May 2011–Influences To Take Advantage Of and To Beware Of

This month begins a much larger cycle of bringing all the disconnected parts back into communication with each other. In the name of individuality and based on the model of competition, the right hand has not known what the left hand is doing for a long, long time. The masculine has been disconnected from the feminine, our personalities have been disconnected from our essences, the mind has been disconnected from the heart, systems of the physical body have been disconnected from each other, and we have been living in an uncooperative, separate, lonely, dysfunctional world. There is no communication, everything is secret, and we guard our ideas, hearts, generosity, emotions and energy, measuring them out in small amounts and then only for the highest price. We are just as stingy with receiving as we are with giving, guarding ourselves against the danger of exploitation and the fear of annihilation. What a sorry state we have found ourselves to be in at this juncture of our evolution.

With all that said, we now have a great opportunity to change this pattern around from one of separation to one of cooperation and community. The theme of getting two sides of the same edge to communicate and work together is a huge one. This is just the beginning of a process that will probably take years but is necessary and inevitable as the next step in our evolution on the planet as a species. When was the last time your heart spoke to your little toe or your liver spoke to your pancreas? When was the last time you spoke to your food with gratitude for where it came from? When was the last time you asked for help?

We have been fed an illusion that power comes from being able to stand alone and to not rely on anything or anyone else. To some extent it is true that being self -sufficient is preferable to being overly needy, however this applies more to how you run your energy rather than to what you accomplish in the world. It is a known fact that when you have help and support you can accomplish a great deal more than if you don’t. What would it be like to have all your body parts cooperating with you in accomplishing a physically challenging endeavor? What would it be like to have help and support come easily, naturally and without conditions? And what would it be like to be confident that your intentions will always manifest because you trust 100% that it will be so? It is time to change our approach to life from one of effort and mistrust to one of believing in the cooperation of the universe.

There is a focused energy to the month that will work well with the aggression mode of the year when used in conjunction with your clear intentions. Intentions should be set very specifically and with plenty of flexibility for cooperation and support. Intentions should always be set around how you want to end up feeling and how satisfied you wish to be in your life. So when you are setting an intention for prosperity, instead of a dollar amount, set your goal to be what you intend to feel and what you imagine that amount will give you in terms of satisfaction. That way you give the universe more options for cooperating with you on manifesting your intention. Likewise if you are looking for a relationship, be specific on how you wish to feel in that relationship instead of what you think it ought to look like. The points of reference for the achievement of goals and manifesting are outdated and we are just now in the process of creating new ones. We have not yet experienced what it would be like to live life from a fully supportive and cooperative place where there was never any concern that an intention would not manifest. These are uncharted waters and a very exciting time on the planet where anything is possible provided we keep eliminating our attachment to old ways.

One of the aspects of this month is focus. Focus is important if you want to harness the engine that will drive your intention into being manifest. There can be no distractions and you have to be clear about what you intend. This is not a time to sit around and wait for something to happen. This is not a time to become frozen with fear like a deer in headlights. This is a time to move, to act, to intend, to ask, to pray, to get support and to be cooperative. Cooperation is a two way street. You must be cooperative yourself if you want to have cooperation. Part of this process is simply coming into an awareness of all things being connected. Set the intention to do your part and everything else will fall into place. Consider yourself and all that you have around you that supports you in life. Think of that support system as being a connected community of parts and pieces that need to work together to synthesize your life. From your car to your house to your clothes to your plumbing to the food you eat to your body functions to your friends, work, nature, time, your bank, grocery store etc.; they are all connected and form a cooperative community of sorts that supports your life.

Many of you have the illusion of being separate, alone, disconnected and unsupported and yet you are not. If you begin to focus on how everything is connected then you will begin to experience a greater sense of support, belonging and harmony. You will begin to streamline your intentions and trust the universe to deliver. Your life will become richer and you will feel more active and participatory rather than passive and victimized. So be aggressive about what you want but be a cooperative participant in the setting and manifesting of your intentions. One of the biggest lessons of these times is to learn to communicate and learn to trust. The fear of disillusionment and disappointment has kept most of us from communicating our deepest wishes. We don’t want to be seen as arrogant, foolish and unrealistic so we have kept ourselves small and secret. It is time for that practice to be done with and time to turn our sights towards a more intimate, trusting and cooperative pattern where so much more is possible. Instead of asking why, we should be asking why not.

Whenever you are working with a theme, the opposite of the theme shows up to illuminate the lessons. So in the case of cooperation what you may experience first is the uncooperative aspect of your life. You may be shown where you are disconnected and where there is effort. You may experience life as being very uncooperative. Should this happen, acknowledge the reminder and get to work changing your attitude. We have a tremendous opportunity right now to connect up the dots, to heal the rift between opposing forces and to get ourselves back on track. When you think of cooperation think of connecting right and left, behind and in front, up and down, inner and outer, the heart and the mind, masculine and feminine, giving and receiving, the body and spirit, all with the intention of getting them to communicate and cooperate.

Click here to access the full monthly commentary packed with tips to help you strengthen your relationships, health, finances and more. Print out the full forecast and reference it throughout the month. (The above is an excerpt from the commentary).

The author of the monthly forecast, Lena Stevens, is an author and co-founder of an international school and consulting firm dedicated to the study and application of shamanism and wisdom. Lena Stevens has co-authored books with Jose Stevens, Ph.D., such as Secrets of Shamanism:Tapping the Spirit Power Within You and The Power Path: The Shaman’s Way To Success in Business and Life.

For a more complete discussion on the themes and influences for 2011 link here to order a download of TRENDS 2011 (link here).

Welcoming January 2011!

In this month’s forecast, Lena Stevens, author and co-founder of an international school and consulting firm dedicated to the study and application of shamanism and wisdom, reveals influences and opportunities to take advantage of.

Click here to access the full monthly commentary that you can print and reference!

Below is an excerpt from the commentary.

The main theme for January is RESETTING PRIORITIES.

We are now under a new set of influences and themes. As the trends of 2010 have started their exodus as primary motivators and the new trends have begun to settle in, we are inspired to take the creative artisan energy of the last year and begin to use it in realigning our relationship with service. We want our lives to not just be creative but purposeful, growing us towards a deeper satisfaction around what we are actually doing here on the planet. In December, the influences were internal, transitional, re evaluating, and very focused on maintaining on a personal level.  The moving center of 2010 stepped aside allowing the emotional center to flow in as the primary influence for 2011. Many of you may have felt unfocused, unproductive, aimless, tired, subdued and possibly even un-inspired as the moving centered artisan influence of 2010 released its primary position. Now we have an adjustment period as we realign ourselves with what we have chosen for this year. For a time it may still feel like we are under the influence of the artisan as there is definitely the creative desire for expression. However the artisan is not running the show but rather becomes part of the foundation that is in service to the server role of the year.

One of the first things on the agenda for 2011 is to reset your priorities. Spirit has given you many clues and messages over the past months regarding what should be important in your life, where you should be putting your energy and intention, what needs to be let go of as it is of an old paradigm, and what you should be doing and with whom. Some of you have been better than others about listening to these hints and actually taking the steps to reinvent yourselves in a way more aligned with spirit. Therefore some of you will feel a surge of energy this month that should enhance this alignment and open opportunities for self-expression, support and the experience of service. The experience of service is not only related to how you can serve others and the planet, but also addresses how you can be served and how you are presently served by spirit, your allies, the elementals and all of nature.  There is definitely a potential in this alignment for a higher centered experience of life, connection, and all things being really “right”.

If you have not been great at listening and feel your life is somewhat less than you would like it to be, it is never too late to discard those attachments and to choose resolutions that will put you back on track. We are still under the influence of the very powerful winter solstice, eclipse and Full Moon, and will be until the New Moon on January 4 that comes with a partial solar eclipse. The time frame between two eclipses, especially when they are accompanied by other very powerful alignments, is always very potent and should be used proactively to set your intentions and to get things moving in the right direction. If you have been feeling unmotivated, lethargic and unfocused, that could change just before this New Moon when we should experience a surge of energy. Make sure this surge does not scatter you into chaos and negativity, but rather gives you some needed fuel to move forward in the right direction. If you have your priorities set straight you should experience more energy, enthusiasm, inspiration and movement. Pay attention to the intuitive wisdom of the emotional center and the synchronicity it produces. Don’t let the questioning mind get in the way of what you know to be emotionally true. Pay attention to the signs of spirit and don’t argue with or resist what is obvious.

The resetting of priorities this month will definitely be addressed, whether proactively by your decisions and choices, or not so proactively where you end up at the effect of someone else’s decisions and choices. For example, if you know you are in the wrong work situation but have not had the courage to do something about it, a decision may be made for you where you end up out of that work situation through a medical condition, being let go or some other unpleasant circumstance. Take the resetting of priorities this month seriously as there is a rather large engine of energy that wants to propel all of us in the right direction.  Evaluate where you are with your priorities and be truthful about what needs resetting. It may be that you will have to give something up or disappoint someone or take a risk. But if it is the right decision, you will know it.

Since we are under the influence of the emotional center, these decisions of what is “right” for you cannot be fully intellectual. The knowingness must come from another more intuitive place. This is especially challenging for those of you who are not as comfortable with the emotional center and who are used to relying on your rational mind for your answers and problem solving abilities. This is a time when little can be actually solved by “thinking it through”. It is better to use the capacity of the mind in support of the decisions of the intuitive self. Watch out for the obstacles of Self-deprecation and Martyrdom as they try to discourage and disregard what you feel as insignificant, wrong or unworthy. Watch the mind as it strives for control through these obstacles. Trust and hope may be uncharted waters for you but they may be all that is left in some situations.

Remember that what is right for you will also be influenced by the server role of the year.  Re evaluate your motivations for anything you do and any situation you are in. Have the courage to change your mind, say no or yes, and to open yourselves to receive the support and service available to you. The era of going at it alone to prove your strength, power and independence from others is over. This is a time of building trust, receiving support, and collaborating with others. Resetting your priorities should always include putting yourselves first in line to be served by spirit and to receive what is available to you.  Sometimes it is difficult to see through to what is your priority over what is someone else’s priority. In partnership you may have to compromise and support and honor another’s priority at the same time as supporting and honoring your own. This requires a balance so that there is an equal exchange. Often to make a collaboration work, all parties need to be supported equally in a give and take exchange especially when it comes to what is most important. What is most important to you may not what is most important to another and vice versa. Coming up with a balance where everyone gets their needs met and their importance honored will create a balance and bring the spirit of service into any partnership. The main thing is never to give all your power away and compromise yourself completely as this will only lead to resentment and Martyrdom. At the same time, if you are a person who does not make a point of considering what is important to others, this could be an opportunity for you to improve your partnerships by doing so.

Let’s look at some of the specific areas you may need to reset priorities and what it may mean for you if you do it successfully and what it may mean if you don’t.

To read about the influences this month on your finances,

relationships and health, click here to read the full commentary.