The Rishis Blog

Flow vocabulary: Resentment

One festering cause of flow blockages is resentment. I say festering because it is something that can linger for a long time and never be resolved. In flow you are your most successful, so there is no need for resentment at any time. If resentment does pop up, it is a clear warning that something is wrong.

Sometimes it can be a “good warning” that immediately advises you to remedy the blockages. For example, although I seldom feel resentment I do instantly get the feeling when someone has wronged me over money. Case in point: A few years ago I was working with a business partner who owed me money. He sent a check that was $3,000 short. I called him up and queried about it, and he told me he “forgot” but refused to pay. Well, resentment immediately built up and I took action and remedied the situation. My flow would simply not let this issue stay unresolved. I found out later on this guy was a crystal meth addict and was high most of the time, which explained his bizarre behavior.

Some things can’t be resolved as easily. If you had resentment towards a parent and then that parent dies you have no way of fixing the issue in person. But the resentment will prevent your flow, so you need to reconcile your resentment and move on after resolving it. And, of course, oftentimes the resentment has nothing to do with the other person, but with your own flow issues.

I knew people growing up who resented rich people no matter who they were, but the reality was their flow blockages stemmed from their own internal issues with money and success than with the rich people they resented.

Flow vocabulary: Cross to bear

You may have heard the phrase “everyone has a cross to bear” referring, of course, to the story of Jesus' execution. The dictionary roughly defines a cross to bear as having a heavy burden of responsibility or a problem that must deal with alone. The phrase is really meant to say “you think you have problems, well everyone has problems and many are worse than yours”.

In flow there is no such thing as a cross to bear. If you have responsibility or a “burden” it is easily dealt with in flow.

But what about something serious, such as losing a leg in a car accident? When you are in flow it simply isn’t an issue, it isn’t a cross to bear. Yes, you need to deal with the physical and psychological aspects of the loss, but when that is accomplished your life can be a success in flow.

Want proof? Take a look at the canine world. Ever see a dog with a missing leg, blind eye, or a limp? The dog just goes on as before the injury — there is no remorse or a sense of “burden”. But if the dog’s owners treat it as a burden or something wrong, the dog will react in kind — not wanting to live as before. But unimpeded flow is for the dog to live life to the fullest.

These are extreme examples, but they point out a simple fact — treating something as a cross to bear is a negative act that generates flow blockages. You cannot possibly be successful if you see your life as being one long path of suffering.

So, yes, everyone has problems. But dealing with them in flow rather than settling for "it's my lot in life" or "I was made to suffer" is the best, and most successful(!), course of action.

David Weber & The Rishis

Flow vocabulary: Fear

Fear is something that simply does not exist in any form when you are in flow. Fear is an especially devious flow blockage in that it easily feeds on itself and can bring negative energy (and more blockages) to you quicker than other blockages.

There are many types of fears, much more than can all be discussed here. But I can give a few examples of how fear is, indeed, a blockage.

After the dot com bust my business was wiped out, and I was literally afraid of going to the ATM or getting mail for fear that there would be no money or a bill. This fear was not only unfounded, but paralyzed me from taking action on other fronts. I refused to look at my bank statements, and a few years later when I did finally look I realized that the bank had shortchanged me money and charged me for things I had never done (like overdraw the account). These were fees I could not recover.

And, of course, I approached anything involving money from the standpoint of fear, which meant my decisions were always tainted. I attracted so much negative energy at one point that my mortgage was literally (and illegally) resold to two mortgage companies at the same time, and both demanded payment!

On a psychological level, fear of such things as dogs, spiders, and similar are not due to the thing itself being “evil” or causing fear — it all comes from inside yourself. For example, a person with whom I did some early Rishi work could not have candles lit during a session and was scared whenever he heard a fire truck go by. Obviously, candles and fire trucks were not the cause of the fear. His issue had to due with a fire in his family home growing up and the lasting effect it had on him. Proof yet again that fear is irrational only blocks flow.

Fear is one of the greatest ways people control others. For centuries religious leaders have used the fear of God to get people to follow their ways. Not only are you supposed to follow what the religious leader says in order please God, but you are supposed to fear not knowing as well. In other words, you are never supposed to think for yourself. So every act you do needs to be “pre-approved” by the religious leader or the religion itself. You can’t determine if something is a sin or not, but God (really the religion/religious leader) can. You must fear thinking for yourself since God may or may not approve.

Politicians use fear in the same way religious leaders do. Ever since the 9/11 attacks many American politicians have used the theme “if you don’t do as I say the terrorists win”. They also enjoy spreading fear about certain groups, usually minorities, in order to attract a greater following. One of the most famous was the Willie Horton incident during the 1988 presidential election. The Bush campaign ran ads implying that if you voted for the opposition (Michael Dukakis) black criminals like Willie Horton would be allowed roam free, just itching to harm your family. Lee Atwater, the mastermind behind this fear based on racism and stereotypes, apologized on his deathbed for this campaign.

Companies use another form of fear that is more subtle but just as effective. Rather than threaten you with hell or damnation, they threaten you with horrible consequences. In marketing it’s known as FUD — Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt. Companies run campaigns that try to put you off kilter by getting you to question your existing circumstances. Is your bathroom really safe if you aren’t using this or that type of disinfectant? Are you really a good parent if you don’t buy your kids this type of food? Is your current vehicle really the best one for your family? And so on.

All of the above examples clearly prove why fear cannot exist in flow. Fear causes you to externalize yourself, giving in to the dictates of outside sources whether the source is religion, politicians, corporations, etc.

Flow vocabulary: Cursed (or being punished for something)

For decades I used to feel I was cursed. It always seemed like everyone else was more successful, happier, and just plain better than I was and there was no obvious reason why. I thought I was a good person and did everything right as far as I was taught.

The reality is I was not cursed at all. In fact, there is no such thing as a curse or being cursed in flow. I was actually a victim of my own flow blockages — even when things went right they still seemed to go wrong. So I was sending out all this negative energy and vibration which, of course, was returned to me in spades.

There are other flow issues associated with “being cursed”. One is that if you think you are cursed you internalize that programming and, lo and behold, end up with what you wished for. My father was this way. He never thought of himself as being cursed, yet he was told all his life that he was a failure. He internalized that programming and was never successful at anything.

Another issue is when someone else places a curse on your or tells you you are cursed. If you are in flow you would just see this as being silly no matter how serious the person was. But if you are susceptible to flow blockages then you will take such a curse to heart and feel cursed. For example, a friend of mine went to see a psychic who told him he would always be a jack of all trades and master of none. After that proclamation he saw himself as never accomplishing anything since he would “never be successful”. But the reality had nothing to do with this “curse” as much as his deep-seated issues centered around the fact he was adopted — he never felt he was as good as those who had natural birth parents. He was simply susceptible to flow blockages. There was nothing real about the "curse".

Flow vocabulary: Powerless (over circumstances)

Given the economy, the subprime mortgage crisis, world events, and even the winter weather it’s easy to feel powerless.

When you are in flow you are never powerless regardless of circumstances. Flow is always about success and, in a weird way, about having your own power while not turning it over to someone else. Feeling powerless is the result of flow blockages. When the dot com bust hit Silicon Valley hard everything seemed to be going wrong for me. I felt totally powerless over my circumstances. It wasn’t until I learned about flow that I was able to regain my power and effectively deal with any situation no matter how trying.

Being powerless is also a way of avoiding life/decisions, and this can be detrimental. If you go in to any given situation assuming that you have no control over it or are simply powerless to do anything about it, the results will be that way. You won’t be able to achieve anything, even that which you want to achieve. Others may take advantage of this weakness. The reality is you always have power through flow, even if it may not seem so at the time. Acting powerless can also trigger lots of other flow blockages such as fear, anxiety, resentment, and hatred — all of which will compound an already bad situation.

In a nutshell, you are always powerful, have always been powerful, and always will be!

Flow vocabulary: Sin

I was on a radio show this morning and the subject of sin and flow came up. If there is evil in the world isn't there sin? After all, isn't that self evident?

The answer may surprise. There is no such thing as sin in flow! How can that be? Well, sin is roughly defined as something/some act that separates humans from God, something that causes you to "risk hell".

But flow is God flowing through you 24/7, so how can you possibly separate from God? Flow blockages, not sin, are what cause problems in life and the evil in the world.

But even more important, sin does not exist in flow because sin, like flow blockages, is decided by friends, family, and society - not God. In the 1920's it was a sin for a woman to wear anything remotely revealing on the beach. Today, you can see women in thongs on mainstream television, not to mention most beaches. During the 2000 presidential election George Bush spoke at Bob Jones University, a place where it was a sin to date outside of your "race". Interracial relationships were considered an affront to God. Miraculously, Bob Jones University suddenly reversed itself in later years, and interracial marriage was suddenly allowed and no longer a sin. Now, did God change? Obviously not!

Sin is also used as a form of control. What better way to have control over someone than by telling them they are sinners for not listening.

So sin does not exist in flow, has absolutely nothing to do with God or the universe, and if someone brings the subject up ("you are a sinner for thinking that way") you know flow blockages are present.

Flow vocabulary: Truth

Truth would seem to be an obvious part of flow, but in reality it is not in the current usage. You see, the truth is dependent on friends, family, and society for its definition. Years ago a friend of mine was working on the Michael Dukakis campaign for president. He was exasperated that people couldn’t see the truth that George Bush (the first one) would make a bad president. Yet Bush handily won the election in 1988, so the truth for most voters was the opposite. Truth is relative to the person telling it. That’s why both my friend and the Bush supporters were both “telling the truth” even though they conflicted.

There are endless examples of such truth throughout history. Throughout most of American history the truth was that blacks were inferior to whites, a truth backed up by the law. During the height of the Iraq War a televangelist told his congregation that the truth was that God loved war. Growing up my parents told me, directly and indirectly, that the truth was I was a failure and always would be. And so on.

This isn’t to say there aren’t absolute truths, but in flow there is no need for truth in the traditional sense. After all, everything you do in flow is “the truth” for you and for the universe. I know such a distinction may be hard to understand, but once you experience your own flow you will know the difference between truth in flow and truth as determined by friends, family, and society.

Flow vocabulary: Intolerance

A key component to understanding flow is understanding how it is different than the current world view. And one of the best ways to see that difference is through words, or vocabulary. To that end, once a week I will blog about common words and how they are different in flow. By reading these "definitions" you will get a greater insight into the concept of flow!

Intolerance

When you are in flow you are your most successful, and that means that you have no “need” to disparage others in order to feel superior or fill some void. Intolerance stems mainly from ignorance and societal conventions. No one is born intolerant of others, especially when it comes to ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, etc. Intolerance is something that is taught, and it really is only allowed to fester when there is a willing host. What does that mean? If a child is happy in his life, content with the way things are, there is no need to be intolerant of anybody else.

Yet if there are blockages that are affecting the child, the situation changes and the child is susceptible to intolerance. These blockages can include virtually anything from poverty to an abusive parent. Rather than resolve his own issues, he takes out all his frustration in life on others. There was a conversation in Alex Haley’s Roots miniseries that best summed up this condition. Basically two characters were talking about why slavery was a good thing. One character said that slavery was beneficial because no matter how down on his luck a white man got, he knew he was always better than a black man.

Intolerance is also a key component of many other flow blockages. War cannot exist without intolerance. The enemy must always be vilified, and that means creating an air of intolerance. If you want voters to ignore problem issues yet vote for certain candidate that candidate need only invoke intolerance to gain support. In America, issues such as gay marriage, flag burning, and displaying the Ten Commandments in public places are used to distract voters and incite their intolerance over “the enemy”.

Intolerance as defined above is incompatible with flow.