I have had one of the oldest Killooleet horses, Al, here, to find a retirement home for him. (Killooleet is a children’s summer camp that is up river from my farm where I board horses.) He is their best beginner horse but was no longer getting along in the herd. He is an Arab in his late 20's but is in excellent health, no arthritis and totally sound. When I brought him here 6 weeks ago he was so upset that he had been removed from the herd he had been in for fifteen years, that he went on a hunger strike for three days. I explained the situation to him and promised him that I would settle for no less than a perfect home for him. I asked the horse helpers to find the perfect situation and told his owner that she would have to take him back in the spring and keep him separate from the herd if the right home didn't materialize. She agreed. I explained all that to Al, so he knew that the people coming to check him out were on trial as much as he was. He didn't like the first person that came. He was respectful, but he sniffed her heart, then his eye went dull, he gave her no more eye contact and he refused to back up for her. He stayed glued to me the whole time she was there. So I said No to her.
A young family came to look at him yesterday that has a little boy who is 6 years old. When they arrived the adults seemed rough and red-neckish and were cranky because they had gotten lost, but the boy was friendly and sweet. My inner voice told me to pay attention to the boy, not the adults. The adults exuded an attitude that they were expecting disappointment, (like they were on a used car lot) and had wasted their day driving two hours to get there. The boy was lit up and happy to be there. He was the only one that waved and called out a cheerful "Hello!" as I crossed the road to the barn.
When we went in the paddock Al made it totally obvious that he wanted to be with the boy. His eyes were soft , sweet and affectionate when he met the boy and sniffed him all over. He nuzzled the boy's face for quite awhile which made the boy giggle but he kept his face there! Al's eyes were amused. He then put his nose on the boy's shoulder and followed him around. The boy, who had been timid with other horses, bonded with him at first sight and wanted to ride him. It was touching to see a horse be so conscious, gentle, slow and quiet with a little person. The boy, who had never ridden, learned to steer him in one second and rode him around by himself. He was thrilled. Al was listening so hard through the mixed signals and went slowly in whatever direction the boy intended he go, but was not necessarily steering him in. After the boy dismounted Al stepped over to me and gently nudged my heart area. I felt an affectionate feeling in my heart that was mirrored in Al's eyes. They had brought the riding instructor from their barn with them. The boys parents , the instructor and I all clearly saw it was perfect match and their attitudes totally softened. They could see that he was the horse they had been looking for. His age didn't matter, he was the horse that would take care of their boy.
It was very cold, but the boy didn't want to leave. He stayed right with Al in his stall, stroking his neck while the adults talked and was not distracted until he had to go. What a nice Christmas for both of them.
(Leslie B. Carlson is the author of Kinship With Horses, published in 2009 by Anthony Publishing Company. Out of respect for her work, we have added the copyright notice.)
The Cosmic Principle of Attraction
There seems to exist a lot of confusion about this Cosmic principle, as when it is falsely assumed that humans can bring this attraction about through the “power of intention.” The Sage wants us to share here what we have learned about the Cosmic Principle of Attraction as it applies to getting a job, or getting the money we need for our living, to name but two examples.
The Cosmic Principle of Attraction is one of a number of Cosmic Principles of Harmony that maintain the harmonious order of the Cosmos and are responsible for its duration. Consulting the I Ching as an oracle is a way of bringing our goals, aspirations, and approach to life into harmony with these principles.
The Principle of Attraction describes the way by which overall increase is achieved in the Cosmos.
First, we need to separate job and money. A job is meant to give us an opportunity to apply and develop our talents. Because doing so corresponds with our inner truth, it brings us joy. At the same time, our job serves someone else’s need (a person, company, or organization). Thus, an overall increase occurs.
An additional benefit occurs if our time, skill, and effort brings us money. Money represents the life force we devote to the job. Being paid is not something we need to feel guilty about, on the one hand, or to see it as the sole reason for having a job. Such views devalue our time and skill and thereby deprive ourselves of the joy and fulfillment the job can give us.
As our book I Ching, the Oracle of the Cosmic Way makes clear, myriad invisible Helpers make Cosmic attraction happen. These Helpers are engaged by a modesty that occurs when we take away all pretenses of being better or less than what we truly are, which is the meaning of taking our place in the Cosmos. Our talents are part of what we are. A job is an opportunity to apply not only what we “good at,” but to also allow other talents to develop. In this process, both we and the job are increased.
Assuming we are less than what we are is to deny our capabilities and prevent them from developing. To assume we are more than what we are is to deny the capabilities of others, and prevent them from developing. Both these attitudes deny what the helping forces of the Cosmos bring to our lives. Such assumptions come from the human-centered view — a view that has its roots in an artificially created hierarchy, where people are sorted out in terms of who is higher/superior and who is lower/inferior than others.
Hexagram 11 “Harmony, Peace, Prosperity,” cites this view as the cause of lack in the world, and of the ensuing belief that we have to force our way to get what we need. This view blocks the Cosmic attraction that provides all that we need. (The reader who wants to free himself from this view is referred to Hexagram 11 in our book.)
Not only does the Cosmos recognize our need for money, it is the true source of our money, as it also is for our protection and well-being. We attract these things when our attitude is in accord with the Cosmic Principles of Harmony. When we view our job as the sole source of our money, the Helping energies of the Cosmos retreat. Running into the difficulties that ensure indicates that we need to examine our ideas about how increase is brought about. Mistaken ideas that block the Cosmic attraction are found in these hexagrams: H11 (see above), H19, “Approaching Jointly,” H42, “Increasing,” and H55, “Abundance.”
The Cosmic Principle of Attraction supercedes all human-made laws. It is embedded in the Cosmic Principles of Harmony that rule all life. It insures that everything that is part of the Cosmos receives what it needs to express its Cosmic destiny, i.e., to fulfill its uniqueness. When we free our thinking from the ideas that violate Cosmic harmony, helping forces are freed to bring us the job that truly suits us, and the money we need.
by Hanna Moog and Carol Anthony
Nax- Lost and Found
Last night Nax, my male cat, was not home, and it was 1 AM (typically he's in by early evening — we've got very hungry coyotes and mountain lions nearby). I was worried. This was unprecedented, and I wasn’t feeling peaceful enough to go to sleep. So I consulted the I Ching… what the heck! Find lost cats? Apparently, a cinch. It’s advice to me was clear (I paraphrase), “You’ve forgotten to ask the Helpers. In fact, in this case, ask a whole army of Helpers. And yes, Helpers can find lost things, too.”
So I did. I called them all forth, the Helpers that look for lost kitties, Nax’s personal Helper, a protection Helper if he’s out all night, a healing Helper if he has been hurt, and so forth. Furthermore, I worded the question to ask how I could find enough peace to relax and go to sleep. Then, exhausted, I was ready to hop into bed. I’d been trying to find Nax since 9 PM, checking about every 20 minutes, walking up and down the whole property twice, rattling the food - the whole bit … with no luck. So before I turned in, I peeked out the window one last time. There he was, not looking like a happy camper, either. It had taken the Helpers less than 5 minutes to accomplish successfully what I was trying to do for the last 4 hours, with no success whatsoever. And apparently, the answer to the question how I could find the peace to go to sleep was to have Nax come home!
Ending: Nax had been sprayed by a skunk, and that's a whole other story! I think one of the lessons learned here is that when I send my kitties out to play, I would be wise to ask their Helpers to go along with them and protect them, and that's just what I'll do from now on...
by Laurel Emorys from Dripping Springs, TX
Laurel would enjoy sharing experiences with others who are using our book I Ching, The Oracle of the Cosmic Way. You can contact her through: dailylife333@yahoo.com
Help for a Child with Autism
My nephew J was diagnosed with autism. His mother and father, Moira and Kirk, have been working with your book “I Ching, The Oracle of the Cosmic Way.” They shared with me that J talks to an invisible person or something, and together we asked the Sage whether it was a helper. The answer was yes. J has a chromosome disorder—he has XYY, an extra Y, which, according to the Sage, caused him to lose the link to his commonsense. The helper J talks to is his link to his commonsense.
In this context, I wanted to share something my sister shared with me. J’s occupational therapist was careful not to call it self-talk, but rather when Joshua is communicating to what appears to be himself or an invisible imaginary person, she said it felt like "help" and that his communicating with this “help” was to be encouraged. She also made a point of bringing to the team meeting her observation of the benefit of his talking to his help when she works with him.
It was so wonderful for us to see that the inner truth of this matter is becoming more apparent and validated.
(Margaret Johnstone is an I Ching consultant and can be reached under www.ichingconsulting.com)
The Friendly Mouse
I was going on a little field trip with a good friend for her birthday. We talked about the Inner Mouse Helper on the drive and I read over that email you, Hanna, had sent about this newly discovered Inner Helper. I asked for a little help and also in my heart tried to introduce myself to the Mouse Helper if there was one that I had any relation to.
On the way home we stopped for a little walk at Picacho Peak after sunset. We came to some picnic tables and were sitting down in early evening dusk. It was dark by then but really nice out and there was a lot of moonlight. Suddenly my friend felt something at her ankle, which startled her but she couldn't see anything there. A little while later I felt something, too, and I could see that it was a little mouse that was chewing on my shoe and then crawling into the cuff on my pants. It was so uncommon to ever have a mouse come up to me that way. The mouse stayed around for the rest of our stay. It seemed so friendly or assertive or something.
Needless to say it gave us a completely different appreciation for this Helper and we were both really surprised and extremely happy to have been there for that, as you can imagine.
So thanks so much for your sharing that new gift. It's already gone a long way in helping me.
By Kim From Tucson