Why All the Strict Rules?

Shaman Jon Rasmussen explores the purpose of rules in society, religion, and personal practice, emphasizing their role in safety, order, and discernment. He shares insights from his experiences in shaman training, faith, and everyday life, highlighting when bending or breaking rules might be justified.


 keywords

#rules #society #religion #discernment #shamanism #safety #order #control #spirituality #laws #catholic


 key  topics

The fundamental purpose of rules in society and religion
How rules ensure safety and order in communities
The concept of discretion and bending rules responsibly
Insights from shaman training on following versus breaking rules
The balance between individual freedom and societal safety
The role of discernment in spiritual and everyday contexts
The analogy of traffic laws and texting while driving
The importance of understanding the intent behind rules
Risks and responsibilities of working with spiritual energies
Encouragement for open dialogue and continuous learning


 sound bites

"Rules are the lowest common denominator for safety"
"Bending rules responsibly can still be effective"
"Discernment is crucial when working with energies"


Chapters

00:00 Introduction: The importance of rules in society and spirituality
02:08 Why rules are necessary for community functioning
03:08 Insights from shaman training on following and adapting rules
03:56 The balance between rule adherence and personal discretion
06:10 The role of rules in faith and spiritual practices
07:08 Risks involved in working with spiritual energies
07:49 The importance of discernment in rule-breaking
08:46 Understanding benevolent versus malevolent influences
10:04 The value of discernment and responsibility in spiritual work
10:56 Encouragement for ongoing dialogue and learning

Transcript

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SPEAKER_00 0:25

Hello there. I've been uh having some great sessions lately and and a tremendous number of uh really good insights and you know I love nothing more than uh talking about this stuff and sharing these things and answering questions and you know trying to make sense of uh of a lot of what's going on in the world, right? Um we're obviously very interesting times, and uh it's I think just gonna get more interesting. So I wanted to just uh share this one piece with you that had to do with the concept of you know why rules? Why do organizations, schools, religions, society at large, kind of every aspect of society, create rules that to a lot of people maybe don't make a lot of sense or are very limiting, right? And what really what's really obvious to me, and I I think this really got driven home when I was doing my shaman training at the the Healing the Light Body School, this is where I really first kind of was introduced to this concept, and that is that when you have a large number of people engaged in a singular endeavor, um again, whether it's uh driving down the road, down the freeway, or learning yoga or a spiritual tradition, learning a religion, learning really virtually anything, um, including all of our schools, all of our classes, and so on and so forth. And a lot of our laws and things. Basically, it's just kind of critically important that there is a set of instructions or rules, if you will, that are kind of the lowest common denominator, kind of the most basic things that you can and should do in order for that community to function with some order, without just total chaos. Because you could just say, hey, everybody, just do it the way you want to. Don't worry about it, you'll figure it out. Um, and and uh imagine what that would be like driving down the road, and there was no rules of the road. And if you've driven like I have in places like Rome and other parts of the world, that's kind of the way it is oftentimes, and it's pretty wild. But I'll tell you, and things like texting and driving, you know, things like that, like it's just basic things that kind of ensure the safety and effectiveness of a system. And if you apply this to a religion, you know, people go, wow, you know, you've you've sort of returned to the Catholic religion, but man, all these strict rules and stuff. And I go, I know it's it's it's a it's a challenge for someone like me. Um and uh and it was in shaman school. And and what I can say is the the one thing I learned in shaman school, which was really cool, is they say, okay, look, here's how you do each of the steps in a session, any healing session. These are the basic things that work. We know they work, they'll work for everybody essentially who does them. And so do it this way. And all 100 students go, okay, I'm gonna do it that way, and this is how they learn and practice and and get confident with with uh with their work. And the and then they would kind of pull some of us aside and kind of wink and say, well, if you want to do it differently, go ahead, or if you find a better way to do it, go ahead. Or if you're able to do this, go ahead. Or they might say, don't, just don't do it. But the the sort of wink, wink, nudge, nudge is you know, you can kind of do it differently, just don't tell the other hundred students, because then they're going, well, wait, what are we supposed to, how are we supposed to do it, what are we supposed to do? I'm confused. And so, you know, um I hope that makes sense, but it but it's like so so I think essentially if you're capable of working outside of the rules a little bit and can get away with it and still be safe and effective and efficient, I don't think that there's a judge or a scorekeeper that says that's a problem. And and I really apply this, including to my like Catholic faith and the what you know, the the reason I've written a lot about this, the reason I go to church now on the weekends and stuff again, and and um you know, and I and I look at the way they set it up and the way that they run it and it and the and the things they say, like, hey, how do you how can you be a shaman and you work with spiritual realms and psychics and astrology and all this? Because doesn't the Catholic Church say no, that's bad, like don't do it, it's all evil. And it's like, yes, for the masses, for the for the common, you know, at-large community, it's probably better. In fact, I know it's better not to mess with that stuff. You it's kind of like you really have to know what you're doing, and even then it can st you can still be it can still be harmful. So I still I still participate in that stuff. I still break a few rules. I don't always go to church when I should, and this and that, because I'm I'm I've always been that way. I've always been a little bit of this renegade or this rogue, you know, person in whatever that I do, and and I I've gotten away with it in terms of still being effective, still still being able to um get everything out of it, if you will, if it's something like that for me. Um, and uh but but the trick is right that as soon as you start talking about it this way, you know, then there's gonna be a lot of people that go, no, you know, don't don't, it's like you're not supposed to say that part out loud, because there's gonna be a lot of people that are gonna be like, wait, is the church right or is what John's saying right? And it's like follow the church, don't follow what I do, okay, that's all I can say. Because I'm willing to run in those circles. I'm willing to endanger myself. I mean, being a shaman in and of itself is dangerous territory. Um and working with non-physical energies and entities and all this kind of stuff. I mean, it can, you know, one false move and it can mess you up really good. Really good. So there are real good reasons for the rules. And for 99.9% of the population that's engaging in anything, these these rules uh sh you know would would benefit the individual to follow. And um, but I think it's just really important to understand that that's why they're there. And for folks who think they can manage without the rules, maybe you can. You you know, if you if you're if you're able to. Um, if you have the skill set. It's like texting and driving. You know, there's some drivers that can text and drive perfectly and pay total attention, you know, they have certain abilities and and and might be able to actually uh do just fine. And then there's others that you see on the road and they're slowing down and they're weaving, and they cannot do both at the same time. So, you know, it makes sense. That's against the law, as it should be. Um, and uh, and that's I think a good example. Um for the safety of yourself and the the population at large. There is a reason these organizations have created very carefully thought-out rules. And for some people, they again they they may think, I don't need those, I can do without those, I can manage without that. Sure. Good good luck. And, you know, um, you'll be fine, uh, probably. But so hopefully that helps answer the get the good. This came up in a in a session and in a question um from a client around, you know, what about all these restrictive things? What are they meant to do? And some people think it's meant to disempower the individual and to control them and all this kind of stuff, and it's like that might be true in some circles, and obviously everybody's different and nobody's perfect, and there's all kinds of power struggles and all kinds of crazy stuff out there, and so it you have to be discerning as to as to what is truly trying to take your power away uh versus what is really in a benevolent way trying to protect you and and keep you from getting in serious trouble. So I would just uh consider this um carefully, figure out where you sit in that, you know, um, and whether or not uh you know you feel that it's uh best to follow the rules or in some cases bend them a little, if you will. Um I just I just want to make it really clear that in spite of man-made rules around any of these organizations and institutions, I from my long life perspective at this point, it's it's to in my opinion, mostly benevolent. It's looking out for what's best, just like traffic laws, if you will. Um But there's always, you know, you always gotta keep an eye out for for the other, for something that's um malevolent, for something that is not um appropriate or not good, good for you or for anyone. So discernment's always always at play. And and as a shaman and the way that I work, I mean, that's just something we understand very deeply when we are journeying, when we are going into other worlds, when we are, you know, doing soul retrieval in the underworld, like you have to be highly skilled at discernment, at knowing what to mess with and uh what to avoid, um, who to listen to, who not to listen to. Um and um that's not easy. It's not easy, and the consequences can can uh can cause real harm. And so um anyway, love to continue this discussion. Always love having people contact me, send me emails, john at dreamingintobeing.com, go to my website, soul soul algorithm, thesoulgorithm.com. But always feel free um to reach out and um ask questions, do my best to answer, either from my brain or from an altered state perspective, which is m more what I do than anything. Um and um yeah, let's like keep the conversation going. There's a lot going on on the planet. I'm engaged all day, every day, tracking it, trying to figure it out who's doing what and why, and where's it going? And uh I listen to a lot of people. I am very open to learning new things, new information, new perspectives. I will always remain that way. I think that there's um that's an important part of life. So love hearing from you. Love being called to continue to do the shaman work. Um, I love sharing my new book. I started to share uh little excerpts from it on my my Instagram or whatever, just reading from it. And um yeah, so we'll keep keep on going. And if you want to uh get on my podcast here and actually talk about some some of this stuff, um that's also something I've been a little bit traveling and on the move, um, but I'll I'll be settling a little more in the near future and able to do some more of that. So, all right, take care.