Hexagram 24 > Hexagram 11
Why didn't that last self-help book with a censored swear word in the title, or that one about forming new habits, change your life?
I'd argue that it's because it didn't change how you 'see', or 'be' in the world.
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There was a time when I digested self-help book after self-help book, vaguely hoping to achieve x or y, while maybe making only caterpillar-like progress.
I had new knowledge, or facts, but it was disconnected from my actions, and sometimes disconnected from the way I saw and heard the world.
But, a valuable lesson I eventually learned is that a list of five to ten tips is not going to change your life. But the world appearing differently will.
What Language Magic Is
Tbe way to make the world appear differently to you is something I call Language Magic.
And it's about changing your state of being through all the forms that language takes. A list of what's included in my definition:
- 1) Classifications and concepts that allow you to see, hear, and work with the world differently
- Ex: An I Ching reading that causes you to experience life differently once you get an accurate interpretation of a line or Hexagram
- 2) A Being/Mantra sigil that gets you in the present moment, or orients you to move in a certain life direction
- 3) An Awareness Sigil that allows you to see what previously went unnoticed, which changes your behavior in the present
- 4) A Drawn/Paper Sigil that allows you to off-load your hopes and anxieties in a way that sometimes pays off with tangible results
- 5) Reframing your limiting beliefs to see things from a more helpful perspective
- (This is often the fastest way I've found to change how I see the world)
My favorite quote belongs to W. Timothy Gallwey: "Awareness is curative."
And, I'll add: when you see, and hear the world in a different way, you're able to do things that you were previously unable to, simply because you now notice what you previously didn't.
Language Magic doesn't work by giving you a ten step list of how-to's, it works by changing how the world appears to you, and by keeping you in the present moment, where you can naturally adjust and be a different person without 'trying' to do so.
It may seem like it's too good to be true, but that's why we're calling it magic.
Knowledge Plus Being Is Wisdom
With AI-powered searches continuing to progress, we have more and more 'answers' with less and less effort.
What happens after we have the answer to everything?
The only thing we really have as a human being: the present moment, where we can choose to be different.
I'd argue that wisdom is knowledge plus that being in the present moment. You can hear all of the good advice in the world, but if you don't embody it, nothing will change for you. It's why a social media post about how to be a millionaire didn't do shit for you.
We should all be skeptical of knowledge that isn't acted upon, just as we're skeptical of misinformation in this delicate age we're living in.
Additional Reading
If you've exhausted what's been written on this website, I'd recommend a few books that have helped me 'be' different, instead of spinning my hubcaps in pursuit of self-help salvation:
1) Language And The Pursuit of Happiness
All three will take you in the right direction.
Final Thoughts
Language *is* pretty magical.
It can be both a lock, and a key.
When consciously used to direct your life, and change your present moment, it can help you get out of your own way.
And from my experience, I can say that particular result is magical enough.