Interview with William Gladstone

Coauthor with Jack Canfield of The Golden Motorcycle Gang

Are you concerned that the earth is at a critical crisis point? Do you believe your life purpose is to make a positive difference in the world? Are you part of a group destined to work together to create a better planet? Let’s find out with William Gladstone how we can make a difference in 2012.

Lotus Guide: There was a researcher named Tippler who talks about the Omega point, which is basically the point where the universe becomes self-aware and conscious. Which means that we are at some point on that journey as individuals. Where do you think we are in reference to the tipping point of becoming self-aware and conscious individuals?

William Gladstone: We are at a bifurcation point where it can accelerate rapidly or go backward and will all have to start over again.

LG: This is what we’re calling the breakdown or the breakthrough.

WG: Right, very much like Ervin Laszlo and what he speaks about in the macro shift. I, of course, am an optimist and I am looking at the positive side and there are many positive things happening in the world. The good part is there is a lot of hard science to back this up. If you actually look at quantum physics and string theory, there is definite directionality to revolution toward greater complexity and beauty. Laszlo even speaks of these principles lining up with human behavior. So I think the idea of the universe becoming consciously aware is a reality. So I’m writing books like The Twelve and The Golden Motorcycle Gang to bring this message to people. Human beings are playing a critical role in this process now.

LG: If you stop and think about it, if universal consciousness is what underlies existence and animates us, for us to cling to and hold onto anything and resist change is actually spiritual stagnation.

WG: Absolutely. Change is the nature of life. Everything is constantly changing; consciousness itself is constantly arising and changing. Of course there’s a very deep level of reality where everything exists in every moment and from that point nothing changes, but the manifestation from this point which is where we are, there is constant change. Even our definition of death is a human definition of death. There is no reality to it other than the reality that we give it. When I was young I had a near-death experience where I left my body. I entered an area where I definitely realize that everything is connected and everything is alive. One of the things that happened during the 60s with the drug experience, of course there was no structure to it, is that people were tapping into this deeper reality. And it was manifested in music, art, and a lot of the movements of the day.

We are at the end of a 26,000-year cycle and this is a crucial point in that cycle. The Mayans were able to calculate the cycle and how they were able to do that we may not ever understand, but this is a very real cycle. Every culture I’ve ever researched has a belief that life is part of a cycle and that we are all at the end of a very dense part of the cycle, and the next cycle will be far less dense. My personal view is that the new cycle has already begun. December 21 is a very important day because it’s the beginning of this new cycle.

LG: It seems to me that when we were in the Golden Age somewhere around 10,000 to 12,000 years ago, the beings who were on the planet at that time and the beings who we were in touch with were giving us very clear signs, even to the point of building monuments like the pyramids, to say that we are at a very critical point in time and in this process. It seems like there was an awakening that started around the Renaissance where we started waking up from what was called the Dark Ages. But everything that we’re talking about is difficult for a lot of people to wrap their minds around. What could you say that would make it easier for people to understand and grasp what is going on?

WG: This is the exact reason why Jack Canfield and I wrote The Golden Motorcycle Gang. Jack is a very ordinary person and was born into a dysfunctional family, an alcoholic father and an alcoholic mother with very meager economic means. So his life was about dealing with the same problems that a lot of us deal with throughout our lives. But what makes Jack different is he did have an awakening to a higher calling, and that higher calling is the essence of The Golden Motorcycle Gang. When he was young he had this vision of being part of a Golden Motorcycle Gang with his friends, riding carefree through the universe and looking down and seeing a little blue planet in distress and saying to his friends, “Hey, I know this planet and it’s a pretty cool place and it seems to be in trouble. Let’s go and see if we can help out.” So Jack and his friends decided to incarnate and of course the moment they did so they lost memory of who they were. So basically it’s about all of us in that anyone can achieve their goals if they follow the basic principles of success that governs the universe. And those basic principles interestingly enough turn out to be number 1, to have gratitude for what you have and number 2, focus on helping others. And if you have both of these elements in your being you’re more than likely going to be able to solve the challenges that present themselves, whether it’s paying your mortgage, finding the right person, et cetera. So there are universal principles that do work and the book is about these principles.

LG: You know something, Bill? Sitting here looking at you it’s just going through my mind that we live in a society where we are so bombarded by information and we are all influenced to where so many of us want to be famous or rich, the author of a great book to movie stars, but what I sense in what’s happening in this movement is the fact that we are all equal participants and we all play an equal role no matter how seemingly small or large that role may be. What’s interesting is that to be a part of this movement requires letting go of the ego and when that doesn’t happen, it shows itself in a distasteful way sometimes. When this happens people within the movement are quick to see it so in a sense we keep ourselves in check through a new awareness that’s emerging. This is very crucial because we need everyone in this movement and I know so many spiritual people who have actually ended up alienating themselves simply because they want to be at the top of the game and they’re basically playing by the old rules that enforce a strong ego. This, along with the fact that they don’t seem to want to look at the real problems going on in the world today, makes it very difficult to communicate with them sometimes. What I’d like to know from you is how do you look at all the problems and deal with all the dysfunctions and still stay positive and come up with solutions? For instance, we all need to have hope. I have hope but how do we hold onto that hope when we look at all the problems in the conflict in the Middle East, the poverty, the pollution of the environment?

WG: Well, let me first acknowledge the fact that’s a very good question and there’s no easy answer. This is something that most people need to work out for themselves because we are living in a world in crisis and full of injustice. Our world is full of corruption and media manipulation and if you spend too much time focusing on it, it will put you in despair. The first thing you have to do is go back and start with yourself because the only thing you can really control is yourself and your thoughts. What I recommend is to go for a walk in nature or do meditation, whatever it takes to find that quiet place within yourself where you can tap into the universal consciousness. We made a movie called Tapping the Source that was all about this. Of course, some people think that the universe is random and evil and they’re free to choose that point of view, but I don’t think there’s actually any evidence that really supports that point of view. But we do have evidence that supports the fact that the universe has a positive directionality to it. The next thing to do is to find out what gives you joy in your life—what is it that you could do in the world that fills your life with joy? And it could be anything, being with friends, taking care of your children, it doesn’t have to be something dramatic. But you need to find that center and what gives you joy and cultivate it because that is where you will find the inner connection to the universe. Once you have this then you need to start connecting with others who share this vision of being more than just a physical body living in the physical world. Part of this vision is realizing that life is eternal and what we do in this life will have an effect on generations to come. And it doesn’t matter what religion you are because all of the major religions have honored this concept. But what has happened is that many religions have gotten off track in that their focus is on their own power base. But the whole point of the book is to get people to connect with each other and to connect with Pacha Mama, the earth. We have over 200 organizations listed in the book where people can connect because we want people to know that they’re not alone. Once we get everyone to start connecting with each other and through organizations we can start initiating change and it will accelerate faster. Of course this doesn’t mean that we’re going to get rid of some of the atrocities that are happening overnight but we have to start somewhere. So we’re saying start with yourself and start right now.

You can watch this entire interview on our YouTube channel, which is www.youtube.lotusguide.com.

For more information on The Golden Motorcycle Gang visit www.thegoldenmotorcyclegang.com.