The process of life comes down to the management and direction of energy. After all, our lifetimes are determined by the finitude of our energy supplies. What we accomplish is determined, in part, by where we direct our energy.
I've talked about increasing the flow of energy, by releasing blockages, and by preserving energy by stopping energy draining activities, thought loops, and taking power back from vampires.
I want to talk a little now about the directing of energy.
The second chakra energy is the one of the most potent, palpable energies of all. This translates into sexual energy, but it also can be expressed in other ways.
The sexual act is profound, energetically, in that it is the overlapping of two individual energy fields. Once this merger occurs, there is always a thread there, more or less anchored in, some say forever. I've noticed that the more sexual partners someone has had, the more difficult it can be to reconnect to the body consciousness, because often it has been disconnected willingly, to get through repeated intimate situations, some less aligned than others. The idea of borders and boundaries begins to dissolve.
People have moved across the world, given up everything, forged families, and broken families apart... all for the sexual lure. It is an act heavily laden with karmic potentiality. And one of the most beautiful expressions of human aliveness.
In general, activities that might otherwise be empowering and foster connection, become disempowering when used to fill a void, or to satiate an addiction. We are programmed in our culture to view sex in this way. This is evident if you consider the predominant language of sexuality; to 'get' laid; to 'have' sex, for instance. Ego gratification. As opposed to 'making love.'
There's a chapter in FLOW: An Illuminated Training Manual around this topic, which was also published as an article on Elephant Journal.
The reason I bring this up now, is because much of the rush of the sexual, creative energy is so powerful that we don't often know what to do with it. We don't always have an empowering outlet, for instance, and often can use substances to numb what we don't want to feel or deal with.
As the vitality increases, and the levels of energy rise, there will invariably be more creative life force. This can be mitigated somewhat by a fruit cleanse, which seems to decrease libido, at least for durations, and increase energy. But instead of turning away from lust, I encourage you to find other avenues for expression (part of the path of Tantric tradition).
The creative act is another way to engage the second chakra energy. In each moment, we are creating something, through our way of being, our thoughts, our actions. In still moments, this will begins to churn.
Budden Training Suggestion:
Devote time to a creative practice. It doesn't matter what it is... simply use your body to express your deepest truths. You can either take up something you've done in the past, or take up something new. It could be anything, from knitting to dance; a musical instrument, painting, writing, songwriting.
I've noticed that choosing an area in which you have no experience can be empowering, because you will be able to go into the discomfort and enter 'beginner's mind,' without so many considerations of the ego.
You can also use the creative act as a ritual to release and unbind yourself from the past, by creating an homage to a past lover, or writing a poem to a deceased parent, for instance. This is the effective direction of energy.
Take conscious time off from sexual intercourse or masturbation. Reroute this energy into creative endeavors... you'll be stunned at what can be achieved. Once the channels open in this way, you may decide you want to keep those outlets in your life, and you'll be less plagued by endless lust.
Learn a meditation or a practice that puts you in touch with the flowing life force (Tai Chi or some of Mantak Chia's Taoist meditation), so that as you reroute that energy, you become more and more aware of what it feels like, and what becomes possible. In some schools of Tai Chi, they say you cannot make progress while you are orgasming, for instance, because you are losing vital life force, and hence your excess Chi cannot be used for the art.
Pour your life force into something that expresses your essence, and that energy loops back around and nourishes you and those around you. Also, the unconscious can be accessed in deep ways through the creative act, especially when approached with the openness of a child.
Carl Jung would devote a few hours every morning in his elder years simply freeform drawing whatever images were with him at the time. He writes that he was often able to create an emotional cathartic moment through these activities. I use him as an example of someone who went from living within rather traditional paradigms to forging his own truth, and getting back in touch with the archetypal human impulses.
You are a creative being, by nature. You've even created this world you're standing in. Imagine that.
In Truth,
Steven Budden
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