Search the Community

ENERGY REPORT JULY - AUGUST 2011 2011 Overleaves are: ROLE: PRIEST (emphasized all year) CENTER: MOVING (emphasized all year) GOAL: FLOW (emphasized Jan - Mar) MODE: CAUTION (emphasized Apr - Jun) ATTITUDE: PRAGMATIST sliding to Cynic and Skeptic (emphasized Jul - Sep) CHIEF FEATURES: Impatience/Martyrdom (emphasized Oct - Dec) JULY marks the shift of emphasis for the year from that of Caution Mode, to that of the Attitude of Pragmatist. As the year “unfolds,” each element of our interpretation of the year builds upon itself, so that the actions that set in motion the Goal for the year are then built upon for the exploration of inspirational elements of the Mode and relationships, and those give rise to how the expressive Attitude for the year plays out. Depending upon the collective work of holding the Attitude in the Positive Pole, the “season” of Chief Features can either be mild, or devastating, either on individual levels or collectively. Again, regardless of your own Overleaves, if you participate in the world in any way, the collective forces that are generated in patterns, here described in Oveleaves, will be a force to which you contribute, and from which you will be influenced. For instance, July marked the shift into Pragmatism. Even if your Attitude is Idealism or Realism, the emphasis in “the world” on the spectrum of that Pragmatism brings is going to be a part of everyone’s dynamic as part of the scheme of things. The Attitude is our way of describing one’s basic philosophy, or one’s basic filter for interpreting the world, and how one tends to bring that philosophy into the world. Pragmatism is basically the philosophy of theorizing, experimenting with those theories, and then choosing the most practical. Pragmatism is the building up of theories from the processing of one’s own experiences, and then applying those theories to substantiate them, which gives rise to new experiences, which then give rise to new theories, and so on. However, Pragmatism is not just about the collection of one’s own experiences, but the consideration and inclusion of other people’s experiences and theories along the way. It is through the experimentation and application of all theories that Pragmatism is healthy as an Attitude, or is in the Positive Pole of Practical, or Efficient. Pragmatism is not about convenience or lazy interpretations, when in the Positive Pole, but a consideration of a multitude of perceptions that can work, could work, or has worked, and then choosing from those the most Practical, through experimentation. When Pragmatism falls into the Negative Pole, there is no Practice (practical), no Efficiency, and certainly very little consideration of alternative theories to one’s own. There is only Prejudice, Presumption, or Dogmatism. These words not only describe the lack of validation of the theories, but describes the blocking of challenges to one’s theories, including the very nature of varying contexts. When Pragmatism falls into Dogma, one’s perspective is locked in a way that leaves little room for the consideration of even one’s own new experiences, or alternative perspectives, that could update or clarify the original theories so that they are capable of being validated, useful, Practical. A simplistic example might be one who “knows” that he can get on the other side of a wall, because he knows that others have done so, so he rams himself into the wall. This is an experience that tells this person that ramming into the wall is probably not the most efficient or practical means for applying his theory that one can get to the other side. The Pragmatist in the Positive Pole would then try to climb it, or crawl through a window, or use the door, or just go around it, or all of the above, comparing each experience to determine the most practical solution, but also including feedback and experiences from those around him so that he can experiment with those, too. The Pragmatist in the Positive Pole knows that the shortest distance between two points is not always a straight line, so to speak. The Pragmatist in the Negative Pole may simply continue to ram himself against the wall, eventually busting through, and then insists that this is the only way, or the best way, or the way that works, because it worked for him. Eventually. As July’s pattern came up, Pragmatism has come up strong in the Negative Pole, being played out in a multitude of ways in the media, particularly in terms of Politics. What works for one group, regardless of whether it works for another, are coming head to head in a most profound way. It should be noted here that all transitions into a new emphasis tend to “enter” from the Negative Pole, and then work toward the Positive Pole. It is not uncommon, then, for a Pragmatist year to have a period of Dogmatism before then moving into Practicality. Also, keep in mind that all Assimillative Overleaves “slide” to the other Overleaves as a means for manifestation. All Assimillative Overleaves are rather transparent, if you will, and though defined in their own right, tend to require other means through which to apply that definition. So the Pragmatist, then, would “slide” to the Attitude that is most Practical for the occasion, or the most useful for digging in to Dogmatism. Though an Assimillative Overleaf can use any other Overleaf in that category, a person will tend to choose one or two as habitual places to slide. 2011 shows that the collective pattern for the Pragmatist Attitude is to slide to Cynic and Skeptic. With Pragmatism currently in a state of Dogma, the way it would show up in the world, then, is through the Denigration and Suspicion that are hallmarks of the Negative Poles of Cynic and Skeptic, respectively. Cynicism is ultimately a philosophy of virtue, or the capacity for discerning and living the truth through active opposition, and Skepticism is the philosophy of doubt, or questioning through expressive means. When Cynicism is in the Positive Pole, opposition comes in the form of Contradiction, which is simply the bringing of attention to the flipside of the status quo, or the obvious. This Contradiction is solely for the purpose of presenting alternative perspectives so that the truth can be discerned. Contradiction is an invitation. When Cynicism is in the Negative Pole, it is no longer concerned with discerning the truth, but is more concerned with imposing one’s truth, which is automatically adjusted to be whatever is opposing the truths of others. This is Denigration. The cutting down of the opposition for the sake of countering his truth. When Skepticism is in the Positive Pole, doubt and questioning comes in the form of Investigation, which is an expressive means for gathering information, whereas the Negative Pole of Suspicion is still doubt and questioning, but without the communication and media of expression. Investigation asks the questions, while Suspicion keeps the questions to himself. Over July and August, one might see these elements playing out in Politics, with Dogmatism being held fast through Denigration and Suspicion. In one’s persona life, however, these same qualities may come into focus and influence, as well. The way we have seen this show up for our students is mostly in a profoundly personal way, so that the Denigration and Suspicion are within, toward the self. It could be said that because the world is moving through a phase of doubt and opposition, those tuned in to it will find they also move through a phase of doubt and opposition. The more one is hooked into the world, the more one’s phase of doubt and opposition within will parallel the methods at large, which means many of our students are going through a phase of butting their heads and hearts up against the walls of their own Dogma, and then Denigrating themselves or drowning their intentions in Suspicion. In other words, many of our students are dealing with a phase of processing failures, let downs, disappointing revisits to old patterns, set backs, etc. This may also apply to personal relationships, for some, and this might show up as feeling disappointed in someone else, seeing someone else as a let down, stuck in old patterns, failing. Whether within or between yourself and others, all of this might be played out through the butting of heads, hearts, and the insistence on one way being THE way. It will be quite important to remember that this is a phase. It is a natural part of the exploration of the Pragmatist Attitude for the year, and is revealing to all involved that there is MORE THAN ONE WAY. If any of the symptoms above resonate with our students, then it is a signal that this is a key consideration for help in moving back into the Positive Pole energies of the year: THAT THERE IS MORE THAN ONE WAY. And you will not comprehend the alternatives by simply digging into to Dogma, defending it with Denigration and Suspicion. To move into Practicality and Efficiency, away from Dogma, it will mean moving into seeing the opposite of what you think you see (Contradiction) and asking the questions that need to be asked (Investigation). Though we will offer the following, keep in mind that these are only for consideration, and that if you choose not to use these, you will survive as you make your own choices that are suited for your own paths of exploration. Helpful thoughts over JULY and AUGUST might be: 1) THERE IS MORE THAN ONE WAY HOME We have already stated that “there is more than one way,” but here we add “home.” We use the word “home” here, because for most who struggle with flexibility of perspective, it is almost always from a state of investment in what feels safe. However familiar your path to safety, or Home, there will always be other ways. You do not have to give up your sense of safety or Home, but you must consider all the ways you can get there, and when you wish for others to share in your Home, or your state of comfort and safety, you must consider that they will find their own way. And that they may not. 2) BUTTING HEADS OR HEARTS DOES NOT MEAN YOU ARE BEHIND We realize this is a rather clever pun, and it was intended as such, however, the serious nature of the statement remains. If you find you are bumping up against blockages, walls, obstacles, old patterns, whether within or between yourself and another, it does not mean someone has failed, or that someone has fallen backwards; it simply means that it is time to evaluate the possibility for new ideas, applying and experimenting with new theories, and opening to alternative perspectives. 3) WHEN IN DOUBT, ASK YOUR QUESTIONS “out loud.” For those of you who have fallen into doubt as your means of sustaining or defending Dogma, it may be time to ask the questions you fear asking, or asking the questions you may not have considered asking. It may be an important step toward freeing yourself into a more Practical perspective. 4) WHEN IN OPPOSITION, INVITE THE TRUTH, do not impose it. For those who have fallen into oppositions that have led them to stand sturdy and strong with their truth as a defense of Dogma, it may be time to consider that your truth is not the only truth. Inviting the truth of others does not mean losing your own, but it can mean losing the necessity for defending it, thus freeing your perspective away from Dogma and into something more Practical. DATES OF INTEREST July is “littered” with multiple Nexus points that have most consciousness in a strange state of flux and limbo on the surface, as major shifts and rearrangements are being managed on Essence levels. Dream states may be heightened, along with demands for sleep, or at least a constant state of fatigue and disorientation. JULY 21st through 24th - a divergence (branching) Nexus with potentially explosive or implosive revelations and resolutions as a result of the process of implementing Pragmatism. Breakthroughs may occur here, or collapses into divisions that accommodate oppositions, doubts, and dogma. AUGUST 1st through 4th - another divergence (branching Nexus, focusing on accommodating the various directions of world economy.