I just read an article about how we are all awakening at unprecedented rates....this despite the apparent torpor which seems to permeate the world. I wonder if it's true?
And what, exactly, does "awakening" mean? To me it's the realization that all life is connected and what you do to one part of it affects it all. Quantum physics has virtually proven this fact. And I can't help but wonder, does this apply to the Universe as well? Does what we do here on earth effect other planets and civilizations? That's one to ponder. I think once you realize that everything is connected it all changes exponentially. For example, we are also connected to our garbage as well as whales and dolphins.
I also think that awakening means that we acknowledge that we are souls as well as bodies and that the soul is what lives on, while the body is shed like a lizard shedding skin. Once you get your head around that, you have no choice but to realize that skin color or sexual persuasion is only of the body, and has no bearing on the soul.
At that point, you experience compassion for all living things.
Compassion is what I feel is missing in today's society here in the US. It's a "me" culture, grounded in gross narcissism and it's pretty ugly. We seem to have developed a culture where it's ok to hate others because of their skin color or their sexual persuasion. Where it's ok to rape women. To ignore the needs of indigenous cultures....hate people for their religion, or lack thereof. It's become a society of judgment.
Once you awaken, you begin to see how others experience the consequences of your actions. If you develop compassion and empathy, you FEEL how others experience the consequences of your actions. At that point, you have moved beyond the "me" narcissistic mentality toward truly developing compassion and love. Not just for humans, but you begin to understand the toll our lifestyles take on other species. You take on the pain of a giant whale dying of a belly full of plastic. Polar bears unable to find food because the ice caps are melting. Children dying of starvation and drinking filthy water.
Oh, I admit it's easier not to and to continue on the path of self centeredness. You can stay in a state of blissful unawareness. It's pretty painful to take on the inequities of the world. But then, we would never grow as a species. Or as individual souls.
At one time, I wanted to heal the world. I took it all on. But I came to realize that the best I could do was to be a person who caused no further devastation. And to give my all to helping each person who came to me in their journey of awakening. I realized one day, that the little I did (in the judgment of my own mind) was enough, because the effect was exponential. As the years passed, I noticed that many of my students had gone on to teaching and healing. Many of them surpassed my own accomplishments. And it may not have mattered to the overall plight of the planet, but it mattered to that person or animal that I helped. I realized that the only thing I could control was who and what I was. I can't control the rest of the world.
And so I surrendered.
And so it is.
Copyright 2021 Georgia Vlahos. Do not copy or reproduce.
