You are very welcome to use, free of charge, any article authored by C.C. Saint-Clair or any section thereof, provided: you acknowledge me as the author you do not edit the content Heartfelt thanks to Jayne Doah for the cover designs she has donated to the Stepping Stones series.

Yudit C.S. Explains – While the lion is awake, we slumber

This year, in 2008, to celebrate the Chinese year of the Rat with friends, one of whom is a Chinese Malay, we went to a restaurant in our local China town. I am not sure how much money the owners of the Enjoy Inn had donated to the Chinese Lion Association of Brisbane where I live, but I am almost ready to bet that every Chinese dancing lion in Brisbane dropped in for a prance around the tables. The noise of many drums reverberating through the restaurant was deafening. l I gave Yudit an account of the lions’ leaps and dances around our table and explained how their ears, eyelids and tails are manipulated by the dancers inside the lion cloth-frame and here is her deconstruction of that moment: Restaurant = where you eat what others prepare for you and your friends, i.e. messages, tests, experiences. In a restaurant, we have to pay for our food, which symbolizes having to pay close attention to messages around you; otherwise, a price will have to be paid for ignoring them. The noise of many drums = it is meant for you to be aware and awake!   Dancing lions = flowing. “The lion, Leo, is your sign, C.C.,” Yudit said, “But generally a dance symbolizes the natural movement of life: wind, waves, energy. All in Nature is a continuous dance, like Tai Chi.” They move their eyelids = the need to observe, be aware   Their ears, too = listen to messages. Don’t be hypnotized by your ego-persona or anyone else’s Manipulated by the dancers inside the lion = ego-personas pretending to be lions l “Why would people pretend to hide behind the mask of a lion?” I asked. “Because the lion symbolizes our lower desires. Having a leaping lion’s head in the background of your dinner gathering, C.C., is a good reminder for you, your partner, Myarh, and all who were present to be mindful of the erratic nature of your lower mechanical impulses. Anyway, no creature, no creation is ever one- sided. They are all two-sided, exactly like our soul IS us, just as we are her incarnation – the ego-persona in the body she has in this lifetime. l “C.C., while on the topic of impulses and thoughts of a lower order,” Yudit added, “do you know that irritating flies and mosquitoes are but symbols of what annoys you and of the emotions that eat you from the inside? Once you become aware of this and keep observing yourself, you will identify your thoughts and you will understand how these thoughts bite you worse than any mosquito can ever do.  Once you understand this deep, deep down, you won’t have to deal with flies or mosquitoes anymore. They will simply fly off to bother someone else.” l Most gardens, here, in Brisbane, harbour colonies of midges, commonly known as sand-flies or midges. They come out in the afternoons and although the flies themselves are pinprick tiny, their bites swell up, itch and linger for days, because I have an allergic reaction to them. Yesterday, a midge bit me on the toe while I was padding around barefoot on the patio. Wearing closed shoes today, a school day, was an irritating experience, to say the least. Tomorrow won’t be any better. l If there is a lone mosquito anywhere, no matter how many people are present, it will always find me. My partner, Myarh, jokes that when I am around, she doesn’t need to apply any insect repellent. Though I am glad to be of help, I can’t wait to test out Yudit’s theory that once I can truly be in the moment and identify the pesky thought patterns that make me react mechanically, I will no longer be picked as a preferred landing pad by these diminutive blood suckers because I will have understood the lesson and moved beyond. l “Having said that,” added Yudit, “there are of course places like swamps and marshes that attract mosquitoes. But, ahoti, as like attracts like and as Karma does its work perfectly, there’s not a chance for someone to be in the wrong place ,at the wrong time. “Of course, the ego will ask: what would happen if … but in reality, there are no ifs.  Ifs are never real. They are only the fears we create in our mind. Some people get a clearer message from animals and insects than from people, so that’s their fate to be bitten until they realize the symbolism of that and act on it. “Look how symbolic it is that the flies and mosquitoes cause maladies like malaria and Ross River fever in your country. People fall into a state of deep sleep and hallucinations. l So, this malady reflects the state of ‘consciousness’ of these people, showing how sleepily they are in their lives, like the saying that says ‘asleep at the wheel’ and if they won’t do something when they awake from that bout of illness, their soul will attract another event to them, a worse one again. Ma la-asot, ahoti? Ze ma yesh! “You see, it is all kish-kush-bala-bush to interpret dreams as horoscopes do in the newspapers or on the net. Our soul never thinks in such basic linear ways. She is love, and faith, and truth and when she sends you an image of a lion, she simply wants you to see your potential to become a queen or a king, which symbolizes the soul. You can choose to aim for that by understanding the symbolism and by obeying the call or maybe you can lose your focus and revert to obeying your animalistic ego-persona, the one that just wants to be indulged and satisfied and entertained like a child, while being spiritually asleep – at your own risk.” l Yudit had more to say. “Your mistake is to think that you need to SEARCH and find a symbol here and a symbol there, like a forensic scientist, looks for clues.  If you want to see the true meaning of symbols, you need to climb on top of a mountain and observe from high above – a bird’s view. C.C., the symbols are all around. They are bobbing around like little corks, just waiting for you to look and SEE them. OK, for now, if a mountain top is too high a climb, you can at least try standing on a ladder, yes?” Yudit chided again. Then, cryptically, she added, “No need to search far for interpretations because you need only to look into the mirror and see everything reflected back at you.  Messages are reminders like little flags. Minute after minute, moment after moment, they come in quick succession. Symbols, messengers, messages – the show is right before your eyes. It is a live performance and it is very interesting, never boring. And if you should forget to observe and fall asleep in the middle of the show, a fresh messenger will come to awake you with a blow on the head.  And see, you don’t even need tickets for this long, long show.  It is set up just for you and it is all free.” **Ahoti = my sister       Ma la-asot, ahoti? Ze ma yesh! = what can I say, my sister? This is how it is.   kish-kush-bala-bush = load of rubbish  l One day, Yudit told me about another of her dreams: “I had such a strange but beautiful dream and I will tell you about it. I was preparing a sandwich made out of a magazine. I took out all the staples, as there were a lot of them holding the pages together. Finally, the colour pages were ready so I pasted honey on them. l Then, I folded the magazine in two and offered it to the people who were nearby and everyone enjoyed eating it very much. You see, when I awoke, I remembered the prophet Ezekiel [Ezekiel 3:3] to whom God gave a scroll to eat. ‘Then I ate it, and it was in my mouth as sweet as honey,’ he said.  “All I can say,” Yudit added, “is that I hope my teachings are as sweet as honey for those who would like to be awakened from their slumber to gain self- realization. But nothing can change for anyone who cannot open their heart to give unconditional heart-chakra LOVE.” l When I replied, “Yes, OK, but making a sandwich out of a magazine is a weird dream,” Yudit was quick to reply, “Lama, weird? Look around and see how often people ‘swallow’ words from newspapers, magazines, books, TV, movies, radio and also from each other’s mouths, huh? At least I had honey inside my word sandwich.”  ** Lama = why
Yudit C.S. Explains – While The Lion Is Awake, We Slumber
Yudit Cohen-Shoore

Yudit C.S. Explains – While the lion is

awake, we slumber

This year, in 2008, to celebrate the Chinese year of the Rat with friends, one of whom is a Chinese Malay, we went to a restaurant in our local China town. I am not sure how much money the owners of the Enjoy Inn had donated to the Chinese Lion Association of Brisbane where I live, but I am almost ready to bet that every Chinese dancing lion in Brisbane dropped in for a prance around the tables. The noise of many drums reverberating through the restaurant was deafening. l I gave Yudit an account of the lions’ leaps and dances around our table and explained how their ears, eyelids and tails are manipulated by the dancers inside the lion cloth-frame and here is her deconstruction of that moment: Restaurant = where you eat what others prepare for you and your friends, i.e. messages, tests, experiences. In a restaurant, we have to pay for our food, which symbolizes having to pay close attention to messages around you; otherwise, a price will have to be paid for ignoring them. The noise of many drums = it is meant for you to be aware and awake!   Dancing lions = flowing. “The lion, Leo, is your sign, C.C.,” Yudit said, “But generally a dance symbolizes the natural movement of life: wind, waves, energy. All in Nature is a continuous dance, like Tai Chi.” They move their eyelids = the need to observe, be aware   Their ears, too = listen to messages. Don’t be hypnotized by your ego-persona or anyone else’s Manipulated by the dancers inside the lion = ego-personas pretending to be lions l “Why would people pretend to hide behind the mask of a lion?” I asked. “Because the lion symbolizes our lower desires. Having a leaping lion’s head in the background of your dinner gathering, C.C., is a good reminder for you, your partner, Myarh, and all who were present to be mindful of the erratic nature of your lower mechanical impulses. Anyway, no creature, no creation is ever one-sided. They are all two-sided, exactly like our soul IS us, just as we are her incarnation – the ego-persona in the body she has in this lifetime. l “C.C., while on the topic of impulses and thoughts of a lower order,” Yudit added, “do you know that irritating flies and mosquitoes are but symbols of what annoys you and of the emotions that eat you from the inside? Once you become aware of this and keep observing yourself, you will identify your thoughts and you will understand how these thoughts bite you worse than any mosquito can ever do.  Once you understand this deep, deep down, you won’t have to deal with flies or mosquitoes anymore. They will simply fly off to bother someone else.” l Most gardens, here, in Brisbane, harbour colonies of midges, commonly known as sand-flies or midges. They come out in the afternoons and although the flies themselves are pinprick tiny, their bites swell up, itch and linger for days, because I have an allergic reaction to them. Yesterday, a midge bit me on the toe while I was padding around barefoot on the patio. Wearing closed shoes today, a school day, was an irritating experience, to say the least. Tomorrow won’t be any better. l If there is a lone mosquito anywhere, no matter how many people are present, it will always find me. My partner, Myarh, jokes that when I am around, she doesn’t need to apply any insect repellent. Though I am glad to be of help, I can’t wait to test out Yudit’s theory that once I can truly be in the moment and identify the pesky thought patterns that make me react mechanically, I will no longer be picked as a preferred landing pad by these diminutive blood suckers because I will have understood the lesson and moved beyond. l “Having said that,” added Yudit, “there are of course places like swamps and marshes that attract mosquitoes. But, ahoti, as like attracts like and as Karma does its work perfectly, there’s not a chance for someone to be in the wrong place ,at the wrong time. “Of course, the ego will ask: what would happen if … but in reality, there are no ifs.  Ifs are never real. They are only the fears we create in our mind. Some people get a clearer message from animals and insects than from people, so that’s their fate to be bitten until they realize the symbolism of that and act on it. “Look how symbolic it is that the flies and mosquitoes cause maladies like malaria and Ross River fever in your country. People fall into a state of deep sleep and hallucinations. l So, this malady reflects the state of ‘consciousness’ of these people, showing how sleepily they are in their lives, like the saying that says ‘asleep at the wheel’ and if they won’t do something when they awake from that bout of illness, their soul will attract another event to them, a worse one again. Ma la-asot, ahoti? Ze ma yesh! “You see, it is all kish-kush-bala-bush to interpret dreams as horoscopes do in the newspapers or on the net. Our soul never thinks in such basic linear ways. She is love, and faith, and truth and when she sends you an image of a lion, she simply wants you to see your potential to become a queen or a king, which symbolizes the soul. You can choose to aim for that by understanding the symbolism and by obeying the call or maybe you can lose your focus and revert to obeying your animalistic ego-persona, the one that just wants to be indulged and satisfied and entertained like a child, while being spiritually asleep – at your own risk.” l Yudit had more to say. “Your mistake is to think that you need to SEARCH and find a symbol here and a symbol there, like a forensic scientist, looks for clues.  If you want to see the true meaning of symbols, you need to climb on top of a mountain and observe from high above – a bird’s view. C.C., the symbols are all around. They are bobbing around like little corks, just waiting for you to look and SEE them. OK, for now, if a mountain top is too high a climb, you can at least try standing on a ladder, yes?” Yudit chided again. Then, cryptically, she added, “No need to search far for interpretations because you need only to look into the mirror and see everything reflected back at you.  Messages are reminders like little flags. Minute after minute, moment after moment, they come in quick succession. Symbols, messengers, messages – the show is right before your eyes. It is a live performance and it is very interesting, never boring. And if you should forget to observe and fall asleep in the middle of the show, a fresh messenger will come to awake you with a blow on the head.  And see, you don’t even need tickets for this long, long show.  It is set up just for you and it is all free.” **Ahoti = my sister       Ma la-asot, ahoti? Ze ma yesh! = what can I say, my sister? This is how it is.   kish-kush-bala-bush = load of rubbish  l One day, Yudit told me about another of her dreams: “I had such a strange but beautiful dream and I will tell you about it. I was preparing a sandwich made out of a magazine. I took out all the staples, as there were a lot of them holding the pages together. Finally, the colour pages were ready so I pasted honey on them. l Then, I folded the magazine in two and offered it to the people who were nearby and everyone enjoyed eating it very much. You see, when I awoke, I remembered the prophet Ezekiel [Ezekiel 3:3] to whom God gave a scroll to eat. ‘Then I ate it, and it was in my mouth as sweet as honey,’ he said.  “All I can say,” Yudit added, “is that I hope my teachings are as sweet as honey for those who would like to be awakened from their slumber to gain self-realization. But nothing can change for anyone who cannot open their heart to give unconditional heart- chakra LOVE.” l When I replied, “Yes, OK, but making a sandwich out of a magazine is a weird dream,” Yudit was quick to reply, “Lama, weird? Look around and see how often people ‘swallow’ words from newspapers, magazines, books, TV, movies, radio and also from each other’s mouths, huh? At least I had honey inside my word sandwich.”  ** Lama = why
Yudit C.S. Explains – While The Lion Is Awake, We Slumber
Yudit Cohen-Shoore