The Power of Binding

Posted on October 7, 2012 by Matt Williams

Over the last few years, I have been progressing along a self studied path of spiritual and magickal exploration. In this time, I have been focusing my energies on understanding the reach of my influence as well as the potential pros and cons of setting things in motion via ritual and intention. I have spoken a number of times here about the scope of influence that we all have the most power over. Despite our desire at times to bend others to our will, our most influential power is really only exerted over ourselves.

The vast majority of my ritual practice and magickal work has been focused on just this; creating within myself the kind of person that I want to be and establishing the proper and most beneficial responses to the environment around me. However, it is becoming increasingly apparent that this is not always the solution or the most effective way to solve a problem. Sometimes it seems as though focusing so much on creating a stronger protective barrier around myself only leads to more attacks. It is as though my efforts to build a better me through passive internal methods are only inviting more vigorous and poisonous attacks on who I am and who I seek to be. Maybe there is a time and place for properly executed defense measures aimed at inhibiting the attacks from happening in the first place instead of just trying to block them.

This type of act is often referred to as a binding spell. Seen by some as magickal self defense and by others as an action that inhibits the free will of others, these spells should be utilized with caution and intentions that are pure. Binding spells are some of the oldest known rituals and have been recorded throughout the centuries in ancient Egypt, Greece, Cetic Europe and more. This type of spell has been used for more than just defense against those who seek to do harm. Variations of the spells can be used to bind two or more things together in love, harmony and peace. The progressive, growth oriented, use of binding spells can be to bring a team together at work for a common goal, to unite lovers in a bond that goes deeper than any physical or mental connection can provide, or to draw in and bind to something that you hold dear or are longing for.

Used in a collaborative and heart centered manner, these bonds can be unbreakable through lifetimes. Used in a deceitful and ego centered manner, they can be damaging to both parties as the free will of the second party is often infringed upon and the attraction may not be in their highest good. The fabled “Love Potion No. 9″ is a great example of this as the purchaser of the potion is typically seen as acting out of desperation and ego driven desire to win or find love. Acting from this place of self centered thought, the consequences are very different than expected and the user finds themselves bound to nearly everyone except his original intended target. It is important to recognize that when we infringe on the free will of another and the intention is rejected by that person, the Universe will often still work to fulfill our request. The problem is that the fulfillment will typically be wrought with unintended and potentially undesirable outcomes.

When it comes to the idea of using binding spells for self defense, the ego and heart play an even more important role. In this case our possible infringement on free will must be considered very carefully. Let’s consider a scenario. Bill has been working at his company for a number of years now. John has just started a few months ago and has been enjoying his job so far. However, throughout the last few weeks, John has noticed that Bill is increasingly critical of his work. Bill has repeatedly reported John to management and now John is feeling as though Bill has something against him and is trying to get John fired. John decides that he is going to perform a binding spell on Bill that night to prevent any further attacks.

On the surface, it is very hard to say whose best interest is at stake here with John’s spell. Is John acting out of revenge for getting called out on being a bad employee? Is Bill jealous of how hard John is working and is creating drama gossip to try and take him down? It is very hard to say from just the basic outline we have so far. Here in lies the challenge that must be faced with all magick and especially with binding. The magician must be willing to look objectively at the situation and gauge what is actually happening. Let’s look at the situation from perspective of John being in the right first.

What we didn’t know about Bill at first was that he is a marginal employee. Always doing the bare minimum to get by and never one to go above and beyond. With a tendency towards gossip, Bill seems to always find himself embroiled in the latest drama and is often seen as a “snitch” to the bosses. John, though a new employee, has shown to be dependable and competent. John is aware of Bill’s gossip about him but he has tried to simply shrug it off as lies. Despite Bill’s attempts to report him to management for various perceived issues, the bosses have corrected Bill and asked him to mind his own job and keep his nose out of where is doesn’t belong. After the latest incident where John finds out about more gossip that Bill is spreading, he decides to take action and magickally bind him to prevent any further attacks.

In this case, there is a very high probability that John’s spell will be effective and Bill will back off. John has tried to simply shield himself from the negativity, but the attacks just kept coming. In an effort to give him a chance to breathe and refocus himself, John has sought to energetically wrap up Bill so that he cannot lash out anymore. John’s actions were heart centered and seeking to ward off a constant barrage of negativity. In this light, the Universe often works the hardest with us to achieve the desired outcome. But let’s look at it from the perspective of Bill being in the right.

In this perspective, let’s say that Bill is actually the good employee. Hard working and observant, he has been promoted to supervisory status by management. John, however, has just not been able to get his act together since he started. Bill has counselled him regularly and has reported back to the bosses when discipline is needed. John has not seen it like this though and is convinced that everyone is just out to get him. Despite being counselled for his behavior, John is certain that he is in the right and that he just needs to get Bill off his back. John goes home that night and performs a binding ritual on Bill.

While there will certainly be an effect on the situation from this spell, I highly doubt that it will be what John intended. Digging into the ego and deriving his power from there, will likely find John in a situation that he was not prepared for or intending. Bill may end up bound, but at a time when John needs his help. More likely, John may find himself bound in his own negativity with no one believing him when he tries to defend himself.

The idea and practice of binding is not to be taken lightly. One must consider all the reasons behind the intent as well as the possible outcomes that may result from it. It is true that each individual has the right to their own free will. Those that are attacking do have the right to make that choice. We also have a right to our own self protection. If your free will attack inhibits my growth and light, I will take steps to abate that. I shall seek to do you no harm, but I will not allow you to continue to harm me.

To help you all with your own protection, I will share a visual that I use when I find myself being attacked energetically, emotionally or verbally. Envision the attacker with all of their energetic cords swinging about and trying to connect to you. If there are any cords connected already, tear them from you and toss them back to the attacker. See in your mind the cords beginning to wrap around the person who is offending you. Visualize these cords wrapping tighter and tighter around them until they are unable to move. Free to breathe and free of pain, but unable to move, speak or attack. Remember, this is not retaliation, this is protection. Tell this person in your mind that you are binding them in their own energy. The binding is to stop and prevent all attacks against you. Tell them that when they agree to stop the attacks, you will release them completely. At this point, you must own your power and go about your business with no fear or trepidation of their further actions. As they stop the negativity, it is important that you hold your end of the bargain and release the cords as well.

Your power and strength lies in being able to control the situation, not the actual people.

Overcoming the struggle to believe

Posted on June 17, 2012 by Matt Williams

There is a simple joy in being a child. Each day brings with it so many opportunities to learn new things and see the world from a new perspective. The relative innocence that most children have is a gift in and of itself as it allows them to view individual situations and interactions with little to no preconceived notion of how it will play out in the end. They trust that the world they are placed in will benefit them and be in their highest good. I’m not saying that being a kid is all sunshine and rainbows, it is hard growing up. But as we all look back on the troubles of our youth, it is much easier to see now how those challenges helped us to grow and learn.

It is unfortunate though, how one of the quickest things we learn is how to disbelieve. We are taught that much of what we trust or believe is true is all just a figment of our imagination. This education happens in the realms of our dreams, our hopes, our realities and our emotions. We are told while we are little that it is okay to dream and play, but only until its time to grow up. We are encouraged to hope for the stars and are told that we can be anything we want, but then we are educated into little boxes that various tests and social pressures place on us. Dream the impossible, grasp for your deepest imagination, believe in the power of magic and miracles; but only until you’re 10. Then you need to start working on being a productive member of society.

Nearly all of us have been through this and if you haven’t, please share with us what it feels like to not lose your dreams and beliefs as you grew up. Throughout the ups and downs of our youth and adolescence, we are shown by society what is means to be successful. We are shown our place in the machine and how we can best serve our purpose within the collective whole. Sure, there are those that are set up as examples of free thinkers and creative geniuses, but by setting them up on pedestals their actions and behaviors are removed from those of the general populous. Here, see what this great man did by thinking outside the box? Don’t you wish you could be like him? Well, you can! Just follow these steps and you too can be a free thinker!*

*free thinking may not be allowed in your area. sorry, get back to work.

There is a flaw even in this train of thought though. I don’t think anyone can deny the fact that there is an overwhelming amount of influence coming at us on a daily basis. If you have been listening to my moments at all here, you will have heard me talk about the need to filter the input and glean only that which resonates with you. The same applies in this kind of situation too. Despite all the influence and negative pressure, we are still responsible for our choices and our thoughts. Believe it or not, we get to choose what we believe in and what happens in our heads. The problem is, many of us have forgotten how to believe.

For quite some time now, I have been struggling with this myself. I have been presented with a myriad of things that are outside of my current realm of understanding and belief. I could see them manifesting around me and yet I found it nearly impossible to believe that they could exist. I have been challenging myself to grasp new things ranging from the possibilities of human decency with each other to the powers of the mind to the reality of other planes of existence. Regardless of how many times I was presented with the amazing kindness of others, I was skeptical of their motives. When I found myself tapping into the deep reaches of what was in my mind, I doubted that the messages were real. When I began to see, hear and even feel the presence of other forms of energy and life, I thought at times that I was losing my mind. No matter how many times I was told to “believe”, I just struggled and felt lost. How do you make yourself believe?

Recently, I had a bit of a breakthrough on this. I started to understand and see the concept of belief in a new light. You see, believing is not something we can be taught. We can be taught what to believe in, but the ability to believe in something is a natural occurrence. When we were children, we were not taught to believe in the beauty of things, we simply accepted them because that was how we saw the world around us. It is not that we ever lose this ability, rather, we learn to mask it with an elaborate system of disbelief and deception. So many of our early beliefs about how we should behave with each other, what we are capable of and what is out there beyond our understanding are painted over with a white-washing of generic truths and believable lies. It is not that we need to somehow repaint our original beliefs back in, but rather we need to work on stripping away those layers of disbelief and deception.

Rather than try and paint a new reality onto my already muddied canvas, I am beginning to slowly strip away the many layers of junk. Instead of pushing myself to believe in something, I am working to suspend my disbelief in it. I am no longer trying to convince myself in the presence of things outside of my understanding, I am instead removing the doubt in their existence and leaving myself open to the possibilities that may come.

In doing this, I have been amazed at the results. The less I try to force the thought that people are generally nice to each other, the more I can see that they are. As I remove the self imposed pressure to be a psychic and live up to all my gifts and potential, the more I have experienced myself opening up to Spirit’s words and the guidance of my higher self. I have also noticed that since I have stopped trying to convince myself that there are things such as faeries, ghosts, angels and other multidimensional beings, the more I have been able to connect with them.

I still hold to my statements from a couple weeks ago when I discussed the difference of a belief and an idea. The dangers associated with building a system around any belief are real and can be extremely destructive and detrimental. But if we are able to hold onto the core of the belief without dressing it up with specific practices and procedures then the original beauty of it will always hold true. For some of us the idea of adopting a new belief is easy. For others, like myself, it is a bit more of a challenge. If you find yourself battling and struggling to accept something that is out of your understanding, try shifting your focus on it. Don’t push yourself to try and believe, rather allow your mind to suspend your disbelief and be open to the possibilities that surround you.

Keeping your awareness open

Posted on March 18, 2012 by Matt Williams

Every once in a while, we get a shot from the Universe that shows us how really powerful our thoughts are. You might call is a stage of hyper-manifestation, where it seems like all we need to do is think really hard about something and we find it coming right to us. Right now, you may be thinking: “That’s awesome, Matt. Tell us how to tap into that!” To which I reply: “Hold on a minute, I’m not done with that thought.”

You see, it is in these times that we feel amazingly powerful. It is also in these times that we often get a kick in the face about how important it is to keep our intentions pure and seek the highest good for all involved. Sure, we may be drawing into our lives exactly what we are wishing for. But at what cost? Is the manner in which we receive our wishes selfish and possibly hurtful for others? In the end are we robbing from Peter just to pay Paul? This concept hit me pretty hard this past week as I was feeling very focused on personal goals and manifestation. Let me give you a little back story…

You may or may not have been aware that this past week held some amazing astrological energy. Throughout the early part of the week, there was an alignment of planets that brought together some very powerful forces in what appeared to be an unprecedented manner. A grand trine (or triangle) was formed around the Earth with Venus and Jupiter aligned together on one side with Mars and Pluto creating the other two angles around us. I’m no astrologer, but I know enough to be dangerous and see that these celestial bodies were shaping up to work harmoniously together around the planet. If we look at just the planets themselves, we have this idea of expansive, fortunate energy fueling and nurturing our passions and emotions. Combined with very direct and forceful patterns that have the potential to be transformative and regenerative. In other words, the energy that we were working with had a way of pushing us, possibly forcefully into the areas that we were seeking to expand and nurture. If this wasn’t enough, all of these planets were in Earth signs at the time of this alignment giving them a very practical and grounded manner in which to work their mojo.

The alignment started it’s peak on Tuesday evening so I set to work on Monday preparing myself and my altar to take advantage of this time. I began setting my intentions and writing down the tools and steps that I would be using to set my magickal operations in motion. Having prepared myself and my space, I went to bed and set my sights on getting started the next day. Little did I know that the next 3 days would be so powerful, weird and magickal.

Throughout the next three days, it seemed that nearly all of the things I set my focus on came to be. I was blasting through my work, I was energized and focused in completing my tasks though we are critically short staffed at work and I have been taking on extra duties. I seemed to be on fire and I was even getting a fair amount of side work in as well that I didn’t think I would have time for. I was shining bright and taking advantage of the energies I was calling in from the planets. Kick ass!

Amidst all this though, I had some moments of very selfish energy that came back to bite me almost immediately. Our weekly managers meeting was scheduled for Tuesday afternoon. I was dreading this meeting all morning and was working on ways that I might be able to talk her into canceling it due to all the extra work we had going on. Later that morning, I checked my email to see a message from her that the meeting was canceled. Success! But wait, what’s this? The meeting is canceled because she is sick? Dammit. Sure, I didn’t want the meeting to happen, but I didn’t want for her to fall ill either. That’s a crappy way to get out of it.

In addition, two employees that we were getting fed up with ended up leaving us hanging and basically giving up their jobs. I knew they wouldn’t make it long after the last counseling session and I knew that them leaving would be good for the company. Yet, it was surprising to see that within 24 hours of the discipline, the actions were repeated and termination ensued. I wanted them gone, but not necessarily that quick! Now we are even shorter on staff and even more weight is add to us all.

After each one of these events, I was left with a feeling that I had gotten exactly what I asked for. The problem was, I was seeking an outcome that was only for me. I had gotten myself so wrapped up in what I wanted that I forgot to think about the potential outcome that it might have on those around me. This is an all too common problem for me at times and I am sure that I am not alone in that.

This experience reminded me of a phrase that some of early teachers would keep in all their workings. “Most Benevolent Outcome” or MBO was a phrase that they would add to any healing or magickal workings to ensure that all energies involved were taken into consideration when the Universe was working out the path to success. At times this meant a longer waiting time or a slightly less dramatic resolution to the working. It also meant fewer unintended outcomes or selfish gain at someone else’s loss. This idea of asking for the MBO, asks the Universe to factor in the highest good of all that may be affected by the intention that is being set in place. This is important to keep in mind as we rarely, if ever, know what the highest good is for other people. It often seems that we have a hard enough time keeping track of what our highest good is, let alone trying to figure out how that plays in with other people’s.

Another phrase that I have been hearing a lot, in different contexts, is that “we don’t operate in a vacuum.” It is very easy to get so focused on what we are trying to accomplish that we forget how each of our actions might affect someone else. In a vacuum scenario, we could manifest all that we wanted without it ever affecting anyone else. Our actions, thoughts and words would have no ripple effect and would never cause waves in someone else’s life. On the same level, the actions of others would never affect us either. Sounds good until we realize how much we depend on each other. While the angry look that throws our day off wouldn’t affect us, neither would the kind word or sincere smile. It is because of this interdependency and interaction that we are able to thrive, develop and progress as physical and spiritual beings. This co-existence is also the reason that we need to keep our awareness on our surroundings and those things outside of our sphere.

You’ve heard me talk a lot about keeping your focus on your sphere of influence and that concept is still the core tenant of how I see us moving towards personal, individual success. But while keeping our focus there, we mustn’t lose the awareness of those things outside of this sphere. This is where we give and receive our energy. Where we see the results of the manifestations we are creating and where we see the effects of each choice that we make. I am using this past week’s experiences to help me raise my awareness and plan better for setting specific ripples into motion. Won’t you join me?

A Hole in My Heart “m-o-m”

Posted on March 4, 2012 by Matt Williams

If you remember from last week, I mentioned that I was planning to go to the Spring Body Mind Spirit Expo this weekend. As usual, I had a great time and saw some really cool things throughout the many booths. I took the time to do some things that were new as well and turned out to be pretty fun. At one of the booths we were looking forward to, the wife and I both got henna designs applied and learned a little more about the history and spirituality behind these wearable prayers. I attended an energy meditation seminar and felt the power of combining directed movement with a focus on my personal energy, or Qi.

This was also the first opportunity that I had to bring my kids to the expo. Both are open to the woo woo metaphysical stuff that I talk about and my son is often very interested in the various types of intuitive and energy based work that I do. They are both quickly becoming crystal junkies too and I figured, if nothing else, they would at least enjoy looking at the hundreds of different crystal specimens that are there. As it turned out, both had a really good time and learned a few things as well. I have to admit that there are few things that could have made me smile as much as when my son turned to me after the energy meditation seminar and told me; “That was awesome!”. It’s pretty cool to have your ten year old son telling you about how he was not only able to feel his chi ball, but could feel the energy flowing through his body at will. That is a glimpse of personal power that I hope he never forgets.

As I mentioned last week, one of the main reasons to go to the expo was also to get my aura imaged for this year. The kids were up for it too, so we lined up, sat down and got snapshots of what our etheric fields looked like. The kids went first and were really excited to not only see what their auras looked like, but also to hear what the colors represented in their lives. When it was my turn, I sat down, took a few deep relaxing breaths and laid my hands on the sensors. The moment of truth, had anything changed? Was there any shift in colors or density? The picture popped up on the screen and low and behold, deep red again. Vibrant, passionate and active. As I sat with the consultant, these same words came up that I hear every year. Also that I need to reduce my stress level, focus on my breathing, and stop burning the candle at both ends. All I could do at that point was to smile and acknowledge the reaffirmation that while I do push myself hard at times, at least I am consistent.

There was one noticeable shift in the picture though from last year and years past. The area around my heart had lost much of the color and was now showing a noticeable hole. This has been intriguing for me as I do know that I carry most of my hurt and anxiety in my heart. When I examine my own chakras or have them evaluated by others, it is often my heart chakra that is weakest and needs the most attention. I have done a lot of work on this chakra in the past, but it looks as though there may still be work that needs to be done.

The combination of my consistently red aura and this “hole in my heart” has had me thinking hard over the last twenty four hours as to what the connection might be and how I can work to correct it. I’m not necessarily saying my aura color is bad, but there has to be a reason that it has not changed in color over the past three years and has no trace of any other colors either. Why is it that my energy is so focused around this root chakra color? And does the focus of that color and energy have anything to do with this gap around my heart? First off, when we look at the color red and the root chakra there are a few key words that come to mind. Safety, security, danger, passion, base needs. This is where our root feelings of comfort and safety come from. When you look at the diagrams of basic human needs and how they are ordered, things like safety, shelter, food and heat are in those basic survival needs. These are root chakra things on a grand scale. But there are also aspects of our modern survival that seem to trigger this same energy in us. Financial pressures, job safety, housing concerns and more all activate these root chakra energies and fears.

While I am far from being destitute, homeless or unemployed, I do often find myself very focused on the aspects of how I can improve these particular aspects in my life. I seek greater financial opportunities for myself, I try to improve my home life and my quality of living as much as I can. To a degree, I think this is natural for many of us. Unfortunately, I think it is also natural for us to lose sight of other aspects in our lives because of this preoccupation with physically “bettering” our lives. For me, there seems to be a growing disconnect between my mental aspirations, my emotional concerns and my physical needs and this may be a large contributor towards the auric hole that is developing. It seems that my mental aspirations towards fulfilling my perceived physical needs are leaving me a bit drained on the emotional level.

To say the least, this is not good.

I need to work on setting my energetic balance back to a place where all of my needs are being met equally with no aspect of myself being left out. This will take some practice and work as it has been a practice of mine to focus on certain areas when they need work and then in turn neglect other areas. What I am looking for now is a more holistic approach to self improvement. Something that will bring my focus towards all aspects of my body, mind and soul in one shot.

One aspect of my physical needs that I know I have been neglecting is exercise. I supplement this with fulfilling other physical needs but it just doesn’t seem to do the trick and keeps perpetuating this drive for greater physical satisfaction. However, I have been feeling a call for a while to a style of exercise that has the potential to help satisfy not only my body’s need for movement but also my soul and heart’s need for energy as well. I am going to my first yoga class tomorrow and while I am worried how sore I will be from my lack of exercise, I am excited to get my blood moving again. In speaking with the instructors and researching what I can about yoga, I am seeking to use this as more than just a way to lose weight or gain flexibility. I am setting my intention for this as a way to increase the energetic flow throughout my body and soul. I am seeking to use this tool to help me find ways to direct my power evenly throughout my body and in turn spread my focus on all aspects of my life. I am excited and optimistic about this new adventure and I will keep you all informed as I am progressing. So, wish me well tomorrow as I embark on this journey to rejuvenate my body, mind and spirit.

Mission Update

Posted on February 19, 2012 by Matt Williams

Back in December, I shared some thoughts in regards to shadow work that I had lined up for myself. It has been a little over two months now since I set myself on this mission of self growth and I wanted to revisit it to see where I am now and how things are progressing. I find that it is important for me to actively check in now and again on my objectives as I am the type of person that sets a lot of goals for myself and if I don’t keep them fresh in my mind, I quickly move on to the next shiny object. To recap my mission from the beginning of this shadow season, I pledged myself to do the following:

Allow myself to process the feeling
Be proactive
Allow myself to fail
Celebrate every victory
Accept all feedback with grace

In allowing myself to process the feeling, I had hoped to be able to find and deactivate triggers that fueled my depression and anxiety. My intentions were based around the fact that while I do feel the depression and anxiety, I don’t always take the needed time and steps to really look into why I feel the way I do and how to prevent it. I have been making some progress with this one and there have been some interesting results. At times, I have found that by really processing my emotions, I spend even more time in the negative energy. Even when I feel like I should just let it go and forget it, my push for a deeper understanding has me working into the problem to find the root instead of just covering it up and hoping it goes away on it’s own. In a way, it’s kind of like a dirty wound. It hurts and is likely to get infected so I want to get in and clean the dirt and debris out. But to do so, I need to disturb the wound even more to make sure that I get all the junk out. I could leave it be, bandage it up and hope for the best, but that will most likely leave me with a nasty infection and a permanent scar. If I take the time to suffer through the cleaning, I can bandage it up properly, avoid the infection and likely the scar as well. I’ve had a few of these moments over the past few months and the cleansing times were not fun or easy. But, in taking the time to discover my triggers, I was able to communicate with those involved to find ways to compromise and avoid some of the future anxiety.

Being proactive…hmmm. I still have so much work to do here. This is an area that many of us struggle with and it will be an lifetime challenge of mine. I continue to work on planning and organizing as those are two of the biggest keys to my success in this area. I try to keep myself enough on track to be proactive rather than reactive, but alas, I’m still not very good at it. I will say that in regards to my initial example of getting new tires on my car, I did accomplish that and my drive has been much smoother and less anxiety ridden. So, cheers to me on that one.

Number three, allowing myself to fail. Another aspect of this came in with my drive and desire for this year to push myself into new realms and new ventures. On this aspect, I have been going in overdrive! Shortly after the initial publishing of these pledges, I began my journey on a string of new adventures. I started my own internet radio show, Personal Tarot Radio, here on the Akasha Temple Radio channel. You can tune in Tuesday nights at 7pm central to hear it, too! I accepted an offer to facilitate a ten week Tarot training course for a major Tarot organization. I nominated myself for an open position on the American Tarot Association Board of Directors. I have opened my horizons to working on partnership projects with multiple other lightworkers and readers. In short, I have opened myself up to the opportunities that have come my way and I have said yes to about seventy percent of them. Yes, with all that going on, there were still other opportunities that I forced myself to decline because I just couldn’t do all that I wanted to. What has surprised and pleased me, is that so far I haven’t failed at any of them. Each of these opportunities was nerve-wracking for me to say yes to. The desire was there alright, but so was that fear of failure. In everyone of these situations, I had that anvil looming over my head. I had to fight off the desire to take the easy road and just back out. It hasn’t been easy and I still get nervous that the anvil will fall at any minute. But I push on. I keep going knowing that even if I do fail, it will not be the end of anything. It will just be an opportunity to learn something new.

As I have been exploring these new opportunities and adventures, I have found that at a number of times I am actually excelling and succeeding in them. I have gotten a number of good reviews on the radio show and the number of people listening in has been steady and growing. In the Tarot course, I have been thanked and praised for my delivery of the material and helpfulness outside of class. The ventures that I have been stepping out with have yielded good results and even more opportunities. I am sitting here at a six of wands kind of stage. Races have been won, successes have been made and yet I am no where near completion. I am thankful for every bit of support and encouragement, but I need to keep my nose to the grindstone. Now is not the time to rest on my laurels, now is the time to use these wins to build a strong, successful base for my future.

Lastly, I am thankful that the majority of the feedback I have received has been positive. This makes it much easier to fulfill my pledge and take it with grace. However, there has been some constructive criticism and I know that the more I put myself out there, the more I may encounter negative feedback. I understand that this is inevitable and to a degree I welcome it. Not because I am some sort of glutton for punishment or think that I am somehow above whatever slings and arrows may be thrown. No, I am welcoming it because it will push me to grow even more. For every comment that goes against what I am working towards, I have the opportunity to look for two key things. First, is the fact that I may be wrong. I am not an expert on everything and I have been known to mis-speak here and there. When I am rebuffed by someone who has more accurate information, I seek to adjust my viewpoint and perspective accordingly. Regardless of how the person may present the truth, when it’s true, it’s true and I need to be willing to accept and acknowledge kernels of truth even if they are packaged in junk. Second, negative feedback gives me the opportunity to reinforce and stabilize my viewpoint when I am in the right. It’s one thing to make the initial statement, but it goes to a whole new level when you are put in a position to defend your viewpoints, statements and actions. This is the point that you begin to fully see how much you truly understand your own opinions and perspectives.

I know that I have much more room to grow when it comes to these pledges. I have made some great leaps and strides forward, but I am not quite at my goal yet. It will take more than one season to make lasting improvements but I am confident that I am on the right path. By acknowledging these areas of improvement, I have given myself the greatest tool that I need to be successful. Knowledge is power and knowledge of the self is power unlimited.

Spa Day!!!

Posted on February 13, 2012 by Matt Williams

Ok, this one is for the guys tonight.

Guys, it’s time to start taking care of yourselves better. I’m not talking about being cleaner, or working out, or even eating better. There are enough messages about that floating around on a daily basis that you don’t need me to harp on you about that too. No, I’m talking about something that the ladies have figured out a while ago and most of us have just been too “macho” to buy into. I’m talking about caring for your body by managing your stress and energetic pathways. To put in terms you’re probably more familiar with, it’s time to pamper yourself with some bodywork and take a spa day, gentlemen.

The term “bodywork” covers many different things. Massage, acupressure, reflexology and even reiki are some of the healing and relaxing methods that are out there and readily available. Each of these methods work in slightly different ways, but the end result is typically the same. Greater relaxation, lower stress and clearer energetic pathways. I’ve been open to bodywork in the past but have never really been a regular participant. A massage here and there when I’m sore or maybe some reiki when something feels out of place. Other than that, I just don’t think about taking care of my physical body as much as I should. I know I’m not the only guy out there that thinks this way and I’m sure there are plenty of you that are even worse than me. It may even be that you still think going to a spa for a massage is just not masculine enough for you. Well to that, I call bullshit…

One of the best things you can do for yourself is to take care of the physical body that your soul is hanging out in. Exercise, diet and rest are all essential things to maintain in our efforts to take care of ourselves, but often we need a boost or a kick-start when it comes to mitigating stress, anxiety and frustrations. These negative emotions throw off our nervous system as well as our energetic and etheric bodies. Stress is an amazingly powerful force in our lives and can wreak havoc on everything around us. Left unchecked it can kill and dealt with improperly, masking it through drugs, alcohol or other vices, it can ruin lives. It is essential that we all find ways to release this tension in our bodies and auras effectively and preferably without the use of mind altering substances. This is where bodywork comes in. Even an occasional massage, maybe 3-4 times a year can do amazing things for your physical, emotional and energetic bodies. And while we all know a good massage will help out a sore back or stiff joints. Taking the time to do this when you are not in pain and are actually feeling well can be just as healing and maybe even more. I’ll share with you my experience from today.

I was gifted with a reflexology session as an early Valentine’s Day present. This is the first time that I can recall that I went for some sort of bodywork when I wasn’t feeling out of whack. In fact, I was feeling pretty damn good before going in. I had a good night’s sleep, I wasn’t sore, I was upbeat and ready to see what reflexology was all about. It was soon after the practitioner started that I realized why this was such a good thing to do at this time. By not having my attention focused on pain relief or symptom management, I could feel the energetic transfer that was taking place. I could feel the connections between pressure points and chakras. Relaxation and energetic revitalization were things that I was experiencing in the immediate and not after-effects of mitigated pain. This blew my mind.

As she began working on my facial muscles, the release of tension began to wash over me. Not terribly surprising, right? I mean that’s what a massage is for. But here’s the thing, because I wasn’t focused on the pain in my back or my aching knee, I felt this relaxation almost immediately. I could also feel the energy from her fingers rushing through my nerves and releasing all the blockages.

She then moved to my hands, each one individually getting precision attention from the wrist up. Throughout the time that she spent on my hands, I was intrigued by the sensations I was feeling across my entire being. As each finger was manipulated, I could feel individual chakras firing up and vibrating. I know that all parts of our bodies are connected, but I hadn’t thought about this before. Individual spots on our hands corresponding with different chakras. If I can pinpoint that, my massages for the wife will be mind-blowing too! This will need a bit more research and experimentation.

Lastly, my feet were placed in focus. This part of the session started with a sugar scrub and rinse. The basic principle of this is exfoliation of the skin, but what I felt was so much more. As each foot was scrubbed, it was as though there was a layer of energetic filth being removed as well. My feet felt raw and naked, but in a really good way. It was as though my soles had been stripped of every energetic filter and were ready to be resurfaced and re-energized with the awaiting massage. I was not disappointed. The energy transfer throughout the next 20-30 minutes, I’d love to tell you exactly how long it was but I lost track of time shortly after she started, had my feet and body in bliss. The nerve connections between the soles of my feet and the various parts of my body were clear and bright. I could feel the energy moving up my spine as she worked from the heel to the toe. Different parts of my body would tingle and vibrate as the pressure points were activated. By the time she was done, my feet felt as though they were little clouds and I honestly felt as thought it would be a travesty to do such a mundane thing as to walk on them now that they felt so good. I know this may sound like a whole lot of fluff, but this truly was a significant experience for me. I walked out of that shop feeling empowered, energized and on top of the world.

This also got me thinking that with the energy work that I do between dowsing and reiki, I at times get too involved with the procedure and lose track of the sensations that occur with the energy transfer. This doesn’t mean that my intentions are off or that the work is not effective. It just means that I fail to appreciate what is actually going on. I miss out on the buzz and positive effects that I get as the practitioner even though the person I am working with gets everything that they needed. This massage helped me to remember how important it is to focus and feel the energy regardless of what side I am working on. I need to open my fields to accepting and experiencing the powerful healing energy that is being channeled. The power of touch, in the hands of a bodywork professional, can be a mind-blowing experience. When used outside of pain relief and symptom control, it can be a powerful spiritual and energetic occurrence as well.

I think this may be one of those secrets the ladies have been holding out on us. Cleverly wrapping the power of a good massage up with foo-foo things like facials and mud baths to keep us disinterested. I’m on to you ladies. I’m slowly figuring you out…

So gentlemen, if you are ready to feel on top of your game, with more energy and less tension, you know what to do. Grab the phone and find yourself a good masseuse, reiki practitioner or other bodywork professional. Set up an appointment and get ready to experience a new level of peacefulness and ease.

To each their own pit “M-o-M” 1-22-12

Posted on January 23, 2012 by Matt Williams

Every day we encounter teachers in our lives. The individuals that we interact with on a constant basis all have something to teach us and help us to grow. The lessons that we pick up are not only keys to increasing our knowledge and wisdom, they are also cautions and warnings to avoid certain actions and behaviors that are detrimental to our growth. There is a lesson to be learned from every interaction and a respect that is deserved for everyone that we encounter as our teachers. Throughout these encounters, we often find certain people with very powerful messages for us. These people present ideas and skills to us in a way that seems almost magickal. The words they present and the actions they show us speak to us on a deep energetic level and often fulfill soul contracted lessons. They are masters of their craft and deserving of our deepest respect. But what happens when these same people do things that we find disrespectful? While we honor these individuals as great teachers, can we allow them to be fallible humans as well?

The spiritual community is a deeply diverse and powerful group of souls that have an amazing amount of information to share to with the world. Within this group, there will always be individuals that stand out as leaders and motivators. Their charismatic personalities and oration skills give them the tools to share the knowledge and wisdom they have accumulated with massive audiences. They are often skyrocketed to popularity and fame with their moving and life changing speeches, books and seminars. Those that have had the opportunity to interact with them directly will often speak to the powerful divine spark that seems to flow through these leaders and how they are touched by Spirit and blessed. This is true on many levels as these individuals have stepped up and chosen to be leaders within the community and do experience blessings that come as a result of those choices. However, the reality is, we are all blessed in the same way and touched by Spirit in the same manner as long as we are living our lives to the fullest. We often place the teachers that motivate us up on pedestals and remove them from the murky waters of life that we feel we are stuck in. The ego feels a need to separate us into categories where we could never be on the same level as our teachers because they are somehow greater and more worthy of Spirit’s wisdom than us. After all, that’s why they have this knowledge already, right? If we were as worthy as they, we would have been given this knowledge earlier in life and wouldn’t have had to suffer or struggle so much.

To that idea, I call “bullshit”.

It is true that we all grow at individual paces and access needed information at different places on our paths. But this does not mean that an individual that has learned a skill before us is in anyway more gifted or blessed than us. It simply means that they fell in that same hole before us and had to learn how to climb out before we got there. This is where the ego of both the teacher and the student need to be put in check. Imagine,for a minute, that I am walking down a path. Along the way, I stumble and fall into a large pit in the middle of the road. Hurt and bruised, I struggle my way out and from the vantage point of the road again, I can see a path that would avoid ever falling there again. As a service to fellow travelers, I choose to stay here and warn those who may come along about the dangers. I can now guide them around it or even out of it should they stumble and fall as well. For quite some time, I maintain this post and help many people. I am spoken of on the path as a master of pitfalls and travelers seek me out to learn the navigation of this area. After time, I even begin to believe in my mastery and begin to spread my knowledge of this pit into general information about all pits. In doing so, I have taken the first step towards my ego based collapse. While I may have truly gained all the information that I need to be a master of my little section of road, there is so much more to learn about each individual path that I am foolish to assume that the skills I have will work in every situation and for every danger.

There are many dangers in assuming our own mastery and in the assumption of the mastery of others as well. From the student’s perspective, let’s say that I have just taught you how to navigate my pit. In doing so, the assumption is laid out by me that this knowledge will help you to avoid or climb out of any future pits you may encounter. Armed with your new wisdom, you continue on your path and soon find yourself stumbling and falling into a hole of your own. You break out your newly acquired skills and find that nothing I have taught you will help you out. It is completely different from the pit I told you about and what I taught you is useless. The ego based assumptions that I am somehow a master of all has just been shattered and you are left feeling disillusioned and angry with me. When you manage to climb out yourself, your view of me has changed and I can guarantee that when someone asks you about my teachings, you are going to have some nasty things to say.

From another perspective, we will assume that I have taught all I can at my post and decide to write a book about the dangers I’ve encountered. My intention is pure in that I am seeking to inform future travelers of the dangers and concerns of this particular place on the path. The book becomes a road map for that section and many are able to use the information successfully. In leaving this marker, I am free to continue on my path and do so with an open mind and open heart. Along the way, the skills I have learned help me to navigate around similar dangers but at some point I find myself stumbling and falling again into a hole that I did not see coming. As I am laying at the bottom, my own pride and ego are hurt. Above me on the path, travelers arrive and see me fallen and hurt. Having read my book and recognizing me, they are baffled as to how such an expert on pit navigation could have found himself at the bottom of one. Maybe even one that they can see an easy way around. Their perceptions of me are broken and whether they help me out or not, they now have a jaded view on anything I try to teach.

So how do we avoid this perception of total mastery and eventual disillusionment? Well, first by understanding that teachers are in our lives to give us specific information. There is a call for us to learn from all that we encounter and not get stuck with any one particular teacher. No one can be a master of all and to perceive anything different is simply the ego talking. When you come across a teacher that just blows your mind, learn all you can from them. Seek to understand all that they have to offer and respect them for it. But, and this is a huge “but”, do not assume that what they have taught you is the “be all and end all” for your path. There will be countless times where this information will help you. There will also be times that it won’t and you will be forced to learn something new in order to move forward. Remember as well, that even though this teacher has taught you an amazing skill set, they are not immune to faltering themselves and finding that they as well need to learn new skills.

As I navigate my way through the myriad of information out there about psychic gifts, energetic healing and spirituality in general, I have been presented with a host of teachers that have been amazing. I have also been presented with a great number of those that I did not resonate with. As we seek to walk our own paths, we need to be willing and able to allow our teachers to come in and out of lives as necessary. Learn from them when the appear and release them back to their own path when we are done. They have their own lessons to learn and when we set them up on pedestals we are preventing them from freely walking their path and falling into the pits they need to in order to grow themselves. As individuals, we need to keep our focus on the challenges that we have in front of us and rely on the power and knowledge we have gained to help us navigate the best we can.

Know when to fold em… “M-o-M” 12-18-11

Posted on December 18, 2011 by Matt Williams

I’m torn today, friends. I’m torn between two principles that I feel strongly about that can at times be in opposition to each other. I have witnessed a number of circumstances lately that have me on the fence between conflict resolution and just walking away from the situation. I feel very strongly about spending your life in a state of happiness. At times, this state of happiness is threatened by the thoughts, actions and words of others who seek to add their drama to our lives. I don’t know about you, but I have all the drama I need in my own life and I rarely feel the need to supplement that with someone else’s junk. In these situations, I will typically recommend to just walk away and leave them with their own draining and debilitating drama.

I am also a big proponent of ending arguments quickly and fairly. Most of the disagreements that I have come across are simply a misunderstanding of differing viewpoints and an unfortunate lack of being willing and/or able to see the other person’s point of view. Words get thrown into the situation due to passions and frustrations being flared and somebody gets torqued off because they misinterpret what the intention of those words were. When the two people can step out of their egos for a minute to calmly discuss the situation, they often find that there was never any offense meant and both can resolve the argument quickly and easily.

So at what point do we resolve our drama and when do we walk away? It can be a truly futile effort to put our energy into resolving every conflict we are involved in. Yet, if we walk away from every argument we will find ourselves alone and unable to handle our own personal issues, let alone the inevitable issues we are presented with from the people in our lives.

This debate seems to rear it’s head even more so in the social media circles. I’ve discussed before the separation that is developing between people and the lack of social skills that is associated with that. It is amazingly easy to get the wrong message out to someone though sites like Facebook, Twitter and Google +. It may be an inside joke for a small group of people, a seemingly innocuous comment that is taken the wrong way or a directed jab at a particular person or group. All you have to do is spill your thoughts through your keyboard and move on to the next shiny object on your time-line. Let’s assume you have just had a bad day. Maybe you just wanted to vent to your friends, you meant nothing harmful by your statement but now one of your friends is pissed off because something you said offended them. You’ve found yourself in a battle of words that either ends up in both of you being pissed off and quite possibly one of you “de-friending” the other and blocking them. The blocking feature on most social media sites, while designed to keep stalkers and creepers away, has become an incredibly easy way to get the “last word” in on an argument. Vent what you want to be your last statement in an argument, click send, then block ‘em so they can’t respond back.

But does this tactic ever really solve anything? Other than removing yourself from a singular situation, neither of you have grown or gained anything and more than likely you both just lost out on a learning opportunity as well. On the other side, however, continuing the debate endlessly or finding yourself in regular arguments with the same person can be equally futile. There are people in your life now that do not agree with you and never will. Arguing your points to them will be a waste of your time and theirs and may end up casing more pain than it is worth. Let’s take a brief look at what we can do in each situation and try to identify when it’s best to talk it out and when it’s time to just pack up and go.

When it comes to settling conflicts, calm and rational talking is always the best way to start. The first three to four comments after the initial statement is made can really make or break the argument. This is where most of us, myself wholly included, fail miserably. It is a very common trait for us to take offense when we are questioned or told we are wrong. Let’s set a scenario. You have just had a really bad day at work. You’re tired and crabby and post to your Facebook friends that you wish you didn’t work for such an abusive boss. Most of your friends provide you with support and encouragement, but one responds back snarkly with a comment like “You don’t even know what abusive means.” Still in your crabby mood, you reply back with a barbed comment about how bad you have it and that they don’t have any clue what your life is about. Arguments ensue, feelings are trampled in our quest to be right and someone ends up blocked and banned. Seem over the top? I’ve seen almost that exact scenario play out too many times. So where did it go wrong? Right there in the first three to four comments. Was it right for the friend to challenge your statement of abuse in such a snarky manner? No, probably not. But little did you know that the Facebook friend was sending that message from the hospital bed she was laying in after a particularly violent event in a string of domestic abuse issues. From her perspective, did you really know what abusive means? I think not. Yet, because you felt the need to be right you pushed your side of the story and lost a friend, possibly one that really needed you. It is in these times that we really need to stop and think before we respond back with a jab defending our position. I highly recommend that when you feel someone is offended with your statement, you do not reply in the first 60 seconds after reading it. Anything that comes into your head in that time is more than likely ego based and will only fuel the argument. If you are offended as well by the person’s comments, work to diffuse the comment thread by first taking it offline. Reply back with a comment that you are unsure what they meant with their comment and you are sending a private message to discuss. Then do just that. Send them a private message explaining that you are sorry if your update hurt them in some way but you are not sure how or why it did so. Allow the person to express their frustrations and accept that there is a 99% chance it has absolutely nothing to do with you. More often than not, your words simply sparked a nerve with something they have going on in their life and they needed to vent as well. Open the dialogue with love and they may just open up to you about the pain they have inside and allow you both to heal and see things from a greater world perspective.

Opening the channels of communication with heart centered dialogue helps us to get our egos out of the way and decreases the need for us to be right all of the time. Having the conversation outside of the public forum also allows both parties to express in a more free and open manner without having to worry about disclosing personal and private details into the public area.

So now we have successfully diffused that situation through open communication and conflict resolution. If it went this easily every time, we would never need to walk away and remove ourselves from any drama. We also would probably be without wars and violence too. Unfortunately, it’s not always this easy. Not everyone is open to discussion and resolution. There are also those who seem to feed on the concept of drama and the attention it brings to them. Let’s continue our scenario with a different friend. You have been friends with this person for a few months now and it seems that at least once a week, they take some offense at something you say. It’s never a big deal and you are able to quickly diffuse it with heart centered communication. However, these regular disagreements are tiring and seem to be getting longer and longer. After the last one, you were really beginning to wonder why you are even friends with this person. Sure enough, just after you post today about your job, they are there with another chip on their shoulder. At this point, you need to make a choice on whether this person is really in your highest good or not. Are you learning anything from your interactions with them? Are you growing? If not, it may be time to cut cords and walk away. However, I am of the opinion that this should not be done silently. If you decide that you need to cut cords with someone like this, I feel it is in the best interest of the situation to give them at least a little explanation. Again, take it out of the public forum, explain to the person that you have been struggling with how different your opinions are and how much you have been arguing about things. Let them know that you both need to surround yourself with people that uplift you and help you grow. Unfortunately the relationship that you both have does not seem to be doing that for either of you and you will be de-friending them. Wish them well and send them on their way. If you are adamant that you don’t want to interact with them anymore at all, you can block them as well.

I truly feel that de-friending and blocking people as a first resort is just avoiding the situation. Work to solve your conflicts first and allow the other person a chance to voice their concerns. They may surprise you with their intentions and be a wonderful source of healing and learning for you. If not, and you feel they are a drain to you energetically and are hindering your ability to seek your happiness then cut them loose allow them to walk their own path. Do even this in love and with heart centered intentions for them. Just because they did not light up your life, does not mean that they will not light up someone else’s.

I’m on a mission… “M-o-M” 12-11-11

Posted on December 11, 2011 by Matt Williams

Throughout the Northern Hemisphere, we are well into the dark part of the year. If you are anything like me, this time of year is a bit of a mixed blessing. While there is the joy and happiness of the holidays, there is also a considerable weight that seems to fall on my heart. The shortened daylight hours, the hectic pace of the shopping season, the inevitable weather dangers and delays that the snow brings all get to me and bring me down. I have fought with depression for most of my life. It is not a severe case, as I have seen the debilitating effects that major depression can have and I have thankfully been able to keep that at bay. Yet, despite my best efforts, I still find that my depression affects my

quality of life and my ability to take advantage of the blessings that I have been given.

Today I want to focus on a personal mission for myself. Through this winter and into the coming spring, I am pledging to focus on five things to help lift my depression and encourage me to maintain a more active role in the creation of my life. As this is a time that many of us are going through these same challenges, I invite you all to join me in this mission towards bringing light to the shadowy time of the year. The following five aspects of this mission are not necessarily a step-by-step guide, but rather they are a short list of things to keep in the forefront of your thoughts as you go through your day. They will often go hand in hand with each other, but do not ever feel that you need to do one in order to do another.

That being said, let’s get to it!

The first point of focus on my mission is to allow myself to Process the Feeling. This is one of the trickier and more challenging ones for me, so I wanted to make sure this was number one on my list. It’s not that I don’t allow myself to feel the depression and sadness, I surely do that. The problem is, instead of processing it and figuring out why I am sad and what can be done about it, I just sit and wallow in it hoping it will magically go away. We are in the dark part of the year and traditionally this is the time to examine our lives for what needs to fall away so that there is room for new growth. Like the cycles of nature, we withdraw our energies a bit to allow for certain things that are draining us to die off. As an emotional Scorpio, I have no problem withdrawing and allowing things to fall away. I do that all to well sometimes. However, the winter of our lives needs to be a season and not the entire year. The thought process needs to be in place that our processing and pruning is in preparation of new growth. My pledge in processing the feeling is to allow myself the time to examine the cause of my depression. Once identified, I will then take action to either rectify the situation that caused it or change my actions to prevent it from happening again. My goal will be to identify the triggers for my depression and actively work towards removing them.

Number two blends perfectly in as I pledge to Be Proactive. I wish I could tell you that I act on all the little nudges from Spirit and my guides to preemptively take action to make my life smoother. We probably all wish that we had done any number of things that we were guided towards. For whatever reason, we chose not to act and in hind sight kicked ourselves in the ass for not doing so. So many of my known triggers for sadness, anxiety and worry are fully preventable with a little preparation and planning. It just takes a little effort on my part to set myself up for success and prevent the trips and falls that lead me down a path of self doubt and fear. For example, I have been very worried about the upcoming snow season and the quality of my tires to keep me safe while driving. This is a very real fear as I drive over 30,000 miles each year and my distances do not decrease any during the winter. However, due to certain anxieties and some amount of laziness on my part, I have often failed to actively monitor the condition of things like my tires and have found myself in less than desirable traction conditions more than once. I have set aside money this year to invest in new tires and preventative maintenance before the first big snowfall hits so that I can drive in confidence knowing that I have done all I could to keep myself safe.

Moving forward, I also pledge to Allow Myself to Fail. This is another aspect in my natal chart that gives me issues when it comes to public arenas. I have my Moon in Leo and I do love to be in the spotlight at times. The problem is, I only want to be center stage when I know things are going to be successful. I have all too often held back from doing things that I really wanted to experience simply because I was afraid to fail. Failure is our greatest teacher and I tend to forget, or just ignore, that simple fact. Being unsuccessful in our ventures allows us the opportunity to break from our current perspective and seek new ways to approach situations that will inevitably come at us again. The viewpoint that I have been striving to work with over the last few months is one of building off of my successes and trying new things that are similar to ones that I have done well with. This has helped me to branch out a little more from my comfort zone and test the waters of uncertainty. However, this is still very limiting. What I am seeking to do this winter is learn how to be comfortable with jumping into new situations and ventures with the understanding that if I fail, I will still learn valuable lessons that will help me in the future. It will take some planning and being pro-active. It will also require me to process what happened if I do fail. But in the end, I will have been able to chart previously unexplored waters and potentially find treasures that I could have never imagined.

As I allow myself to venture into new areas, I set my intention to Celebrate Every Victory. In as much as we need to allow failure to teach us. We need to allow our victories to uplift and encourage us. One of the more limiting things I have found in my life is the idea that every venture should be successful. This is the norm and the expectation so praise and celebration should only be awarded if the outcome is well above and beyond what was expected. There have been a host of things that I have been successful with and due to my expectations of being successful, I have not allowed myself any praise or celebration for those. In this time of darker days and colder weather, I pledge to give myself the appreciation and recognition that each victory deserves. The celebration will have to be in relation to the success, as I can’t throw a party just because I had a good day at work or wrote a really good article. However, I can allow myself to feel proud and accomplished by doing those things. I can encourage myself for every uplifting and positive thing that I achieve through the day to keep my mood and momentum high.

Last, but certainly no least, I pledge to Accept All Feedback with Grace. This one ties the last two aspects together for me. A big part of why I do not want to fail and why I do not celebrate my successes is because of the perception other have of my actions. I often try to fly just under the radar of those around me so that I do not have too much attention placed on me. Let’s face it, nobody really enjoys being criticized. But on the other side of the coin, it can be just as uncomfortable for many to be complimented as well. I struggle with both of these to varying degrees with many of my public projects and tasks. I tend to take criticism, even if it is constructive, very personally and I struggle to keep the focus on my actions or words and not on who I am. I also have difficulty accepting compliments, especially if I am not 100% happy with my efforts. If you have been working on a project that will be in the public eye, regardless of how you feel about it, someone will have some element of criticism for it. There will be those that love it, those that hate it and those that are just indifferent. It is important to remember that whatever feedback you receive is a reflection of what you have done or said. Not Who You Are. Having your work criticized does not make you any less of a person or a failure at what you do. As we talked about earlier, it allows you an opportunity to see outside of your perspective and learn a new tactic for handling the same situation when it comes around again. Similarly, accepting praise for what you have done will not make you a prideful or egotistical person. Acknowledge your successes with humility and thankfulness as you have worked hard to deserve them.

Throughout this season, I will be revisiting these topics in more depth as I work to keep myself and those who are joining me in this mission on track. As we use these tools through our shadow time, we will be able to identify areas of our lives that no longer serve us and work to prune them out. In doing so, we are creating room in our lives to plant the seeds for new ideas and adventures. Some of these seeds will grow into great victories for us and others will wither away as we see that they are not in our highest good. But we will continue to plant, tend, harvest and till as we seek to find new ways to share our energies with the world in the most productive and compassionate ways. Whether you choose to join me in this mission or not, I invite you to share your ideas on how you beat the winter blues and keep yourself as an active participant in your life.

Shields up! “M-o-M” 12-4-11

Posted on December 4, 2011 by Matt Williams

In the metaphysical world, there is often a lot of talk about shielding and personal energetic protection. There is an emphasis on the need to protect yourself from negative energies and entities and to surround yourself with the pure love and light of Spirit. Each practitioner has a slightly different way to do this and techniques can range from simple intentions to elaborate rituals. However, the common thread is the idea that your energy space belongs to you and you need to actively control what influences this space.

When I was first beginning to walk down my path of psychic adventures and energy work, my friend John told me a great bit of advice that I will never forget. He was one of the first to really explain to me the importance of shielding my energy space and told me in no uncertain terms that shielding is not an occasional practice. It is a lifestyle and habit that must be developed and practiced on a daily basis. The shielding that he worked with me on saved me on a number of occasions from getting wrapped up and drained by the attitudes, actions and intentions of those around me.

At first, I was a little leery of the idea of keeping myself in a bubble all the time. I thought that it would be somehow limiting me in my interactions and experiences with not only the physical world, but also the energetic and etheric world that I was working to explore. To a degree this was true, but in a very good way. Imagine driving around in a brand new convertible, top down, on a warm sunny day. All is beautiful around you and you can feel the wind and sun on your face. As you are driving around, other people can see how much fun you are having and a few of them decide to jump in the back seat and ride along. Depending on how much you are wrapped up in your own world, you may not even notice them jump in. More and more jump in, weighing down your car and causing you to burn more gas. Pretty soon, your car is looking more like a clown car and is feeling pretty oppressive. Your happy drive is getting a bit upsetting when nature takes it turn and the clouds roll in. As the rain begins to pour, you try to put up the top but find that with all these people in your car, it is impossible to shut out the rain. Your beautiful sunny day drive now has left you soaked, cramped, depressed and angry.

This is of course an exaggerated analogy, but the idea holds in that as we go through our days, each interaction we have with other people potentially invites them to climb into our energy space and ride along. Have you ever had a day where you woke up feeling absolutely great and after only a few interactions, found yourself dragged down by the negativity and drama of those you talked to? Maybe you had a fight with someone and though you have tried to put it behind you, you just can’t seem to stop thinking about them and how they hurt you. Or, on a more energetic level, have you ever walked into a room and been overwhelmed with a sense of sadness, anger or fore-boding doom only to have that feeling hang with you throughout the day? These are all examples of allowing people, energies and entities into our personal energetic space and not knowing how to get rid of them.

When we picture what our personal space (or aura) looks like, it is often viewed as an oval field that surrounds us head to toe. Depending on who you talk to, there can be multiple layers to this field or just one etheric bubble that we walk around in. Regardless of how you see it, it is important to view it as an extension of your soul that houses your physical body. What enters into your auric field affects not only your energy but also your physical body as well. The goal, in keeping with the car analogy of before, is to have a vehicle that can keep out unwanted travelers and keep us safer from the perils that nature throws at us as well. We can still roll down the windows and invite others to go for a ride with us for a bit, but at the end of the day, our cars need to be empty, clean and secure.

So, how do you go about protecting and maintaining your personal energy space? As I mentioned before, there are many ways to work on your energy space from simple intentions to more complex rituals. I will outline a few of the practices that I use, so that you see if they resonate with you as well.

The most basic shielding that I practice involves little more than visualization and intention. Picture yourself surrounded by your etheric field. See it in your mind’s eye as a transparent shell that completely envelops you in all directions. Set your intention that this shell will keep out all negative and non-beneficial energies throughout your day. Revisit this visualization when you feel yourself adversely affected by the energy of your surroundings. You can expand on this image by picturing the energies of others actually bouncing off of your energy field and reflecting back to the person you are interacting with. I have in extreme situations, even pictured myself inside my shell while taking the rest of the world slightly out of focus so that I could navigate through very difficult energetic areas without being affected. This, in effect, was like being safe in an armored car while driving through a mob of thieves.

In addition to the visualization and intentions, I also use different tools to help me maintain a healthy auric field. Most often, this means that I have crystals and stones with me to help clear my area and support a healthy flow of energy in and out of my field. The most important item for me, is a necklace that I made as a part of my self initiation into the world of magick. This necklace, made up of a quartz crystal and different colored beads, is a symbol and constant reminder for me that I am pure and powerful through my connection with Spirit. It helps me to remember that I can influence my world through the influence I have over my personal energetic space. The cleaner and stronger I keep my space, the more energy I have to set positive events in motion. In addition to my necklace, I am almost always in possession of a small pouch filled with various stones as well. Typically, I will have a stone for each chakra to help promote good energetic health for my energy centers. However, by use of a crystal guide, you can also carry specific stones to help alleviate illnesses, dissipate negative thought patterns, or enhance aspects of your being such as prosperity and compassion. Every little action towards making your energy field one of love, compassion and peace will help to maintain your personal energetic protection.

As I have been studying and working with magickal principles, I have also found that this idea of creating a clear and pure energetic area for yourself is essential for proper function. A basic ritual that has been very effective for me has been the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram, or LBRP, for short. This ritual has a few different forms that I have found but the essential principles involved all speak to the same thing. This is a ritual that works with angelic powers to completely remove and “sanitize” your space from any harmful energies that may seek to infiltrate your work. In addition to starting all of my magickal workings, this is also a ritual that I perform every morning to prepare myself and start my day with a clean energetic slate. The LBRP calls in the energies of the archangels, combined with the power of the four elements and cardinal directions to create an energetic wall that can help to shed unwanted influences from your immediate space and from your life in general. This has been an amazingly powerful addition to my shielding work as I have not only seen problem areas in my life fall away since using it, but it has opened me up to connections of universal energy and understanding that I had never imagined. I invite you to do your own research on this ritual should you choose to incorporate it into your practice as it is very important to work with rituals that you not only feel comfortable with but have 100% commitment to. Do your research into the different forms and incorporate only what you resonate with. This is your energetic space that you are working with and in the end, the ritual must be yours as well.

Any time that I talk about shielding and protection, I still find myself a little frustrated in that I really don’t like to focus on the negative and protecting yourself from potential harm. The term shielding implies that we are keeping things out and in effect isolating ourselves to a degree. I still prefer to think of each one of us as a light that is shining in the darkness. The dark can never overwhelm the light yet the light can always brighten it’s realm of influence. The brighter we shine, the more we can light up the world. But the fact is, there is protection that is needed for our lights. We need to keep our lights shielded so that they do not get blown out or damaged. Imagine walking through the dark with a candle, it brightens the room, but a gentle breeze can extinguish it. Place that candle inside a lantern and you will find that it shines just as bright and is protected from that which might seek to blow it out. Keep the lantern clean as well, and you will see clearly in the dark throughout your life.

Do you have a specific shielding or protection practice that you use? How has it helped you throughout your life? Share your experiences with us with a comment below!

Matt's Moments

Thoughts and expressions on living a mindful life.

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