Personal development: The power of accepting our mortality October 1, 2017
Posted by Dennis Mellersh in Personal Development Potential.Tags: achieving goals, Carlos Castaneda, inspiration, life, personal growth, philosophy, self-actualization, writing
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It may be possible that we could fall short of reaching our full potential because we often act as if we are going to live forever; and because of that tendency we do not make a concerted effort to change.
This is one of the life lessons that Carlos Castaneda tries to convey through the following reported “conversation” with the shaman Don Juan Matus, who admonishes Castaneda:
“You think your life is going to last forever.”
“No, I don’t”
“Then, if you don’t think your life is going to last forever, what are you waiting for? Why the hesitation to change?”
This is a tough message.
For most of us, accepting our mortality and the very real brevity of our lives is something we put beneath the surface of our active thinking as we go about our everyday lives.
But we are going to die, and as Don Juan reminds us, “There is no power which could guarantee that you are going to live one more minute.”
What then, should we do?
“Trust your personal power. That’s all one has in this whole mysterious world,” Don Juan advises.
This verbal exchange* takes place in Carlos Castaneda’s book, Journey to Ixtlan: The Lessons of Don Juan. It is one of a series Castaneda wrote on “the teachings of Don Juan.”
They are intriguing and challenging books, featuring a lot of provocative advice on personal behaviour patterns and ways to develop our personal power.
* There is some discussion/debate as to whether this series of books by Castaneda should be considered as anthropology, as literature, or as a combination of both. It is a remarkable series, which some people have found transformative.
— Dennis Mellersh
Personal growth: The inner rewards of in-depth knowledge August 31, 2017
Posted by Dennis Mellersh in Personal Development Potential.Tags: achieving goals, Carl Jung, Insipiration, life, philosophy, self-actualization, self-esteem, writing
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In the internal work we do towards achieving our personal development potential, there can be great satisfaction in having full command over one aspect of our studies.
We often achieve significant mastery in the work we do to earn a living. We become experts in our vocation.
But because of the seemingly endless/alternate approaches to personal success and the overall complexity of the general topic of self-improvement, it can sometimes seem that we are putting in a lot of effort, but not making much progress towards achieving our goals.
We might say that all of our work “makes us a better person” but we still seek something more definitive and concrete.
Carl Jung in writing about psychology said:
“Our profession is such that one has to deal with many subjects. But this gives one the feeling of being an amateur in all things. That is why I wanted to study at least one area thoroughly down to its roots – and that (area) was alchemy.”
Perhaps we should each choose one area of personal development to investigate and study it more thoroughly.
Doing so might help us reach a new level of fulfilment in our journey.
— Dennis Mellersh
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