Discernment

Awareness gives me the power of discernment, and so the capacity for choice - to witness how life has unfolded in front of me, to judge whether it is desirable, and to choose whether or not to flow with it.

In a state of ignorance I automatically flowed with it, incapable of judging whether it was good or bad for me (ie whether it would diminish my suffering or add to it).

The consequence of awareness of Self is now the temptation to ask ‘what do I want?’ - but is this not the wrong question, as it’s putting the Ego self first? It’s an understandable inclination to have, given the awareness of Self, but ultimately is it not folly, as the Self is derived from a sense of separation?

With an acceptance of Self, but not a need to indulge it, the question then becomes, ‘will this make life better?’ - this is instead inviting alignment with the flow of life unfolding, towards the diminishment of unnecessary suffering, moving closer to a state of bliss.

When blind to limitations I go with the flow of life unfolding unquestioningly. When aware of limitations, I begin to make decisions of whether I want to go with the flow or not, but am still limited by a sense of ‘I want’. When aware of limitations but not limited by them I accept the natural flow unfolding and discern how to flow with it in a way that minimises unnecessary suffering (for all those involved, not just for myself) rather than adding to it.

The problem is you need to train yourself to be self aware. This isn’t easy, as we act automatically - unconscious programming runs the show. So we need to slow things down. We need to consciously process what our unconscious has already processed and decided to do in response. This takes time. To analyse what has occurred (the actuality of what has transpired, not the skewed perception of it through the lens of the Ego) and to fully understand it, subject and object, and the relationship that exists between them - to comprehend all aspects fully.

To do this: repeat consciously what has transpired so you give yourself conscious processing time; acknowledge all components and the relationship between them; discern what is best not solely for you, but for the situation to move away from unnecessary suffering.

Rather than considering what it is you want (‘I want.. eg to help people), consider what is your role in the unfolding of life in this moment away from unnecessary suffering. Ask not what you want, but whether your service is wanted, and if so then how you can serve.

Awakening

Before the process of awakening begins there exists the state of ignorance to limitations, and as such the illusion of freedom.

As awakening takes hold the illusion begins to shatter and the awareness of limitation takes its place, which can cause a sense of despair and a feeling of being lost, uncertain of what takes the place of that erroneous certainty.

As the sense of awakening grows, then comes the illusion of being awakened, pitying or patronising others for not being able to see their ill-formed illusions, and perhaps even wanting to inform them of the limitations they’re failing to see - to ‘help’ them; this is often met with anger by those not ready to have their sense of self, their foundation of existence, brought into question or disrepute.

This stage of spiritual superiority is, ironically, a state of limitation itself, and is unable to be witnessed until expansion into a more awakened state.

After this, at some point, comes acceptance - to not seek to change another, nor to show them how awakened you are, but to see and accept them for who they are at that moment in time, and to enjoy that relationship with them from a place of awareness conscious of limitations, but not feeling limited by them - to want nothing from them, nor anything for them, only to experience the moment with them if invited.

Kindness

Whilst the experience of suffering exists, the universe itself doesn’t exist in terms of good and evil - these are human constructs imposed onto existence.

Suffering is a natural consequence of living in an existence governed by change; good and evil are qualities resulting from the human capacity for self-consciousness.

Self-consciousness is different to self-criticism - self-consciousness is the awareness of oneself and one’s action, whereas self-criticism is judgement of oneself and one’s actions. Self-consciousness, then, isn’t a bad thing inherently - it just is. But with this capacity for awareness, might we be able to find definitions for ‘good’ and ‘bad’ from it?

We have the ability to discern whether our actions will cause/are causing unnecessary suffering. So perhaps evil is choosing to add to the inevitable suffering of existence unnecessarily, when bestowed the capability to be aware of one’s actions?

An action that causes suffering with the understanding that it will do so is different to one done without - this is the difference between malevolence and ignorance. Perhaps, then, kindness or ‘good’ is an act done with the intention of alleviating or diminishing suffering?

You have within you the power to impact the world around you - what impact you make is a choice influenced by awareness.