Listening

Is the world divided? Are all things separate? Can we modify and change nature for the better? Is hierarchy the natural order of life and human society? What is the consequence of this way of thinking?

Or, is the world whole? Are all things interconnected? Would nature survive without our “intervention”? Is cooperation and non-hierarchy the natural order of life and human society?

So here are some thoughts….

Would we survive without the sun? Without water? Without plants and trees? Without insects?Do we do more harm to ecosystems by killing off things we call and identify as pests or predators? Does our collective actions such as our use of fossil fuels have impact on climate or our use of pesticides and herbicides on the soil and water systems? Was evolution just a culmination of human kind rising above all else? Or all creatures presently evolving just as we are?

If we were to stop and pause, we would see directly that there really is no such thing as division and the division is created by our cultural conditioning. There is no such thing as the United States. There is no such thing as Russia. There is no such thing as Christianity or Buddhism. There is no such thing as capitalism, communism, or socialism. These are all created out of thought that we collectively believe in and make believe they are real.

If we are to truly see, we must finally get out of our heads and dreaming and finally listen. Not partially listening, but listening with a quiet mind. This is not forced. The quiet mind comes out of listening, by being present. This listening can happen by being one with your thoughts or feelings, and not trying to change them or label them. This listening can happen by being present with the person you are with. This listening can happen when you look at the sky and clouds, or birds or insects. This listening can happen when you are walking. This listening can happen when you are at work.

Why don’t we do this? Because to listen, you have to stop and in this space the ego holds no sway. The ego is terrified of its own death and will do anything to keep the focus on itself. To listen confronts the ego’s reality and lack of existence. So instead of listening, we escape into all sorts of things or beliefs. Which continue all the divisions and suffering we see today.

Yet, the irony is that the ego doesn’t really exist. And in essence, we are trying to hold onto a misconception of self. If we stop identifying with thought, we can begin to break out of our conditioning and begin to see that we are so much more than a mere ego. If we can pause and listen, we will see that there is no division at all, and that all is whole. Here, one would see that one is in actuality all that is. Wholeness within, wholeness without.