I feel trauma everywhere. Standing in the ditch is scary and painful. How can we allow something so insane to happen? How can we be in the middle of what seems like another world war? What can I, one of 8 billion people, do?
In fact, I donate to various charities like this don’t spare the rosesOffering my services to raise funds for flood recovery here. And I’ve been sharing as many stories of real people who have gone through this terrible time as possible to raise awareness on social media.On an inner level I have been practicing Do this meditation every day. Being present and shining a light on those in need.
While it’s great to help and be part of a larger community that is willing to help people in crisis, I keep thinking about the broader, bigger picture. How can we achieve the “change” we truly desire?
My Vedanta master said it simply in a lecture on the nature of conflict. “It is not a fight between countries, but a fight between fellow countrymen. It is not a fight between beliefs, but a fight between believers. It is not a fight between ideas, but a fight between ideas. All beliefs and thoughts are innocent.”
He who wields the sword makes a wound. And where is the battlefield? In our own heads. War begins with an idea, which becomes an idea and an ideology. If my ideas get through to me, they can get through to others and become shared ideas. Common ideas about community, growth, and service, or common ideas about conquest, oppression, and slavery. It’s all up to us.
The problem isn’t even our ideas. The problem is, we have no idea who the idea is. We don’t know who we are. We don’t even know what we’re doing here. We are walking around the most beautiful planet in creation, where absolutely everything has been given to us, with the ability to investigate every aspect of creation – the inner workings of the composition of bananas . But we never explore our own nature as seekers.
The conflict begins when I accept all that it takes to be me. Start with an idea of your own. “My feeling.” I have this kind of belief, I like this kind of thing, and I do this kind of thing.
There can only be one cause of the problem. ignorance. I have no idea who I am. I know who I “think” I am, but I don’t know who I actually am.
I am ignorant and ignorant.
As my teacher says, all you need is education. knowledge. Knowledge is the balm that sets the world free.
With respect…
rachel
