What are your metaphors for life?

In the Study Guide for What the BLEEP do We Know!?, under the chapter on paradigms shifts, the is a section on Metaphors We Live By…

In my coaching work, I realised that metaphors are a great way to understand the core assumptions my clients have about the universe.

The Study Guide quotes ecophilosopher Joanna Macy's five central metaphors through which people in different spiritual traditions see the world:

world as battlefield,

world as classroom,

world as trap,

world as lover, and

world as self…

The authors added world as machine to the list…

There are many other metaphors for life…

A Journey

A Garden

A Battery

A Mission

A Prison

A Roller Coaster

A Mountain Climb

A Race

A Courtroom

What are your metaphors for life?

How much do you operate within each of these worldviews?

“Cleverness is always a barrier. And it is not intelligence it is a false substitute. An intelligent person is innocent. You can cheat an intelligent person very easily, but you cannot cheat a clever person because the clever person himself is a cheat. So never think that cleverness is of any value; it is based on fear. The logic behind cleverness is: if you don't cheat others, others will cheat you. So remain clever and always protect yourself, and before somebody attacks you, attack them, because attack is the best defense. This is the logic of cleverness: always pretend that you know, even when you don't.” ~ OSHO 

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

Life's a bitch, and then you marry one…

(too many to name)

A good president is like a drunken pope, Honest but unlikely.

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

he he he

now be nice and  she won't become a bitch!   LOL must buy her cars, shoes, houses, vacations.  Not much to ask for, is it?   he he

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

No, You know the thing is with women in Europe, and especially in the netherlands, do not become happy of cars, shoes, a house, a vacation or anything (they will, but only for a short while). It is very easy to give actually. But Ironically most people see it as impossible. But it keeps her around until the end of time.

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

Hum, Domus - it isn't a wonder really.  The mood says so much -

Life's a bitch, and then you marry one… (too many to name)

Just my humble advice, which you didn't ask for, aren't obligated to try and probably don't believe it would do any good anyway but you could try

“Life is beautiful, and then she made it more beautiful”

and see what that gets you.  Course, maybe you like it the other way and can self-fulfill your beliefs.  Hope this is a case of opposites attracting and not like attracts like for the work would be much harder to accomplish if that is the case.

I'm not being sarcastic at all (just don't want you to misread my mood).  You have my sincere sympathy and compassion really, unless of course you were just trying to be funny and yet, the mood says so much.

I once heard a story about a man who was always saying “I'd give my right arm, if” such and such - you fill in the blank.  You may have already arrived at the eventual outcome.

If I ever see a drunken pope, I will look at who is president.

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

You took the words right out of my mouth Deb.

I am living proof that perspective is EVERYTHING!

About six or seven years ago I was secretly planning to leave my husband as soon as I felt our son was on his own enough to make the time right to leave.  I constantly complained to my girlfriends about all of the things I felt was lacking in my marraige and all of the things my husband was or wasn't doing that led me to believe our relationship was going nowhere and never would.  I say I was secretly planning to leave because on the outside I was the same ol' wife I'd always been acting a part I really didn't feel inside.  At some point, and I really couldn't say what made me change, I decided to stop focusing on the negative and to begin focusing on the good.  Trust me before I made this decision if you'd asked me I wouldn't have been able to name a single good thing about my husband or our relationship because all I ever focused on what what I thought was missing in the relationship.  So I changed my perspective and slowly and surely things started to change for me.  It really wasn't that long before he started acting differently or so I thought he was but I know know that I had simply changed how I perceived him and therefore who I expected him to be and how I expected him to act.  I GOT EXACTLY WHAT I EXPECTED!  100% I can honestly tell you today that our relationship is fantastic on all fronts.  Sure he still does things that can be aggravating but they are so small and insignificant and there is so many positive aspects to him and our relationship that I don't hardly notice them and when I do it doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things.  I've never been happier and to think that if I hadn't decided to shift my perception of him and our relationship I might be alone and single today looking for something in other men that he had all along but I never allowed myself to see.

Blessings,
Cheryl

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

I think the most famous metaphor for life is “life is like a box of chocolates”!

My metaphor for life is:

Life is like trailblazing in a fenced forest. ~ you may not know what lies ahead on the path you choose, but you will always reach the fence.  You can be happy or sad, or lost or have a destination in view, but you will inevitably reach the boundries of this life on earth.  What lies beyond the fence, is the rest of the universe and greater conciousness. 

peace~light

annabelle 

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

Annabelle,

Since trees and forests mean so very much to me - I am keeping your metaphor as a wonderful way to look at life.

Deborah

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

From a Teacher

About life, love, and happiness

I learned from a teacher

About tests, trials, and tribulations

I learned from a teacher

About the past, the present, and future

I learned from a teacher

About give and take, cause and effect

I learned from a teacher

About numbers and the alphabet

I learned from a teacher

About composure and attitude

I learned from a teacher

Life is a teacher

By John D. Evans

http://pods.zaadz.com/jdpoetry1

http://www.jdpoetry.com/

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

Hi Alex and zaadzsters friends,

Life as the artist of the soul.

I have been thinking whether we create/ shape our lives or the life creates us. The quick answer is that we create our lives. We have the power to be the artist of our lives. However is that the best way “to be”? What if we let the life being the artist of the soul.

Often we are struggled trying to control our lives and to shape it.

I wish I felt the freedom to leave myself to the hand of “life” creating “me”.

Metta

Bilgi

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

Hi Bilgi,

I love your Mettaphor… I interprete it as “Life is the canvas/art of the soul”, easier to leave it at that than trying to define the artist… or co-artists… SOUL… our SOUrce of Love. I see us as co-creators…

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I love that concept of life as a personalized metaphor!
Life - what is?
A mirror
An elevator
A bliss
A piss
A glory
A walking dream
A song
A question
An answer
A prayer
A mess
A destiny
A choice
A game
A fame
A downfall
A rebirth
An ilusion
A harsh reality
A Fairy tale

and everything in between……
and I love it!

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At first it is an innocent raindrop in the sun and later it heavily rains on us uncovered celebrating mass

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like standing in front of a white canvas with every colour of the rainbow beside you and translating thought into form

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Life depends on the view point of yours. World will appear as to how we are viewing it, while we wear a spectacles of  red in colour, and blue will show everything as blue. When we are happy, the world too seems to be happy, when we are not happy , the world too appear similarly. Actually it is a play ground where we all are playing different games or sports, so that we learn more for our experience.

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To me, life is like flowers growing through a fence.

Let me explain.

Imagine an old fence (iron, picket… doesn’t matter), falling apart, bent, splintered and worn. It’s obviously seen better days.

Somehow, though the disrepair, a flower grows, poking through the ruins or wrapping itself around the wreckage of times gone by.

Unfortunately, Earth is the fence. Fortunately, we are the flowers.

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This would come from a long list of quotes in my 'favorite thoughts from thinkers on not-thinking' files.

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

I love this!  I might also add, however, that 99.9% of every thought we have today is merely a repitition of the same thoughts we had yesterday.  On the beat goes on.

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

Jonathan,

your metaphor reminds me of this T-Shirt I just saw. The image really speaks to me, just like your metaphor. And fortunately, the world gives us both, because without ugliness there is no beauty, yin and yang.

Peace!

Simone

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LIFE AS MIRROR

Namaste
Wendy
aka
Machete Girl

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

The people of the world as my family
Every day as a blank canvas
Anger as a loss of Sense of Humour
Life as Bernard Shaw saw it- busily keeping a blazing torch to hand on to future generations
Rudeness as a weak person's attempt at power
Love never runs out simply grows stronger when more people join it

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Life is. (period). It just is.

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

Now that we've dug up some metaphors for life, consider the following…

Which metaphors do I live by?

What are the threads of beliefs that form the web holding these metaphor in place?

How do these beliefs colour my perspective of reality?

Which metaphors do I live by, the freedom from which would give me the freedom to go Beyond Possibilities?

Which metaphors do the person I want to be live by?

Namaste,
Alex Chua

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

The World as a Healer! Could you guys add that to your list of metaphors?!



For me life is like this Rumi poem:

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What an awesome question.

The thing I think I have said more often than anything else is that I view this life of mine as a sacred obligation.  It is both an honor and an invitation to honor.

I believe that each one of us hold in our being something we are asked to contribute.  And we are invited to honor that in each other as well.  I guess that is why accountability is such a huge issue for me.  I am enormously mindful of my words and actions and how they may impact others.  (does this mean I don't really stumble from time to time?  ummm nope)

It does mean that I have no ego involved in sorting through things and looking to see if I need to adjust my thinking, make amends, change my behavior, or shed my defenses.  The more naked and honest and wholesome - yes, I said wholesome - I can be, the less I am of harm to this beautiful world around me.

This life is sacred.  This life is an obligation.  That is my belief.

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Alexchua thank you for inviting me to your ZPod and this thread. At a glance I am drawn to the Hopi Elders message as I feel very connected to the American Indian heritage. From your list of metaphors what resonate with my philosophy and experience are journey, garden and mountain. My from the heart sharing throughout my website clearly reflect this :)) Those of you that have viewed the What the Bleep movie are familiar with my mentor Dr. Emoto's research and work with messages from water. Those of you that have read his books on message from water have an awareness of the effect and power of our thoughts and words.

 ”HADO creates words
Words are the vibrations of nature
Therefore beautiful words create beautiful nature
Ugly words create ugly nature
This is the root of the Universe” -Masaru Emoto

Infinite Love and Infinite Gratitude, Eveline Maria
http://www.soulartgallery.com/
www.cafepress.com/emsoulartgifts

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Life is what I believe or think it is, so I should be very careful with my thoughts…

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My first boss taught me all I needed to know about life…

“Life ain't nothing but a shit sandwich, and every day is just another bite”

However, I have since evolved to believe…

“I'm standing under the spout wher blessings come pouring out”

Burner Philosophy…

“Light a man a fire and you keep him warm for the night. Light a man ON fire and you keep him warm for the rest of his life”

About life, Mario Andretti (racecar driver) once said…

“If you think you have everything under control, you aren't driving anywhere near fast enough”

Inspiration: Neale Donald Walsh wrote: “To get In-spirit (inspired) you have to be OUT of your MIND”

How is life going?

“If life was any better I'd have to clone myself”

Problems…

There are only two kinds of problems allowed in my awareness, quality problems and SEP”s

Quality problems = having to choose whether to mix my martini with Kettel One or Grey Goose, tough choice, quality problem

SEP's = Someone Else's Problem, not mine

=^.^=

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

LIfe is………so just be…….

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

Both of you sum it up perfectly… which also explains why we need to examine our metaphors for life… they are the web of beliefs that underlies our thoughts… & if we are not aware of them… they don't just influence but control our thoughts…

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

The world is a classroom … it can be a lover. Life is certainly a journey and sometimes a roller coaster. And life can be a garden – a beautiful, thriving garden or a chaotic garden with lots of weeds. I always wonder at our judgment of weeds – weeds are the most durable, the most thriving of vegetation and yet we judge them as bad. Hmmmmm. Life is pretty much in the eye of the beholder.

Worn-out garments are shed by the body,
Worn-out bodies are shed by the dweller within the body,
New bodies are donned by the Dweller, like garments.

Not wounded by weapons, not burned by fire,
Not dried by the wind, not wetted by water,
Such is the One.

Not dried, not wetted, not burned, not wounded,
Innermost Essence, everywhere, always,
Being of Beings, changeless, eternal, for ever and ever.

                                  Bhagavad-Gita

Can't do better than that.

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Life is letting go.

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Cocoon at the Crossroad

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Blue Butterfly

“Somewhere along the road of life the ugly caterpillar becomes a beautiful butterfly, the green jacaranda tree bursts into luminous flaming lavender, and the ugly duckling into a swan. Pierce the thin veil between transcendence and time, and like Alice falling through the rabbit hole of an alternate consciousness, we find ourselves living in awe and wonder of the miraculous nature of life.” -April 2005, Science of Mind, Daily Guides, page 63

Love and Gratitude, Eveline Maria
http://www.soulartgallery.com/ 
www.cafepress.com/emsoulartgifts

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

Thanks for sharing this Eveline! I love watching & taking photos of plants & trees but have never heard of jacaranda trees…

I thought this was a misspelling but “green jacaranda tree bursts into luminous flaming lavender” was too exciting to ignore!

Googled “jacaranda” & lo & behold! What a feast for my eyes!

http://www.jamesharrisgallery.com/Artists/Marcelino%20Goncalves/Images/Jacaranda.jpg” cannot be displayed, because it contains errors." width="538" />

http://www1.lf1.cuni.cz/~kocna/flowr_my/p6040805.jpg” cannot be displayed, because it contains errors." width="539" />
P.S. & thanks for the tip on how to add pictures to my posts ;-)

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Wow! Thank you  for this beautiful embrace. Absolutely breath taking :)) ~e~

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

 LIfe is a Parade.

I say this because I am living on an island off the coast of Belize and one of the main joys of our small apartment is that we are on the parade route.

You can hear them coming down the street, and the excitement that comes from being in a place where they have parades often has changed my outlook on life.

In filling our hearts with joy, hapiness and things that make us smile, we will be able to acomplish more good and make positive changes than if we focus on all  bad stuff that is happening.

 Celebrate life

Celebrate each other

Celebrate often

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He's a Beautiful Moth! Not a Butterfly!

(on the lovely blue Moth photo above!)

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Re: What are your metaphors for life?

Mine has always been so so serious - life is a lesson, a struggle.
And it is only recently I have realized my metaphor is NOT a reality.
It  is, however, a  springboard  for  what I really want ~
If the lesson is learned - then fulfillment is now the new metaphor, and I am loving it.
Whereas I  endured the previous one, I can embrace and really BE in this one!

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