What Does it Take to Become Conscious of Your Truth?
One of the things I hear is that, while this way of Conscious Parenting and Living sounds very exciting, and promising, and something that most people want for their children, it also sounds like a long and overwhelming journey because of the the unconditioning, unlearning, and dismantling we’ve got to do in order to understand this new way of thinking.
I felt that way too. Whenever we learn anything new, especially of this caliber, it can feel exhausting! But a large part of what we experience to be overwhelming is a limitation that we have created for ourselves through false beliefs and conditioning.
So if we are the cause of our suffering, then can it be true that we are also the cause of our liberation through freedom and new beliefs?
In reality, a shift in consciousness happens very quickly. It’s commitment and will that takes us to the next moment, and when the truth is channeled in a powerful way, a person’s authentic truth awakens rapidly. I know this to be true because I’ve worked with people who have experienced it, and have experienced this myself. It’s really fast!
Whether or not we do anything about that truth is a different conversation, but the shift in consciousness – the unveiling of the causes and effects and conditioning – happens from moment to moment. And yes, it can feel uncomfortable; but raising your consciousness doesn’t take much time at all.
And finding your truth behind everything else has the capacity to relieve your mental suffering.
Dr. Shefali says that our mental suffering is caused by our formless nature (our spirit) and our human (physical) form being in eternal conflict.
By that, she means that they are direct opposites. Our human form has a limit, while our formless nature is limitless.
How do we know?
Well, without being too esoteric, let me ask you: do you ever wonder where we came from? Do you ever wonder who created the human experience, or whether there is a universal intelligence beyond our physical form?
You may have heard some wisdom teachings refer to this as ‘source energy’, the limitless and boundless energy or intelligence that creates all of nature, animals, and the human form. This energy exists outside of our physical form and is invisible to our naked eye.
Even if you haven’t ever wondered about this; for the context of this conversation, can you be okay with allowing for this concept?
It helps us, because we can then visualize the human form as being not all that we are. If there is such an energy, then that intelligence is where we came from. It’s within us. Some of us refer to this as our spirit or soul, and others as the god within us. However you refer to it is fine. I think what’s most important is that we recognize its truth.
Because when we do, we understand that it exists within us, whether it’s beyond our comprehension or not. It’s limitless, boundless, beyond whatever is happening in form. And simply by knowing we came from it, we know that we ourselves are limitless, boundless, and beyond the restrictions of form.
If we disregard that concept, then we are left with the world of form and all of its limitations. And that’s where we create mental suffering.
There seems to be slight relief in knowing this. However, because we’ve only known the world of form, there may be newfound anxiety in not knowing how to live with the concept of formlessness. This new way of living is what I teach, live, and am still learning.
So what does this new way feel like?
When we only exist in the world of form, we’re disconnected from the limitless part of us and weighed down by the limits of the identities and labels we’ve been given and applied to ourselves.
There is a sense of freedom in thinking of ourselves as limitless; that we’re not limited by what those identities say about who we should be or act like.
However, the idea of being limitless or formless is like swimming or riding a bike for the first time. You feel helpless and powerless because of the infinite possibilities of the unknown. It’s new. You’re not only worried that you may never figure out who you really are, but you’re also worried it may take a really long time for you to learn to think of yourself as limitless. And because the idea is so far from the mainstream and what we’ve been taught, it can feel lonely and isolating, since so few others will think as you are starting to learn how to do.
But the moment you learn how to acknowledge both parts of yourself, you’ve shifted; just like when you learn to float in the water or balance on a bike. You may not yet know everything you can do, but that shift can feel light and energize you to want to learn more. That energy alone will carry you into your next step.
It’s a journey, though. Just like a tree doesn’t grow overnight, or a baby doesn’t grow in your womb overnight, your rise in consciousness happens over time.
If you’re listening to this, there is a sense of you that believes that. Be patient with yourself, because what you believe is your intuition speaking your truth.
If you’re around my age, you’ve been living this way of life for over 30-40 years. As infants, we were born into families that were only attached to form. They were disconnected from their formless nature. When we entered family systems who are mired in form – where there was duality between “good and bad” ways of being and doing things – we, too, disconnected from our limitless selves. This disconnection between our true limitless self and limited self over many years created the unworthiness and mental suffering we experience today.
But what if we could live in a world where we knew how to do both?
What if we lived a life where we could integrate both our form and our formless selves?
Our spirit and our human forms?
Is this something that intrigues you? If so, what are your thoughts?
