New Earth Introduction
Oh my Goddess :) We made it. I am so happy that you have picked up this magical book. I am deeply grateful and honored that the spirit of Life has inspired / entrusted me to deliver this reservoir of knowledge, solutions, and goodness.
This book is like one big Jigsaw Puzzle. It is composed of many uniquely shaped pieces, each with their own magic and beauty. The pieces can be enjoyed and experienced on their own AND they also synergize into an indescribably awesome, ever-evolving whole puzzle.
And so, you can experience these pages in many ways. You can read it linearly, or you can hop, skip, and jump around. I have weeded out the unnecessary, so I assure you that there are Golden Nuggets on every single page :) It is basically a giant collection of “Downloads” that I’ve received on my journey. These are insights, perspectives, and visions that I’ve gathered from other thinkers, poets, artists or that I’ve received directly from who-knows-where. Perhaps from Mother Earth / Pachamama / God / Goddess, or some combination of all of them. The chapters are all interconnected, and often reference several other related chapters, so it will probably take reading through this book a few times to deeply resonate with all the interconnected insights. No need to worry or rush though, because each page is full of its own downloads which are quite helpful in and of themselves.
This book is the sequel / sibling to “Unlocking Our Superpowers.” Together they are a dynamic duo and fit together like a zipper. I will reference Unlocking Our Superpowers quite often in this book, and abbreviate it as “U.O.S.” It will be very helpful to have a physical copy of U.O.S. while reading this, though if you don’t, the entire text is available online, chapter by chapter @ www.TeamPachamama.net.
One of my favorite ways to utilize both these books is to view them as an Oracle. By this I mean you can keep it on your coffee table or bedside, and “randomly” flip open to any page, and receive a unique message for that day.
I’ve invited hundreds of people to do the “Oracle” flip for U.O.S. I’ve been continuously awed by the reactions people receive when the exact page they flip to applies directly to their life. One night in Asheville, a friend flipped to an excerpt called “Healing is Cool” that spoke directly to his heart. Oddly enough it was originally written on Sept. 13th a few years prior, and he read it at approximately 11:45 pm on Sept. 12th. These kinds of synchronicities are common with these 2 magical books, which I am honored to be a co-creator of.
A big intention of this book is to share the supremely awesome and stupendously magical tools that have helped me so much. I wholeheartedly believe that these games and practices can work wonders in your life… if you actually put them to use.
The brilliant Transformational Comedian Kyle Cease compares books like this to getting a tour of a Workout Facility. The trainer can walk around with you, and show you how to use the Elliptical Machine, Bench Press, etc. They can tell you how many calories you will burn per minute and show you pictures of how fit you might get. BUT if you never actually go to the gym, and do the exercises, then you won’t see any changes / results. I’m not trying to be mean or cynical, I just want to be REAL :)
I will often be very specific with what has worked for me ( I freaking love specificity ) You don’t have to try everything (or anything for that matter). If a certain chapter isn’t resonating, or doesn’t activate your passion, then flip to another one. There are many diverse activities shared here.
One of the key messages of this book is that “IT ALL DEPENDS ON THE LENS.” By this I mean that the outer world can drastically shift, as we simply view it through a different lens. Throughout the book, I will provide a vast variety of lenses to experiment with, and you can see for yourself how things transform. Many of them are in the form of Metaphors. For example, viewing life as a Novel, you can see how different themes evolve in your life story, and unique characters come and go as you progress on your journey :)
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So, what will it take for our Human species to stop destroying this precious planet? Because no matter how optimistic we are, it is pretty obvious that we can’t keep extracting natural resources at the rate we have been in the past 3 centuries. According to many studies, we would require 5 planets, if everyone was living / using as many resources as Americans currently do. How are we going to get on a different track as a global civilization? Well, we could have a bunch of horrendous natural disasters, which would essentially force us to change our ways… OR we could have a shift in consciousness. What if we all fell so deeply in love with our planet, that our whole society stopped or greatly reduced all destructive practices, and transitioned towards holistic, regenerative Permaculture systems?!? That’s surely what I vote for.
I believe that in the not-too-distant past, most humans were deeply in love with this planet. Some indigenous cultures existing today still embody the spirit of interconnectedness, which automatically puts each tribe member in a state of reverence. The truth of our dependence on the local web of life causes each person to be deeply grateful for the bees, the trees, and everything in between. Many call this the “religion” of Animism - to see all life as sacred, and that “God” is living in everything, even “inanimate” objects like rocks and rivers.
Most modern people have lost this sacred connection. Sadly, most kids in cities assume their food comes from the grocery store, not from the soil, and they can recognize more Fast Food chains than tree species. Thankfully, this is shifting, as the New and Ancient Story is permeating more hearts and minds.
So what is the New and Ancient Story?... Well many people talk about the “New Earth.” Eckhart Tolle’s book by that title has spread to millions of hearts and minds. Whether it’s the New Age, New Earth, or New Paradigm, millions of people across the globe are realizing that we are entering a fresh chapter in the story of Humanity. We are shifting our collective Value / Belief systems, which are giving rise to a New Holistic-Based society (represented by the Thriving Tree on the book cover).
Many people forget that not all of this is brand new. In fact, many of the beliefs, values, and ways of seeing the world were commonplace thousands of years ago. Most indigenous and tribal peoples understood cosmic and mystical principles that modern science is just now “discovering.” There are still indigenous tribes (like the Kogi, Hadza, and Shipibo) in remote areas of this planet, who have kept these ancient practices alive. If we are going to transition this modern techno culture into a more eco-centered society, we can certainly benefit from the vast richness, uniqueness and depth of each indigenous and traditional culture. I certainly don’t advocate for one, universal, watered down New Age Religion, that erases the special gifts of each bioregion, and lineage of wisdom. Therefore I feel it is important to call it the New AND Ancient Earth, upon which we are embodying, and living a New and Ancient Story. I prefer to simplify it, and say it as one long word “New-N-Ancient.” (For the record, I was going to title the book, “The New And Ancient Earth Is Here,” but I felt it was easier to shorten it, and give the longer explanation here in the Introduction.)
This New-N-Ancient Story is blossoming in little “micro-environments” all across the globe. It’s not quite in full bloom in any one place, but different aspects are exemplified in certain places more than others. Urban Permaculture is everywhere you look in some neighborhoods of Portland. Street musicians are on nearly every corner amongst the streets of Asheville. Bali, Indonesia is bustling with yoga teacher trainings, juice bars, and holistic living. San Francisco has bounds of Activist Trainings, Slam Poetry, and Food not Bombs (serving free, vegan food to hundreds of people.) Beyond these few examples, there are hundreds of epic Intentional Communities and Transformational Festivals sprouting up all across the globe. It is all so inspiring, and yes, everything is a work in progress, but overall one thing is clear - THE NEW EARTH IS HERE!
I want to pay homage and bow in reverence to the work and writings of one of my mentors, Charles Eisenstein. His ideas have largely influenced many of my views in this book, as well as “Unlocking Our Superpowers.” I highly recommend diving into his essays (and any other materials that inspire you) on his website www.CharlesEisenstein.net .
… So what is Team Pachamama? We are a Global Network of groups and individuals who are exploring a New and Ancient way of living on this planet. “Pachamama” is another word for Mother Earth, and our connection to her is a central part of our mission. We like to view life on this planet as ONE BIG STORY. The cool part is that we can choose to be the authors of this New and Ancient story. We are not only story-tellers, but we are building, dancing, and singing this story into existence, so we call ourselves STORY-WEAVERS. Together we form a beautiful web that is ever evolving and unfolding in amazing ways.
Another big intention of this book is to GAME-ify the Transformation Process - both the personal and societal aspects. I envision a world where people are viewing their personal healing process as more of a fun real-life video game, rather than a burden or something to be hidden away. I also envision mass transformation on a social level unfolding in more of a game scenario, where people work together to create new ways of interacting and building society (at places like Lucidity Festival and the Peaceful Gathering of Hands). These intentions have led to the creation of the “Team Pachamama Interactive Game,” (abbreviated as TP-IG) which I will explain more in the section with that same title.
---- If there was some sort of “Mascot” for the New-n-Ancient Earth, I would vote for the Tree of Life. It would resemble the “Home Tree” in the incredible film “Avatar.” This Tree of Life would be so massive, so breathtakingly epic in size and beauty, that it would instantly humble any human being who laid eyes on it. Even the most disconnected, corporate CEO would fall to his knees in reverence before this mighty tree.
Some people believe that such a tree truly existed on this planet hundreds or maybe thousands of years ago. Many cultures around the world have myths of this “World Tree,” and some have specific names for it, such as Yggdrasil in Norse Mythology. There is actually a decent amount of evidence that the gigantic natural monument in Wyoming called Devil’s Tower, is actually a tree stump of this epic world tree. Skeptics argue otherwise, though something in my heart tells me this may be true.
——- I believe that we can look to the Natural World to provide us with teachings and especially metaphors for nearly every aspect of life. Many indigenous cultures did not have written teachings, as everything was passed down orally through stories that wove in wisdom from the natural world (which was really the whole world for them, as they were completely enmeshed in nature.)
Much of the contents of this book I received guidance / clarity on, while simply sitting in the woods, or under a tree in a local park. The teachings would come to me, and I would often be astounded or burst out laughing when they would arrive to my heart and mind. For example, I noticed how much my mind was worrying if people were actually reading my other book, Unlocking Our Superpowers. I didn’t want all the copies I’d distributed to simply gather dust on shelves. Then, I felt Pachamama giving me a teaching. She showed me how the wind naturally blows the seeds off of plants and trees, and spreads these seeds to new areas, so they can grow in fertile soil. She said that the trees don’t get stressed out, worrying if their seeds are going to grow somewhere else. They simply trust that the wind will do its job to disseminate their offspring. Pachamama said that I should trust that the wind of life would spread the Superpowers book to exactly where it needs to be. She told me to relax and let go. This was such a relief. Now whenever my Mental Advisors try to get me stressed, I simply remind myself to trust in the wind :)
I will also trust that the wind of life will guide you to whatever pieces of this puzzle will be helpful to you, at just the right time. I invite you to view this book as a companion, and a living library / guidebook. Please remember that these very pages you are holding are from living trees, which are still living on in this new form. My prayer is that the medicine in this book be utilized, and not just gather dust upon a bookshelf. If you have a full plate, please lend or gift this book to someone who may benefit from it. Thank you for hearing me, and now I invite you to dive in, whether linearly, non-linearly, or some combination of both.
