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Psychedelic Chaos Sigil by ~AntonChanning |
As I gradually spend more time Being in the present, I can feel the interconnectedness of all beings in a more amplified way. I have always felt connected with the earth and plants and animals to some extent, and I believe that we all feel a deep connection to many other creatures and lifeforms on some level. But iI have found it to be amplified by the quiet stillness of Being. In the world of Being rather than Doing, interconnectedness is central to experiencing life, unlike in the capitalist world with it's emphasis on competitiveness. We all have the same human experience: No matter how forcefully we try to dictate our destinies, there is a limit to what we can actually control in our lives. In the capitalist world view, the conclusion that is drawn from this lack of control is that we should each seize and guard as much control as possible. In the United States' unnaturally competitive capitalist culture, we've been taught that independence is safety. Our cultural norm is that since you never know what someone else might do to you, you should not rely on anyone. In reality, interdependence is a much more effective survival tactic than independence. The more connected we are with all things, the more easily we can participate in the flow of life, interacting with our environments in each successive present moment. As I become more immersed in community and appreciate how integral it is to my own wellbeing, there is a part of my brain still entrenched in US cultural drive to hoard, to isolate, to compete. Therefore, one of the ingrained thoughts I am working to rewire is that "independence = safety", replacing it with the new thought that "connectedness = safety". I truly believe that interconnectedness is what makes us truly safe in the world. And yet, I have to consciously repeat the thought "connectedness = safety" over and over to affect my subconscious mind, which has been programmed for independent, competitive thinking.
This post still resonates 10 years later. The forces of cultural mind control that brainwash us toward hyper independence are powerful, and it feels like a constant practice to cleanse myself of those influences. And when things get really scary and my triggered Parts are shouting that my survival is at stake, I still find myself isolating as a "solution" to the fear.
ReplyDeleteAnd, my overall consciousness and orientation has continued to shift towards interdependence and collaboration through this conscious process of reorienting to the Truth of our inherent interconnectedness, and the undeniable Fact that we need each other to survive.
Moving to a small town has also had a huge impact on this experience because here there is very little striving. Most people come here (or stay here) because they are content with what they have, and are not trying to become "successful" in a capitalist framework. This is very different than the big cities I previously lived in where the majority of people are striving to "make it big" and the only way to do so in that paradigm is to view life as a competition to win. So even though the conditioning of dominator culture still exists here, it doesn't pervade every moment in the same way it used to. That is one of my favorite things about living in a small town.