I’ve been curious for a while about the difference between spirituality and religion.

I’ve come to my own conclusions about the distinction between the two – but I needed a distraction from my work on my intuition film, and so I googled: Spirituality vs Religion.

And what I discovered was quite surprising.

I discovered that there is a demographic category called SBNR – Spiritual But Not Religious.

There’s even a website called sbns.org. Their tagline is:

Love is the answer
You are the question

I don’t actually know what that means. But it sounds good.

The website has posts that link to their Facebook page. Their most recent post was three and a half years ago.

According to my favourite research tool, Wikipedia, SBNR has become a movement. Yes, a movement. Since the 60’s, the percentage of people in America who do not affiliate with a religion but profess to hold some spiritual belief is 25% – and growing each year.

Interestingly, the majority are men, and they’re young. That surprised me.

The reasons for rejecting religion were cited as:

• it’s too rigid and pushy
• it’s too institutionalised
• it’s hypocritical
• it’s restrictive
• it’s irrelevant
• it’s too dogmatic and inflexible

Criticisms of the SBNR movement are:

• it’s superficial
• it lacks rigor
• there’s no sustained dedication or devotion
• it’s shallow and inauthentic
• it’s too casual and there’s no formal structure

What’s my definition of the two?

Spiritualism is personal, religion is institutional.

Some people like Starbucks. All the decisions are made for them. A Starbucks coffee is the same every day, everywhere. You walk into a Starbucks anywhere in the world, you know what you’re getting. Coffee from Starbucks is a no-brainer.

Others like to make their own. They like to use their own machine, grind their beans to the consistency they prefer, they adjust the compression of the grind in the head so they get their crema just right. They will go to great lengths to get their coffee just the way they like it. For them, it’s worth the effort, and they would never think of going to Starbucks.

Similarly, the Starbucks aficionados would never dream of making their own coffee. Why go to all that trouble, and expense? Starbucks coffee is great.

Of course this is a very flip and superficial comparison between the two – and I could shift into a more esoteric gear – but not now. That would necessitate me discussing my particular beliefs, and now’s not the time.

Have I ever said to someone: I’m spiritual, but I’m not religious… 

I really hope not. I’d hate to think I was part of a movement…

How often have you heard someone say that:

It’s going to be a nightmare. 

And invariably it is. Because we create our future with our thoughts and our words.

If you think it’s going to be a nightmare, whatever it is, the Universe will try its darnedest to deliver on what you want. So you’ll end up having your nightmare.

Be careful what you wish for… 

When we get together, as family, as friends, our conversations tend to go one of two ways: We either talk about things we like, or we talk about things we don’t like.

More often we talk about things we don’t like, because that’s easier. And it’s more fun. We like to gossip, or run someone down, or tell everyone about someone really awful who did something really bad to us.

And what happens is this – others around us join in, and they try to top our story with their own story of someone even more awful that did something even worse to them.

We do it ourselves. We love to up the ante with our own stories of misfortune. Or stories about someone really horrible.

We gain strength in belittling someone else. At least, we think we do.

Most conversations about politics aren’t about what a great job the government is doing, but about what a terrible job they’re doing. Most conversations about politicians aren’t about what good hard working people they are, but what incompetent self-serving fools they are.

We tend to default to the negative.

I noticed, when I was making tv commercials, a phenomenon that I’ve since encountered elsewhere. It has to do with where power lies within a group of people.

You’d make a thirty second tv commercial, and then you’d have to show it to a boardroom full of agency people and clients. For a director such as myself, it was always a terrifying ordeal. Because so much money had been spent on the ad, and so much more would be spent on buying media time.

There was a lot at stake.

And so you’d show the ad – and there’d be silence around the boardroom. And then someone would ask to see it again. And so you’d show it again. And then there’d be more silence. And then eventually, some brave soul would proffer an opinion.

It’s not bad, they’d say. They wouldn’t have the nerve to say it’s good, but they’d say it’s not bad. But then having broken the ice, others would join in and agree, and say: Yes, in fact it’s quite good. And someone else would agree, and before you know it it’s the best ad they’ve made all year, and most probably will be a finalist at Cannes. And then they’d start to clamour for credit for the good work.

And then someone in the corner would quietly say: No, we have to recut it. It’s too slow. And our product isn’t on the screen for long enough. It’s a mess.

And then everyone would murmur and agree that yes, it was a mess, and yes, it was too slow, and yes, the product wasn’t on the screen long enough. These were the very people that only moments ago were proclaiming that it was going to win prizes at Cannes.

And so I discovered this:

That power lies with the most negative person in the room.  

And so it is with our conversations in coffee shops, at dinner parties, at a bar. We derive pleasure from wallowing in the negative. Because it draws attention to us. Those around us feel sorry for us, and coo their sympathies. Or they applaud us, and think we’ve got balls for standing up for our rights. Or telling that dickhead that they were a dickhead.

It’s a habit that’s very easy to get into.

But interestingly, you rarely hear these kind of negative conversations on the Camino. You hear people talking about what a wonderful day they just had. Or about the amazing person they just met. Or how a stranger was so kind to them…

As I say, it’s a very easy trap to fall into – slipping into conversations that accentuate the negative. Next time you find yourself doing it, step back and ask yourself: Can I change this around and say something positive?

Try it, and see what happens…

I have the title of my film –

I’ve been agonising over this for a long time.

I’ve gone through various options, and with some guidance, I’ve come back to this –

INTUITION //:
YOUR PERSONAL GUIDANCE SYSTEM

I went to mow the lawn yesterday.

It takes me 2 hours to mow our lawn, and so I usually listen to music, or an audiobook, which I crank up loud so I can hear it over the scream of the lawnmower.

When I made a commitment to spiritual development, a while ago now, I decided I would reduce my reading of fiction – which I love – and prioritise books on things spiritual.

Since then, I’ve read a few fiction books – often on planes – but largely I’ve been playing catch-up on the kind of books that Jennifer has been reading for the past twenty five years or so. Books such as the I AM series, the Kryon books, A COURSE IN MIRACLES, books by Emmet Fox, Caroline Myss, Alice Bailey, James Van Praagh, Norm Shealy – and so on. Not to mention Jung, Daniel Kahneman, Fritjof Capra – the list just goes on and on.

So much to read.

I do a lot of my reading while I walk, on audiobook. But sometimes, reading esoteric books while I walk is just too much.  I tried reading A COURSE IN MIRACLES on audiobook while I walked, sometimes with traffic thundering past, and I couldn’t get into it. It was too dense. With a book like A COURSE IN MIRACLES every word is important.

I’m reading a book at the moment called THE HUMAN SOUL REVEALED, by Monika Muranyi. It’s a compilation of Lee Carroll’s channeling of the entity Kryon. As it’s title states, it’s about the nature of the human soul, and how it all works. It’s fascinating.

Back to the mowing.

I’d decided that because I’m reading that book at the moment at night, I’d read something lighter while I mowed the lawn. So I put the latest Stephen King audiobook on my iPod, and cued it up to start at Chapter One, and then I went outside to mow the lawn.

I started up the lawnmower, and then I pressed play on my iPod, and up came…
… the Bhagavad Gita, translated by Paramahansa Yogananda. I’d put this audiobook on my iPod a while ago, but hadn’t yet got around to reading it.

But hang on, I’d cued up Stephen King.
What just happened?

Your interpretation could be that it was just a technical glitch, or I’d simply made a mistake and hadn’t cued up Stephen King properly, and the iPod had just randomly selected the Yoganada book.

My interpretation is that the Universe kicked in and told me that I was wasting my time reading Stephen King, and that I had to read the Bhagavad Gita, through the eyes of Paramahansa Yogananda. (He’s the guy that wrote AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A YOGI)

I didn’t see it as a technical glitch, or a mistake – I regarded it very clearly as a directive.
As a sign.

The thing about signs – you can either rationalise them and dismiss them, and refuse to see them for what they are – or you can recognise them as being a part of your guidance system – your personal guidance system. It’s your intuition working in discreet ways to keep you on your path. Your guides ask you to follow, and you have the choice to ignore them and get on with your life, or obey.

Obedience.

It’s not a comfortable word, is it. It has the connotation of giving up something. Losing status. Taking a subservient position to someone or something else. Handing over your power.

But what if this power is yourself? Your divine self. Your intuitive self. What if you’re being asked to obey your innate wisdom? That wisdom within which knows better than you.

The other thing about signs, about intuitive prompts, is that for the system to work effectively, you have to exercise it. And like with any exercise, it’s always best to start off small.

If you wanted to get fit you wouldn’t begin an exercise program by running a half marathon, would you? You wouldn’t go to the gym and try to lift three hundred pounds.

Same with your intuition.

Start off small. Ask for guidance on little things.

Should I go to the Post Office this morning or this afternoon? Should I call Mary for a chat?  Should I take a raincoat to work today?

Ask yes or no questions. Listen to the response. See what comes back. Feel what comes back. Note what happens as a result of your decisions. Start a dialogue with your intuitive self.

Soon, maybe sooner than you think, your intuition will start to talk too. And you might be surprised at what it tells you to do.

I didn’t listen to Stephen King yesterday. I listened to Yogananda’s take on one of the fundamental texts of spiritual learning.

I turned it up loud so I could hear it over the lawnmower.

I’ve just posted the itinerary for the Portuguese Camino we’re mounting in May next year.

Here is the link:
http://gonetours.com/upcoming-tours/portuguese-camino-may-2016/

We were approached earlier this year by a carers’ organisation in New Zealand to run the tour for some of their members. Consequently we’re nearly full on this one, but there’s still some places free if you want to join us.

Separately, we’re’ll be mounting the Irish Wild Atlantic Tour in April.
http://gonetours.com/category/upcoming-tours/wild-atlantic-way-tour-2016/

That’s filling fast too – so please get in touch if you’re interested.
bill@gonetours.com

On Saturday Jennifer and I had what is turning out to be an annual pre-Christmas lunch with our Three Camino Angels – Britta, Janet, and Jenny.

We started our lunch at 1pm, and we finished at 7pm.
That is what’s officially known as a “long lunch.”

Britta and Janet came with us on the Indian tour. Jenny was not able to come, because she’d committed to being a hospitalero on the Frances. So the lunch was, in part, a chance for us all to debrief after the tour, and to tell Jenny what she missed out on, and for Jenny to tell us what we missed out on!

She said that while it would have been wonderful to have come to India, her work as a hospitalero had been incredible, and very rewarding. She said she got back way more than she gave out. And she’s planning to do it again next year.

We spent the entire time swapping stories, catching up, chatting, laughing, drinking, eating, laughing some more, and generally having a great time.

It was interesting for Jennifer and me to find out what kind of impact the Indian tour had on Britta and Janet. They were both still buzzing from the experience. They found it at times profoundly moving, but also a lot of fun.

At some point in the hazy afternoon we talked about the power of the Camino, of how we were together because of that ancient way to Santiago, and how strong those bonds can be – even from just a fairly cursory meeting while walking.

Friendships can be made that will last a lifetime.

The Camino Angels are friends because of their meeting on the Camino. Jennifer and I are friends with them because we met on this blog, which of course came about because of the Camino. Each of us now has very strong friendships all over the world –

We spoke about other walks we could do – and we agreed that none of us are in any way interested in walking just for the sake of walking. The Pacific Crest Trail is not for us – nor the Appalachian Trail. Magnificent walks that they are, and of course supremely challenging, but they are not the Camino.

I’ve spoken before of the soul imprint that’s there on the Camino – the energetic residue of all those who have gone before. It’s the reason sick people can walk the Camino and get better. It’s the reason frail old people can walk 800kms. It’s the reason those with questions find those questions answered. They are all imbued with the accumulated energetic residues that lie within that sacred way.

At 6:30pm our waiter informed us that regrettably, our luncheon table had been reserved for dinner. We grumbled, and shifted to another table so that we could have coffee and dessert. There was still much more to talk about – more to laugh about.

At 7pm we finally left the restaurant, because there were people lining up outside wanting a table. On the street outside I suggested we sashay through to dinner at a great Greek place further up the street, but common sense ultimately prevailed.

But we didn’t want to say goodbye. There was still such a lot to talk about. That’s the power of the Camino.

I’ve been off the grid, as they say, for the last little while.

Been very busy. In particular I’ve started reviewing the mountains of footage that we’ve shot over the past 14 months on the intuition film.

I’ve had to spend a little while skilling myself on Final Cut Pro 10, which is a Non Linear Editing software programme. I’ve sat in editing rooms for God knows how many hours these past thirty five years, and as a director I feel I know editing pretty damn well. But actually operating the software, and understanding how it works, and learning all the shortcuts, is a whole other ball of wax.

Not that I’m editing the film. I’m not. The very talented young Indian fellow who has edited the two sizzle reels will be the editor. His name is Rishi, and I will enjoy working with him.

Here is the production update reel Rishi cut –
PRODUCTION UPDATE REEL

Basically what I’m doing at the moment, as I wait for more funding to come in, is I’m going through all the interviews and selecting the “grabs” that I’d like to use in the film. Those are all the soundbites that interest me, and that I feel could have a place in the movie.

I’m then binning those grabs, and later I will put them into a rough structure, so that when Rishi kicks in, he’ll have something very rough to get his teeth into.

I’m a very lucky man. I was lucking getting to interview these extraordinary people in the first place. Now I’m lucky because I can play back those interviews at my leisure, and in selecting my grabs I play back certain sections again and again, so I get the opportunity to really take in what they’re saying.

From time to time on this blog I’ll post up some interesting things that I’m discovering in reviewing these interviews. But I just wanted to post here a section that may not even make it into the film, but which I’ve been thinking about since I reviewed it.

The interview is with the head of the Bombay Yoga Institute, a venerable woman named Hansaji. She talks about how we create pain because of our doubts. Our likes and dislikes, our desires. Our ego creates these doubts, desires, she says.

If something goes wrong, that you believe has gone wrong, you think about it all the time – while you’re working, relaxing, eating. This is not life, she says. Learn from it, then forget about it and move ahead.

It’s just a chattering box, she says. Your mind. If you can learn to quieten your chattering box, then you will experience intuition. Your inner voice. You can avoid pain, you can avoid suffering, she says, if you listen to your intuition.

But, she says, you can’t experience intuition with a rational mind.

What I found most interesting though is what she said about results. She talked about work – that we should just get on with our work and not worry about results.

She said that if in your work you have a good result, then your ego will take the credit and will run rampant and you will be very happy. If you have a bad result you will blame yourself and others, your ego will be shattered, and you will be very unhappy.

In each instance it’s your ego that’s ruling you. Controlling you, and your emotional body.

But Hansaji says, if you don’t worry about the result, and trust that your guidance is directing you in the right way, then you won’t be a slave to your ego – good or bad. But she says for this to work effectively, you have to have trust in that guidance.

We are such a goal orientated society. We’re taught to be competitive, aggressive, to be winners. But what if we chose not to play that game?

What if we just put our effort into the quality and substance of what we do each day, and trust that the result of those efforts is in the hands of our universal guidance.

That’s what I’m doing with this making of this film…

I noticed a story in my local paper this morning – The Sydney Morning Herald.

It had to do with research on the mortality rate of sedentary versus walking people in their late fifties.

Evidently if you walk 10,000 steps a day, then you can lower your chance of dying by up to 46%.

Here’s what the article said:

Increasing daily steps from 1000 to 10,000 a day can lower a sedentary person’s chance of dying by 46 per cent, new research has found. The Australian research proved a direct link between exercise and popular devices like pedometers and Fitbits.

Even increasing steps a little to about 3000 a day, five days a week, reduced the mortality rate by 12 per cent, the landmark study by the George Institute for Global Health found.

The research monitored the use of pedometers among 3000 previously sedentary middle-aged Australian men and women, with an average age of 58. The participants were given pedometers and data was collected at the beginning and again approximately five years later to measure the number of steps they took each day.

A spokesman for the George Institute said that these results gave the public greater confidence that death could be delayed, and major diseases prevented, by being more active.  

The research also predicted that the results might even be greater in healthy individuals who increase their daily steps.

So I told this to Jennifer, and she said that you if you embrace your electronic body and the I AM Presence within you, then you can live for eternity without taking even one step.

I wonder if wearing a FitBit is part of your electronic body…

Jennifer in Bhutan

I received this email from Mr George Hay, whom I’m getting acquainted with on this blog.

I post it here in full… 

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