From the Prisma Visions Tarot, the King of Chalices; from then Secret Language of Color Cards, Auburn:
When we wake up with a crick in our neck, we don't generally run to the emergency room. We use the information to correct our sleeping position, take a pain reliever or get a better pillow. Yet strong emotions often override our intellect, causing hasty and irrational reactions that don't solve a thing. The King of Chalices invites us to harness our emotions, using their alerts to inform without dominating us. As Goleman wrote, "There is perhaps no psychological skill more fundamental than resisting impulse." Auburn encourages us to ground ourselves - focusing our attention on one of the five senses rather than our thoughts - when emotions untether us. Doing so can give the emotional energy time to dissipate, allowing us to see with clarity and choose a response with discernment.
Eckhart Tolle's advice to a retreat participant who couldnt resist turning on the TV in her room even though he'd recommended not to was just to delay doing it for even 30 seconds. I have found that to be a useful way of sidetracking habitual patterns I have trouble resisting. -Kate
ReplyDeleteThat's a good idea - even just a pause might be enough for the mental fog to clear just a bit!
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