If you are any bit like most of us, you are probably sick and tired (excuse the pun) of hearing how “nothing will ever be the same again”, or “I’m scared of the things out there I can’t control”, and “what will become of us”?
These are very real and valid concerns, yet they don’t offer any direction, proposed action or character requirements to navigate the apparent uncertainty. These questions and attitudes express our current feelings and thoughts but keep us stuck in these moments. Thís is our own mental prison.
If this so, then what is needed right now to undo the brakes of our minds and move us forward?
A NEW WORLD VIEW.
Our thoughts and perspectives need to evolve, and please keep in mind that the purpose of evolution is to make things better. The pathologies of a phenomenon serve as the seeds for growth and progression, and it is simple to see these things that are wrong in our society. We have created many pathologies, so the seeds for our growth have been sowed!
The modern, materialistic, very scientific world view has served its purpose in helping us understand the world ‘out there’. This way of understanding our place as mere powerless observers in the world has brought about huge advances in technology, democracy, medicine, wealth distribution, etc., yet, never before in recorded history has man suffered more emotionally, mentally and socially than now. Depression, anxiety, loneliness, separation and the feeling of powerlessness is rife. Look at the divorce and burnout statistics. Suicide is all too familiar and fear is a very common salient partner to many. This mechanistic world view of us just being here and dealing with what we’ve got doesn’t work anymore – at least for many of us.
These pathologies need healing and from them, something better can rise.
The world view that grows from this sad place, is one of participation. Allow me to explain…
By shifting our perspective of how we fit in, by using the metaphor of a participatory universe, a vital aspect that emerges is one of wholeness. We’ve experienced the devastation of fragmentation, so we need to make things whole again.
Needing to make things whole, clearly invites us to take action. We cannot only be observers of Life anymore, we have agency and fantastic human minds to purposefully and consciously direct this agency. The time of thinking our thoughts and actions don’t have a larger effect on others is over. Modern science clearly shows how human consciousness can change DNA, emotions, our health, relationships and nature. If we want vitality, joy and purpose, we have to start treating everything and everyone ‘out there’ as though it/they are us.
This brings another point to the fore…we have to start loving and liking ourselves to be able to love and like others. All the old adages, sayings and wisdom refer to humans co-creating reality.
Wholeness means that all the parts belong together and that they join and assist each other. Each part participates in the whole to make it whole for all. Each part has a role to play in the context of the whole system that is Life. When we direct our intentions toward participation, it implies that we have empathy, and empathy is about responsibility. A bicycle can be dismantled into many parts, like frame, wheels, gears, seat, etc., but only when they are assembled or integrated together to form a bicycle, can the bicycle be functional and serve a purpose. People work the same. One person can’t form a team, just as one talent or trait can’t get the whole job done successfully. We need to respect the fact that some people are wheels and others frames, yet all have a very important role to fulfill.
We cannot participate in evolution without taking responsibility for the co-creation of the world we are seeking to understand. Co-creating happens in any case! Mostly unconsciously and unintentionally, and it doesn’t really get us to where we want to go. When I know myself and my strengths, I can seek others with complementary strengths, as our combined efforts will yield far greater results. Responsibility means I must know myself and support others to know themselves, with empathy and respect.
The viral outbreak of 2020 marks the beginning of a new way of thinking, acting and being – an exciting place to be. If we choose to participate in creating a new reality, we can now choose to call our inherited life and culture quits, and trail blaze a new world – a world we wish we inherited, but didn’t.
To share more of these ideas and get your feedback, I’d enjoy hearing from you.