The Soul’S Journey – The Cosmic 2 x 4

Out of the Blue

A tree branch falling out of the clear, blue peaceful sky in the one shady spot on a glorious Thai beach resulting in five stitches certainly constituted a shock but was it a literal cosmic 2 x 4? Blood spurting from the gash to my forehead was bad enough but the idea that this was a divine encounter and required a journey of discernment to understand its meaning added another level of unwanted pain on my tropical holiday.

What is a Cosmic 2 x 4?

I first heard this expression in 1999 in the sermon by the Reverend Sally Taylor, expressing an opinion, that when we are in a state of ego, God will strike us with his cosmic 2 x 4. As a practicing Christian at the time, it made sense to me. My recent research suggests it is well founded in mythology. Zeus had his thunderbolts; the Hebrew God freely struck people down to get their attention; the Hindu Goddess Kali is associated with death and destruction and the Buddhists have the concept of Karma. My use of the word relates to a depth psychology concept that the psyche or soul wants to steer the ship and uses the circumstances of our lives to accomplish that. I have found this can be accomplished through synchronicity, signs, symbolism and serendipity. I have noticed that when I avoid or resist the earlier signs I can bring down more extreme consequences. In 1998 I was resisting a return to Christianity and it took a broken ankle for me to pay attention.

How to Discern a Cosmic 2 x 4 from a Random Event

Carl Jung once said,”God is the name by which I designate all things which cross my willful path violently and recklessly, all things which upset my subjective views, plans, and intentions and change the course of my life for better or worse.” I find that a pretty good description of the cosmic 2 x 4. I find it safer to assume such events are meaningful until proved otherwise. I have developed some steps to aid my enquiry:

1) Do I sense any current dissonance in my life?

2) Have I noticed any signs of resistance to change?

3) Am I experiencing any excessive anger in my life?

4) Is there any project on which I am are procrastinating?

5) Have there been other negative incidents in my life that have been leading up to this?

After I journal about my contemplation of these questions, I generally consult an oracle such as the I Ching, a rune or Tarot card, this will frequently result in something on which to place further attention.

Finding Meaning in the Experience

Once you have decided this has likely come to teach you something, it is time to embark on a co-creative process. Your review of the questions above has likely provided a framework to contemplate. I begin with an affirmation “I am open and receptive to my inner guidance, show me the way.” I bring attention to this in meditation at least twice a day. Then it is about waiting on the will of heaven and paying attention to what traverses our lives. I believe the soul speaks through symbol, sign, synchronicity, dreams, and serendipity and as the Harry Potter books assure – help will always be given to those who deserve it.

Out of the Blue Continued

It was more than two weeks later, that after joining a group in Bali for a workshop and at first suffering resistance to being there then loving it. I realized that I needed to revisit the decision I had made not to attend future events. They were important not so much for the teachings but the community itself. It helped open my heart. I think I needed a bang on the head to get my intention.

The Soul’s Journey – Sometimes the Answer Lies in the Question

I had just returned from London and felt this yearning to go back. This was my second trip this year and each time I had felt the same. There was also the seductive idea of buying my own place. On this occasion I had done some research and realized that if I purchased a leasehold property I could afford a studio in Bloomsbury, a most desirable part of the city. It was time to consult the decision making process I had developed years earlier.

Back in 1998 I volunteered my services as a marketing consultant to an embryo organization called The Centre for Integrated Healing. Little could I have known how this decision would change my life. My admiration for the Centre grew as I began to appreciate the groundbreaking vision of introducing cancer patients to complementary and alternative therapies including diet, meditation, massage, homeopathy, TCM and naturopathy.

One of the core themes was that the patient needed to take responsibility for their own choices but that created a new challenge around discernment. There was a sense in conventional medicine at the time that the patient should follow the advice of the expert. But what to do when there were alternatives and at times opinions were opposing. Dr Hal Gunn one of the founding doctors realized that participants at the Centre would require support in the decision-making aspect of their treatment. As part of the management team at the time, I offered an idea based on some of the teachings I had encountered at the Unity Church where I was undergoing a course of studies. It was based on the concept that each of us can access an inner knowing, or wisdom that resides within.

A new chapter of my life unfolded. I undertook a weekly presentation on decision-making that was designed to help people get beyond the battlegrounds of thoughts feelings and fears that block intuitive decision making. I called it the DecisionClarity model. It led eventually to a book, a CD, group presentations, workshops and individual counselling.

The process suggests four simple steps to be followed to connect with our intuitive guidance system over a period of seven days, (although I later realized it can be accomplished effectively in 24-hours):

1) Preparing the question.

2) Going within for guidance.

3) Releasing and letting go.

4) Checking for answer.

So I began at the beginning with the question: “Should I buy a small flat in London?” As I contemplated the question I realized there was actually another question I had to consider first because the biggest negative to buying a place in London was selling my place in Whistler which was the only way I could afford it and I LOVED my place in Whistler.

So I shelved my original question and wrote down, “Should I sell my Whistler suite?”. I already could feel the loaded nature of this question because I was emotionally attached. Exploring the logical, and emotional issues around a decision is essential to understand the complexity I have developed a realization that the battle ground of thoughts, feelings and fears that arise around a decision is why it becomes so difficult to resolve. I had noticed in workshops that some participants did not need to go any further than step 1. Seeing their own confusion helped them decide.

So I created two columns: Yes and No then wrote beside them: logical, feelings and fears.

Yes- logical: lock in capital gain, I don’t use it enough, at 78 I don’t need to accumulate more capital gain, it frees up money I am conserving to pay off the mortgage.

No – logical: it gets me out of the city and on the slopes, even though I could afford to I will go to Whistler less, it can’t be replaced.

Yes – feelings nothing I can think of.

No – feelings: I love being there, the sense of joy when I arrive, the delight in strolling the village, the beautiful mountain environment year round, and I have been skiing more.

Yes – Fear: I hang on to it and create a lack of ready cash. This inhibits my desire to live fully.

No – Fear: I give up something I love and regret it.

At first I sensed the underlying battleground of thoughts and feelings that often causes one to obsess over a decision, going backwards and forwards, settling first on one thing then changing the mind. It seemed clear that my logic wanted to sell, while feelings were strongly attached to maintaining the status quo.

I closed my eyes for a moment and set an intention – “I am open and receptive to my inner guidance.” I sat quietly focussing on this mantea and suddenly a flash of insight. The key issue was not about London or Whistler it was about seeing the situation through a new lens. The lens of a 78-year old with only so many active years left. Asking the question in this way demanded a reassessment of my life. Why at the age of 78 did I want the responsibility of owning anything other than my principal residence? Why was I restricting my expenditures by holding on to a significant sum to pay off the mortgage on Whistler in Fall 2025?

I had been fortunate buying during Covid (it seemed crazy but I wanted somewhere to escape to); now the property had increased by over 50%. The cash I would generate would be more than sufficient for any needs I would have in remaining active years. It would compensate for my portfolio losses. I could then rent anywhere I chose. So I listed it. Then an interesting unexpected twist to the story.

I visited Whistler and fell back in love with place. My feelings protested my decision but then I saw the “synthesis or third way”. I would sell it but not yet. I will sell before I have to renew my 1.85% mortgage that comes due in November 2025. In the meantime this resolves any short term cash requirements I may have by freeing up the funds I was conserving to pay off the loan.

I no longer had any doubt; the battleground of thoughts and feelings was resolved. Clarity had emerged and indeed the answer had emerged from the question!