There are many ways in which intent can be observed in action, and therefore many examples with which to describe it in accurate detail. Such description is, needless to say, quite useful when endeavoring the mastery of intent.

As the article which started this thread pointed out, one such way to know intent is through the various feelings in the body, (and aura, of course). Change your intent, and so too do feelings shift accordingly.

Another is the close and subtle observation of one's thoughts. Behind every thought is an intent. Intent directs the course of your thought line at all moments, a fact that supercedes the "science" of psychology’s concept that mind is a pattern of thought. Mind, (tonal) is only a memorized pattern for as long as we have not yet realized the TRUE source of thoughts, which is intent. Change your intent and thoughts shift accordingly.

Intent can be observed in person to person relations every day on a psychic/feeling level. Change your intent and you will effect others differently.

Intent is also a collective force, such as can be observed in a mob or other crowd. When the combined intent of a mob is focused upon a person or persons, they KNOW it as an unmistakable psychic pressure exerted upon them, especially if that mab is hostile. The reverse example would be the psychic effects of being in the midst of a supportive group which has the intent of love. Compare these two examples and it becomes quite clear that the type of intent employed has very distinct effects.

These are some examples of what can be said about intent;

  1)    It is ceaselessly functioning within us, and is behind every thought, emotion, decision and action.

  2)    Intent directs awareness as to how and upon what it will focus.

  3)    Because intent directs awareness and awareness patterns energy as a result, energy follows intent. The act of creation, (manifestation) is the implementation of intent.

  4)    Intent is a body-wide consideration. When we coordinate the feeling/intent elements throughout the body as a harmonious whole, our personal power is greatly increased. Using these feelings as a guide or feedback device, intent can be shifted in any part of the body, both temporarily and permanently. For instance if there is chronic fear in the area of the heart of a person, this knowledge of intent allows them an opportunity to change this condition at will. To do this they would need to focus on the fear in the heart, and INTEND that feeling to be elevated, ultimately to one of love, for instance. Such a transformation is well within the power of any person to implement, and is a step along the way to the Mastery of Intent.

Intent can be shifted as a "field effect", not just within the body. When one learns to shift internal intent elements, this process is not unlike the shifting of the intent elements at large.

Many other examples and specifics can be given....

The term "Mastery" does indeed imply a level of consciousness, just as a 60 watt bulb emits a level of photon release that is superior to that which is emitted by a 20 watt bulb. The term "level" here is used much as it would be in the science of physics. Another physics metaphor for Mastery would be the term "Escape velocity" whereby a minimum threshold of thrust is applied in order to get beyond the gravitational force of the earth. Either you have this amount of energy or you don't, and that limitation is not imposed by human made ideas of hierarchical relationship. It is imposed by the reality at large. The same may be said of Mastery.

"Mastery" in the spiritual sense has nothing to do with hierarchy, only degree of attainment. The Master is not interested in comparisons of one person to the next except perhaps to illustrate what is needed along the spiritual path.

Much like describing the wind, to speak of intent is as you said a matter of describing it's effects. However, the wind can also be measured in terms of velocity, direction, the interaction of hot/cold air fronts, particulate content etc. The same is true of intent. Intent can also be described, experienced, and implemented in terms of degree, type, length of focus, manifestation, group action, and daily activities.

The study of intent is therefore a science just as much as it is a mystical consideration. There are just as many ways both valid and concrete, to study and master intent as there are to study and accurately predict the particulars of meteorology.

The electric bulb analogy was meant to convey a matter of energy level. 20 Watts may indeed do well in seeing one's face in the mirror, but when it comes to spiritual practitioners, it CAN help to have the benefit of the brightest Guide one can find. The concept of having a "benefactor" is not unknown in many places in the globe, and at various times throughout history.

Such as;

There are various traditions of spiritual thought and practice which employ the term "Master". The ancient Vedic lineage for instance, of which Buddha and Mahavir were a part, and which countless others have been revered for their insights, are an example. The same may be said of Taoism and various martial art schools in China/Japan, and probably the ancient Seers of Toltec, Mayan and other cultures. Interestingly, in India the act of "receiving the Darshan" of a Master, traditionally at an ashram or some other place of intensive spiritual focus, is a matter of absorbing the influence of the intent of the one so awakened. The practice entails meditating or simply sitting with the Master and being permeated by their aura/intent for the sake of accelerated personal evolution.

Discussion as follows…
You said;

"We can, indeed, describe the effects of intent! However, this is not a discussion of intent. Words are only a way to describe an item or an event. They are not the event, itself. Intent can only be experienced."

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Yes, words are only a description, not the thing in itself. If intent were unique to a given person and no others, then surely it would be something that could only be experienced and not described.

However, intent is not unique to any one person...it is common to all of us.

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"Take another example: suppose I have never eaten a peach. Could you tell me what it tastes and feels like? Not very accurately! One more problem: words are issued by humans. All humans are inherently dishonest. Words will always be biased and at least a little accuracy is lost in this way. Thus, I can claim that intent and its manipulation can only be experienced."

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If only one of us had ever eaten a peach then this would be true. But what happens when we have both eaten one? It is then that we can say that ripe peaches are sweet, juicy and even of varying degrees of freshness, acidity, how juicy they are, etc. Saying this has real experiential meaning, and notes can be compared.

Since we all have intent as an inherent aspect of the true self, this is something of a common experience for everyone here. Even in the writing of these replies we are employing intent, and the same is true of reading them. In making specific observations about this fact, such as realizing intent in action even at this very moment, and every moment thereafter, definite and specific details can be accurately obtained.

An example of such observation is to say;

Intent is continuously functioning within, and is behind every thought, feeling and action we take.

Intent is what focuses awareness first upon the computer screen and then upon the keyboard, and from seeing a scene to simply hearing it.

Like the power of a muscle, intent is no given action, but the potential for all actions.

Whenever we focus our intent/awareness on any part of the body, it is there that energy begins to accumulate, and in the manner of the intent that is so focused.

The reaction of others to our words, even though those words are repeated syllable for syllable on different occasions, differs precisely according to the intent with which they were spoken...etc.

Both the soulic and physical bodies are made of intent elements. The second is to raise these intent elements so that one's consciousness is progressively expanded.

The intent elements to be raised are those in ourselves, and those around the world at large. The intent elements within are not difficult to know and access, since each one produces a specific feeling somewhere in the body. The intent elements at5 large are similarly not difficult to know and access, when a practitioner learns to feel with their body in that way. Just as we can selectively listen to given conversation in a croded room, and then switch our attention to the room in general, so to can we learn to switch our feeling registry from ourselves to the fields at large. In other words, we can directly feel the intent at large, and on wider and wider scales.

The method of raising these intent elements is also similar in each case. We can raise the intent elements within to higher feelings. We can also raise the feeling/intent elements in others, or even whole "areas of effect" given the right employment of intent.

There are four specific steps which can be followed that form the basis for the shifting of intent at both the personal and field levels. They are as follows;

THE EMPLOYMENT OF INTENT
(for rendering internal change)

  1)   Be aware of your current state of body/mind, (this is accomplished through meditation).

  2)   Gain familiarity with that which is to be Intended, (such as a higher love and clarity) and the Intent to be acted upon is crystallized.

  3)   The desired state is held steady in the mind, (for at least 5 minutes). Visualize and feel this state as if it already exists, until the body/mind shifts into it.

  4)   The desired state is “held in place” throughout the body, (or a given chakra). This new state is maintained by treating it as the new reality of the self on a permanent basis.

Subsequent applications of the above four-step process render cumulative results. Be persistent!

When raising intent elements at large, similar steps can be employed;

THE MANIFESTATION OF INTENT
(FOR WORLD CHANGE)

  1)   Be aware of the current state of World Mind, (this is accomplished through meditation, and a body-wide sensitivity to the feelings/Intent currently traveling around the globe. Just visualize the world and FEEL.

  2)   Gain familiarity with that which is to be Intended around the world, (such as a higher love and clarity) and the Intent to be acted upon is crystallized.

  3)   The desired result and state is held steady in the body/mind, as though it already exists. The meditator superimposes the visualized result of higher world consciousness, upon the existing World Mind. Our focused Awareness acts to Create external psychic changes, by providing environmental energies with a pattern to crystallize around. [In this way our awareness may be compared to the lines of force exerted by a magnet upon iron filings] A re-patterning of global consciousness, in accord with personal, (or group) Intent, then begins to take effect. This initiates psychic changes in the nations of the world, first at the unified field, (subatomic) level of existence, and then subsequently at the material level of social policy. Awareness extends outward from the self, (or selves) into the environment, and according to ones’ visualized Intent. It causes the Energy there to conform to the desired changes. To accomplish this step in raising the world consciousness, the entire Earth is visualized. Also pictured is “the light of change”, which manifests positive Intent, (described hereafter).

  4)   The desired result and state is "Intended into place", (and held there). The new pattern of consciousness, generated through focused Awareness at the direction of Intent, is now made manifest. This new level of love, clarity or other desired Intention is then stabilized, by treating it as the new reality of the World Mind. Psychic changes created in these four steps, are Intended into place as a lasting benefit for all of humanity, and/or for the Earth itself.

Matthew Webb visionquest@eoni.com
The World Mind Society http://www.eoni.com/~visionquest