Being a Transformer (meditation from cybermonks

[Guest guest]

Being a Transformer

 

------

 

" For the meaning of life differs from man to man, from day to day and

from hour to hour. What matters, therefore, is not the meaning of life

in general but rather the specific meaning of a person's life at a

given moment. "

Viktor Frankl

 

------

 

" Sweet are the uses of adversity. "

William Shakespeare

 

------

 

Is it possible that our mission on earth is to act as transformers? In

electronics, transformers change one form of energy to another. For

instance, a transformer may change alternating current coming into your

home into the direct current your electronic equipment needs to

function. You probably own lots of transformers. They are in your

computer and peripherals, phones, clocks, and just about anything else

that uses electricity from a plug.

 

As human transformers, some people specialize in transforming seeds and

dirt into plants. We call them farmers or gardeners. Some transform

wood into houses or furniture. We call them carpenters. Some transform

groups of individuals into functioning organizations. We call them

leaders. Parents transform their own cells into babies. Then they

transform babies into big people like themselves. In each case, matter

is rearranged, and something comes out of the process that may bear

little resemblance to the original materials.

 

We can also be transformers of psychic or spiritual energy. We can take

bad vibes and transform them into something more positive. By

adolescence most of us have weathered numerous storms of negative

emotion. Often these clouds of negativity trail us into adulthood. Bad

things happen to us and we feel wounded. Some of the wounds heal, and

others leave a psychic scar that never seems to leave us. Each of us

probably knows someone who seems stuck in their suffering and can't

seem to move ahead. Perhaps each of us has areas in our lives that work

less well than others. Our unique personalities inevitably include

clusters of characteristics that give us trouble. We have thoughts or

emotions, often unconsciously, that bother us, impede us, or make those

around us miserable. As long as we keep doing what we've been doing

with these troublesome thoughts and emotions they continue to block our

development.

 

Sometimes, though, we find a way to transform the problem into

something positive and useful. How many people in helping professions

got there because an experience with suffering transformed them? How

many recovering substance abusers would never have become the caring

and helpful people they are had they not wrestled with their addiction?

How many people have come back from serious illness to live new and

healthier lives?

 

In each case something bad happened, and somehow it was transformed

into something good. Each individual made a choice not to be victimized

by suffering. The negative energy was transformed into positive energy.

Sometimes this is described as personal growth.

 

Many of us struggle with our troubles and the struggle generates

negative emotions like anxiety, anger, and hate. Then, when we are

exhausted, maybe we find that some good came out of the problem.

Sometimes the struggle is necessary and it is the source of our growth.

Other times we would have been better served to relax and allow the

positive power to emerge from the circumstances using its natural

momentum.

 

The point is that there is plenty of negative energy in this world and

we have a couple of choices. We can allow the negative to engulf us, or

we can transform the negative energy into positive energy. The

following process may help you to more consciously serve as a

transformer of negativity.

 

Practice:

 

When experiencing unpleasantness in life, you have choices about how

you respond to it. Make it a habit to recognize when you are caught in

a storm of negativity. You may notice that the energy of these emotions

feels sticky or slimy or prickly. Your unpleasant emotions are your

signals that you are caught. When you notice your anger, anxiety,

jealousy, envy or other deadly emotion, remind yourself that you have a

choice in how you proceed. You can cling to the emotional state, or you

can transform it. Emotions are expressions of psychological behavior

and behavior can be changed.

 

------

 

Remind yourself that you have a choice to change your emotional state.

 

Remind yourself that you are not a victim. You have options.

 

Reframe your problem as a challenge and an opportunity. What good could

conceivably come of this situation? If you can't imagine anything, just

trust that something could.

 

Engage your heart. Don't be afraid to feel your emotion. We don't want

to repress our emotions. We want to move through them to the other

side. You may need to mourn your losses before moving on. Mourning is

an important component of healing.

 

As you engage your heart, make space for love and compassion. Forgive

yourself and forgive others involved. Forgiveness breaks down the

psychic glue that makes negative emotion so sticky and persistent.

 

Create an image of hope. Visualize yourself, your situation, and the

others involved as you would like them to be. See the possibility of

goodness overcoming bad.

 

Activate hope. Know that circumstances can be better, and trust that

your positive approach can only help the situation.

 

Let go of your attachment to conditions as they are.

 

Give up your attachment to struggle and embrace the possibility of

transformation.

 

Give up the burden of your pain and live lightly. Remember that the

light of love brings lightness of being.

 

Remember that your mission in life, should you choose to accept it, is

not to collect negative thoughts and emotions, but to transform the

negative energy you encounter into love.

 

 

________________________