response was that I no longer wanted to feel weak and vulnerable around those who would bully me about and possibly beat the bejeebers out of me as they had in the past. He said two things that really stuck. The first thing that he said was,"If you embark on a journey of revenge, you must remember to dig two graves." The second was, "before you can learn to kill, you must learn to heal."

Having been raised with pagan thought systems, the idea of giving before receiving was something that I understood. I was told by my grandmother to always send prayers of gratitude before I received what I desired. Thus, the Goddess would understand that I already have within me that which I desire, and would then respond by bringing more of the same to me. But when it was put into the context of learning to heal before learning how to kill, it quite frankly floored me. Suddenly it all made sense. Had the bullies in my life learned how to heal before they learned how to torment and possibly kill, they would not have even embarked upon the path of bullying! Thus began my training in martial arts. Yes, I had a natural talent because I learned as a young person how to "street fight" and that made me exceptionally resourceful. But my interest soon became an obsession with the healing aspect. I learned many methods and avenues of helping people to heal. Energetically, there is so much that can be influenced in the mental, emotional, physical and spiritual bodies that the results are often profound. At the same time, you cannot learn how to simulate, say, the liver meridian without also learning how to hinder it, causing great pain and illness. Knowledge is the accumulation of information. Wisdom is the appropriate usage thereof.

So I learned how to protect myself. But what was most important was that I learned how to heal myself. I was able to let go of all those aspects of my personal history that no longer served my well-being and embrace aspects that do. I became an energetic adaptogen and in doing so I opened myself to becoming a shaman. That was a title that I resisted for years. It is one that I now wear with great honor. In an age when there are a lot of popcorn elders and shamans emerging from the woodwork, it is important to know that there are some, like myself, who work with honor and integrity. Those who are like myself I embrace with great love and appreciation. Those who are not don't last long enough to worry about.

Blessed Be

Trent
www.deerhornshamanic.com