Have Any Inappropriate Thoughts Lately?

 

“Man’s task is to become conscious of the contents that press upward from the unconscious.”
— Carl Gustav Jung

 

Have you had any inappropriate thoughts lately? Things that ran across your mind that startled you and made you uncomfortable and you immediately suppressed it and thought of something else? I don’t believe that there is any such thing as an inappropriate thought. It is all information that comes to us and if we can avoid judging our own minds, we can gain invaluable insight into our shadow selves. We all have darkness inside and the more we expose it to air the more light we will find as well. So next time you have thoughts of putting rat poison into somebody’s coffee or kicking a dog or other things that you tell yourself that you would never think of, instead of revulsion and suppression why not try curiosity? Look at the thought and say “That’s interesting. I wonder where that came from? You might find out something about yourself, resentments you’ve kept hidden away, little kinks that when looked at and exposed will be liberating rather than frightening. To paraphrase the old radio series, it’s our shadow that knows what evil lurks in our hearts and maybe its not evil, just suppressed.
Blessings, G

 

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Calmly GazingCalmly Gazing by G A Rosenberg

 

Depths of UnderstandingDepths of Understanding by G A Rosenberg

 

From the Inside

 

“The things we see are the same things that are within us. There is no reality except the one contained within us. That is why so many people live such an unreal life. They take the images outside them for reality and never allow the world within to assert itself.”
― Hermann Hesse

 

From the inside
things seem cold and damp
fear and anger rule the day
then I realize
it is my fear my madness
so I blanket the cold
and face the fear
anger gives me the energy
its fire burning through to truth
and then dissipating.
With loss of fear
and anger subsided
I see hope
I push against the chains
with joy
and let my true self out
From the inside comes peace
and the whispers of love
My outside world transformed.
— G A Rosenberg

 

Blessings, G

 

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In a Fish BowlIn a Fish Bowl by G A Rosenberg

 

Auric BattlegroundAuric Battleground by G A Rosenberg

Dreaming Darkness Awakenings

 

“One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious.”
― Carl Jung

 

Out of darkness I create
luminous pictures
without the void emptiness
that empty place inside
what could come through
my fingers and mind
to entertain
Everything comes from the shadows
and awakens
and shines
Without shadow there is not substance
so I will continue to draw
and invoke and invite whatever may come
so I may create beauty and understanding
and conscious shadow
that may awaken dreams within us all
and awaken in dreams’ shadow
a higher calling…
— G A Rosenberg

 

Blessings, G

 

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A SummoningA Summoning by G A Rosenberg

 

Propagating EmanationsPropagating Emanations by G A Rosenberg

 

Dreams and Shadows

 

“Nights through dreams tell the myths forgotten by the day.”
― C.G. Jung

 

In our dreams we see wonders. Some of them give us positive feelings. We dream of loved ones or walk in fantasy realms. Others are more unsettling. Our own personal symbols of darkness come and threaten us in some way. Our fears play out and we wake up haunted. Yet what one person finds deeply unsettling another might find entertaining. Is it because some of us have darker shadows than others and a greater list of what we are unwilling to face? WIf we can look at our fears in the light of day than our dreams may become lighter. Perhaps tho its easier to externalize our shadows in dreams and work them out there. I guess it all depends on what we’re willing to face.
Blessings, G

 

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I Dreamt a Skewed LandscapeI Dreamt a Skewed Landscape by G A Rosenberg

 

Guardian of Dark DreamsGuardian of Dark Dreams by G A Rosenberg

Relaxing in the Marketplace in Kusadasi

 

“Who has never been burned in the sun won’t know the value of shadow.”
–Anonymous, Old Turkish Proverb

 

Kusadasi, Turkey is a truly beautiful place. I found the scenery stunning and the people are among the friendliest and most open that I’ve met.
Feeling a bit toured out, we opted to spend the day in the seaport itself with a side trip to the Bazaar. Everyone in the Bazaar has a story to tell and something to sell. They are equally open to hearing the stories of others and find common ground.
“Where are you from?”
“Oh I love Canada. I go to Vancouver to visit my sister. She sells our jewellery there. In the winter when tourists stop coming here, I close up shop and go to see her and bring merchandise. I love Victoria also. ”
“These earrings were made by my sister-in law and are of the top quality. Would you like something while you look at them? I will make Turkish coffee for you.”
“Ah. I have eye trouble which my daughter has inherited. She will have to have the same operation I had when she gets older. In the winter I close up here too but I come down to the workshop to make my Jewellery. That is what I love.”
Everything is about the relationship and about the bargaining. As an experiment I started telling the man selling us earrings that they were for my sister-in-law who was taking care of my son while we were travelling. He automatically knocked another twenty euros off the price and the bargaining went on from there.
As we walked on we heard a constant stream of shopkeepers attempting to entice us into their store. “Hi, you are travelling. Where are you from?

After the fiftieth repetition, I grew a bit weary of the routine and offhandedly replied
“Narnia.”
As we walked past I heard the shopkeeper speaking rapid turkish with a few of his equally puzzled friends wondering just where Narnia was and what could be said about it.
Blessings, G

 

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Kusadasi from the waterKusadasi From The Water

 

Kusadasi MarketplaceKusadasi Marketplace

 

Little Friendn Cadging a MealLittle Friend Cadging a Meal

 

Turkish SunsetTurkish Sunset

Road Reflection

 

“But why think about that when all the golden lands ahead of you and all kinds of unforseen events wait lurking to surprise you and make you glad you’re alive to see?”
― Jack Kerouac

 

Tales of the road continue. Leaving behind the Athabasca river, we’ve moved on to the city streets of Edmonton, Alberta. My thoughts and emotions have taken on a bit of concreteness as well. It is a strange mixture of gratitude for the journey and all that I’ve seen (both life journey and the subset of this trip) and feelings of unfulfilment and frustration with where I am at right now. These things stay transitory for I never despair of life’s ability to surprise in some pretty amazing ways. I am hoping that my travels this month and the accompanying inner journey will help me to resolve a bit and perhaps map out a bit of the next period of my life. It feels as if in someways I have reached a standstill and need to find ways to push myself forward into a new cycle. I know it will come it always does.
Blessings, G

 

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Echoes of AUMEchoes of Aum by G A Rosenberg

 

Athabasca RiverAthabasca River

 

Shadows of Home Along the Road

 

““When within yourself you find the road, the right road will open.”
― Dejan Stojanovic, The Creator

 

The road inside lies ever homeward
with shadows of home along the way
Approximations of the final resting place
that may be settled into for a time
yet never fulfilling the heart
Our true home keeps calling
filling the settled self with longing
for the shadow while comforting never satisfies
I will depart the shadows with love for their gifts
and move onward
my bag filled with shadow memories
Along the way I will pass more shades
that my road inward throws up
and my bag will lighten and fill
and then empty again
as my terminus approaches
— G A Rosenberg

 

Blessings, G

 

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From this Rock I will Watch the Sun RiseFrom This Rock I Will Watch the Sun Rise by G A Rosenberg

 

Writhing Limb Star MandalaWrithing Limb Star Mandala by G A Rosenberg

 

Belonging — Wings and Shadow

 

“Belonging is a comfortable strait jacket with wings to fly.”
— Nolan Void

 

What we belong to grounds us. We surrender part of ourselves to the families, groups and relationships we form and in the process we discover ourselves. We find where we fit and where we don’t. We see the shadow of ourselves reflected in the eyes of those we love. When we don’t like what we are seeing, it is time to look within and discover what is it we dislike in ourselves that causes the reaction? What has brought us here? When we feel love and grounded and safe, our dreams can soar and we can realize more than we could realize any other way. Thank you my loved ones for the wings and the grounding. My life would be poorer without you.
Blessings, G

 

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PlutoHades by G A Rosenberg

 

Rolling Through the AethyrRolling Through the Aether by G A Rosenberg

 

Night in the Dark Forest

 

“We scarcely know how much of our pleasure and interest in life comes to us through our eyes until we have to do without them; and part of that pleasure is that the eyes can choose where to look. But the ears can’t choose where to listen.”
― Ursula K. Le Guin

 

In my dreams I enter
the dark forest where I walk at night
Shadowed beings greet me
At first fearsome
I realize that the treasure they guard
are parts of myself hidden away.
Treated kindly beneath the trees
they reveal their gifts
The trick is to show no fear
or admit it if they do.
Honesty frees them of their burdens.
There are some paths
yet too dark to face tho
Someday I will accept their gifts as well.
Light beings live in the forest as well.
Their gifts of song and insight
I accept gladly
For each one protects me
Some in ways I have yet to understand
At first light I leave
I thanks all I’ve met
and prepare to sleep to waken
— G A Rosenberg

 

Blessings, G

 

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Dark Forest Where I Walk At NightDark Forest by G A Rosenberg

 

Flame GuardianFlame Guardian by G A Rosenberg

 

Circe’s Madness

 

“There is in every one of us, even those who seem to be most moderate, a type of desire that is terrible, wild, and lawless.”
— Plato

 

I didn’t know who she was but she released the animal inside of me. Not in the way that you might think tho my memories are hazy. Since I’ve met her tho every single dark thought I have expresses itself. I have discovered a wildness in me and have become almost feral. I can reign in my actions but the desires are there. Never have I felt so out of control. Never have I felt so free. I have greater knowledge of myself than ever before. At times I am almost grateful for this. Few people have had this upfront a view of the beast that they contain. I accept this wild man this beast so that one day I can transcend it or so I hope. Until then I tread on a narrow edge. The jury is still out on which way I’ll fall off.
— Part of a note found in an alley

 

Blessings, G

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Circe's MadnessCirce’s Madness by G A Rosenberg

 

Turquoise NetTurquoise Net by G A Rosenberg