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Book:

Symmetry and Beauty

Dear Chief Seykota,

I just finished your book, The Trading Tribe, and am blown away by your ability to simplify the seemingly endless complexities of human behavior.

There is a symmetry and beauty in your writing, that I rarely see.

I have many Aha moments, that supplement the "Aha's" I experience at Tribe meetings.

Your writing makes me see that:

If we are unwilling to experience the forms of the feelings we dislike, the feelings we dislike will form our experiences.

The information on manipulation is fascinating; As I read, it is truly a revelation to realize that:

Others do not manipulate us against our will. They manipulate us in harmony with our will nots.

I think I understand the meaning of responsibility, but I do not, until I read your book. The responsibility model says that we invite all of this
into our lives.

Thank you for your work.

Tue, 28 Jun 2005

Many AHA's

Hi Ed !

over the weekend I read The Trading Tribe book and get many AHA's as a result, many memories pop up and a deeper understanding of myself as a result. Congratulation on your newest book Ed.

TTP Receiving and Somatic Mirroring

Chief Ed,

I read in TT page 68 paragraph 3:

"Some of the other tribe members notice their own legs moving around."

This generates some general questions. Here they are:

1. Is it common at tribe meetings for receivers to take on (or "mirror") the posture and overall body attitude, even the facial expressions of the sender, when receiving? (My best guess is "yes")

Pacing tends to happen and is seems incidental to the process. We build the healing field of acknowledgment with verbal cues such as "good job" and with cheering.

2. Can going with spontaneous somatic mirroring behavior when receiving in fact be a very strong and effective receiving technique? (My best guess is "yes")

The receiver's job is to encourage the sender to amplify his forms and deepen his experience. The receiver does not have to replicate the receiver's experience to do this.

3a. Is there an optimal point (or points) in the process of receiving, where such somatic mirroring techniques may be optimally effective?

Somatic mirroring is incidental to the process.

3b. Is there a similar point (or points) in the process of receiving, where somatic mirroring techniques may be in fact quite ineffective, or even counter-productive?

Somatic mirroring is incidental to the process.

3c. Is acute awareness and understanding of somatic mirroring (and associated timing / sequencing of same in TTP receiving) a property of highly skilled TTP receivers?

We use somatic cues to know when the sender is getting close to experiencing a form. When he gets active, we raise the level of encouragement.

4. The TTP description of effective receiving seems to describe a set of intensely verbal methods. I may be missing some TTP writing about non-verbal somatic mirroring receiving techniques in TTP. I search TT and FAQ for clues. Please comment on the relationship, if any, between effective verbal vs. (non-verbal) "somatic mirroring" TTP receiving techniques.

The sender is is generally deep into his own experience and may even have his eyes shut. The sender is not attentive to the postures of the receivers. The receivers are aware of the postures of the sender. The sender is aware of verbal cues, particularly highly emotional encouragement such as cheering.

Book Review

Ed,

"Excellent. I encourage anyone interested in growth to read the Trading Tribe, get in a tribe, and/or use the book to start your own. It could easily be worth hundreds of thousands, if not millions, to you."

When I follow my intuition trends, I enjoy it's fruits including it telling me buy your book. My conscious mind says you don't need it. Yes. And I am happy I follow my intuition trend. I love how your book continues expanding my TTP experience. My intuition says read it again. And I am.

For over two and half years, I enjoy fruits from FAQ, both as reader and writer. I continue learning from your Spring 2004 TTP workshop, Fall 2004 TTP workshop, and a guest at IV TT. Besides, being one of the founding members of our local awesome TT going strong over 20 months. I gain every two weeks whether I am a sender or receiver. And I love how what I experience from your book deepens my TTP.

Part of my experience is the willingness to feel those feelings ... emotional drawdowns ... that come as part of the larger TTP trend. Then place the trade, i.e., drive to the TT meeting or whatever the next step is including buying the book in spite of all the reasons not to, then reading it.

I am a long term trader. I am willing to go the route most aren't, forego short-term pleasure for long-term possibilities. Today, I own I'm the man I always wanted to be. Then I own the feelings that I actually been that man for over 8 years. I am happy to own it now. I am thankful for me, my whole support network including my local tribe and my larger tribe.

Thank you for the wonderful gift of sharing your best.

Thanks and Congratulations

Hi Ed,

I have now read your wonderful book during the last couple of days ... This book brings great clarity, to all aspects of the process and cleared up all gray areas for me. I'm really glad you experienced your perfectionist feelings, and got it out.

Congratulations - on producing this important and much needed work for the world. (You may not have started this project as a professional writer, but you certainly finished it as one.)

Re-Integration, pages 154 & 155

Chief Ed,

I ask questions on TTP re-integration of forms. These questions are generated from reading page 154 &155 of TT book.

1. Please describe the original state of integration of multiple forms in some detail. The TTP term ‘re-integration’ strongly suggests a prior state of integration. What are the essential properties of the prior integrated state?

Prior to Integration, your feelings live in k-nots and are relatively unavailable as resources on your emotional instrument panel.

With TTP, you can untie your k-nots, re-frame your feelings from adversaries into allies and re-integrate them with your other feelings.

Integration of integral parts produces integrity.

2. In terms of properties, how do the original state of integration and the subsequent state of TTP re-integration differ? Also, what essential properties do they share?

The property of liking our feelings differs. Before TTP, we dislike and avoid our feelings and we entrain drama around them. The feelings we dislike run our lives. Post TTP, we like our feelings and use them cooperatively with Conscious Mind to act with wisdom and in line with right livelihood.

Page 155 describes Polarity Process as a basic process of TTP. The glossary describes Polarity Process as “a set of methods to simultaneously experience two forms. It is a two-pole version of the Polarity Process.”

Yes.

The original Polarity Process works by investing two feelings, one in each hand, and then experiencing what's standing between your hands as you bring them slowly together.

The current Re-Integration Process works by developing forms in place, wherever they show up in your body, and then by experiencing all the forms simultaneously.

3. Must the emotional state represented by the forms (or the forms themselves) be opposites of each other, or at least have membership in opposing categories or groups? Does use of the Polarity Process require this scenario? Can two forms of similar type or kind be re-integrated using the Polarity Process?

My earlier thinking on this is to develop two opposite feelings that are polar opposites, and then to connect them and discharge them, hence the name, Polarity Process.

In practice we use whatever forms emerge, and do not attempt to label them as opposites.

4. When will more detail on Polarity Process appear in TTP resources? Where can one find more detail, now?

You can find it right here, right now. Thank you for stimulating the evolution of this work.

Easy to Read

I finished your book. Nice work. Congratulations. It is easy to read, simple, to the point and every sentence has a meaning. It is a book with a purpose. Thank you for doing it.

German Edition

Dear Ed,

I got the book and I read most of it already . I love it !

Can I call you today? Under which number can I reach you (about publishing a German edition.)

I'd like to wait for more feedback on this edition before beginning any others.

Fantastic

Congratulations on a fantastic book.

Manipulation

I read the chapter in your book last night on manipulation. I never realized how my unwillingness to experience certain feelings has allowed others to manipulate me. Thank you for the “AHA”. I further commit myself to the TTP process, so I may fully experience my feelings without judgment.

Easy to Read

Thank you for the book! English is foreign language for me and I find it very easy to read your SVO-p text.

Trading Tribe Workbook Chapter

Thanks for the chapter. I found it very easy to read and the examples are most helpful and just the right length. The chapter reads like a manual and gives a succinct and complete guide to starting a tribe. I found it very useful and cannot suggest any ways to improve on it. I look forward to the rest of the book.