SPRINGTIME FOR LOVERS: IT’s NEVER TOO LATE TO RAISE YOUR GAME
“The parrots of heaven will be cracking sugar as we laugh together, you and I, in one form upon this earth and in another form in a timeless sweet land.” Rumi
Dear Friend,
No matter how good our primary love relationship is or may have been, many of us have, at some point or another, wished it were different than it is. And for those currently “in-between engagements,” most will desire to be partnered anew after their dance cards have been empty long enough. Then, they too may wish for their mate to be somehow different than he or she is.
How do we get out of this seemingly endless loop of “the grass is always greener” or “if only” cycles of not embracing reality whole-heartedly just as it is in the present moment? (To get you in the mood for what’s to come: Ruminations of a Timeless Mystic.)
The ancient mystics had the answer. They knew that their primary relationship is with All of Life. Then Life itself becomes not only our most important guru or teacher, but also our Lover. The Taoists call it becoming One with the Tao or the Flow of Life. In Tantra, it’s called merging with Source or the Divine—and there are literally hundreds of practices within each of these spiritual traditions which allow one to make Love with all of Life.
In Taoism, there are five forms of meditation: sitting, standing, moving, lying down and sexual practices. Except the last, all are greater vehicles for becoming one with the Tao directly, without the necessity of having a partner.
So too, in Tantra, about 80% of the spiritual techniques involve using one’s perceptions, emotions and senses without any intermediary. In both, we can experience a non-ephemeral blissful merging with All of Life that is totally within our empowered choice—and no other—to make.
For most of us, the easiest way to start on this path is by opening our hearts to the Soul of the Earth through communing with Nature. To start, pick a beautiful place to sit. As you breathe in the energy of a tree, a flowing river or the sun rising in front of you— simultaneously open your heart and just smile. Then repeat. When we do this daily, as expansively and as often as possible, we’ll begin to be in Love with Life again—as our Soul spontaneously remembers how good this feels.
While this technique is also taught in Zen Buddhism as a form of mindfulness meditation, all variations originally come from the most ancient paths of Taoism and Tantra. If you find this intriguing, here’s a reading list to get you started: Spiritual Practices Reading List. The next step, if you’re ready to delve more deeply, may be in seeking out a spiritual teacher of these types of meditation near you. If you’re in the NYC area, please click here: Taoist and Tantric Energy Arts.
Once we’re maintaining our primary Love relationship with All of Life on a daily basis, we have what I call our “cake.” Then, if we also have a preference for enjoying playing the game of life by sharing it with another, as many of us do, we would call that the icing on our cake. Either way—it’s yummy.
Once we’re filled with cake, and not overly attached to needing the icing—which comes and goes and is beyond our control—then a love relationship with another Soul incarnate—is raised to a whole new level. We’ll be operating from a place of fullness on the heart levels and a desire to share this, rather than trying to get filled—which only creates power struggles sooner or later.
As we raise our game, it moves us higher up on the “energy food chain,” allowing us to choose a partner from a place of overflowing juicy heart energy rather than a lonely, half-empty space of needing to be fed. And, let us not forget, water seeks its own level—and self is always meeting Self.
To celebrate our willingness to upgrade our view of love relationships, I’m offering a workshop on just this theme:
SECRETS OF SUCCESSFUL DATING AND MATING:
Embracing Our Inner Goddess and Expanding Our Capacity for Pleasure, Joy and Bliss
Tonight, we’ll focus on honing our online dating skills for manifesting the ideal mate, with Joan channeling psychic mini-readings on this theme to facilitate making the most of wherever we’re at on our soul’s journey.
So, whether you’re ready to meet your match, have a partner already or prefer to merge directly with the Divine, come learn timeless Tantric and Taoist practices to empower and enjoy every level of Being and Becoming.
As we gain insight into the optimal mindset and techniques for becoming One with Source, it also prepares us for this communion through the vehicle of a love relationship.
WHEN: Tuesday, 7-9PM, April 6th, 2010
WHERE: The META Center NY, 214 W. 29th St. 16 floor
$33 in advance/$40 at the door
For women only/Please reserve your space
For more info/to pre-register:
JoanPancoe@aol.com/212-982-6820.
MP3 recordings are available for ALL workshops in this series, please click here for details:
YIN POWER: Owning Our Divine Feminine Birthright
And, if you’d like to read more on this subject:
In closing, here’s one of my favorite Tantric practices:
“See all old friends as strangers and all strangers as old friends.”
In other words, with the fresh eye you’ve acquired from communing with Nature—embracing even the rainy days—see all those already in your life as if for the very first time—with no history and no baggage. Just open your heart—and smile. And, whenever you meet someone new—don’t analyze, judge or label. Just open your heart—and smile.
Wishing you all Joy in Being in this New Millennium Mating Dance with All of Life,
J O A N
PS The perspective on Life shared in this newsletter comes from my personal experiences which are explored in-depth in: Cosmic Sugar: The Amorous Adventures of a Modern Mystic, written under the pen name, Leela Jones.
PPS According to Freud: “Love and work, work and love—that’s all there is.” If this piques your interest, please read further: Timing is Everything—in Business and in Life.