This morning I was reading a magazine called Shift: At the Frontiers of Consciousness (Institute of Noetic Sciences Winter 08, 09) and in there was an interview of David Hawkins the author of a very interesting book called Power v. Force. Dr. Hawkins has quantified a Map of Consciousness as a way to assess how people/society are doing on the journey of awakening. If the subject of consciousness interests you, like it does me, then the book is definitely worth reading.
The interview was an excellent reminder and got me thinking about some points he shared. One point was the importance of letting go of our chronic need to judge everything as either good or bad. He says, “Once you let go of your judgments, they are recontextualized. When they are reconstextualized, you can see that something is just whatever it is – neither good nor bad.” This freedom from judging is very liberating and allows us to be accepting, compassionate and fully present.
As an experiment, take the next few days to see how often you judge people, things and situations. Please be cautious that you don’t condemn yourself for you judging; instead accept yourself as a judger seeking to be more conscious. Once you become acquainted with the business of your judging mind, make a commitment to move from judging to impartially viewing the world around you. Pay particular attention to how it feels to be the judger and then be the impartial observer and feel how that feels. My suspicion is that being impartial will feel more peaceful and liberating to you. Let me know how this goes.
Another point he shared was about being peaceful as opposed to demonstrating for peace. He views demonstrating for peace as stimulating the opposite. He believes that peace begins inward and that as each of us becomes more conscious and peaceful then together we raise the collective consciousness so that world peace is possible. This is exactly my point of view and the driving force for this blog.
Where do you and I need to raise our consciousness, free ourselves of our judgments, find our own peace within? These are very invigorating questions for me and I hope for you. I am dedicated to exploring and presenting more and more opportunities for us to awaken. Take a few minutes to tune in right now and ask yourself this: where is there peace inside of you right now and how can you expand that so it touches more of you, your life, and the world around you?
Peace to you.