All That Is Polaris

March 2010 - Finding Your Peace Within Chaos

karen@polarisrising.com (Karen Murphy) — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 19:54:00 +0000

The theme for the month of March is Chaos.

March is a month of seeming contradiction. You are perhaps familiar with the adage that March “comes in like a lion and out like a lamb”? This is a reference to weather but could also be applied to the winds of change permeating your very existence. In other words, what appears calm on the surface is seething and roiling underneath, and what appears chaotic is in actuality forming a new, more stable foundation.

Let us examine our theme of Chaos. When defined, one finds that chaos is in actuality quite structured. In other words, it is unpredictability within a highly defined and perhaps rigid set of rules. Would you not say that this is your world, in part? In your universe there are certain rules within which, at times, there is certain unpredictability. Even the very appearance of individuals within the human race is subject to this: there is a general set of ‘rules’ (DNA structure, for example) within which there are endless – and seemingly unpredictable – variations. Chromosomal abnormalities. Cancer markers that are never triggered into actual cancer. Endless variations in size, color, personality and other peculiarities of the human manifestation that don’t seem subject to any rules. This is the hallmark of your world – this seeming contradiction – yet many of you have endless difficulty with the fluidity of choices available to you at any given time.

This seeming contradiction is part of what is going to be becoming stronger and more apparent as time goes by. How will this manifest in ways easily perceivable?

Physical manifestation of energetic chaos

1. Increased weather “events”. We have talked before about climate changes and extreme weather, have we not? You may expect, subject to region, further such extreme events over many areas, some widespread. Drought is beginning this month across parts of India, Africa, and the southwestern part of the US. At the same time, extra precipitation is expected across much of western and southern Europe, the South Pacific, the central and Eastern US, the Caribbean, and much of South America. This precipitation could arise in the form of hurricane-like weather. Or other extreme events.

2. Earthquakes and volcanic activity. As above, so below. Look for increased visibility and awareness of Pacific Rim (especially the South Pacific, also possibly Alaska) activity this month as well as isolated earthquakes in areas not generally known for them (central US, eastern Europe). It is likely that a fairly devastating quake takes place in a populated area within the next 60-90 days.

3. Discoveries of genetic aberrations or new species are likely to be found in the animal kingdom. Animals and plants are, of course, subject to this chaotic energy as are people and the earth as a whole. While it is true that the animals, plant, and mineral kingdoms respond to such change with greater apparent aplomb, change affects all. What will be likely, then, are overt and tangible effects to the energetic shifts, resulting the “new” species, flocks of “deformed” species found regionally, or other similar discoveries.

Intrapersonal manifestation of energetic chaos

1. People “snapping.” This can be on a low level (increased arguments between spouses and children) or on a wider level (employees ‘going postal’, random attacks, mob situations, etc). It can be helpful to remember that this is occurring worldwide, not just in your neighborhood, and that the statistical likelihood of being a part of such an occurrence is relatively low. If this is a fear for you, please try the following:

Standing near a table or waist high horizontal surface, stand with feet hip width apart while your hands rest on this surface.

Take a moment to breathe and remember your particular fears surrounding this potential occurrence. Imagine while you do so that the charkas in your hands and feet are opening fully to embrace the energy of your planet: your home, the Earth.

Feel the enormous loving energy pouring in to you now through your hands and feet. Your hands may feel warm and tingling. Feel the pulsating aliveness of your planet, the place you call home and that you, along with billions of others, are creating. Feel the love inherent in this energy of your creation. Feel the safety inherent in this energy of your creation.

Draw this energy, along with the live connected to it, up through your hands, feet, arms, and legs. Allow the energy to meet and mix in your root chakra. Feel your center of consciousness drop a few inches as you do so. Feel any tightness on your heart area now dissipate. Feel the immense sense of perpetual, eternal safety wrap your being in a soft, warm blanket. Feel how this sense of safety was created by you, along with billions of others, in the creation of your world as you know it to be. Remember that you carry with you a bubble that includes this sense of safety and protection.

Feel it now and rest in your ability to re-create this sense any time you wish.

2. Relationship hurdles. This is a huge month of growth for people involved in all sorts of relationships. Long-held patterns may be released this month. Expect things to re-surface so they can be released.

Welcome these issues rather than attempting to submerge them again.

Those who are less self-aware will have greater difficulties relationship-wise this month, but if it is your practice to be aware of these patterns, then you should have little difficulty allowing them to simply drift away into the winds of change that surround you. Understanding, too, that any seeming surface disruption is for many a sign of healing underneath that is long-lasting and permanent in nature. This relates to all sorts pf relationships, from intimate connections to family dynamics to work relationships, as well as the relationship to Self that each of you possesses. Again, look for outward conflict as a sign of inner healing and change.

3. Spiritual depth. For those of you seeking greater self awareness, this is a month in which you can easily accelerate your growth. We would caution against becoming stuck in linear terms to describe such growth (‘evolving’, ‘moving forward’, ‘ascension’, etc), but at the same time there are exponential possibilities this month that will allow you great enhancement of whatever path you are presently choosing and such terms can be useful in this manner.

Practices to assist in flowing with, not against, the energy of Chaos

You can, of course, enhance your sensation of flow in relation to the energy that is around you at this time. This is not, of course, to allow you to “control” your experience or outcome, but is more designed to help you feel movement in a pleasurable way.

1. Practice an energy movement exercise. This could be tai chi, qigung, or some forms of yoga or meditation – anything where energy is consciously and deliberately moved through the body. This is very much a month in which to let go of conscious thought and allow your other wisdom (of the body, of the soul) to surface. Even if you have mental resistance against such exercises – and we would suggest daily use to enhance the effects – this is a case where “just doing it” is the most helpful approach. A side benefit, of course, is that after 30 days of such practice is becomes a habit, which in our perception would only continue to be beneficial.

2. Drink water. More than ever, this is an important practice. Pure, filtered water, preferably from a source local to you, is best. A liter per 50 pounds of body weight.

3. Breathe. Again, this is such a basic practice that is welcome at any time. Try simply breathing as fully as possible when you first awaken. Not only are you more relaxed at this time, making it easier to actually “get” a full, deep breath, but it will help create the tone for the day and energize and fully awaken your body. Spending 3-4 minutes in contemplative, deep breathing upon awakening will greatly enhance your abilities to flow with this month’s energy.

In addition to these practices, we suggest going within to seek answers to long-held questions. We are, of course, available to those who seek our advice and will continue to make our presence known to an ever-increasing number, but we also support your abilities to seek the inner guidance that is always inside you.

May you rest in the seeming contradictions.

Back to my roots in the Michael Teachings

karen@polarisrising.com (Karen Murphy) — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 21:06:00 +0000

[Blog (non channeled), Feb 2010]

Sometimes your past comes back to you like an old friend.

Several months ago, I noticed I had a resumed interest in examining the Michael teachings. This has been reflected in part by newer channeling, some of which you can see here in pages about energy dynamics like Martyrdom, Arrogance, Greed, and Self-Destruction. It's also been an internal journey. The Michael teachings have been a basis for and integral part of my personal spiritual cosmology since I was 18. And while that cosmology has expanded exponentially with my work with Polaris, the Michael teachings are a sort of spiritual home for me.

You may have noticed some changes on the site. Some are little but (to my esthetic Artisan heart) vast in feel. Some are a little bigger, and there are more to come as I evolve as a human and as a spiritual teacher. Life is more fun when you allow things to change, you know?

It's my pleasure, then, to call your attention to a couple of smallish but truly huge changes. If you have absolutely no familiarity with the Michael teachings but are curious, or you're just dabbiling your toes in it (or even if you're an old Michael hand), there's a series of pages beginning with this one that explains everything. And on that page is an interactive glossary feature that explains the wonderful and rich lexicon that is particular to the Michael teachings body of work. You can also explore the glossary just on its own. Go ahead, click! You know you want to. Polaris uses some of these terms as well at times, so please explore. Like with every body of spiritual teaching, take from it what is yours, whatever parts resonate for you.

It's our gift to you.

Rejoicing in Separateness

karen@polarisrising.com (Karen Murphy) — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 00:29:00 +0000

[Blog (non channeled), Feb 2010]

I've recently given a lot of thought and exploration to the idea of separateness.

When I've participated in or talked about either progressive causes and spirituality, there's the beautific affirmation about the "interconnectedness of All That Is". There's some basic truth there. Psychological and health studies have shown our well-being is intrinsically connected with that of our community. Materially, as we extract resources from the Earth in an imbalanced way or ignore the downwind effect of our consumption on other cultures, we may create ripples of suffering at many points in the chain. Or, as is mentioned in various spiritual teachings such as Advaita Vedanta, mystical christianity or channeled teachings, oneness is fact - there is utterly no separation between different manifestations of the one source and Beingness. Resting in the oneness of All That Is - the experience of enlightenment - is the magical realization that creates joy.

What I've realized for myself is that trying to get there has worked out to be simply (if you'll excuse the term) mental masturbation. Have you ever read books over and over again, just trying to get it? Trying to get, for instance, the Law of Attraction so that you can attract just what you want, and assuming that if you didn't get it, it's your doing and you just have to try harder? It's the thought that because this path to joy is so incredibly simple, it must just require a little more effort. And that effort - that trying - turns out to be a fight. And when it becomes obsessive, that fight becomes a war.

Yes, I've at times made war on the idea of separateness and all the things I equate with it. After some suffering - and some laughter - I've realized trying to get there just ends up with me clobbering myself with the concepts. It creates a dogma. Because joy and surrender supposedly depend on that being-based knowingness of oneness, I either consciously or unconsciously push those beautiful thoughts inside my brain. When it doesn't rest, I push harder. I make a great effort, which in this case is about exerting force on myself. Trying to control myself. But there's one indisputable truth:

If control actually worked, we'd all already be happy.

The other side of this is the thought that "we are already one, so there's no need to realize this". We already have Buddha-nature. We are Zen. Not in holy scriptures in the past or through great teachers, but even in our very human experience. "That was Zen, this is Tao!". So to speak.

I've always loved the analogy of the littlest part of our bodies, the cells that constitute our organs and fluids. They're both individual and part of the greater whole that makes up our bodies. They have a consciousness that's both seemingly separate from us and part of us. They maintain a strong sense of division from other cells through the cytoskeleton, the cell membrane. It maintains cell shape and regulates exchange with its community. This serves a vital function; if a cell tried to "merge into oneness" by dissolving this, it would likely die within a minute, creating a biological mush that serves no foundation for life.

I liken forcing oneness onto people to that of the individual cell. Put simply: we're here to experience separateness. As much as experiencing oneness is joyful, we're also here to be separate.

A primary responsibility to ourselves is self-care. So when we interpret new age claptrap to mean that this separateness is "bad" - and everything that goes along with it such as boundaries and individuality - a part of us starts dying. We're doing violence to ourselves through this mental assault. When we give up our individuality, we do as much damage to ourselves as a cell would by dissolving its membrane.

Put simply: separateness is a good thing. Individuality is wonderful.

So the affirmation I am creating for myself this week is:

I rejoice in my separateness.

Heresy in some circles, no? But it feels good. Let me explain!

Suffering essentially comes from some struggle. Struggle, by its very nature, is the essence of violence. Why? You can also call violence "resistance" - I consider it the same thing. It can be physical, mental, or emotional. It is the act of forcibly denying the truth of what's going on.

All violence has its basis in that - the thought that "this shouldn't be happening". It can be extreme as in denying someone's right to exist, it can be about denying boundaries that are truly there, or it can simply be in denying that someone, including one's self, is exactly in the state that they're in. It's all violence. If I think that I should be different - even if I try to change things by positive thoughts - I am doing violence on myself and sowing discontent.

In the west, we're so used to violence that even well-meaning education uses this principle. Unlike other cultures, we have the "original sin". A part of us is bad and should be put away.

Violence is resisting - in any form - what is going on in the present moment.

There will always be a major part of me that doesn't understand oneness. My brain isn't built to "get it". Our conscious minds - or at least our left brain - isn't built for it. So trying to force this part of me into "getting it" is violence.

So rejoicing in separateness really means letting go of the need to "get it". It means letting go of any need for harmony. It means letting go of the need to be "spiritual".

The funny thing is that as I've started to surrender to myself, I realize more that my conscious mind, my "ego", doesn't have the capability of truly understanding oneness. It's a word. It's a piper's song, promising pleasure and satisfaction at the end of a long quest. But that doesn't change that there are greater parts of me - that are still me - that do already know this. And the more I let go of trying to have my conscious mind "get it", the more space there is for that greater self, that essence, to come through. It's about letting go of all the responsibility to "get it" and just flow along.

Being ourselves. Separate. And loving it.

February 2010: Flow Into Assimilation

karen@polarisrising.com (Karen Murphy) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 20:43:00 +0000

The theme for this month is Flow. When we speak of Flow in this context, we speak of the ability you all have — perhaps something unique to your species, at least in your way of doing so — of assimilating yourselves into that which surrounds you. In other words, you take in the energy of what is around you and breathe it into yourself, sometimes quite literally, creating an ever-changing new organism with each breath.

When we speak of “what is around you” we mean this:

The literal air and all it contains: particulate matter, the pheromones of nearby lovers, the scent of the pot roast bubbling on the stove in your kitchen.
Visual stimuli: the flowers in a vase on your table, the piles of clutter on your desk, the view outside your window.
Clothing and furniture: the touch, smell, and feel of what touches your physical body.
Energetic information: every tangible item or person (or non-human being, such as pets, plants, and stones) has with it an energetic signal, and this you also take in.

Each of these things that you take in, the actual tangible things as well as the energetic information, also contains within it all the memories you have ever experienced of similar such things. When you observe the vase of flowers on your table and take that into your being, you take with it the memory of all flowers in vases you have ever observed, and all similar-colored flowers you have observed growing, perhaps, in gardens, as well as the memories that come flooding into you with the scent of flowers, the color of flowers, and the feeling of warm sun on your back as you, perhaps, once walked through a garden filled with flowers.

What does this mean to you this month, and why is February any different than any other month in this way? Because it is this month that the level with which you assimilate into your surroundings increases, something on the order of tenfold to one hundredfold. This is a significant change, and it marks the very beginnings of what will come to be known as global collective consciousness. This collective consciousness already exists, of course – you are already inextricably intertwined with seven billion other lives going on around you – but what is beginning to occur starting now is that many of you are becoming consciously aware of this connection in ways you had not been in the past.

Let’s look at the Haiti earthquake as an example. When this occurred, people immediately thought consciously of other “big” tragedies that had occurred within their memories, and rather than staying in that energy of helplessness, felt a compulsion to create action instead. This is a change. It’s not to suggest that fewer people gave to the Red Cross, for instance, after the Twin Towers fell down in 2001, but with that action there was an associated helplessness. The energy around Haiti is more practical, as we see it. This may not be reflected in the media attention, which as we see it is still quite narrow in scope, but because overall you all have a greater level of awareness of this global collective consciousness, the actual actions being taken are by far more helpful on a practical basis.

Notice that assimilation can bring up reactions, and reactions will vary from person to person. Some people are quite comfortable feeling more conscious of the energy of everything around them, but others will feel bombarded, invaded, and threatened as their sense of “personal space” expands. If you find yourself feeling ill at ease this month, perhaps with an unnamed sense of dread, or memories of some past feeling of violation, try this exercise to help you feel safe in a sea of sensation:

Stand with your eyes closed and your feet comfortably apart. Breathe through your nose and out through your mouth, lips slightly parted. Breathe now into your solar plexus, your 3^rd chakra.

As you breathe, feel it expand and contract. Up and down. In and out. As you continue to breathe, notice how each breath swirls in your solar plexus for a moment, and then moves throughout your body. Feel each breath move to your fingers, to your toes, to the top of your head. If there is emotion in this moment, breathe that in as well.

By now you could be feeling a slight spinning sensation. Allow it to increase with each breath. Now you feel yourself expanding with each breath, getting larger and larger until you are the size of the universe. You are a universe, and everything is contained within you. You continue to breathe while realizing that everything you experience is already a part of you. You hold within you a complete, perfect universe.

What else to expect this month

Keeping in mind the general trends for the year, you may experience the following this month:

Increased dream activity. Many dreams are snippets of astral travels, and a good many people will find it important this month to connect ore consciously with the astral activity that occurs. Expect symbolic dreams filled with extreme symbols — monsters, dragons, catastrophic events — to populate your dreamtime activity. You may wish to begin a dream journal this month.

Sudden, intense, sense of dread. Even if you are not known to experience premonitions, your increased awareness of your global collective consciousness can begin to bring you into awareness that something is occurring, even if you don’t know to whom or where the something occurs. Since we termed this month’s theme as Flow, we would suggest avoiding bringing a personal element into this feeling of “something bad is about to happen.” Take whatever precautions you feel are necessary, and then attempt – as best you can – to drop the matter. Perform the exercise, above, to bring you into a safe space. Understand that what you are connecting to is likely to have nothing at all to do with you on a personal level, or your family.

This is a fine line to walk, and we understand this. When we provide support in helping people create a more conscious connection with their intuition, we typically advise to go with what first comes to mind. But understand that these feelings of dread, should they occur for you, will be of a very primal nature. Asking you to “drop the matter as best you can” feels counter-intuitive, especially when you are attempting a more conscious intuitive connection. Two things can help:

1. Understanding that if the feeling passes after a few minutes – even if it was quite intense to begin with – then it likely does not belong to you.

2. Performing the exercise we gave above. Feel yourself in that expanded state. Allow thoughts, images, or other impressions to come to you that can help explain the feeling you had. Trust yourself that you will be able to discern.

Earthquakes, volcanic activity, and extreme weather. As above, so below. You understand the phrase? This earth you live upon is very much a part of this global collective consciousness, and whatever upheaval you feel inside is also what is occurring on a vast planetary basis.

New technological advances. An announcement could be made this month that is a breakthrough in terms of how people connect with one another. Notice that a sense of something being “world-changing” is often applied in retrospect, after the changes have begun to occur.

Attention to personal space. Again, how individuals respond to this energy varies, but in general you can look for:

Increased attention to health.
Changes to diet or wardrobe.
Focus on feng shui or other techniques of managing space and the flow of energy around you.
Changes in levels of physical activity.
Attention to group or communal activities. This may result in an aversion to groups for the time being, rather than necessarily a whole-hearted joining-in, but overall the attention you place on how you feel about groups and communities will be shifting this month.

How best to proceed this month

Let's go back to the concept of Flow. Flow connotes the following qualities:

Movement
Lack of resistance
Fully inhabiting the space you are in for that time, however brief
Fluid

Think about these qualities for a moment. What comes to mind? Take note of any impressions, sounds, words, or pictures that arise when you think of these qualities. This, then, is what you will do your best to remember — on some underlying level — this month while you go about your daily business of living. Remember we said earlier that each breath you take creates a new organism: you. You are creating and re-creating yourself in every moment, over and over and over again. There are no mistakes. There is no wrong turn. You simply flow from one breath to the next.

And so it is as the month unfolds for you.

By the end of February, then, you can expect to be aware of the global collective consciousness on a new level. Much like an infant gathers experience in every moment, so, too, are you this month beginning your infancy of a new awareness. Allow the newness to inhabit and inspire you. Breathe in and sense your energetic counterparts all over the world. Feel the mass of humanity living, breathing, loving, warring, and dying in every corner of the globe and feel too, the perfection of each of those moments.

This nascent connection is why you are here, now, in this place at this time. This is much of what you came for. Enjoy what you are creating.

Haiti Earthquake: Of compassion and love

karen@polarisrising.com (Karen Murphy) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 21:06:00 +0000

[non-channeled]

Like many people whose eyes, ears, and fingertips are connected by the vast Interwebs, I heard the news of yesterday’s devastating Haiti earthquake via Twitter.

7.0. I’ve been in a 5.5. I know that 6-point-something is pretty damaging. Every point-something is a factor of 10 in magnitude. So this 7.0, in a country where most people are painfully poor and (I imagine) live in the kind of rickety shack housing I’ve seen elsewhere in the Caribbean, is huge.

And it is. According to what little I have read (and I avoid TV news like the plague), 100,000 people could already have died. And the inevitable deaths from disease due to damaged water systems, lack of food and shelter, could raise the figure precipitously.

I am trying to figure out how I feel about this. What I feel.

In 2001, when we all saw surreal footage of airplanes flying into tall buildings that had become part of an iconic skyline, I felt something. That night I lay in bed and imagined helping herald 2000 confused souls into a warm light-filled embrace, and helping tens of thousands more through those first days of shock and outrage. In the days that followed, it became easy. All that shock and outrage got funneled into hating someone and something that someone else decided we should be hating anyway.

That’s how wars start.

But how do you hate an earthquake?

We can’t hate the earth, because it’s our home. It sustains us.

Less than two weeks ago I channeled information about people — many people — choosing to exit their earthly lives this year. In working with this kind of information, I try to remain a little distant and not feel the pain and grief associated with such an eventuality. When just one person dies, many grieve. I’ve protected myself from feeling that on a grand scale. My fear is that I’d be overwhelmed by the immensity of such pain on that large a scale. Many people transitioning? There are 7 billion or so on the planet now. A few thousand here or there doesn’t make much difference overall. Many people would have to be … many.

People.

100,000 beautiful, alive, loving people in Haiti died yesterday, ending lives that had love and pain and laughter and tears. And it wasn’t an ethereal Rapture, where they simply got lifted up into some alternate reality. No, a good many of these people likely died in pain. That’s twice as many people as live in the small city that is my home, and it’s pain that I am afraid to feel.

What is compassion?

I think about Haiti, just as I thought about the Christmas tsunami a few years ago. I hear a big ’should’ in my head. I should be feeling this, because I can. It’s my job, my livelihood, to tap into a global consciousness, or into the energy body of a single person. To me, it’s all the same.

And yet, I don’t.

Last night I approached a woman, older than me, who I knew had been having some physical issues. I asked how she was. I could see how she was, could see where there were energy blockages. I asked her permission to touch her, and I briefly touched points on her shoulders and down her back. I asked about her feet because I could feel immense pain there. I wept, not from the pain but from the sense of it.

I can feel pain without feeling it. Strange, that.

And yet I don’t go to Haiti. This makes me smaller somehow, less human, I fear.

Last night I also wrote a column in which I cried about some of my fears. Fears of my own fragility. In the light of the new day I can see that this was, in some way, an expression of my response to Haiti. I know we all process everything that comes into our being — from near or far, it’s all the same — through our personal perception lenses. That’s not being selfish, it’s being human. We can’t help it. So I transferred the cries of tens of thousands of throats into one cry from a single throat, crying, “Who will help me when I have need?”

I could rationalize that just as children are better off when you let them make their own lives and their own mistakes, that I should keep my virtual hands of Haiti and let things transpire there as they will. I am not Atlas and I cannot hold the world on my shoulders. I have trouble some days with my own piece of the world.

At the risk of sounding trite, or incomplete, I can love. In the end, that’s all any of us can do. For some, love will be a $10 donation to the Red Cross. For others, it’s being airlifted along with dogs and rescue teams to pull people out from under buildings. For still others, it’s prayer. And for others, it’s a blink in the daily crush of living. Who am I to determine which facet of love has more merit?

Longing

karen@polarisrising.com (Karen Murphy) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 07:59:00 +0000

[non-channeled]

I used to write poetry when I was young. It fell out of my heart and remained caught in a blank space for a long time, but I have made room in my heart for poetry again. It feels good. This piece is like time-travel and speaks from a place in my past.

Longing

I long to travel where my body cannot go;

through doors and walls and windows

to unseen worlds of dizzying possibility.

I lie awake, willing a single silver cord

to emerge from my body like an astral umbilicus.

At the mirror I chant I AM

and wait for the reflected worlds behind me to unfold

like petals after a spring rain,

worlds that will swallow me into nothingness.

One day I will scream for an hour so shards of my

shattered heart will break my brain into halves

and I will disappear between them.

Float away, Self, I whisper in my dreams

that follow me like twisted shadows.

Float away and unwind the becoming,

banners at rest and respectfully waiting,

all time suspended.

New Year Resolutions, 2010

karen@polarisrising.com (Karen Murphy) — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 21:10:00 +0000

A friend recently posted her reflections from 2009 and hopes for 2010, and I was especially intrigued and touched by her chosen theme for the coming year -- gentleness. It's my friend's intention to be gentle with herself this year, releasing herself from the bindings of the need for perfection and from the desire to do all and be all. Isn't that lovely?

I thought it was a wonderful theme for the year, and it got me to thinking. I post a lengthy channeled message every month -- as well as one for the entire year -- which typically includes a theme for that period of time. Why not choose one (or listen to the one your heart sings to you) on a personal level each year?

I have decided that the coming year, for myself, will be about expansion. Already I am practicing what it means to be a fully -- as best I can -- expanded human, feeling my awareness expand into a greater wholeness and making choices from that perception, but I'm still working on this. I still feel triggered at times by things that annoy me or unnerve me. I still have trouble forgiving myself for being human and making mistakes. My intention, then, with expansion, is to bring the entire practice of being human into being and into the space around me. Consciously, and with intention.

2009 has been a wonderful year for me. In many ways, I became more of myself this year than in any other year I can remember. I feel joy, even in darker times of frustration or fear. I've learned that everything does indeed change -- even the "good" things -- and that I am more joyful overall when I remember to feel myself as part of this flow, this never-ending series of cresting and receding waves of being.

Looking now at the year ahead, I see more of this for myself, and in that more there is also more for those whose lives I touch. I'm so grateful to be a part of so many lives around the world. Sometimes at night I can feel myself as part of a universal pulse that includes you and all those around the world, and it feels good.

What will 2010 bring to your life? What gifts will you invite for yourself?

January 2010 - Stabilization

karen@polarisrising.com (Karen Murphy) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 23:31:00 +0000

After upheaval comes quiet, at least for a while. It’s a time of taking stock, of seeing what’s in the larder, and then moving ahead again into new territory. By month’s end, many of you will have unearthed a direction or secret resolve that you intend to move forward upon into the future.

The stabilizing energy is a direction to head toward. There will likely be a number of ups and downs along the way — realizations and discoveries — but on the whole, the energy of January speaks to an overall stabilizing effect so that further deepening and movement can be possible in the future.

Effects on a personal level

What does this mean to you personally? For starters, it’s about bringing things to the surface. Not so much in the dramatic ways of the past few months, but more lovingly, tenderly, almost as if you are greeting inner parts of you for the first time, giving birth to the most precious deep elements to the creation that is you. So you can expect feelings of surprise, wonder, childlike yearnings, and innocence to be crossing your path this month.

Another effect of January’s energy on a personal level is a sense of greater connection. This may occur for you on a family level, between neighbors, in a community, or on a virtual basis, but awareness of the greater whole that is all of humanity will be becoming more evident this month. Deepen this for yourself by reaching out in tangible ways to those around you — volunteer, give charitably, or simply host a gathering.

Begin a personal practice

This is a wonderful month to begin a personal practice that can take you through the year. Things that might appeal to you (choose any or all):

1. Walks in nature.

2. Meditation.

3. Creating art of any kind.

4. Journaling.

5. Regular connection with others.

6. Long baths.

7. Saying “yes.”

8. Breathing.

9. Mindful eating.

10. Being vulnerable.

Global effects in January

On a wider level, change is occurring as well. Weather continues to be an issue for many, with an increase in dramatic variations from the norm. Expect colder than usual (Northern hemisphere) or warmer than usual (Southern hemisphere) weather in many parts of the world, especially on a regional basis. Snowfall may seem unusually high this year in many areas, and in general weather seems wilder and more unpredictable, which will continue to be the general trend for some time to come.

Politically, things are happening behind closed doors this month that will help set the stage for more dramatic change to come. Expect difficulties coming to open agreements, and also expect a higher level of overall dissatisfaction with the status quo. This sense of dissatisfaction will continue to build through the coming months.

In fact, overall we would say that there will be a sense of energy building this month on many levels, deep under the surface, to bubble up at some future point.

The most helpful thing you can do right now — for yourself and for those around you — is to be open to the possibility that surrounds you. Trust that you have inner guidance and that it will show you the direction to face by month’s end.

2010 – The Year Ahead

karen@polarisrising.com (Karen Murphy) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 02:01:00 +0000

Right now you – all of you – stand poised at the edge of a precipice, ready to jump. Or to fly.

2010 is a pivotal year. We have been telling you about changes taking place within you and around you these past several months. Many of you have begun deep, lasting, and profound inner transformation as a result of choosing to step into the flow of change that is taking place all around the world. We repeat here what many of you have heard from other sources, or perhaps sensed yourself: you are here – now – for a reason. Most of you reading these words will feel a familiar tingling or chill right about now. You are here, right now, in this place and in this time, to take part in what is likely to be one of your species’ greatest times of expansion.

First, a caveat. The change that we speak of will take years to complete or even to come to a place that is readily discernible by most people as great change. This – now – is just the beginning stage of great overall growth. Expansion. You have agreed to be a part of what will end up being among the beginning stage of this expansion. Many of you will intend to incarnate again later on for a role in later stages of this change that will likely require several hundred years overall.

But understand, too, that change is occurring. Many of you are sensitive enough to feel what’s coming and to incorporate new ways of relating into your own lives. Many of you are now riding the crest of the wave yet to come.

Now, what do we mean by “expansion”? The human species has collectively agreed and chosen to begin evolving in certain ways that will eventually support new ways of interacting. Evolution has been occurring throughout your entire history, of course, but soon there will be more evidential changes taking place. Nothing so drastic, perhaps, as growing gills to breathe underwater, but just as significant in the overall effect.

One major change will be in communication. Many of you are facile — without being aware of it — at telepathic communication. You know without knowing, hearing, or seeing. This type of communication and knowing will one day become more prevalent, a primary mode of communication. Already there are measurable overall changes in this compared to just 50 years ago. The advent of the so-called “indigo” and “crystal” children — of which many of you have direct ties — is one contributor to this.

Another major change is more subtle but even more far-reaching – awareness of all life. We often suggest to people whom we counsel to walk outside and observe daily changes, and to spend time in nature simply being with what is present. There is reason for this — exposure to natural life and your earthly surroundings develops a sense of true compassion for the life that teems around you. Have you yet felt life in the dirt under your shoes? Perhaps not but it exists and is no different than stepping on your own arm or leg. This overall awareness of life will cause changes to how people interact with one another and with the Earth and all her inhabitants. But this change is overall slower and more gradual, with more radar blips and ups and downs along the way. You can imagine, however, the far-reaching consequences of true awareness of ALL the life that exists around you.

This is something that you can practice right now:

Take a moment now. Close your eyes and become aware of your surroundings.

Start with sound: listen to the sounds around you, the hum of the fan on your computer, the whirr of the refrigerator, outdoor sounds, your own breath. Then move to what you feel physically: the chair beneath you, your clothing against your skin, air on your face, the flutter of your eyelashes from your closed eyes on your cheeks.

Breathe now and take all this in. Allow it simply to BE a part of you, and you it.

After a few breaths, begin to allow for the possibility of aliveness in everything around you: your chair, the floor, your clothing. Feel the life contained in everything around you. Feel the connection to All That Is through all that is around you.

Feel the joy in this, and the acceptance for YOU, for all that you are. You are simply a part of your surroundings, and your surroundings are a part of you.

Now, what about 2010? We stated earlier that this is a pivotal year, and that is so. There is nothing carved in stone here, but there are some general trends to observe. We state again (we can’t say this too frequently, especially just now) that YOU incarnated in this body at this time in this place for a reason, and that reason has a lot to do with creating and supporting these changes.

Others are grateful to you. Your entire life isn’t only about serving a higher purpose, of course, but the majority of you reading this incarnated at this time so that you’d be among friends with the same idea. Turn to your right and your left and say hello to your neighbor. The people you pass on the street. The people in line at the cashier at the grocer. The people in the long snaking lines of cars moving slowly across endless highways. These are the people who also chose to be here now. You are effortlessly connected to one another in this way.

Global Changes

2010 is pivotal because much change will be evident this year. Not the far-reaching long-term things we mentioned earlier, although those will be a part of the overall change, but you can expect the following:

Lots of people will be losing loved ones this year, people of all ages who are choosing to transition out of life as a way of “opting out” of some of the other changes taking place. Making room for the new. There will be collective grief over this unusual amount of transition, but at the same time there will be joy – the summer bloom turns to dried autumn foliage and then to bare winter earth, returning once again in spring to a new green shoot and a sense of promise. This kind of deep change affects people on so many levels.
Political instability or a sense of insecurity, and sometimes a seeming lack of direction. This will be evident in many areas including the U.S, Canada, some countries in South America, and Japan, among others. The balance is beginning to discernibly shift away from old powers to other parts of the globe and this will be even more evident this year. Look for increased positive attention on several unexpected political models that show the shape of things to come: Bangladesh, Bolivia, Chile, Cuba, Finland, Guyana, Honduras, Iceland, Laos, Malta, Netherlands, Sri Lanka, and Uruguay.

A shift by governments that use stealth and covert activity toward more overt blame. Incidents could be strategically created in an effort to maintain a sense of control over what is feared by those governments to be a losing battle in the eventual shift of power mentioned above. This could result this year or soon in a possible military takeover of a major western government. This would not likely be obvious from the outside, even to the inhabitants of that country, and would likely be presented as a need to protect citizens. We could repeat now that this would be, overall, an interim measure and that further change toward a more gentle way of being will be evident sooner than later.

Personal Transformation

We realize that some of what we see as potential for 2010 on a global level can seem frightening from your present perspective. There is, however, balance in this process of change. Nothing happens without regard to the overall eventual result on a collective basis – not even the most minute, personal event is overlooked. But real and lasting change occurs from deep inside, which does often result in discomfort for a time. On a personal level for most people this year, change is present in profound and uplifting ways:

By mid-year, a sense of peace and elation settles over the world, affecting a good many people and allowing most of you to fall into the “flow” of your life. This involves really manifesting what it is you are here doing – in other words, a life purpose or life task. By mid-year, then, a good many of you will feel purposeful and peaceful.

Meditation practices deepen. More people connect with “old-world” ways: herbal lore, shamanism, flower essences, work with gems and minerals, animal wisdom, etc. More people begin feeling tapped into personal intuition or spiritual guides. This is an excellent time to deepen your practice or to begin one, especially by mid-March or so.

Though more people will be without homes, those who don’t choose to exit this year will find the care they need. Perhaps in your back yard, or from your open hand.

By year-end, then, most of you will be in a vastly different place on a personal level. To support your inner process, which in turn supports your ability to take in what’s going on in the world around you, we can suggest:

Find something that matters to you. Whether it’s a particular tree on your walk or a special person or a cause, there is something that really matters to you. Figure out what it is this year and give it love.

Observe the world around you. Whether it’s cars and concrete or it’s blooming cherry trees or tall pines, there is a beautiful world around you. Treat yourself every day with a few minutes simply observing what you see, without judging the merits of the scene. You’ll find yourself, after time, feeling compassion for that world around you.

Deepen your practice — or begin one — of connecting to your own higher wisdom. There are many avenues for this, including scrying, channeling, or simply listening for that deep inner voice inside you. Find a teacher to assist you if you feel guided to do so.

The most helpful thing you can do for your planet is to stay — as best you can — connected to yourself and that which surrounds you.

It’s a wonderful year ahead, wonderful and tragic and beautiful and human. Make it yours, this year. You are here because you chose to be here.

December 2009: Exploring richness

karen@polarisrising.com (Karen Murphy) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 20:51:00 +0000

December is the month of richness. Not “rich” in the material sense, although that is certainly a possibility for those on that path, but rich in the sense of depth. Added complexity. Layers unfolding layers. Last month you allowed what was under the surface to bubble up to conscious awareness; this month you explore things more deeply, in a rich, soul-satisfying way. You'll see the strata of each layer of past experience and insight, and this month the patterns become more clear and beautiful. You sense purpose in your experience. Everything you have been before this moment has built the You that you are now, and you rest this month in that knowledge.

It’s no accident that this energy is occurring along with a few other things going on in the world at this time:

1. End-of-calendar-year review. Now you’ll be looking back over the past year, a convenient marker or milepost, to see where you’ve been and the journey it took to get to where you stand now.

2. December religious holidays, for whatever amount of significance they hold for you personally, are extremely affecting to the vast majority of people in the world. Even if you don’t personally hold religious significance to this time of year, there’s a pervasive sense of global collective awareness this time of year. Now, more so than other times of the year, you are aware of the connections you have to all of humanity.

3. Solstice. For the Northern Hemisphere it’s the winter solstice, the time of inward contraction, which invites inner exploration. In the South there’s expansion with the summer solstice. Two magnetic poles in perfect balance. Overall, this affects your richness explorations by inviting you to feel more in tune with the energy of your region.

4. Copenhagen energy talks. Much of the direction you’ll be headed on a collective basis in terms of how humans and the earth interrelate will manifest through the results of this summit. If you like making predictions, pay attention to what goes on here.

It is helpful, with all this collective energy abounding, to bring yourself to a place of conscious connection to the global collective entity known as “humanity” as well as to the larger global collective entity known as “Earth.” To create a stronger conscious connection, we suggest the following. This exercise is most effective if done as a group experience, but can also be practiced alone:

Lie directly on the ground if possible, or on the floor of what feels to you like a comfortable space. Lying on your back, take a few deep breaths to relax your body somewhat and to allow you to focus your energy and attention.

When you feel that you have expanded into the space surrounding your body (about 6-8 inches all around your body), focus your awareness on the space within your heart. As you do so, notice that this space is of infinite size – although it is contained within your awareness, it extends in every direction toward infinity.

Maintaining your awareness of that space, allow yourself to imagine a golden light emanating from that space, dropping down into the center of the Earth below you. The center of the Earth, you now notice, is also a space of infinite proportion just as your heart-space is. The two infinite spaces are now connected by the golden light.

You are now connected to this source of energy that exists within your planet that fuels and connects the global collective entity known as “humanity”. You are also now connected to the global collective entity known as “Earth.” You are no bigger and no smaller than either of these entities.

Your own space is as infinite as any other.

Practice this daily if you can this month, especially on the solstice.

Other ways this energy of richness will appear this month, beyond that of a personal nature:

1. Relationship enhancement. Patterns that came up this past month will be explored on a deeper level, not necessarily more intensely, but often with greater clarity. Many old patterns will be dissolved this month.

2. Community involvement. Even beyond the typical December giving, many people will be feeling more closely connected, on a personal level, to the communities around them. Volunteering at food banks, giving to neighbors, small gifts and services, will be more common this month.

3. The world is still at war. Even when these places are far away, they seem closer this month. There is an opportunity this month to make moves toward making major changes in the approach used in some areas of conflict. We don’t see conflict going away, but we do see opportunity to explore it differently. People will still die this month; losses will be suffered. But in the larger perception, collective choices are beginning to be made that support exploring conflict differently. Look for upheavals, uprisings, and seeming steps backward as these choices begin to be further explored.

4. Water. Water becomes a greater issue this month. Flow begets flow – when energy flows more strongly, the earth responds with her own flow. Look for areas of extreme drought in various regions this month as well as devastating flooding (Malaysia, southeast Asia).

And you? You are realizing this month, even more than before, that you truly are in the perfect place at any given time.

Let your desires for the future rest in that space.