Awareness And Observation

First of all, let’s do an exercise in awareness and observation. I want you to become aware of the things around you in the outside world and make a conscious effort to distinguish between those that are man-made and those that are ‘god-made‘. Contrast the feelings you are experiencing inside you when you are seeing something man-made with those you experience when you see something god-made. Do you feel a different sensation when you look at them? You should find that god-made things inspire a calmer, lighter, warmer feeling within you, whereas man-made things tend to give a duller sensation. The inspiration for higher perception is far stronger in god-made things and it is better to be far more aware of nature in all its forms.

As well as visual things, it is important to listen and distinguish between different noises. The natural ones such as water, air, fire and earth and the man-made noises. Observe what feelings they stimulate in you. Nature always brings a positive energy, try to develop a sense of awe. Sunsets, flowers, trees, mountains, stars, the sun, animals, and people, all of nature is incredible. There is a divinity in all life that demands our respect, that we need to connect with.

We have to become more aware of ourselves and develop a new way of thinking. Now the main point to understand here is what is important is not what things are meant to be but how you feel about them. Try and forget science and definitions and go back to a more ‘primitive‘ understanding when people used their own feelings to define things. Try to adopt the view that the world quite literally revolves around you. You are the centre of the universe. Everything that you see is simply there to be seen for you, everything in the world is there for your benefit and the only opinion that is relevant is just your own. All this it might sound arrogant but this is no ego trip; it is very essential in order to develop a new way of thinking, seeing life with new eyes and to break away from social conditioning. Try to think like a child does. Life is simple and you are the centre of everything.

THE FOUR ELEMENTS

All things are made of one or a combination of the four elements of fire, air, water and earth. This ancient thinking might be a little out of date now, but just remember we are not looking at things logically in terms of what we have been told. We are using our senses and relating them to our experiences like a child would. After I describe them, actively seek for them, go to a park or town and look around you, what elements are present in the things that you are looking at? What feelings do they inspire inside you? Expand these basic concepts and try to get a true feel for each element. The point of this awareness and exercise is to learn to connect with yourself, your true nature and bring more psychic awareness and expansive perceptions.

WATER

Water is fluid and flexible – it can be almost any form and will take any shape it is offered. You could say it’s a little wishy-washy! It always seeks out lower places, sometimes with great power as seen in waterfalls. Like air, it is ceaselessly moving – even in the oceans there are currents and tides. Despite water’s flexibility, it is very strong and can move and shape earth. The Grand Canyon, for instance was shaped by water. It can move rocks and carve through land, but can still be light enough to rise up into the air as water-vapour to form clouds and return to the air as rain. Water is the emotional element. It is mysterious – we still do not know what is on the depths of the oceans. It can be devastating when roused and can destroy anything in its path but beneath the surface it is always calm and peaceful. Water carries an abundance of life. In fact, it is essential to life – nothing can survive without water. Neglect water to a plant and it will start to wither, water it again and it will recover and flower. Water is able to absorb other things into it. It can be clean and renew, It is also playful – clown with buckets of water – dolphins playing, it has a sense of humour. Develop a feel for water. This element is outside us and inside us. Inner gives us fluidity, cleansing and letting go of being stuck, over sensitivity and taking things too personal.

EARTH

Earth is more physical and practical. It is slow to move and lasts the longest. Rocks are earth – hard and difficult to move. It contains minerals that our bodies need. It can grow plants without which there would be no life. It is strong and supportive. It forms strong foundations. All the other elements depend on it. Our sense of touch depends on earth – the feel of different materials is an earth sensation. Feel how different wood, stone, cotton, silk and wool are. Likewise taste and food are earth sensations. All solid things have earth in them. Our bodies which are mostly water, have still bones and skin which are earthy. Precious stones are from earth, it takes millions of years to mould them. The earth is slow but sure, solid, steady, reliable but not dynamic. Develop a feel for earth! Earth is outside us and inside us. Inner gives us stability, grounding and solidity. Outer brings us unbalance, head in the clouds.

AIR

Air is weightless and always moving. It is random and changes direction constantly. Though difficult to define, it surrounds us at every moment. It enters and leaves our bodies through our breathing and we cannot survive for more than a few minutes without it. It is invisible and can be subtle, but it also can be very strong and quite literally blow us off our feet. Equally it can be gentle and caressing. Air is the carrier of sound – a powerful psychic sense. Look how air affects trees and plants – the swaying branches, the sound of the whispering leaves which is carried towards you. See how it affects man-made kites and birds as they wheel in its currents. Watch the smoke rising from a fire or the steam from boiling water and how the air carries it. Air also carries communication and speech, which instigates thought. Through air we can hear things happening far away outside the scope of our eyes. Our sense of smell depends on air. Much of the sense data we receive therefore is brought to us via air. Music is also carried by air and has the ability to calm or arouse us. Air also brings us weather – either bringing rain clouds or pushing them away to reveal the sun. Develop a feeling of Air! This element is outside us and inside us. Inner air gives us inspiration, ideas, peace, worries and mental confusion.

FIRE

Fire is warm and light. The sun is fire. It lights the day and provides us with the warmth we need to survive. Sometimes it can be so strong that it burns our skin. Fire is in everything that is warm, fire is also energy and spark as well as vibrant and alive. Just look at the bonfire and see how alive the fire looks. It is strong and powerful but it needs feeding or it will die. Starve a fire of oxygen or fuel and it will go out. It changes things and breaks things down, converting them into itself (for instance wood). If it is fed it will expand outwards. It can be destructive and dangerous but also can be our saviour – where would we be without fire to warm us and protect us? Fire is pure and natural – it cannot be manufactured and there are not different types of fire. All colours come from fire, some colours are hot like red and some are cold as blue. Develop a ‘fire feeling‘ – this element is outside us and inside of us. Inner fire can be a positive energy that ignites action and will empower or negative energy that ignites anger and self destruction.

Outer emotions are not bad things, it only shows us that we have gone out of balance and we can process them going within.