?? The Dream of the Three Attentions ??

In the Toltec Wisdom shared by Don Miguel Ruiz, he tells a story of the inner life.

A story of a fundamental path of inner development that we all follow on our journey through life.

This story is called:

The Dream of the Three Attentions

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Imagine a forest, trees as far as you can see.

This is the forest of the inner world.

Now, in this forest, each tree is a particular perspective, a particular vantage point.

And, for some creatures, a single tree is their whole world.

In fact, each tree has an infinite vista to view.

You could spend your whole life exploring the view from one tree, and there would still be more to see.

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In the dream of the first attention, the dream of the snake, we play the role of the victim.

We feel the world is bigger than us, and we don’t have a say. We are angry because of this situation, or because of what that person has done.

We are stuck because we don’t have a choice.

The movement from the first attention to the second involves accountability.

When we take accountability for how we have gotten to this point in our lives, we also get the ability to move from here forward.

We see how we contributed to getting to this point, and we can begin to see what else we may have done.

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In the first attention, we live our whole lives in one tree, thinking that it is the world.

But, when we take accountability and begin to look at ourselves and the world anew, we start to drop out of the tree.

We step out of the familiar box and begin to look with fresh eyes.

After we do this a few times, we’ll begin to move into the second attention, into the dream of the jaguar, where we learn the role of the warrior.

We begin to watch for points of power loss. Points where we are not free. Where we are called into unconscious reaction.

We learn the art of stalking, to seek out ways that our power is used unconsciously and against our best interests.

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Stalking is a toltec practice of noticing the subtleties of our being and the way and that we engage with the world, and shifting this engagement intentionally.

Taking on a new habit or skill is one form of stalking, as it is a way to explore engagement with the world.

Stalking is similar to method acting, in which aspects of the self are brought forward with skill and awareness.

In the dream of the jaguar, we can jump from one tree to another.

We can jump out of a tree altogether, leaving an old vantage point to stalk on the ground for a new one.

And, with each different tree comes an entire new way of perceiving and relating to the world.

With each new way of relating to the world comes another skill.

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Now, the dream of the second attention is primarily shadow work.

Seeking out those aspects of ourselves which are operating from the unconscious.

Reintegrating disowned bits of our emotion and memory. Bringing all of these lost bits of psychic energy under one conscious umbrella.

And, after a bit, we must learn to balance the shadow work with an active seeking of the joy in life.

In the teachings of the Quechua people, this is described as the hummingbird, vibrant and alive, actively seeking the sweet nectar.

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So, we take on the role of the warrior when we become vigilant with all of our attention, all of our power, when we take responsibility for everything that we build and create in our lives.

And we learn to stop creating things that we are ready to grow past.

And we learn to gravitate to things that offer delight and joy, things that offer fulfillment and meaning.

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Over time, we will move past much of our inner distortion, and we’ll enter the dream of the third attention, the dream of the artist, symbolized by the eagle.

Here, we are at home in the sky, able to look down upon the whole forest and see how each perch relates to the forest around it.

We can roost in any tree that we desire, taking on a perspective or vantage point because of the benefits that it offers at that moment.

And then, when the time has passed, we can once more take wing and lift into the sky.

The artist is unbound by story, focusing on creating within the context of their lives.

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The dream of the third attention is also described as the dream of the master.

And in this dream, we learn that, although the world is shaped of story, we are the storyteller.

We learn our deepest core values, learn what we serve, and dedicate every bit of our personal energy to creating in alignment with it.

And then, we can bring the most beautiful fruits of our journey down to share with others.

Returning to the middle world with the gifts of spirit we have discovered on the path.

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I hope you have enjoyed this short description of the dream of the three attentions.

If you'd like to explore more like this, drop a line in the comments and I'll reach out.

Thanks and blessings!