When you say these two words, energy & consciousness, what comes to mind for you? They are two words that have certainly gained some traction over the past few decades as the focus on personal and spiritual development has become more mainstream and accessible; particularly with the help of social media and the internet.
If we played a game of ‘Definitions’ and had to write our own definitions of what they mean to us, I am sure that there would be a myriad of answers.
ENERGY
The English dictionary defines ‘Energy’ (Noun) as:
Intensity or vitality of action or expression; forcefulness
Capacity or tendency for intense activity; vigour
The capacity of a body or system to do work
A measure of this capacity, expressed as the work that it does in changing to some specified reference state. It is measured in joules (SI units)
Energy & Consciousness : A Source Of Power
From my perspective of writing about, and working with, spiritual growth or spiritual journeying, I would say that for me, ‘energy’ is something that I can use, gain, exchange and share in positive or negative ways.
It is something that is as tangible for me as a feeling or knowing, but something that is not such an easy thing to ‘see’.
With some ‘gift’ or training it is possible to see different types of energy when one is focused on doing so, but generally it is something that is felt, either through the more common five senses, or with other ones that we have.
The etheric body for instance is an ‘energy’ form and can be ‘seen’ within this context. It is something that can be ‘seen’ and measured.
I once facilitated an art class in nature with about twenty teenage school children (in a Steiner School) where I asked them to focus their attention on the ‘etheric’ energy of some leaves on a nearby bush and then to draw what they experienced and ‘saw’.
Each drawing was very similar. Each drawing expressed and displayed similar colours and energy flows. The children were very excited and they shared with me several weeks later that some of them had continued to practice ‘seeing’ energy.
This is a simple way to show that this energy stuff is real!
When I tune into my own energy or energy field I can become aware of how I am ‘feeling’. I like to challenge myself to create a place to aim for each day in my life; a place to operate and live from in terms of my energy.
It is also one of the things that I like to share and challenge my students and clients to do too. You have probably heard of, and perhaps even use, the 80/20 principle.
This is where you do things 80 percent of the time as a ‘good’ measure and allow 20 percent for ‘other’ or ‘growth’ time. I did this for many years and over the past few years I have shifted this equation up and up incrementally.
Now I like to aim for what I call the 92/8 principle in all that I do. Yes, it is a big jump and a big ask and focus but I have done this steadily over the past 25 years. And I do not always get it right!
I challenge myself in this by doing my daily activities and staying aware, as much as I can, on holding my energy frequency in the highest state that I can.
This is with the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual aspects of myself. I know that when I slip out of a routine or let my energy drop, there is always a consequence that I must deal with, so, for me it is all about choice and how I choose to ‘hold’ my energy each day.
It is not an easy path and there are many times that I feel like curling up under the doona for a week! Sometimes I do this for a few hours!
As human being’s we have various energies in and around us and we can make good use of them when we choose to do so.
Learn more in our holistic health articles Energy Consciousness Health – Change Your Energy Change Your Health and our FREE holistic health magazine Energy and Defining Consciousness
Sayings and Phrases
Sayings and phrases such as ‘He (or she) is taking my energy’, She (or he) has a very high (or low) energy’ are common things that I work with in my line of work and what I try to explain and work with is that nobody can take our energy, we can only choose (consciously or subconsciously) to give it away.
When we get to know, understand and use our energies in an empowering way this becomes a bit easier.
Energy healing or energy balancing is a thing that is becoming much more common and accepted (again) in the western world. All sorts of systems and modalities are now available and each one can be (when used and delivered effectively) very beneficial.
For me, it is mostly about ‘who’ is using or delivering the work and not so much about ‘what’ it is, although that does carry some importance for me too.
My personal take is, if the person is not (highly) trained then I do not open myself up to receiving what they are offering as I am very aware of what I need or desire and I am also aware of the frequency or level at which I like to operate, play and work with.
I like to be matched energetically as much as possible to the person giving or facilitating the process. If they have a higher energy that is great, as I can then challenge myself to go there too.
That is my own personal values system and I believe that it is a great one to have. It makes my boundaries and focus very clear for me and the people that I choose to work with.
Sometimes it is also about working with people who are ‘learning’ to raise their frequency or energy and then in general the ‘teacher’ or ‘mentor’ in me comes into the equation, even if this is done subtly.
Consciousness Meaning
The English dictionary defines ‘Consciousness’ (Noun) as:
(Consciousness as understanding) the state of understanding and realizing something
The ideas, beliefs, or opinions held by a group of people
The state of being awake
One’s conscious thoughts
For me, the deeper aspect of the word or meaning of ‘Consciousness’, is when I use it to describe or work with spiritual or soul consciousness.
Having the capacity to know or ‘see’ when one is in a state of (higher) consciousness, being able to observe oneself in one’s thoughts, feelings, actions and behaviours, is a very empowering thing to have. I call this the ‘Sense of Self’.
It is one of the 12 senses that I work with on my journey of personal and spiritual development. This comes from the work and initiatives of Rudolf Steiner (1863-1925).
If we bring the spot light onto this word ‘Consciousness’ and try to grasp a deeper meaning of it, we can go down many rabbit holes.
One rabbit hole that I like to go down is the one connected to Anthroposophy and the work and insights of Rudolf Steiner, which I have been studying and working with now for 25 years.
In the Anthroposophical ‘model’ of the Human Soul we speak of three aspects of the Soul; the Intellectual Soul, the Sentient (Feeling) Soul and the Consciousness Soul.
These three aspects of our being are enveloped in our Astral or Soul Body and each one can be explored, studied and worked with to bring us to more consciousness about who and what we are as individuals and as a human race.
The Consciousness Soul is the aspect of ourselves that can (and does) work with our ‘morals’ with all that we think, feel and do. It is generally more about the ‘doing’ or ‘action’ aspect of us.
It is the aspect of our soul that we can observe and use to help us to be more morally conscious human being’s.
When we become more aware of this soul aspect we can then do daily exercises to heighten our senses and consciousness to support ourselves and the greater good of humanity.
In my book ‘Where Am ‘I’ Right Now?’ physically – emotionally – mentally – spiritually, I offer several exercises to support people to do this. One small exercise that I offer to help raise our vibration or frequency is to look at our habits and addictions.
Overcoming a (negative) habit or addiction will raise the Consciousness Soul to another level as the more we loosen the grip of the negative Astral/Soul the more we strengthen our ‘I’, which is what the three aspects of our Soul (Intellectual, Sentient (Feeling) and Consciousness) ‘feed’.
It is these aspects that are at the very core of our being and it is very beneficial to get a deeper understanding of what they are and how they work.
As previously mentioned, it is mostly in the ‘doing’ activity, which is most certainly required for addiction work, that activates the Consciousness Soul.
From this Consciousness Soul perspective, much of what we ‘do’ in our daily lives reflects the degree or level of moral consciousness that we operate from.
It is our daily ‘actions’ that give ourselves and other people the real view of who we are from this deeper Consciousness Soul perspective.
If we make moral or ‘right’ choices that bring forth the more positive, we can say that the Consciousness Soul is alive and awake.
If, on the other hand, we make choices that are detrimental, damaging or even cruel, to ourselves or others, then we can say that the Consciousness Soul is not yet as open or functional as it could be.
This of course is layered with many layers to work on.
To bring this to a conclusion, I would like say that working with our energy and consciousness is a daily task and one that needs to be done if we are to stay mindful and aware of who we are as human beings and if we truly wish to make a difference in the world for the greater good.
If you think of what you eat and drink, what you do in terms of self-care and the care for others and the planet and give yourself a true self-evaluation, you will then get a sense of where you are with your own Consciousness (Soul) awareness.
And the great thing is, it can always be improved and expanded!
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Adrian Hanks – Life Mastery Coach
