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May Salon

June 5, 2002

This is a partial version of the Caroline Myss “MAY SALON”

WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU DON'T WANT TO LISTEN TO YOUR INTUITION?

INTRODUCTION:

In these rather bizarre times -- when dozens of workshops and books are available for developing intuitive abilities and applying them to everything from healing to getting rich -- you could almost say that we are suffering from "intuitive overload." But odd as that sounds coming from me, the fact is that we can become "overexposed to the Light." We can become so attuned to a higher vibrational level that our capacity to remain functional in the physical world becomes challenged. As a result, one can spin downward into a deep state of depression or become so sensitive to any or all environments that one's intuitive senses become a source of suffering. People tell me that this hypersensitivity has caused them to be more vulnerable to a variety of allergies, as well as to psychic burnout when they are around overstressed individuals or are in an environment, such as a workplace, with even moderate levels of stress.

INTUITION VERSUS SPIRITUALITY

Is the desire and conscious effort to develop your intuition a spiritual practice? No, it is not. Reviewing the lives of the great spiritual masters, guides, gurus, and saints, I cannot think of one who directed or encouraged his or her students to follow a spiritual path for the sake of intuitive development. That a person would experience an expansion of intuitive sensitivities may have been a consequence of refining an inner life, but not the goal. In some ways, in fact, the desire to develop intuitive skills (the very phrase "intuitive skills" would probably never be used by a spiritual master) is a newly scripted passion of our present spiritual culture. If we were to be really truthful about it, we would have to acknowledge that the desire for becoming intuitive as a focus in and of itself should rightly be thought of as an ambition and not a spiritual practice.

THE TRUTH IS . . .

Being intuitive has nothing to do with being highly evolved as a spiritual person. The best detectives and policemen succeed in catching criminals precisely because they follow their gut instincts as opposed to only going by the book. The most successful crime solvers combine classic deductive reasoning with the ability to follow a hunch. Gamblers and successful criminals are also brilliant intuitives, however. As Jesus said, God " makes the sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust" (Matt 4:21). And so, intuitive abilities simply are what they are, a natural by-product of human survival, as neutral in their moral value as strong muscles or an acute sense of hearing. We are born with highly evolved intuitive instincts, because that is nature's way of providing us with a sensory response to the physical world. To consciously set our ambitions on learning how to refine or upgrade survival intuition to a disciplined skill should be considered a choice to further this inherent ability, not a sign of divine intervention in one's life. I emphasize this because I have listened to more stories than I care to remember from people who describe in glowing terms other individuals who are "highly intuitive," implying that, therefore, they are also "highly spiritual." No, no, no. That assumption is trouble.

HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN YOU ARE ON INTUITIVE OVERLOAD?

Intuitive development is like a new experimental drug on the market whose long-term side effects we have yet to learn. Although the convention has long been that those who choose the spiritual path seek a life of great intensity away from the masses, guided by an experienced spiritual director, most ordinary mortals such as ourselves lack that level of isolation and support. A spiritual director is able to identify the warning signs that the student is becoming overexposed to the Light. Prayer and meditation time is regulated and the student is directed to outside tasks such as gardening or kitchen work -- labors that busy the body and shift the focus to the outside world. But we need to know when to do this for ourselves.

HOW DO YOU HANDLE INTUITIVE OVERLOAD?

The key to addressing the dilemma we've been discussing is mindfulness. First, become mindful of your intuitive practice:

What exactly IS your practice? Do you have one? If so, how mindful are you of maintaining your practice? Opening yourself to interior work means learning to close down your exterior process, and then open it up again when need be.
Is one path of development better than another? Do what works. You know when you need a combination of silent time and conscious effort and exercise. Only you can know your own system.
Pay attention to your intentions. What you ask for, you receive.
Pay attention to all your intuitive feedback. Blocking out what you do not want to receive because you fear the information does not prevent that information from revealing itself to you one way or the other. Intuitive information is simply energetic data. This data has no regard for your personal fears.
Thanks, again and as always, for being a part of my Salon. It's now been a year since I started, which is incredible since I feel like the Salon just began. To all of you who have decided to join me for another year -- a special embrace. Oh, one other thing. Are there any special topics you would like me to turn into a Salon subject?

So, what's up for the JUNE SALON? The topic is: "Spiritual Ambition: The Madness of the New Age."

Till then and with much love,
Caroline

P.S. I have developed a new Journal of Inner Dialogue for, well, journaling. I'm nuts about it for all kinds of reasons, not the least of which is that additional packets of information are going to be available on a regular basis and you can just slip those packets right into the binder. It's a wonderful guide book. Enjoy and God bless!

“The Journey with Caroline Myss” Oxygen TV

Just a reminder that the Caroline Myss Marathon (the climax of Oxygen's Mind/Body/Spirit promotional stunt week) is airing this Saturday, June 8, from 2pm to 6:30pm, Eastern time, 1pm to 5:30 Central time. There will be eight episodes from the first season, along with a special episode of all new segments airing at the end of the marathon at 6pm.