Day 6:

Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.- Bene Gesserit Litany Against Fear.

When I read Frank Herbert’s Dune I knew I was hooked once I read the Bene Gesserit Litany Against Fear. I was fascinated by this world that incorporated all of the mysterious abilities human beings can cultivate. There’s a part of me that knows that I came from a place like this.Anyway, what’s cool is that tonight I watched the Dune movie with my eldest. It obviously pales in comparison to the book but it served as a tool to get him interested in the novels. He seemed to like the concept of the super-being. Little does he know that there’s nothing super about it. He couldn’t believe me when I tell him that there are people who are telepathic and whatnot. I explained to him that in order to achieve this you need to learn to shut off your mind chatter so that you can listen to the world around you.I’ll be teaching him how to mediate- first through movement (he’s very kinesthetic) then later through stillness. This is one of those things that will be so cool to explore together. We’ll be starting with Tai Chi.Here’s another great quote:

Many have marked the speed with which Muad’Dib learned the necessities of Arrakis. The Bene Gesserit, of course, know the basis of this speed. For the others, we can say that Muad’Dib learned rapidly because his first training was in how to learn. And the first lesson of all was the basic trust that he could learn. It’s shocking to find how many people do not believe they can learn, and how many more believe learning to be difficult. Muad’Dib knew that every experience carries its lesson. –from “The Humanity of Muad’Dib” by the Princess Irulan

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