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Laurence Galian Books

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“Breathwork isn't for quick fixes, it's reclaiming power, one breath at a time. Practice makes it a daily ally, disintegrating armor to enrich creativity and connections. Like nature's steady pulse, breath affirms our strength.”

“One goal of the daily time of contemplation is to become aware of the essential in life, to become aware of that, which does not change upon death. If you can find that which is eternal in yourselves, suddenly your lives will have attained much significance and meaning.”

“Turn your attention to all that is dying and decaying. Look at dead leaves, a lifeless tree, a dead animal. Regard anything that is slowly returning to its constituent elements. Smell the pungent odor of decay. Inhale the effluvium of the dissolution process. The object of this exercise is to know the Earth, not just in its telluric aspect (flower bearing soil), but also in its chthonic aspect. Let death talk to you.”

“Sometimes, if the person’s ego is a bit stronger, he or she projects this threatening parent onto a spiritual leader or organization. The person either becomes a tyrant or lives in fear of other tyranny. We see this all the time on social media. People are continually posting items about how “evil” certain people and groups are, or they themselves are making dogmatic and righteous statements.”

“When we are sad and upset and believe that things are against us, we are attuning our minds to a certain frequency. That frequency then tends to invite in similar circumstances to support and reinforce the main frequency. These circumstances are real, as far as 'real' goes, to the person involved! The universe is really out to get the paranoid person!!!”

“During the first three hundred years after Jesus' death, there was neither an organized religion nor a central authority or book. There were many opinions and beliefs about who Jesus was. At first, even the apostles argues among themselves and had strong disagreements with the 'apostle' Paul (a man who had never met Jesus) over the basic concepts of Jesus' teachings. The Christian Bible as the public knows it, more or less today, did not appear until the middle of the 3rd century. Put differently, the first version of the Christian Bible as the public knows it did not appear until about one hundred and twenty years after Jesus died. And St. John's Book of Revelation was not accepted as part of the New Testament until 382 CE!”

“Absolutely nothing can happen without Her Mercy, without Her Grace. The most advanced spiritual techniques in the world are powerless to transform us, unless first She wills it. There are some writers today who want us to believe that if a certain sequence of practices is followed, then enlightenment is guaranteed, somewhat like following a sequence of driving instructions to arrive at a destination. Some of these writers forget completely the necessary ingredients of awe, devotion and love, without which it is not possible to complete the Great Work. The Goddess is not a machine, astagfirullah. Nor is She a Woman that can be raped and forced to yield Her Secrets.”

“Sûfîsm cherishes the esoteric secret of woman, even though Sûfîsm is the esoteric aspect of a seemingly patriarchal religion. Muslims pray five times a day facing the city of Makkah. Inside every Mosque is a niche, or recess, called the Mihrab - a vertical rectangle curved at the top that points toward the direction of Makkah. The Sûfîs know the Mihrab to be a visual symbol of an abstract concept: the transcendent vagina of the female aspect of divinity. In Sûfîsm, woman is the ultimate secret, for woman is the soul.”

“Academic and scholarly study are absolutely necessary for our continued understanding of ourselves and the world in which we live. However, a sense of inhumanity has begun to creep over science and academia, a kind of bureaucracy that chokes almost all possibility of real discovery from ever happening, and even worse, a belief system that very meticulously and deliberately attacks spirituality, religion and consciousness in every way possible. Materialist science reduces everything to matter. The human being, in the opinion of the materialist scientist, is nothing more than meat.”

“In Arabic to say, for example, "Wisdom is precious," you could repeat the feminine pronoun: al-hikmah hiya thamînah, literally "Wisdom, she is precious." It is stated by some Sûfî Sheikhs (Masters) that Sûfîsm originally was named Sophia, which connects Sûfîsm with the Christian Gnostic tradition, in which Wisdom is personified as a woman, the divine Sophia. The physical mother of Jesus was an external image of manifestation of the Virgin Sophia, the word 'Sophia' stemming from Sophos (wisdom). The Gnostics, whose language was Greek, identified the Holy Spirit with Sophia, Wisdom; and Wisdom was considered female.”

“Consider an ordinary flashlight battery. Look at or visualize one. Can you imagine if the battery only had a positive end, but not a negative end? What good would it be if it had only a positive pole, but not a negative pole? It wouldn't be functional. It wouldn't work. It wouldn't even be a battery. Most importantly of all, from a magickal point of view, it wouldn't be charged!”

“Compassion in times and places of confusion is usually a good idea. Frequently, new dervishes will become upset by what they see happening in the apparent world. For example, if their tesbih (Sufi prayer beads) breaks, they take this as a sign that Allah is angry with them. There is no evil that their tesbih broke. What is important is how the dervish mends it or replaces it. Just as that in life, when other "things" break, what is important is our reaction and how we mend or replace them. In addition, assuming that Allah is angry with them, is typical for the new dervish in that new dervishes tend to react in extreme ways. Everything becomes a matter of blown out of proportion. As one matures on the Path, one develops a sense of proportion and perspective, and does not run off as a chicken with its head cut off, when an inconvenience occurs in life.”

“The Somatic Unconscious underscores the interconnection between mind and body, suggesting that psychological content inaccessible through cognitive means can be accessed via physical sensations and somatic interventions.”

“In your meditations, call to mind the Absolute Reality. As you choose to see this Absolute Reality, so will you see the world. For, is not the Absolute, in its microcosmic aspect, a projection of your thoughts and imaginations of your very self? If you view the Absolute Reality as having some kind of mental infirmity, of whom are you speaking? Some contemporary Gnostics hold to the mythos that the Absolute Reality had some sort of 'emotional/mental breakdown' and because of this breakdown, evil entered the Universe in the form of Sophia’s 'fall' from the Pleroma, as well as the creation of the Demiurge and the Archons. Yet, if you believe that the Absolute Reality is Infinite, it must have integrity (the state of being whole and undivided). Consequently, the Absolute Reality cannot be divided against itself. By its very definition, it must be whole and undivided. This is why you need not fear, for you contain a spark of Divinity and that Divinity is One, and nothing can exist apart from that One. If a person or an Archon attacks you, they are attacking the entire Universe. Your task is to cultivate a realization of the integrity of the Universe.”

“Here is the beginning of integrity. A human being who deeply looks into himself or herself and asks: Who am I? What is the meaning of life? Why am I here? Why is anything here? Why are other people here? Where is here? and so forth, begins to find within himself or herself their authentic beliefs.”

“Gnosticism means "Direct Spiritual Knowing", being in direct experience with the Creative Source. Gnosticism has been called "forbidden self-discovery" by the Church, for it is a form of illumination. In other words, Gnosticism does not need the structure of a church to function. It is therefore, a threat to the existence of many churches.”

“Naked and unencumbered, I ran through the woods, a faun unleashed in the spirit of Nijinsky’s solitary ballet, The Afternoon of a Faun. The earth beneath my bare feet, the brush of leaves against my skin, the wind whispering secrets—all conspired to ignite a profound sense of freedom.”

“Psychiatrist Stanislav Grof's Holotropic Breathwork, born from 1970s psychedelic restrictions, uses rapid breathing, music, and bodywork for unconscious exploration and trauma healing, echoing ancient Yogic Pranayama (Rig Veda ~1700-1100 BCE, Upanishads ~800-500 BCE) and Sufi Dhikr ceremonies (from the 12th century).”

“The author wishes to point out that following one's True Will results in forces (energies) being released in one's body and one's environment. These forces then very often trigger astonishingly powerful magickal results. In studying the lives of persons such as are mentioned above, one sees that through persisting in following one's True Will despite incredible odds, results are frequently obtained, first in attaining the security of having a roof over one's head. Then friendships can develop as well as sexual intimacy. One begins to develop self-esteem, as one is no longer living in constant anxiety and fear. As the magickian reaches upward toward self-actualization, he or she becomes more congruent, allowing for the effortless flow of the Singular Energy through him or her.”

“The dervishes (or Sufis) have a saying, 'The dervish is the mirror of the dervish.' In other words, the universe is the mirror of the magickian's unconscious. Remember that face and you will never be dismayed for all is your realm to rule. For all will be plain to you. Whatever you experience will always and only be yourself. Whatever you change within your unconscious will always and only be the universe.”

“Take a deep breath by first filling your belly with air, and then your chest with air. A large majority of people never move their chests when they inhale. This is due to an emotional/physical response to trauma in your childhood. Watch a newborn baby breathe, and see how his or her entire torso inflates when he or she breathes. This is called solar respiration. Breathe with your mouth open, as wide open as possible. You will know that you are breathing correctly when you hear the inrushing and outrushing breath sounding very clearly. This sound is like the ocean you hear when you place your ear against a seashell. This is the same breath sound you make after running a race, or while having sex. Do not be disturbed if you feel dizzy. Simply place your attention on the soles of your feet and continue to breathe - if you do this, you will stop feeling dizzy. Do this practice every day, gradually working up to twenty minutes per day of continuous solar breathing. If possible, do this practice outside in nature, with your knees very slightly bent (no locked) and in your bare feet, or at least on the soil, grass, or natural rock.”

“In the ancient Armenian texts, which include the book 'Merkhavat,' there are references to the 'Sarmoung Society.' This society is described as a well-known occult school that according to tradition, dates from 2,500 B.C.E. The school is said to have fared in Mesopotamia up until the sixth or seventh century, C.E. Attributed to the school were many great occult mysteries.”

“Reich developed methods that help people find their way back to feeling. He taught deep breathing, free movement, and expression through sound. These approaches make space for the blocks to soften. Anger can arise without shame. Grief and fear find their own voices. As tension releases, a sense of ease returns. A more natural self has room to come forward.”

“It is not an easy thing for certain men and women to remain hidden. However, they accomplish this in a variety of ways. Remember the story of the Sufi Master who deliberately passed wind to rid himself of students who were not there out of a love of Essence? Many stories such as this have been told.”

“When Allah manifests Itself to us as the Real, or the Cosmos, we perceive the Divine Names. The Names, due to their distinction from one another (although they all proceed from the same Essence), generate duality. The Names are the self-disclosure of the Essence. However, in knowing Allah as Essence, the dervish crosses over to Unity.”

“Most students have very little patience when it comes to the Sheikh. As soon as they observe behavior that they “believe” is improper they start saying all sorts of nasty things in public about the Sheikh and run away. All Sheikhs will “appear” to fail you . . . however, this criticism of the Sheikh is due to your nafs seeking an “easy way out.” Very, very few people are truly willing to do the work necessary to rid themselves of egoic pride. Moreover, as we know, egoic pride can infect the dervish at any point on the path.”

“Serving humanity is the priority of the real dervish, not serving in some overly sentimental sense of being charitable to those “less fortunate” than we are, but through recognizing the Divine Light in all human beings, and acting accordingly. Think of all the numerous ways that our Prophet (Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) would constantly suggest to his community to help those who were poor, sick, widowed, orphaned, and some way in need. Spend your time thinking how you can help your neighbor, rather than worrying about tekke politics. As a dervish, you only exist to serve; forget about sleights to your ego. We are only dust under the feet of Muhammad (s.a.w.s.).”