Honesty has the power to show us the real meaning of life. It has the power therefore to cleanse this world, and cause a great shift in public and private policy, one that is focused not on the artificial values of egotism and war, but upon the universal values of evolution and spiritual gain. Honesty shows us the truth, and it is ONLY the truth that can save us now. Yet it’s not nearly enough to just know truth, for even in gaining full knowledge a person can still consciously reject, ignore or deny the facts. The learned people of this world are NOT those who are best poised to rescue the human condition from itself. Only those who are honest can do that, even if their knowledge is limited, for in that honesty is the key to real action. People think that technology will save us, but they are mistaken. All the knowledge of the universe contained in the highest of technologies, cannot preserve a humanity that is both corrupted and dishonest, as technology is only as useful as the level of wisdom with which it is employed. College degrees represent only the potential for right action, just as a heap of bricks has the potential to become a useful building. But in each case the presence of a tool, be it knowledge or a building material, in no way guarantees successful architecture...only the honest observance of the natural laws which govern the cosmos can accomplish that. Without honesty then, we are not capable of dealing with truth at face value, and for that reason alone, it doesn’t really matter how much we know.

It may come as a surprise to most people, that we’ve been lied to about almost everything. Most of the social teachings to which we are expected to unquestioningly adhere, turn out to be misconceptions at best, and outright frauds at worst. Only by shining a truthful light on the issues of our day, are the full potentials of human achievement ever realized. Truth is our only real teacher. Everything else we learn in life is illusory and impermanent by comparison. But the modern mind is ever bogged down in the illusions of the marketplace, of religious misconceptions, and in all, self imposed limitations. To transcend this quagmire of the bogus, it is extremely useful to identify and clearly recognize what is false. To obtain truth we must not only know where to look, but also where NOT to look. This takes the courage to question everything most people take for granted, only to find out that most of our social norms are based on the lies of scoundrels clothed in suit and tie. Humanity has invested itself in the insanity of believing that what is convenient or profitable is more important than what is real.

By re-evaluating our trusted social teachers, (parents, school teachers, employers, friends, clergy, co-workers) and comparing their message to the objective truth, we may well be shocked to find that the two rarely coincide. The essential question to ask is then revealed....were these teachers truly noble and worthy of our respect, or were they merely the puppets of media insanity, faulty social norms or unquestioned traditions, who have allowed misconception to be handed down from one generation to the next? Real teachers speak of questioning everything, not of blindly accepting things as they are. Real students ask more than what is handed to them on the established curriculum.

Real change will likely be too difficult for the vast majority, who imagine they can still put off the truth in favor of social misconceptions, (such as pre-emptive war is good, only we are God’s “chosen” people, death and taxes are the only certainties in life, Jesus died on the cross for our sins, we have all the time in the world to change, buy now-pay later at 0% interest, and other such nonsense). It takes brutal honesty to expose the faulty intentions, and even lack of sanity of close loved ones, religious leaders, worshipped experts and authority figures. The discomfort of realization that one’s life is based on arbitrary beliefs, with no deep meaning or value, (consumerism, patriotism, religion, materialism) may be just too overwhelming for most modern humans.

But the fact remains that we were not born incompetent, unwise or unintelligent...these traits are socially learned behaviors, which were passed down to us from the above-mentioned sources.. They are the direct result of unquestioned beliefs, faulty thinking, illogic, insincerity, misconception and self serving politics. It is only the fool who questions nothing, calling that “being a good citizen”, when in fact the continued willingness to participate in the consumer, fast food, weekend-spirituality world, whose primary motive is greed and insane indulgence, will be the destruction of us all. Those who refuse to question this participation are doomed to keep making the same mistakes over and over again, until that is, the Earth can no longer sustain the lunacy of TV-ad human kind. But wishful thinking doesn’t change the absolute necessity of thorough self inquiry. The wise know this to be true, just as they know the ostrich isn’t safe simply because it sticks it’s head in the sand.

The Truth doesn’t care how anyone feels about Reality. It just doesn’t matter what our reaction to reality is, what matters are the actions we now take to avert what will surely be a global calamity of unheard-of proportions. Nature couldn’t care less if in the end analysis, humanity is unfit for further evolutionary growth, if for no other reason than the refusal to change. Let me further state that until one becomes an objective observer of life and self with total detachment, (and a yearning for the Truth) there is no chance for a competent assessment of Reality. Yet Reality exists beyond modern conceptions, like it or not. Truth is NOT something we make up, regardless of popular belief. The popular phrase, “Creating our own reality” does not mean we wave the magic wand of our imagination and everything is “made OK”. It means that as responsible, knowledgeable and most of all, HONEST spiritual practitioners, it is within our power to change our world according to the natural laws which created it to start with, not according to convenience and whim..

It is common knowledge that to create we must first destroy, and this is but one example of a natural law. To create a truly progressive and new world out of the lies of past eras, it is necessary to debunk those lies. In their place we can build the lasting structures of a natural society. This implies that not only must we challenge EVERYTHING which has been supplied to us as the motives for living, (financial “success”, egotism, cut-throat competition, valuing materialistic “things over people, etc.) we must also challenge the teachers of those lies. Now many may say, “Oh I know my mother, father, government, grandparent, church, uncle, etc. were quite “eccentric” or “nutty”, or “too strict or wrong” in a number of ways, “but they were good people anyway”. Perhaps, but being “good people” is beside the point...the point here is to not give any lie more credence than it is due, simply because it was told by a respected figure.

Knowing and realizing the truth in order to incorporate real change, are two entirely different things. Knowledge and wisdom are as distinctly different, as is reading all about riding a bicycle and actually getting on one. It is a fact that people do not acquire wisdom until they apply knowledge. Application implies a change in daily lifestyle, not just lip service or recycling a few aluminum cans, (token action). Wisdom is therefore the act of truly experiencing knowledge and applying it every day. Applying something every day is what defines the word, “lifestyle”, and our actual lifestyle is what will save us, not a one-day-a-week spirituality, or the occasional volunteer work. Mere knowledge of facts are not true realizations until you apply what you know as a daily practice, and as a matter of conscious decision. Anything less is just insincerity.

It is not difficult to recognize that the modern goals and practices of consumerism, for instance, are about as askew from the natural reality, as is eating the plastic wrappers of packaged food while throwing away the contents. In other words, wisdom and real spirituality for that matter, are the practical applications of FACTS, which bring about needed change. There is nothing theoretical about wisdom or real spirituality. They are both a life lived not empty promises made, or over-educated theories endlessly debated. “Right action” as it has been called, is focused on the growth and progressiveness of rightly applied natural laws. That means following the patterns already set up by nature with a respect for all living things, as well as the natural order which sustains us all. Right action is composed of truth and a responsibility for reality, in the context of the Cosmic Order. Without that Order we would not exist, nor would the evolution of life of any kind. So too would the technologies of science not function without natural laws. Very simply, recognizing seriously and consciously that the universe has laws of operation, with purposes FAR beyond that of human self-indulgence, is what will ensure our survival. Not taking these seriously will result in our collective death, and in the meantime, our personal, inevitable misery. It is essential then, for each of us to personally understand the workings of life beyond a mere analysis of its’ chemical components or economic value, to a level of wise understanding that includes the spiritual advancement of all.

To give you some idea of what we are referring to by the words “natural laws”, here are some highlights;

  1)    EVOLUTION

Evolution is that process of natural law which constantly seeks to improve old forms, making them both increasingly capable and richly diverse. It is the guiding force of all life as the sentience of Nature, (some call this “God”) which acts through the medium of atoms and molecules in higher and higher forms of _expression. Accelerating further evolution is our spiritual purpose on Earth, but we have in essence, “neglected our office” and are paying a heavy price for it.

  2)   EFFICIENCY

Everything in nature is efficient, or in other words, the opposite of wasteful. Needless to say, modern society is anything but efficient. That which is efficient accomplishes the most while using the least amount of energy.

  3)    PRACTICALITY

Practicality is a natural law which implies logical thinking and right action. It means making the best use of the resources at hand. It’s a word that used to be nearly synonymous with the phrase “common sense”, (but there is no such thing as “common sense” any more). These three are but a few examples.

Truth allows old ways to be changed for the betterment of self and all life. Needless to say, it does this for the sake of a higher cause than mere egotism and the greed of television ads. But we have become a society that doesn’t really want to resolve anything. As a culture we would like to believe that nothing is wrong with our lifestyle or our view of reality. This is evident in the “self first” attitude of almost everyone’s daily lives, as well as most government policies. People don’t want to hear that they’re living a lie. In fact, they would rather live a lie simply because the neighbors are doing it, rather than realizing that no one benefits from unreal values, regardless of how many others are lying to themselves in the same way. Six billion people CAN be wrong! For if humankind were really out to resolve social problems there would be little to no world hunger, corrupt governments, bloated military spending or child abuse, to just name a few, (we certainly have been around long enough to learn from past experiences, while living more cooperatively.) Yet true resolution is just not a top priority for today’s citizens and governments... only the facade of public approval is considered, while behind the scenes an entirely different scenario is played out, one that is concealed from the public view. This scene is known as “business as usual”, and by another name, “corruption”.

Materialism and consumerism are both fancy names for the paranoia brought about by a sense of profound lack. In essence, who else but the extremely insecure feel they need to hoard surplus physical energy in a variety of material things? They are both spiritually bankrupt, and those who believe in them are driven insane.

A corrupted view of reality is also evident through modern psychotherapy. Rather than really addressing the cause of chronic stress and mental disorder, it is fashionable now to just throw a handful of pills at the problem, (Claritin, Celebrex, Prozac, Vallium, Zoloft, Aricept, Zelnorm and a legion of others) while having the audacity to call that, “stress management”. In the same superficial vein we have psychotherapy, which can take 5 - 20 years of doctor-client relations, (or more) to “work things out”. while offering no real change. The same may be said of groups like “AA” and other support structures, whose main emphasis is the prolongation of self-pitying mental illness, so as to keep the organization itself looking useful. But very rarely do these institutions actually CURE anything, and this is not hard to understand...they don‘t aim to “cure” anything, they only avoid causes and cover up symptoms.

The question is not, “Why are so many people so mentally ill or stressed out?” the question to ask is whether or not the premises of psychotherapy and society as a whole are THEMSELVES in error. Realize this... It is society itself which is mentally ill, far more so than any one person. Ritalin is now dispensed to schoolchildren like candies, (“DARE” to say no to drugs, but only those that are deemed UNPROFITABLE by the pharmaceuticals) under the idea that they have some kind of “attention deficit”. Extending this absurdity to extremes, we now hear about “A.D.D. “ or “Attention Deficit Disorder” for adults, which sounds very much like calling deadly pollution, “C. I. B. S.” or “Chronic Industrial Byproduct Syndrome”. Why not just call these things for what they really are...deadly pollution and too much television? In the case of Ritalin for children, did it ever occur to most people that no one in their right mind would find modern “educational” curriculum interesting? Is it designed to be?

For the most part, NO. Is it designed for the benefit of individual enlightenment, or spirit-killing conformity and corporate conditioning? I think you know the answer. Did it ever occur to anyone that children are having trouble because they are being psychologically manipulated by unscrupulous TV content, corporate-oriented schooling and wrong social teachings? There’s nothing wrong with these children...it is society that is dead wrong, and which needs to be corrected. Did anyone ever stop to consider why it is that anti-depressant drugs are now so common? These represent an annual, multi-billion dollar industry, one which has no intention of EVER making people well, (this would imply a loss of profits). It is instead assumed that mental illness is the norm, and the best we can hope for as individuals is to be “normalized”, (forced to fit in, by believing the lies of society like everybody else). Perhaps a very small percentage of patients can better “deal” with their issues and problems, (most with the “help” of medication). But how many truly clear away the core issues of distress, (the modern work week and artificial values) and live in a more progressive way? How many can be called “truly enlightened” rather than merely, “useful citizens”, (read organic robots)? How truly useful is a citizen who never questions corruption, stupid social values and artificiality, anyway?

I would like to ask the reader to ponder this: What would an alien from another world say about the planet Earth at the hands of the human species? Just think about that for a moment....all the beliefs and concepts we take for granted without question...how useful are they really? Do they really improve life, or is everyone on the verge of a nervous breakdown or medical emergency? Honestly, an alien would see our social norms as bizarre, insane, stupid and absolutely self destructive. In fact, they are. Materialism, consumerism and egotism are all the byproducts of wrong social values, peddled by corporate advertising, government speech writers and other lunatics of every description. Consumerism is a belief system, a cult, one that requires it’s followers like those of any religion, to have faith in the ridiculous idea that happiness or fulfillment of ANY kind, can be canned and bottled in factories, and made available to you, “for a limited time only”.

Like the average television commercial, such faith would be laughable if it wasn’t so tragic. It’s results are deforestation, species extinctions by the hundreds of thousands, mass starvation, disease and global warming, and all for the sake of trying to be as “glamorous” as the ads and magazine articles tell us to be! Given this, let us live for something much higher than the fast buck and a smug corporate handshake...how about spiritual growth through honesty, love and clarity for a change? Is the destruction of ourselves through ulcers, heart attacks and strokes, worth a huge bank account? Is the destruction of our species and most, if not all life on Earth, worth greater corporate profit margins and “boosted investor confidence”? We each know what the sane answer is, but the sane answer is not the one we can expect from the corporate world, is it? The answer here is, “DON’T participate in that world!”.

By “don’t participate” I mean finding every way possible to live in a more efficient, logical and healthy manner. That implies a PRACTICAL lifestyle of few unnecessary luxuries, yet retaining all the necessities...in essence, our need is to return to a far simpler way of life, one that puts the welfare of the planet that supports us first. I’m talking about an Earth-based spirituality, where life and love are placed well ahead of fancy clothes, egotism and titles. Eating natural foods, focusing on health rather than the symptoms of disease, living cheaply in a vehicle, using herbal remedies and vitamins rather than prescriptions, using logic rather than sales slogans to think with, meditating rather than wondering what’s going on, are a few places to start. [See the “Chakra Meditation” at the World Mind Society website at http://www.eoni.com/~visionquest]

What we need to do as individuals is to finally conclude, after all this intense and honest questioning, that not only is society on a losing streak, so is everyone who willingly participates in it. It’s not for winners, it is the very definition of “loser”. A truly successful person is one who knows fulfillment is made possible only through self realization, who works with nature and understands the purpose of life. That purpose has nothing to do with corporate greed, a fancy new car, a nice tie, glowing lip stick, or a 6-8 digit bank account. It has to do with spiritual understanding, the expansion of consciousness and happiness, as well as the wisdom to know what is truly good for all life, and what is not. THESE are the conclusions of the questioning, intelligent mind with regard to modern society. What that means in terms of actually making a change in lifestyle and the values which underlie it, is that we MUST reject modern society and it’s faulty, insane notions. That means rejecting consumerism, materialism, nationalism, fundamentalism and every other form of social insanity invented by imbalanced human minds, over the last several millennia.

An example of what to reject; A recent television ad by a company called “Lending Tree” speaks of “consolidating your debts”. It portrays this smiley imbecile with a blank look on his face, riding around on his lawn mower, saying sarcastically over and over again, “somebody save me” from his wonderful 4 bedroom house, new car and fine furniture, for which he gleefully reports, “I’m up to my eyeballs in debt”. This “happy”, (and probably drugged) slave doesn’t understand that he’s going to spend the rest of his adult life paying off these indulgences for the sake of showing off to the neighbors, with little to show for it except high blood pressure, high cholesterol and high denial, inevitably leading to a case of alzheimers and chronic fatigue syndrome, “enjoyed” in the nearest rest home. And that’s assuming the world even lasts that long, with such idiots as these running the planet.

Then we’re faced with government scandals...like the lies told for the sake of creating unnecessary wars, just so that defense contractors can get richer making bombs, while justifying waste and fraud of all kinds in the HUNDREDS OF BILLIONS. Movie actors, (Arnold Swarzenegger) and talk show hosts, (Jerry Springer) run for important government positions, with a good chance of success simply because people know their faces, while the issues of HOW we should run the government go completely unaddressed. We get the entire world news in a single minute on the average news broadcast, while yet another ten minutes are used up talking about Tobe Bryant and his sex scandal and the “immorality” of gay marriages, another 6 minutes about the weather, 8 minutes on sports and of course, 5 minutes of commercials. Meanwhile nobody talks about the immorality of pre-emptive war, or breaking in peoples’ doors in the middle of the night in Baghdad. What does this tell you about the values of this society?

Who cares? You tell me.

Disconnect from all that madness as soon as possible...

Sandi Hunter spellscaster9@yahoo.com
Matthew Webb Visionquest@eoni.com

For further reading on an alternative lifestyle to consumerism and self destruction, See the Survivalist’s Guide For the New Millennium in the WMS Library at: http://www.eoni.com/~visionquest

 

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