I was running to the bathroom 20 to 25 times each and every day. My buttocks became so raw, I prayed to GOD constantly to relieve the punishing pain that I was forced to confront. It got so bad that I had to leave my job. And lost my health insurance as a result. The shots I required to keep the Crohn's dis-ease at bay were $3,000 a pop! Crazy, I know. So I applied for disability. After a six month waiting period in which you cannot work, I got the official letter of complete denial.
Believe it or not, things only got even more challenging. My little pup Nacho started peeing around the house like he was a firefighter in training. A trip to the vet revealed he had become diabetic and was going to need two insulin shots a day to live; and I can't stand needles. Aye dios mio!! To top it all off, a job I had really desired, and went through an extensive interview process for, completely fell through at the last moment. And if one more person tried to cheer me up with ‘This will all pass, Jeff,’ I thought I was going to go ballistic! FYI, telling someone everything they are going through will ‘pass’ when they are still smack dab in the middle of a storm should be saved for stomach and gargantuan gas attacks. NOT a complete life meltdown!! Yes, this too shall pass is eventually a wonderful epithet to pronounce, but please be respectful of the dignity of all others process. Just sayin'. LOL
Slowly, my heart started to sink and my faith completely crumbled. Every facet of my life was a total disaster and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't see a way out. Until one morning, 'Uncle D' (my not so affectionate name for full blown Depression) showed up at the front door, his bags in tow, giving me no signs of how long he planned on visiting this time.
One late night, just a few days later, I found myself sitting on the edge of my bed, racked with an aching heart and soul. The type of pain that makes it hard to breathe. I didn't feel like a failure, because that word didn't seem large enough to handle my current mind's narrative. My mind raced from one insanely torturous thought to another. All I knew for sure was that something had to change, or Uncle D would be taking me back home with him at the end of this stay.
As tears began to flow, I prayed to God to have mercy on me. I needed a sign that life was still worth living. I needed....anything.
A box of tissues were sitting on the top of a cabinet full of books next to the bed. I stood up to grab a handful, when the pristinely white jacket cover of ONE book on the shelf grabbed my attention with such an immediate intensity that it nearly started to lightly glow. With over 400 like minded tomes in my collection, this phenomenon of a book 'calling' to me was not new. But never before was it quite this consuming.
As I bent down for a closer examination, I saw the book's title was Pathways to Bliss by Joseph Campbell. Despite devouring books like this with a fervent passion over the previous 15 years, I had ironically never actually read anything by this author. I had bought the book on sale at Borders several years earlier, after seeing an interview with George Lucas in which he talked about how much Campbell's work had influenced him to write Star Wars. Little did I know how much this book was about to change my life.
As I began to dry my tear stained cheeks, I pulled the book from its resting place and brought it with me back to the edge of the bed. Miraculously, my mind stopped its racing, and I was able to focus on the words I was reading. He wrote about the attainment of Bliss, and how ‘the privilege of a lifetime is being who YOU are.’
But what absolutely struck at the core of my utter BEING was his explanation of what he termed ‘The Hero's Journey’. And how everything that life brings us is no thing short of EXACTLY what we need in order to fulfill our CALLING here on Earth. Of course I had heard of the Hero's Journey during my previous travels. But this time, I REALLY HEARD IT. Truly understood its meaning with a ferocity of acceptance and purposeful enlightenment. I wasn't a failure. In fact, ‘just the opposite’, I thought. If I had gone through THIS much suffering and pain so far in my life, then my own Hero's Journey must be pretty big. I had always believed I was here to be a guide to assist others on their warriors path, but now, I KNEW IT. Big difference!!
Earlier that year, the final chapter of director Christopher Nolan's brilliant Batman trilogy had hit theaters. And The Dark Knight had become my spiritual totem. Just as I finished this book that further proves Mr. Campbell's deep connection with the "Power of Myth,"
it was as if I got a tip tap touch on my shoulder. And I truly felt the energetic essence of The Batman himSELF! It was as if he was attempting to BE in full allowance of me "BORROWING HIS BELIEF." His strength and perseverance. His gritty guts. His slavish KNOWINGNESS in himSELF! I recalled the now iconic quote from Batman Begins. "Why do we fall Bruce. So we can learn to pick ourSELFS back up." TRUTH! Hi ho cheery oh. And "Holy Guacamole Robin." ;0)
He literally transformed his own ardent BELIEF into MY essence! I became filled with a KNOWINGNESS of my own super powers. And I instantly resonated with the 1977 super smash of a song from Chuck Mangione, "It Feels So Good." (quick side note. Mr. Mangione actually created a Number 1 hit on the Billboard charts with no thing but a fugal horn. Proof in the proverbial pudding that literally ANYTHING is possible!) ;0)
It was then that I realized the magnificent and disruptive power of creating a "Master Mind Group." For wherever two or more gather, MIRACLES will be birthed!
And I have been borrowing not only the power of belief, but all of the many filled wondrous super powers from others ever since. And my life has never been the same ..........
SUPERHEROES IN TRAINING TAKEAWAYS:
Perhaps the most effective manner in which to harness the "Power of Borrowed Belief',"
is through the use of a Master Mind group. This concept was first introduced to me about 20 years ago from a man in which I have a gi-normous bromance with; none other than Napoleon Hill. He stole my headstrong heart after I finishing reading his absolute masterpiece in the self growth world, Think and Grow Rich. (Mandatory reading for all my New Age Nerds!) You may thank me later. ;0) Although it was in 2012 that I began incorporating this into my self actualization.
In the 13th chapter of his "piece de resistance,' he fleshes out the very clear
instructional guidance of which to co-create a Master Mind group. And my strong suggestion is to incorporate his teachings into your own self realization practices.
Hill explains in this chapter the exact manner in which he first started incorporating and harnessing the "Power of Borrowing Others Belief."
While I was passing though the age of "hero worship" I found myself trying to imitate those whom I most admired. Moreover I discovered that the element of faith, with which I endeavored to imitate my idols, gave me great capacity to do so quite successfully.
Long before I had ever written a line for publication, or endeared to deliver a speech in public, I followed the habit of reshaping my own character by trying to imitate the nine men whose lives and life works had been most impressive to me. These nine men were Emerson, Paine, Edison, Darwin, Lincoln, Burbank, Napoleon, Ford and Carnegie. Every night, over a long period of years, I held an imaginary council meeting with this group whom I called my "Invisible Counselors."
The procedure was this. Just before going to sleep that night, I would shut my eyes and see, in my imagination, this group of men seated with me around my council table. Here I had not only the opportunity to sit among those whom I considered to be great, but I actually dominated the group serving as the Chairman.
Hill goes on to explain how during these "imaginary" meetings, he would call upon all the nine men, harnessing from them their specialized knowledge and precise intellect. The very qualities that skyrocketed them as true iconoclasts in their chosen fields of being/doingness.
These requisite super powers included:
Inspiration from Napoleon
The ability to harness and harmonize "The Laws of Nature" from Burbank
The patience and ability to study cause and effect from Darwin
Lincoln's keen sense of justice
The conviction that helped to define the mark made by Paine
The ability to harness magic from the illusionary aspect of Nature from Emerson
Ford's persistence and perseverance
And Edison's unwavering faith
Hill goes on to write, "After some months of this nightly procedure , I was astounded by the discovery that these imaginary figures, became, apparently, real."
Hill continued to add further members to these nightly nebulas of meetings. Until the number climbed well past 50! The culmination of Hill infusing his nights with these "Invisible Council" meetings was a late night meeting with 'Lincoln.' Lincoln informed him of how crucial it was from Hill to finally take his work out into the world. A world that Lincoln pronounced needed his findings and wicked wisdom.
Now, while Hill stresses the magic turned MIRACLES that derived from these imaginary encounters, he equally impresses on his readers the critical importance of developing a Master Mind group "in the flesh." It is a scientifically proven fact that the five individuals that you include in your own Master Mind-Inner Circle will be the biggest factor in determining your success and happiness! BAM! LOL
In fact, I have my own two sets of Master Mind groups. One is of the imaginary ilk. (although imaginary to me means 'in image' of True Perception - meaning this image
in it's truest form) And one in the earthly flesh. Wanna know who is in my True Perception group?! Thought so! LOL My list of Super Iconoclasts includes:
My father
Jesus The Christ
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Joseph Campbell
Albert Einstein
The Batman
Abraham Lincoln
George Washington
Napoleon Hill
Gandhi
Chiron
Wayne Dyer
Bruce Lee
Thomas Jefferson
The Three Elders
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Walt Whitman
Mother Theresa
Superman
Stan Lee
Benjamin Franklin
Fred Rogers
Freddie Mercury
Henry David Thoreau
John Denver
Michael Jackson
William Shakespeare
Socrates
Muhammed Ali
Prince
I convene with them whenever I am seeking any form of instructional guidance. Inspiration. Strength. And 'boy oh boy' do we co-create some tantalizing transcendental TRUTH!! My suggestion is for all you New Age Nerds to take some time to ruminate on who YOU would desire to call forth into your own "Board of Bliss." And then begin to have your very own coaching sessions with all of your chosen Spiritual Spinsters. I think in time, it will infuse you with understand and a KNOWINGESS unlike anything you have experienced before in earthly experience!
And same goes for creating a Master Mind group of the "Close Encounter" variety.
There are many ways to BE/DO this. If you are fortunate enough to have a TRIBE of very like minded friends, choose which of them you feel energetically drawn to invite into you inner circle. But PLEASE choose very wisely! For once again - I cannot emphasize this enough - the individuals that YOU call forth into your Master Mind/Inner Circle will be the most potent part of the ingredients that will co-create your happiness and abundance in all its forms into your experience!! This has been studied and scientifically proven. For example, if the sum average of fiscal abundance of your group is $40,000, then you will inherently average making $40,000 too! Hopefully that fact will further guide you in your decision making process.
Other areas you can leverage to find members for this group is Facebook, (there are Master Mind groups to be harvested there) as well as simply Googling Master Mind - and then the area in which you reside - and such groups will pop up for you to further investigate!
Incorporating these practices of "Borrowing Belief" from the power that is generated from SOURCE whenever two or more is gathered is life altering. Again, it is NOT just BELIEF that you will be sharing with one another. It is the totality of abundance in all its forms that will be co-created. Please have the KNOWINGNESS that I deeply care and LOVE each and everyone of you. And I BELIEVE in you more than you may currently comprehend. So please feel free to "Borrow My Belief-Knowingness" in you ALWAYS! May these suggestions serve the highest good of all concerned in your inner circle...........
BE SUPER HEROIC!
Nerdmaste,
Jeffery Louis Martinez
Slowly, my heart started to sink and my faith completely crumbled. Every facet of my life was a total disaster and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't see a way out. Until one morning, 'Uncle D' (my not so affectionate name for full blown Depression) showed up at the front door, his bags in tow, giving me no signs of how long he planned on visiting this time.
One late night, just a few days later, I found myself sitting on the edge of my bed, racked with an aching heart and soul. The type of pain that makes it hard to breathe. I didn't feel like a failure, because that word didn't seem large enough to handle my current mind's narrative. My mind raced from one insanely torturous thought to another. All I knew for sure was that something had to change, or Uncle D would be taking me back home with him at the end of this stay.
As tears began to flow, I prayed to God to have mercy on me. I needed a sign that life was still worth living. I needed....anything.
A box of tissues were sitting on the top of a cabinet full of books next to the bed. I stood up to grab a handful, when the pristinely white jacket cover of ONE book on the shelf grabbed my attention with such an immediate intensity that it nearly started to lightly glow. With over 400 like minded tomes in my collection, this phenomenon of a book 'calling' to me was not new. But never before was it quite this consuming.
As I bent down for a closer examination, I saw the book's title was Pathways to Bliss by Joseph Campbell. Despite devouring books like this with a fervent passion over the previous 15 years, I had ironically never actually read anything by this author. I had bought the book on sale at Borders several years earlier, after seeing an interview with George Lucas in which he talked about how much Campbell's work had influenced him to write Star Wars. Little did I know how much this book was about to change my life.
As I began to dry my tear stained cheeks, I pulled the book from its resting place and brought it with me back to the edge of the bed. Miraculously, my mind stopped its racing, and I was able to focus on the words I was reading. He wrote about the attainment of Bliss, and how ‘the privilege of a lifetime is being who YOU are.’
But what absolutely struck at the core of my utter BEING was his explanation of what he termed ‘The Hero's Journey’. And how everything that life brings us is no thing short of EXACTLY what we need in order to fulfill our CALLING here on Earth. Of course I had heard of the Hero's Journey during my previous travels. But this time, I REALLY HEARD IT. Truly understood its meaning with a ferocity of acceptance and purposeful enlightenment. I wasn't a failure. In fact, ‘just the opposite’, I thought. If I had gone through THIS much suffering and pain so far in my life, then my own Hero's Journey must be pretty big. I had always believed I was here to be a guide to assist others on their warriors path, but now, I KNEW IT. Big difference!!
Earlier that year, the final chapter of director Christopher Nolan's brilliant Batman trilogy had hit theaters. And The Dark Knight had become my spiritual totem. Just as I finished this book that further proves Mr. Campbell's deep connection with the "Power of Myth,"
it was as if I got a tip tap touch on my shoulder. And I truly felt the energetic essence of The Batman himSELF! It was as if he was attempting to BE in full allowance of me "BORROWING HIS BELIEF." His strength and perseverance. His gritty guts. His slavish KNOWINGNESS in himSELF! I recalled the now iconic quote from Batman Begins. "Why do we fall Bruce. So we can learn to pick ourSELFS back up." TRUTH! Hi ho cheery oh. And "Holy Guacamole Robin." ;0)
He literally transformed his own ardent BELIEF into MY essence! I became filled with a KNOWINGNESS of my own super powers. And I instantly resonated with the 1977 super smash of a song from Chuck Mangione, "It Feels So Good." (quick side note. Mr. Mangione actually created a Number 1 hit on the Billboard charts with no thing but a fugal horn. Proof in the proverbial pudding that literally ANYTHING is possible!) ;0)
It was then that I realized the magnificent and disruptive power of creating a "Master Mind Group." For wherever two or more gather, MIRACLES will be birthed!
And I have been borrowing not only the power of belief, but all of the many filled wondrous super powers from others ever since. And my life has never been the same ..........
SUPERHEROES IN TRAINING TAKEAWAYS:
Perhaps the most effective manner in which to harness the "Power of Borrowed Belief',"
is through the use of a Master Mind group. This concept was first introduced to me about 20 years ago from a man in which I have a gi-normous bromance with; none other than Napoleon Hill. He stole my headstrong heart after I finishing reading his absolute masterpiece in the self growth world, Think and Grow Rich. (Mandatory reading for all my New Age Nerds!) You may thank me later. ;0) Although it was in 2012 that I began incorporating this into my self actualization.
In the 13th chapter of his "piece de resistance,' he fleshes out the very clear
instructional guidance of which to co-create a Master Mind group. And my strong suggestion is to incorporate his teachings into your own self realization practices.
Hill explains in this chapter the exact manner in which he first started incorporating and harnessing the "Power of Borrowing Others Belief."
While I was passing though the age of "hero worship" I found myself trying to imitate those whom I most admired. Moreover I discovered that the element of faith, with which I endeavored to imitate my idols, gave me great capacity to do so quite successfully.
Long before I had ever written a line for publication, or endeared to deliver a speech in public, I followed the habit of reshaping my own character by trying to imitate the nine men whose lives and life works had been most impressive to me. These nine men were Emerson, Paine, Edison, Darwin, Lincoln, Burbank, Napoleon, Ford and Carnegie. Every night, over a long period of years, I held an imaginary council meeting with this group whom I called my "Invisible Counselors."
The procedure was this. Just before going to sleep that night, I would shut my eyes and see, in my imagination, this group of men seated with me around my council table. Here I had not only the opportunity to sit among those whom I considered to be great, but I actually dominated the group serving as the Chairman.
Hill goes on to explain how during these "imaginary" meetings, he would call upon all the nine men, harnessing from them their specialized knowledge and precise intellect. The very qualities that skyrocketed them as true iconoclasts in their chosen fields of being/doingness.
These requisite super powers included:
Inspiration from Napoleon
The ability to harness and harmonize "The Laws of Nature" from Burbank
The patience and ability to study cause and effect from Darwin
Lincoln's keen sense of justice
The conviction that helped to define the mark made by Paine
The ability to harness magic from the illusionary aspect of Nature from Emerson
Ford's persistence and perseverance
And Edison's unwavering faith
Hill goes on to write, "After some months of this nightly procedure , I was astounded by the discovery that these imaginary figures, became, apparently, real."
Hill continued to add further members to these nightly nebulas of meetings. Until the number climbed well past 50! The culmination of Hill infusing his nights with these "Invisible Council" meetings was a late night meeting with 'Lincoln.' Lincoln informed him of how crucial it was from Hill to finally take his work out into the world. A world that Lincoln pronounced needed his findings and wicked wisdom.
Now, while Hill stresses the magic turned MIRACLES that derived from these imaginary encounters, he equally impresses on his readers the critical importance of developing a Master Mind group "in the flesh." It is a scientifically proven fact that the five individuals that you include in your own Master Mind-Inner Circle will be the biggest factor in determining your success and happiness! BAM! LOL
In fact, I have my own two sets of Master Mind groups. One is of the imaginary ilk. (although imaginary to me means 'in image' of True Perception - meaning this image
in it's truest form) And one in the earthly flesh. Wanna know who is in my True Perception group?! Thought so! LOL My list of Super Iconoclasts includes:
My father
Jesus The Christ
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Joseph Campbell
Albert Einstein
The Batman
Abraham Lincoln
George Washington
Napoleon Hill
Gandhi
Chiron
Wayne Dyer
Bruce Lee
Thomas Jefferson
The Three Elders
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Walt Whitman
Mother Theresa
Superman
Stan Lee
Benjamin Franklin
Fred Rogers
Freddie Mercury
Henry David Thoreau
John Denver
Michael Jackson
William Shakespeare
Socrates
Muhammed Ali
Prince
I convene with them whenever I am seeking any form of instructional guidance. Inspiration. Strength. And 'boy oh boy' do we co-create some tantalizing transcendental TRUTH!! My suggestion is for all you New Age Nerds to take some time to ruminate on who YOU would desire to call forth into your own "Board of Bliss." And then begin to have your very own coaching sessions with all of your chosen Spiritual Spinsters. I think in time, it will infuse you with understand and a KNOWINGESS unlike anything you have experienced before in earthly experience!
And same goes for creating a Master Mind group of the "Close Encounter" variety.
There are many ways to BE/DO this. If you are fortunate enough to have a TRIBE of very like minded friends, choose which of them you feel energetically drawn to invite into you inner circle. But PLEASE choose very wisely! For once again - I cannot emphasize this enough - the individuals that YOU call forth into your Master Mind/Inner Circle will be the most potent part of the ingredients that will co-create your happiness and abundance in all its forms into your experience!! This has been studied and scientifically proven. For example, if the sum average of fiscal abundance of your group is $40,000, then you will inherently average making $40,000 too! Hopefully that fact will further guide you in your decision making process.
Other areas you can leverage to find members for this group is Facebook, (there are Master Mind groups to be harvested there) as well as simply Googling Master Mind - and then the area in which you reside - and such groups will pop up for you to further investigate!
Incorporating these practices of "Borrowing Belief" from the power that is generated from SOURCE whenever two or more is gathered is life altering. Again, it is NOT just BELIEF that you will be sharing with one another. It is the totality of abundance in all its forms that will be co-created. Please have the KNOWINGNESS that I deeply care and LOVE each and everyone of you. And I BELIEVE in you more than you may currently comprehend. So please feel free to "Borrow My Belief-Knowingness" in you ALWAYS! May these suggestions serve the highest good of all concerned in your inner circle...........
BE SUPER HEROIC!
Nerdmaste,
Jeffery Louis Martinez
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