Witten by Robert N. L. Browning

An Iceberg can be a powerful metaphor to illustrate important concepts and points in transformational speaking, coaching and writing. Over time the symbolism of the Iceberg has grown for me and I thought it might be of some value to share wisdom, quotes and insights on the subject. I was originally exposed to the Iceberg concept by Earl Nightingale of Nightingale Conant (www.nightingale.com) in the award winning audio program ‘The Strangest Secret’. I also was greatly influenced by programs authored by Paul J. Meyer, founder of Success Motivation Institute, Leadership Management international and numerous other companies. Mr. Meyer used the Iceberg to illustrate “our untapped potential”. (www.lmi-usa.com)

I find it to be most fascinating that Earl Nightingale and Paul J. Meyer teamed up early in their careers to produce the first recorded condensed version of a book called Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill. That same year in 1960, they founded their respective companies and both went on to become legends in the Personal and Professional Development Industry.

“Back in the early days of navigation, sailors used to see a strange sight in the Antarctic: They’d see a giant iceberg towering high out of the sea and it would be moving against the wind – the wind would be blowing this way, the great iceberg would moving right into the teeth of the wind. And this of course frightened the sailors whose ships were powered by the wind, until it was discovered that of course only a fraction of the great ’berg was visible, and that its huge ponderous roots were caught in the great currents of the ocean. And it was being borne purposely along its way regardless of the winds and the tides on the surface Well this is what a man needs. He needs his roots deep in a great main-stream of his own choosing. And then he’ll move along his way, regardless of the winds on the surface of his life or short-term expediency. And he’ll get to where he’s going. As asserted by most the world’s major religions and spiritual masters, our thoughts do create reality. You are what you think about all day long.” – Earl Nightingale

The dramatic iceberg picture above was purportedly taken in the North Sea. As the story goes, this particular Iceberg was so huge that it threatened a giant oil rig.  It had to be towed away by several large ships. A diver took a composite of shots to create this photo on a very calm clear day with the sun directly overhead. The other photos shared below in this article are also composite shots with creative editing to best depict the nature of these giants. In Inuit mythology Nootaikok was a God who presided over the world of Icebergs and was held in great reverence. In Norse myths Ymer created Icebergs which in turn sprang forth life itself. Ancient cultures connected the mysteries of Life and Spirit to these mountains of ice and nature in general. The majesty and awe of these gigantic Icebergs inherent beauty holds us in wonder yet today. The vast roots of the Iceberg powerfully illustrate that deep within us are many thoughts and feelings beyond our conscious awareness. Just like with the majority of the Icebergs massive bulk being under the water, currents of thought can push us directly against the winds of change we may be trying to exert. What is beneath the surface of our perception can at times, move us in the wrong direction. From the gentle awareness of these under currents, are the seeds of greatness, growth and peace.

“Whatever you vividly imagine, ardently desire, sincerely believe, and enthusiastically act upon... must inevitably come to pass!” – Paul J. Meyer

Humankind has for millennia drawn great insight and from the world of nature. Spiritual masters and
writers for ages have used our environment to best exemplify profound wisdom. Observation of the
natural elements interplay with plants and animals is also a notable source of inspiration. The cultivation of plants has also often been used to bring meaningful imagery and deep understanding to stories and parables. The garden has often been referred to as special place to sit and commune with our highest self, spirit with the universe.
“A man's mind may be likened to a garden, which may be intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild; but whether cultivated or neglected, it must, and will, bring forth. If no useful seeds are put into it, then an abundance of useless weed seeds will fall therein, and will continue to produce their kind.
Just as a gardener cultivates his plot, keeping it free from weeds, and growing the flowers and fruits which he requires, so may a man tend the garden of his mind, weeding out all the wrong, useless and impure thoughts, and cultivating toward perfection the flowers and fruits of right, useful and pure thoughts. By pursuing this process, a man sooner or later discovers that he is the master gardener of his soul, the director of his life. He also reveals, within himself, the laws of thought, and understands with ever-increasing accuracy, how the thought forces and mind elements operate in the shaping of his character, circumstances and destiny.” - James Allen, from the book ‘As a
Man Thinketh’

We can plant new optimistic thoughts/flowers in the garden of our mind to counter act less than
positive influence and past conditioning.  We can then better identify the negative thoughts/weeds and can cultivate new outcomes to create a glorious flowering in our life. In Zen, this higher-level developed awareness has been called the casual observer also known as the watcher. We can actually stop to ask our own internal self talk “who is speaking here?” (From Eckhart Tolle’s book ‘The Power of Now’.) It is like having a satellite that is feeding us information from outside our personal physical sphere. With this increased cognizance, we slowly change the under currents of our being to move the Iceberg of our highest self in the direction we intend.  We do not have to push the winds of change on ourselves but rather what we need springs forth from this gentle mindfulness.

We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts we make the world.” - Sid Gautama

This awareness is a refined spiritual thought filter that can better sort out our moods, doubts, fears and what is worthy of taking issue with.  If we focus on what is good and beautiful about others and our self; our relationships and sense of peace will grow.  For this to happen, we need to quiet our minds, avoid over analyzing and reduce jumping to conclusions. We also need to let some things go and not have to address everything that pops up in our minds. Some thoughts are undesirable weed seeds, while others our flower seeds. Knowing the difference comes from our highest original essence and inspired spiritual guidance. Of the multitude of thoughts per hour that come into conscious awareness, only a small percent are truly positive. We can minimize these negative influences and grow if we show affirmative attention, intention and awareness. Yet, there still are some past experiences, conditioning, relationships and toxic people that can inadvertently move us in the wrong direction…if we let them.

“Are your thoughts worthy of you? If not - NOW is the time to change them. You can begin right where you are right now. Nothing matters but this moment and what you are focusing your attention on.” - The Secret

We can also see the iceberg as an indicator of potential and our relationship to the world. The part
above the water is our realized capability and the majority of mass below the water’s surface is the
enormous promise that is ours yet to fulfill. The ocean and the sky are also connected to us and can
represent our relationship to all people, the world and our higher power. At this level of awareness there is no separation and only unconditional acceptance and love.

An elder Cherokee Native was teaching his grandchildren about life. He said to them…
“A fight is going on inside me. It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One wolf represents fear, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority and ego. The other stands for joy, peace, love, hope, truth, friendship, empathy,
generosity, faith and compassion. The same fight is going on inside you and inside every other person too.” They thought about it for a minute, and then one child asked his grandfather,
“Which wolf will win?” The old Cherokee replied…”The one you feed.”

The iceberg analogy is also applicable to the process of discovering and co-creating our purpose and meaning in life, whatever that is to each of us. As we complete the self-discovery processes and deeply remember who we really are, this is revealed. We can ask why we are here and what we came here to be, do and have…as we move into alignment with the power of Oneness beyond the Iceberg metaphor. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—Think about such things. - Philippians 4:8 (New International Version ©1984)

We then enjoy having a clear vision of our life’s path, core values, deepest beliefs, heartfelt dreams,
enlightened goals and the direction to achieve them. Beginning the journey of transcending levels of
consciousness enables us to stay the course no matter what winds of change, under currents of fear, challenges or other influences that attempt to steer us away from that which leads to fulfilling our Ultimate Destiny.