What is suffering? Suffering is the experience of resistance.
Some of the principles we spoken of were timely and relevant to many on the call. The principles of Judgment and Forgiveness, stemming from an identity steeped in duality, were of particular interest.
It’s necessary to clarify and narrow down the challenge of the complexity exemplified in all the diverse stories we could share; stories involving judgment, forgiveness, anger and frustration, stress and anxiety and literally any stories relating negative emotion. We can narrow this down to the much simpler and more manageable principle of duality. This allows us to focus specifically on the cause more so than the varied symptoms.
What is the cause of suffering? We have spoken of this many times and will continue to do so as long as there is need for clarification. There are 5 causes of suffering; the first is the source of the other four. That first cause is a limited sense of self and it produces the second, egoism.
This false identity, egoism, is summarized in the principle of duality or separateness. From this place of separateness we tend to focus on symptoms and not the cause. Here is where we find judgment, right-wrong, good-bad, inside-outside, me-you, us-them, now-then. This is a mind identified state. It is a state of value priority and distinction.
Ego is the mind/body identified state. Ego is evidence of the absence of the observer. We think the problems we are experiencing are from “out there” rather than being generated and sustained from “in here”. As long as we maintain the point of view that the cause is out there we will continue to neglect the real cause and continue to manage the symptoms of struggle. This conditioned thinking sustains the unrelenting drive to pursue pleasure and avoid pain, it has been a, if not the, dominant force in humanity and is the cause of all suffering. These pleasure/pain motivations are the telltale signs of ego running the show. Again, ego is the false identity of duality and separateness.
The observer is the evidence of presence. Presence is the antidote to suffering. As long as I am identified with the mind/body state of being I am maintaining an ignorance of my real nature. This real nature can be considered by many titles, names or distinctions including but not limited to: Unity, Wholeness Oneness and Spirit.
Awareness is a faculty and of this authentic state of oneness. The observer is present in awareness itself. It is from this position or state of consciousness that one can experience authentic surrender. It is in this experience that one can finally access authentic choice.
“Choice begins the moment we disidentify from conditioned patterns of the mind.” ~Eckhart Tolle
In this disidentified state we have surrendered resistance to what is. We have also surrendered the expectation of intentions and have realized a peace that was not as pronounced before, if at all. Until we access this state we are governed by the conditioning of our minds. Please understand we are not demonizing the mind or the ego. We are suggesting that the mind and ego are extremely valuable tools but they make terrible masters and they are not You. Joe Vitale makes reference to what has been known as “hungry ghosts”. The ego is a “hungry ghost”. No matter how much you feed it, it will never be enough; more, more, more!!!
When we begin to recognize this condition in humanity, ourselves and in others we are given an amazing opportunity. The opportunity to judge it, resist it, to make it wrong or bad, to make it something we need to “fix” or “get rid of” and thereby unconsciously feed what we don’t want. This is the unconscious egoic conditioned reaction.
The alternative is Love. In a state of love based consciousness we find acceptance of what is instead of the resistance to what is. In acceptance we have authentic choice available to us without the sabotaging reaction. Here is where we find forgiveness by realizing there is nothing to forgive. In forgiveness we are literally for-giving our resistance. Another great quote from Eckhart Tolle is “The greatest source of grace in this world is accepting the unacceptable”. In acceptance we have released resistance. In other words we now have room to experience something different because we are no longer feeding what we don’t want by holding on to it.
Love has been recognized and symbolized in geometry as the pent and implies the Fibonacci sequence. The Fibonacci sequence is found everywhere in sacred geometry and life itself. The reason I say in “pent” is because when you draw a 5 pointed star, then another in the middle of it, then another in the middle of that one and so on and so on, you create an outline of a literal Fibonacci spiral. This spiral always gets closer to the center but never arrives. This force is considered centering force. The geometric ratio for this is 1.61803398875……
When looked at as an arc, this ratio has been observed in the frequency cascade readout of an EEG when the person monitored experiences the onset of compassion. In botany there is a principle called phi lo taxis. Essentially it is the patterned arrangement by which the leaves of many plants open to the sun for maximum exposure to the light. It is found in the pine cone, the sunflower, the nautilus shell, the tornado, the galaxy and too many other places to mention here.
It has been labeled throughout history in many different ways. It has been called the divine proportion, the golden section and the golden mean. In many ways it is the geometry of life and love.
The reason the “5ness” / pent is brought up is because of its inherent principles. Centering force is the passage through; it’s the verb, its dynamic, in motion and thereby subject to change, growth. Really the subject is Love. When we judge someone we are labeling them, literally placing a brand on them as “_____”. It might be pretty, ugly, smart, ignorant, etc etc. It really doesn’t matter if the brand is right or wrong it is still a distinction and not their true or authentic self.
The label / judgment will never encompass the truth. The map will never be the territory. Most people are plagued by identifying with a map that does not serve them because it does not accurately depict the territory. This limiting point of view is what is creating the “problem” a person faces. Remember suffering is not in the fact it is in the interpretation of the fact. The interpretation is their map, their point of view, built from their experiences in the past and thereby becomes their judgment.
In a state of Love there is presence, acceptance and room for grace. From acceptance there is choice. From grace come miracles. From choice we develop and refine skill. With skill we can create with minimal setbacks and develop wisdom and experience authentic joy. This joy is inherent within peace. When we bring awareness to love, peace and joy our natural response is gratitude.
Let these be principles in our awareness and of our focus. With skill and wisdom not only will we fulfill the independent aspects of our own lives but enhance our capacity to improve the lives of all those around us.
There could be so much more to add about the myriad principle of life relevant to the path of personal development but we should leave a little for next week right?
Thank you everyone!
Namaste
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