Steven Barnes's Blog, page 87

Smoking and the "Ancient Child"

One of my FaceBook friends recently celebrated his fifth anniversary as a non-smoker.    I asked what his method was, and what he said tied in so closely to the Ancient Child technique that I wanted to share it.   The following back-and-forth took place:
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FB: “I’m glad you asked. It's kinda personal but I'm not shy. I knew from personal experience about a psycho-personality model commonly referred to as the "inner child," which works for me though others may identify with other terms like "higher" and "lower" selves.

STEVE:  Different imagery produces different associations, and relates to different aspects of our internal territory.   Male/female, animal/spiritual, child/elder are just some of the possible splits.  The smart thing is to work with different symbols and see which ones, in which syntax, have power.

FB:  Anyway, that's a deep discussion/digression. Bottom line is that after trying many times to quit, I reached a point where I could almost see that "inner child" part of me that needed to rebel, to be pacified, to do what he wanted.

STEVE: Note the similarity between this and people who have difficulty finishing, say, a short story.  Or can’t decide which of several different projects to pursue.   Or have a difficult time disciplining themselves to endure an unpleasant “now” in exchange for a blissful tomorrow.  This could easily be seen as a “war” between the child who wants to watch cartoons, and the adult who pushes the completion of homework.

FB:    And so I had an inner dialog. Literally. I (the adult "I" who is more or less in charge) made him a deal. I said, "We both know this smoking is killing us, right? It's time to put it behind us. It's Sept. 5th. Let's agree to smoke like a chimney if you want until the end of the month. No restrictions, no judgment. And come Oct. 1st we put it down and don't look back. Deal?"

STEVE:   I’ve noticed that if I say: “Jason, it’s time for bed” he might flip out.  But if I say: “in two minutes it will be bedtime” he has time to make whatever internal shifts he needs, and can adjust far more easily.   “Stop now” produces no results.  “I will count to three…” is about ten times as effective.  Why?  Not sure.  But it works, and that’s all that really matters.

FB:  And I actually felt "him" acquiesce. It felt like I was at peace with this decision, instead of fearful like before. I didn't think much about it during September 2007, except to occasionally remind my inner kid when I lit up that we had a deal. And then the 1st came. And that was that. Never looked back. Very little withdrawal issues. Very little urge for a few weeks I guess and then none.That's it in a nutshell.”
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Again, this is a lovely adaptation of the “Parts Party” theory of internal communication.  Version of this can be found in every meditative discipline I’ve experienced, many psychotherapeutic models, and in the spontaneously devised methods of successful people—when they can describe their internal process.  I strongly suspect that even people who CANNOT describe those internal processes are doing something similar.

Much, much to study and extract here!

Steve

Diamond Hour today. Call for questions!

I'm hoping you'll join me today on the Diamond Hour.
I'll be making the first public presentation of the
"Ancient Child" meditation, and addressing questions
of applying it to emotional issues, physical performance,
stress, goal setting, enhancing intuition, writer's block...the entire spectrum.
It is important to me that this fantastic technique, which
can be accessed in as little as sixty seconds a day, be available
to anyone and everyone. Please join us...and if you can't, please
ask for a specific application in your life, or the life of someone
you love, and I will gladly answer if possible.

The "Ancient Child" technique is not a miracle. YOU are
the miracle. The Ancient Child is just a mirror in which to
discover that truth.

Diamond Hour February show. - Saturday,
 February 16, 2013, 1:00 PM
Pacific Standard time (4:00 PM Eastern)
http://www.talkshoe.com/tc/77111
Connect via phone or VoIP (Skype, etc.)
(724) 444-7444

Request for Requests!

Tomorrow, I'm doing the Diamond Hour show I missed doing last Saturday. The "Ancient Child" meditation is an approach to the meditative systems I've studied for the last thirty five years or so. There is a unity between the internal spaces navigated by zen, yoga, Tai Chi, self-hypnosis, Transcultural Shamanism, Sweet Medicine, Flow State Management, NLP, and more. There really is, and all I've done is looked into the overlap. Amazing knowledge in these disciplines. What have the aspects of this technique been applied to?
1) Releasing Fear, anger, grief
2) Goal setting
3) Finding love
4) Healing childhood trauma
5) Stop smoking
6) Stress reduction
7) Increasing energy
8) Problem solving
9) Writer's block
10) Weight loss

And much more. My friends, students and clients have been using aspects of this for over twenty years. Tomorrow, I want to go "live" and discuss specific applications BUT I NEED TO KNOW WHAT YOU WANT TO HEAR ABOUT. The audio will be available later very inexpensively--or free to those in financial need. Please help me create something special. What do you want? The "Ancient Child" is not some kind of miracle. YOU are the miracle. The Ancient Child just helps you understand how miraculous you really are.

Diamond Hour February show. - Saturday, February 16, 2013, 1:00 PM Pacific Standard time (4:00 PM Eastern)
http://www.talkshoe.com/tc/77111
Connect via phone or VoIP (Skype, etc.)
(724) 444-7444

Diamond Hour/Ancient Child on Saturday!

We had technical problems last Saturday.  Let's try this again!   We'll discuss the Ancient Child meditation, and it's application to creativity, stress, self-healing, goal setting...everything.

Diamond Hour February show. - Saturday, February 16, 2013, 1:00 PM Pacific Standard time (4:00 PM Eastern)

http://www.talkshoe.com/tc/77111

Connect via phone or VoIP (Skype, etc.)

(724) 444-7444

Living the Ancient Child

I've finished basic recording for the
 Ancient Child meditation, and it
will be available the minute I have
the chance to edit. But meanwhile,
 I wanted to give away as much of
 it as I possibly can. After laying
down the basic structure, I decided
to use a non-linear approach to
unifying the inner and outer worlds.

To align your goals, actions, emotions,
values, beliefs, resources and emotions
 creates a kind of power most people
 have never experienced, and I
want that very attainable reality
to be available to each and every
one of you.

So...the purpose of the Ancient
 Child is to specifically concentrate
 on aligning your passion and your
 deepest values and core principles.
When you measure your day-to-day
 actions as if you are walking a
path between birth and death,
with BOTH your childhood
 dreams and death-bed values
alive in every action, every word...
we begin to align that internal
world. It is key to the "I.D.E.A."
concept, becoming a "human
laser" in the sense that your
brakes are off, you can go full
 steam ahead, running "downhill"
with no fear of tripping and falling.
So to do this, you begin by playing
 a game of "Twenty Questions."
   There is nothing special about
 any single question, but they
 have been chosen quite carefully
 and deliberately, and together
they link together your inner
world in a unique way.

So...here we go. The "Twenty
 Questions" are to be used this way:

1) Select a goal that will transform
 your life for the better.
2) Use a journal, and write your
 answer to the question(s).
3) Then...visualize your child
 self. Ask HIM (or her) the
 same question concerning your intent.
Note: is there a difference between
 what you say, and what your "child" says?
4) Then...visualize your Elder
self, beyond ego and ambition,
 clear on the meaning of your
life whether YOU understand
 it currently or not. Ask HIM
 the same question. Note: is
there a difference between
what you say, and what your
 "Elder" said? How about
between "child" and "elder"?

5) Get out of the way, and
allow "Child" and "Elder"
to speak together of these
things. Stay out of the
discussion as much as
possible. Write down as
 much as you can.

6) BONUS: Bring an appropriate
 role model into the discussion,
implanting at the appropriate
Chakra (for instance: if your goal
is to find a Soul Mate, find a role
 model who has been happily
 married long enough to enjoy
 their grandchildren together.
Visualize this person in your
 heart-space) and let them take
 part in the discussion. Record
the results.

7) ADVANCED BONUS: Visualize
 yourself in your inner mirror.
Transform your gender--flow from
male to female, or female to male.
 See yourself as you would have
been, if born into the different
gender energy. Ask your questions.
 Repeat with your child self. Repeat
with your elder self

Get it?

Now...here's your first question:
1) a) If you go full-tilt boogie
 toward your goal, what is the
 worst that could happen?
b) Exactly how do you know
what you think you know
about this situation?
c) How do you know you are
 correct? What is your
error-checking procedure here?


Oops. Is that four questions?
Maybe. But they all relate to a
single issue. Ask them of your
intention, and get commentary
 from your conscious mind,
 your child and elder selves.
If necessary, write their answers
 with your non-dominant hand.

Get ready for a bit of magic.

Steve

No "Side Effects"!

I just saw Steven Soderburgh's new film "Side Effects", which is terrific. On one level it is a psychological thriller about a woman dealing with depression, her husband's return from prison, and a maze of pharmacology. On another, it is an expose on the way our culture is becoming more and more dependent on these drugs...and vulnerable to their side effects.

Now, I'm not knocking the use of these substances if they are really necessary for our survival and welfare. I believe in having a powerful resource circle of experts, and our emotional health should be near the top of the list. But I also believe in not taking chemical intervention unless and until you have tried every natural way of raising our energy, clarifying our mood and living a life of joy and contribution.

So...if you are dealing with depression and stress, allow me to offer a few suggestions (and if you are under a doctor's care, please don't disregard their instructions!) that have no negative "side effects" at all...

1) Breathing 5X a day. Just taking five sixty-second "breathing breaks" during the day (one every three hours) can change your life.

2) Are your actions in alignment with your values? If any major aspect of your life: career, relationships, etc., are wildly out of synch with your deepest values, it will tear a hole in your heart. Find a way to bridget this gap.

3) Do you feel more pain than pleasure in connection with your actions and circumstances? Some part of you perceives threat in that arena. Anger and guilt are just sneaky versions of fear.

4) Do you move every day in a way that reminds you of your health, energy, and aliveness? It could be a brisk walk. Dancing. Yoga. Martial arts. But the fastest way to "reset" your emotions is to move in a new way. Get up RIGHT NOW, put on a favorite song and shake your booty. Breathe smoothly and stay WITHIN the flow of your breathing. Dance in slow motion if you have any physical limitations, but MOVE.

When you stop moving, you start dying.

5) Get hugs. Physical contact. We are herd beasts. We came to life within a living body, and would have died in infancy without contact. We are PROGRAMMED to need touch. Find a way to get a dozen hugs a day from people who respect, honor and love you.

6) If you don't have such connection (or even if you do) spend 15-20 minutes a day listening to (feeling for) your own heartbeat.

7) Write out the emotions that arise when you practice any of these great techniques.

The "Ancient Child" meditation is coming very soon, and it will be the biggest bargain you've ever seen (or FREE!). But I didn't want to wait to offer you hope.

Make TODAY a masterpiece!
Steve
www.diamondhour.com

"Side Effects" (2013)

"Side Effects" (2013)

From time to time you see a movie you don't want to review, because the less the audience knows about it, the more they'll enjoy it. Let's just say that "Side Effects", said to be director Steven Soderbergh's last film, is one of those movies. And that I think it's safe to discuss the first five minutes of the movie, and after that you're pretty much on your own.

Rooney Mara ("Girl With The Dragon Tattoo") is an emotionally fragile woman whose husband, (Channing Tatum) is just finishing a three-year stretch for insider trading. She seeks help for her bouts of depression from psychologist Jude Law, just as she did earlier from psychologist Catherine Zeta Jones.

Let's just say that all is not what it seems. Lying, cheating, suicide and corruption become topics of conversation.

I can tell you the performances are impeccable, the writing tight, and the suspenseful movie that emerges from this basic set-up is a twisty meditation on our growing chemical dependence, the industry that supports it, and the...oh, the heck with it. Just see it.

If this really is Soderbergh's last movie, he went out on a high note indeed. An "A."
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Hero's Journey view: 
Hero Confronted With Challenge:  Sorry, I don't even want to give away THAT much!

Sex and consciousness

I just received a note from a lady in Canada who enjoyed some of my writings on consciousness, worldly action, and in this case, sexuality.  She is connected with a group that walks that path, and invited me to come and speak to her folks.  That might happen: we'll see.    She also very politely indicated that some of my teachers are or were...controversial.   Wow.  THAT'S news.  Show me a great teacher who ISN'T!   I wrote out an answer to some explicit and implied questions, and thought that it might be of interest.  Identifications redacted as usual...

###########

Hi, T.  Thanks for the note.  XXXX XXXX   is only SLIGHTLY provocative?    Hah!   Boy, would he be disappointed to hear THAT.  He's a trip to say the least, and one of my favorite people...but most certainly not to every taste.   I seem to have developed the ability to extract meaning and value from odd situations without being much influenced by the...provocative aspects.    Nicely languaged, there.
##
My primary connection to the little energy dance called reality is through the martial arts, my primary body-mind discipline.   Writing certainly accesses flow state, focus, creativity and deep empathy, but the physicality is kinda weak.  The world of relationships is closer, but the emotional component can be very confusing--it is easy for people to lose themselves in the complex dance of children, career, commitments and so forth.    Here, I have to admit that I enjoy Anthony Demello's question: "would you want me to love you at the cost of my own happiness?"

Unfortunately, too many people would answer "yes" and you'd best believe they will act upon it.   Your salvation is to be extraordinarily clear on what you want in life, and who you are.   And while much of this can be complicated, if you hold onto one arena where you have clarity, you can find your way through the maze.

Sexuality is one of these arenas--we love powerful, healing, shattering orgasms.  Yum.  The only thing more basic in life is survival itself.   My own breakthrough came from realizing that the intrinsic energies of Tai Chi or Aikido, the deep flow states I'd accessed in writing, and the deep burning calm of the run-up to an intense orgasm bore similarities both qualitative and quantitative, and that the sacred texts spoke of in certain deep meditations.    It was the same energy, manifesting on different levels.  And it flows between the youngest nascent self and the oldest, wisest "elder" who is beyond ego and self-deception.

The trick is to ride the "wave" of creative energy that surges through our lives, live as close to it as possible, "surf" it to destinations in alignment with our deepest values and beliefs.    Sex binds us to others and opens the doors of our own perception.   It can of course be deceptive--great sex feels like love, and the immature can be quite confused by the similarity.  But it is one of the most basic forms of life energy, something separate from any specific application of that energy.

What I suggest is that our sexual contracts be in alignment with 1)   the youngest self (are our partners respectful?  Supportive?  To the reflection they offer suggest we are on the right path?   There is little more disturbing to people than the notion that we attract what we are--but that butt-kicking reality opens the potential for us to take control of our lives in an extraordinary manner).   2) We have to align our sexual nature with the OLDEST self we can access.  Our "deathbed" self.   Are our sexual actions in alignment with our deepest values?  Honesty?  Compassion?  Self-expression?  Are we being true to our deep selves, or sacrificing our true in exchange for a little intimacy?

If either the youngest and eldest selves are discontent, there is work to do.  Aligning values, or changing actions.   But once you have that alignment, you have real energy.

The reason is that matter and energy are different forms of the same thing, and you can fiddle with the entire system by getting ahold of either end.    All the external things in life can be judged by their ability to raise and coordinate energy and pleasure in life.  And sexual energy can be a direct connection to intuition, motivation, creativity, partnering...flow state, ego dissolution...my, it does go on and on.

Parallel lines meet somewhere in infinity.   And all valid paths of self discovery converge as well.  The lovely thing is that, if you work long and hard enough, you begin to see how the whole thing fits together, even if the language to express it escapes you. The lovely thing about including sexuality in your personal work is that, beyond being efficient and effective...it is such delicious fun.

I wish you all the luck in the world in your journey, and thank you for reaching out to me.  If it is appropriate to both our paths, I'm sure we'll meet. That would be terrific.

Namaste,
Steve

"Machine" and "Ancient Child"

My "machine" is cooking along right now. Three books in active creation, proposals for three more, three different movies (a full script and two proposed adaptations) with the producer. 2013 is looking good.

What makes it possible to juggle such things? For me it is daily ritual. Just what I do day after day, whether I'm "up" or "down" or "sideways" (you've had those days...)

To do this, I use two things, the "machine" (the specific input-output equation for my chosen activities. For writing this is writing 1000 words a day, reading 10,000 words a day) and the "Ancient Child" meditation form, crafted from forty years of active meditation practice, culled from a variety of traditions which all addressed the same "mountain" even if they used different paths and different terminology.

When you create the rituals that enable you to move forward consistently, slowly and steadily improving...wonderful things happen. Once you have that, life gets simple. Intense, but simple.

Join me tomorrow on the Diamond Hour as I detail the "Ancient Child" technique.
Saturday, February 9, 2013, 1:00 PM Pacific Standard time (4:00 PM Eastern)
http://www.talkshoe.com/tc/77111
Connect via phone or VoIP (Skype, etc.)
(724) 444-7444

"John Dies At the End" (2012)

 "John Dies At the End" (2012)

One reviewer said that this is a movie so twisted and knotted and surreal that she isn't sure whether the title is true or not. If you dig Cronenburg or Harlan Ellison, chances are very good that this won't bother you a bit.

"John Dies At the End", the latest film from "Phantasm" and "Bubbah Ho Tep" director Don Coscarelli, is a warped tale of a man named Dave (Chase Williamson) who is introduced to a very odd drug called "soy sauce" by a guy named John. To say more wouldn't be fair. It would also require watching the movie again, because I frankly had to absorb it as a series of independent mind-bending scenes as Williamson narrates his bizarre, apocalyptic tale to a reporter (Paul Giamatti, having great fun).

Look, if I suggest that this is exactly the kind of movie you'd expect a roomful of stoners to orgasm over, that would probably be accurate. I'm not sure what else is, however. If you like innovative low-budget monster films, sly and subversive humor, Trauma-style effects and actors clearly enjoying working with a rather legendary B-movie director delivering a creepy, smart, entertaining creature feature...see "John Dies At The End." You could do a LOT worse. I'd give it a B+, but then I'm sick.

And oh, trying to apply the Hero's Journey to this would require watching it a couple more times to sort it out. Also, it's too recent. That said, Dave is confronted with the challenge of sorting out what is going on, and what has happened to him. He rejects that challenge initially because it demands that he discard everything he thinks he knows about reality, as well as abandoning all hope. But forced to confront him because...ummm...let's just say it gets personal. And after that, you're on your own.


Steve