the align your purpose program step eighteen:...

The Align Your Purpose Program

STEP EIGHTEEN: WISDOM INTEGRATING KNOWLEDGE & ACTION INTO EFFORTLESSNESS

Theatre of Nero

Copyright © Vladimir Kush

A L IGN YOUR PUR POSE P ROGRAM - S T E P E IGHTEEN : W ISDOM

Copyright © 2013 Choice Point with Jaime Mintun - www.choicepointmovement.com

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IN THIS LESSON:

• Zen & the Paradox of Effortlessness• The Step From Knowledge into Wisdom

Never mistake knowledge forwisdom. One helps you make aliving; the other helps you makea life.

“

”Sandra Carey

Here we are at our final lesson—Step 18: Wisdom.

This is where we tie and integrate everything together, to deepen into the layers of wisdom beneath the

surface knowledge you’ve now gained about your world, yourself, and the ways you can align the two.

Through the entire Align Your Purpose process you’ve explored the world within and around you through

the fresh eyes of the Enquirer while stepping into your power as co-creator of your life and your ability as

such to both create new beginnings and complete old endings.

As we continued our journey, you began activating key skills and awarenesses that each of our Visionaries

identify as crucial: intuition, empathy, forgiveness and humility, to name a few.

Finally we stepped into a broadened vision of reality and your place in it as we studied cycles, your destiny

as a final destination in a pattern, how to define and align your purpose and lastly how to put it all into

action.

Now we are here... not at any ending point for your journey, but rather that potent transition point where

you step out of learning and stretch into wisdom. Because with wisdom we can engage life and our pursuits

from a space of effortlessness. We become truly efficient co-creators on the path to our chosen destiny.

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Zen Buddhism with its paradoxical narratives and essential teaching that “we are each already originally

enlightened,” is one of the closest paths for connecting directly with wisdom as effortlessness.

Rather than teach how to reach an enlightened state, Zen encourages us to experience the suchness of

reality as it already is so that we may come to know ourselves as we already are. In this way, there is no

effort to attaining Zen realization (or anything you might desire). The difficulty instead is in showing up with

your whole being to receive the Truth already present.

Yet if there is often so much effort in the process of showing up, how can we both be in that effort and also

step into non-effort at the same time? A popular Indian mystic, Osho (Rajneesh), explains the paradox sim-

ply:

“Effort brings you to the moment of effortlessness, and effortlessness makes you available

to God. So effort is not absolutely unnecessary, remember. It is not a condition to attain

truth but it is a condition to attain effortlessness.

It is just like when for the whole day you have been working hard, then in the night you

move into a very very deep sleep. But if you have rested the whole day then in the night

you will toss and turn and there will be no deep sleep possible. The whole day's effort

makes it possible for you to relax.

Exactly the same is the case with truth. Do whatsoever you can do, and by doing it non-

doing will flower. By doing it you will be able to relax. And when the relaxation is total,

truth simply descends. It is a visit of the beyond.”

And so now, at the close of this course, we want to relax into wisdom... to transition the knowledge we’ve

gained into our deeper being and personal truth. But to do this, we must be willing to step solidly into on-

going effort. Now that we’ve learned the steps it is time to practice the dance.

And practice is a key principle in the final step we each must take from knowledge into wisdom...

ZEN & THE PARADOX OF E F FORT L ESSNESS




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Though everyone quantifies the transition from knowledge into wisdom a bit differently, we can look at this

transition as composed of 5 basic phases or steps:

1. Awareness: Noticing that there is information you can receive and learn from

2. Consideration: Asking questions and deepening your understanding of the information

3. Experimentation: Putting knowledge into practice through action

4. Experience: Engaging lived experience over time that tests, molds and validates the knowledge

you’ve gained

5. EMBODIMENT: Integrating knowledge into a personal and profound wisdom or inner knowing so

that you effortlessly express your knowing (and experience its bounty) by simply being you, because

the knowledge has fully integrated into your beingness.

As you can probably see, we’ve taken you through the first 4 phases within the framework of this course.

Here in this lesson I’d now like to expand on the 5th and final step into wisdom: embodiment.

When we embody our wisdom it becomes part of our essence and therefore present even when we are in

our stillness, or our most basic state of being. At the same time, to truly embody something is to literally bring

it into our body (since our body is your vehicle for expression). And that’s where practice comes in.

But this is often the toughest thing about embodiment. True wisdom and mastery require consistent daily

effort to practice our knowledge and tools. Most of us become bored with the repetition and never deepen

our knowledge so that we can give it roots. No wisdom tree branches or flowers within us.

A small part of me wishes that at this final step of our course I could deliver you some grand revelation for

your path forward.

THE S T E P F ROM KNOWLEDGE INTO WISDOM


Yet the genuine truth is this:

The single differentiator between one who knows

everything we’ve just taught you... and one who

succeeds with everything we’ve just taught you... is

the fierce will to embody that knowledge through

daily effort until effortless wisdom descends.

It is as simple (and possibly annoying) as that!

Here are some tips for embodying all that you’ve

just learned through the Align Your Purpose Course:

• Reflect back on the past 17 steps and select 4 that

you would like to focus on embodying. Perhaps they

are your greatest strengths you’d like to install into

your daily ways of being... or perhaps they are the

steps you struggle with most, and have the most to

gain from mastering them.

Once selected, begin working deeply through

each—one at a time—putting each step into your

daily practice until you begin to unconsciously and

effortlessly embody its essence.

• Find an accountability buddy or project partner.

Pick your favorite step and teach it to them, in your

own words your own way. Spend a week talking

about the ways you’ll put that step and its tools into

practice and hold each other accountable to that

daily practice. Then choose another step and

repeat!

As you do this, you activate a powerful aspect of

embodiment through teaching. We often teach

what we most need to learn and by communicat-

ing your understanding of a lesson you will deepen

your own experience of it while also adding the

experience of your friend.

• Don’t underestimate the value of small tools.

Imagine the works of grand art and sculpture that

can be achieved with a small insignificant paint

brush or miniature chisel. It is the same with the tools

we use to create our lives.

Every skill and even many talents can be mastered

through a passionate and dedicated practice of

the simple tools of the trade. Each small practice

compounds the value of all the times you practiced

before. Eventually you’ll hit critical mass and effort-

less mastery will blossom.

• Maintain awareness of all the ways you can

embody wisdom across all movements of your

being. Over time and practice you’ll be able to hold

a background awareness of your various

movements. The primary four are wise mind, wise

feeling, wise action and wise seeing. In this manner,

‘seeing’ is a spiritual sight or knowing. You can revisit

the lesson on Intuition for more.

Remember, as Osho said, we reach effortlessness

through passionate and directed effort. We step

into wisdom via our questioning birthed by

unknowing, or Beginner’s Mind.

You have reached an enormous gateway and

portal now in your life. All that is left is to dance your

new experience into creation. And you already

know the steps to this glorious dance! Now the

beauty and grace is yours to experience and

express when you practice and then perform the

dance.

So please do not let the words on this page be the

final words you receive from this course. Revisit each

step often. Practice the tools that call to, or

challenge you, daily. And know that within these

simple movements of your mind, heart and body

you can truly and permanently alter your own

course and destiny. Through these simple steps and

movements you can alter the course of our planet.

You are One and you are powerful beyond

imagining. You are also one among so many who

share your purpose and your dreams. Join with us

and our other members in our community—share

your ideas and your experience with each of these

steps. Practice and participate.



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Every grand overture is composed of

simple notes—each one a step on a

scale. Let your life be the grand

overture. But remember you must

compose it with the simple steps. ☺

H Koppdelaney

JaimeJaime Mintun


www.choicepointmovement.com


the align your purpose program step eighteen:...

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