{This is a continuation of the last blog I posted (We Are One).}
So, the second question was:
If we are so out-of-sync with reality (our unity consciousness, our oneness), then what can we do to change?
This is a difficult question to answer because I am not somebody who actually lives a life in accordance to what I believe we must do to change. My mind intellectually understands the ultimate Truth of oneness, but on an everyday basis, I fall prey to my own ego and get into interpersonal battles of control, judgment, dishonesty, unhappiness, blaming, victimization, and overall the acts that feed our false ideas of separateness. That has to be said first, because I can't pretend that I have mastered the answer that I am about to give. In fact, I haven't even come close, but intellectually (and at times, in my quietest, most spiritually connected moments, experientially) I have felt the answer sitting quietly within, just waiting for me to discover it.
To change this global collective pattern of deep identification with form and an even deeper denial of our unity, we have to move beyond our minds. And in our Western culture, this is a very strange thing to even touch on for a moment, because like I said before, we are sort of "pickled" in the very disease itself. We are marinating in it (the world of separateness, thinking, and doing) so much that it has become the status quo. So we are a species of people who have a sickness in the mind, which has become normalized. This is a scary notion, because if the root cause of our collective unhappiness comes from our deep belief in separateness from each other and God, and that belief is normalized, it makes it very challenging for us to bring awareness to it, and therefore step out of the cycle.
It also makes it very challenging for us to believe that we can make any change outside of what we perceive as our collective "external reality". So we literally have millions of humans fighting an internal sickness, externally instead of internally. This sickness, cannot be overcome on the external level. The corruption is on the inside. I have arguments with activists about this quite frequently. They often believe that there must be a violent, external overthrow of corporate powers via a long and bloody revolution whereby the oppressed conquers the giant, corrupt oppressor. In their thinking, the deletion of those oppressive, and overly powerful people will bring about peace and a new way of fair government.
It is true, that we may have a bloody and violent revolution. We, as a species, are actually very consistent in choosing that route. It's just that choice alone will bring us more of the same problems in the end. We are still fighting the internal problem with an external solution. We are still fighting for peace with violence. Violence does not bring peace. What we give to a problem we get in return. We give it violence, violence persists. We give it peace, peace grows. We as a species, don't have the awareness yet that we are each both the oppressor and the oppressed and if we are honest with ourselves, we know that the change of solely external factors will only bring us temporary relief.
The revolution we are searching for so frantically, is a revolution in consciousness.
It is this internal revolution that we all seek at the core of our beings and that will change the current status quo and ultimately change the world we live in.
Humility is considered a virtue because it is the first step in ceasing blame, victimization, and judgment. When we act from a place of humility, we naturally go to oneness, because humility says, "It is me that needs a revolution. I am not blaming the big corporate powers (or anyone else for that matter) for our collective unhappiness, or for my own unhappiness. I am not blaming anyone for that. Instead, I am assuming responsibility as someone who has added to our disease, and therefore, I am taking appropriate internal action to alleviate it's propagation."
What does this mean? This means, instead of being violent, angry, depressed, anxious, and/or stressed-out external activists, we have to become what physicist, Dr. Amit Goswami calls "quantum activists" or what author Dan Millman calls "peaceful warriors". And what do these "peaceful warriors" and "quantum activists" do? They cultivate awareness through acts of various meditation and stillness in the present moment. Awareness of what? Of this moment, which naturally leads to love, humility, compassion, kindness and of course, unity consciousness. When we sit quietly with the Truth of our sickness, we no longer feel the need to blame others for how bad their sickness is. We see it the sickness in ourselves and take the time each day to connect back to Oneness, so as not to perpetuate actions that further separate us (Us vs. Them mentality).
So, this all sounds fine and dandy in theory, but like I said, I am not one who actually maintains the practice of being a "peaceful warrior" because I am still figuring out, how we cultivate such virtues in a place that's constantly bombarding us with messages that encourage the opposite.
If I were reading this, I would still have 3 big questions for me:
1. Okay, so I understand what you are saying, but HOW do we begin and maintain the practice of being a peaceful warrior or a quantum activist? How do we begin this internal revolution that you say we are seeking?
2. The internal revolution thing sounds great, but I still don't understand how pockets of people becoming awake, peaceful, humble, and free has anything to do with the whole world becoming more awake, peaceful, humble, and free. How is my little act of internal revolution helping or changing the world?
3. Does this mean no external change is necessary? It's all internal?
Next week, I'll work on starting to answer those 3 questions to the best of my ability and level of awareness at this time.
Love.
So, the second question was:
If we are so out-of-sync with reality (our unity consciousness, our oneness), then what can we do to change?
This is a difficult question to answer because I am not somebody who actually lives a life in accordance to what I believe we must do to change. My mind intellectually understands the ultimate Truth of oneness, but on an everyday basis, I fall prey to my own ego and get into interpersonal battles of control, judgment, dishonesty, unhappiness, blaming, victimization, and overall the acts that feed our false ideas of separateness. That has to be said first, because I can't pretend that I have mastered the answer that I am about to give. In fact, I haven't even come close, but intellectually (and at times, in my quietest, most spiritually connected moments, experientially) I have felt the answer sitting quietly within, just waiting for me to discover it.
To change this global collective pattern of deep identification with form and an even deeper denial of our unity, we have to move beyond our minds. And in our Western culture, this is a very strange thing to even touch on for a moment, because like I said before, we are sort of "pickled" in the very disease itself. We are marinating in it (the world of separateness, thinking, and doing) so much that it has become the status quo. So we are a species of people who have a sickness in the mind, which has become normalized. This is a scary notion, because if the root cause of our collective unhappiness comes from our deep belief in separateness from each other and God, and that belief is normalized, it makes it very challenging for us to bring awareness to it, and therefore step out of the cycle.
It also makes it very challenging for us to believe that we can make any change outside of what we perceive as our collective "external reality". So we literally have millions of humans fighting an internal sickness, externally instead of internally. This sickness, cannot be overcome on the external level. The corruption is on the inside. I have arguments with activists about this quite frequently. They often believe that there must be a violent, external overthrow of corporate powers via a long and bloody revolution whereby the oppressed conquers the giant, corrupt oppressor. In their thinking, the deletion of those oppressive, and overly powerful people will bring about peace and a new way of fair government.
It is true, that we may have a bloody and violent revolution. We, as a species, are actually very consistent in choosing that route. It's just that choice alone will bring us more of the same problems in the end. We are still fighting the internal problem with an external solution. We are still fighting for peace with violence. Violence does not bring peace. What we give to a problem we get in return. We give it violence, violence persists. We give it peace, peace grows. We as a species, don't have the awareness yet that we are each both the oppressor and the oppressed and if we are honest with ourselves, we know that the change of solely external factors will only bring us temporary relief.
The revolution we are searching for so frantically, is a revolution in consciousness.
It is this internal revolution that we all seek at the core of our beings and that will change the current status quo and ultimately change the world we live in.
Humility is considered a virtue because it is the first step in ceasing blame, victimization, and judgment. When we act from a place of humility, we naturally go to oneness, because humility says, "It is me that needs a revolution. I am not blaming the big corporate powers (or anyone else for that matter) for our collective unhappiness, or for my own unhappiness. I am not blaming anyone for that. Instead, I am assuming responsibility as someone who has added to our disease, and therefore, I am taking appropriate internal action to alleviate it's propagation."
What does this mean? This means, instead of being violent, angry, depressed, anxious, and/or stressed-out external activists, we have to become what physicist, Dr. Amit Goswami calls "quantum activists" or what author Dan Millman calls "peaceful warriors". And what do these "peaceful warriors" and "quantum activists" do? They cultivate awareness through acts of various meditation and stillness in the present moment. Awareness of what? Of this moment, which naturally leads to love, humility, compassion, kindness and of course, unity consciousness. When we sit quietly with the Truth of our sickness, we no longer feel the need to blame others for how bad their sickness is. We see it the sickness in ourselves and take the time each day to connect back to Oneness, so as not to perpetuate actions that further separate us (Us vs. Them mentality).
So, this all sounds fine and dandy in theory, but like I said, I am not one who actually maintains the practice of being a "peaceful warrior" because I am still figuring out, how we cultivate such virtues in a place that's constantly bombarding us with messages that encourage the opposite.
If I were reading this, I would still have 3 big questions for me:
1. Okay, so I understand what you are saying, but HOW do we begin and maintain the practice of being a peaceful warrior or a quantum activist? How do we begin this internal revolution that you say we are seeking?
2. The internal revolution thing sounds great, but I still don't understand how pockets of people becoming awake, peaceful, humble, and free has anything to do with the whole world becoming more awake, peaceful, humble, and free. How is my little act of internal revolution helping or changing the world?
3. Does this mean no external change is necessary? It's all internal?
Next week, I'll work on starting to answer those 3 questions to the best of my ability and level of awareness at this time.
Love.
I like the idea of "peaceful warrior" because of not only the oxymoron play on words but what it implies...however, I really would like to hear more definition and the answers to the questions. I like reading your wisdom :)
ReplyDelete