AN INVITATION TO EXPLORE
Welcome to
Lenses That Liberate.
An integrative system for healing and embodiment.
A different way of seeing. A deeper way of being.
Lenses That Liberate?A short introduction to the work. 02 / EXPERIENCEExplore
the bodyDiscover a place. Try a practice. 03 / EXPLOREThe seven
lensesSeven perspectives. Many doorways.
Begin wherever your curiosity takes you.
AN INTEGRATIVE SYSTEM FOR EMBODIED AWAKENING
What are the
Lenses That Liberate?
The Lenses that Liberate model is an integrative system for embodied awakening and transformation. In order for embodied awakening and true lasting growth and healing to occur in our lives, we must activate and integrate many different ways of relating to our experience, The Lenses That Liberate model invites us to explore and embody these different ways of relating to our experience through seven distinct lenses, namely ; (1) The Sage: Tasting the Ground of Being; (2) The Nurturer: Finding Deep Rest and Nourishment; (3) The Warrior: Building Stability and Resilience; (4) The Alchemist: Transmuting the Shadow; (5) The Shaman: Opening the Subtle Body; (6) The Seer: Unraveling the Mind and (7) The Mystic: Activating the Sacred Body.
WAYS OF RELATING TO OUR EXPERIENCE
Understanding the concept of a “Lens”
A lens is a way of directing our attention and life-force in any moment. It is a way of relating to our experience. In every moment, we are relating to ourselves and our environment, whether consciously or unconsciously, through various lenses or ways of seeing. For example, we often relate to our experience through a continuous stream of inner storytelling, unconsciously narrating our life and habitually judging ourselves and others.
When we consider the many different psychological and spiritual systems and traditions from the perspective of these seven lenses, we can gain an understanding around the disagreements that can often occur around what real transformation and freedom is. For example, the sages often say that only the ground of being is most important (Lens 1: The Sage) and frequently dismiss everything else. There are also those who follow the path of self-love and self-care (Lens 2: The Nurturer ), and believe that complete unconditional self-love is the most important way of experiencing reality. Meditators often believe that achieving a deep mastery of concentration of mind (Lens 3: The Warrior) is what matters most while psychotherapists tend to see the full unveiling of our unconscious mind (Lens 4: The Alchemist) to be where true freedom lies.
Underlying the “Lenses that Liberate” model is the understanding that reality is dynamic and therefore requires us to relate to our experience in many different ways using many different lenses. Indeed, if we only have access to one or two lenses, then our ways of relating can remain myopic. By honoring the truth and value of all seven lenses through which we can relate to our experience, the “Lenses that Liberates” Model provides us with a way of deeply embodying our divinity and our humanity, allowing them to co-exist in harmony. Each lens invites us, from a different angle, into a deep enquiry of what it truly means to be both human and divine and as you enter each lens fully, our life itself becomes the answer. Over time, we arrive at a place inside, which I call the “Integrated Self”, where we can naturally draw on all seven lenses of relating to our experience while remaining unbound by all of them.
A MAP OF THE WORK
Seven lenses.
One living exploration.
Begin with Essential Skills, then explore the seven lenses.
Bringing it togetherAn embodied letting go
To summarize, each lens helps us activate a different way of seeing. We learn to rest in our true ground (The Sage), we are self-respecting and know what kindness is (The Nurturer), we know the value and application of strength and boundaries (The Warrior) and know how to turn towards and be with difficulty in a skillful way (The Alchemist). We also know our subtle energetic selves (The Shaman), can see through the illusions of mind (The Seer) and can perceive the wholeness of all life (The Mystic). We continue to open into all these dimensions of our human experience, allowing life to call forth in us the lens most appropriate in any moment.
How we come to embody each lens of the model can also be likened to that of learning a string instrument. First we learn the seven different modes of music, the different scales and we practice the chords and rhythms regularly. We learn to attune our ear to where we are playing out of key and develop this skill with patience and practice. We learn to play and finely tune our instrument so that eventually we can move beyond any fixed pattern and play from a deeper “flow” space. If we let go to this deeper flow prematurely before we have enough practice in the different scales and chords (i.e. developed each lens sufficiently ), the deeper part of us may still play through us but our instrument will sound out of tune and the song unpleasing.
This analogy offers us an explanation as to why having awareness of the many Lenses that Liberate can be of such value. It gives us the ability to train our body and being in different lens of seeing so that ultimately our life can flow from a deeper place, which I call “The Integrated Self”.
The Integrated Self lives connected to all the healthy aspects of our being. It effortlessly abides in the ground of being (The Sage), it is aware that goodness is the basic substance of the universe (The Nurturer), it is not afraid to take a stand for goodness (The Warrior), it is free to turn towards what is difficult (The Alchemist), it is aware of the undercurrents of energy (The Shaman), it sees through the illusions of mind ( The Seer) and sees the greater harmony of all life (The Mystic). When these lens are awakened, our Integrated Self can shine fully through us and play us like the symphony we were born to be, serving all those around us.
Original lens artwork and descriptions by Derek Sheahan. Essential Skills remains a working draft.
THE BODY MAP / THREE LENSES TO EXPLORE
Come home to your body.
A place to explore, listen, and notice.
Choose a lens. Let the body be your guide.
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You can still explore every lens and practice using the menu.