zen and the art of changemaking by kiyonah thundersong
april 5, 2005

When contemplating the unfolding journey of your life, do you ever stop all of a sudden and say "hey, wait a minute..", and look around at your life, on other levels, from angles other than your ordinary consciousness? Just stop and look within, and let yourself witness all that swirls around your sudden stillness?

I was sitting with my children, watching television, when I became aware of a presence, "sitting" on the floor in front of me, looking up at me. I acknowledged it with peaceful respect. I felt aware of it watching me, observing with fascination how my spirit is experiencing the limitations of this incarnation. The limitations come with the tremendous, sublime benefits of being alive in a body and being able to experience physical sensations and processes, which all spirits long to experience. I knew this spirit was a friend. I felt humorous, watching myself, knowing I am this huge spirit that is squooshed into this body and life right now. I felt chagrined... my mood turned serious, and I said to the spirit, "what are you doing here, in this mundane space, with me, in my rundown house and dealing with all of this stress?" The spirit said, "I came here because you are here. No matter where you are in the cosmos, I can come to you. It matters not where you are, for it is you I come to be with, not what surrounds you."

I hung out peacefully for awhile, but then I allowed my mind to wander again. I started thinking about how I can do things to change history. I was looking back at the lives of my ancestors, considering how they lived in the present moment, working hard for secure futures, struggling to leave legacies we could be proud of, while just living normally. The actions they took, step by step, created future scenarios to be dealt with, thus creating both history and the future at the same time. Some of them made marks on history, and others faded into the handwritten pages of the documents that left their tracks across the landscape of life (such as journals, legal papers, letters). So, how does one person orchestrate the moves to change history, or at least make a mark on it?

I think it has to do with doing certain things that leave a noticeable mark on the public consciousness. Like publishing a book, recording music, building architecture and monuments, and starting social movements. The actions must leave a noticeable mark, such that future people who experience the effects of the action you took will feel continually compelled to look again and reinterpret the evidence of your actions from their own perspective, continually fuelling cultural evolution. Looking at Stonehenge, or Easter Island, or the great pyramids, for example. I think this is true for artists, philosophers, politicians, merchants, everyone it seems. You must leave a mark, but not just any mark. The mark must contain the essential ingredients that make it a classic for humanity to cherish. It must stimulate the intellect, engage the emotions, electrify the soul, in order to last beyond the blazing immediacy of its creation (one-hit wonders). It must echo ancient human concerns and qualities, tap at contemporary consciousness, and yet hint at future possibilities as well. Hmmm...like the journey of the hero. Like Kane in that old Kung Fu tv show...

So your soul is on a continually unfolding journey, experiencing the ride in this material body of yours. What do you really see? What are you thinking about? Are you zen enough to get lost in a puddle? Can you see the trees stretching and sighing? Where do you suppose the clouds are going? Doesn't that water dripping sound like a natural symphony? It is wondrous to be incarnated in a physical body, especially if you are aware of non-body awareness. It's exstacy, but we usually tune all of that out. It's time to gently awaken all sides of our beings, and unite them in a fully awakened state of pleasure and consciousness. We don't have to walk around with a head full of hallucinogenic static crackling and sizzling. But we can walk around with the wide-eyed wonder of a newborn. It's very psychedelic and beautiful, and you don't need any drugs to experience it. Just a completely relaxed and open being.

What kind of mark are you leaving on the world, that will ripple in unseen ways, changing the preplanned courses of history with which we refuse to co-operate? Are you writing books, making music, starting social movements, living your dream inter-dependently with the entire family of beings? We are seed planters, spiritual johnny-appleseeds, and every seed we plant should grow. I'd love to hear about yours, so please share. Elaborate, elucidate, embellish...I love it all. It electrifies my soul and compels cultural transformation, with social accupuncture.

So let's dance, my wild human friends!

love, kiyonah