Identity

Who I am? What is my purpose? Where do I fit in? Where do I belong? These are the sorts of questions we ask ourselves when trying to figure out how to operate in our daily lives. We go through a long process of assessing our skills, talents, interests, beliefs, etc. with the idea that this will help us find our place in the world. What strikes me this morning about the process is that we are trained to identify ourselves through our separateness instead of our Oneness.

Take the concept of competition. We are taught that competition is a good thing. As a species, we have supposedly survived because of our nature to overcome the elements, the earth, other animals and even other men. This makes us better and stronger. It weeds out the weak. Very often competition becomes a way we rank ourselves so we know where in the pecking order we all stack up.

Another concept we are taught to idealize is the concept of the "self-made" man. Having the ability to create a successful life when starting out with nothing is a very desirable thing. This means you were exceptionally smart and hardworking and had the ability to overcome disadvantage. 

We are also conditioned to identify ourselves through the groups we are part of. You have your religious group (or lack thereof). You have your country, ethnicity, gender, political party, sexual preference, etc. to bond with. However, we are also encouraged to stay within the confines of these groups and oppose any and all who are different. 

While I don't believe these ideas are bad, I do believe they are used to make us focus on our own separateness. The problem lies in the fact that when we are separate we are cut off from our own power, and often this power is placed into the hands of people who have no integrity. Wonder why our world is so screwed up? Look at those who hold our power!!!

Identifying ourselves with Oneness is a very different matter. When we see ourselves as part of everything, we understand that everything we do has consequences. We begin to live with integrity because we understand that the actions we take effect the whole organism. We look for ways we can all succeed, which means cooperation. Instead of using differences to separate ourselves we use our differences to perform all the various useful and necessary functions that help the One thrive.

The outlook we use to frame our identities will ultimately destroy the world or heal it. Choose wisely. The lives we save will be our own.

~CSE