What a strange social climate we are living in these days. Common folk are deciding for each other what we are and are not allowed to discuss. I will not conform to this nonsense.
I care about true equality and balance – not just the façade of equality and balance.
The public is being told that we should only be having conversations about racism at this time. While it is important to have transformative conversations about racism, we cannot limit our conversations to only racism and expect to create equality and balance in our world. Why?
Because racism is but a symptom of a much deeper imbalance within the human condition.
Racism does not exist within the human condition when we are born. It is developed and learned over time, as the human ego develops from birth into adulthood.
The human ego is the aspect of our minds which fears what is different. The ego judges that which it fears. The ego attempts to control situations and people so that it does not have to confront its fears and insecurities.
Here are some examples:
Remember when you started dating a new lover. You wanted to be the apple of his/her eye. Yet, your lover had friends who, by your insecure perspective, seemed more charming, talented, and attractive than you. Remember how threatened you felt when your lover spent time with that attractive friend. Remember how you tried to control situations so your lover would spend as little time as possible with this attractive friend. This is the fearful human ego at work.
The human ego also shows up in parenting. Many parents fear that their children will not be accepted or popular if they are not involved in certain activities. These parents measure the popularity of their children as a reflection of their own worth. Sometimes the children have no interest in participating or excelling in certain activities, but the children fear not gaining parental love and approval, so the children acquiesce to receive your love. This is an example of the ego at work within the minds of parents and children.
The ego is always trying to influence and control situations so we can feel accepted and safe in the world. The ego is always acting out of fear.
The same thing happens in situations of sexism. Men who possess little self-worth and who fear not being loved try to control and manipulate women so they can achieve some sense of power.
The same thing happens in situations of racism. People who feel irrelevant in the world, or who are afraid to face their own insecurities, will label, judge, and control people of other races and ethnicities. This, again, is the fearful ego mind at work.
So, we can talk about racism all we want. We can change our language and our behaviors. But if we have not dealt with the fears that we carry within us, we will still judge people and try to control situations. So while we may appear to be less racist by talking about racism, unless we have dealt with our hidden fears, we will still be contributing to great inequality and imbalance in the collective human experience.
It is time for us to engage in deep self-honesty so we can evolve as a human race.
Equality and balance must first happen within our own minds and hearts. As each individual acknowledges and tames his/her own fear-based behavior, he/she will carry more equality and balance into the world by their very existence.
The first step in taming our fear-based ego behavior is to get honest with ourselves about our specific fears and insecurities.
Here are some questions to ask yourself to begin pruning your mind and heart for a more equal and balanced world:
1.What is my deepest fear in regards to security and safety?
2.How do my fears regarding security and safety affect my daily actions, communications, thoughts, and emotions?
3.What is my deepest fear in regards to being socially accepted or good enough?
4.How do my fears regarding social acceptance affect my daily actions, communications, thoughts, and emotions?
5.What is my deepest fear in regards to being separated or abandoned by those I love?
6.How do my fears regarding separation and abandonment affect my daily actions, communications, thoughts, and emotions?
7.How do these fear-based behaviors and communications affect my relationships in my home?
8.How do these fear-based behaviors and communications affect my relationships in my community?
9.How do these fear-based behaviors, communications, thoughts, and emotions affect the way I feel about myself in relationship with the world?
In the next Ripple, we will discuss how to transform these discoveries into lasting change in your life, to cultivate equality and balance within ourselves and in the world.
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