SHEILA’S NOTES WITH THE CREON – December 2022

As I was bringing wood in for the fire yesterday I felt a familiar “tug” and my thoughts turned to the eternal message we get from The Creon, which is to take a step back and be the witness of what goes on in the mind rather than getting caught up in the stories we tell ourselves. We can’t change our lives without changing the way we think about them, and The Creon tell us that withdrawing from an unproductive train of thought frees us from its enslavement and allows a sense of peace to prevail.

With so much difficulty in the world that affects us all it is easy to feel overwhelmed and I have spoken to a significant number of people who say they no longer watch or read the news , or follow the media in any way. It feels like a survival mechanism to protect against the bombardment of negative reporting on current affairs. This is completely understandable, because as we listen or read with alarm, the mind will automatically rush to a judgment of one sort or another and feelings arise that are far from calm and gently happy.

So much of what we hear about is divisive and difficult and leads stressful feelings and strained interractions with others. I believe the message from The Creon is more apt than ever as, no matter what difficulties you face, the fundamental question always boils down to “who are you?”

Consciousness is as infectious as the most virulent of viruses and, as we believe and think, so our energy field reflects this and, as we speak, so our words impact others. If you take a deep breath and just stop, the mind becomes quiet and the more we do this the better we feel and the more present we become. We only really have the present moment and yet we are mentally trained to dwell on the past and anticipate the future, because that is the nature of collective consciousness within which we all participate until we learn not to.

No matter what calamaties and difficulties we all encounter, whether they are personal, national or global, we react the same way because, for as long as something is perceived as threatening to the “me” I believe myself to be, the mind doesn’t care where it’s coming from. It is the thoughts I have about “me” and “my life” that predominate and a story will start running, usually with some pretty scary twists and turns. In a moment of quiet awareness the sense of this “me” abates and a sense of Presence begins to dominate. Thoughts may come and go but they don’t attach, and the longer I sit in quiet, contemplative Presence, the greater a simple awareness takes over, the “me” goes away and a profound sense of “I am” grows. It is a warm and loving feeling, completely at one with and trusting in the moment. It doesn’t need a personality and has no sense of separateness or inequality.

This is the eternal part of us all. We don’t need to banish our individuality or deny our personality self for these are part and parcel of our human experience. There is no such thing as a perfect personality and we are not required to strive for that – we are here simply to experience. And to know who we all are.

It is in moments of Presence that we feel connected. It is in moments of Presence that we can surrender the things that trouble us, and ask for help. With a quiet mind, intuition can be heard, guidance can be felt and both physical and emotional energy can be restored. Being present is an active state of being, not a passive one, although nothing is actually required except awareness. Taking a witness position means simply to observe the mental chatter and corresponding physical activity. There is nothing wrong with being angry, tearful, fearful etc. These are human emotions that go hand in glove with human experience. But in standing aside for the moment and being witness to our state of mind and being we are able to grab the opportunity to experience a far greater sense of the eternal “I”, to feel who we really are.

The Creon have often said that suffering is a normal part of human life and this would appear to be true. They have also said that suffering can’t be avoided but can be greatly diminished, and this is done through Present moment awareness. If you are suffering, for whatever reason, allow all your thoughts and emotions to come up so you can see them and, taking a witness position, step aside and allow compassion to arise. Compassion and self pity are two very different things. In self pity we give ourselves permission to run the same story over and over again without changing its tone or allowing for other perspectives, but compassion is a universal force of love, powerful in its inclusivity and ability to heal. Real compassion feels boundless and yet deeply intimate.

No matter what it is that disturbs you in any given moment, let your mind have a tantrum if it needs to, but take a breath and hold awareness sufficiently to become Present and invite compassion into your heart. Having real compassion for the Self, the eternal I Am, renders it almost impossible to not have compassion for all Life.

Compassion is Love, and Love is the greatest force there is. You will always be confronted by people and situations that appear unloving or unlovable and there is usually more to the story than is immediately understood. In compassionate awareness it doesn’t matter what the story is for, as intuition arises, right action follows and energy is restored.

You can have whatever religion, belief or practice you want but the ultimate question is always the same: Who Am I? We may not find the words to answer that but we all have it within us to explore our deepest sense of Self whenever we wish, and surely this exploration is the greatest adventure there is.