“When faced with a challenging task or circumstance, the difference between joy and terror is technique. Skilled surfers celebrate a giant wave; novices are stricken with fear!” – Nevine Michaan.
7 is my right hand, my instrument to accomplish and explore the explicit. It is my hand of skill and training. A well-developed hand can mediate and manipulate. 7 is the hand of second nature. Hands mediate between stability, time and imagination; I make effort and hold grace, I can grip and let go, I can make and untangle. Through training, I can use what I am born with in my first nature and develop skills so I can efficiently and effectively handle my circumstances.
Room 5 is my third hand. Making contact between my explicit first and second nature allows me to access my implicit third nature, my subtle body. (For example, when I clasp my hands together to form a firm webbing, I create another ground of being.) I use my inheritance (3) and training (7), to engender the implicit (5) – my centered self in the middle. It is my consciousness surrounded by circumstances. I cross reference to reveal the portal to room 5, the center mediating circumference and the space between. To study this in-depth, I focus on Nevine’s glyph above.
Room 3 is my left hand. It handles home, family and where I articulate and ventilate my emotions. It is the hand of the heart, my commitments in marriage and my friendships. For instance, my right hand learns to write and my left hand supports it.
After applying this to my whole body, I can apply this to each part of my body in the same way as each is a fractal. For example, I can focus on my left hand and each has the 9 rooms. I apply the Magic Square on this fractal.
Ability is being able to handle the circumstances that I am in because the Universe is functional and despite the vicissitudes of life, I can use my insight into its patterns and use it to my advantage. It is not that the weather is too cold or too hot, it is about having the right gear to face it!
With the three strands of potential (first nature) 3, training (second nature) 7, and personal mediation (third nature) 5, I produce a braid that is an intertwined reality. By the use of proper techniques, I can weave my narrative thread on my personal hero’s journey and find joy. I am able to live a life of radiance, become fully present in the moment and actively participate in the beauty and wonder of the universe!
Up next: Vision
Glyphs and Maps by Nevine Michaan/Susan Fierro katonahyoga.com
Note: Teachings, metaphor and language of Katonah Yoga by Nevine Michaan and her teachers. Omissions and errors are all mine.