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August 2020
Make the Best Use of Your Energy
A couple of years ago a friend/client
sent me an updated interpretation of the don Juan story from
The Power of Silence. Recently, I
rediscovered it and wanted to share it as it includes some excellent
learnings which are easily relatable to our experiences today. I am
sharing this interpretation with additional remarks at the end:
In The Power of Silence,
Castaneda relates a story that don Juan told him about becoming
impeccable. Don Juan was an angry young man. He survived many
struggles but blamed the world and others for his plight. His
teacher, the nagual Julian, felt the need to teach don Juan a lesson
so he could become impeccable regarding his use of energy.
Specifically, he wanted him to stop squandering his precious energy
on anger which has no benefit for him or others. Instead the nagual
Julian wanted to teach him to use his energy in the best possible
way. Julian said that impeccability is simply the best use of our
energy and anger was in the way of don Juan becoming impeccable.
So the nahual Julian threw a party for don Juan to celebrate the
lesson he wanted to teach him. The location was at the edge of a
raging river, one that was at flood stage due to recent heavy rains.
Many friends were invited.
After a bit of dancing and
celebrating, Julian guided don Juan to the edge of the raging river
and made him kneel. Julian asked the powers of the river to advise
don Juan and help him learn. Then he told don Juan to stand up and
close his eyes. He grabbed don Juan and threw him into the rushing
waters below, shouting, “Don’t hate the river, for heaven’s sake!”
Don Juan couldn’t believe he’d let this happen. He was angry
that Julian had tricked him. He was resolved that he wasn’t going to
die in that river by the antics of Julian.
The current
dragged him for a long distance. And while he was being dragged and
trying not to succumb, he entered into a strange frame of mind. He
knew his flaw. He was a very angry man and his pent-up anger made
him hate, fight, and be impatient with everyone and everything in
his life. He realized that hating and fighting the river would
deplete his energy and get him nowhere. All he could do with the
river was follow its flow.
This simple awareness that he
couldn’t fight, and his acceptance of it, shifted his attention. It
shifted from fighting the situation to focusing on dealing with it
as well as he could. Instead of being distracted by hating Julian,
the river, or himself - he focused his attention totally on
swimming. This allowed don Juan to use his energy more effectively.
The river helped him become impeccable in how he used his attention
and energy.
Julian’s action had awakened don Juan’s intent.
Intention is attention focused in the direction of choice. In this
instance, the river made the choice for don Juan. The river forced
don Juan to focus his attention on swimming to deal with the
survival situation. We can apply that lesson to the rest of our
lives. We can stop blaming others. We can stop being angry about the
challenges we have or the state of our world. Instead, we can choose
to focus our attention on actions to deal with or help the
situation. We can be intentional with how we choose to focus our
attention. Doing that helps us live impeccable lives.
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How do you use your precious energy and focus? Do you use it by
pointing blame on others, or by seeing something good in the
situations you face? Do you use your energy in a way that uplifts
others, making them smile, laugh, or spreading hope? Or do you use
your energy to make them more angry or afraid? Our energy is
precious and is not limitless. It is important to use what energy we
have to benefit our health, peace, balance, and happiness. When we
don’t live this way, our health and clarity of thought suffers. When
our energy is not focused in a positive way, our mood also suffers,
and that’s what we share with those around us.
Just what
does impeccable mean and why is it such an important goal? It is
‘behavior that is in accordance with the highest standards.’ Isn’t
that what we are spiritually striving to become? How one thinks and
behaves in each moment and with each person, either uplifts our
consciousness or takes it down.
Think of being impeccable in
all you do and say. Shift your attention from disliking or resisting
a situation to improving it. This way of living is a gift that you,
like don Juan, can choose to embody. When you do, you will be making
the best use of your precious energy for yourself and others.
Contact Alice
to learn how she can help you master this topic - or transform other
health, emotion, and spiritual issues.
Free consultations are offered to all new clients to learn how
Alice's work is directly tailored to address your areas of concern.
Don't wait - step onto your Healing Path today!
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