For The Beautiful Mind

Blog for the Beautfiul...
Current mood: awake

...as we lead our lives forward and we make it a habit to continually grow as a person and develop our abilities whether professional or otherwise we further realize that circumstances, results, and most anything that occurs in our lives is directly related to us. Failure to create this belief fuels personality types that embellish pessimism, that seek separation, that see differences, problems, and fragmentation as absolute, as real, and as immovable forces that block ones life. This realization is what empowers highly successful individuals. Whether consciously or unconsciously, they believe that the can change almost anything, they believe they produce circumstances, not out of vanity or ignorance, but usually out of experience and information. This is what leads one that achieves a high level of self efficacy to attribute results to themselves, to take responsibility; knowing full well that they have empowered themselves to be the primary factor in creating the desired outcomes. Napolean Bonaparte once said "Circumstances-what circumstances? I make circumstances." Now its imperative not to confuse the ends with the means or the process with the content. Very often you'll see the case were an individual, organization, country, or any such group of individuals loses awareness of the primary process that leads to these striking abilities to create circumstances. As previously mentioned, a multi-faceted array of factors are at play continuously in creation, and losing sight of this can lead to trouble. In the chapter dealing with acceleration and adaptation you will be introduced to one such factor, or template, that underlies creation and circumstances. Now, when you lose sight of the very fundamentals of growth and development that create the empowering offspring within oneself, and the enhanced abilities to create, achieve, and command circumstance; the reverse will become evident...you will become prey to the evolving circumstances. Dwelling in a self enchanted world of complacency has always been the recipe for decadence - personally, professionally, politically...basically in every living system from microbes to whole civilizations.
So we use the word Holon (borrowed from Koestler) to convey the fact of everything being both a part and a whole. A whole is autonomous and can function independently and assert itself, and a part functions within a larger whole and is integrative. As this relates to ourselves, I would like to include a little message from Confucius, the ancient Chinese sage, to put this concept into perspective:
"The ancient who desired to illustrate illustrious virtue throughout the empire, first ordered well their own state.
Wishing to order well their own state, they first regulated their families. Wishing to regulate their families, they
first cultivated their own persons. Wishing to cultivate their persons, they first rectified their heart. Wishing to
rectify their hearts, they first sought to be sincere in their thoughts. Wishing to be sincere in their thoughts,
they extended their knowledge to the utmost; and this extension of knowledge lay in the investigation of things.
Things being investigated, knowledge became complete. Their knowledge being complete, their thoughts were
sincere. Their thoughts being sincere, their hearts were then rectified. Their heart being rectified, their persons
were cultivated. Their persons being cultivated, their families were regulated. Their family being regulated, their
states were rightly governed. Their states being rightly governed, their whole empire was made tranquil and happy.
From the emperor down to the mass of the people, all must consider the cultivation of the person, the root of every
thing besides."

- excerpt, Untitled, Angel Armendariz

Interconnected

Entree for Thought? -

Our linear thinking limits our lives in many ways. This type of thinking is always looking for single and sequential causes. This such thing does not exist in our known Universe. Our minds, however, have the extraordinary ability to deceive us into believing such thinking is rational. Dr. David R. Hawkins own realization of such process goes, " It apparently occurred...that they were not at the mercy of the world but rather affected only by what their minds believed...It seemed that the great tragedy of human life had always been that the psyche is so easily deceived." Whatever we believe and look for our minds will find; it will purposefully, at your command, filter information to make it fit to your assumptions. Generally speaking, our logic as a society believes in fragmented lines of action, emotions, feelings; as well as in things like work, relationships, education, and politics. This leads to fundamental and structural imbalances in our state of being. The pattern typically is a simple form of if "a" then "b."
So for example: If I study hard I will get good grades. We give this issue value by the belief that everything has only one essential cause, and that the given circumstance is separate from everything else. So thus this type of thinking follows: If I study hard I will get good grades...my thoughts have no effect on the outcome, my emotions have no effect, my diet has no effect, the amount of water i consume has no effect, my workout routine has no effect, etc. This common form of thought process that we take for granted, that we make automatic, that we consider true, further reinforces our minds to exclude every other effect, cause, possibility, or perhaps error in our form of thought and gradually leads to disillusionment, confusion, and compounded blockages in our lives. Great minds make distinctions that create unique outcomes; that liberate onces power to do and be more.

excerpt, Untitled, Angel Armendariz

Natural Turbulence

The very nature of this dynamic play of forces in our life is quite amazing. Literary history records this underlying template as it has been interpreted through the lens of the understanding of that particular epoch. Lao Tsu, ancient Chinese sage, speaks of flowing with natures movement and of merging with nature's generative processes. As David Hinton, in the Introduction to the English translation of the Tao Te Ching put it, "Lao Tzu's thought is driven by a sense of exile that derives from a fundamental rupture between human being and natural process."
Ralph Waldo Emerson with his authoritative transcendentalism, effortlessly conveyed cohesive elements between man, his faculties, and natures processes. Emerson writes:

...The changes which break up at short intervals the prosperity of men are advertisements of a nature whose law is growth. Every soul is by this intrinsic necessity quitting its whole system of things, its friends and home and laws and faith, as the shell-fish crawls out of its beautiful but stony case, because it no longer admits of its growth, and slowly forms a new house. In proportion to the vigor of the individual these revolutions are frequent...But to us, in our lapsed estate, resting, not advancing, resisting, not cooperating with the divine expansion, this growth comes by shocks...

So, this brings us to now ask what are the consequences of not abiding by this natural template of growth? Emerson was accurate, in the last part of the statement above..."growth comes in shocks!" If grow isn't heeded...then shocks enter in life...now they come out of the very program of nature for one cannot defeat the forces of nature, and so after an extended time of no acceleration "shocks" will present themselves...usually unexpectedly to force your evolution (which is supposed to be a "good" thing, though few of us would consider abrupt shocks "good")...at last you cannot escape your growth, lest you surrender to an early self termination by continual atrophy of your self.
Emerson concurs, follow:

...Calamity...which seemed nothing but privation, somewhat later assumes the aspect of a guide or genius; for it commonly operates revolutions in our way of life, terminates an epoch of infancy or of youth which was waiting to be closed, breaks up a wonted occupation, or a household, or style of living, and allows the formation of new ones more friendly to the growth of character. It permits or constrains the formation of new acquaintances and the reception of new influences that prove of the first importance to the next years;..."
- excerpt, Untitled, upcoming book by Angel Armendariz.

Golden State Warriors and You!

Golden State Warriors and You!
Current mood: energetic

Yes, in case you've been slumbering under a rock recently, the biggest upset in NBA playoff history occurred a couple of days ago...Golden State (an 8th seated) defeated the Dallas Mavs (1 Seated)...As a banner a fan held up at the game said "We're gonna Shock the World" - and they did. How does this effect you? Well it just provides a living example of Congruency.
By congruency I mean a strong, complete, and belief laden intention. To be strong and complete means using all your faculties and aligning them to the intent. This is easier said than done. Dallas, I believe, partially lost the series do to a lack of congruency...it was evident not only in there playing, but also in post game interviews and just the way they carried themselves. They had somehow began to have doubt, or perhaps fear of their battle with the Golden State Warriors. As soon as this virus made host in the minds of a few Mavericks...it spread and it defeated them. Golden State on the other hand, partially because of the circumstance...had no pressure on them and no fear because the had nothing to lose. This allowed them to play with "abandon," fearless action is a powerful force that can pulverize obstacles.
We take this example and use it as a reference to learn from ourselves. Play with abandon and seek congruency. Congruency is a somewhat ephemeral condition, for congruency can truly be acknowledged subjectively. When you know without doubt, hesitation, and you expect your intention to manifest wholeheartedly you know that congruency is near completion. Lack of action towards your goals is also a sign of incongruency...usually doubt or lack of knowledge. If one fails to take action one must look at what information is missing from their current repetoire that is making the next step tentative. Supplant the missing pieces until action is confidently taken. The most important factor is always under your control...decisions...therefore you are infinitely empowered to create masterpieces as you will.