The Mirror Action of Life

Getting Off The Rollercoaster

If we consider the Mind as both the instrument of perception and thought, and that perceptions and interpretations require some previous experience or knowledge, the ability to perceive is then an acquired or learnt ability always linked to our personal history.

Our lives are therefore based around a multitude of relational factors which form the frameworks and viewpoints in order for us to interpret or make sense of the world. Naturally, this helps us to function in the world.

Ideally, perceptions should build upon each other to develop into the maturity of adult discernment. The catch is that the perceptions of childhood, (which form the foundation of our thinking) do not naturally or by themselves have the benefit of adult discernment. Only from the ongoing exposure to love, generosity, compassion, positive support and values from parental care does the childhood experience overcome the potential for these immature perceptions to corrupt or undermine the thinking later on in adult life.

I once had an extended visit at a friends house. He led his active life, and allowed me to have full run of the house. I noticed he had a Hi-Fi in the living room but it was not connected or wired up. Upon deciding to listen to some music, I went about connecting all the various modules and connecting the right cables to the right sockets. I finished by plugging in all the electrical power cables except the radio... I just left the power plug draped near the power board. Everything worked and enjoyed the music.

About a week later, my friends son came over for a visit. He decided he'd like to listen to the radio. He noticed the power cable wasn't plugged in so he plugged it in. My friend was amazed and delighted that his son had got his Hi-Fi working and showered him with praise as this proud Father acknowledged his sons cleverness and technical aptitude.

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I said nothing. However, later on I found myself slightly put out as I felt a sense of injustice that the recognition was not coming to me.

Very, very strange I thought to myself. Never was there any intention to seek praise... I just got the thing going one day so I could listen to music. But when this show of overwhelming appreciation became manifest, I felt like I was missing out, and I now seemed to be after something that I originally had not intention of obtaining.

I paced back and forth, the mental wheels were rapidly spinning. Ahhh!... I now started to grasp that two things were happening inside me, and it is very much worth our while to discuss it here. The things I were feeling were...

• A sense of injustice.
• A sense for a need of recognition of my ability.

INJUSTICE - RECOGNITION. I had tapped into the beginnings of some important understandings
Many years ago, I might have spoken up to make sure that the recognition came my way as well as the need to set the record straight. I probably would have burned inside until I spoke up. Fortunately those days are long gone, but still lingering was a residual part of my old thinking rearing it's ugly head.

The perception of...

"Hey You!, you didn't acknowledge my ability!... you're the cause of my grief!"

...is not accurately defined in the false belief that an external object (a person) is the cause of my disharmony.

This injustice is in me, just as this need for recognition of ability is in me. Does this mean that people can expect injustice or unjust behaviour from me as a common aspect to my personality? I thought about this very intensely and come up with "No". I know this doesn't equate with my real nature, yet something was not sitting quiet right within me. The more I pursued it the more confusing it became. Such confusion is the opposite of what should be attained through successful self inquiry. I had to initiate a change of tack and began to focus on the 'Recognition' aspect.

More pacing and squeezing of my chin. Slowly an understanding began to filter into my consciousness. The want for recognition was the PRIMARY ISSUE. I had become confused by focusing on a secondary feeling of 'Injustice'. Obviously, for an injustice to be present, something had to make it so. The perceived 'Incorrect Recognition' was the injustice. The 'Recognition' aspect was at the root of this injustice. I was now getting closer to the real issue. This is where the use of "I" came into it. For you and I both, this is an extremely valuable understanding to possess.

You might say that I am just seeking approval, and essentially I would agree with these thoughts, but if it was simply a matter of seeking approval, it would then have to said... "of what?". The notion of approval would once again go back to... "My abilities and best efforts." Once again, the root of the experience contains a direct identification back to me. This is what you should remember as you engage in self inquiry. The correct understanding will not be ambiguous as in the case "seeking approval" for there can always be another question that can go beyond that point. The words "I", "ME" or "MY", or the undisputable sense of the person in question, must always be included in the final analysis.

Suddenly an awesome stillness came over me. A very powerful sense of being deeply connected to a truth about myself. Now I began to see why the injustice was so prominent. This lack of recognition has actually been such a regular feature in my life that a secondary perception of injustice continues to be falsely validated and hence distorted over the years. I am therefore much more likely to see or perceive injustices around me and in various other situations.

Upon the revelation of RECOGNITION, I now see that throughout my life, I have not given recognition to others. The very reason I have written this book is because my life had essentially collapsed, and I had come to the understanding that the only way out was to become more aware of my surroundings, my family, my friends, my job, my life. As far as personal relationships go, the loved one would leave primarily through my lack of attentiveness... my lack of awareness.

MY thinking, MY behavioUr, had been clearly mirrored back to me. This phenomenon is a remarkable and natural aspect of possessing human consciousness in the physical world. We can only ever know and understand the world through our perceptions. What is seen to be out there is simply a reflection of what's within.

For me I can see it all so very clearly, without agitation, without objection. I bow to the truth. So profound was this awakening for me that I actually felt physically different. I can also describe it as if a major shift had occurred. A shift of 'what' I can't actually put a name to, but somehow the word 'shift' seems to be appropriate.

Here I must point out where careful attention is required not to confuse all the qualities that are inside as primary. eg: All though this sense of injustice is in me, since it is of a secondary nature, I am happy to say that I am not a person who treats people unfairly or unjustly.

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You to must identify the primary and secondary qualities and re-align your perceptions correctly and without imposing judgment upon yourself. Always love and respect yourself, as well as your discoveries during self inquiry.

Now to deal fully and finally with the RECOGNITION aspect, for this is what this chapter is all about.

The Saying is... "What is seen to be out there is actually in you." This is the mirror action of life.

Going through this example brings us to one important question. How do we know that our perceptions are correct or false? This question is extremely sensitive and full of vulnerability's if precise answers are expected by anyone other than yourself, but the understanding which I myself cling to is...

Through my perceptions and understandings:

• Is my life progressing?
• Have the various stages in my life be a steeping stone to other new stages?
• Do I leave each stage accepting of what is left behind?

or

• Do I seem stuck in re-occurring situations whether they be financial, vocational, personal?
• Do the same sorts of people re-emerge into my life and bring the same sorts of situations and dramas?

If you tend to answer yes to the first group and "no" to the second group of questions, then it would seem that progress and growth are a healthy part of your life and your perceptions would have to said to be working in a positive way for you.

If the case is the opposite of the above, then this is an indicator to consider implementing change. The key to bringing about real change lies in exploring the domain of the Inner World... taking the Inner Journey to your deep self.

The major aspect of being human is consciousness. We have self-awareness. That is... we are the animal that has awoken itself to the fact that we are animal. In that awakening, we remain animal no longer since we have ascended into the realm of perceptions, understandings and realisations. However, there is a subtle trap in possessing conscious awareness, for it can bring about false perceptions if the experiences that one accumulates are not fully understood through contemplation. This subtle trap can keep us locked in the region above the animal, yet below the stage of human development where a higher and clearer consciousness brings freedom, and liberates the creative potential.

The freedom I talk of is the freedom to know, love and understand yourself to such a degree that fears dramatically reduce their stranglehold over us and the good life we try to implement. Also, in this freedom, I have personally found that the yearning and clinging aspects of myself have essentially diminished. I still have desires, dreams and goals, but the aching yearning to love and be loved has dissolved into the awareness that I am that love which I have been yearning for and seeking externally for so many years of my life.

This does not mean that I don't need people, or that I don't wish to have a life long partner, on the contrary, having found and realised my inner love... my inner self, I am finally in a position to be free enough to start living and to start loving in a refined way.

In the years before my path of self discovery, I longed to love and longed to be loved, but now I see that this longing is an indicator that the inner love has not yet been realised. Sure you may appreciate that things that I talk of, and that they sit perfectly well with you on intellectual level, but until you have realised from experience your inner love by the path of inner work, there will always be that restlessness and yearning.

When you finally realise your inner love, you will know without a shadow of a doubt that you have reached that state.

Difference between Delusion and Mis-perception

To come to an understanding that your thinking and perceptions are limiting positive progress does not mean that your life is based on total ignorance and false values. It is more likely indicating incomplete or immature understandings. In the process of self discovery, new understandings and Self-Knowledge will become a lamp on your path. When the lamp of Self-Knowledge is lit, it can never be extinguished for the fuel that keeps it lit is an enlightened understanding of the truth and the ability to recognise the truth. Having cultivated refined intuition, is to possess the mechanism that recognises the inner truth.

Delusion on the other hand is a chronic state where suffering is habitual, and the potential for positive growth and progress become very very limited. Within delusion, anger is also present for the existence of false notions reflected in new life experiences are then falsely validated to then become more chronic and distorted perceptions. Life is seen to be bitter, cruel and without compassion. Deluded thinking usually has a negative, (perhaps destructive) impact on other people as well.

"Where Do I Start?"

Your must amplify your intuition. If you already consider yourself an intuitive person yet still see a need for change, then your intuition is not being allowed to surface in the area of your life where you are stuck..

If you have a belief in God, then pray for assistance and believe that such assistance will manifest. If you don't believe in God, then believe in yourself and the fighting spirit of human nature to rise above, and be intolerant of ignorance... especially the ignorance of the Self.

Now take a look at that last paragraph. Each is written to inspire and uplift different people with different beliefs and perceptions. Hopefully, each person would find the essence of inspiration to cultivate the qualities of faith and courage, and ultimately bring about the restoration of integration, harmony and peace for the journey ahead. If uplifting inspiration is the case, then where can we say this quality comes from? This Will to carry on comes about from a deep inner experience... not from this book, or even some other place. From Within.

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Important to note is that this particular example of a positively motivating inner experience is in-consequential to the debate of Gods existence or non-existence. The inner experience, where it is known to have come from within, has to be acknowledged as the all powerful motivator that drives the human being forward through difficult times. This is the essence of the Human Spirit. This is being Spiritual.

No two people will have exactly the same perceptions on life for we are all viewing the world from our own unique viewpoint.

Just as each of our eyes are separated by a small distance, the image that the left eye sees is not the same as the right eye. What is seen from each viewpoint is slightly different; it cannot be the same. Amazingly, it is the brain that integrates these different images to expand the visual perception by giving us 3D vision. In the same way, the individual perceptions of peoples can be integrated into the common consciousness of mankind to enable a clearer and more accurately defined view of the world. In writing this book, I am contributing to the world, the understandings which have had a positive and uplifting effect in my life.

Developing Intuition.

Developing Intuition requires careful attention in the early days of the seeker. Your goal will be found in the form of "A Silent Knowledge, devoid of questions".

The surfacing of your intuition does not come in the form of words or images. It is deep and serene ( don't confuse this with some fanciful state of mystic bliss).

When an intuitive response manifests, you will not be plagued by rationalisations and questions, for those are the products of mental and logical processes. The Silent Knowledge is from your deep spiritual self... the True Self, and it is beyond all the drama and confusion.

It would also helpful to consider the Mind as the means to bring forth into the world, the offering that the True Self puts forward in guiding you through your daily life.

If the True Self is the driver of a car, then the Mind is the steering wheel responding to the direction of the driver to then allow the car, (the physical body) to go in the required direction. Obviously, amid our everyday activities there is a sort of auto-pilot which effectively gets us through our journey day-in day-out. It is when we enter unfamiliar ground or require a course correction that the auto-pilot needs to be over-ridden and control handed back for to the driver... the True Self.

We need to confidently be able to tune into and listen to the Wordless Knowledge.

All this philosophy and theory is not meant to point a judgemental finger at anyone, but is a call to awaken to the notion that there is always a higher truth to be found that can ease you through your trials. This higher truth will stop you from carrying any unnecessary burdens amid the true difficulties that must be passed through, and guide you in confidence in your everyday life.

The road to freedom and enlightenment is the way to gain a life where progress is the significant attribute of your life. Here, it is important to have a clear understanding of the use of the word enlightenment. Often it is used in a spiritual context associated with the mystic religions, or of the final union of the individual soul with God, (sometimes known as Nirvana or Samadhi.) But in our daily life amid the demands of family and work etc, can still be beautifully enhanced by the application of a love for truth and Self Knowledge enabling a life devoid of confusion and conflict. The degree of enlightenment brought about by activating awareness philosophy can only enrich your life.

To change the values we live by in an enormous task, but by seeing and concentrating on the benefits that such efforts can deliver will bring you to a realisation that you can be your main source of energy and drive in your quest to become new.

TENACITY ..."The ability to HANG ON", will help bring the transformation to your lifestyle as your thinking shifts it's attitude by mirroring new and good things for you.

FAITH ..."The certainty that exists without the support of concrete evidence", will be the first of many new characteristics to start you on your way and give you a goal to believe in.

LOVE... "Of self and others", to bring you a freedom to break loose of any restrictions that try to tie you to the past. When we do a good thing, we can be sure that a good thing will be returned to us, so to keep on acting to the goodness and truth within will see the changes we long for begin to become real and permanent in our lives.

To become aware of the causes of problems or pain in your life, is to have taken the first steps in altering these unwelcome aspects. If you want good people in your life, then your thinking has to mirror those qualities so that other people can then see them and be attracted to them. If you want people to be aware of your love, your needs, your hopes, then your thinking must demonstrate an equal awareness in your own nature. If you want trusting and sincere people to be a part of your life, then these qualities must also be evident in yourself. If you want truthful people in your life, then you must consistently live by the truth.

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After such a change is made, the mirror action of Life will help to bring such aspects into our life to enjoy always.

If we compromise our values and our own inner truth, we will compromise the quality of the life we have gained, and lose the freedom to live in Truth, Peace and Love.

Second best thinking will bring you second best situations and people. By being willing to live to your truest self, and by believing you have a right to the best in every aspect that life has to offer, then the good that you have always sought after will be sure to come to you.

All that has been discussed so far is about the aspects of our nature that might indicate a need for change and growth, but it is also vital to acknowledge that the love that you see in others... the goodness that you see in others and within the world, can only ever be appreciated by yourself because that quality is alive within you. Don't think that life will only mirror a persons inadequacies; life will also allow your beauty to manifest. The goodness that you see as being 'out there' is actually 'Within You'.

CONTEMPLATION:

My mirror was clouded with confusion...

and the blurred image I was looking at was NOT what I thought it was.

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next: Getting Off the Roller Coaster A Good Way to Love.