I don’t know whether to call this a theory or a metaphor, but here goes anyway…
Ultimately we’re all One consciousness, but on this plane of existence we seem to be separate entities and must utilise all tools at our disposal in order to understand better our place here.
Think of two people walking side-by-side down a street. The first person is sullen and withdrawn. His body is hunched, he looks down at the pavement, he appears to have little energy or desire to interact with the world around him. He’s very unlikely to make eye contact with you for more than the briefest of moments. He makes people uneasy as they cannot feel anything positive coming from him. He is afraid.
The second person is very different. She has her head up as she takes in her surroundings with relish and delight. She has a smile on her open and welcoming face, she appears radiant and full of energy, and she is always looking for contact with her fellow travellers. She is trusting and friendly and people willingly smile back and hold her twinkling eyes.
What’s the difference? Okay, we cannot read either of these people’s minds, but we can agree they appear to be walking down the same street. One experiences a scary world, the other a trusting world. For now I’m going to assume we’re much more than our body – that is that which we think we are is much bigger. We can call it our spirit, soul, aura, etc. The label matters not.
I call it our bubble of perception and believe it is a key to understanding what is happening to our two examples. I’d like you to you imagine a bubble or field of energy surrounding your body. Got it? Right, good. Now imagine that everything you think you are is encapsulated in this field - all your thoughts, memories, dreams, hopes, fears, emotions, ideals, beliefs, traumas, everything. In our first example of the withdrawn man we can now see he has allowed his bubble to shrink down to such an extent he can barely move. It is so tight around his body he has to bend over and hunch under the pressure. His mind will be a cacophony of insane thoughts, fears and nightmares. This man literally has no room energetically to live or breath. Because his bubble or perception is so small and his armour is so strong he has cut himself off as much as possible from his surroundings and life. This man could literally bump into the woman of his dreams and he would be none the wiser.
Our effervescing young lady, however, is simply HUGE! Her energy field is expanding and expanded. She has so much space in her mind/body field her thoughts have ROOM. She has a quite(er) mind and allows other peoples bubbles to freely intermingle with hers. This is why she makes contact so easily with those she meets on the street. At an other-than-conscious level we’re always communicating, and she is always saying, “Come on in, it’s safe!”
So, the question is, How Do We Go From Him To Her? Well, an awareness of ourselves as an energy being is a start. Some form of meditation is almost essential – at least to begin with – as it helps us expand our sense of self and loosen our grip on our chattering monkey mind. I’d also suggest some form of devotional practice. This can be as simple as giving thanks and being grateful whenever we are aware enough too. Love yourself and love life and you’ll soon find you’re awareness expanding too.
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