I agree with you, Charles. Part 4 stood out for me too. It describes a life (75 years) that I have lived and understand fairly well. I would greatly oversimplify it with these words; the end does not justify the means. The means IS the end. You flesh it out well by articulating so many of the details.
Profound, Charles, thanks. This essay reminds me of Claude Levi-Strauss' idea of structuralism, my interpretation of which is if two structures act the same, even if they are meant to signify opposites, then finally they are the same. Even while condemning each other. I have tasted this myself in the medical freedom movement. I'm 100% behind the unmasking of Fauci, Pfizer, Moderna and their craven enablers. I'm perfectly aware of the damage mainstream media has caused by censoring and silencing voices of truth. Yet when those same voices are welcomed on so-called right-wing media -- ironically (or by design?) the only ones who will have them -- they become victims of guilt by association. They are saying "yes" from reason, not from heart. Because many of those same media personalities have made a career out of encouraging racism and white supremacism. I can't stand the pillorying of those of us condemned to being not pure enough, as when for example I believe the climate crisis is real. Your essay seems to be saying that the urge to follow a Party line comes from deep inside the psyche. I find it hard to disagree.
Something I tend to say is, "What do you want to do with the people who will always disagree with you?" If the answer involves harming them or controlling them in some way, well, it's the wrong answer.
Brilliant essay, Charles. You put into words - elegantly - some thoughts that had been rolling and bouncing in my brain in recent weeks. I unsubscribed from several Substacks over the weekend, for reasons that you elucidate: there is too much tribalism in our "resistance". We repeat the same points about what "they" have done and we all agree that they are "evil" and make plans to fight them in their courts by their rules and it all just seems like a big club, and, well... I've never really been a "joiner". I want to meet the people who are off on their own. You, though: you make me think. I think I'll stick around here.
Loving the dialogue. This jumps out: "What we want to participate in is bigger than any organization could be." Well, there's an understatement! And, it's a bit misleading, although this may just be semantic quibbling on my part. So ... aren't we already participating? Our hearts are beating, aren't they? The Grand Deception is that we have to create something. Nope. Nature abides. God (by whatever name) is in firmly loving control (whether we believe in Him/Her/It or not). It's more about waking up to the reality of what Big Brother counterfeits seek to replace. Good luck with that! Love will prevail, as it always does... just takes time. Speaking of waking up, where's the third pill? I love The Matrix but why wasn't there another option beyond going back to sleep or waking up to the horror? How about waking up to the Beauty? The true, eternal brotherhood/sisterhood, whatever we choose to call it, is already here and has always been here. I can feel your hearts beating with mine right now and I know that we love each other! That's the norm not an ideal to fight for.
"Speaking of waking up, where's the third pill? I love The Matrix but why wasn't there another option beyond going back to sleep or waking up to the horror? How about waking up to the Beauty?" Good point. So black and white. Two options, over and over again. It's difficult to break out of the dualism. How about a 4th and 5th and 6th option?
If you want the blue pill then all the other pills look red. That's the first choice. Once you take the red pill then you will have to chose again and again. One step at a time.
wow. lovely. keep sharing your hope! i'm not in a hopeful place at the moment but for the first 47 years of my life i never doubted or wavered that good would always rule my life...and it did! i'm shocked that the quarantines and the surge in "wins" for Big Pharma knocked the wind out of me. i'm striving to look elsewhere. to look at people; the ones close to me where my reality exists...but the fear of injustice keeps creeping in via public school and fighting my (and all) children. that's not my job, though. God has Beauty for us all.
You're right. This is a challenging time. So it goes with the hero's journey... the second act is the struggle part. But we eventually emerge, bringing the gifts we gained during our underworld travels. Keep the faith!
Hi Will, that's what I'm grappling with too. How to access that love deeply enough and to keep reaching for it even when there's so much 'evidence' regarding 'those doing harm'. I think Divine love goes far deeper than we can possibly grasp. But exactly as you say, it is a NORM, not just an ideal to fight for. Thanks for your perspective.
"If an organization asks you to temporarily endure slavery in order to bring the world freedom, if it asks you to tell lies in order to create a world of truth, if it has you wage war to bring peace, if it asks you to hate in the name of love, then you know it isn't of the true Brotherhood."
This is almost like verse. Could be a great song. There has been so much upside down. I feel like the more I look around, the more upside down I recognize. Need to lie down on the beach for a while.
Charles, your insights are really very helpful to me. This winter season I sense I am still stuck in some sort of resentment phase and simple events repeatedly trigger painful memories of my experience last year in lockdowns and discrimination. The basic lack of recognition from the state and from my peers of the damage and injustice done is just galling to me and I feel a strong need to commune with those who recognise the shattering of trust that has taken place for so many of us. I much appreciate your warnings of mirroring an ingroup-outgroup dynamic and othering.
At the moment my approach is to continue to publicly affirm the heretical position I adopted in the pandemic and not let those around me pretend nothing has happened. I continue to point out to colleagues and friends the state of our families', schools', hospitals', business' health now after over two years of so-called pandemic response. Amazingly, most are still reluctant to question the regime in the face of all the collateral damage in the aftermath.
Intellectually I know that if I embrace forgiveness and go beyond the good/bad narratives I will be in a better place but my heart is still hurting and I cannot let go (yet). Why I cling to my cloak of suffering is the puzzle I am currently faced with. My health, relationships, work and family life have all suffered. I hope to take your series as a springboard to transformation with the winter solstice.
My deepest appreciation for this essay and the clear articulation of the insidious nature of polarity, whatever it may be, in the name of “good” and righteousness. Each day I read and study a chapter of the Tao Te Ching, as a practice to assist me to breathe, think and feel outside this old and tired paradigm. My gratitude to you, Charles, for continuing to provide your wise expression, despite the push back you receive. Your work is so important.
Yes we have to transform this war mentality. I have decided to stop my daily intake of the alt-narrative as I no longer want to perpetuate angst towards those that IMO seek to do us harm . I feel it only invites more of this into my awareness and my mental health suffers. Now I intend to put my focus on that what I want to see flourish - hope, love, connection, abundance - and is in fact available to us right now if we look for it. I need to stop vilifiying the "other"- I can notice it, without choosing to be part of it or give any of my power away to it.
This is exactly how I feel. I stopped listening to the news and watching most television and films. I meditate, garden, write, volunteer for a dog rescue and pray a lot for the transformation of humanity. When I've attempted to join in with others exposing all this, my heart feels bad. I heard the wonderful sound healer/astrologer George H Lewis say in a talk recently, something about the power of love and prayers during the ascension process that will alchemize and put right what has happened. (highly paraphrased, sorry George) I believe that somehow.
Thank you, Charles, for another provocative and evocative contribution in this series of articles. Yes, I concur -this seems (of the 4 articles so far) to go to the nub - and challenges our too easily conceived frameworks of thought and structures of interpretation, especially those here (likely the majority) who can find ourselves strongly opposed to the mainstream narratives and then often rile against the proponents of these narratives ("the enemies"). Against our better judgment and best humanity, we succumb to that slippery slope - of becoming part of the Party (the false revolution) when our intentions are, deep down, for that true revolution. As a Christian, I therefore find the very challenging, yet revolutionary of words of Jesus so compelling, unsettling, and inspiring for what is required for that 'true revolution,' namely, Love (Agape), that includes "Love for enemies" (Matthew 5:43-48). I give mental ascent to this call, yet usually fall far short in daily life. Yet the call to Love remains. Here again, I have (from my perspective) tried to describe what this Love means for me (maybe it resonates with some): "This is Love!"
Beautiful and I fully agree with your point, made often in your writings and talks, that "othering" itself is most of the problem, and of course the heinous acts that can often arise from such othering and "enemization."
"Reason has its proper domain; making moral choices is not within it." This is probably one of the wisest statements ever written, thank you.
Ain't that the truth!
Looking forward to your ‘truth and love’ section
Thank you for your sanity
I agree with you, Charles. Part 4 stood out for me too. It describes a life (75 years) that I have lived and understand fairly well. I would greatly oversimplify it with these words; the end does not justify the means. The means IS the end. You flesh it out well by articulating so many of the details.
Profound, Charles, thanks. This essay reminds me of Claude Levi-Strauss' idea of structuralism, my interpretation of which is if two structures act the same, even if they are meant to signify opposites, then finally they are the same. Even while condemning each other. I have tasted this myself in the medical freedom movement. I'm 100% behind the unmasking of Fauci, Pfizer, Moderna and their craven enablers. I'm perfectly aware of the damage mainstream media has caused by censoring and silencing voices of truth. Yet when those same voices are welcomed on so-called right-wing media -- ironically (or by design?) the only ones who will have them -- they become victims of guilt by association. They are saying "yes" from reason, not from heart. Because many of those same media personalities have made a career out of encouraging racism and white supremacism. I can't stand the pillorying of those of us condemned to being not pure enough, as when for example I believe the climate crisis is real. Your essay seems to be saying that the urge to follow a Party line comes from deep inside the psyche. I find it hard to disagree.
Something I tend to say is, "What do you want to do with the people who will always disagree with you?" If the answer involves harming them or controlling them in some way, well, it's the wrong answer.
Brilliant essay, Charles. You put into words - elegantly - some thoughts that had been rolling and bouncing in my brain in recent weeks. I unsubscribed from several Substacks over the weekend, for reasons that you elucidate: there is too much tribalism in our "resistance". We repeat the same points about what "they" have done and we all agree that they are "evil" and make plans to fight them in their courts by their rules and it all just seems like a big club, and, well... I've never really been a "joiner". I want to meet the people who are off on their own. You, though: you make me think. I think I'll stick around here.
Thank you.
Loving the dialogue. This jumps out: "What we want to participate in is bigger than any organization could be." Well, there's an understatement! And, it's a bit misleading, although this may just be semantic quibbling on my part. So ... aren't we already participating? Our hearts are beating, aren't they? The Grand Deception is that we have to create something. Nope. Nature abides. God (by whatever name) is in firmly loving control (whether we believe in Him/Her/It or not). It's more about waking up to the reality of what Big Brother counterfeits seek to replace. Good luck with that! Love will prevail, as it always does... just takes time. Speaking of waking up, where's the third pill? I love The Matrix but why wasn't there another option beyond going back to sleep or waking up to the horror? How about waking up to the Beauty? The true, eternal brotherhood/sisterhood, whatever we choose to call it, is already here and has always been here. I can feel your hearts beating with mine right now and I know that we love each other! That's the norm not an ideal to fight for.
"Speaking of waking up, where's the third pill? I love The Matrix but why wasn't there another option beyond going back to sleep or waking up to the horror? How about waking up to the Beauty?" Good point. So black and white. Two options, over and over again. It's difficult to break out of the dualism. How about a 4th and 5th and 6th option?
If you want the blue pill then all the other pills look red. That's the first choice. Once you take the red pill then you will have to chose again and again. One step at a time.
Nice re-framing 👌 The first choice is between blind alley and [potentially indefinitely] long road with numerous crossroads ahead.
Thank you for the clarification ❤️
wow. lovely. keep sharing your hope! i'm not in a hopeful place at the moment but for the first 47 years of my life i never doubted or wavered that good would always rule my life...and it did! i'm shocked that the quarantines and the surge in "wins" for Big Pharma knocked the wind out of me. i'm striving to look elsewhere. to look at people; the ones close to me where my reality exists...but the fear of injustice keeps creeping in via public school and fighting my (and all) children. that's not my job, though. God has Beauty for us all.
You're right. This is a challenging time. So it goes with the hero's journey... the second act is the struggle part. But we eventually emerge, bringing the gifts we gained during our underworld travels. Keep the faith!
Hi Will, that's what I'm grappling with too. How to access that love deeply enough and to keep reaching for it even when there's so much 'evidence' regarding 'those doing harm'. I think Divine love goes far deeper than we can possibly grasp. But exactly as you say, it is a NORM, not just an ideal to fight for. Thanks for your perspective.
"If an organization asks you to temporarily endure slavery in order to bring the world freedom, if it asks you to tell lies in order to create a world of truth, if it has you wage war to bring peace, if it asks you to hate in the name of love, then you know it isn't of the true Brotherhood."
This is almost like verse. Could be a great song. There has been so much upside down. I feel like the more I look around, the more upside down I recognize. Need to lie down on the beach for a while.
Charles, your insights are really very helpful to me. This winter season I sense I am still stuck in some sort of resentment phase and simple events repeatedly trigger painful memories of my experience last year in lockdowns and discrimination. The basic lack of recognition from the state and from my peers of the damage and injustice done is just galling to me and I feel a strong need to commune with those who recognise the shattering of trust that has taken place for so many of us. I much appreciate your warnings of mirroring an ingroup-outgroup dynamic and othering.
At the moment my approach is to continue to publicly affirm the heretical position I adopted in the pandemic and not let those around me pretend nothing has happened. I continue to point out to colleagues and friends the state of our families', schools', hospitals', business' health now after over two years of so-called pandemic response. Amazingly, most are still reluctant to question the regime in the face of all the collateral damage in the aftermath.
Intellectually I know that if I embrace forgiveness and go beyond the good/bad narratives I will be in a better place but my heart is still hurting and I cannot let go (yet). Why I cling to my cloak of suffering is the puzzle I am currently faced with. My health, relationships, work and family life have all suffered. I hope to take your series as a springboard to transformation with the winter solstice.
God spead you and thanks again.
My deepest appreciation for this essay and the clear articulation of the insidious nature of polarity, whatever it may be, in the name of “good” and righteousness. Each day I read and study a chapter of the Tao Te Ching, as a practice to assist me to breathe, think and feel outside this old and tired paradigm. My gratitude to you, Charles, for continuing to provide your wise expression, despite the push back you receive. Your work is so important.
“Dust is only a name for what happens when matter begins to understand itself.” Philip Pullman
“You recognize each other by your devotion. Any other revolutionary brotherhood is a counterfeit.
The concepts of good and evil originate in social dynamics of belonging and rejection.”
Yes. Watch: https://bit.ly/3HPFcrA
Heartfelt thanks for your work, words & wisdom.
Yes we have to transform this war mentality. I have decided to stop my daily intake of the alt-narrative as I no longer want to perpetuate angst towards those that IMO seek to do us harm . I feel it only invites more of this into my awareness and my mental health suffers. Now I intend to put my focus on that what I want to see flourish - hope, love, connection, abundance - and is in fact available to us right now if we look for it. I need to stop vilifiying the "other"- I can notice it, without choosing to be part of it or give any of my power away to it.
This is exactly how I feel. I stopped listening to the news and watching most television and films. I meditate, garden, write, volunteer for a dog rescue and pray a lot for the transformation of humanity. When I've attempted to join in with others exposing all this, my heart feels bad. I heard the wonderful sound healer/astrologer George H Lewis say in a talk recently, something about the power of love and prayers during the ascension process that will alchemize and put right what has happened. (highly paraphrased, sorry George) I believe that somehow.
Thank you, Charles, for another provocative and evocative contribution in this series of articles. Yes, I concur -this seems (of the 4 articles so far) to go to the nub - and challenges our too easily conceived frameworks of thought and structures of interpretation, especially those here (likely the majority) who can find ourselves strongly opposed to the mainstream narratives and then often rile against the proponents of these narratives ("the enemies"). Against our better judgment and best humanity, we succumb to that slippery slope - of becoming part of the Party (the false revolution) when our intentions are, deep down, for that true revolution. As a Christian, I therefore find the very challenging, yet revolutionary of words of Jesus so compelling, unsettling, and inspiring for what is required for that 'true revolution,' namely, Love (Agape), that includes "Love for enemies" (Matthew 5:43-48). I give mental ascent to this call, yet usually fall far short in daily life. Yet the call to Love remains. Here again, I have (from my perspective) tried to describe what this Love means for me (maybe it resonates with some): "This is Love!"
This is Love!
The Agape that fills the world,
The world so loved;
So passionately and compassionately held,
The infinite closeness,
The immeasurable embrace,
The glorious, gentle expansiveness,
Of Divinity’s presence,
And the promise,
That All is well,
All is loved!
This is Love!
The Agape that fills the world,
The world so loved;
So unconditionally forgiven and touched,
These struggles of the ordinary,
These sufferings of the wounded
These shaky, slipping steps,
These songs of the imperfect,
All accepted in Divinity’s grace,
And the reassuring faith,
That All is well,
All is loved!
This is Love!
The Agape that fills the world,
The world so loved
So broken open, released and free,
The transformed mind,
The illuminated heart,
The conscious, courageous will,
Surrendered to Divinity’s Way,
And the hope,
That All is well,
All is Loved!
© Roger Arendse 20180417
Beautiful and I fully agree with your point, made often in your writings and talks, that "othering" itself is most of the problem, and of course the heinous acts that can often arise from such othering and "enemization."