A Thought Experiment on Confronting the Consciousness of Separation

** Part two of the ‘American Trauma’ series will be posted soon. Meanwhile, please enjoy this thought experiment and tell me what comes up for you. **

At some point, we will have to face the fact that the world isn’t the way it is because of some ‘fate’ or ‘destiny. It’s because of thousands of generations’ worth of individual choices made in single moments over tens of thousands of years. All of us have ancestors that are partially responsible for the way things are now, to some degree or another. Even most religious folks would have to concede that their holy books say so.

None of this is about prophecy or magical manifestation. But, of course, we can use specific spiritual resources to manipulate our perceptions and explanations for what happens to us as individuals and as a collective. For example, in every generation, people say the end of days are near because they can fit the prophecies in the Book of Revelation into what they’re seeing. Just ask the Jehovah’s Witnesses and other doomsayer Evangelicals. But, it still doesn’t change my firm belief that all of this — and I do mean ALL of it — is based on our choices, decisions, actions, inactions. By all of our ancestors and each one of us right now. Including the climate crisis, the political landscape, the pandemic, the global economy, a massive variety of social ills, all of the ‘isms’… all of it.

Much of this has brought us to a point where it is practically impossible for us to fully perceive ourselves as a part of a greater ‘oneness’, which has resulted in a severe lack of empathy and compassion for ‘others’. So how do we acknowledge the gaping wound in our relationship with the rest of nature? Some may say they believe in universal oneness. However, they still act in their selfish interests to ‘prove’ to themselves that they are independent when in actuality, our natural state is interdependence.

Sadly, even people who understand our nature as an interdependent species still struggle with making it work in their internal narratives. Why? Because all the structural systems and social programming tactics that have influenced our perceptions are stacked against us. Therefore, their images create artificial scarcity and a default belief that we are forced to compete against one another for personal survival instead of collaborating for collective equity and prosperity.

We can break these patterns. At the risk of being repetitive, it all boils down to conscious and intentional efforts through our personal choices, decisions, actions, inactions, and self-examinations.

What choices are you making and acting upon at this moment to ensure you aren’t making harmful choices for yourself and others? For example, are you open to new information when told you’re harming another? What reparations do you make when you know harm has occurred?

How often do you examine the unexamined in your life and take an honest and meaningful account of how your choices impact others? Not just people in your life, but everyone in the world, the rest of life on Earth, and the future generations that will inherit from us.

How intentional are you in making decisions and informing yourself on the true nature of their impacts on yourself and others? Do you know what the brands and services you’re giving money to use those funds to support politically, what extractive processes they’re participating in, the supply chains they’re using, what they’re using for packaging, how their employees are treated? What are they giving back?

Now that you’ve made it this far, ask yourself about all of that with full accountability. I invite you to question it each time you reach for an animal product (meat, milk, etc.), ingest a specific ‘alternative’ substance, buy an item from the $1 store, purchase new clothing, express your opinions publicly, are asked for help by another, make your next financial investment, begin or end a friendship/relationship, speak about another in their absence, choose your next career or apply for a new job, or otherwise participate in any other forms of consumption and socialization. No excuses, spiritual bypass, or rationalization. You don’t even need to judge yourself, simply examine it and be radically honest. It’s true that not all forms of harm can be avoided because our whole society is dependent on them for the time being, like fossil fuels, for instance.

I challenge each of us to do this for a month and see what happens.

Are you up for it?

Especially those who claim to believe in universal consciousness, those who think that they’re ‘fighting for freedoms’ or donate to causes and movements. The ones who say ‘we are all one’ and believe that ‘thoughts and prayers’ are good enough. I’m challenging you to look at all of this for a whole month and see what comes up for you. HONESTLY. What is the difference between the inner voice that tells you to stop doing something because you’re hurting yourself and the voices of others in the collective that speak it to you in the physical part of that ‘oneness’ and ‘collective consciousness?

I want to know. What if we discover that there is no God and no central source of consciousness outside of ourselves, and it’s been us all along? What if it is all a part of the mind of a greater collective consciousness, and we are its subconscious psyche? Does that change your decisions?

If you’re still with me, take three minutes to close your eyes, take a few deep breaths, inhaling love, and exhaling gratitude. During those three minutes, ponder these thoughts while reflecting just on your day up to this point and the decisions, choices, actions, and inactions you’ve taken so far. Then, please share a meaningful comment on your reflections and what came up for you.

May you all be blessed and be a blessing to all.

If you liked this article, please don’t forget to give it a ‘clap’, consider subscribing for updates, and I’m always grateful for financial gestures of gratitude for my writings and thought experiments. ❤️