![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
On channeling and non-physical intelligence
One of my failings is that I give up on things too quickly. If it doesn't yield immediate results, it must not be working, so I discard it. This is something that I have known about myself for quite some time, but I have recently been guilty of it in a particular instance and also had it confirmed by a very close friend. So I am making a concerted, conscious effort to give things more of a chance and try a bit harder.
So.... As I posted recently, I went to the local unitarian church. (Don't ask me all the specifics but, fyi, they aren't Congregational Unitarian, but Universal Unitarian. Whatever.) I went the once and then either forgot or prioritized it behind football or other things until I was able to go again a couple weeks ago. I then went to a group meeting which was mentioned in the bulletin, called Law of Attraction. Yeah, I know what you're thinking, so did I at first, but that isn't what it is about. It's based on a book of the same name about attracting positive things into your life, basically like "The Power of Positive Thinking" kinda thing from what I gather. That first week we watched a film called The Shift based on works of Wayne Dyer. I'd never heard of him before. It was decent to good. Some interesting things, and others that I either didn't agree with or didn't get.
Tonight's was different. We listened to the beginning of an audio book. To summarize (possibly unfairly) this woman went to see someone who channeled a "spirit guide" and then through meditation channeled her own. I am apparently WAY too skeptical, because the whole time I was internally rolling my eyes and scoffing the entire time while she talked about non-physical intellingences, etc. I sat there wondering what the hell I had gotten myself into, what was I doing there, and that I should just get up and leave.
Maybe I'm not only skeptical but also cynical. I don't know. I like to think that I'm not opposed to the concept or possibility of God, but things like this make me rethink that. Maybe I truly don't believe. As I said before, after watching the PBS special on National Parks, I felt somewhat inspired and, I thought, spiritually enlightened. Maybe it wasn't spiritual but merely visceral (is that the right word?) or natural. Nature really is beautiful, and maybe that's all it is; not some product of something more than that.
I'm open to the idea of meditation. I even kinda liked it when I was doing a bit of yoga. But I see it as a means of relaxation and maybe examining INWARD, into yourself, your subconscious, that sort of thing. Not as a means of channeling external intelligence. Hell, I'm even open to such things as ghosts, but as forms of lingering energy or even subconscious memory, but again not really as intelligent beings.
After listening to this audio book segment, I tried to express these thoughts and feelings, expecting that they wouldn't much like what I had to say. Instead I was met with nods and told that this is perfectly fine. On the one hand I kinda feel like they were saying, that's fine, you'll come around. But on the other hand, they may be perfectly fine with my skepticism and cynicism. These people (of the Unitarian church) seem to be much more open to diverse opinions and beliefs than I am accustomed to. It's a bit disconcerting. but in a good way, I guess.
So I think I am going to try to push on and give it more of a chance. The people are all really nice. There's only four others, all women, older than me. Maybe this isn't the right group for me. We'll see. I intend to check out the "Current Events" discussion, but that takes place on Sunday at 9am before the service and I haven't been able to get to that one yet. We'll see. Still a work in progress. So it goes.
So.... As I posted recently, I went to the local unitarian church. (Don't ask me all the specifics but, fyi, they aren't Congregational Unitarian, but Universal Unitarian. Whatever.) I went the once and then either forgot or prioritized it behind football or other things until I was able to go again a couple weeks ago. I then went to a group meeting which was mentioned in the bulletin, called Law of Attraction. Yeah, I know what you're thinking, so did I at first, but that isn't what it is about. It's based on a book of the same name about attracting positive things into your life, basically like "The Power of Positive Thinking" kinda thing from what I gather. That first week we watched a film called The Shift based on works of Wayne Dyer. I'd never heard of him before. It was decent to good. Some interesting things, and others that I either didn't agree with or didn't get.
Tonight's was different. We listened to the beginning of an audio book. To summarize (possibly unfairly) this woman went to see someone who channeled a "spirit guide" and then through meditation channeled her own. I am apparently WAY too skeptical, because the whole time I was internally rolling my eyes and scoffing the entire time while she talked about non-physical intellingences, etc. I sat there wondering what the hell I had gotten myself into, what was I doing there, and that I should just get up and leave.
Maybe I'm not only skeptical but also cynical. I don't know. I like to think that I'm not opposed to the concept or possibility of God, but things like this make me rethink that. Maybe I truly don't believe. As I said before, after watching the PBS special on National Parks, I felt somewhat inspired and, I thought, spiritually enlightened. Maybe it wasn't spiritual but merely visceral (is that the right word?) or natural. Nature really is beautiful, and maybe that's all it is; not some product of something more than that.
I'm open to the idea of meditation. I even kinda liked it when I was doing a bit of yoga. But I see it as a means of relaxation and maybe examining INWARD, into yourself, your subconscious, that sort of thing. Not as a means of channeling external intelligence. Hell, I'm even open to such things as ghosts, but as forms of lingering energy or even subconscious memory, but again not really as intelligent beings.
After listening to this audio book segment, I tried to express these thoughts and feelings, expecting that they wouldn't much like what I had to say. Instead I was met with nods and told that this is perfectly fine. On the one hand I kinda feel like they were saying, that's fine, you'll come around. But on the other hand, they may be perfectly fine with my skepticism and cynicism. These people (of the Unitarian church) seem to be much more open to diverse opinions and beliefs than I am accustomed to. It's a bit disconcerting. but in a good way, I guess.
So I think I am going to try to push on and give it more of a chance. The people are all really nice. There's only four others, all women, older than me. Maybe this isn't the right group for me. We'll see. I intend to check out the "Current Events" discussion, but that takes place on Sunday at 9am before the service and I haven't been able to get to that one yet. We'll see. Still a work in progress. So it goes.