October 2009
Greetings!

I hope you are enjoying the changing colors during this Autumnal transformation.  We will meet this coming Saturday October 17, at Rose Lodge in Waterford as usual at 11 a.m. We made the change from our usual second Saturday of the month to this weekend because of the three day weekend so that those who wanted to travel or take some time off could do so easily. I have just heard that Carol Parker’s father passed away recently and I know that I speak for everyone at Eagle’s Quest when I say that she and Bill and their entire family is in our prayers, and that we send our deepest condolences.

The I Ching speaks to us this month about potential energy. It says that we are in possession of a tremendous amount of stored vital life force in the form of psychological, emotional, and potential energy. When one has this type of potential energy, one gets tested by those who are envious of that serenity. This usually comes after a build up of tension surrounding creative processes. Doubt and fear are mind-killers.  Ultimately there is a cosmic obligation for all of us to deal with one another from a place of respect, but often those in an attitude of aggression push towards a type of crescendo of awfulness that forces an inner awakening. The aggressors if met by your serenity and by your firmness of integrity will see their own behavior in a new light of awareness and begin to make changes toward correction.

Sometimes when everything seems to be stuck, when the wheel of fate seems to have gone off-road and one is simply spinning ones wheels in the deepest of pits, and hope seems to be lost, their arises the sense of steadfastness, and we learn to still our minds that scream at the suffering in the quagmire. When one is bogged down and there seems to be no freedom from the heaviness of the weight of the universe upon the shoulders, and the wheel of fate will not budge, we must still ourselves and quiet the mind that is full of worries. When we are defensive, or aggressive in our actions towards others we simply build the tension up and then we stay stuck in the mud. When we still ourselves and visualize our freedom from a place of release and forgiveness, we let go of the ego driven aspects of holding someone else in a state of wrongdoing, and therefore hold ourselves down at the same time. The more we struggle the more we entangle ourselves in the bondage that undermines our energies potential for release. The Unknown must be trusted by us in order for it to be used by us for our eventual release. The branding of others as something less than human only brings our own destruction. Great power is produced when we do not respond to mindless energy that is overtly strong, but rather when we nourish ourselves on the flow that comes of the right time. Timing is everything here. We must learn to wait inside the mountain, in silence while carrying the heavy burden of wisdom until the time is right for action. When the time is ripe we pluck the fruit, and it falls easily into our hands with little effort. Avoid doubting what you know to be true. Be still and listen to your still small voice within.

We all need to work on what has been spoiled at times, and this is certainly one of those times. We must correct our own behaviors and habits of mind, while tolerating what spoiled in others. Or in other words, “Don’t try to take the splinter out of someone else’s eye when you have a tree lodged in your own.” There is an analogy the I Ching talks about of a bowl in which worms are breeding. Look in your own bowl and see if there are some rotting things there. Clean your own bowl. How do we relate to the Sage? To the wise and worthy do we treat them with the respect and dignity that we should or do we treat them with a casualness that denigrates the power that they are capable of imparting to us? There is a suggestion of contemplation of the problem for three days before action, then three days to implement action. These three days are symbolic of 1) the diligent search for our own defects, 2) sincere and firm resolution towards the positive transformation, and 3) the setting of the guard against the re-infiltration by the bad behaviors. We need to drive ourselves toward a more Cosmic perspective, which is impersonal and ego-less. When we achieve this level of awareness, we are able to disperse anger and indifference, and desire and envy. We must avoid trying to pressure or force issues. We must learn to give people the space and time to come around to the proper attitude rather than push them into it, as that merely creates a type of resistance that is counter productive. The time for change is now. Each person is uniquely qualified to transform their own life because their own past attitude is the source of their difficulty. Using intelligence, and perseverance, we can all make right what has been spoiled. Become constructive in your work on yourself. By laying a foundation that is based on proper growth through persistent positive action, no matter how great the magnitude of the task may be, the goal will be reached. Advance your positive agenda continually, as problems can arise again easily once you have achieved your goal if you let yourself slide back into complacency. Act now so as not to allow your higher self to be held in check.

Please R.S.V.P. to Debbie so she knows for whom to cook. Bring your mugs, and dishes and utensils as usual and water for the day.

Perseveringly Yours,
David Chandler