Moods, Emotions and my Soul Observations

Here, among us, in this environment of adult and intelligent people, we can agree with the statement that we all have an idea, however vague or ambiguous, what we mean when we use the word "EMOTION".

This is, in fact, a topic of great interest to most people. It is a volatile field, object of great reverie by romantic and passionate souls, and of scientific interest to scholars or professionals. It is with this scientific curiosity that I invite you to examine the schema I present below.

Examine how we function:
1- In the face of any event that changes the natural course of circumstances that affect us;
2- Our
interpretations about it,
3- They reveal our
observer (our eye, the way we see the world, our belief system)
4- And generate in us
emotions,
5- Which are coherent with our
language (mental processes)
6- And equivalent
body dispositions.
7- This coherence between our observer and the unity we are (emotionally, mentally and in our body) may culminate in
actions,
8- Which generate
results,
9. That will be
interpreted by other people,
10 - Each one through their own lens, eye,
observer.
11- This will also generate in them a coherence of
emotions, mental processes and equivalent body dispositions,
12- culminating in
reactions and so on.
Except from conditions such as depression, where negative emotions can be generated due to a chemical imbalance in our brain, it is interesting to notice that we can always ask, in the face of any emotion, to which world does it belong, or which believe system is feeding it. However, despite this introduction addressing emotions, this is not the topic I'll tackle in this short conversation. Today, I talk about something which, very close to emotions, is distinguished from them for essential reasons that will I present below.

In addition to the emotions, that are punctual and specific to each situation, we are also driven by moods, which are soul states establishing the context in which we interpret the events around us. I like to imagine moods as "contextual bubbles," or as the musical background in which we interpret the world and produce our emotions. We can then metaphorize by saying that if my mood defines my field of action, or my world of possibilities, being thus on the dimension of the observer or of the context, emotions, in turn, are found on the dimension of the language, of the text itself, as punctuations of it. Bringing our metaphorical inclination to the musical field, we can say that moods are for the whole of a melodic composition, what emotions are for each singular note of this melody.

Have you noticed that what seems easy to an enthusiastic person, to another one, immersed in a state of resignation, isn't even shown as a possibility? Our observer is colored by our moods and it is from this point of observation that we interpret life, act in the world and achieve results. I think that this point has been made clear already. Let's proceed.

As I write this, I'm in Bahia, Brazil, on holiday and therefore in the possibility of enjoying plenty of free time to just watch people, how they move, sit, get up, how they dress, how they hug each other, drive their cars and so on. What I see are individuals communicating in every movement, a particular mood, but also, or mainly, a collective spirit, a cultural, regional, social or family mood in which they are immersed. In this regard, I would like to mention the reading I did of Freud, at the end of the holidays, which touched me, confirming some of the observations I had previously made. According to him:

"Every individual is an integral part of many masses, it is multiply
connected by identification and built his ideal of self according to various models. Thus, each individual participates in many masses psyches, the one of his race, his class, his religious community, his state etc., and can, going beyond them, rise to a little fragment of independence and originality"1.

Brazil, actually, is so great in its geographical proportions and its regional diversities are so striking that is worthy to make a note here. We not only have several federal states that stand out enough from each other in accent and ways of being, as we also have a large difference between social classes, each one with their own culture, atmosphere and etiquette.

This “sea”, or let's say this "force field", which permeates the way of being and acting of an entire community "catches", or in other words, is communicable, transmissible by social contact and generally transparent to those who live in it. To gain awareness about it, recognizing where each spirit comes from is to conquer liberty, independence. It means to position yourself ahead of that organism. By the way, who walks "ahead of his time" always lives between leadership and marginality, since in not recognizing systems, circulates in an environment of freedom and creativity.

We can conclude then, that moods or soul states

1- Act within the dimension of our observer;
2- Differentiate themselves from emotions, functioning actually as the context in which these arise;
3- Can be individual or collective;
4- Are transmitted through contact;
5 - Usually invisible to those who are immersed in them.
6 – And that we can free ourselves, as we gain conscience, at least to a minimal degree, from the domination imposed by the collective.

There is one thing I want to point out in this analysis, which is the fact that to have dominion over the discourses within which we operate, we must first gain awareness about ourselves, our limits and our context, which is, we need to see what was before invisible to us. The processes that lead us to this discovery are often painful, because they take us out of our comfort zone, however, in this journey our consciousness expands and we find, at each transparency that we manage to see, more freedom, more soul and therefore, more space for compassion.

The challenge I faced during my stay in Brazil and the learning process to which I invite you, my reader, is to develop the habit of being more attentive to our individual moods, to the collective spirits which rule our families, communities and nations, as well as to the implications of this submission in our emotions, mind, body and in the world we create with our actions and consequent results.
1 FREUD, S. Psicologia das massas e análise do eu. 2014, p. 140.

Practicing Boundaries


Here at the School of Presence we are practicing BOUNDARIES this week.

And what is a boundary? A Boundary is a limit, a frontier. It is separation, division, distinction. If we think a bit deeper, we will end up facing that without limits relationships would not be possible, as there would not be "the other" to whom I could relate. LIMITS separate particles, organs and bodies from each other. Limits establish a sense of propriety and the space where exchanges can happen. Exchanges can only occur between distinct personalities. It needs the "otherness".

Having said that, it is worthy noting as well that talking about BOUNDARIES is also talking about TOLERANCE and its practical applications in our daily lives. When we talk about tolerance in general, we are talking about our duty to respect the dignity and the integrity of another person as a human-being. But tolerance is an abstract concept with many layers of application. Tolerating someone as a human-being, for example, doesn't mean that I need to invite him into my social zone. Having a healthy joyful convivence with friends and colleagues doesn't necessarily mean that I have to invite them into the more profound zone of intimacy. It is worthy noticing that these distinctions are not made geographically, but in our ontology, or in other words, in how we interact with each of these group of people.

Unclarity about these distinctions might generate conflicts within ourselves and others as people might raise false expectations about how to relate with us or mistaken interpretations about our limits.

A few points are clear to me so far. In my opinion:
- Limits are a constitutive part of our nature;
- They are helpful on the context of relationships, as they send a positive message of "I am here";
- They provide clarity, comfort and security to our interactions.

After this theoretical explanation, I want to propose a simple coaching exercise. Here it goes:

1- Observe yourself interacting in each of these zones;
2- How is your body posture with your family and intimate friends? is it the same as in your broader social zone? and how are you in your ‘common-ground’ zone?
3- How do you move in each of these spaces? What changes? Can you notice the difference?
4- Being clear about these limits generates in you a feeling of confidence or discomfort? or how do you feel about it? Why?
5- Are you owning your own circles or are you just immersed on the circles that cultural and family discourses have imposed on you?
6- In case you haven't done it yet, would you like to design your own circles? Take this picture as a model and write in each zone the names of people or environments you would like to have there.
7- Why do you think it is useful to do/or not to do this circles design?

Well, this was it for today. Much love and see you next time.

Practicing Individuality


I used to look at individualism as something negative, egoistic or at least as some sort of indifference. With time though I learned to look at it from a different perspective. I believe today that in order to have a healthy exchange with the world I first need to be whole as an individual! and it can only happen in the face of presence. Actually, individualism from an Ecological perspective, is precisely what has been giving space for the emergence in me of an independent but interconnected individuality.
Given this context, tomorrow I invite you to stand your ground with The School of Presence where we will be practicing Presence with the following breathing exercise:
- From 9:00 to 13:00, one session of 5 minutes each hour:
- Breath in: Presence
- Breath out: Prejudice
- Breath in: The feelings on my body
- Beath out: My projections of what would be the projections of others about me
- Breath in: The movement I am making now
- Breath out: The idealization of what I think I should be doing
- Breath in: What's happening right now
- Breath out: Social expectations
- Breath in: The open field of possibilities
- Breath out: pre conditioned routs
And so on, ok?

Practicing Composure and how Stability has been helping me to develop a stronger character

Olá! Clique aqui para ler este artigo em Português.

As beings who operate in this world in various ways, we are endowed with unique capabilities, "ways of being" which permeate whatever we do with our unique and individual energy. I will, most of the times, refer to these energies as "dispositions" for actions.

From the neutral state of just being in the moment, there are four general dispositions for actions through which we operate in the world.
  • Openess;
  • Flexibility;
  • Resolution
  • and Stability.
I could talk about them separately: about the range of possibilities that each one opens for us; on how to harmonize them and to manifest them in our ways of being in our bodies, on the way we move, think, act, speak and ultimately, on how we are in the world. However, my intention at this point is to present them just as an introduction to this post whose main purpose is to speak in more detail only about "stability" and what I have been learning from it.

I expose these thoughts while sitting in my chair. I am well dressed, my spine is straight and from my window I look at the horizon every now and then. The house is tidy, my appointments are schedulled and everything is well prepared in order for the day to proceed as safe and smooth as possible. If some unpredictable event occurs, I can appeal to my flexibility, which is the most immediate way of being for me, and to which I give myself comfortably, especially from the perspective that life is a sequence of unpredictable events that carry the wonderful potential to upgrade us into reality. But let us leave these digressions aside and concentrate on the lessons that we want to learn today.

1. "Stability" is a disposition for action commonly beneficial to princes, kings, or anyone occupying a leadership position, whether at a material or at a spiritual level. Those acting from this energy are not easily shaken by any wind or bad weather, as their long roots keep them firm in their proper place.

2. A stable character offers his beholder the quality of “sovereignty” which is, in this case, the awareness about the limits of his territory as well as his domain over it.

3. A sovereign is haughty. He observes his field from above and does not let himself be captured by the gears of the mechanisms that drive his state.

4. Mothers, housewives, teachers, administrators, or anyone playing a leadership role can benefit from this disposition.

5. In our bodies, a stable disposition for action is manifested most prominently in our firm legs, a little spaced; in a straight, elongated body; a haughty head and open eyes, that reaches the horizon, while also aware of its peripheral vision.

6. A good practice for invocation of this disposition is to keep the body as described, while imagining yourself as a tree, whose long roots keep you steadfast on your place and whose leafy branches are spread throughout your entire territory. You can also practice moving around with this energy. In more abstract terms, keep it grounded, acknowledging every step as a soft, but grounded and powerful conquest. Try to be mindful about the lowest parts of your body. If you also want to involve your voice on this exercise, experiment opening your mouth and freely speaking out whatever comes to your mind. It works better after you have been maintaining this energy for at least 5 minutes. You might be surprised by discovering a new depth in your voice tone.

7. Anyone who wants to benefit from this disposition, either because of a circumstantial challenge, or for a permanent function which occupies in life, may adopt practices to develop it, making it predominant or easily accessible.

New circumstances in my life, such as moving to the countryside and also new responsibilities with the growth of my children have put me in an existential position that has been favorable to the natural development of Stability in me. What have I learned from it?
 

Authenticity - The first thing to which I was called to do by Stability was to define myself as an individual in the world. The gain of awareness about my competences, as well as about the limits of my “territory” has been contributing for the development of a more authentic character on me. Not exactly the same type of authenticity that I previously knew from my open and flexible way, but a different one now, with a deeper dimension, more rooted, which imposes limits and occupies its proper place in space-time.
When I first heard about the different types of energies by which we operate, I've felt that Stability would be virtually impossible for me. That's because I thought by then that in order to develop a more stable character I should forge a stiff way of being, masked and in disconnection with my infinite being and with the natural flow of life. However, this is not what I am observing. Stability, from an ecological perspective, is precisely what has been giving space for the emergence in me of an independent but interconnected individuality.
A last consideration on this point is that by acting from Stability you are more likely to be proactive, instead of reactive in your interactions and relationships, which opens up new possibilities for actions, by breaking old, collective, vicious cycles of thoughts and emotions.

Freedom - Stability gives room for the birth of freedom in me and also in others, as it allows me to acknowledge and respect every expression of another human being. That's because the serenity I gain from being sure about myself gives others the freedom to just be themselves as well. A serene being, rather than being shaken by the winds of antipathy that repels, or sympathy that attracts, circulates through environments at a level above these emotional shocks, thus giving room for the truth of others to arise. This attitude is, to my eyes, a noble invitation for another human being to meet us at a higher level, on the dimension of the higher self or of the common good. The mastery on this skill gives his beholder a good sight of observation of himself, the world and life, without the need, in order for that to occur, to live retired at a monastery. We can say therefore, that this disposition of character is the most appropriate vestment for spiritual people who work outside their "monasteries", dealing with very different individuals and in various environments of the world.

Discretion - Stability has been teaching me to be discreet. To know about my roots and the quality of my branches and leaves, to feel the power of my trunk and after all, to be aware of my uniqueness, can only lead me to discretion.

Real discretion is the state of propriety of the being. It is also adequacy, discernment, the ability to decide about the appropriateness of each thing and also application of will. Among the forms of communication it is the softest and the one which is the closest to silence.

As for the vestment, discretion leads us to adapt to each environment in order for us to feel comfortable for the manifestation and stabilization of our being. Although discreet, a stable character normally dresses with elegance and distinction, which imbues his presence with the unique touch of his individuality.

Composure - I understand Composure as the most dignified face of elegance, or the guarantee of an essential minimum in the presence.

It is noteworthy that in my view Composure should always be considered from a context, fact that I conclude from the Latin origin of the word: "compositura" or "composition", that requires the arrangement of various parts into a harmonious whole, which can only be known by an observer who has at least some perspective of the work in progress.

Yet, Composure is the state that keeps our being within its own limits, thus preventing any deviation from truth to forging, from sobriety to exaggeration, or from dignity to arrogance.

Finally, it is worth considering Composure as the harmony that basically governs the presence, regaling his beholder with self-control and providing him the necessary tranquility for his effective and successful activities in the world.