WHAT’S GOING ON? #69 May 2000
ALONG THE WAY: Leap for joy when someone criticizes you.
THIS MONTH’S THOUGHT: We think by association and live by our beliefs and decisions until the time when we can live by awareness, which is the Kingdom of Heaven.
INTEGRATION: (Excerpts from the Science of Man Workbook, page 62)
The first step toward personal integration is that of understanding man in structure and function in his own body. Personal integration is not something that is to be worked for or to be gained. It will take place when all misconceptions are cleared away and not before. All effort is to be spent in the task of dis-identifying from misconceptions; in freeing oneself from the factors of disintegration.
What are some of the advantages of total personal integration? First, there is freedom from all doubt, fear, anger, and grief. There is improvement of conduct. There is the experiencing of extreme physical pleasure. There is intense, ever present, ever fresh joy, deep impartial calmness.
There is freedom from the feeling of insecurity and perplexity.
The integrated personality is directly aware of things without needing to sense them or think about them and realizes a state of being in which there are no obstructions
The integrated personality does not allow himself to be exploited and has no desire to exploit.
The integrated personality will not be a follower and does not desire and will not have followers. He is a co-worker in working with others to actualize personal integration and will accept co-workers.
A conscious person (integrated person):
- Lives without conflict.
- Makes no judgments.
- Is happy with what is.
- Has no need to change anything or anybody.
- Is not controlled by suggestion, although he remembers that he is 100% subject to suggestion, 100% of the time. He checks it out.
- Knows: What he is, where he is, what is going on, and what he can do
- Sees that the not-I’s are not to his advantage and does not identify with them.
- Lives in the present moment.
- Has no ideals to struggle for.
- Is free to experience whatever may arise in his way today.
- Has reverence for all Life.
- Is in charge of his inner state.
- Is at ease and peace wherever his is.
- Has no problems, only challenges.
- Is self-determined, not other determined.
- Can play any role consciously.
- If free of all conditioned ideas.
- Does not turn his life over to any institution or anything or anyone else.
- Is in charge of what he does, how he feels and how he acts.
- Has nothing to be upset about.
- Is in no hurry.
- Sees ‘what is’ clearly.
- Does not listen to propaganda and does not get caught up in causes.
- Does things for the joy of doing, not because he has to (although he may not like it.)
- Uses simple good manners.
- Is not sentimental.
- Does not give advice.
- Has no choices to make.
- Pays attention.
- Does not know what ought to be for anything or anybody, including self.
- Sees clearly what is and the value of what is.
A STORY: Many of you know I am living with a new roommate, a parakeet named Bradford. For the first several months we were together, his purpose for living was to escape from his cage. Whenever the cage door was opened, he fluttered in a flurry of flying, trying to find the way out of captivity. He was single-minded about this.
Over and over we practiced one small procedure. Several times a day I would put my hand in the cage. He finally grew accustomed to this and eventually he perched on my finger. This trust had to be established before letting him out of the cage or I could spend several hours, maybe days, trying to catch him. With limited intelligence, I didn’t think he would be able to find his cage by himself and his cage held his only food and water.
Finally, the day came. Perched proudly on my finger, I lifted him out of the cage. He flew all around the house and came to rest in a plant. (He thought it was the rain forest). It took some effort to get him back in the cage. I hoped he was enjoying the freedom. Wrong! He planted himself in the corner of the cage and refused to move. The world outside the cage was too threatening and scary. He was terrified. Gradually Bradford is overcoming the fear and is learning to find his way back home.
Am I, also, addicted to the comfort of bondage? It is easier to leave things the way they are, rather than to step out of my own cage into the scary world of freedom. For instance, I am free to do what is to my advantage. Although, sometimes, I don’t know what is to my advantage. (I asked Bob once, “How do we know what is to our advantage?” He said, “Go ahead and act on the information you have. At least you’ll have more information than you did before the action”) Sometimes what is to my advantage may displease others or invoke criticism. Others may not like me. What if I hurt someone’s feelings? Alas, I’m once again in bondage to the cage with its four dual basic urges.
Paying attention to when I use the words “should” and “ought to” help me to see misconceptions. “I should go to that funeral, but I really don’t want to” quickly places me in the cage of conflict.
Bradford is a great teacher. His lessons are simple and easy to understand.
I will follow him along his path to freedom and know the door of the cage is always open.
IDEAS TO WORK WITH:
1. Spirit is our Partner. I, the awareness, gets to live with it, experience it,
work with it, constantly. The Spiritual path is recognizing that Spirit is
running things and the awareness gets to go along for a free ride as long
as we don’t interfere. We interfere when we think we know what ought to
be.
- Loneliness is the emotion we feel when we resist being alone.
- The marvel of our existence is incredible.
- Whenever we blame, we become instant victims.
May 2000 Newsletter #228. What’s Going On? #69
FRIENDSHIP
is the comfort –the inexpressible comfort—of feeling safe with a person.
Having neither to weigh thoughts or measure words, but pouring right out, just as they are.
Chaff and Grain together– certain that a faithful friendly hand will take and sift them.
Keep what is worth keeping and with a breath of comfort, blow the rest away.
