TOOLS FOR TRANSFORMATION – LABYRINTH WALKS

Jul 23
2013

Two Perspectives on Labyrinth Walks as a Tool for Transformation

Dr. Amit Nagpal, New Delhi, India, and

Dr. Janet Smith Warfield, Florida, USA

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Dr. Amit Nagpal’s Perspective

Amit Nagpal (new)(cropped)The labyrinth reminds me of the character ‘Abhimanyu’ and the song, “Abhimanyu, chakravyuh mein phas gaya hai tu.” (Abhimanyu, you are caught in the labyrinth.) In the battle of Mahabharata in India, the son of the great warrior Arjuna, Abhimanyu was caught in a labyrinth and died since he did not know how to come out. I wonder if the entire humanity is caught in the labyrinth of the rat race.

There is something about life which is difficult for an average mind to understand. Call it the good karma vs bad karma, call it positive energy vs negative energy or call it the cycle of Satyuga vs Kaliyuga, whatever makes sense to you.

The terms which I use to define life are virtuous cycle vs vicious cycle. Though the term cycle is used, they are more like positive and negative spirals. Once you get into a negative spiral (or vicious cycle), you become more and more cynical and one day you have no option left but to seek positivity. As they say, it is darkest before the dawn. The positive spiral or virtuous cycle is similar to the law of attraction. You become more and more positive and over a period of time, more and more successful also. Since they are not simple cycles but rather spirals, it is difficult for cluttered minds to understand these concepts.

I once wrote, “The mind puts us into vicious cycle. The soul puts us in virtuous cycle” The soul can also be called deeper self in simple words. The solutions to the problems of humanity, will come from this deeper self. As Daniel H. Pink, rightly points out in his book, “A whole new mind”

“The future belongs to a different kind of a person with a different kind of a mind: artists, inventors, storytellers- creative and holistic ‘right brain’ thinkers.”

Is there a difference between maze and labyrinth? Wikipedia points out, “In colloquial English, labyrinth is generally synonymous with maze, but many contemporary scholars observe a distinction between the two: maze refers to a complex branching (multicursal) puzzle with choices of path and direction; while a single-path (unicursal) labyrinth has only a single, non-branching path, which leads to the center. A labyrinth in this sense has an unambiguous route to the center and back and is not designed to be difficult to navigate.”

If you are caught in a labyrinth and want to come out, I have one quote for you to ponder over, “When we speak, God listens. When we become silent, God speaks.” Simple, the answers can only come in silence. Your labyrinth is unique and the inner voice can answer best how to navigate it.

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Dr Amit Nagpal is a Personal Branding Consultant and Deepest Passion Coach. He is based in New Delhi, India and specializes in personal branding with a holistic touch. His philosophy is, “Enlarge as a Human Being, Excel as a Social Media Being and Evolve as a Personal Brand.” To learn more, visit www.dramitnagpal.com.
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Dr. Janet Smith Warfield’s Perspective

Dr. Janet Smith WarfieldLabyrinths appear throughout history, beginning as early as 2500 B.C. in Goa, India. Later, they emerged in Greece, Egypt, Italy, France, and Native American cultures. The word labyrinth is derived from the Lydian word labrys, meaning double-edged axe.

The significance of labyrinths differs from culture to culture. Grecian labyrinths were believed to house the minotaur, a mythical creature that was half man and half bull. Other cultures associated the labyrinth with death and a triumphant return. Today, labyrinths serve as a form of modern pilgrimage for those with no ability to travel to distant lands. They are walking meditations, allowing each of us to sort out the chaos of modern life and find the spark of divinity that lies within.

Julie, Bob, June, Elizabeth, Shelley, Sybille, and Nina in labyrinth

The walk into the center of the labyrinth provides a wonderful opportunity to meditate on our life purpose. Who are we? Why are we here? What are our unique gifts and talents?

Once we reach the center of the labyrinth and the core of our being, we know who we are, what we’re here to do, and what our unique gifts and talents are.

As we walk out of the labyrinth, the questions change. How can we serve? How can we give back to the world what has been so freely given to us? How can we allow the gift we have been given to flow through us and back out into the world?

Both the path in and the path out twist and turn. We think we are reaching the center of the labyrinth and the core of our being, when suddenly, we find ourselves on the outer edge of the circle, far from where we expected to be. We walk next to another spiritual seeker, then suddenly, our paths turn in opposite directions and we separate. As we follow our own path, we pass the same people over and over again and see the same archetypal patterns from new perspectives.

If you’ve never walked a labyrinth, try it. I think you’ll find it offers new insights into who you are and what your purpose is on this planet.

For more information about labyrinths, see www.labyrinthsociety.org/. To find a labyrinth near you, see www.labyrinthlocator.com/.

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Dr. Janet Smith Warfield serves wisdom-seekers who want understanding and clarity so they can live peaceful, powerful, prosperous lives. Through her unique combination of holistic, creative, right-brain transformational experiences and 22 years of rigorous, left-brain law practice, she has learned how to sculpt words in atypical ways to shift her listeners into experiences beyond words, transforming turmoil into inner peace. To learn more, go to www.wordsculptures.comwww.janetsmithwarfield.com, and www.wordsculpturespublishing.com.

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Two Perspectives on Speaking Our Own Truth

Dec 11
2011

Two Perspectives on Releasing Social Filters and Speaking from the Truth of Who We Are

Dr. Amit Nagpal, New Delhi, India, and

Janet Smith Warfield, J.D., Florida, USA

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Dr. Amit Nagpal’s Perspective

I have suffered a lot in life because I have refused to use filters. Maybe I was born brutally honest and ruthlessly frank!

There have been times when I have told women to their face, “Yes you are looking fat” (when they asked for my opinion). Well that’s my opinion, take it or leave it. I don’t claim to be telling the truth all the time, but yes I am telling my version of the truth, what seems true to me.

Inspired by Gandhi, but a bit more complicated, my autobiography will be entitled, “My Experiments with Complete Truth, Ruthless Frankness and Brutal Honesty.” If I survive for the next 20 years, I will write a brutally honest autobiography. I will tell my version of truth, my failures, my successes, my troubles, my self-inflicted suffering. I don’t care whether people will be interested in reading it; I will write it to give vent to whatever emotions have been trapped inside me due to social filters, and I will write it for myself.

Sometimes I have wondered, “Do people really want to know the truth? Or do they prefer sweet lies and diplomacy? Have I paid too high a price for my brutal honesty? Do Indian and eastern cultures like filters and do not respect straight forwardness? Is there some lack of inner confidence which makes us look for sweet lies and reject bitter truth? Is life already too bitter and we should not make it more bitter by truths?”

I still believe we need to develop inner confidence to speak and hear the truth. In the short term, lies can be sweet. But if I tell an ugly woman, “You look beautiful”, will it change the facts? Will I not spoil my own brand and credibility in the process and give her false hopes? But I also believe, if you have inner beauty it will reflect on your face and will make you beautiful (though not in the traditional sense of the term).

In the long run, truth is always better. But in this fast paced world, who is bothered about the long run?

Anyway, I will try to be kindly honest now.

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Dr. Amit Nagpal is a Personal Branding Consultant, passionate Blogger, and Motivational Speaker based in New Delhi, India. He specializes in personal branding with a holistic touch. His philosophy is “Take Charge of your Life and your Brand” He writes a Blog, “The Joys of Teaching

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Janet Smith Warfield’s Perspective

“Mom, most people function with filters. You don’t.” My oldest son offered this observation after an emotionally-charged family phone conference where my youngest son hung up on us, offended by a remark I had made.

I thought a moment and agreed. “No, I don’t use filters.” I speak my truth from the core of who I am, right here, right now, in this present moment, with these people, surrounded by this environment. It is a unique moment carrying its own energy. I am not willing to mask and distort the energy of who I am with people I love, even when it hurts. I want intimacy in as many relationships as possible.

Yet there are times when I do use filters. I use them when discernment and previous experience have shown me there are people I cannot trust to care for my welfare as they would care for their own. Then I need to use filters to protect both them and me.

Can my truth of the moment change? Absolutely and often quickly when others are also speaking without filters from the core of their own beings. They offer me a perspective I might not previously have thought of or additional information I didn’t previously have.

I do know that speaking from my unfiltered core upsets people who only feel comfortable operating through filters. Is it because I’ve lived every single one of those filters myself and know them well from the inside out? Because I’ve lived them, I can penetrate them. That’s threatening for people who believe their filter is Truth.

My youngest son had commented that there were consequences to my speech and actions. I know that and don’t take either speech or action lightly. But are he and his wife aware that there are also consequences to their speech and actions? Eastern religions call it karma.

So how do we move forward in relationship and collaboration when one person needs filters and the other is functioning from the core of who they are? There’s clearly a misalignment of communication and energies. Intimacy is not possible when people function from filters, although etiquette and polite conversation certainly are.

“I consider myself a pretty good mediator,” my oldest son said, “but I don’t know where to go from here.” Neither did I.

“I think I am simply going to stop taking initiative and stop seeking out relationships with people who need filters,” I said. “If and when they want intimacy, I’m here.” I can still love them. I can pray and meditate for all of us when we’re stuck in our conditioned filters. I can even just keep my mouth shut when I’m around people stuck in filters. But is it worth the price?

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Janet Smith Warfield works with wisdom-seekers who want understanding and clarity so they can live peaceful, powerful, prosperous lives. Through her unique combination of holistic, creative, right-brain transformational experiences and 22 years of rigorous, left-brain law practice, she has learned how to sculpt words in atypical ways to shift her listeners into experiences beyond words, transforming turmoil into inner peace. For more information about Janet, go to www.janetsmithwarfield.com; www.wordsculpturespublishing.com; and www.wordsculptures.com.

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Copyright © 2011 – Janet Smith Warfield. All rights reserved.