- The world is what you think it is
- There are no limits
- Energy flows where attention goes
- Now is the moment of power
- To love is to be happy with
- All power comes from within
- Effectiveness is the measure of truth
Many, many years ago I taught students preparing to take the high school equivalency exams. It was so long ago it feels like a different lifetime. There was one incident which really stood out in my mind. It was a rainy day and one student walked all peppy and happy saying, “Great, good day to stay indoors and study since it’s raining outside.” And not five minutes later another student walked in looking rather droopy, “Oh I can’t concentrate today, it’s raining.” The contrast could not have been more stark. Same circumstances yet totally different thinking, energy levels, responses. Basically it was a good example of the old glass half full or half empty paradigm.
I learned a lot from witnessing these contrasting attitudes of the same situation. Years later, I was delighted to find that this same lesson I learned so long ago is pretty much the first principle of Huna: The World is What You Think It Is. Short-hand for this principle is “be aware.”
I have learned (and still work on) the attitude that when I am feeling glum or something is bothering me, I can change the way I think about it and with that change, I can alter my whole perspective, my mood, even my enjoyment of the moment.
The premise underlying this first principle is that everything is a dream; whether we dream during the day or at night, our body, our soul, our spirit reacts the same in the present moment. For the first student, her day/dreamtime was sunny even though the weather was dreary. The second student was more sensitive to that specific weather, allowing the rain to enter into his day/dreamtime and strongly influence it.
When I find myself affected strongly by aspects that are outside of myself, especially ones which bring pain or moodiness I will ask myself what I can do to change my dream. What can I be aware of that will make a difference in my feeling? For me, I find that it is mostly in interactions that I can change my dream. Here are some things that work for me.
- I might talk to a flower. I know this may sound silly to some but it can make a difference, especially if I don’t have much time. “Hello flower you look so perky and sunny today. Would you share that energy with me?”
- I might talk to a receptive person, even or especially the grocery store check-out person. We can make each other’s day more energetic by sharing a moment of “aloha” (open-hearted compassion) together.
- Blessing something or blessing myself. I keep rocks and shells on my desk for this very purpose.
- The vibrational aspect of chanting can have a strong effect on me. While I always prefer to do it out loud, I find it works even if I do it in my head, especially if it’s a chant that I am well familiar with.
“If this life is a dream, and if we can wake up fully within it, then we can change the dream by changing our dreaming.” (from Serge Kahili King’s seminal book Urban Shaman, pg 56)
In my next blog I will quote a verse from the Hebrew Bible which typifies this principle.
PS: So when I told my story of my two students, did you judge them for good or bad? Both of them passed the exam and earned their diplomas.
