Is Don Juan Real or did Castaneda make him up?

[NathansHere]

I've been thinking about this. I've watched documentaries about him which have shocked me, in terms of his character. Now I'm reading this book Sorcerer's Apprentice by Amy Wallace to hear what someone who was close to him has to say. So far, things are really eye opening.

I wish others to also join me in this quest for truth. If you don't want to, that's fine. But I've uploaded the book to genesis library to those who want to read it. (http://gen.lib.rus.ec)

[Kaomea]

Hard pass.

Not that the cult thing isn't interesting. It's that I just got a Hulu membership and am binge watching I ❤ You, America. Maybe after that, unless I get suckered into another comedy. No promises

[funnyguy]

Don Juan made up Castaneda.
And yes... The egg came before the dinosaurs. I was there.

[Jos3ph]

What difference would it make to you if he was real as opposed to made up?

Sent from my moto g(6) using Tapatalk

[funnyguy]

Some people will feel offended or tricked like they've spent too much time on something that has never been real while not realizing that they themselves are not.

I am Jack's sick sense of humor.

[Jos3ph]

Or in different words... One might realize that everyone is made up.

[serloco]

I think many people believe don Juan wasnt real because of the outlandish claims Carlos has made of him and what he did and experienced. Many believe that it was all rubbish and fairy tales. However from my sorcery experience I am well aware that outlandish feats are not only possible but common. The stuff Carlos learned from don Juan is very real.

[watergaze]

I also like to take the option that is more useful. Moreover, in the sorcerer's world things are and are not at the same time. One can be sad and happy at the same time. Things can exist and not at the same time. Because we live in more worlds and more layers. 
Can you not go into dreaming and meet Don Juan and La Gorda and Genaro? The question whether they are real is not a question that are worth asking, for a warrior/sorcerer and after a certain point that is...  But there are other questions that could be asked linked to this topic that NathansHere brought up, which could be worthwhile. For example, how is it that power is the 2nd enemy of man? How did CC get himself into all this mess? - linking to the book by Amy Wallace (and I don't mean to say here I take the book as truth but rather that the book was written around/about CC). What does that mean for me and my path? (just to name one layer or strand of what might be interesting to look at).
Of course the question of realness is not to be brushed aside as useless either - I had to go through that process myself at one point too . But now this kind of questions is no longer interesting to me. I think NathansHere is on a great path of discovery. I wish you good speed Nathans (so that you do not get lost in some eddy) .

[Jos3ph]

I've been reading Amy Wallace's book since seeing it mentioned here. What comes up for me first is that there is no way I can believe or disbelieve what is written there. There is no way that I can really know for sure. And that is awesome because it's puts me in a position of being open to what is there for me rather than being influenced by my agreement or disagreement.

About power as the second enemy... Having been held down and nearly completely bound by fear for so damn long, when I had a moment of respite, I immediately wanted to charge forward and set my life right. I wanted to use my new found power to take on the world. Luckily a teacher convinced me that rushing like that would be a mistake and looking back I can see that yes, there was no way I was ready. So the pitfall there was overestimating my own power.

In the book CC seems to be using the teachings to justify the most outrageous nonsense. Stuff that ultimately brings everyone down but in the moment is intoxicatingly delicious. That seems to be a trap of power... that it can be used to justify oneself and is such a pleasurable trip that you don't notice you're making a mistake until *BAM!!!* it all comes crashing down.

[watergaze]

yes, that is a nice way to put it. It opens things in an interesting way...

I have been fascinated to see what happens when I suspend my judgement. But of course not in a way that is just being lazy, but in a way when spirit knocks on the door and everything goes quiet while I am listening to the sound of that knock and its echo. 

I think it is a pity if a reader reduces CC to a fraud. I wonder if we are not all frauds in one way or another . Our self-importance makes frauds of us quite easily .

[Jos3ph]

Yes, I think we are definitely all frauds! Hehe! Not in a negative sense but in the sense that we only see the tiniest fraction of the whole. That we are a speck in an overwhelming magnificence....

What has been your experience with suspending judgement? (That has been a major theme for me recently!)

[watergaze]

The answer to your question could go into a few directions.. but I'm picking this one: 


I loved how stopping judgment freed some of my energy (I am thinking back to one concrete situation as I speak about it here/now). It took quite a while of holding the position of non-judgment. The situation kept developing but I managed not to tip this way or that way and kept the options and possibilities open, a couple at the same time. It was as if the universe had several conflicting layers at once that were not in conflict inside me . I felt like it took gigantic effort sometimes to stay balancing on this razor sharp tip that I was walking on. I had to react in a way that was in sync with several conflicting layers, this was challenging and it was also interesting, to find the deeds and words that managed to do that. I had to withstand a lot of pressure sometimes because the situation (and other people and aspects of myself) wanted to tip me one way or the other (I had them pulling and pushing at me from various sides). But then with time it became almost effortless and I actually enjoyed it because (the aspects of myself grew more and more silent and) I could feel the energy starting to build up (I got somewhat excited by it, a bit more than I should have - here we are back again to the topic of the enticement of power). 

In the end the energy went into deepening my connection with everything around me. It was much easier to hear the pre-echoes (and after echoes) of events and I felt my surroundings much better. The most comfortable thing about it was that there was no up and down, there were no extremes, it was a gentle sliding into and slow increase in the intensity of the state and then a slow subsiding and returning to a better level of what became normal. I think I was very lucky for encountering such a situation thanks to which I could in the end experience this in such pronounced and comfortable intensity. 
As I said, the whole situation did exert quite a lot of pressure on me while it lasted (nor did it end there but the after pressure led to more learning because that part showed me where there was room for doing it better). I felt the shifting of energy over the months of having this experience, and then once the situation ended, more energy was released and it shifted me more (but to repeat, it was very comfortable and somewhat gradual - I value soft transitions). One element that was really important was that I did not use the ending boost of energy towards enhancing, solidifying or defending my own self image (I mention this because the situation had this option served on a silver platter. For example, other people judged me and that always pushes one to want to defend oneself. It also would have been quite natural to want to define myself in the new state that I found myself in and although a bit of energy went in this direction to look at myself it did not linger). 

The whole non-judging dance was, in a way, like standing in the eye of a storm/tornado. Around you the pressure is building up and the wind is licking your skin and tugging at your hair and your clothes, it wants you to go this way or that, it screams at you but you keep your inner silence and stillness (you don't let that scream echo inside of you). You don't want to get into the whirlwind of it all because there there are only sides and no center (and because it seems to you more and more that out there it is crazy - this was something that was hard to reconcile with), and as you stand there you are at the same time bending with all the forces and at the same time standing still. It is not that you are rigid in your stance, no, you are supple, you do your own dance using the different currents but not allowing them to take or move you out of your center and catch you into their own direction and agenda. (The suppleness was a hard thing sometimes - I think there were some periods when I lost it and was becoming more rigid in my stance but luckily I managed to not get stuck in that direction and state.)

I think maybe this is the difference between the lazy type of no judgement and what I am describing. I was not lazy though I know which muscle was the one that got a break and I can quite easily just have that part of me take a break and be lazy if I want to . I think I gave it too big a rest afterwards just because I was hoping that doing that might have the same effect . And also because it was like taking a vacation lol. But in some sense people need judgement, it is just that judgement should not be so bound to our or others' self-importance and our self-image. 

And that is, by the way, the problem with Amy's book. I got this book as a gift from another warrior who bought it, read it and didn't want it hehe. he thought I might want a peek so he gave it to me to do with as I pleased. I started reading it but did not get very far because I didn't need to. I read the under layers of that book quite fast. Maybe it is easier for foreigners to do because it was something of a typically American flavor (a way of expressing oneself to sound a certain way that is not that common where I'm from or at least in my circles). Now that we talk about it here I can express it within the context of our discussion as.. she wanted to judge Carlos and she also wanted to vindicate herself. Her bias was too clear for me to want to read the book further... the flavor of it was spoiling my reading experience. I am not talking now about whether what she writes is true or not, but the flavor of this (if) truth was bad. It was not something I wanted to digest (it would be like eating a strawberry that might be delicious on its own but here in a bunch of goo... hence not really being able to properly taste the strawberry anyway). Plus it was not like she was telling me anything new as such - this kind of option was already available from other sources. I just added her person to one side of the argument and I didn't need to read all of her book any more, it wouldn't change anything that mattered (but it could poison a part of me with its flavor). Somehow I felt as if reading the first few pages was like reading the whole book. You take a bite out of an apple and you know how sour and how sweet it is, you can estimate how full you'd be or how you'd feel if you took so and so many bites to eat the whole apple or part of it etc. 
The books is an interesting keepsake for me. I have it in my library and once or twice I told myself that I would read it sometime, but I never take it out. When I see it it reminds me of the pitfalls of power and of the bad odor of judgment, wounded pride and gossip. But you see.. is it not fascinating that I share my judgement of the book and the state of it's author when she was writing it . The difference is that I have nothing at stake when I write this... and she had everything at stake. So I share my findings, impressions and judgments but I am supple in this, not invested. I might read the next chapter in the book and prove myself wrong or right without feeling bad or good about it (what I might feel is all open to me - it could be surprise or curiosity or excitement or I might just curse and throw it away). It would be easy for me to change my opinion based on my impressions. But somehow I doubt that the Amy who wrote the book (as in at the time she wrote it) had that same attitude . (if she did she'd not have written the book the way she did. But, it is about a part of her life and how she sees herself - so in some sense it is unfair to compare it. So, in that regard, sorry Amy.)

Jos3ph, what has been your experience with suspending judgment?
The experience I describe was a landmark experience in how I use and understand judgement and suspending judgment. Since then I manage to notice much better when my own self-image is thrust forward or mixed into it when I make judgements. It is great to be aware of that imo. Keeps things a bit more sober. But that doesn't mean the battle is won - one slowly starts to understand the face of the 3rd enemy.

[Jos3ph]

watergaze, something about what you wrote was profoundly shocking to me! You wrote about not reading the whole book, but then explained how that decision was not what I'll call the "final judgement" on the matter. I felt very clearly what you were communication and saw the truth of it within myself. I suddenly got very tired and felt something akin to the after-feeling of being punched in the chest!

What I've come up with so far is that I made an unconscious judgment on the meaning of you not reading the whole book and when you expressed such fluidity in the matter, it registered as a shock.

This final judgment business is what's coming up for me.

My experience recently was through having a conflict with a co-worker. Basically he was mad that I don't communicate clearly and I was mad that he doesn't listen, and since we're both right (in truth and judgementally) a conflict ensued. I see him as very set in his ways, not open to alternative points of view, and it drove me crazy how he literally preaches his beliefs for significant amounts of time every single day! Hello! He was showing what I didn't want to admit about myself! Where he did it outwardly and vocally my internal dialogue was all about preaching my view internally. The form wasn't really different, just the specific contents and method of expression were.

After recognizing all of this, I haven't felt the need to judge him like I was. He was preaching again today and it didn't bother me in the slightest. How I perceived it was that it really is only one aspect of his being and one that he seems quite happy to maintain at the time.

So what I'm seeing is that it has been deathly important for me to have some kind of final judgment on matters, so important and ingrained that it's done unconsciously and automatically! A belief that says, "That is salvation! To have the correct final judgment!" Wow!

Will you tell me what you mean by the lazy way of non-judgment?

[watergaze]

yes, the final judgement, nice catch!  Now that you have seen this, your experience of everything can shift quite a bit. At first it might not be comfortable to not judge stuff to that extent. We are used to needing this judgment, which is so linked with our values and our self-image, to act on many things. But you'll figure it out - maybe you already have

The example I gave above (what I call the landmark experience) was about fighting to not make the final judgment, surely not prematurely (based on my own or other people's bias or world view), fighting to keep the options of possibilities until it is clear by itself (for example through things that were not linked to me). But as I kept at it I realized that there is so much magic in not solidifying one view over the other(s)... and in the end I had no final judgment in the way that I was used to. And that was freeing. 

Already some time before I got to this point when the situation happened I have been observing that I would find myself unable to know what to think about stuff. I found it uncomfortable because I couldn't act when I did not know what to think about something, or rather, when I was unable to solidify in a judgment. It was somewhat impractical at times but also uncomfortable for my mind. Of course, shamanically speaking it was a great thing that was happening and I learned and I don't have this problem now.

Often, we are very quick to judge people and situations because otherwise they might bother us. Not only might we see things we don't want to see (if we are living the typical muggle life) but we might have to delay acting (reacting) because in order to react we'd need to know what is what (what we are reacting to) or otherwise we'd have to feel it and be able to act from other layers. But stopping is not something muggles are comfortable with. In stopping and waiting there can be a build up of pressure, which can be uncomfortable for those not used to it. Also, people in the normal world are pushed to be productive in a certain way and not lose time. But a warrior has a different concept of time and effectiveness. Sometimes one has to wait a few yeas to do one act that is then effective, but a muggle would keep trying and wasting energy and maybe even damage their enthusiasm and hope in achieving the thing. 

I think using the word "react" speaks volumes. Often all people do is react and react and react. There is no stopping, they just keep reacting. If one looks at it like this then suspending judgment stops our reacting. It gives us the time to stop and then act, not just react.

You see, for me suspending judgement could look like a state where you stop thinking that your coworker does not listen. Of course this could only go so far before it gets to a place where it might not work or be doable/practical (which is why I said I was lucky to encounter a situation that could last for quite a few months and never truly come to the final judgment stage - but maybe the total final judgement didn't come because I was already not a person who needed it so I didn't do it). Say you tell your co-worker something and he doesn't act on it or doesn't know later what you told him and when this happens repeatedly over a period of time then you somewhat rightfully conclude what you conclude - that he doesn't listen (the thing is that later on this conclusion will not have the same hold on you due to the progress you'd have made). But (at this stage) the magic is to treat the co-worker until then as if he did listen (and actually one could treat him as if he were listening even after that - but that would be a different thing to try that would have other types of effects to observe). And then shift to a position where you can hold both options - he listens and he does not listen - and try to act from there. 
You can do that only if you are not over-invested in one or the other option, or otherwise it will be much harder to balance, so it might force you to uninvest yourself or to fail (uninvesting oneself is a great thing to practice already on its own but it is hard when you have no way to check it, here you do).
If one can manage that I think one will start to notice that sometimes judgment this way or that is not even necessary. We think we need it to act, but in many situations that is not true (we do need it to think stuff about stuff and we are used to that so that is why it might be uncomfortable until we lose that habit). Moreover it takes the typical you out of the equation - you will get a different flavor of yourself. And you will act based on things other than what you are used to as yourself. This is very freeing. 

But of course I don't know if the specific situation with your coworker is one where you should try it - but I'm giving you this example so you understand the system of it, of what I tried to do, and you can try it on a situation that you feel is good for it. In my case, I tried these steps many times. And then at one point I recognized the situation already before it started that it was something where Spirit set the stage. I felt like I was invited into a ring of power and the whole situation was happening in this ring. I felt like I am a player in this field and I am playing a match. I needed to stay there and keep alert and catch the balls that were thrown at me - somewhat like a goalkeeper. Catch the ball (sometimes a forceful one or a curved one, other times a nice one), throw it back more gently, catch the ball, throw it back. 

I tried the position of an actual goalkeeper before, during a football game. I didn't want to be a goalkeeper, I was scared. But when I was picked to be one I went and faced this fear. My experience of being a goalkeeper was like what I describe (similar to how I felt in guarding against making judgments haha), you need to stand there and be super alert and quick. There is pressure on you - the actual physical force of the balls that fly at you but also the expectations and wishes that you catch the ball (other players don't have this in such a high concentration, they get the ball but they are not expected to score every time or do any one single action, the goalkeeper is expected to do one single action, or outcome - avert getting a goal). The balls that come at you are fast and they have a lot of force/pressure, they are aimed at certain parts of your zone, your space (also the pressure from the unknown has this kind of characteristic, often it feels as if it were aiming at the point where you are most rigid). The pressure and forcefulness is scary, the anticipation of it is scary - or was, but I got over that. Once you are in a better state you observe the whole game and you protect the state of your team (which includes you). (Interesting is that you have the option of joining the game before you too... but that goes beyond what I myself experienced - I think there I reached my limit for that moment).

(I will respond to your question later, in my next post)

[Jos3ph]

Wow! That really makes clear that I've carried a rigid idea of what a warrior is. I've assumed that a warrior acts immediately, perfectly, and aggressively. I never really questioned that before...

I really like your goalkeeper illustration! For sure the balls fly to the areas that are most rigid. :-)

Now that I think about it, there are times when I'm perfectly content not to judge and other times it's as if my very life depends on it. I'm questioning that now.

Recently I became aware of how I liked to try to take credit for insights that came to me. But really "I" didn't do it. It just happened or just came to me. The best "I" can do is be quiet and ready and expectant to receive what comes. This is something the judging mind can be terrified by! I think that relates to the waiting you spoke of.

I want to change my explanation from yesterday.. I believe the shocked feeling was due to seeing something in your communication. I read it with complete concentration and I understood what you were conveying without you giving specific practical examples, which is definitely outside the norm for me and I also got a visual impression that I understood without words. Not that what I expressed earlier wasn't true, but this is much truer ;-)

[funnyguy]

In my experience I did not stop reacting when I suspended judgements. Sure, they're somewhat linked but not dependent on each other. One can judge and yet not react or vice versa. One can be in control of his judgements or suspend them or let them be whatever they happen to be. In essence you can choose to judge and how to judge, you can choose not to judge and just see or you can choose to let judgements happen as usually (reaction). It's basically the same with any action that is not judgement. You either do it consciously or not.

Reminds me of that story about the "Enlightened" being who smoked cigarettes and he was asked why is it okay that you smoke but not okay that I smoke?
Reply was similar to: "I'm aware of my doing and consequences while you need to do it.".

One pauses to create space which in itself allows you to traverse the field with ease whatever it may be. You won't be compelled to act, you won't be accessible, you won't be pinned down by time, you'll be able to move freely, you'll have the space and time to decide... Judge or not, kill or be killed, kiss or run or sit and wait it's up to you who you are and what you do.

Being non-judgemental is no more than holding a mind open to the possibility that you may be wrong. If you want to be stubborn and not accept that you may be wrong that's an option too you decide but don't react.

Sure it's not easy for people to go out of their comfort zone of which judgements are a part of but not all there is to that zone. They're but one of the routines that can hold one in its grip and yet there's more... However, as we all should know by now in order for a routine to work properly it must have all its parts working together. When one fails the routine starts to crumble.

Things are not very complicated at all, sorcery is not complicated at all, what makes it harder to grasp is that people try to intellectually understand it while it must be practiced. And through practice it will be solidified intellectually as well. You will have an experience that you can relate what you read in that book to... Otherwise one can be going in circles for a thousand years and seek and seek... Remember some are on the "path" for their whole lives and yet remain fools and never learn...

Don't let your mind turn things into far-fetched schemes which are only attainable after this or that, stop putting limits and bars on yourself with your imagination. Break through the illusions you've created for yourself or others and just see. There's nothing wrong with judging nor anything wrong with not judging it is just an action it's just energy moving. The thing that we may not like is the consequence of it and yet some people love pain and suffering and seek it so for them it would be plausible even desirable to give negative judgements to things and people. Energy does not care what you decide it just moves to your decision or reactions. So hold a vision that you actually desire for yourself don't lie in the dirt and wait for something to pull you out. The world doesn't meet you half-way. You want something? Go and get it.

The base with space is indifferent and empty just as intent and energy that's what it is at its core and yet it's full with any and every possibility out there it is pure potential. Some repeat the same old, same old, others beckon the unknown, challenges, and growth. Both are okay it's up to you what you want.

[Jos3ph]

Ahhh... YES! YES! YES! Referencing the co-worker conflict above - Another gift has come out of it!

I see how my need for social acceptance has led me to keep company with some shady characters that do not have my best interests at heart.

OMG! I am recapping when I did that as a kid. Not only did I compromise myself, I actually took their side in making fun of me! I was willing to denigrate myself for a few laughs and the illusion of fitting in for a moment.

Of course I don't "fit in" and I never truly will! I don't want what they want and therefore cannot confirm to their way.

I know I'm making some clear judgments here, however, I am also owning what I see. If I'm so willing to compromise then I'm definitely a shady character. I think that deep deep down we all really do want the same thing, and that is freedom. However, most of us believe that the fulfilling of our agenda is what will lead to freedom. LOL!

And also in fighting this battle, I did make mistakes, however, I absolutely refused to compromise my integrity!

[watergaze]

I don't have time to respond now, but will do so after the weekend. Just a short note.. 

FG, I was not trying to be all encompassing, so what I wrote was not meant to invalidate your experience (that can't be done anyway, but I'm writing this just to make that clear). I wanted to talk about something specific. I wanted to show the direct link between not judging and how helpful it is to stop reacting. I did not look at all other possible combinations and permutations - because I thought that would not be as helpful and because I don't have the capacity to say everything at once hehe. And I'm glad you pitched in . 

I like what you said here: "Being non-judgemental is no more than holding a mind open to the possibility that you may be wrong. " (but also, sometimes you just don't know.)

I will also say this for you to consider., in case it is relevant (I don't know where you are at).. I think that if you think you suspended judgment and you keep reacting from the same layers as you did before you were able to suspend judgment... then it probably links to the dream you're (trapped) in. You need to get to a different AP. In the AP of clarity if you stop judgment you don't react any more (in the same way, from the same layers and habits, and I am calling this 'acting' and not 'reacting' - a functional distinction that is helping me to distinguish it. But I am aware other might not have this kind of language distinction and so might not understand what I mean).

Yes, judgment is not something negative as such. It all depends on circumstances. Sometimes judgment is very useful and we need it to function. What I am trying to point out is that we can change the way we judge. We don't need it to always link to so many things - like our self-image.

[funnyguy]

Sure, my post wasn't directed towards your experiences either and as I said any way is okay unless you say it's not.
In the AP of clarity if you stop judgment you don't react any more (in the same way, from the same layers and habits, and I am calling this 'acting' and not 'reacting' - a functional distinction that is helping me to distinguish it.
Judgements by themselves can be a reaction is what I was saying above. They're just as any other reaction or action. I don't have to act to judge nor will reactions completely disappear if I stop judging. It is just an energetic movement. It's either consciously executed or not or yes, consciously or unconsciously not executed. Just like running or walking or sitting or lying.

For example I don't have to judge a lion coming towards me with the intent to kill as scary in order to immediately get on my toes. It will be an instinctive reaction on my part to do so. Reacting is not bad either, it can save your life as long as its properly setup.
I like what you said here: "Being non-judgemental is no more than holding a mind open to the possibility that you may be wrong. " (but also, sometimes you just don't know.)
True and yet the expression "Don't judge a book by its covers." is not out there for no reason.
What I am trying to point out is that we can change the way we judge. We don't need it to always link to so many things - like our self-image.
And I agree, it's definitely good to have a sense of control over any part or the totality of yourself including judgements. The more aware "the better". (lololl).


I prefer acting to indulging in explanations and thoughts. Intend to see what takes/where you spend most of your energy and start cutting that off, intend to save energy. You'll see that useless things start falling out one by one. Be impeccable. Start by pretending you are if you don't know how to start.

All I'm saying is that we're all of it. The ****, the beauty, the hate, the love, the ignorance, we are all of it and we have to own it then we can easily maneuver in it and decide when to be what and why.



By the way only if I quote you do I address you specifically. Otherwise I'm just talking to myself throwing in stuff here and there as I did with my earlier post. I just used yours as a reference something to pit against my experience so there's some contrast.

This is a bunch of non-sense. (Oops.)

[Jos3ph]

Another note: Something that I've noticed recently is that when I make a specific judgment about someone that indicates what I'm going to do or what state of awareness I'm going to find myself in very soon! I find myself enacting in one form or another the very judgment that I made!

"Judge not, lest ye be judged." If I judge then I WILL enact the very thing (be guilty of) the judgment I have made

[funnyguy]

Another note: Something that I've noticed recently is that when I make a specific judgment about someone that indicates what I'm going to do or what state of awareness I'm going to find myself in very soon! I find myself enacting in one form or another the very judgment that I made!

"Judge not, lest ye be judged." If I judge then I WILL enact the very thing (be guilty of) the judgment I have made
You reap what you sow.

That's why I said reacting to a judgement need not be a bad thing as long as its properly setup.
Also I wouldn't say guilty but responsible unless of course you're not

If you call me an **** chances are I won't come kissing you on the cheek in the next moment...
If you call me an **** to yourself (think it) your perception of me will reflect that into your way of communicating and being with me.

What happens if you call me nothing?

[Jos3ph]

funnyguy, I'm really not getting about half of what you're saying, and yes, I have some judgments about that. ;-) Well, that's where I am at the moment...

Will you give me a specific example of properly setting up a reaction to a judgment? I'm hoping that could help me understand where you're coming from.

[funnyguy]

You setup the judgement consciously and then you get the desired reaction that is if you don't pause before acting in the moment where the judgement is applicable.

Such as telling yourself that fear paralyzes you or that fear makes you sharp, aware, and ready to fight. The crux in this scenario becomes having that judgement work when a guy pulls a knife on you...

"Oh, I can't stand the sight of blood!"
"Blood doesn't bother me."

If it's habituated and you've been like that for your whole life, judging one thing in one way and have been reacting to it accordingly since years it may be harder to stalk it off and change it. Sure, you can spend a few years sitting in a corner thinking about it and all its sources and all that bullshit or you can put yourself out of the comfort zone and go seek the petty tyrant/fear/or whatever it is that makes you react the way you don't want to react, you face it and show it who's boss in a few attempts. Or you can do a combination of both. Or you can do nothing. Or you may be an awesome stalker and be able to fluidly shift it in seconds. Then you need to stalk it further as to gain cohesion in it, ground it into reality replacing the old **** you no longer want. And in the end to really solidify it you have to execute it put it into practice. I've seen that usually through practice I learn faster hence why I emphasize doing and not so much talking.

Muscle memory is awesome unless you have a tic that makes you do a "*** me" motion every ten seconds. LOL

The mind is one of the most if not the most marvelous tool we have in our arsenal.

What's the difference between you and a psychopath?

[Jos3ph]

Ok. I understand that. Thank you! :-D

[funnyguy]

Let's bring the cake out!