Jivan Vatayan has explained elsewhere that we humans are often (always) distracted from what is important by what is urgent. “The busy-ness of this world allows very little available energy left (in most people) to consider a complete change in the way the entire species views, lives and behaves on Earth.” This “busy-ness” prevents us from viewing reality clearly. In this morning’s article he offers us an approach that might be helpful.
Jivan Vatayan
One of the great benefits that I have realized through certain “meditations” is in breaking the habituation to thoughts. There is a potential to disidentify and slow or stop many of the habits of the ego and the yammer of the inner conversation. Once the disidentification habit becomes strong enough to stop the habit of identification an interesting perspective developed in me.
First, one’s past behavior and the past behavior of others appear to be extremely robotic – we appear to be largely conditioned animals addicted to stable memes.
Second, a new potential for individual change seems possible by bringing this awareness to the normal (sleeping) state of perceiving “reality”.
Third, this potential appears to be persistently unrealized for the following (possible) reason. As I/we come out of the state of no-mind the tendency is always to pick up the old script and old conditioning and go back into the old behavior patterns or other inappropriate behaviors.
These inappropriate behaviors include many or all of the supposed deeper spiritual scripts. There is the unfortunate tendency in the spiritual world not to acknowledge the default storymind that is engaging reality. The “new age” world of spirituality tends be carried away with using meditation in service of the ego or to be in denial of the limited spiritual world views that it is propounding (i.e.- denial of deeper body of nature). The potential for bringing the freedom experienced in meditation is squandered.
I have asked myself – what can be done about this?
Part of looking deeply at the resistance to change is witnessing this very behavior. From the clearer, less scripted state of undifferentiated awareness I jump back into the comfort of the same old used-to-be and I/we stay in the addiction to the frozen past. What and why am I picking up this old conditioning and what are the real disadvantages and advantages to these pick-ups? It appears that the effort to keep this identifying desiring ego engaged with the entrancement of cultural reality is stressful and unsatisfying. I am not nurturing my deep EarthSelf by most of the spinning wheels of cultural reality and thought.
I have seen that there is potential in group work to combine meditation with de-hypnosis to break individual and cultural habits. I would love to see this approach brought to the destructive cultural habits which we appear to be addicted to and/or habituated.
I have experienced this potential of combining meditation with deep spiritual questioning, intensive group therapy and bodywork and from that I see that real change is possible. That change must be a community supported effort designed to deal with the deepest and darkest social and ecological questions in the most penetrating and potentially loving way for the benefit of all beings.
The clarity of no-mind (undifferentiated awareness) must inform our deepest being (bodily awareness, feeling awareness, moment to moment storymind awareness, and the deep mythical/mystery awareness of wholistic consciousness).
These areas of our being must address the deep questions of the mystery of reality. Such questions include: What is the prime value?, What is the nature of the self?, What compromises the real community?, What is the relationship of humans with respect to the more comprehensive natural community? and What are the appropriate methods to engage in these questions?.
It is not likely that such an effort will be attempted or organized. But, if it were, it would allow a comprehensive, wholistic re-evaluation of what we are doing to the Earth with the best that meditation seems to offer.