Are you familiar with this quote from Deepak Chopra? “People are doing the best that they can from their own level of consciousness.” He seems to be inviting us to have patience with each other and understand the inherent limitations of all people, ourselves included.
If it is true that our possibilities are limited by our level of consciousness, and I believe that it is, it begs the question, is it possible to raise our level of consciousness? Can we expand our awareness to gain access to greater truths and higher states of being?
These are not small questions!
I believe it is possible to expand our consciousness, but not by the usual means used to achieve a goal. In the quest to lose weight, get organized, or reduce debt, there are action steps involved; specific tasks to be carried out in order to attain our desire. Follow the steps, achieve the goal.
In the case of consciousness, it doesn’t work that way.
A story is told of an enthusiastic young monk, determined to gain enlightenment. Brimming with eagerness, he approached the master. “Master, if I meditate 5 hours a day how long will it take me to reach enlightenment?” The teacher responded, “10 years.” Thinking this far too long to wait, the student then asked, “How long will it take if I meditate 10 hours per day?” The master responded, “Twenty years.” The very act of striving pushes it away.
So is there nothing we can do? I believe there is. The following are ideas gleaned from over a decade of study and are by no means conclusive, but perhaps, a good starting place to increase our level of consciousness:
First, have the intention to expand your level of consciousness. It may seem too simple, but intentions are powerful. Just floating it out there to the Universe that you would appreciate a higher level of consciousness sets unseen wheels in motion.
Another step is to bring greater awareness to the thoughts in your mind. Tune into that incessant voice in your head that is always talking, going on about what we’ve messed up, what others have messed up, or about how likely it is we will mess up in the future. When we are not aware of those thoughts, when we can’t recognize them for what they are, we are unconscious. However when we can create a space between the thoughts themselves and ourselves as the observer, we no longer are that voice. From that place of detachment, we can choose to not believe the thought. That indeed, is a point of power.
Lastly, look for connection. Much pain is caused in the world by seeing ourselves as being separate from each other and the world around us. Any spiritual teacher worth her salt will tell you we are all connected; we are each a thread in the web of life. Connection is the truth, not isolation, and the more we can sense the pulse of Life that connects us all, the more our limitations will dissolve and our consciousness increase.
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