Today we will be learning about the Living Force and how to feel it as well as learn about sensing.
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The Force and life are forever connected and bound to each other. Without the Force there could be no life and vise versa. The more life in one place, the stronger the Force is going to feel. When a person grows weak, their life Force grows weak too and can be sensed by another Jedi. There will always be the living Force if there is a life. Even when a Jedi is in the dead of space, there is still the living Force, because the Jedi is alive. The living Force can come any animal, human or the smallest life forms, single cell organisms.
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What is the Living Force? The Living Force is the Force, aka energy, interacting with life. Life is all around us and yes size does not matter to the Force. The Living Force is the interactions of the all things living on the universal, worldwide and local level. The Force is an everlasting, multi-layer existent that controls all aspects of life and the total “plan” of the universe from the “crawling ant” to the fate of humans, the health of the planet, to the path of any and all life outside our world. You will find that the living Force is what truly gives the Force that power, that strength.
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Remember there are three “views” or “types” of the Force: Personal, Living, Unifying. The living Force is different from the unifying Force because its source comes from only living things, while the unifying Force comes from everything else such as rocks, water, and the sun. The living Force is the interactions of the all things living on the universal, worldwide and local level. You will find that the living Force is what truly gives the Force that power, that strength.
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However it’s all the same energy, but different ways of looking at the effects of energy on you, life, and the universe. Think of an elephant. A trunk and a leg and a tail all feel and do different things, but they are all part of the elephant. Trees, plants, us, your pets, germs, mushrooms, and more is all part of the living Force your computer, no. The sun, yes in a way. The reason why we have this term is to understand a perspective of the Force, which is everywhere. There are three ways to look at the Force: Personal, Living, and Unifying Force. When you practiced how to feel the Force inside of yourself, aka the three steps, you were feeling the personal Force.
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The Living Force is very important to know because life and the Force work together. Without life there would be no Force and without the Force there would be no life. Learning to feel and pay attention to the Living Force can help you in so many ways. Many of the Force abilities are based in the living Force because we are alive and must deal with living things. It is through the living Force that we learn how to feel and support life, learn about the people and the world around us. We learn to feel the balance of the Force. Good vs Evil. Death vs Life. Strong vs weak.
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Although it is important to remember that the living Force is different to each of us, affecting us slightly differently and because of our different views, we see, feel, and understand the living Force differently. It is vital that a Jedi not only “knows” this, but senses, studies, and learns this connection if they wish to understand the nature of the Force and learn to help others. When a person dies, so does a part of the Force on a tiny scale. When mass of people die, a Jedi can sense that huge lost. A Jedi’s skill in the Force will mostly come from the living Force.
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The living Force affects each one of us, right now, in the past and future and as said, in different ways. We are affected by the Force differently because each of us has a different natural reaction to the Force. Some of us accept the living aspect of the Force openly, allowing that person to work and understand human kind. Others consciously or not use the living Force for their benefit, which is not always seen has bad, as some people can and will use the living Force to help friends, groups, or themselves so to help others. For those who resist the natural flow of the Force, they are seen to be socially awkward, angry, overly forceful, demanding in the wrong sense, and highly manipulative.
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The Force flows everywhere and through everything just like air and dust and all those little tiny things we can’t see. Through the living Force, Jedi can see how all life is connected. A Jedi can see how the Force affects societies and how these societies function by connecting and feeling the Force flow through and around them, as well as the world. Jedi can also sense thoughts and emotions of humans and animals. This is important for a Jedi to be able to connect to living things because they serve the people. In order to that, Jedi must be able to understand the complex web of thoughts and emotions. A Jedi can sense everything, even non-living things, around them. This includes the living world of plants and the circle of life.
The reason why we are starting with learning about the Living Force is because the next set of Force skills will be based in the Living Force: empathy, telepathy, Sensing/Remote Viewing, Precognition, and the darkside. Through the living Force you can connect to all life around you and form a better understanding of how the world works. You can learn how to feel the emotions and thoughts of others so to help them with their problems or stop drama from happening. You can feel the health of a pet or a plant. You can improve your sport skills, feel darkness or death. You can feel the emotional connections of people or even an unrealized connection between people. You can be aware of the future.
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You can walk into a room and understand the mood before you have had the chance to see or talk to someone. It can help you pass an interview or help you get along with a girlfriend’s yappy dog. You can use it in security or protect yourself. Or even close a sale in business.
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The Living Force can feel different from person to person due to our mental state of mind. You may pick up on the negative if you are angry or sad. You may pick up how alive everything is if you feel happy. So remember that when you are opening yourself up and you get data. It’s not bad to pick up on only negative or positive, but it helps you show you your own bias, which we all have. It shows you your focus which you can then decide if you want to change that or not. But remember there is positive AND negative all around you. Beings are always living and dying. We are all happy and hurting at some point. Evil and good exist at the same time. It’s important to pay attention to both and not get stuck on one, which will affect how you feel and use the Force.
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It is vital that a Jedi not only “knows” this, but senses, studies, and learns this connection if they wish to understand the nature of the Force and learn to help others. When a person dies, so does a part of the Force on a tiny scale. When mass of people die, a Jedi can sense that huge lost such as 9/11, Hurricane Katerina, 2005 Tsunami, any mass shooting, even, if you are really paying attention, wars. However this only comes with a great deep connection with the Force that is created with practice and observation and a good mindful mindset.
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The Living Force can be surprising where it can be found. Yes a lush forest or jungle is a prime area for it, but you can find it where you wouldn’t think life was. An example from my own past. During my first few months of feeling the Force I was 13 I was on a trip out to desert where I had never been. I grew up in Virginia, which is lush and green and if you aren’t careful a tree will pop out where you stand with a squirrel throwing as many nuts as it can at you (I sorta only half kid about that). I had thought there would be no to little Force out there. When I got out there I was surprised by how much I could feel. One thing I didn’t consider was I was a part of the Force so I will always feel it There is always surprising amounts of the Force everywhere you go. Even in the deep oceans you will feel it.
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I have been to Stone Hedge in England and while I can’t say why Stone Hedge is there, I can say there seems to be more Living Force there than normal, however it is surrounded by grass and bitter cold wind (at least in February). Another strange interesting experience is when I came to Utah my teacher drove me up to the side of the mountains, sorta at the base. He asked me to feel the Force and describe what I felt. It took a little bit of effort because I wasn’t sure if I was right, but I eventually said I could feel this old feeling of the living Force. He then told me about Lake Bonneville, an ancient inland sea that took up most of northern Utah and Idaho. What I was feeling was strong life that was once there and has now turned into mild desert. Last winter I went to Florida and spend some time with Kent at Bush Gardens. It was a utterly gorgeous park and what was really wonderful was feeling the strong pulsing feeling of life thriving there.
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The Living Force can be thought of as a flowing river that flows through everything. It flows through you right now, though some of you aren’t aware of it. When you find yourself in the middle of drama, one trick to get out of it is to open yourself up to the Living Force which helps you ground back into reality and see more clearly. Many of our skills are cased in the Living Force and about us noticing the flow. Those who resist the flow of energy are socially awkward (unless it’s genetics), angry, overly forceful, demanding, and highly manipulative. We often talk about giving up control and going with the flow. This is why I had you learn and practice integration before this class. If you are focusing only on yourself, how can you feel the emotions of others or see a social problem or get across traffic safely. Feeling the flow of the Force can become the start of your morning wake up/meditation. It is how I start when I want to feel the Force. It is how I start when I want to feel someone or find something.
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Part of the living Force is about the balance of life. Good vs evil. Life and death. Health and success, sickness and failure. The Light side and the Darkside. Please note we have a whole class about the dark side that will go much deeper into this topic.
You may be wondering what does the dark side have to do with the living Force. It has everything to do with the living Force. Life is born, life struggles, flourishes, and then dies by one means or another. We agree this is natural and normal. But what happens when an in delicate balance of life gets tipped to one side or another? Life suffers and suffers too much. That can be a sign of the dark side. When humans dump too much trash into the ocean and harms the water and the animals, life suffers. You can feel that in the Force. When humans hate each other, kill, and torture each other that is the dark side. When there are too many deer and enough wolves to keep the population in check, that is the dark side. It’s not always dark, creepy, and obvious, but if you look you can feel and see it.
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If you think the answer is to get rid of the dark side then you need to think back to the balance of life. Life must have the dark side. Too much peace and growth harms. Death and suffering must happen. A population needs death in order to maintain a healthy portion of food and animals. A baby chick must peak through their shell. It’s a very tiring struggle for them to do, but by doing this they gain freedom and strength. My own past is fulled with darkness and pain, but that pain caused me to fight for the light to teach and help anyone I can. Even though I hate the fire smoke that is messing with Utah air, California naturally burns during the summer. Proof: the Redwood tree seed cannot germinate unless the fire burns them. Even in darkness there is light.
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How to Feel the Living Force
Step 1. Feel the Force inside of yourself. Let yourself fill up as much as you can with energy. It might feel like you are burning or about to burst with energy. Relax. Don’t resist. Breathe. Let that feeling exist. Hold this for a few minutes.
Step 2. The Bubble. Let’s call your feeling of energy your awareness. That awareness can be imagined as a bubble. Your awareness bubble. Right now your bubble is skin tight so you are only feeling energy inside of yourself. Imagine that bubble being expanded one inch past your skin in all directions. You are pushing your feeling of energy outside of your body. Now with energy, gently push that awareness to that one inch mark.
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Step 3. Now that you have your tiny bubble of awareness, I want you to expand it another inch. Remember to breathe and relax. Don’t fight it.
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Step 4. Keep slowly expanding your bubble until you can feel the entire room you are in. For the more
advance students: picture your room. Now open yourself up to feeling the whole room at once. It’s more information, more of a shock. Don’t see it as a shock, but opening your awareness in a quick and effect manner.
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Advanced: Focus on the flow of the Force. Feel the life around you from germs to grass to pets to people. Feel how life gives and takes and how your own energy gives and takes the living Force. Practice this outside in nature, even in the dead of winter. This is also a great excuse to go to a zoo or garden.
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Sensing
For once Hollywood got it right! Sensing is the ability to feel through the Force objects around you that you can’t see. Sensing is the next logic step once you learn how to feel energy outside of yourself. An example is to walk through a dark room and not bump or trip over stuff in a messy room. Sensing is a highly useful skill in its own right. It’s rather like radar or echolocation (what dolphins use to locate things). With the right technique and practice you can walk through a room, eyes closed and never bump into anything. It’s also useful for getting through a crowd, finding people, and in sports (and oh so handy in laser tag)
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When an energy user is sensing they almost physically feel and see the object. A good example of this is someone sticking their hand into a bag full of blocks without looking. As the hand grabs onto that object, the nerves in the fingers and palm send a message to the brain. The person will register the block is solid, made out of wood, is in a cube shape, the surface is somewhat smooth, but a bit rough and the cube is small. At the same time an image in formed in the person’s mind. They end up picturing what the cube looks like, based on what they feel. So in a sense, that person has felt and seen the cube without even looking with their eyes. With energy, this is no different. Instead of reaching out with a hand, the user will reach out with their mind, using energy as the nerves in the mental fingers and palm.
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How to Sense
Step 1. Feel living Force. Expand your bubble of awareness until you can feel the whole room full of energy.
Step 2. Think of a known object in your room that is staying still (not your pet or child or that weird electronic toy). Think of where that object is in relationship to you. think of what looks like and what size it is.
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Step 3. Narrow your bubble of awareness to the object such as a chair. Feel the object. Feel the shape and the solidness. Feel the distance between you and the object. post if you can feel it and what it feels likes.
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Advanced:
Get up and walk around an object like a shoe with your bare feet. Without looking, walk around and sense where the shoe is in relationship to you. See how close you can get. To make it more challenging go faster or add a second shoe.
Homework: Practice feeling the Living Force for 10-20 minutes a day. You can break this up into little practices. Focus on learning to expand your bubble of awareness and feeling life through the Force. See the log for advance practices
Also practice Sensing: learn to sense objects around you. See the log for advance practices.
