Apply the presence from our personal practice,
to the challenges, relationships and performances of our daily lives.
How can we go beyond ideals, to become more centered and present throughout the day?
The path from spiritual ideals to their daily application can be confusing. Are we to refute the majority of social practices in the world today? How does one begin to develop a life-enriching base? What priorities will allow us to sustain ourselves, contribute to the world we live in, and also to live in a way that promotes a stable, centered and open life? Those answers are not obvious. But when the questions are framed from a closer look at how consciousness actually manifests, the spiritual values we recognize become more clearly attainable. There are three different pathways, three networks our brain relies on to parse the experience of the present moment. Two are ancient: the procedure-based mimicry of the delivery aspect, and the relationship-based tribal aspect of intuition. The modern one is written language, the literal aspect of deduction. These can be referred to as intelligences, but with caution, because the aspects are primary intelligences that make up the subconscious mind, separate from the conscious psyche. Each aspect performs tasks in the moment, while referring to its own memory. Without knowing the aspects, without learning which one engages which of the fundamental activities our lives are built upon, making changes becomes difficult and maintaining those changes… even more so.
Because our lives are necessarily focused on externalities, the day’s activities seem to be just a series of different events that we interact with in more or less the same way. In other words, we seem to remain in the same state of mind. We assume that our awareness simply continues, until we fall asleep. Since we are routinely looking outward, into the world, without introspection as part of our practice, we are unable to recognize the shifting forms our consciousness takes. In general, people are unfamiliar with the aspects, because they don’t know what to look for. But some basic understanding here is like a new pair of glasses. It will bring everything into focus, even those areas of our lives with which we are most accomplished.
Our Common Strength is a place to have this conversation, to learn from each other, and to develop support for a personal practice that is not limited to any one tradition, either classic or modern. Practice seen here is a personal mix of several methods, regularly overviewed and updated. Such a specific, personalized practice can be expanded into the full complement of our daily activities, bringing the results home. To do so, we need to learn about, notice and begin to recognize each aspect’s influence during the events of our day. With this understanding, each person’s practice will necessarily become individualized, with a different emphasis on certain aspects, and personal choices for the actual mix of methods brought into play. I don’t actually think that this is some kind of shortcut in personal development. Rather, for me, it has kept me from being stuck. By not relying on methods that have long since served their purpose, I am free to develop strengths in areas I have always needed to consider. Clearly, this is a journey into the unfamiliar, even for many who already have a strong practice. For that reason, our emphasis here is not on individual knowledge, but on connection with other practitioners, and cooperative in practice. In order to not ‘get it’, and then dismiss it, our exploration needs to be mutual, transparent and collaborative. In short, this site serves as a forum for peer-to-peer personal development. I believe that personal development through such an open process has the potential to transform the success of our enlivenment into a consensus of social value. To live close to our greater potential, we will need to draw on resources that have not fully blossomed within ourselves, but that we know surround us. We will need to show up for, and accept the wellspring of support that is, together, our common strength.
Daily life requires that we engage each of three forms of attention.
The foundation of our practice is built on understanding the three ways that attention is engaged: the literal aspect we call Deduction, the emotional aspect we call Intuition, and the somatic aspect we call Delivery. It is my intention to offer articles that describe practical methods for discovering and working with these differences, and then to allow a contributor’s personal process of noticing and recognition to find the significance for these distinctions in their own experience. To get an quick idea of how this knowledge can help guide one’s personal development, let’s see some examples:
Nancy practices Yoga, and she is also in a codependent relationship. Nancy is committed to her Yoga training. She has found the class experience to be very rewarding, and she often says so. But when she returns to her apartment, her energy drops, and she feels forced to go through the motions of home life. Her partner began the relationship being a little overbearing, and now he is routinely demanding. Nancy wants desperately to be heard, to sense that her feelings are being considered. Nancy, however, is not focused on her relationship aspect. She is expecting the surprising benefits of her initial Yoga training to simply continue. She vaguely assumes that the sense of physical relief and inner calm that she has after class will point the way in other areas of her life. Her Soma-based practice could, of course, lead her eventually to be more forthright and open in her expression, bringing new understanding to their relationship. But is this really the best approach? Wouldn’t she be better served to learn how to express her boundaries, and process her emotions within the relationship? By understanding the different way awareness comes through each of the aspects, Nancy can modify her personal practice. She can take the inner work she is developing through somatic entrainment, and apply this expanded awareness to her aspect of social connection. Nancy could benefit from learning the strengths and limitations of each of the aspects, and the need to balance them. Then seeing a particular weakness in one aspect, she could plot a direct route to a more enlivened result. By understanding which aspect is less engaged, she could see the personal merit of intuition-based practices that teach the safe expression of strong feelings, give instruction in active listening, and provide a roadmap to authentic connection.
Delores is a woman in her late forties who has raised three children. She went from Supermom, to an overactive influence in their lives as young adults, to a desperate need to reconnect with them as they drew away. A Family Dynamics therapist provided immediate relief, and the beginning of deeper understanding for them all. But progress became harder to achieve after the first fruitful months. Her children had a reasonable picture of their mother as wanting to be needed, but neither therapy, nor the assurances of their true affection for her were able to bring the sought after balance. Certainly the social connection approach has been a good influence, and it is possible, though unlikely, that Delores could reinvent herself after motherhood using these tools. But other ways are available. If she began to study how the aspects manifested through her, she could see that, in her case, her clinging was a weakness in the deduction aspect. A practice of self-reflection could reveal her inability to find meaning in her contribution to the larger world, beyond family. A strengthening of this aspect could bring about a new relationship for her with the totality of life itself. Delores may finally develop her own mature beliefs, rediscover her intellectual curiosity, and unleash the largely dormant vehicle of her creative imagination. These gifts are, of course, ours from birth, but when one aspect is depended on for too long, balance wanes, enlivening is replaced with numbness, and the gifts wither from disuse.
Jeb is an attorney with a difference; he represents and advises environmental causes. Jeb considers himself to be one of the good guys, and he works with heart. He has a good relationship with his coworkers, and clients find him to be sensitive and compassionate. His success in his chosen field is easy to fathom. He is a creative lawyer, who is committed to his work, and he deeply cares about the results. But Jeb is also his worst enemy. He hasn’t had a vacation in years. He blows up every once in a while, and his co-workers cover for him, because they care about him, and lately they have begun to worry about him. They don’t know that Jeb has started taking tranquilizers to ’level out’. He hates drugs, but insomnia and bed sweats have taken their toll, beginning to cut into his otherwise brilliance on the job. Jeb is liked and admired, but his relationships suffer, because he doesn’t have balance in his life. If asked, he would clearly say he should spend more time with friends, and should get some exercise. But who has the time? If Jeb were to take the time to study the aspects, he could regain that time many fold. If he understood how Yoga, Tai Chi, or authentic dance could strengthen his neglected delivery aspect, he could create a climate that would allow balance to be maintained. And with balance, the deduction aspect he depends on for work would achieve better focus, and deeper analysis. The social connections he has developed could become a truer support for him, as his anxiety is relieved, and he becomes more available to express himself authentically. Jeb could make small changes with big results.
These simple examples illustrate how one’s personal practice would benefit from a clear assessment of their overall development. That kind of clarity can be more easily reached by understanding the role the aspects play in our growth. Each of us has our own particular mix of aspect influences. So creating a climate where centered awareness can be routinely maintained is best pursued by recognizing and strengthening the more neglected aspect. For most of us, there is one area of our lives that, when rekindled, will bring enlivenment to all areas. These imbalances are understandably common, because even individual’s who are sincerely engaged in their own development, will likely embark on a personal practice that uses familiar methods. And, of course, everyone needs to start this journey from a place they can see and come to own for themselves. Early practice will rely on a sense of the natural, so that initial results are seated in a comfortable orientation. This is not to say that familiar practices are not challenging. They are simply strengthening what already flourishes. And starting from strength is a good first step, one that gains certitude with the path, and helps us locate the support we need. There will come a point, however, when the initial font of energy begins to wane, and the student comes to question the practice itself. It is in this mid-course that an expanded practice could lead toward greater potential.
In summary, we all have the ability to become calm, attentive and steady, by developing a conscious climate that is conducive to a centered presence. Such a practice, however, is unlikely to yield long-term results if it relies on a single type of activity, particularly in the context of living in society at large. Furthermore, choosing the right mix of activities depends on an individual’s relative strengths in each of the three aspects. We are looking to replenish the neglected aspect, bringing the full compliment of aspect influences into balance together. It is the climate produced by that balance that most fully fosters the maintenance of a centered presence. The following is a brief introduction to the aspects. The terms used are only abbreviated forms that will be discussed more fully in later articles. The reader may want to refer to the accompanied chart: The Three Aspects of Human Consciousness.
The Three Aspects of Human Consciousness
Cognitive Attention– This aspect of the subconscious mind uses deduction to assess momentary conditions in the form of judgments. Those assessments are integrated by literate memory into the singular resource of comprehension. Cognitive attention is convergent attention, meaning that it constantly judges momentary conditions in order to classify concepts as weighted relationships to other concepts. Each judgment results in a constellation of links that converges on a single meaning. This accumulated process describes how we reach a greater comprehension in our beliefs and principles.
We can strengthen this aspect by developing our meta-cognition through self-reflection. Then as we apply our personal practice to daily life, we will respond to everyday intellectual challenges with a more positive regard, as the benefits of self-reflection become realized. Those benefits take the form of a mature comprehension, one that allows cognitive attention to become more discriminating, more convergent. As this maturity occurs, the processes of analysis and planning become more clearly attained.
Social Connection– This aspect of the subconscious mind uses intuition to assess momentary conditions in the form of attitude or desire. Those assessments are integrated by emotional memory into the singular resource of communion. Social connection uses encompassing attention, meaning that it draws on a wide variety of momentary stimulations, and resonates the mix with past emotional associations. The result of this ‘intuitive resonance’ wells up from within as a ‘felt sense of wholeness’. This accumulated process describes how we reach a greater communion in our relationships.
We can strengthen this aspect by developing our boundaries through emotional processing. Then as we apply our personal practice to daily life, we will respond to everyday relationship challenges with a more positive regard, as the benefits of emotional processing become realized. Those benefits take the form of a mature communion, one that allows social connection to become more fully imprinted, more encompassing. As this maturity occurs, personal expression becomes more authentic, and social connection becomes more deeply encountered.
Somatic Entrainment– This aspect of the subconscious mind uses delivery to align with momentary conditions in the form of ‘an awareness of the sensations of movement’. This awareness is integrated by procedural memory into the singular resource of capability. Somatic entrainment uses pacing attention, meaning that it paces the execution of rote-practiced routines, adding spontaneous embellishments in the moment. The result of these embellishments deepens the immersion, and leads to more assured, graceful coordination, smoother transitions, and better balance during execution. This accumulated process describes how we reach greater capability in our skilled procedures.
We can strengthen this aspect by developing our repertoire of movements through directed action. Then as we apply our personal practice to daily life, we will respond to everyday manual challenges with a more positive regard, as the benefits of an expanded repertoire become more fully realized. Those benefits take the form of a mature capability, one that allows somatic entrainment to become more fully propagated, better paced and more finely executed. As this maturity occurs, the process of physical engagement will become more graceful, and verge on effortless.