Walking in Dante's footsteps

Once again I find myself drawn to Dante Alighieri's poetic masterpiece, The Divine Comedy.

 

It would appear that fourteenth-century Florence has so much in common with present day urban existence that it defies logic and imagination.

 

We would have thought that as society marched on in search of progress and prosperity, and people would be happier now that they had all of the comforts of present day living that even Kings and Queens did not enjoy in ancient days.

 

Dante's main protagonist, the Pilgrim, started his journey in the Divine commedy trapped in a "dark wood". In a way, many of us do live in a forest of similar treachery, a sinister place where we create our own sorrows and our fears.

 

Spying a mountain top "shawled in morning rays of light, he was determined to escape towards the light. Being then blocked by fearsome beasts, he retreated. In a way, this is what many of us do on a daily basis, we dream, we seek, and we tell ourselves a thousand reasons why we are not good enough. These reasons distract us, soothe us and comfort our ego, but they are at the end of the day, our personal illusions.

 

Just as all appears to be lost, the Pilgrim is met by his first spiritual guide, Virgil, one of many others on the path. The journey however was one that brought the Pilgrim through hell before, purgatory and paradise.

 

In the current day and age, instant gratification is the order of the day, fast food, fast cars, 24 hours everything you can want. However, somethings nags at us. In our minds, encased by our material possessions and the trappings of modern life, we remain unhappy, dissatisfied, plagued by anxiety, fear, envy, a mind that seems to distort our own reality, a mind that seemed to control our emotions.

 

My personal journey has been one that mirror's the Pilgrim's journey, having found myself in a hell of negative states, I had no awareness that my mind is not all that I am. I was fortunate to be joined in my journey by souls of light, real life friends and guides, who were willing to stick it out with me, and light a candle instead of cursing the darkness.

 

Somehow the journey seems to go on forever, just as I thought I've gotten somewhere towards a state of peace and joy, the path leads me back where I started, and I am forced to admit my own human failings. But what seemed to be a circular path was a only deception of the mind, one of mockery and despair. With clear insight, I realise that the journey has taken on a different level, I cannot discount the peace I feel in my heart, although negative stages still exist and intrude on an otherwise blissful existence from time to time.

 

I no longer stay mired in negative stages, choosing to witness, and let go. My Reiki teacher, Elaine Grundy's words echo in my mind, "If sadness is leaving, let it leave, do not hold it back with questions and further examination!"

 

 

Being able to choose. Feeling good for no good reasons at all.

I feel that I am perched on the threshold towards a different path, and whilst I still do not have answers, the feeling I name this time around is one of excitement, hope and joy.

I am witnessing my fears and trepidations, recognising it in some of the people I love and care for, and choosing to say to them (and to myself), there is nothing to fear, nothing to lose.

I am with you, and our higher wisdom will guide and protect us both.

Patterns

Understanding your own patterns can change your life.

I'd like permission to ask you a question to start. If you recalled early memories of childhood, the happy and sad moments, up to significant events in your formative years, schooling, your first job, can you "see" each of those memories vividly and clearly? Does it appear to be a linear timeline? Past, present and future?

I believe that for many of us, the past is still very much in our present. Afterall, most people would agree that experiences in their past, be it success or failure, have unconsciously shaped their words, thoughts and deeds.

Just to take a personal example: From young, I loved drawing. I would happily draw the same style of roses, again and again, in different colours, and in different stages of flowering. I did that all through my pre-primary years. Other people took naps, I painted roses. My mother passed non committal remarks about my first roses, teachers were appreciative, but in an absent minded way, but to me it was a masterpeice. I had dreams of exhibiting my paintings of roses in a gallery. I was in blissful state, caught in a reverie of my own construct.

Recently I was asked, do I paint well, my first automatic response was a strong negative. "Of course not!" I said, but if asked to just draw something (no pun intended for those who are fans of the iphone game "draw Something")I would happily comply. And although I'll never be the next Van Gogh, my love for beauty, art, and aesthetics forms part of my being.

What does the example I used tell us about the creation of memories?

1. Memories are constructs Just as I can easily list an example from my early childhood today, most of our memories are as easily accessible to us all. However, just as Anais Nin said," we don't see people as they are, we see them as we are."

Our reality and memories say more about what we believe, then what things really could be. It then means that we can still choose how we see things in the past. For every memory that was filed in the deep recesses of my unconscious, imagine what it would be like if I only recalled the happy snapshots.

When I was 5 years old, I fell down during a kindergarten sports day event, and started crying. A photographer then snapped that picture of my mom comforting me, and to this day, although I no longer remeeber the pain of the fall, I still have the yellowed news article, and it always makes me smile.

2. Memories anchor emotions
I work in human resources, and as part of my role, I meet people on a daily basis. I noticed that the people who made the most impression on me are those I was most interested to understand. Not the "powerful" or the demanding, but the ones I focused my attention on. I may not remember specific incidents (which is a good thing!), but I remember how certain people made me feel. Some people are beacons in the dark stormy night, whilst others can only best be described as a black hole. What do I choose to remember? You guessed it, I remember the brightest shinning stars in my life, people who turned grey days into sunny days.

3. Just as you have chosen in the past, so can you choose NOW
Do an experiment with your own thoughts. Recall a certain incident, and whilst you paint the entire scene with vivid detail, notice all the emotions you have. Excitement, apprehension perhaps, or is it just fear. Maybe it is uncertainty of the new experience, hey maybe it is just adrenaline coursing through yor system, it's joy at feeling alive and trying new things!

Freeze the scene for a moment. If you imagined yourself from the perspectives of others, what new thoughts comes to mind? Isn't it amazing that was we call the past, is very much here in our memory today!

Someone told me recently that people can't change, old habits die hard, you can't teach an old dog new tricks. Well, that is a belief one can choose. Old adages do speak of what is commonly perceived, but it is merely an opinion, which you can choose to agree with or not.

Humans are wired to prefer familar things, but just for today, try breaking your own patterns. If you always said to your child, "No you can't go out to the 7-11 to buy ice cream." Try instead, "Do you really want ice-cream? Are you hungry, which flavour do you want, anything else you prefer, Can I go with you?"

Just as we can shape our own memories, on a daily basis, we are also constantly shaping the memories of those we love.

Imagine the power you have.

"Every avalanche start as a snow flake."