You are cordially invited to  a presentation on the Lifestyle Vision Quest, Tuesday May 20th at the Natural Health Center in Scheveningen.

R.S.V.P through the NHC events page, section: Life Style Vision Quest

 What are you looking for in life? What is your inner voice telling you? Are you living the logistics or embracing the journey in full?

Each and every one of us has the birthright to a unique life mission, a potential with boundless possibilities.
This promise starts in how you  connect with yourself and the world around you. When you  tend to look away, give away or follow suggestions made by commerce, politics or what you think others think of you,
it might be time take a look inside and do a reality check, using the love and wisdom of the inner sanctuary we all have within.

10 ways in which a  Lifestyle Vision Quest will help you to:

1. Enhance your Potential

 The reasons for doing a lifestyle vision quest are as personal as one’s fingerprint. It will however at least do one thing: it will lead  you to your Potential as it is ready and waiting for you right now.

2. Become aware of your Freedom of Choice

 Do you find your life  journey is often  conditioned by what happens in the world? Or do you resonate with your personal mission and embrace your  inner voice?  A vision quest helps disclose the great many options  to choose from between those two.

3. Co-create your Life- Journey 

Is life something that happens to you or are you the co-creator? In a vision quest imagination, intuition and inspiration, the three layers of  your being in body, mind and spirit,  are  especially vivid and as always ready to  give you a peek in what is possible.

4. Keep Balance

A vision quest in its true form is a reality check and mindful way to maintain  balance; to reflect on the question  if your patterns are in sync with your mission.  

5. Find your true self

A Vision Quest opens portals to the core being of who you truly are.

6. Communicate better with yourself and the world around you.

A lifestyle vision quest helps you  distinguish fact from fiction,  reality from illusion, make-believe from genuinity and agenda’s  from unintentional misunderstandings.  
It was William James, (1842-1910)  founding father of psychotherapy in the U.S who said: 

 “Whenever two people meet, there are really six people present. There is each man as he sees himself, each man as the other person sees him, and each man as he really is.”

7. Be content with what is.

Rather than estimating you need something else first before you can do what you think you need to do, a  vision quest shows you how all you need is already there and how  life is already  complete as it is under the given circumstances.

8. Find Fulfillment. While it is often seen as a way of correcting a wrong, Karma in its essence is a destination.  It’s up to up to the challenges, insights, gifts and tools of every unique individual how to  position themselves in what happens in life. The secret is to have the inner voice have  its say, while using the brain as a compass

9. Be Connected to yourself and the world around you in a wholesome way.  The way you connect to the world begins with the way you connect with yourself. A life style vision quest helps you explore what resonates for you.

10. Explore  your own truth. What comes to your mind when thinking of a Life Vision Quest…?

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The post Ready for a Lifestyle Vision Quest? appeared first on EN Energycounseling.nl.

Do you still have old diaries ? When you re-read these records of your life story, do you recognise yourself in what you wrote down maybe decades ago?  I find old journals can hold surprising revelations, describing life lessons that had yet to reach their full potential at the time they were recorded, yet already sort of glimmered at the horizon of conscious awareness with thoughts and feelings that years later start to make sense.

Journaling I find, is like talking to a life coach, but then that life coach is you, yourself . It’s a process. While writing, I find my way through, forests, fields, seas and mountain ranges of words and sentences until at some point I find myself ‘out of the woods’ or ”on top of the world’, rescued from my sea of troubles.

Journaling is a very important part of the ritual of mid-winter contemplation. It’s a way of talking to oneself through writing. Giving titles to the dreams one has, helps to  become more aware of their meaning. Words and sentences are like magic in that sense.  They hold the ability to transport thoughts, feelings and intentions to higher levels of understanding

The gift of expressing oneself – either through painting, sculpting, dance,  song, sound or any other form of art  is a precious human trait and certainly there for a reason, going as far back as the times when humanity as we know it today was still in it’s early stages.  Art may well be among the oldest tricks in town to get in touch with the true essence of who one is.

The first written expressions ever found date back to roughly 3400 years B.C.  within Sumerian civilisation, a relatively short amount of time on the scale of human history.

In our present day and age, writing, using language is the main source awareness. Even more so it often supersedes, intuition or inspiration. But just like midwinter contemplation originates from ancient ways of looking at life, the written word also contains deeper meaning. Words have Soul and Spirit. The way we use them tells a lot about who we are.

 to read more on how to practice the winter solstice contemplation ritual click here. 

  On the right side of this blog you can also draw your own card and see what it summons up from within.

The post 6 of Tools: Journaling appeared first on EN Energycounseling.nl.

The Tarot of Marseille  the Nan Yar Who Am I cards are based on, depicts card number V as The Pope.
Seeing the Marseille Tarot came into the world at the end of medieval times, when the pope in Western Culture had been regarded as the representative of God on earth for more than a thousand years, the interpretation of this  Archetype as the spiritual aspect of life on earth makes sense.

As the interpretation of the Tarot changes throughout the ages; depending on the stage a culture is in and many other religious beliefs have found their way into the western world, we can nowadays see card number V: The Pope, as a representative of a more widely ranged set of spiritual components embedded in the way we look at life on the western material plane.

For some this will imply they begin to acknowledge a divine presence within themselves, while others will refer to the belief system they recognise themselves in, whether that’s Buddhism, Hinduism, Paganism, Humanism, Gnosticism or any other belief system that represents the way one thinks and feels about the existial basics of life..

When this card comes your way, you might want to contemplate on questions outside the logistics of life, such as : Why Am I here? What is my purpose in life? What gives my life meaning? Or the biggest biggie of  the Western World since the first recorded ‘Know Thyself ‘ inscription on the temple of Apollo in ancient Delphi, indicated people started to wonder about themselves: Who am I?

And of course…what better place to explore ones spiritual components than in ones dreamworld?

V: The Pope, is the 5th card of the 22 Archetypes of the Major Arcana, also known as the Bigger Secret. These 22 cards are divided in a so called Nil-card – without a number – and 3 rows of 7 cards. In total this makes 22 cards of which 21 are divided in 3 layers:

• The first row of 7 , cards I – VII characterises the life traveller on the Material World.
• The second row of 7 cards VIII- XIV characterises the Soul Journey of the life traveller
• The third row of 7 cards reflect the Spiritual Facets the life traveller is gifted at the birth and remain part of the Eternal Journey – including the present life on earth, regardless whether the life traveller is aware of this.

Looking at these 3 categories, the archetype of the Pope, the 5th card (out of 7) characterises the life traveller in the material world.

 to read more on how to practice the winter solstice contemplation ritual click here. 

 Click on The Pope  to read more on its meaning

 On the right side of this blog you can also draw your own card and see what it summons up from within.

The post V: The Pope appeared first on EN Energycounseling.nl.

While the numerology of the number 4 is all about balance, as written on the 4 of Insights card, it can also be a bit limiting, like is stated on the 4 of  Challenges when set patterns get the better of us; or even boring to an a certain extent, when we start doing things automatically without thinking, like described on the 4 of Gifts.

When practiced as the art of observation however, as described on the 4 of Tools it can lead to a very balanced outlook on life. Like with all other  numbers, the number 4 is open to many different interpretations.

What do you associate the  number  4 with? What role does it play in your daily life? Does it ever occur in your dreams?

Suppose the 4 of insights was your inspiration card for this 4th night of the midwinter contemplation; what would it mirror for you?

 to read more on how to practice the winter solstice contemplation ritual click here. 

 Draw your own card on the right side of this blog and see what it summons up from within you.

 To read more on its meaning, the 4 of Insights.

The post 4 of Insights: Balance appeared first on EN Energycounseling.nl.

The third card of the 12 day challenge of the winter solstice contemplation, explains a bit more about the 3 of Tools:  a cord of the minor arcana, also known as the lesser secret, that mirror your stand in daily life.

While the 22 cards of the major arcana – also known as the bigger secret- mirror the universal human characteristics each and everyone is born with; the minor arcana depicts how these characteristics are applied by each an everyone of us in a unique way in daily life. There are as many unique applications, as there are over  8 billion people in this world today.

With 3, as the number of creation and Tools as the suit of 14 cards that depict the worldly tools at our disposal to explore the material world, the 3 of Tools, with ‘dreams’ as its key word, plays an important part during the winter solstice contemplations.

Next to asking yourself what this card reflects in relation to your  explorations in daily life. the 3 of Tools also reminds you to explore your dreams to see what messages they might bring from the spiritual world or even your own deeper knowing.

 to read more on how to practice the winter solstice contemplation ritual click here. 

Of course you can also draw your own card on the right side of this blog and see what it summons up from within.

 To read more on its meaning, click the 3 of Tools.

The post 3 of Tools: Dreams appeared first on EN Energycounseling.nl.

The Popess, the card carrying the roman numeral II, is all about the wisdom we all carry within as life-travellers on earth. She comes right after card I: the Illusionist. While the Illusionist can still paint a different picture diverting things from what they really are, the inner wisdom wisdom card characterised by the archetype of the Popess signifies what we know to be true deep down inside. Our intuition – no mattere how doubtful one is  at times about its properties – is hardly ever wrong.

The Popess is card number II  of  the row of 7 cards that are all related to the material plane. Within that physical reality she mirrors the characteristics of inner knowing and is closely connected to the realms of our dreamworlds.

Suppose this were your card to reflect on and take with you in your dreams.; what would it summon up for you?

 to read more on how to practice the winter solstice contemplation ritual click here. 

Of course you can also draw your own card on the right side of this blog and see what it summons up from within.

 Click on  the card of the pope’s to read more on its meaning.

The post II: The Popess, Inner Wisdom appeared first on EN Energycounseling.nl.

What does the word potential summon up for you when you look back at 2024? Which Challenges came your way? Did they come for a reason? What did they have to tell you? How did you respond ? Which position did you take? What change did they encompass?

Yesterday, December 21st, I chose my first Nan Yar card in a series of 12 in the coming days, to contemplate on the experiences that came my way in 2024. By doing so I follow  a midwinter ritual originating from ancient times, when people were still highly connected to the natural world and abided by a  354-day moon calendar rather than a solar year 0f 365 (and a bit) days, leaving 12 days unaccounted for.

The card that I chose,  1 of Challenges , reminds me of my birthright to create my own life story.

Taking this awareness with me into sleep during the first winter solstice night resulted in a vivid dream in which I moved into a new spacious house with lots of windows with different views and lots and lots of bookcases filled with books. Also many people were helping me with this big move which made me feel supported and safe. What if this were your dream? What would it tell you?

The colour ‘Challenges’  (swords in the Tarot) in the Nan Yar interpretation is all about the development of the I-consciousness, the higher Self or spiritual part we all carry within, regardless of beliefs.

The number 1  in the Nan Yar interpretation is seen as the number of Potential.

Suppose this were your card to reflect on and take with you in your dreams.; what would it summon up for you?

Click here to read more on how to practice the winter solstice contemplation ritual

and the cosmic phenomenon that lies at the root it.

And of course you can also draw your own card on the right side of this blog and see what it reflects for you

 Click on  the card to read more about the 1 of challenges.

To an insightful midwinter contemplation

Ingrid

The post 1 of Challenges: Potential appeared first on EN Energycounseling.nl.

Every Tarot card that comes your way, will mirror exactly that which applies to your unique life-journey , as you of all people holds the inner understanding on what your life’s mission is all about.

Do you sometimes wonder how a Tarot card seems to reflect exactly that which applies to what  evolves in your life story?  The answer to this secret is perhaps less mysterious as you might think.  A little courage and honesty towards yourself opens gateways to self reflection that give you total freedom of choice.

 Sample the exploration of your life journey here:  

Did you know that 56 out of the total of 78 cards of the Game of Tarot, are based on the ordinary card game, and that this ‘Minor Arcana’ or  ‘Lesser Arcana’ as it is called, adapted Spades, Clubs, Hearts and Diamonds; using their Number- and Court-cards to give a deeper meaning to daily life experiences?

Starting with a simple playing card has the potential to give you insight in the meaning  behind common or more challenging daily life experiences.

The number one rule when interpreting a card! 
When using ordinary cards – or any oracle for that matter- it is of the utmost importance to refrain from (self) judgment or pre-conceived convictions on who you think you are and allow your True Self be The Storyteller. You are the conductor, musician and instrument of your life-journey. The interpretation you give to what takes place, determines the outcome.

Here’s how to mirror your inner knowing through an ordinary playing card.

• Use a separate piece of paper or start a journal assigned to card interpretations, and note down when, where and optionally why you draw a card. When reflecting on a card later on, remembering the spot on earth where you were when you consulted a card, will help refresh your memory of the experience.

• Shuffle a deck of ordinary cards, draw one and record its Colour (Spades, Clubs, Hearts, Diamonds), Number (1-10)and/or Court characteristics

• Observe the triggers the card holds for you. What is reflected by the combination of Colour and Number or Court card. What does your  inner knowing have to say about it?

• Add your findings to your paper or journal.

For guidance use the Nan Yar – Who Am I Interpretation Overviews below
of the Colours, Number and Court-cards.

Interpretation of the Colours: Spades, Clubs, Hearts, Diamonds

• Spades reflect the Challenges in which you encounter yourself during your Life journey (the invited ánd uninvited ones)

• Clubs reflect the Insights you gain from the Challenges.

• Hearts reflects the Gifts you were freely given along with your birthright.

• Diamonds reflect the earthly Tools that accompany you during your life journey

Interpretation of the Numbers 1-10 (using the Ace as 1) 

1   : Number of Potential  

2   : Number of Diversity, Freedom of Choice

3   : Number of Creativity  

4   : Number of Balance

5   : Number of your Soul Mission, your quest

6   : Number of Communication

7   : Number of What Is, Is Enough; Taking responsibility  over what Is

8   : Number of your Life Journey, Karma, Dao or Tao

9   : Number of Unconditional Love

10:  Number of Unity, Wholeness, Earth as part of the Universe and the Universe as part of Earth.

Interpretation of Jack, Queen and King. 

Jack     : Represents the characteristics of who you are on the physical plane and selects how you juggle your life experiences as Gatekeeper of your journey on earth.

Queen : Represents the Yin Energy, Bodywork, the soft wind of Resilience

King     :Represents the Yang Energy, Breath work, Vigour

***

I regularly give live presentations on how to apply simple playing cards as a life journey exploration tool and introduction to the Nan Yar – Who Am I  

Individual life counseling sessions and Pilgrimcircles,

Next presentation:  Tuesday 20th of February from 16.00 – 18.00 in Scheveningen (The Hague) 

Registration through the contactform open till February 18th.   –   max 16 participants  –  contribution 20 euro.

The post Self reflection with an ordinary card game appeared first on EN Energycounseling.nl.

Self respect is quite something. To protect boundaries. To dare and say NO. To dare and follow your heart, while logistics and the perspective of others might demand differently

The Yang energy of the King Of Challenges  without a doubt demands respect as well as full awareness on how your own contributions add to the greater good.

Also to respect  other peoples accomplishments or boundaries can be a challenge.

The colour ‘Challenges’ is all about developing the spiritual component, the deep inner knowing of who one is. The King represents the soul of this Yang energy , challenging life happenings.

Questions to ask yourself:

At which moments over the past year did I feel respected? Did I dare to embrace that respect?
At which moments did I pay respect to the accomplishments and opinions of others? Did I do so from my own free will?

 Klik voor verdere uitleg over de Koning van Uitdagingen op de kaart

Hoe je de Nan Yar Wie Ben Ik kaarten gebruikt voor het verwerven van zelfinzicht staat beschreven in:

het 12 heilige nachten ritueel

© afbeelding Juliette Dreyer

The post Wat does ‘embracing the self’ mean to you? appeared first on EN Energycounseling.nl.

A locksmith came to my house recently. Using his strong grip, my oldest son  had opened the front door from the outside while it was on its safety lock on the inside. Apparently, when you manage to do that, something shifts within the lock, causing the key to stay stuck in the lock unless the lock is turned back to its safety position; all very complicated.

Fortunately the locksmith quickly came to my aid and turned out to be a jovial man with 20 years of experience in his trade.

‘I still love it’ he said answering my question on how he liked his job. ‘Every day is different and I come across the weirdest situations’.

‘Such as…? I dared.

The answer came swiftly. ‘Once a family called me up in total panic.  The door of the room in which a deceased family member had been laid for the wake, kept opening without apparent reason.  That was scary, especially at night, when the door would unexpectedly open, much like in a horror movie.  The solution, the family felt,  was to place a lock on the door, so they could sleep peacefully. So I placed a lock and yes the door stayed put, unless of course they forgot to lock it.’

‘Did you believe it to be a  supernatural occurrence?’

‘Ofcourse not!’ the lockmaker firmly answered. ‘The coffin is placed on a cooling element and it was a small room. It turns cold quickly.. That triggers a difference in air pressure between the hallway and the small room. At a certain point the door will spontaneously succumb to that, especially at night for then the door stays shut the longest and the little room gets cold easiest.

Now some people might find a story like this disrespectful; but when you think about it, it are exactly these mundaine occurences, the weird happenings, that at times make it easier to talk about death or a wake. In western culture people often still keep their distance from death. We don’t really know what to say about it.  In spite of the big steps being made in making dying and mourning more understandable; it is still often viewed with fear and seen as a difficult subject. It was only a short while ago when people in the end of life phase were separated from the living and when relatives processed their grief alone. Religious people were given a sermon, but everyday life gave little opportunity to show feelings or exchange experiences. ‘What was it like for you to witness the end of a life? What experience did it give you?

Stories like the mysterious opening of the door are in fact portals to expressing emotion. The fear, the confusion en in the end the humor, when it turned out to be a natural phenomenon. Then it becomes a family anecdote; ‘Remember when he had just passed away …’? It enables reminiscing; the good memories, the sad but also the funny ones. Death doesn’t always need to be lofty and solemn. It is ….in the end …pardon the pun ….also part of a lifetime in which funny things happen.

The One of Insights

A fitting card with this experience would be the 1 of insights, as an example of becoming aware that what we think we witness, can differ from what is actually happening. We sometimes lead ourselves to believe in ghost stories that turn out to be way different than expected.

Mind you! This goes the other way around as well, when we discard unexplained experiences and give them a ‘perfectly reasonable explanation’ because to witness them is so outside of our comfort zone that we prefer to look the other way.

Whatever way you look at it; nothing has only one explanation. Everyone experiences life differently and is entitled to that.

Click the card for further explanation or draw your own card at the right of this page; and see which mind jab your inner wisdom has in store for you.

The post The Unexpected Explained appeared first on EN Energycounseling.nl.

JoY. What is joY, really? Is it when you are having fun with loved ones? When you’re watching a good movie or enjoy reading a book? When you enjoy  a new hobby? Undertake a creative endeavor and succeed? Are able to make someone else happy? Or does joY pop around the corner of life when you observe someone you love master a new ability or when you yourself receive new insight; find yourself creating a new solution?

Take a moment to contemplate the concept of Joy. What does it represent for you?

I’ve done a lot thinking about the word ‘JoY. Even one of my energy counseling quotes says:

The Trick is to EnjoY it.

By that I mean that rather than to complain about or even avoid certain manifestations in life; one can also pick up the glove and regard whatever happens as a way to evolve; to learn, to overcome the muttering and moaning that comes from  sitting in victim-mode.

At the same time however I’ve also questioned myself how I can ‘tell’ people to ‘EnjoY’, when they’ve just gone through a life-shattering experience, lost a loved-one through death, divorce or animosity or have been confronted with their own mortality or loss of physical, mental or spiritual independence. How does one ‘EnjoY’ that?

Perhaps ‘the trick’ – if I may call it that way-  is preceded by something else. Enjoyment doesn’t come falling out of thin air by itself.It has to come from somewhere first. Could the origin of Joy and the ability to EnjoY, come from the precious quality of Gratitude?

Grateful to be alive; grateful to have been with and there for a loved one who passed away.  Grateful for the things one has been able to achieve in a lifetime. We all ‘loose’ someone or something at some point. Everyone is mortal; everything here on earth is temporal.

Some cultures deal with that concept in an entirely different manner than in the western world. Some even celebrate when a person has
passed. Of course they grieve for the departed as well but they are grateful to know their loved one is now in a better place. But also in our western society it is possible. I listened to the precious account once from a mother who was in her eighties when her daughter passed from cancer. She expressed her gratitude to have had the opportunity to be there for her daughter, as a mother, and literally accompany her from the cradle to the grave.

Perhaps generally in the western world the concept of Joy differs from the beliefs of other cultures. Perhaps joY in the western world is regarded as something we  use to sooth our need to own and possesses, rather than the need to be part part of the bigger life-experience.I know this to be true for me. I used to feel the quality of life was my right  to enjoY;  an almost some weird form of entitlement; regarding it as ‘perfectly normal’ to have what comes my way; even when many others are forced to live differently.

It wasn’t until I was tossed out of my golden cage through loss in many different shapes and forms; that I started to really appreciate the things I could EnjoY in life. It was a lesson I needed to be taught. An awareness that needed to be incorporated into my thoughts, feelings and actions. I named it ‘gratitude’ or beter even ‘gratefulness’ in the tradition of ‘mindfulness'; a sentiment so necessary to make the step towards feeling joY.

Explanation of the accompanying card:

In all cards ‘The Page’ always represents the student of the Self; the one learning how to be a knight in one’s own right and defend and stand for the things one finds important in life.

The ‘Challenges’ suit, represents the development of the I-consciousness; the ability to become aware of one’s own thoughts, feelings and actions and give meaning to the concept of life. Often ‘challenges’ are exactly that.

To read more, click the ‘Page Of Challenges’ card

The post The Origin of JoY appeared first on EN Energycounseling.nl.

Friday December 13th, 2019, will probably go down as one of the worst days of modern history, except perhaps for November 8, 2016.

When you’re oblivious to what I am referring to, consider yourself blessed. It means you still believe in a better world; and I simply have to agree. For survival’s sake, I have to believe that what is happening in the world right now is only the darkest hour before dawn; appropriately staged during the darkest days of the year 2019.

I have to believe the tide will turn after the winter solstice around December 21st and that humanity will witness the beginnings of change in 2020. I have to believe that what is happening now, are merely the last convulsions of an old system dying.

The problem humanity has right now, is the grip of greed, ignorance and material blindness. Apparently that’s what it takes to wake up ‘civilization'; lessons to teach the importance of seeing the good in one and other rather than the bad; the comprehension we need to dare to care for one and other rather than live off each other; the understanding that what happens to others happens to us all.

The mindset of the world today seems strangely estranged from reality. I read somewhere the other day how media headlines are designed to be negative so people are attracted to them. People seem very attracted to other people’s misery. Good news is mostly ignored. It says a lot about the state of the human collective. It also reminds me of what the American New Age teacher Wayne Dyer said about how people should use the last minutes before sleep to think about the good things they witnessed; the happenings they are grateful, rather than what many habitually do, which is mope about what lacks in their life.

I often wonder what my grandmother; who was born in 1906 and passed away in 1985, would think when she could return for one single day to December 2019. She lived through two world wars; one as a child; one as a single mother. I think she’d be absolutely shocked about today’s world; unable to comprehend what she is seeing; like so many of us in this day and age.  We seem to constantly oppose each other on a global, national but also personal level; blinded by manipulative media and politics serving the needs of the already privileged (material-wealth-wise that is).

I refuse however to give in to the doom and gloom.  The year to come might provide plenty of Challenges; yet my plea  is to use the Gift every single human being has been given at birth; which is to see and trust the good in one and other, using the power of a mindful heart as a Tool. It’s high time for the Frodo’s of this world to toss the ring into Mount Doom….or was it the creature Gollum who destroyed itself through its own greed? Interesting food for thought.

The card I’ve chosen to go with today’s text, is ‘The World'; the last card of all Archetypal cards, enveloping the 3 worlds that play a part in our lives

• Cards 1-7: The Physical World; our ways of life on earth, represented by 7 Archetypes and all tools and accessories that come with it
• Cards 8-14: The Journey of The Soul during life on Earth: our subconscious knowing; the inner guide that taps on our shoulder every now and again and whispers in our mind’s ear on which way to go next; again with the 7 Archetypes that represent this path.
• Cards 15-21: The Spiritual World: reflecting “All of Everything” all worlds combined, also represented in  7 Archetypes .

We’re often unaware of the World of the Journey of the Soul and the Spiritual World taking part in our lives. Perhaps they do so even more than the  often illusionary Physical World. Yet the simple gesture of thoughtful attendance already has the potential to bring you closer; becoming aware there is more to world than the one we operate in.

With all that being said I wish you a content and insightful December solstice and equally inspiring Christmas and New Year to come.

Ingrid Schippers, December 17 2019

To read more click the card or draw your own card at the righthand side of this page to see what it has to mirror for you.

The post My Precious appeared first on EN Energycounseling.nl.

Attachment to outcome, a true story on self-fullflilling prophesy, a 3 minutes and 3 second listen to

I once heard a story that came from a 200 year old little booklet , holding records of  real life court cases from the 18th century. The particular story I am going to tell you about, always stayed with me as it so pointedly shows how following predictions made by others – rather than your own sound judgement and free will –  can become an awkward self fulfilling prophesy.

Here’s how it goes:

Somewhere in the seventeen hundreds a young man of reasonable wealthy means goes to a fortuneteller. The fortuneteller tells him his life will be full of pleasures and he will never lack money; however ,….he will die at the age of 32.

Now remember this is a true story based on a true court case.

At first the young man is a little taken aback by the prediction he will die in his early thirties, but according to the court case records, he decides to make the best of the years he has left. Bearing the fortunetellers prediction in mind; he decides to thoroughly enjoy and indulge himself the pleasures of life. And so he does indeed. But then he turns 32 in excellent state of health. No one has challenged him to a duel; all around him everything seems peaceful and quiet; except for the fact he is in severe debt.

Thinking he was  only to live to be 32 years of age the young man spent all his resources And since spending all his own money went a bit quicker than he expected; he also borrowed quite substantial amounts from others; knowing….or should I say thinking….death would be his ally in escaping his debts.

Here’s where the court case comes in. The young man was arrested and imprisoned. In the court case records he explains his misadventures.

The morale of this story it seems to me is to never be guided by what others predict will happen to you, as that has potentially disastrous consequences. Follow your own gut feeling instead, rather than be lured into the temptation that promises you miracles. We all get our challenges, in spite of what other people predict will happen.

The 18th century court case story reminds me a little of our 21st century commercials; where we are promised flawless lives as long as we use the products advertised. Just as with the  young man; they are only temptations that will make you spend your money, rather than invest your own sound judgment.

O and by the way, the prediction came through all the way. After using his lifetime to spend all his money; the young man died at the age of 32; in prison. He hung himself.

The card that goes with this is card number XVI The Tower. People often shy away from this card as in our material world it seems to depict doom and failure; having to give up the riches in life and the hopes of Fate. One of these I will…..

Looked upon from a spiritual point of view however this card from the third row of 7 cards mirroring the prerogatives of the spiritual world; is about letting go of old convictions and patterns that hamper your true destiny in life.  “Come out of the ivory tower” so to speak

To learn more about its meaning, click the card.

The abridged version of this blog, as published below, was written and recorded for ‘Dutchbuzz’, the radioprogram for Internationals on The Hague FM, every Tuesday evening in season from 8 till 9 p.m.

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Throughout the ages, all the way to this very day and age; certain life-stories have proven themselves capable of capturing people’s imagination. Some, like Alexander the Great, were born centuries ago, Some are mythical or legendary figures like Odysseus or King Arthur. Others appear in literary works; Hamlet,Scrooge or Bilbo Baggins. Even in modern day movies know to enthrall their audiences by portraying the quest of Luke Skywalker in Star Wars; Simba in the Lion King; and an impressive number of captains of the Starship Enterprise who go to worlds no man has gone before.

Apparently these characters fill in a desire that exists within modern day civilization. A desire to find answers to some of the biggest questions in life:

Who Am I ?

and

Why am I here?

Especially in this day and age these questions have become more and more important. Only a century ago people were thinking the way their Kings their Queens or their Church wanted them to think. Their ruler’s quest was their quest These days an increasing number of people are looking for their own purpose in life. They value their own thoughts; their own feelings, their own grail; their own meaning of life. The world as it is today is transcending from being followers to individuals, which is causing a lot of turmoil with the people in power who want to stick to the old ways and keep their peoples in check.

I find many people today have a lot in common with the legendary hero’s of the past. Taking a closer look at some of their life stories, I see

• None of them have an easy lifetime.
• All heros travel from the known into the unknown; none of them know what awaits at the other end of the tunnel.
• They all initially resist their apparent fate; yet they all end up following their heart.
• They all have to fight and overcome controversy barring their path in the outside world
• They all struggle with inners demons of their own.
• They are all at some point helped by forces outside of them and have teachers and helpers stepping in when they are about to toss the towel into the ring.
• They all undergo a form of transformation without attachment to outcome
• And in the end, they all accept their fate; embrace the controversy as their teacher and friend and some ….;
• Even forgive their torturers for the pain they inflicted.
• And finally…all Heros find salvation and return back home.

When you look at the stories of all times through this lens; you’ll find they mirror the basic aspects of your own life; unless you desire to stay put and flick through the television channels; binging on the demons of modern day; the series and computergames; where perhaps you can follow the Hero’s journey of others, but certainly escape your own.

The card that goes with this, is without the shadow of a doubt The Storyteller. The ‘fool’ free from prejudice or preconceived convictions. The Hero traveling past the Archetypes
Numbers and Suits of its lifetime, mirroring its Challenges, Insights, Gifts and Tools in the storylines life provides. It’s up to the unknowing ‘Fool” to set himself in motion and as the Storyteller of its own life, write the narrative without attachment to outcome.

To experience your own groundbreaking transformation and enlightenment, put your knapsack over your shoulder; wake up the Hero within and go do your thing….

Wishing you safe Travels

Ingrid

The abridged version of this blog is broadcasted September 10 2019 on Dutchbuzz ; the radio program for internationals on The Hague FM, every Tuesday in Season, from 8 till 9 pm.

3 minute and 4 seconds abridged Dutchbuzz version of ‘What We All Have in Common and Makes Us Unique’

The post What We All Have in Common appeared first on EN Energycounseling.nl.

3 minute (abridged) recording of the end-of-the-season Dutchbuzz blog of June 25th 2019, ‘The treadmill of tweets”

Yeaaah (Kermit style) holiday time is here! I have the honor to speak the famous last words;  of the Dutchbuzz season that is, until it resumes in September. For those who are packing their suitcases to go on a well-deserved break here’s a little holiday tip;

There’s a Buddhist saying that goes:

You are not unhappy because you live in the world; you’re unhappy because the world lives in you.

So my tip is: Take a break from the tweets, mails and social media posts that tend to string our days together. Have a proper look around! Nothing beats being in the moment and enjoying the spot on earth where you are right now. No need to check your phone to see what is happening in the rest of the world.

Constantly checking a cellphone is basically like eating. When you would count the number of calories (or bites) consumed per day; you’d find you’re consuming much more than you think. Remember though that what is in that phone; what you are being fed, is only a small selection from trillions of things you could really choose from if you had a personal overview of everything that is happening in the world this very minute.

The news items are mostly about money anyway; or politicians biting each others heads off or taking the biggest share for themselves. Don’t let it ruin your day. Stay away from the commercials and temptations that urge you to buy, invest or join; thus shaping your understanding of what life outside the cellphone apparently looks like. It’s what you are told, hundreds of times per day and end up talking about with hundreds of other people a day, people you don’t even see or know; while there is so much to be found directly around you; people to talk to; things to talk about.

The information we get on what is happening in the world has shrunk to the size of a cellphone.

Without realizing it we have reached a point in evolution where we are  being mass-managed and manipulated by what a relatively small group of people in power give us to read.  When you start your working day; what you see on your laptop shapes your first thoughts.  We live in a treadmill of tweets, commercials and social media posts and keep on running from one subject to the other.

Instead go birdwatching or go for a bike ride, watch the rabbits hop through the fields. Only use a phone when you have a flat tyre and need help. Write a postcard, letter or in a diary what your day has been like; what you’ve noticed directly around you; what moved you; what you’ve discovered.

I bet you a dollar you’ll find another world out there.

The Archetype to go with this subject is definitely The World’ itself; card number XXI; the last of the 3 rows of  7  to do with 1) life in the physical world; 2) life of the Soul and 3) life in the Spiritual world; the all encompassing Archetype of Life and All It Involves. To read more click the card.

Wishing you a wonderful holiday close to your self; a personal stay-cation

Ingrid Schippers, June 23rd 2019

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