Good day, friends!
One of the tools in our spiritual toolbelt, as many of you know, is something we call “projection”. It is most helpful to be aware that we are always projecting our experience and also our assumptions onto the world around us. We tend to have the idea that we are experiencing objective reality–that what we see to be out there really is out there–but we are not. Instead, we are inevitably and unavoidably experiencing our subjective experience reflected in “outward” things. In other words, all we ever experience is ourselves.
Understanding this, the world we perceive “out there” becomes a mirror for our internal landscape. If we can remember to “own our projections”–to follow our projections back to their source within our own heart and mind–then every experience we have, every thought or feeling about the things we perceive, can teach us about ourselves. Every aspect of our experience can show us how we are doing life, who we are as we are living, how we cause ourselves the various forms of unhappiness we suffer from, and how we might live in a world that reflects what is true and authentic within us.
Over the course of this month-long class we will explore our projections onto the people in our lives, onto the human world we live within, onto the natural world, and onto our circumstances, in order to see what these projections can teach us. We will ask ourselves, where are we allowing conditioned mind to create the world we live in through our projections? How might we live in a world that reflects our natural beauty, harmony, and clarity instead?
I hope you will consider giving yourself the gift of this class. I look forward to seeing you there!
When: The first class assignment will go out on Monday, September 20th. The final live group will be on Sunday, October 17th. The class will then wind down over the next couple weeks as people respond to the final assignment and read their classmates’ responses.
How to Register: Go to www.theoneopendoor.org, scroll to the bottom of the home page, and make a donation of any size. Please be sure to include a note that the donation is for the Projection Class—either that or send me an email at [email protected]. (See below for more information about donations for the class.)
The Class Format: We’ll use the same format we employed last time. Each Monday during the class I will send out the primary assignment for the week (video, audio, and/or written). There will be four main assignments total. Over the course of that week I will likely offer one or more other, optional assignments for those who have the time and the willingness to do more. Everyone in the class will do the assignment and then use one of two available avenues, or both, to share their experience of the assignment and what they became aware of as a result with the rest of the class.
The first avenue will be a live group over Zoom on Sunday mornings from 11:00 a.m. EST to 12:30 p.m. Est. During these groups I will facilitate a conversation about the current assignment, and I’ll likely offer other things to look at as well. The first Sunday morning group will happen on September 26. The last will be on October 17. It is not required that everyone participate in each of these four groups, but it is encouraged.
The second avenue will involve an online platform that will allow us to have a written conversation about things related to the class. People will write in about the things they are seeing and experiencing as a result of the class, and I will respond to each of these posts. Other people in the class will be invited to comment as well. It is not required to participate in the written part of the class, but I hope people will tune in and contribute to the conversation online. Based upon past experience, these conversations will be rich, heartfelt, and inspiring.
I will also send out daily prompts via email that will offer small practices and/or things to look at over the course of each particular day.
One thing to note is that this class will require work and effort on your part if you decide to participate. The level of your participation will be up to you, but a minimum of two hours per week will be required in order to receive from the class what is intended. More time will be required if you choose to do the extra credit assignments and to keep up with your classmates’ posts and my responses. Before you sign up, please look honestly to see if you have the time and space in your life to devote to the class. If you do, great! I’ll look forward to seeing you there! If you do not, then it would be best for you to wait to sign up for a class until a time when you have more space in your life to participate. I would like to have people in the class who are prepared and have the time to do the work.
About Donations: The class will be offered on a donation basis, as usual. In order to register, go to www.theoneopendoor.org, scroll to the bottom of the home page, and make a donation of any size. The purpose of this initial donation is to support you in keeping your commitment to the class. At the end of the class there will be an opportunity to donate more if you choose.
Thank you everyone for your attention to this email. I hope I will have the pleasure of seeing you in the class! Take good care of yourselves, be well, and I hope you have a lovely day!
In peace,
David