Holistic Living by Ana Jones

The Butterfly Effect

Dear Readers,   Due to my tour on the East Coast in May, I was unable to personally write my monthly article on Holistic Living so my husband Phillip Jones wrote an article for the paper and newsletter instead, and I AM SO GLAD HE DID!! Phillip is a published author and fantastic source of deep wisdom, I hope you enjoy his article on 'The Butterfly Effect.'     In Gratitude, Ana Jones THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT by Phillip Jones   In indigenous cultures, ancient or modern, the circles of the sun, moon and planets relative to the earth, as well as cycles of these and other celestial bodies, are considered critical to one’s understanding of life and living. I recently saw research that the 11 year sunspot cycle of the sun has a major influence, not only on telecommunication systems, but on living beings as well. Most of us have heard of the documented increase in aggressive and psychotic behavior on full moon nights. Police and hospital officials understand this phenomenon, and plan accordingly. Fewer people may know that sun and moon cycles are also used by some smart investors in making their stock market decisions.   Even casual attention to the ups and downs of the stock market lets us know that swings of emotions—whether fearful or optimistic moods—on a collective level can send shock waves around the world, disrupting whole countries’ economic strength in the process. Understanding how peoples’ emotions are affected not only by oil prices, the inflation rate and the consumer confidence index, but also by a host of celestial influences, is important as we go forward as a world community.   If we can conceive of the world as one great community, we may gain insight in how to grapple with this significant issue of emotional swings and their interconnected repercussions on peoples’ survival and happiness. In a healthy community, where the interconnections among all of the members are understood, it’s easier to see that as we take care of the needs of ‘the least among us’ we take care of ourselves. Disruptions in one person’s emotional health may affect many other community dwellers, because each person plays a role in the relationships and tasks of the entire community. If one person’s health needs are ignored, someone will have to take up the slack. So compassion and common sense dictate that we care for all of our sisters and brothers in the world community.   The world has become an interconnected community, demonstrating time and again the butterfly effect.*  For example, emotionally abusive working conditions in China can affect the health of children in America (unsafe imported toys). And fear of recession in America can affect the value of someone’s retirement fund in France. For better or worse, we’re all interconnected in a fragile system of interdependence.   Whether manmade or celestial actions bring cycles of favorable emotional breezes or ‘disasters,’ we have a choice and a challenge in these very global times of our lives. Compassionate and pragmatic choices will lead us to care for the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health of each other—beyond racial, cultural, religious or country borders—if we want the human race to survive and thrive in the modern era.   *The ‘butterfly effect’ is a metaphoric-scientific principle arising from chaos theory that says, for example, that the wind created by a butterfly’s wings in China could contribute to the creation of a tornado in Kansas.  Look it up!   Phillip Jones is assistant director of the Studio, Center for Holistic Arts in Honokaa, Hawaii, at www.thestudioevents.com and author of ‘Light On Death: The Spiritual Art of Dying’ www.lightondeath.com

© 2010 by Phillip Jones & Rev. B. Ana Jones, Questing Spirit, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Earth My Body, Water My Blood

 

 The four elements earth, air, fire and water make up everything that exists on this planet. There are sacred songs honoring the four elements that have been in existence since the beginning of human kind. A beautiful chant sung in spiritual circles today has simple lyrics that remind us of a very profound truth. The lyrics, “earth my body, water my blood, air my breath, and fire my spirit,” speak to the fact that indeed we are holistically one with the elements.

The element earth structures your body: earth minerals create your bones, and earth salts fortify your blood. The element air provides your breath and is found in every vital organ and cell in the form of oxygen. The element fire has long been considered by eastern medicine to be responsible for your digestion and enzyme production.  Also, ancient sages and mystics have equated fire with the light of your spirit that creates the sparkle and twinkle in your eyes during life, but leaves the body upon death. Now to the element water.  Ninety-two percent of the plasma in your blood, twenty-five percent of your bones and seventy-five percent of your brain is made up of water. And water is the element that literally covers up to eighty percent of the earth’s surface.

Water researcher and scientist Masaru Emoto has found that water even exhibits a mirroring effect. Its vibration mirrors the vibration of anything with which it comes into contact. Emoto believes that there are hidden messages in water for us to learn and discover, and his amazing research reveals that water crystals will form differently based on human intention.  He is quoted as saying: "Water has a very important message for us. Water is telling us to take a much deeper look at ourselves. When we do look at ourselves through the mirror of water, the message becomes amazingly crystal clear. We know that human life is directly connected to the quality of our water, both within and all around us."

If scientists like Dr. Emoto are now discovering that water mirrors and reflects intelligence and communicates messages to us, then perhaps one day they will discover what the indigenous peoples have always said—that we are in a deep, inseparable relationship with the four elements and all of life. Holistically speaking, the plants, trees and animals are all your relations. The earth, air, fire, and water are all your blood relatives; and it is necessary to honor these relatives just as you would honor your own father, mother, grandfathers and grandmothers. Perhaps Indigenous Elder Grandmother Parisha Taylor explains it best: “We talk to all of nature and it talks back to us! The Earth speaks to us; we lie down and embrace her grasses and soil. Her smell when the rain comes is intoxicating! Rain, Sun, Forest, relations, all are a part of us. Heavens reflect us and all of creation is us. How do we not know joy!”

Written by: Ana Jones

 

Ana Jones is a Holist, a Spiritual Luminary and Visionary. She is an internationally known Interfaith Minister, Clairvoyant Medium, a Master Teacher, and Master Healer with over 28 years experience in her field. Ana is an author, columist, and recording artist. She is the Director of ‘The Studio ~ A Center for Holistic Arts’ and The Hale Hamakua Vacation Retreat in Honokaa, HI where she leads regular classes, workshops, tele-conferences, and retreats. She is available for phone sessions world-wide.

To contact her email at: ajones4554@aol.com 

Her websites include:
www.TheStudioEvents.com
www.HaleHamakua.com
www.AngelicCommunication.com
www.AngelicCommunication.blogspot.com

www.QuestingSpiritWebstore.com

Follow her on Twitter at: www.twitter.com/holisticwisdom

 

Follow her on FACEBOOK at : www.facebook.com/AnaJonesOnline

 

© 2010 by Phillip Jones & Rev. B. Ana Jones, Questing Spirit, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Spirit of the Age

 

With the advent of a new global village, Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists now live next door to Christians and Jews.  With the advent of the internet, a Chinese born seeker can read the New Testament while a seeker from Oklahoma can read the Tao Te Ching.  Now American children not only read about Islam but sit next to young girls in burkas at grammar school.

 

The dissemination of world wisdom texts and intermingling of cultures and religions has made it possible for people to follow spiritual and religious paths which deeply suit their inner nature.  The growing holistic understanding that God is One, the root of all people and all paths, gives us now, in 2010, the added opportunity to worship that One Spirit in mosques, churches, synagogues, temples, sweat lodges, nature groves, on land, sea and air with our brothers and sisters—organized or unorganized.

 

The knowledge that religion—connection to spirit—is possible in all these organized structures as well as with no structure is a message of the ‘Spirit of this Age’ which is helping us all to give up our comparisons, judgments, prejudices and fears.  This is sorely needed if we are to harness the incredible power and passion of religion and spirituality for solving problems through Unity rather than exacerbating problems through Divisiveness.

 

‘Religious’ people mistrust mystics and ‘spiritual’ people.  Spiritual people mistrust religious people and organized religion.  Yet all of us are in the same ship—the ship called earth which is sailing through our solar system, which is encircling our Milky Way Galaxy, just one small galaxy orbiting with billions of others galaxies in the Universe.  The Great Spirit/Great Mystery is so much greater than our petty comparisons and fears about who is right and which way is wrong.  The Great Spirit is breathing in and out universes while we fight over ‘organized versus unorganized’ religion. The zeitgeist (or spirit of the age) is a sweeping force that is driving us to transform our attitudes, to go beyond thinking in terms of us vs. them and to embrace the way of love and compassion taught in all sacred paths.

 

The winds of change blow strongly and rapidly when the doors of wisdom are open to all.  Wonderfully, in our times there is a fresh breeze of reconciliation beginning to blow.  Yet, we must choose to align ourselves with that wind, raise our sails, and trust enough to go where that wind of healing and peace are taking us.  A reconciliation of opposites is the key, and it is just as possible right now in our times as it ever has been or ever will be. We make it probable when we adjust way of thinking and feeling and take on an attitude of gratitude. We make it probable when we look with empathy at someone else’s view point and perspectives, seeing ourselves walk a mile in their shoes. A reconciliation of opposites will bring peace amongst all people…religious, spiritual, and non-spiritual. Behind the names and forms of all religions and spiritual paths is One Power, One Peace and One All Encompassing Love.

 

Ana Jones, Director, ‘The Studio: Center for Holistic Arts’ in Honokaa, Hawaii at  www.TheStudioEvents.com