Four Stages in Learning: Experience, new awareness, insight, self realization

Open to Teachers/Trainees

Evolution’s or creation’s secret path to success was the all pervasive, all encompassing, all enticing phenomena we call “Experience”. When you look at the existence of a given species of life form, be it human, animal or microbe, experience is a given. And why? Because it is through experience that we learn. What do we learn? Well in terms of the evolution of our species we learned what to do or not do to and when to do it in order to survive–We made choices as did every other life form whether human, animal or microbe. Experience taught us the wisest course towards the prospect of continuous existence.

How does experience best teach? Experience by itself is certainly a form of learning. However the creative aspect of the nature of experience is the new awareness that we enter given our response to and assimilation of the experience which gives us insight, previously unavailable to us for a deeper understanding of ourselves.

People are always asking us about some version of the following: “When I leave your studio, I feel great! I have a wonderful experience of being me apart from the experience I usually have of being me. I like this experience and I want to keep it; however, my new experience fades and I gradually revert to how I was before. How do I learn to find this experience again on my own?” The answer of course, is not to try to find what no longer exists except vividly in your memory (i.e. your new experience of being you). No experience is meant to last. What endures is your awareness of potential (from the new experience in being you) apart from the probable (from the accustomed experience in being you). But how do we explain this so that they will readily understand, and how do we teach so as to emphasize awareness born from the experience? What if I were to provide you with an answer along the lines of: “When I am working with you verbally or through touch, you have a different awareness of potential in being you apart from your accustomed behavior, and that lets you have a different experience. When I take my hands away, I promise to leave you with your new awareness born from your new experience. You own that. It is more enduring than the physical changes that are a part of your new experience.” You have learned something, and from this learning you have a deeper insight and understanding of you, of who you are or might become should you choose potential over familiarity. Inherent in any meaningful experience lies an exploration of awareness born from the new experience you just had as a means of making lasting changes towards making peace with yourself so you can be at peace with yourself. This can only occur through complete and total acceptance of who you are, have been and will become.

We will explore the four stages of learning through demonstration and practical work. Bring instruments if you are a musician, and anything else you might wish to experience differently– including yourself.