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{THIS IS AN EXCERPT FROM}
copyrighted 2002
Remember, this came out
of me 20 years ago.
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As I perceive the moments of my life, I recognize that those moments of reality should be completely interpreted, which is to place them in both a worldly (objective) and spiritual (subjective) context.
As individuals go through the moments of their lives, there is an interpretation of those moments that is relevant to each individual within the context of their physical self. In addition, there is an interpretation that is relevant to each individual within the context of their conscious self. I believe that our consciousness is that part of ourselves we currently label the soul. The understanding we derive from our examination of reality within its full context can lead us all to understand what is truly right(eous). Our understanding of existence must be derived from two interpretations, leading to only one perspective. In conceptualizing this, we can use comparisons that describe two separate things coming together to produce one in a way that occurs throughout Nature. For example, it is hydrogen and oxygen that come together to produce one element, water. It is a sperm and an egg that come together to produce one life. It is the two sides of the brain that makeup one mind. This last example is evident in that the human brain is split into two hemispheres, the left and right sides.
In a broad sense, these sides of the brain process information in the way that is indicative of how we should interpret reality. The left hemisphere is the side of objectivity. It is more logical, verbal, and able to deal with things in sequence, one truth at a time (step-by-step). This is the side that is plugged into reality. We have created a label for our awareness of the significance and relevance of the interpretation derived from this side of the brain, it is the term self. The right hemisphere is the subjective side. It is more emotionally intuitive, skilled at spatial relations and able to deal with things all at once (the big picture). This is the side that is plugged into our spiritual nature. The label we have created for our awareness of the significance and relevance of the interpretations derived from this side of the brain is the term soul. The left side of our brain goes about the task of understanding words and finding their meaning, it deals with things in a structured fashion. The right side of our brain appreciates humor, imagery and emotional content. It is also the side that the brain relies upon to perform perceptual tasks, where it is able to deal with the entirety of circumstance, i.e. the whole truth.
When a person performs a perceptual task, brain waves, blood flow, and glucose consumption reveal increased activity in the right hemisphere. When a person speaks or calculates, activity increases in the left hemisphere. These hemispheres reveal the physical and spiritual aspects of our minds, and they are physical realities. The human brain is physically split into an objective, physical hemisphere, and a subjective, spiritual hemisphere. Yet, it is to be used as one brain. Likewise, we must take into account both interpretations of existence to form one perspective.
Because our perceptions of worldly reality are based upon more tangible and pronounced elements of existence, we place a higher emphasis upon the interpretation of the self as we seek understanding. This emphasis is much more of a priority than we place on what we would consider our spiritual reality and the interpretation of the soul. However, the truth is that spiritual reality has domain over any subordinate reality that is conceived of by our consciousness. It is within the context of spiritual reality that all the systems of existence occur. It is this spiritual reality that provides the energy that keeps our Earth spinning in a circle. This same energy keeps hearts pumping and brains functioning. This spiritual reality produced all of the systems that make Nature work. So, each of us must come to the understanding that while the responsibilities of our worldly reality may seem more pressing and immediate, the responsibilities of our spiritual reality and the interpretation derived from the soul, are vital to our existence on a much more relevant and significant scale. The daily responsibilities of our lives are included within the context of spiritual reality, but they are subordinate in priority. For this reason, we must embrace the truth that maintaining two separate perspectives must end.
Within the Holy Scriptures in James 1:8 it says, “A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.” To restore stability to our collective existence, we must accept the single truth of our divine roots. We must recognize and understand the context within which all reality is spiritual, and knowledge of the whole truth of existence is a never-ending pursuit. We must continue to do the things necessary to maintain our physical existence, while recognizing there is more to the meaning of what we do than personal satisfaction. The relevance and significance of that meaning, i.e. that spiritual reality, will be there whether we choose to see it or not. What we must do is reach the point in human existence where recognizing the complete truth is no longer optional. The decisions we make in the coming years will determine the direction that the path of human existence will take. The human species must develop a pattern of collective decision-making that is reflective of an objective understanding of the truth. Moreover, we must seek to bring about positive results as we act upon those decisions.
For most of us, it is easy comprehend the concept of an unyielding truth when it is applied to physical reality. We must broaden our objectivity to recognize that unyielding truths apply to our spirituality as well. It is unfortunate, but some of us still have difficulty with even accepting spirituality as a true part of our existence. We must all get past this obstacle if we are to truly come to an understanding of our spiritual nature. We can overcome this handicap if we recognize that the circumstances of our lives need to be interpreted relative to the two “levels” of one understanding, rather than viewing things as two separate circumstances. Because we are physical beings existing in a material world, the stimulation of our senses is an overwhelming experience. This is why one-half of our consciousness so dominates our being; that of the self. Spiritual reality is the foundation of existence, by virtue of the divine energy that sustains it. We interpret spiritual reality as a more subtle manifestation because it has no mass for us to perceive with our physical senses. However, if we open our minds to the oneness of all that exists, we would see that spiritual reality does have mass, because everything that exists is the result of it. Everything that exists is the result of what we can label God, the Divine Energy of Life, or the system of Nature interchangeably. The choice of which label to use can differ. However, because each term refers to the same entity, our resulting understanding and perspective will be a common one.
The element of balance allows the system of Nature to work correctly or rightly. It is also the element that allows every part of the system to work correctly or rightly. We can see this if we truly look at reality, but it is true whether we recognize it or not. Our physical body is balanced, for the most part, symmetrical. Our brain is balanced, having two sides equaling a whole. Likewise, our understanding must be balanced. Though we have the ability to choose, we are bound by the laws of the system of Nature to seek or pursue balance. In recognizing this, it is the responsibility of each individual to learn what is necessary to produce this balanced understanding. One very important thing we must learn is the balance between objectivity and subjectivity. Without the understanding of the balance between the self and the "soul", a person is reacting to only half of the story.
I believe that the major fear each of us must overcome is the fear of ourselves, which is our recognition of our entire being. There are so many of us that are afraid to listen to ourselves. This is because we are afraid we will find out how much energy and how much potential lies within our respective beings. We are afraid to find out that only the individual is responsible for controlling that energy and potential, making only the individual ultimately responsible for what happens to him or her in life. The notion that we must control and understand all our actions overwhelms most of us. We fear having to be responsible for such an awesomely, powerful being as ourselves. This fear keeps most of us from desiring to get that deeply into ourselves. The first example of this that comes to mind is the fear of solitude, manifesting itself by the need to have the television or radio on whenever an individual is alone in some space. By having something going on or a sound in the background whenever individuals are alone, they are distracting themselves away from where their mind would go if it were not focused on or distracted by something. Each of us must embrace our opportunities to experience solitude and where it takes us. We must get over the fear of having to control the awesome power and potential that is within each of us. This power is the only true power each of us has, and it is truly a blessing the Divine Energy of Life. To take full advantage of this power, we must come to a clearer understanding of ourselves, and use this knowledge to its fullest, positive potential. We cannot reach a clearer understanding without words, and we cannot use knowledge without producing action. What does this translate into? We must become more literate, and our behavior must be right(eous).
We recognize the reality of self and do not have much difficulty defining it to our understanding. The problem is that the self is recognized as being the sum of all that individuals are. It is merely the first stage of awareness and interpretation of the very complex beings that we are. The interpretation of the self is related to the reality that exists around each of us. It is the knowledge that is derived from physical matter; that which makes up the tangible world. Human beings are supposed to have a second stage of awareness and interpretation. Deep inside each of us, this is known to be true. This second stage of awareness and interpretation occurs at the level of our soul. The knowledge derived from the soul is what reality means to us as individuals. It is the truth of what is felt and sensed by us. It is the truth of our individual significance to existence.
There are two important elements of our spiritual nature that each of us must embrace more fully. One element is the interpretive ability inside of us that allows us to determine accurately what is good and what is bad, what is right and what is wrong, what is positive and what is negative. This is the divinely (positively) energized set of feelings, emotions, intuitions, and other sensory perceptions that are to guide all our conscious actions. The other element is the truth that as an individual, each of us is a unique member of the species group known as human beings. Within this uniqueness lies the special gift we are to share with those around us which will help perpetuate positive change or growth. These things are there within each of us whether we recognize and embrace them or not. We recognize the reality of the soul to the degree that we know it exists. However, because to this point it has not been satisfactorily defined or understood, we do not embrace its complete relevance to our daily lives. Each person has but one brain. It consists of two halves, which are distinctly separated. Each person has but one consciousness. The self and the soul are the two halves of this consciousness.
The soul is divinely connected to the Divine Energy of Life, and it is within the context of the soul’s manifestation that we experience God. The soul is the area of our being that encompasses what is considered our personal relationship with God. A person’s soul is their pathway or conscious link between that individual and the Divine Energy of Life. All of these truths are brought forth by the ingestion of words. As an individual learns more words, his or her understanding grows proportionally to that person’s vocabulary. There is no greater truth than the one that dwells within each of us. Sigmund Freud recognized the levels of perception and labeled them the ego and the super-ego. His message was the same, just expressed at a different level of depth and with different interpretations of perception. It may be difficult to relate to this if the words are interpreted within the context of only the first stage of interpretation. If we do not connect his words to spiritual reality, the true meaning in them is lost. It is not until the truth of those words is “felt” that the relevance and significance of them is truly embraced. We often disregard the truths we receive from other people because of selfishness and greed. This is also the result of there not being a second stage of awareness and interpretation taking place within our minds. Our subjectivity is supposed to be limited to our understanding of ourselves. It is not something we are supposed to impose upon the circumstances surrounding us (reality).
THE SELF AND THE SOUL
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