Humanities Transformation into Spiritual Adulthood

Here is a hypothesis on human transformation into adulthood, presented as a supposition or proposed explanation to explain the chaos engulfing America and western civilization.  This is presented as a starting point for a discussion to further explore and investigate ourselves from a spiritual point of view.

By spiritual we mean beyond the limited structure of science, math and deductive reasoning the foundations of Western Civilization; to also include the esoteric, emotional, supernatural and other phenomenon that penetrate the human psyche.

Individual Chaos The Path to Sanity

As individuals we grow by pursuing our own desires as we seek to satisfy ourselves entirely.  We learned to balance our individual animalistic tendencies to encompass our tribal ideals and cultural expectations to maximize our self-serving interests.

Humanity as a collective has been growing and developing along this same egotistical self-serving path since the beginning of time. People have been dividing by family and then geography into local communities. Next we developed allegiances to regional group identities. This development process was also driven by our individual desires for sanity and survival.

We individually love and hate as we battle for supremacy in our relationships, while we create and contribute to community structures all to support our own self-serving objectives.  We all individually grow through this internal conflict of chaos to resolution.  We ultimately define ourselves by our tribe, our ideals, our expectations and our responsibilities to people who are “like me” all driven by the animalistic instincts of self-interest.

We progressed as a species and further sub-divided into ideological and social constructs that established additional unique tribal alliances. These sub-groupings led to further chaos and division. Tremendous human suffering ensued as each tribe and society battled for relevance and superiority over “the others” … driven by the animalistic desires for survival by dominance over natural resources for sustainability of one’s self-interests.

Further Chaos The Path to Enlightenment

Each tribe and community group established social compacts based on love and mutual consideration. That is the spiritual feminine energy of nurturing and caring for one-another within the group, this too was driven by self-interest of mutual survival.  We encourage each individual within our groups to pursue their dreams and ideals to better self-serve the interest of the group.

Since the world is now fully explored and basic survival is no longer the driving force of our character, we are expanding into the enlightenment phase of human development.  We are moving beyond the individual enlightenment of self-interest to a holistic ideal of altruistic selflessness.

Our children realize that our future cannot sustain the animalistic processes of self-interest and dominance of one group over another for survival. As all previous generations before them they feel it deep down inside that the system requires change. They have yet to individually mature to the point of actual acceptance of “the others” as they perceive them.

The chaos will continue as long as we clutch to our tribal identities. We do this by negative stereotype labeling of “the others”.  Labels of socialist or capitalist’s, bigots and racists, Nazi-Fascist, religious fanatic, homophobic, greedy, lazy, selfish, ignorant, stupid, careless and any other negative identity that they can assign to “the others” … this is a last ditch attempt to hold on their individual selfish egotistical identities.

The Path to Further Enlightenment

We are now uniting as a global tribe and we need to unite the ideologies from all sides of self-interest. Into a positive agenda that moves beyond basic survival of the individual and our tribal identities towards our ultimate spiritual character traits of thriving as a unified whole.

This is reflected in the desire of millions of people who see the imbalance of power and resources and thereby seek to rectify this injustice by demanding fundamental changes within the hierarchy of civilization.  Balancing this dichotomy within the psyche of the individual is spiritual attainment, but is reaching this balance within our physical reality ever attainable?

Will we ever stop ascending as a species toward dominating our physical reality?  Are we capable of uniting around the spiritual ideals we strive for individually?  Ask yourself  are you willing to fully accept and acknowledge “the others” however they are labeled?

Test yourself by asking how open-minded and accepting you are of others.  Are we entrenched in non-acceptance of others or are we evolving toward greater spiritual attainment?

For now it’s a path for you as an individual, are you on the path?

Discovering Spirituality – The Spiritual Quest

As the discourse on discovering spirituality progressed I was spell bound at the edge of my seat as I sat and listened with keen interest.  “A box with five openings, that’s me”, so the opening to the public presentation began.

Yes, my five senses are the tools I use to master the physical word.  What world did Helen Keller live in? Could I ever experience her world?  It scared me to contemplate such a condition.  Yet the more I thought about it the more it began to touch something within me that was bigger and more expansive than knowledge or experience.

I began to comprehend an entirely new way of understanding my own life and all that fills it.  Like when a small child first comprehends how counting from 1 to 10 connects to counting from 10 to 20; the light goes off and you just get it!

I was totally engaged as I listened to this fresh topic of conversation. The information pushed me and pulled me in different directions. I was thrown about in a raging river of conflicting thoughts and feelings.  I was confused and yet simultaneously fulfilled with an inner satisfaction that I admit I find hard to explain.

Trust me it’s an incredible experience yet really hard to explain with words alone.  I promise to do my best to explain it, and I assure you if you get to this place these words will ring true for you too.  Again, I will try to explain using the very limiting communication tool of written words.

Imagine trying to explain, through an interpreter, what a small bird is to Helen Keller, she was deaf and blind. You could talk for hours explaining in great detail about all the bird’s unique characteristics. The birds color, the texture of their wings, their beak, how they fly and sour through the sky, how they maneuver through tight tree limbs, how they sing with beautiful harmonic resonance that is pleasing to the ear.

You could spend hundreds of hours with endless explanations and yet never truly convey your attainment of seeing and hearing that small bird. As I listened to these new spiritual concepts being presented I thought, what would I understand if I lost my hearing and my sight?

I tried to imagine what Helen Keller’s perception of life was like?  Helen Keller had never even experienced sight or hearing at all, what did she base her perceptions on I wondered?  I began to explore all these new sensations swirling within me.  My insides were being torn apart as I tried to comprehend this unexplored space within myself.  I felt disconnected from my own being and yet even more deeply connected at the same time.

I thought deeper and deeper about it; who am I?  I am aware that I exist but how?  I see, I hear, I taste, I feel and I smell.  This was the surface topic of discussion but it took me deep within myself.   I listened intently while simultaneously exploring the tumultuous sensations in my core Being.

As I listened further to the discourse I was so enthralled from within.  Like I completely understood the subject matter yet at the same time the words and concepts were all foreign to me.  It was like I was eating foods I was familiar with yet the preparation styles and seasonings were not familiar to me at all.  They were completely foreign to my pallet and yet my desire was such that I craved to eat more and more.  I was almost hypnotized like I had a piece of warm chocolate fudge melting in my mouth.  I was lost in the incredible satisfaction of this experience.

Words are so hard to share on this topic, and no I was not on drugs or drinking alcohol. The truth is I was learning and everything was fresh and new, yet somehow I knew the topic of conversation.  The discussions were ultimately helping me to discover myself at a deeper level, looking from the outside in at myself as a person.

I began to explore within myself how all these interactions via my senses explained my world.  I have interactions with nature and with other people and they are totally unique to me.  What could I learn by further exploring these deeper inner sensations to comprehend and understand who I am in relationship to the world around me?

I realized that I really had no control at all over anyone or anything around me.  It was like I was a sci-fy probe put here to measure and experience life, not to control it.  I began to sense the need to discern how it is I am connected with the world around me.  This began my journey into spirituality. I began to discover a new higher level of awareness in experiencing life and in grasping reality.

If my words have touched you at all; if you yearn for something more but can’t quite put your finger on it,  I invite you in to explore with me and other like-minded people. Discover a deeper perception of life and reality. Discern a bigger community and a bigger connection to humanity and the world of nature to which we are connected. Discover with us a deeper more satisfying life, experiencing life in a fuller more complete way.

You are always welcome here to share in the Spiritual Quest.

Spiritual Peace … Is Fairness and Equality The Answer?

Successful relationships among people requires a 100% committed effort by all toward the success and strength of the relationship. Equal 50% – 50% contributions to mandate equality will never lead to long-term success. Rather a 100% commitment to the success of the relationship by each individual involved is the formula for success. Equality is the formula for failure.

Without some bias or “politically correct” indoctrination, any reasonable evaluation on mankind, by a fair-minded individual, will acknowledge that the evidence is overwhelming that all men are not created equal. Some are born physically strong, others mentally tough and intelligent, some are caring and nurturing, some are tough and rugged, some are male and some are female, some are trans-gendered, some are cross gendered some are dual gendered, some are tall, some are short, some are bald others hairy, some are fair skinned others dark skinned. By any reasonable unbiased observer the facts are overwhelming that nothing is equal about the individuals that make up mankind. Most reflect a combination of the above referenced differences and we could add a thousand more to the list to multiply the diversity.

Nowhere in nature does equality exist. It’s a human concept that is doomed to failure.  A seed that lands in a field by the river in rich soil will grow taller and stronger than a seed that lands at the bottom of a dense forest. Is it fair that one seed gets better conditions in which to grow? How difficult a process would it be for us to plant trees and focus on equality for every tree. Would that lead to more growth or less overall? Such an undertaking would be extremely difficult to manage because we would have to cut back every strong tree.

If we still relied on trees to build houses and heat our homes would an equality approach be sensible? It is a certainty that we achieve less overall when equality is the goal. Now what result would such an approach have among mankind, would we thrive if we tried to make equality a goal? Such endeavors are misguided and show a lack of appreciation for nature.

Equality is the source of every division and problem in our world. We cannot fight against nature and expect to succeed. The minute we begin to put energies into fighting against nature, by demanding equality within the system, the whole system suffers. We hurt ourselves and the collective suffers too. Hurt and pain to other individuals within the collective are the direct result of seeking equality, such an endeavor is the wrong approach.

The spiritual approach to peace and harmony is where every individual human being needs to be recognized and be nurtured to grow to their fullest potential. Not tearing down the successful to accommodate the weak but rather supporting the weak to find their place within the overall collective system to contribute back to the whole.

Peace comes through 100% acceptance of others and a 100% commitment to supporting the collective well being of all in the system. This is holistic spiritual unity. This is the spiritual approach that will lead humankind to great heights as we work together as a collective for the good of all, and not by seeking equality taking sides one against the other.

Climbing The Spiritual Ladder … Experience It

Mastering the spiritual journey, individually we must engage and commit to each step throughout the process, there’s no short cuts.

As we climb in our physical world each step brings us deeper and deeper joy. A small child learns to roll the ball to Mommy and laughs with delight. As she grows she learns to bounce the ball and re-catch it again, another deeper level of satisfaction. Next she can bounce the ball off the wall, off the ground and into her hand again. Alas she desires further progress, but to become a master requires commitment and sacrifice. It takes months and even years before she can juggle three balls, then four and more.

The spiritual climb follows a similar process, the early steps are easy and joyful. To become a master requires sacrifice and commitment.  Learn to swallow your inner most spiritual sensations of guilt, fear or apprehension.  Feel it swimming in your stomach, examine it, hold it, experience it and you will learn to grow through it.  You will find it as frustrating as the little girl mentioned above as she fumbles and drops, again and again through each successive step of her progress. She suffers many, many defeats during her journey to becoming a master juggler.

We don’t climb to the highest levels on our positive experiences. It is through the negative,  frustrating and sometimes painful interactions that we achieve the greatest growth.  Be it in juggling or in our spiritual states, there’s always challenge and frustration along the development path.

Each successive step is harder and harder to master. However each step brings us deeper and deeper joy and satisfaction as we master it. So embrace the negative it’s the area to explore for advancement. As we wrestle with it, rehash through it, swallow it down, digest it we finally master it. We attain another step on the spiritual ladder.

As we reach new heights we experience a deep joy, but that joy quickly reverses as we discover the next rung to conquer. Can we ever return the joy of the early steps of our spiritual climb?  Yes, when we share that step with someone else new to the experience, just like a master juggler rolling the ball with a small child.

As we share our experience we relive the joy, hoping the newly exposed will also commit to mastering the next step. We cannot do if for them we can only encourage, prod and challenge them, hoping to keep them engaged to becoming masters too.

The same is true in mastering the spiritual journey, individually we must engage and commit to each step throughout the process, there’s no short cuts. Each successive step requires more and more concentrated effort.  Through repetition, analysis and continued commitment internally to our spiritual state we progress.

Every genuine point of progress along the climb is experienced alone.  Once we achieve a plateau the pleasure and satisfaction is always there for us, but soon it becomes insufficient and our next level of advancement becomes our driving desire to keep climbing.

If we stay among children we may deceive ourselves on our progress toward mastery.  It’s easy to feel like an accomplished mathematician in a room full of first graders. We all can become masters if we genuinely desire it. It’s not easy, it’s complicated and requires lots of repetitions and struggle, and no one can do it for us.

The spiritual journey is a unique path of progress for each one of us. As we attain mastery we immediately know those who are close to mastery and those who are pretending. Alas we also know those who have skills we have yet to master, this is your next level. Inquire of their journey secrets to get to know the road signs and paths to hasten your own advancement, but remember that only you and you alone can do the work to experience the mastery.

No matter how high you climb there’s always another step and fewer and fewer masters to share their experience. When you find yourself alone in your own space of mastery, new developments come slow but when they do arrive the Joy is Immense.

This posting is a spiritual sharing. I invite you to measure your progress against your own inner compass, it will not deceive you. No Master can do it for you they can only point you in the right direction.

The Truth Poem

This poem was written on August 20, 2011.
Truth runs deep … how deep? … Will we ever know?
It seems so firm, yet it’s elusive … If your honest not in denial
It’s pursuit is a pleasure although sometimes it feels like it’s a trial
Try your hand at finding it … it is our life divine …
When you believe you have found it … you will block it’s further shine.
Truth is not the destination a place at which to stay
rather it’s the process revealed along the way
Please join in on this life process … it is a genuine life mission
if you think you have “The Truth” your life will be imprisoned
So be open … be honest … accepting all as Him
if we reject anyone or anything our vision will be dimmed
Please keep the course … pursue the faith … accept the advice above
The depth of truth we should all pursue is the path of light and love
Originally published on the poetry pieces blog under the introduction piece.