Gazing in the Mirror

January 25 - What ONENESS Means

To be grounded in an attitude
of compassion is to be capable of
receiving and welcoming the
suffering, which the other is giving
us. This does not mean that
we suffer for them, but that
we offer them possibility of going
beyond the separate self in which
suffering is harbored.
~ Jean-Yves Leloup, Compassion and
Meditation: The Spiritual Dynamic
between Buddhism and Christianity

The Universe is a perfect, undivided
whole, and healing can take place only
when one is unified with It.
~ Ernest Holmes

It would be safe to say that "Oneness" has been a buzz word in spiritual circles for some time now and yet because a great percentage of humans are not really interested in that, much less in understanding what it possibly means in their own life, it is still not an idea that receives primary attention among the masses, where separation, competition and differences are more often what is highlighted and focused on. My people are better than your people "because". It doesn't really matter how one fills in that "blank". My gender is better than your gender "because". My religion is better than your religion "because".

There is nothing wrong with differences, preferences and inclinations on an individual level. There is something wrong with making another person's "stuff" wrong. Yes, it may be true that their choice might be the wrong choice for our own self and I see nothing wrong with acknowledging our own "truths" in a respectful way. I have enormous space within to accept other people's choices as valid for them with absolutely no inclination within me to try to force any different choice upon them. Sometimes that can be a very fine line of distinction that not everyone we come in contact with can hear. Some hear our different choices as making their choices wrong even if we did not intend for them to have that interpretation.

At the most basic level, we have a lot in common – we are born, we eat, we breathe, our hearts beat, we grow, we age, we die. Our DNA (human beings have 99% in common with every other human being) even has lots in common with the most different appearing of creatures – a mud worm, a cabbage or a chimpanzee. Because our bodies are made of the elements and molecules of this planet, we share very real aspects of it every other life form within our very physical bodies. The way Life itself "works" by recycling matter, by new forms arising temporarily, is itself a continuous process. Oneness is inescapable but mentally, we can choose to see only the minor differences and blow them up to appear to be significant ones. That is how wars begin.

The Law of Reciprocity suggests that if we feel down on ourselves, we may send that vibration out as a signal to others that we don't deserve very much consideration from them. If we enter interactions with other people from a hostile perspective on Life in general we are likely to find our self "met" with a similar hostility that we actually "provoked" in a vulnerable person who is easily triggered by such subtleties. Messages of self-acceptance and positive expectancy often find willing contributors to give us supportive, loving feedback. Healing often flows when being is perfectly re-aligned with the movement of Divine Expression from within the one who needs adjustment. A lack of ease, or dis-ease, can be facilitated by obstructions to life-affirming choices within us.

A sense of oneness with other people allows us to become members of collective communities, where we can be responsive and responsible, able to give and receive through participation. When we are in resonance with a community, our love-ability shines through. We happily share our special gifts. We feel free to express ourselves in genuine and authentic ways, whether we are extroverted, loud, noisy and vigorous; or introverted, quiet, calm and circumspect. Whether we are out-going or more inwardly occupied, we still have much to share in the Oneness that connects us one to the other.

As human beings living on this planet, Earth, we take up physical space and we cannot help but have impacts on the whole, simply as we go about our individual tasks, fulfilling our individual desires and living a normal, modern life. The magnificence that is the human being should be valued because it is without a doubt a special expression of Life itself. It is hard to discern any true separation from "everything else" when we close our eyes. We can bring that feeling of being connected to all that is and being one with all that is back into our conscious awareness as we interact with others out there. We will always have more in common than those minor issues that keep us "apart". We do well to always remember that truth.

~ perspective

We all breathe the same air
recycled over and over again.
Not only do we share the air but
also the elements as well as bits
and pieces of other creatures in
the form of the atoms that are
a part of us today.
Silence is oneness – if silence is absolute
there is no other quality present.
When we share our weaknesses and
vulnerabilities, our honesty allows
everyone else in contact with us to
feel more accepting of their own self.
In oneness we are able to be part of
a larger whole – responsible to the
other parts that are our wholeness
and trusting that the same things
we might want for others are what
they also want for us because we
truly are "one" impulse of Life.

#choice #collective #community #continuity #healing #hostility #participation #reciprocity #resonance #superiority