Consciousness: It controls everything

I was recently in Breckenridge, a town in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, where the elevation is about 9,600 feet (2,926 metres). The mountain rises to an incredible 12,998 feet and we have had to be a bit careful about the thin air. I have been thinking about consciousness, which is a habit of mine. With Shivaratri just around the corner, further clarity about this fascinating subject has revealed itself.

Like the air in the mountains, which is thin and hard to operate within, so it is that really expanded levels of consciousness take some getting used to. Living in peace, feeling love for all, finding joy wherever we are, being fulfilled by simple things, being kind, forgiving and compassionate is not natural to us, in this time of Kali Yuga when astral gravity keeps us mainly operating in more mediocre fields of consciousness. When challenged by negative situations or people, we naturally tend towards being cynical, judgmental, critical, self-absorbed, selfish and sceptical.

It is the age we live in. We even get frightened of what expansion of consciousness might mean for us. Who will we be? What will seem real? What will be destroyed as lower consciousness caves in and higher mind takes over? Who will we be, what will happen to our priorities? What will our world look like? This becomes particularly strong just before we have a spiritual lift and shift. It is like a dark night of the soul before the blazing glory of grace takes root inside of us.

Genuine kindness is an example of higher consciousness. When we let it permeate our entire life, we find that we are in a field of added vulnerability compared to when we do not practice kindness. For instance, people might take us for granted, or use us. Yes, that is true they might. But if we have also learned self-love and the art of spiritual discernment, then such an outcome is far less likely. When we can confidently operate from a paradigm of kindness then the world starts to transform. It is hardest at the beginning when we embark upon such an exploration, but the more we practice it, the easier it gets to maintain it with peace, joy and fulfilment.

What are we letting in, what are we moving towards, and what are the sacrifices we are making to do so? We are all in motion so far as consciousness is concerned. Some are unwittingly trashing their consciousness, becoming more and more boxed into the lower ends of the spectrum through their choices, while others are climbing the mountain, even though the air is thin and it is harder to operate in that environment until you get used to it.

Shakti Durga