The detail of funeral monuments of opera composer Vincenzo Bellini in Cattedrale di Sant`Agata
First, I would like to let everyone know that we finally got some rain, both in Oregon and Washington, and the air quality readings dropped from 470 (in Portland) and 270 here to below 20. This is obviously an enormous improvement so I went out and got some bird seed and dog chow and replenished my empty coffee canister and more. The local grocery store was super crowded! Prices were seriously higher than usual and there were still some areas with very low or no inventory.
Operas
Many subscribers have never seen a real opera before and a few expressed different aversions: “Not my genre” or much more resistant. However, I felt last night’s streaming of I Puritani was beyond fabulous and seriously relevant to our times. The opera is set in Plymouth during the time of Cromwell and the Puritans are so beautifully depicted as patient, sincere, and noble-minded people who were calm, non-combative, and tolerant. No one died in this opera so is it really a tragedy in the classical sense or more like an opera serioso? The opera is basically a love story with some twists and turns, but there are no villains or conspiracies. However, there are underlying political issues that are curiously parallel to our times, and I felt this was kind of like an operatic version of an old morality play. I cannot recommend it highly enough. That said, the Met production is so good that it is hard to imagine finding anything better.
In a way, this opera points the way to what I have been discussing in terms of skillful means. The conflict occurs off stage, meaning we never see it, but we hear of it and the ending is just beautiful so I felt every politician in the world should be forced to watch this opera whether or not they have ears for opera.
Music
As you know, the most important part of my work is not the herbs or even the astrology or darkfield microscopy, but the music therapy. I will tell a little story, probably more interesting to musicians than others. I went to a troubadour harp performance in Santa Fe many years ago. This may not interest everyone, but troubadour harps do not have pedals so they are tuned for a particular piece and the key cannot be changed. In this case, everything was in the key of C and it got incredibly boring for me. I decided to “space out” to see what would happen and went into an altered state and saw magnificent events taking place on the inner plane. For example, one woman in the audience was singing in her higher self and had a truly beautiful voice that obviously was not audible. Others were downloading various kinds of inspiration and it was deeply moving to see this. At the end, I spoke to the woman with the singing voice, and she confirmed that she loved singing but never had the training she craved. I also talked to the harpist and bought all his CDs because I realized he had inspiration but not a whole lot of musical training. Training can be crippling to the soul or very supportive.
Not too long after this event, I was teaching a master class and used one of Gail’s new compositions for meditation. It was thematically Egyptian, rather formal, and shall we say processional? It was not, in my opinion, her greatest opus, but she loved it. I am 100% certain that it represented a very important chapter in her incarnational history, but the students were not resonating so I switched to the troubadour harp and voilà!
For me, it was very simplistic so I understand that complexity is not for everyone. Some people send me links to music they like. Most of it, sorry to say, is torture for my ears, but it helps me to understand that opera can be ear splitting for some people. Still, I would urge those who are open to the nudge to watch the two productions this weekend. Tonight is the Elixir of Love, an absolutely delightfully melodic and beautiful opera. Tomorrow is Norma, one of the most complicated roles in the operatic repertoire. I saw both of these operas in Port Townsend when the Live in HD performances were first aired. The Virgo, blast it, can be super critical at times. I thought L’Elisir d’Amore was marvelously produced and performed, but Norma fell a little short of my ideal.
Going back many decades, I had mononucleosis when I was working on Wall Street and was sent home for months. I reported to the company doctor once every two weeks, and he always sent me home again. I stopped on the way back to my apartment and bought recordings and played around designing sets for operas. I have almost zero artistic talent so the challenge was huge. I don’t know how many times I have listened to Norma since those days, hundreds of times for sure. I have also seen it live on stage, but just once, in Seattle after moving to the Pacific Northwest. Being as difficult as it is, it is not surprising if a production falls short of the mark, but Maria Callas perhaps set the dramatic standard for the opera and June Anderson‘s tribute to Callas is just wonderful. I have recommended it before, but Aida Garifullina does a marvelous job. There are two different recordings on YouTube. The earlier one has immense purity and is just lovely, deeply moving, but the second one, even though a little more perfect and polished, suggests that too much professionalism can rob one of something precious. It’s good but not as sincere . . . looked hard for the right word.
Operas are not only about singing, they are about stories and provide opportunities to depict life from different perspectives, and this is why music is so psychologically powerful. Aristotle said it well: it can corrupt or ennoble a civilization.
A great opera weaves together the human and the sublime. There are the usual human issues of love, infidelity, revenge or forgiveness, grief, insanity, ambition, betrayal, as well as the demonic and divine forces within humanity. In the more popular genre, we have musicals like Les Miserables and Evita, but to me, they are like operettas, not grand opera, surely easier for certain audiences, but complexity is a gateway.
Ether
What did I just say? If we consider or try to consider the mind of the Creator, it is obviously beyond comprehension so in this third dimension, we are merely speculating about the Creator and the purpose of Creation, not to mention our own roles in creation.
Nearly all of my serious understanding and what I take to be true has been learned from observation, not from books. In music therapy or past life regression using other methods, the picture of our own destiny becomes clear in the seventh dimension. Very few people reach this level, even with therapy.
My observations do not tally with those of many more popular pundits. The third dimension is characterized by manifestation in Time and Space. This is all it is and because Time is chronological, it is ephemeral. Reality is shaped by the intersection of Time and Space and is thus very sensitive to astronomical influences because Time is a function of movement of celestial bodies. We need to understand the positions and sequences to look backwards or forwards in Time. This is why history is valuable and why predictions are often possible. They are based on probabilities, not master plans that are carved in stone.
Each level of awareness within the dimensions is related to a frequency so as we ascend, we not only transcend, but we see more detail. As I have said many, many times, the fourth dimension is like an idealized version of the third dimension. Try to imagine yourself without imperfections, without impediments, and without criticism. This is the true nature of your soul and we experience this through inspiration so we must have a certain level of freedom to allow the inspiration to flow unimpeded.
This means that too much imprinting, too much authority, too much interference, too many issues and problems, and too much routine interfere with inspiration and therefore also with creativity and the expression of our souls. What I see is that the greatest gift of lockdown has been the disruption of routine along with the leisure to explore ourselves without the usual level of demands. It would have been much better had there not been an unnecessary obsession with viruses and contagion along with the fears of job loss and food shortages and climatic abnormalities. Alas, these last months have been a mixed bag, but many people corresponding with me have already made very significant changes, these ahead of schedule.
The Fifth and Sixth Dimensions
To-date, I have brought several people into the fifth dimension. It is so alien to most people that they cannot make a whole lot of sense of it. It is very mental but not intellectual so the deluge of ideas and concepts without a framework is very hard for most people to navigate. Try to imagine thoughts without a collection of dots. Nothing connects that you are able to organize in third dimensional reality. A few people have captured hints and sometimes fragments of ideas relevant to their present reality. I know this is much different from what others are saying about the fifth dimension, but when one is actually in another state of reality, the state is understood and if one can go up one more stage, the sixth dimension can explain the fifth in terms that are clear. This state is incredible. I would say it is the level where human perfection is defined. An interesting observation I can share is that as one ascends, everything is much more refined. People who speak quite normally in the third dimension have a higher self that is eloquent and refined, no matter how rough hewn the third dimensional self is.
The Seventh Dimension
As mentioned, only a few people can reach this level. It has the blueprints for the entire Earth cycle of incarnations. I usually can bring musicians to this level, but very few others. For example, I could bring Gail not just to this dimension but even beyond. In the seventh dimension, the Divine Purpose appears as a sort of gigantic tapestry or jigsaw puzzle. All the pieces have to fit together before the mission is completed. So, in the case of someone like Gail, she could actually see all the music she had yet to compose and when and where the performances would take place. Some of this work very tangentially involved me, and I wrote lyrics for several pieces that she did not complete. I think this is what brings us back again and again and why we reconnect with those with whom we have a destiny.
Complexity
Try to imagine complexity without confusion. If we stick to music, one can think of the simplest musical instrument, perhaps a drum. It has more capacity to calibrate rhythm than to vocalize. I am not saying that drums do not have voices, but they are definitely not the Elvira of I Puritani that I am listening to as I write this. Rhythm is very important and is an integral part of the feminine, the force that calibrates manifestation in Time and Space. It is tempting to steal a line from Amadeus in which the emperor complains to Mozart that there are too many notes. Mozart says the music is perfect. The emperor cannot process the notes so wants the music to be simplified. The higher vibrations have a short wavelength and usually therefore require a faster pace. So, the notes are closer together and the tempo may be challenging to some people. If the tempo cannot be maintained, the construct falls apart. It is the role of the Divine Feminine to prevent this from happening so She has to adjust the tempo to circumstances.
Harmony is in the relationship between the notes and performance of the notes. Making something very complicated look easy is the sign of a master. If you want to study this, watch Adalgisa sung by Joyce DiDonato in tomorrow’s Norma. This magnificent mezzo has a really firm grip on timing. It takes an enormous elasticity to span the distance between the notes and vocal cords and other performers, both on stage and in the pit.
Next
I am obviously having a blissful week. Try to imagine seven bel canto operas in one week . . . but I confess I skipped La Cenerentola because I have been so busy. What I feel is that I probably ditched some readers several paragraphs ago, but these are important parts of what I am loosely calling my legacy. Hopefully, unlike Gail, I will have time to complete more of my work.
In times of change, the energy of the etheric element is increased and this leads to more movement and reorganization. Not everyone manages to stay organized so my usual recommendation is to cultivate flexibility of the mind and emotions and elasticity of the physical. It is easier to make changes when there is more curiosity and less resistance. I am absolutely convinced that the level of change will be such that the world will not be the same again.
Also, I am very encouraged when I see the beings who are incarnating at this time. Lydian Nadhaswaram is astonishing, and there are so many really wonderful souls already incarnate, but sticking to the theme of this post, there can be no harmony unless there is coherence, communication, and cooperation. Every deviation from harmony creates discord and disintegration so even though this is an abrupt change of subject, I would like to use the testimony in the Assange extradition proceedings as an example. This has been a dramatic week. Among others, Daniel Ellsberg testified via livestream that the essential difference between his release of the Pentagon Papers and what Julian Assange released relates to technology, not the principles of journalism. Lawyers and professors and many others testified for the defense, but the most interesting revelation was perhaps that President Trump sent an emissary to the Ecuadorian Embassy to try to cut a deal: disclose the source of the DNC leaks and the charges will be dropped. It is a tribute to the integrity of Assange that in his miserable situation, he could not be compromised and this is what integrity is all about. It also highlights the farcical nature of the various irreconcilable statements that have been made over the decade in which Assange’s life and freedom have been compromised.
My point is that nothing lacking coherence can be sustained. Deeds may be hidden from public scrutiny and lies may be believed, but the day will come when only the Truth will prevail and that will be a day of reckoning. If we understood how deviation damages our soul expression, we would never take the risk.
Many blessings,
Ingrid
The following link is for the Institute and can also be used to make donations:
https://invisibleepidemics.com/
Copyright by Ingrid Naiman 2020
First posted to subscribers on 19 September 2020
Complete opera:
Part I of II: https://youtu.be/McG_jFJWezY
Too Many Notes
