The Way Of The Middle

“Which side are you on?” No need to choose a side. Walk in the middle of the road. Why choose your camp? To cut the world in two, and prepare rivalries between the blocks? A warrior doesn’t belong to any. The Way of the Middle is his best choice, the way of wisdom.

In the shaman’s way, especially in the nagualism of Castaneda, the Middle Way or Middle Path refers to a particular behavior, that should be adopted to avoid the discrepancy of both right and left. We described this inner attitude here.

 In Kundalini yoga, the Middle Way means the main channel of subtle energy, sushumna, the central conduit through which the kundalini rises for enlightenment. The symbol of caduceus express the same energetic scheme. The Middle Way also designates this energetic process by which the individual becomes a person.

For Islam, stay in the middle lane is a great victory over self, the fulfillment of Jihad:holy war “The greatest jihad you have to fight is with yourself,” said prophet Muhammad. The pure Jihadists will therefore be self-competing warriors. The greatest Jihad is to continually track yourself, as are truth seekers and other rainbow warriors. A true understanding of Jihad could build a bridge between different religions and beliefs, which would only benefit to Islam. “Jihad is an introspection that allows you to see what to change deep within ourselves to get to stay on the Middle Way.” (source)Vie spirituelle

The Middle Way fits in all ideologies. This is a possible core for all religions. It manifests in this particular state of brain, the alpha wave. Clearly, Muhammad said that can be translated as that which remains in the rational world, the everyday routine, no salvation. A person who remains in the dream world, and hovering in the immensity of immaterial unreality, no salvation either.

But he who lives in alpha wave, who uses his two brains, but none of priority, that one will experience enlightenment. Ultimately, with other words, Muhammad said the same thing that Carlos Castaneda. For Castaneda, we have two very different perspectives to contemplate reality. He calls the tonal and the nagual, he also says “right side” and “left side”. A parallel was often made between these two sides of the person and the two hemispheres of the brain. It’s fair and it’s not. If there is a report terms must be reversed because the left side of Castaneda is the right hemisphere of the brain and the right side is the left hemisphere. Inversion is not surprising, since the hemispheres, too, are reversed relative to the sides of the body.

Which way the dancer turns?

The Spinning Dancer is a kinetic, bistable optical illusion resembling a pirouetting female dancer. Some observers initially see the figure as spinning clockwise and some anticlockwise. Additionally, some may see the figure suddenly spin in the opposite direction. The illusion derives from an inherent ambiguity from the lack of visual cues for depth. There are other optical illusions that originate from the same or similar kind of visual ambiguity, such as the Necker cube.

If the dancer turns anticlockwise, then you use most often your left brain. The left brain, simply put, is the logic brain, the right side or tonal in Castaneda. You belong to the mostpart of humankind. Many of the ideas expressed here are really shocking to you.

If it rotates in a clockwise, you prefer the right brain: you are familiar with the Nagual of Castaneda, you are looking for magical powers, you like creativity, irrationality. Both ways lead to excess.

The middle path is in-between. Wanna try? Stare at the dancer, make her change direction at will. The more you’ll get there, the more fluidity you gain. Second step: stop accommodate your vision. Your eyes become blurred, until you see two dancers. Try to run one in one direction and the other in reverse.

Your state of “mind” is very close to the alpha wave. Beware of self-hypnosis or loss of balance! Practise makes perfect: try, just a little bit harder. It is a good way to stay right in the middle between the two hemispheres.

The thing is possible, although it is not taught, which is a shame. Right brain and left brain are connected by the corpus callosum, or mesentery.The word is old, but so cute! Reality is more technical. Imagine a bundle of electrical cables which handle large amounts of information.

Instead of constant exchange between the two hemispheres, a bridge between logic and creativity, the corpus callosum is a bit inside the web. By changing the direction of the dance, you learn to just take in this web. You don’t think anymore with one or the other hemispheres, you use both at once. That is the secret.

That is the key to the alpha wave: in this state, which is known as the first phase of sleep, the warrior manages to be conscious of his dreams, and to control them. He has only to keep on the Middle Way, without deviating neither to right nor to left side. The warrior must practice the art of moderation, Castaneda has learned to his cost. Moderation of passion, temperance, avoidance of excess …

Measure your degree of brain acuity, or if you prefer your ability to resist illusions. For that I propose you this small easy test. The picture above is not a spiral. Check for yourself if you do not believe me. So ? We change our mind? Only fools do not change. All the same, it makes you think. How many times did my conditioned brain roll me in the flour? Do I observe impartially, or do I let myself be influenced by what I have already seen a hundred times?

In the Tarot of Marseilles, the arcane XIIII – Temperance presided over the opening of the chakras, the arcane XV –  the Devil. With her tightrope between her jugs, defying physics,Temperance shows us the Middle Lane.

A High Rate Meditation

Thus the Middle Way is the art of equanimity and control. “Being aware of your strength while keeping as smooth as a woman will put the Tao in your hands.” Of course Lao Tzu spoke of the old days woman, the daughter of Eve, not that of Lilith …

Lucidity is the meeting place of consciousness and sensuality.