Ramblings of a drunken monkey

Part 9: Follow me, I'm right behind you....

No it's not the punchline of another bad joke, it is in fact a rather fitting way to think of how we as healers and guides work best. I had originally considered the title of 'leading a horse to water' but quite frankly I preferred this one instead. The analogy however remains the same, 'you can't drag a person to enlightenment.' Or, to crudely quote yet another famous line from both philosophy and film 'we can only show you the door, it's up to you to walk through it.' It's funny that with all these iconic references in films, that people might actually consider them seriously. How many times have you heard an amazing piece of guidance or advice, only to be told it was from a film? One of the most used lines in my class during 2015 in relation to healing and ditching the emotions, anger and sorrow that was dragging people down into pits of depression and despair was 'let it go' and that was equally reinforced and ruined by the all famous cartoon 'Frozen'.

Anyway, I digress (quite easily as you may have noticed). The point of this chapter is that no matter how bad a person gets, how often you heal them or show them a better way to live, or eat or think, how often you tell them that they are destroying themselves and those around them that love them by extension, they may still not change a thing.

I have had old school acquaintances who have had epiphanies and found philosophy after being beaten to a pulp, for others that turning point was cancer, for me actually it was the death of my mother in a car crash, followed by ten years of this, that and the other. My actual turning point was from finding the right guides and martial arts, and is the reason why I am such a strong advocate of true and traditional teaching of the arts. A good guide can heal a bully, strengthen someone who is scared and insecure and make any person shine. A bad guide can destroy all these things or it create a monster. The same can be said for any person on this earth, if they hold influence over another. And we're back to the light and dark situation

So how do we work with others, if we shouldn't ignore them and we can't lead them? How are we expected to help people? We simply talk to them, show them how we work and let them make up their own mind, nothing more. Then let them lead the way, the one they are best set to go on, their own path for healing. If they ask for your guidance then you are right there to help and by doing so they let you in, they create a contract where they are in charge and want to change but don't know how. Then you show them the frame for a happy life and let them fill the gaps in their own way. A guide can talk from their own experience but only as the story of how they found their own way. A good guide is able to help someone without telling them what to do and without passing on their own influences.

So how powerful is a simple conversation?

Our voices are truly amazing. The significance is not only the range of notes and sounds we can produce, but also the ability to add emotion and feelings into the sounds we make. This separates us from purely electronic sound and into another realm of power for affecting health and wellbeing. There have been numerous studies within the practices of alternative or holistic medicine into the use of tones and vibrations for healing, ultimately leading to the use of machines in modern medicine such as sonic wands, ultrasound and infrasound. However, at a fundamental level, all these techniques originated from the use of the voice directly or with basic instruments to produce sound for healing.

Expression using the voice appears key to every society or religion; incorporating hymns, songs or chants into their daily lives. Even simple speech, confession, counselling or setting the world to rights with friends and family can be considered forms of healing. Singing and chanting are considered a medium for prayer or meditation and whilst there is an element of scepticism to these practices; that these are just music for the sake of enjoyment or a group of people chanting 'OM', one cannot deny that these rituals have undoubtedly been practiced since humans could first make sounds.