Lead Into Gold
“[Alchemist] show that, when we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better, too.”
― Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist
Have you ever heard the term “alchemy?” If so, and you are like me, then you probably conjure up an image of some Merlin-like figure of Middle Ages trying to find the secret of turning lead into gold. I picture this old man poring over books by candlelight or stirring some boiling cauldron of who knows what in hopes of refining the base metals into more pure state. Those images have validity, and I am sure there were many people who tried to turn actual lead to gold. Yet, there is a more metaphysical philosophy to this ancient practice that can be applied to many aspects of our modern lives. This relates, in today’s blog, to our emotions.
How many times has an emotion overtaken you and caused more problems in that particular situation than you would have liked? I’m willing to bet this has happened to you at least once or twice in your life. Maybe even once or twice this week, or once or twice today. I know it has for me. I have seen myself so consumed by these lower states of consciousness to the point I didn’t feel in control of myself. It scared me and understandably so.
Often, we identify as those emotions instead of seeing them as ephemeral blips on the etherical radar. We then run the risk of being consumed by them. We begin to think that we are them and that they are us. We can get caught up in them and can be ruled by them. That can be a very slippery slope because once you are in that state and these emotions have a hold on you, they can easily get projected into your outer world. The emotions can then take the form of You and be acted out into this physical dimension.
You are not your emotions
The good thing is, those situations are in the past now and I wouldn’t beat myself up too much, if I were you. What you can do right now, however, is recognize that it happened and that it will happen again. You can now take responsibility for your future self and use these past circumstances as learning tools. When it begins to happen again, you will be better equipped to recognize it and handle it. As you begin the practice of recognizing, labeling, and not identifying with your emotions, then they will have a much lighter grip on your life. Eventually you will have a grip on them and in that moment, you will be able to let them go.
Let me be clear, this doesn’t mean that they will be magically deleted from your life to never be seen again. In illustrating this point a little deeper, Carl Jung stated, in Commentary on "The Secret of the Golden Flower: A Chinese Book of Life:”
“…the greatest and most important problems of life are all in a certain sense insoluble. They must be so because they express the necessary polarity inherent in every self-regulating system. They can never be solved, but only outgrown.”
What he is letting us know is that things such as issues surrounding our emotions will never be “solved” or “cured.” He is pointing to the inherent paradoxes of our very existence such as life and death, form and void, happy and sad. The nugget of hope he does impart is that as we move along our path with a purpose and a commitment to our self-understanding, we will become more adept at handling these emotions and thoughts. They will still show up but in a much smaller, less frightening, and less controlling form.
“Breath is the bridge which connects life to consciousness, which unites your body to your thoughts.”―Thich Nhat Hanh
The good news and bad news about emotions is that they don’t last long. The next time you get angry dealing with a co-worker, or you feel the wave of craving for that drink, you can urge surf that wave- a term and technique developed by Dr. Alan Marlatt- instead of getting pummeled by it. A good way to do that is to recognize it as it is. Meaning that it is just an emotion, and it can’t do anything to you.
Take those deep breaths you are always told to do in these situations but never do. It works because it creates a gap between the emotion and your reaction to it. From that perspective you can simply sit with it and observe it. You can let it be. You have a universe within you that can hold, dissipate, and then transmute the emotion no matter how big and mighty it seems.
A great blessing we have is our ability to feel so many different emotions, 34,000 according to this article. The truly amazing superpower we all possess is the ability to recognize those emotions and to transmute them. Through a calm allowing and observation, those base emotions of anger, disgust, or shame can be worked with and transformed into a higher state that can then serve you in a positive manner.
Those emotional states will continue to arise. Throughout your journey, you will constantly get the opportunity to do your own alchemical work. As you continue to practice and work with those emotions, your inner Merlin, your alchemist will become better at transmuting them. It is a wonderful lifelong and noble pursuit turning that lead into gold. This is the esoteric and deeper meaning behind alchemy; the transformation of the lead that is our more basic and reactive selves into the gold that is our Higher Self and potential!
