I awoke this morning to a shocking dream. Sharing it and some of the insight I gleaned is my Christmas gift to you.
I dreamed of horrific death and destruction. Countries betraying their own people in a worldwide conspiracy, destroying capital cities and targeting the general populace. Hundreds of millions of people dying in The New World War. All of Asia, annihilated with a single, cataclysmic nuclear bomb.
I was reading about the news to see what was destroyed and what was left, how many and who had died. I wanted to know who was responsible, and what had caused the fighting castes to become so utterly divided to this point. I was terribly saddened and I mentioned how I felt to the friend I was with. And the person, the friend I thought I knew, said “Good riddance.” with an awful smile on his face, signaling his allegiance to the perpetrators.
I realized that I had to face this, and face the division that had caused this catastrophe. That I had to unconditionally love this man and his friends and his family, and anyone and everyone that would have the same attitude of seperation. That was my life from now on, no matter the situation or difficulty I faced, no matter who they were or what opinion they held or what view they had. Otherwise, the destruction, hate, and hell that had been unleashed would continue, and the peace that had prevailed for so long in so many places would continue to vanish.
Awake on the peaceful Christmas morning in Thailand, I walked through the calm Asiatic streets that I imagined complete destruction of only a couple hours earlier. Later, as I gazed at the potent green plant life and playful monastery cats, I looked down at the bare gravel and compared what I was seeing to my vivid dream, realizing the true immensity of the beauty that I was living amongst.
I was filled with gratitude and awe, seeing beauty in the mundane. The ants on the ground skittering busily, and the groves of plants and trees were the product of great effort and intrinsic love unfolding through ages.
I ate breakfast. It was delicious in an ordinary way, but my experience of it was extraordinarily wonderful because of the shift in perspective. I could see that I was living in paradise/heaven at this moment. The normal experiences of walking and eating breakfast were transformed due to this change of view. And so I thought, “So, what do you do when you’re already in heaven?” and the answer was, “Stay in paradise, keep heaven with you.” All it seemed to be was a shift in perspective caused by mental exercise. Paradise was already mine, but I wasn’t used to seeing it or experiencing it. I have had similar experiences of great gratitude arising after watching war films, recognizing that I don’t live in a warzone and that even the crazy world of the western society is considerably peaceful and orderly.
I noticed the beautiful quality of my view slowly lowering throughout the morning, but found when I brought my thoughts back to my dream and doing the mental exercise of appreciation, it stayed and persisted. I could see the positive patterns of mental behaviour shaping my view, and how regularly practicing it integrates it into life. The mindful contemplation of tragedy was bringing appreciation to the present moment, and helping steer away from calamity.
I know there are many people who are suffering in the world, many states in Chaos and war or unease. I have been there myself to a degree, and I know of people in my sphere are suffering right now too. What I’m sharing today is that simply changing perspective and recognizing the inherent beauty of things is part of the path of liberating from this suffering (gee, I sound like Sam Harris). All it can take sometimes is a little experience to encourage, remind, or guide toward viewing things in a different way. This is why I study wisdom.
If you’re suffering, or in a downward spiral of destruction: Know it won’t last, and there are specific things to do to reverse it.
If you ever find yourself screeching towards a dark fate: Turn everything down, and turn yourself around. Lowering the intensity of actions and emotions can help stabilize and steer toward a higher state.
May you be peaceful and joyful <3