“The student of metaphysics is learning to consciously control the stream of thought that they allow to enter their inner and creative mentality."
~ Ernest Holmes, The Science of Mind
As a swimming instructor, when I first teach the front crawl, I start by asking students to circle their arms very straight, like a windmill. Watching professional swimmers do that stroke, however, there is nothing stiff and straight about it at all. Instead, it is very dynamic, with a certain bend of the elbow and wrist at very specific times. The thing is, to teach this advanced technique to a beginner would be to give too much information at the start, and that would ultimately render the lesson unsuccessful.
This is like all learning. There is a place to begin. After the basics are mastered, the student increases their knowledge in technique, and their understanding, and they go on to spends hours… even days and years, in practice. In fact, the expert performer in any arena never stops their practice. I have spent many days perfecting my alpine skiing form, for instance. I have watched hours of video in order to hone my skill in detection and correction, and then back out onto the slopes I go, to practice over and over. This truth about practice applies to everything, including learning to live consciously, enroute to “a life worth living”.
Most people believe we are tossed around in a world of random happenings, with little to no control over our experiences. A common thought is that “They” have all the control and that we ‘minions’ are victims of ‘the world order’ (or disorder, depending on the perspective). The belief that “life is happening TO ME" is ground zero for the new metaphysical student. This is the place where we begin the lesson of how to move forward ‘with windmill arms’.
Lesson number one is an introduction to the concept of a “life happening BY ME”. We are the direct co-creators of our experiences and, with the use of beginner practices such as affirmations and grounding in gratitude, we can make noticeable shifts in our experiences. For me, the beginner student is the most exciting to teach, as their newfound sense of empowerment trumps any past experience. To them, life seems to respond quite suddenly, in all kinds of wonderful ways. Before you know it, they are talking about manifesting parking spots, jobs, relationships and more!
Master Metaphysician, Ernest Holmes taught: “The student should take time every day to see their life as they wish it to be, to make a mental picture of their ideal. They should pass this picture over to the Law of Life and go about their business, with a calm assurance that on the inner side of life something is taking place. There should not be any sense of hurry or worry about this, just a calm, peaceful sense of reality.”
What fun! As we focus on an affirmative way to live, Life seems to shift and change before our eyes…. Until it doesn’t. Yes, swimming across a pool was so easy, but that beginner skill isn’t of great use when we want to head across a lake. At the beginner skill level, we find ourselves quickly exhausted and our forward motion begins to wane. A deepening of understanding and technique is required.
At this point, a student of metaphysics is ready to grasp a more advanced concept of life. Now, they are ready to learn about a “Life that happens THROUGH ME”. Here, they work on releasing the responsibility of making life happen. At this level, the student comes to understand that, as they cooperate with Life, “go with the flow”, accept the “is-ness" of what is happening around them, they can be in choice as to how to respond. Metaphorically, a wind may pick up and the waves may get larger but, instead of madly swimming with long straight arms and chanting, “I think I can, I think I can,” the student is able to relax into the moment and understand that the situation isn’t about ‘them against all odds’. Rather, they now begin trusting that the waves themselves will propel them into the next moment.
At this point, the student is ready to alter their perspective to a “life that is FOR ME”, where they are able to align with any experience, and allow it to carry them effortlessly up and forward to a desired destination.
Being able to access this trust is a major new understanding and a shift in technique. (Imagine…I can take you to a high rocky shoreline and tell you, “Hey, just trust and jump,” but without previous experience, you may be filled with doubt). This chapter in the metaphysical journey is an important process of development that cannot be skipped. It takes years of practice to fine tune the skills. It is in this phase of one’s journey of awakening that one truly begins to understand and experience Faith.
The last and final stage of growth has only been achieved by very few masters, and that is, “life AS ME”.
This morning I was engaged in a lovely conversation about the possibility of developing a transporter, as demonstrated in Star Trek, the American science fiction franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. Why not? We have a ‘communicator’ (smart phone) already….
But the physics behind the possibility of a transporter is quite complex …that is, unless you have achieved the full embodiment phase of metaphysics. “Life AS ME” is a phase of evolution which has as its foundation the deep understanding that, “I am not my physical reality”. Here, the only thing that holds me to any experience is my belief that it is true. So, it follows that if I can fully embody the deeper principles of this powerful philosophy, I will be able to transport from here to there in a nanosecond because I will have fully embraced the fact that time and space are not ‘real’. (The only thing that makes them appear real is our thoughts about them).
If I have lost you, no fear. Going back to our swimming metaphor, we aren’t ready to win the freestyle olympics yet. Remember, it is time, study, more time, and more study that deepens our understanding of the metaphysical journey.
“There is a law of unfoldment, which says we can advance only by going from where we are to the place where we would like to be. This is not because the Law is limited, but because It is law. As humanity unfolds in mentality, the Law automatically reacts. The way to work is to begin right where we are and, through constantly applying ourselves to the Truth, we gradually increase in wisdom and understanding, for in this way alone will good results be obtained. If day by day we have a greater understanding and a clearer concept, if daily we are realizing more of Truth and applying It in our actions, then we are on the right path and eventually we shall be made free.” Ernest Holmes, The Science of Mind
[pls note: all quotes have been modified for gender neutrality]
So, the journey continues. Some days swimming is easy and my technique seems flawless, as I effortlessly glide across the water. Other times I am stiff, apprehensive, out on the lake alone, and feeling afraid. But, with practice, I remember to stop, breathe and recalibrate my focus. Life is FOR ME always. I can surrender into “a life worth living”.
ACTIVITIES FOR TRANSFORMATION
~ Begin. Have at your fingertips any wisdom-teaching book to read, and spend at least 15 minutes a day immersed in the messages of its pages.
~ Write down new inspired thoughts from your reading.
~ At the end of the day, reflect on how you have done something differently today… better, more skilled in conscious awareness. (Make sure to include this in your end of day gratitude journalling).
~ Practice this for at least a month and watch your experience of Good in your life expand.
Remember, you are always a student… so am I.