Having been in the Amazon jungle working with the Shipibo tribe in Peru during the elections, I was able to send only a short text about the outcome. I figured the trip would be a good way of spending the time otherwise distracted by election madness in the states. Now I am home and able to write something more substantial about the current state of affairs, the options for the future, the highly symbolic meaning of what has taken place, and the challenges our country, the world, and each of us are facing. In many ways the world we out-picture is a projection of the world within us. 

Each of us interprets the outer experiences differently even though the events are identical. In the final summation, everything that happens is perfect. We just don’t see it that way when it is happening because we are blinded by so many thoughts, feelings, judgments, opinions and fears. Some are celebrating the great victory, rubbing their hands in delicious anticipation of what may now be possible for them. Some are uncertain and don’t know, and others are horrified, shocked, and appalled at the disaster they see unfolding for the country, the world, and the environment. The truth is that at this moment nothing has actually happened so we don’t yet know, everything is pure speculation. We spend most of our lives in speculation. Speculation also has other names: worry, consideration, and more importantly, energy leak! So take a more neutral stance if you can as you read this. In this case it is better to say, “Oh, look at that!” Rather than, “Oh No!!!” or “Oh Yaaa!!!”

When I first began to write this article about current events and what is happening in this country I quickly realized how much had to be covered and realized immediately that I would have to break it up into a number of segments to do it justice. To meet the need, here is what I am going to do. For several weeks I am going to write shorter articles once a week or so covering a different aspect of the theme. These will appear as always on the Power Path web site in the usual way.  Therefore this article is only a beginning and to get the fuller picture you will have to read several short articles over several weeks or months. Consider this an education of sorts that goes beyond what most people consider. I will not stay in the box for sure and you will not read some of these things anywhere else.  Bear in mind that I am doing my best to be a neutral observer of a process. I bear no malice toward any of the characters in this play. They are all human beings with divine souls lost temporarily in various states of ego and self-deception like all humans. They are our brothers and sisters whose behavior mirrors our own secret prejudices and biases, and yes, our own predilection to cheat, lie, and manipulate. I am merely seeking understanding for these events and personalities as a professional psychologist with a specialty in personality styles and as a trained intuitive. I am also coming at this as a philosopher with a shamanic and spiritual perspective (not a religious one). Whether you are a Trump supporter, a Clinton supporter, or neither, you may find much to mull over, agree with, or disagree with. If you come across ideas that trigger anger, attacking me will serve no purpose. Remember that anger is always based on fear, so it is more productive to ask yourself, “What am I afraid of?” and then ask yourself why you are turning your power over to your fear.

The set up

First let us understand the larger context of the elections. As those of you who have been reading my articles, you know that this is a long predicted time of major change, turmoil, and polarization within the peoples of the world. The status quo is destabilized and the whole world is on the move. All organizations and structures will be undergoing extreme stress and those that are not balanced or are not functioning with integrity will flounder and fall apart. The world is moving rapidly from a young soul or child perspective, “He who dies with the most toys wins” to a mature or adolescent soul perspective, “I know how you feel.”  Many are scratching their heads and saying, well if this is true why did what appears to be the old order just take over everything and those that seemed to represent a more collective perspective lose horribly?

Well naturally much resistance from the old order accompanies this sea change, a philosophy and pattern of operating that has been in place for thousands of years. This older pattern will not go away passively but will fight tooth and nail to maintain the old games focused on material gain, power over others and control.  This fight will polarize the people of the world everywhere depending on what their core values are, profits at all costs or equal opportunity for everyone. This is absolutely the case with the USA at this time. For a time there will be pitched battles as one side, then the other side seem to hold sway. Yet make no mistake. The course of evolution is one way. The cause of profits at all costs is diminishing while the cause of equal opportunity for everyone is growing no matter what the local appearances are. Why? Because one is unsustainable and the other is sustainable.  When such a change of core values occurs, the changes can take place quickly, over the course of fifty or sixty years, an eye-blink in evolution.  In an era when people are used to instant access to information via their smart phones and devices, sixty years can seem an eternity, so patience is a hard thing to endure.

The course of change predicted by the ancient Mayan mystics is this: 1. The process begins with extreme polarization and struggle, perhaps repression and attempts to hold the old order in place. The old order shows stresses and strains and begins to fail. There is much confusion and chaos. There is much protesting and many mini revolts  2. Then a final revolt by the masses: either ideological or physical, either non-violent or violent. The old order comes crashing down 3. Then renaissance, renewal, transformation, freshness, and freedom take it’s place.  We are in the polarization phase begun in earnest in 2012.  That will continue for twenty years or so. Better be patient and get used to the back and forth struggle. Those that are celebrating what they think is the renaissance now are too early. It is down the road about thirty-six years from now.

The assemblage point shift

I have written in prior articles about the shamanic notion of an assemblage point. Each creature whether plant, animal, or human has an assemblage point located somewhere in its energetic field. This assemblage point could be described as a kind of computer chip or bar code that contains highly condensed information about the identity of the product in the package, its date and whereabouts of manufacture, its shipping history, its price and so on. In the case of a human being this is a kind of ID that states where this soul has been, what they have learned thus far, what they know and are aware of, where they are headed, who they think they are now in the context of a gender, a culture, a race, a profession, what their current personality traits are, their karma, their agreements, what is in their script for this life, what their intentions are, and what their current choices are. Bear in mind that a good part of this information is subject to change based on choices made.

This assemblage point usually occupies a fixed site, often behind the back between the shoulder blades. A blow, a trauma, an accident, a severe illness, a drug or hallucinogen, a life crisis or severe change, and life changing great or devastating news can shift the assemblage point permanently or temporarily. When this happens a person can undergo a serious identity crisis, an awakening, a personality breakdown, psychosis, or achieve great joy and freedom. Sometimes this happens independently to a person and sometimes it can happen in mass due to an earthquake, tsunami, war, or something that heavily impacts everyone in a geographical area or country.  When this happens you could say that the culture has had an assemblage point shift. This is certainly the case with Syria and its civil war and somewhat lesser the case with England through its choice to exit the European Union. For the most part assemblage point shifts are deeply uncomfortable and shake up a person’s sense of safety and security. Therefore many people try to avoid them at all costs. On a mass scale they are not good for the stock market and other institutions that rely on stability.

The USA has its own version of it. The whole nation has experienced an assemblage point shift, a change of identity, if you will, and everyone is experiencing instability, unpredictability, fear, and the like. You can bet that both presidential candidates are in shock with their own assemblage point shifts happening. Getting used to one of these major shifts can take months if not some years to integrate. During that time there may be much internal material to process, much that bubbles up to the surface, and this provides an opportunity to make much needed personal changes. In this regard the loser of an election often has more options for integrating than the one who is thrown into the midstream of activity, especially if they are older in their life. This does not always mean they take advantage of it however. The same is true for all members of a society that have been shocked or traumatized by an unpredicted outcome. Expect a lot of people to enter therapy of one kind or another during these times.

This is as much as I will cover for openers. If you found this helpful then keep following this set of articles as I cover much more including understanding about the larger context of the election outcome, what is likely in the near and far future, the nature of the opportunities, obstacles and dangers, The characters symbolically representing different facets of our psyches and much more.

In the meantime, if you are overwhelmed, keep repeating to yourself: It’s only a movie, only a movie, only a movie, because as you shall see, it is.

JOSÉ STEVENS

José Stevens PhD is an international lecturer, corporate team builder and organizational coach, consultant and trainer. A psychologist, licensed clinical social worker and author of more than twenty books and numerous articles, he is also co-editor for A Journal of Contemporary Shamanism and a board member of the Society for Shamanic Practitioners. He is the founder, with his wife Lena, of the Power Path School of Shamanism and The Center for Shamanic Education and Exchange, a non-profit organization dedicated to educating youth in indigenous cultures. He has completed a ten-year apprenticeship with a Huichol Maracame in Mexico and has studied with the Shipibos of the Amazon and the Paqos of the Andes for the last thirty years.

Go to: www.thepowerpath.com