Introduction to
Dancing in the Eye of Transformation
10 Keys to Creative Consciousness

   My life is a story of weaving.
   All of my life, I have been a spiritual seeker fascinated by the various mystical traditions of the world.  I have always marveled at the amazing diversity that springs from different cultures and beliefs. There is so much beauty in the many ways to be a human. There have been wise ones and great healers in every culture. I have reveled in that diversity and have found ways to weave those wisdoms into my life. These teachings have enriched me beyond measure.
     As a spiritual healer, I work with many different people with many different cultural and spiritual backgrounds. I feel it is important for me to work with each person in a way that honors that person’s unique perspective and background instead of trying to make them fit into mine. The study and practice of these different paradigms helped me to serve each person in the way that would work best for them instead of attempting to fit a square peg in a round hole.  While I could not possibly practice all the disciplines of every tradition I have been a part of on a regular basis,  I have been able to weave the parts that seem to flow together well to make a cohesive whole that is my unique paradigm, not unlike a beautiful tapestry.
     Some people have asked me what tradition I am a part of. I suppose the most truthful answer would be that I am philosophically closest to a Buddhist. My daily practices are Hindu Tantric. My community is predominantly eclectic pagans, and my healing and teaching work incorporates all of these facets along with shamanic practices, bio-energetic, vibrational and hypno-therapeutic modalities.
     As I formed my spiritual world view, I have come to the conclusion that reality is totally subjective. While I have done my best to view reality from an open mind, some concepts just didn’t fit into the personal paradigm I was creating. As a result, they got left out of the sacred stew I was cooking up. The idea that Divinity was only male didn’t seem right, so that got dropped. I couldn’t fathom that there was only “one way” to enlightenment and salvation. I have met and heard of so many people with different beliefs who were enlightened, so that didn’t fit.  I have had way too much personal evidence of the unseen realms to believe that reality is only what can be proven though linear means. Basically, what got dropped from my paradigm were beliefs that were based on exclusivity, versus inclusivity. As far as I’m concerned, it’s fine for people to believe whatever they like, as long as it doesn’t hurt anyone else and allows every person the right to believe and practice spirituality in her or his own unique way.
     The weaving of various traditional thoughts, beliefs and practices can be a controversial approach.  Some say it prevents real deepening with any one path. Some consider it “spiritual shopping,” and figure it’s a consumerist approach to spirituality. Some people see it as an evolution of consciousness, and others see it as a devolution. Regardless of what anyone else thinks, I feel content and aligned with my woven path. I’ve definitely got a lot of company. People who seek integrative approaches to healing and  spirituality comprise one of the fastest growing body of seekers in the world today. Holistic approaches to personal development are the leading edge of transformative processes.
     Integrative spirituality is a relational approach that recognizes that we are all a part of much larger systems than we can currently apprehend. Those who seek spiritual integration aspire to reconcile different and even sometimes opposing, beliefs and to meld practices of various schools of thought in order to affirm an underlying unity, creating a meta-paradigm of inclusivity. Integrative spirituality honors the richness of diversity within the vastness of the oneness.
     The implications of this way of thinking are vast. Our very survival is likely to be dependent on our ability to perceive and honor our interconnectedness with each other and the Earth. Perhaps the awareness that we are all interconnected and interdependent can heal the fragmentation that pits nation against nation, religion against religion and humanity against nature.

Personal transformation can and does have global effects. As we go, so goes the world, for the world is us. The revolution that will save the world is ultimately a personal one.
- Marianne Williamson

     The ability to approach all of life from a holistic perspective can transform every level of our experience. For example, I believe that healing the psyche and spiritual growth are synergistically linked. All levels of the self are evolving as an interlinked system of development. It is not enough to be knowledgeable about spiritual practices and the workings of arcane rites. It is equally valuable to know the complex workings of the psyche. This powerful self-awareness can transform the relationship between the mind and the emotions, making it possible to be a person who radiates the beauty and power of a healed psyche. Every time I meditate, I experience a healing. More truth, power, energy and wholeness are created and maintained within the vehicle called ‘me.’ Meditation is an act of healing, whether I intend it that way or not. Similarly, when I am present for a powerful piece of healing work, I am constantly awed by the immense spiritual power present. Healing and spirituality are woven together inextricably as the warp and the woof on the loom of change.
     The metaphysical principles covered in the book are very loosely based on the principles of numerology.2 Having a system of correspondences can be helpful in order to organize diverse concepts in such a way that they can be held and comprehended simultaneously.
     Each chapter can stand alone, and yet together, they represent a dynamic interplay that can assist in the integration of many layers of the psyche and synergize one’s approach to enlightenment. You may have a strong affinity for some aspects and not for others. Please take what works for you and leave the rest. This book is not meant to be the creation of a new meta-religion. It is merely a guide to ways in which one might conceptualize the nesting of systems in order to find ways to view metaphysical reality from a holistic perspective.

Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.
-Gautama Buddha

     Knowledge is a funny thing. No matter how much you have learned, it’s not totally real until it has been integrated into the body energetic. In order to do that, I highly recommend doing the meditations in the book.

However many holy words you read, however many you speak, what good will they do you if you do not act upon them?
- Buddha, from the Dhammapada

Sylvia Brallier
Director of the Tantric Shamanism Institute
http://www.tantricshamanism.com

Excerpted from the book
"Dancing in the Eye of Transformation."
You can purchase the book here.
© 2006 Sylvia Brallier. Please be sure to include the author's name and web site address if you share this page with others.
 Thank you.