PLAYBOOK PREPARED BY IGOR BREZHNEV
This is the second edition of the playbook printed on 06/09/2012 in Phoenix, Arizona at Impact Printing (www.impactps.com) Please contact Igor Brezhnev by email at
[email protected] or visit www.selfchangetools.com for an updated version of this playbook as it will change as playshops progress. Thank You!
THIS PLAYBOOK IS YOUR FIRST TOOL!
Even before we get to our playing, you have your first tool—this playbook. I have made it so that we can relax and not have a dictation or memorization lesson. All of us had plenty of those in schools. Most every concept that is covered in our playshop is written about here and if it is not, you will find the “Resources” section filled with sources of further information. To make life even easier a constantly updated electronic version of the playbook is always available on the playshop’s website. There are many blank spaces and pages for you to make notes, but doing so is optional. We will have plenty of practice and get to play with all the tools! There is no wrong way or no right way of changing self. So let’s have fun and play!
Thanks! Igor Brezhnev
HELLO AND WELCOME TO THE PLAYSHOP!
What’s a playshop? It’s like workshop, but we drop all the heaviness we have around the word “work”, and add all the excitement that the word “play” carries within it. All the old rules are gone, and new ones are made up only to fit the present moment. The first question that always comes to my mind when considering presenting an idea is how can I can I make the experience as simple as possible? How can complexities be reduced to the simplest forms that can be easily followed from any point of view? How could I make the learning process as playful and as exciting as possible? The objective of this playshop is to make the process of using conscious self‑change tools simple and easy. In the first half of the playshop we will explore some new definitions and ideas and in the second half we’ll take a closer look at our tools and play with them to experience self-change right there and then. How much fun can we have changing our selves? What else is possible once we have a knowing of our selves? How does it get even easier than it already is?
DEFINING OUR WORDS AND IDEAS Words are very interesting, in the fact that while they are supposed to convey the same meaning every time they are used, but in reality they very often do not. Words are also not experiences or experiencing, instead they are pointers towards things and processes. Nevertheless, they are very useful for observation and change. That is why our first exploration has to do with defining our words and ideas for this playshop.
CONSCIOUS & UNCONSCIOUS For the purposes of our exploration let us define Conscious as deliberate and intentional and Unconscious as automated and reflexual. SELF Let us define Self as the total sum of both conscious and unconscious thoughts, emotions, actions, energy, experiences and possibilities. CHANGE Change in our context is something becoming something else, even if the difference is minute. TOOL Humans look at a tool as a thing that extends their cability of action. Let us extend that definition to any energy, idea, process or thing used in any pursuit. CONSCIOUS SELF-CHANGE TOOLS Now let us assemble all the words together: Conscious Self‑Change Tools are any energy, idea, process or thing used in the active, intentional and deliberate process of any thoughts, emotions, energy, experiences and possibilities becoming different.
WHY WOULD WE DO AND BE ALL THAT? One of my favorite answers to “Why?” questions is another question “Why not?” At times that is reason enough. Most people come to explore change either from a point of view of intense suffering or intense curiosity. Good news is even if the exploration comes from suffering it changes to curiosity in time: “Oh look, these skills I used to have that I did not like are now replaced with skills that I like to use. What else is possible?” We can see who we are in the mirror of our perceived reality. That is one of the reasons for using conscious self‑change tools: if you change your self, your reality changes, the more you change, the more of that the wonderful mirror reflects. Isn’t that amazing?
A LOOK IN THE TOOL SHED: Now we come to our fine range of tools that we can use to initiate change. The first tools are very simple and in all likeness we are using these tools already. There is no wrong way to use these tools, your tools become as unique as you are through use. Feel the freedom to change any tool to suit your Self.
AWARENESS TOOL The next tool that we can use is being aware of our perceived reality and in doing so being aware of who we are. In a way this lets us know what’s there to change and in what way. Question yourself: How do I feel right now?
What am I thinking?
What am I looking at in my story?
What does my reality look, sound, feel and taste like right now?
What would I like to change?
QUESTION TOOL We have already been using this tool quite a bit. We cannot help but question that which we are aware of: a myrriad of why, how, what and when questions appear when we become more aware. Question is wonderful invention—it opens up multiple possibilities. Having immidiate and precise answers closes the possibilities down. If you are asking questions and using this tool, be prepared to listen, to be aware of answers showing up around you. What questions would you ask your self if you your aim was to change Self?
CHOICE TOOL Awareness and Question are followed by Choice. Choice is not a decision. Decision is this process that our minds like very much: assessing all the data we have access to, figuring it all out, weighing everything, measuring it and then arriving at a conclusion. Conclusions tend to be very heavy things, with plenty of nice and sturdy judgements in them. Choice on the other hand is a split-second determination of whether you choose to do or be some way or not. Once you made the choice you are on the path that it opened up. There’s no conclusion in choice, just the fact that you have made it, and so choice can be made again and again and again, until it is the choice that opens the path you want to travel on. What choices of changing your self do you see that you would like to play with?
Before we move on to our featured tools, I’d like to show and define a few more concepts that will help us along the way with practicing use of any tool of conscious self-change. YOU: BODY, MIND, EMOTION AND BEYOND In the stories about you there are stories of your body, of your mind, of your emotions, of your actions and surroundings and this sense of a beyond—a possibility of being this or that way. In most ancient days we have come across of a knowing that we do not end at our bodies, that somehow we were more than that. Today our observational science shows us that same fact. Our body emits many electromagnetic fields that extend outward with unique signatures. Our heart makes waves, our brain makes waves, we emit heat, we even emit light. Our scientific equipment is not sensitive enough yet to allow us to see how far we extend, but eventually I venture to say we’ll know that those fields keep on going retaining a unique miniscule signature of who we are into infinity. An emotion-mind-body state can be viewed from so many points of view—physical, chemical, energetic, subatomic, quantum and perhaps some points of view we haven’t defined yet scientifically. In your mind you can choose to travel to the moon and to the center of the galaxy and toward the smallest subatomic particle. Your emotion has an intensity
that can be ignited or dimmed by choice. Your body can emit more or less heat depending on action you choose to take. Amazing. So you are not your body or mind or emotion. You are emoting, thinking, acting, but you are a beyond that makes choices meshed with body and surroundings. A fun idea to consider when changing self. ENERGY & BODY Most of our energetic understanding of the body comes from Far East and India. How they got there we can only speculate, although there is some ease in knowing where your energetic centers are and how energy flows. Today’s observational science shows that there’s something that happens when acupuncture and acupressure are used - we don’t quite know how yet from science’s point of view. Most energy tools are based on that understanding of “Chi”, “Qi” or “Prana” subtle energies and give us a way to interact with that energy. There are extensive books and studies written on this subject, so we will leave the in-depth study of what those energies are and how they work outside of the workshop. There is no wrong or right way to play with energy, if you are using awareness, choice and question in your experiments you will be surprised by results.
EFT & REIKI INTRODUCTION We’ll use two sets of tools in particular: EFT and Reiki. EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) is an energy psychology tool that blends playing with emotion, energy, body and thought patterns in order to craft the change you desire mainly focusing on emotions. Simply put EFT is a tool that allows you to become more aware and exercize choice in your emotions. Reiki has been described as energy healing or spiritual practice. It gleams even further than EFT into ideas of energetic aspects of human body, emotion and thought. I find that practicing Reiki tools allows me to be aware of energy. Let’s begin with some background information and demonstration and then selecting some changes in your lives that we’d like to initiate today. REIKI INTRODUCTION There are many books on both Traditional and Transformational Reiki, where you can learn more about its history, people involved, various techniques and symbols. In our playshop we are going to look at a brief overview of Reiki history, principles and techniques and depending on time available experiment with a Reiki I attunement so you may use
the first Reiki I symbol and the energy as your tool for self-change. If you choose to learn more about this toolset there are many paths to take to attain that knowledge. Reiki is a practice developed in 1922 by Japanese Buddhist Mikao Usui in Japan. The word reiki (霊気) in Japanese literally means “mysterious atmosphere,” which derives from the Chinese loanword língqì (靈 氣) meaning “supernatural influence.” It compounds the words rei (霊: “spirit, miraculous, divine”) and ki ( 気 “gas, vital energy, breath of life, consciousness”). The ki (better known as Chinese qi or ch’i) in reiki is understood as meaning “spiritual energy; vital energy; life force; energy of life.” In the West Reiki has been defined as “universal life energy.” Mikao Usui (臼井甕男) developed the system of Reiki in 1922 whilst performing Isyu Guo, a twenty-one day Buddhist training course held on Mount Kurama. It is not known for certain what Usui was required to do during this training, though it most likely involved meditation, fasting, chanting, and prayer. It is claimed that by a mystical revelation, Usui had gained the knowledge and spiritual power to apply and attune others to what he called Reiki, which entered his body through his crown Chakra. In April 1922, Usui moved to Tokyo and founded the Usui Reiki Ryōhō Gakkai (“臼井靈氣療法學會” in Traditional Mandarin, meaning Usui’s Spiritual Energy Therapy Method Society) in
order to continue treating people on a large scale with Reiki. Reiki is not a religion, and while its origins are in a spiritual realm, it is a number of mind, body, emotion and energy tools used to facilitate desired change. We will take a look at some of the tools from Reiki that we can play with and facilitate self-change. THE FIVE PRINCIPLES OF REIKI The secret art of inviting happiness, The miraculous medicine for all diseases. At least for today: Do not be angry, Do not worry, Be grateful, Work with diligence, Be kind to people. Every morning and evening, join your hands in meditation and pray with your heart. State in your mind and chant with your mouth. For improvement of mind and body. Usui Reiki Ryōhō. The founder, Mikao Usui.
In these five principles we can see a number of tools for suggested use. Let’s take a look at each one of them.
REIKI PRINCIPLE TOOL: INVITE HAPPINESS Invite Happiness: how do you do or be that? Let’s try it: do you remember a feeling that you define as happy? It would be an experience that you have enjoyed, a light feeling of expansion and inclusion. Can you remember how that feels like? Can you tell where in your body do you feel that feeling? Great. You just invited happiness. You have successfully changed the way you feel right now. REIKI PRINCIPLE TOOL: AT LEAST FOR TODAY At least for today, at least for this present moment: this is a wonderful idea that we can use to focus our attention on the present moment and affect change in it. It removes the weight of planning for the next twenty years, it allows the space of change in small and yet very potent time: now. So what other changes could you have just for now? REIKI PRINCIPLE TOOL: DO NOT BE ANGRY Anger is a very interesting emotion, it is immensely
useful when faced with a sabertooth tiger (you might live five minutes longer.) It could be defined as a feeling of projecting yourself into conflict aimed to protect you from losing something you perceive as your property. It is also the starting point for an emotion of potency. However unless you are faced with the said tiger or are playing with achieving a high vibration emotion of potency chances are that state will wear your body out and your reality would be an angry one. So we can use Awareness and Choice and choose a different emotional state. REIKI PRINCIPLE TOOL: DO NOT WORRY Worry is this low level fear-like emotion that projects a constant looking at worst-case scenarios in unknown present or yet not experienced future. Once again we can use our Awareness and Choice tools, first be aware that we are in the state of worry, second choose to change that state. REIKI PRINCIPLE TOOL: BE GRATEFUL In this principle there is a suggestion of creating a thought-emotional state of gratefulness. How does that translate into our emotional language? Do you have a memory of being grateful? Have you received something you desired and were you thankful for that gift? What if everything, all life, was that gift? How would that feel like? Once again through Awareness
and Choice we can shift to an emotional state different than the one we had. Why would one want this state? The only answer that will make sense will be an experiential one - try it, see what happens with your reality. REIKI PRINCIPLE TOOL: WORK WITH DILIGENCE Diligence is careful and persistent effort. Let’s rephrase that: diligence is constantly repeated full of care action. Let’s rephrase that again: diligence is repeated conscious action, thought or emotion. This tool is a reminder that in order for change to occur tool may need to be practiced with. Good news: the more you learn to learn the easier the learning gets. REIKI PRINCIPLE TOOL: BE KIND TO PEOPLE Being Kind is ability to be in state of no judgement, being aware but not defending a point of view of wrongness or rightness, goodness or badness. This is an interesting state of being, where you feel that we are all a bunch of “I do not know who I am” making up stories the best they can from the point of view we have. By the way, People includes you. How would you be kind to you? What judgements will you let go to be kind to you?
REIKI PRINCIPLE TOOL: MEDITATION Let’s define meditation as very simple state: sit still, take a break, breathe deeply and just be - if a thought occurs—think it but do not follow the train of thought, if emotional state arises—feel it but do not focus on it. When you get the hang of this process, you can point your mind gently towards tasks of observation without judgement and greater awareness. There can be more to it, but in the beginning that all it takes. REIKI SYMBOL TOOLS: SYMBOLS Symbols are pointers, ways to recollect a feeling or thought of a certain energy. A word is a symbol, a picture is a symbol, even an action can be a symbol. In Reiki symbols are used as focal points, as tools that bring your attention to certain concept and allow the energy to go through you. There are four traditional Reiki symbols that are used, and many more transitional Reiki symbols. The key is not the shape of the symbol, but what it means and the energy it points to. In essence a practitioner of Reiki forms a mental or physical picture of the symbol and focuses on its meaning, while becoming more aware of the energy flow within him or her. Then a practitioner may place his hands on or above the body to let the energy move through the areas that require movement in
order to facilitate change that is sought. Remember that symbols are pointers, there is more than one pointer to an idea. Do not take it too seriously, focus on the intent of what you are doing and less on form and shape. Those will come with practice. REIKI SYMBOLS: ATTUNEMENT In practicing Reiki you will come by a funny word: “Attunement.” Traditionally, a Reiki Master Teacher Initiator would “drop” the symbols in your energy vibration when you are ready to receive them. That is done with focus and clear intent. However, you can attune yourself to any symbol by meditating on its shape and intention, and then use it like using any other Reiki symbol. REIKI SYMBOL TOOLS: CHO KU REI Cho Ku Rei symbol resembles a spiral and its intent is to guide the flow of energy. Think of it as a master key to all flow of energy through and next to you: it can be “close flow” or “open flow” or “more flow” or “seal flow.” However you relate with perceiving energy - whether you
can see it, hear it, feel it or any mix of those, this symbol can serve as a focus for you. To feel the energy use your Awareness tool. You already have the answer most of the time. “I feel bloated”—wonderful—translate it to language of energy: there is too much energy in this area of my body and use your symbol tool with intent to open flow and release the energy. “I feel tired and depleted”—hurray—put more energy in you. “This place looks dangerous”—amazing—seal it with energy and use energy to expand your awareness of what really is. Where does the energy come from. From everywhere and everywhen. We can define it further and give names to it, but the energy is simply all around you all the time, always ready to be be transformed. When you feel, see or hear the energy connect with the top of your head, when you can perceive the movement of it to your hands and back into your body—you are becoming aware of another possibility of being. That’s rather fun. REIKI SYMBOL TOOLS: SEI HE KI Sei He Ki is defined in Reiki as a symbol for mental and emotional healing, protection, purification, clearing and balancing. The key word for this symbol is balancing boundaries. Use it to clear,
to protect things, to balance or to direct flow. REIKI SYMBOL TOOLS: HON SHA ZE SHO NEN Hon Sha Ze Sho Nen is described very often as the “distance” symbol. In Reiki it is used to use other symbols within distances of time and space. Think of it as a bridge that closes the gap in your awareness between here and now and there and then. It is the feeling of realizing that “I am” in me is no different than “I am” in you. REIKI SYMBOL TOOLS: DAI KO MYO Final symbol in traditional Reiki practice is Dai Ko Myo. It is called a Master symbol. Think of it as a representation of the light in you. It is a symbol of assuming greater ability to respond. A Reiki Master is someone who by practice of intense self‑change becomes available to others to enable more self‑change. Master symbol also connects you to your environment in a greater way: you are now someone to who even Earth can turn to for assistance.
EFT: INTRODUCTION EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) is an energy psychology modality developed by Gary Craig in the early nineties. It has its roots in TFT (Thought Field Therapy) developed by Roger Callahan. As anecdotal story goes, Dr. Roger Callahan, a clinical psychologist, was working with a woman that had intense fear of water, to the extent of being physically sick if water was present. Dr. Callahan at the time was exploring acupressure techniques and when his client has stated during the treatment that it made her sick in her stomach to think about water right there and then, he asked her to rub the meridian point associated with stomach. They proceeded to have their usual session talking about the fear and its origins, but suddenly the woman got up and ventured outside towards a pool. Roger went after her, but she told him: “do not worry I am not going to get in, I am not an idiot I know I cannot swim, but I am no longer afraid of the water.” Dr. Callahan then looked for possible connections between these stuck emotional states, their affects on physical conditions of the body and created, at the time, a complex system of determining which points and in which order one needs to stimulate in order to let go of these strong emotional states and connected physical manifestations. Enter, engineer and minister Gary Craig. His question was “Can this be easier? If in essence we are shaking the energy system to
clear blocks and let usual movement restore couldn’t we shake the whole system and remove the complex determination of what is stuck where?” So EFT was born. I have come to know about EFT from my good friend Thomas H. Bleasdale, an excellent reflexologist and body worker as well as eternal consciousness student. I have practiced EFT for many years now and a few years ago employing it to such degree that I saw even greater potential for change in using this tool. Another person you might want to look up is Robert Smith. He came up with FasterEFT with NLP, he integrated NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) into his version of EFT (or tapping as it is sometimes referred to) and made a drastic shift in the point of view of why we are making the change and what exactly we are working with. His premise was: “what if it is not a problem but a skill? what if nothing is broken, but rather works just fine, you just no longer want the result of that process and thus want to change it?” History of EFT is somewhat longer than the actual application method, it is interesting to know where these tools come from. EFT: TAPPING TOOL Tapping is an action of slightly hitting or rubbing a point on your body with your fingers while being focused on the state you want to change. Words could be used to clarify the intent.
POINTS USED IN FASTER EF T ADDITIONAL POINTS USED IN TR ADITIONAL EF T
TOP OF THE HEAD
COLL AR BONE
“SORE SPOTS”
UNDER PECTOR ALS
WRIST
EYEBROW
SIDE OF THE EYE
UNDER THE EYE
SIDE OF THE EYE
UNDER THE EYE
Determine the emotional or body state you’d like to change. For example: I have a headache, or I am intensely angry or call up a fear you’d like to work with. Feel the state you’d like to change, reach into it and give a relative intensity measure - on a scale from 0 to 10, where 0 is no state and 10 is very intense state present. We are using FasterEFT method of less points, but any point on your body if you feel a draw to it will do in addition to those points. Here’s the sequence of points and some words you might use: • tap the eyebrows point, say “I release and let go of this feeling” • tap on the side of the eye point, say “it is safe to let go of this feeling” • tap on the under the eye point, say “this feeling has served its purpose and I can release and let it go” • tap on the collarbone point, say “i am safe, and i release and let go of this feeling” • tap or hold your wrist, take a deep breath, go to a pleasant and peaceful memory and say “peace” Examine your emotional or body state - has the intensity changed? has the state changed?
Continue until a 0 state is reached. That’s how simple the method really is—we will discuss a few other ideas and types of statements that can be used. But really you can’t do it wrong. All the while that you employ EFT you practicing awareness and choice. You are becoming aware that your emotions do not emote you, you emote your emotions, your thoughts do not think you, you think them, your actions do not happen to you, you act your actions. You are bringing out your emotional, action and thought skills that have been automated and you are consciously changing them to that which you desire. That’s the point of it. EFT: OBJECTIFYING EMOTIONS TOOL There are times that we are so automated in some areas of our life that we are not aware what exactly is going on. Emotions are not cognitive or logical, and the societal paradigm we live in thrives in the idea that they just happen. So it may take a bit of exploring to become aware. First wonderful thing to know is that emotions always happen in your body. Feeling butterflies in your stomach, or anxious feeling in your chest, or constricted breathing of fear—all that points to a feeling. Explore what your body feels, move a little, if you do not have a definition for your feeling—it’s probably because there isn’t one in our language—it could be a delightful mix of excitement-
fear-sadness-anger with something we don’t have a name for. You can always say “this feeling in my chest.” Remember that you are talking to your self and self knows its stories even if you are not aware what they are. If you can’t quite measure the intensity in numbers, give your feeling a shape, a color, a temperature—some quantification that the mind can connect to. Once again the first thing that comes to your mind is the answer—”What color is this feeling?” “Orange”. It makes no sense, nor it is supposed to. What is interesting is that after you used tapping and looked at the state you are changing again it may have a different color or shape or size thus giving you a perspective on change. A FEW OTHER TOOLS: These are just some of the tools that you can easily use to enable self-change. During our playshop we may enjoy tools from a few other toolsets. Feel free to look them up on your own. ACCESS CONSCIOUSNESS There’s an amazing tool set that I have found to be of immense value—the system called Access Consciousness. One of the best places to start is reading a book “Being You, Changing The World” by Dr. Dain Heer.
TAKE A BREAK One day while I was enjoying a cup of coffee in my favorite coffee shop in Phoenix, I heard a man telling people left and right to “take a break.” Eventually, I got to talk to him. His name is Howard Johns and he has been a student of consciousness for quite a while. He has a whole system of tools and principles that he shares with people, but he always begins with “taking a break.” So next time, when you feel like you would like to change something, before you take action: take a break—and I mean really take a break —let go of whatever you are looking at so intently or doing so vigorously, relax, appreciate that which you can appreciate in your circumstances. You would be surprised with what might happen next.
RESOURCES: BOOKS The Big Book of Reiki Symbols by Mark Hosak and Walter Luebeck (ISBN: 9780914955641) EFT Manual by Gary Craig (ISBN: 9781604150308) Monsters and Magical Sticks by Steven Heller, Ph.D.and Terry Steele (ISBN: 9781935150633) Being You, Changing The World by Dr. Dain Heer (ISBN: 9780984508815) RESOURCES: WEBSITES Traditional EFT website: www.emofree.com Traditional EFT website: www.eftuniverse.com FasterEFT with NLP website: www.fastereft.com FasterEFT YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/user/HealingMagic RESOURCES: PEOPLE These people are a great resource for further play with EFT and Reiki tools. Nicole Duran (Reiki Master Teacher): www.nicole-duran.com Thomas H. Bleasdale (EFT/Access Consciousness): www.thbleasdale.com
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