I and
Other
“When we
have any kind of mystical or ineffable experience, it upsets our
apple cart. It upsets the security of our separateness. We get
attached to our separateness and become afraid of losing it. And out
of that comes greed, lust, anxiety, and fear...”
Ram Dass
(Veil of Tears Podcast)
Mystical experience does
not have to be something that parts us from our everyday reality.
Sometimes it is simply being so caught up in the moment that the
boundaries of “I” dissolve, and I become one with whomever or
whatever is around me. In other words, it is the experience of unity.
Most of the time, we go
about our business thinking that what is “I” ends at our skin.
Everything beyond my skin is not me. I am a separate entity unto
myself. But if we could see ourselves through the lens of light
beyond our sensory range, beyond infrared and ultraviolet, we would
see that we do not end at our skin, and we are not disconnected from
anything. Rather, we would see a colorful cloak of energy extending
out from our bodies for about eighteen inches. With practice, we can
extend it even farther. That energetic garment exists in a virtual
soup of energy that surrounds every living thing, and connects us to
all else that exists in our world. There is no degree of separation
from...well, anything.
When we see ourselves as
separate, suddenly there is a “me and mine” category—one that
is exclusive. All else is “other.” This is mine and not yours;
this is mine to have and to hold; this is mine to hoard and protect.
When we are in the business of identifying and collecting what is
“mine,” we can be overtaken by greed. Then we may take more than
we need; more, even, than we can possibly use. And, we begin to
resent intrusions into what is our exclusive property. We don't want
to share at all because we feel we have a perfect “right” to keep
what is ours. We lose sight of the fact that we are indivisible from
everything else, and everyone else.
The perception of
separateness is what underpins bitterness, anger, even violence. It
is poisonous to body, mind and spirit, and especially to our soul.
Look at the difference between these two scenarios: You are waking
down the street and see an “other” coming toward you. If your
automatic thought is, “I have to protect myself from this person
who might take what is mine,” then you are on-guard and suspicious.
Your body tenses, your muscles tighten in preparation to fight or
flee. If your automatic thought is, “This is my brother/sister, who
is just as precious as I am, and who is a mirror image of me,” then
you will be relaxed in your body, mind and spirit. One of these
scenarios leads to illness, both in body and soul, and the other
leads to health and well-being. As with everything else, the choice
is always ours.
In the Spirit,
Jane
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