We are witnessing the birth of a new spiritual movement, one that touches us all and will forever change our sense of self and our relationship with life. Every journey begins with a first step, and as we begin this journey together, I feel an awareness come over me, of how delicate this first step is.
Every human being is a unique individual, and our true nature is to express this uniqueness fully. We are also social beings, and our shared connection with each other is an equally important aspect of who we truly are. Because of this, our ability to grow as individuals is intimately linked with our willingness to support the uniqueness of everyone.
Here we see that, both individually and collectively, humanity's evolutionary path is defined by how we choose to treat each other. Do we thrive, by honoring our true nature as individuals and by fully supporting each other, or do we struggle to survive, by competing against each other for the basic necessities of life, such as access to food, water, and shelter, and the opportunity to live our truth openly? Advancing beyond mere survival into a higher state of being, by choosing to fully honor both our individual nature and our social nature, is the essence of conscious evolution.
Clearly, humanity has not yet evolved to the point of fully supporting the uniqueness of every individual. This simple fact lies at the heart of our new spiritual awakening. It reveals an opportunity, one that has the potential to reverse an ancient downward spiral of conformity, and transform it into an upward spiral of creative self expression.
Until now, many of us have believed that compromise, self sacrifice, and some amount of suppressing our individuality were all necessary for creating a functional society. This is the downward spiral of conformity, and it couldn't be further from the truth. In reality, we create society by giving of ourselves, and the more we are able to express our uniqueness fully, the more we have to give. The key element of our social transformation, the seed crystal of enlightenment that sparks this new way of life into being, is the realization that everything begins with self.
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As life energy flows through our being, it produces a unique, tangible feeling in each of us. This energy responds to our thoughts, words, and actions, and can be felt on the physical, mental, and emotional levels. When we act in alignment with our true nature, by expressing our uniqueness fully and by honoring our connection with each other, this flow of life energy increases. When we deviate from our true nature, by suppressing our individuality or by violating the free will of anyone, the flow decreases. In this way, life itself is continuously providing us with guidance and support, on the feeling level, by showing us when we are and when we are not living in alignment with our true nature.
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The Gentle Path is a way of life that leads to self discovery. It is the path illuminated by our heart's desire, and every step is an act of free will. The first step on this path is both the simplest and the most personal; it is connecting with how we feel, right now, in the present moment.
The reason why this first step is so delicate is because we were all born into a conformist society, and many of us have temporarily lost this basic ability to connect with how we feel. Instead, we have retreated into the mind by developing coping techniques that shield us from the pressures of the outer world. While these techniques are essential tools for living in the downward spiral, they are a deviation from our true nature, and they do cause a tangible reduction in the flow of life energy through our being.
When we are ready to fully embrace our true nature, and continue on our evolutionary path, we must be willing to release all of our shields, physical, mental, and emotional. Otherwise, we are actively blocking the flow of life energy through our being. Equally important, we must also be willing to identify the people we care about the most, the activities we enjoy the most, and the places we feel most comfortable, and do everything we can to be with these people, in these places, participating in these activities as much as possible. This is how we actively invite life energy to flow through our being. This is spiritual development.
And here we see why our journey takes the form of the Gentle Path, and why feeling is so important. It is only by moving away from the pressure of conformity or the emptiness of abandonment, and into the nurturing space of creativity and support, that we can safely release our shields and express our uniqueness fully. This method of navigating our way through life, by moving toward the attractive and away from the repulsive, can only be accomplished when we allow ourselves to be guided by feeling.
When we do successfully reestablish a natural flow of life energy through our being, many higher aspects of self, such as our inner senses of empathy and telepathy, become fully activated, and we resume the process of evolving beyond human. For this to occur, we need to be supported fully as individuals, and we must be willing to create a society that fully honors the uniqueness of everyone. This process of nurturing our own development, by choosing to fully honor the uniqueness of both ourselves and each other, is the Gentle Path, and it has brought us here.