“Man is the only creature that refuses to be what he is.” — Camus
Have you ever taken a good look at yourself . . . objectively? In which way do you experience yourself? More importantly, how do other people experience and see you? At some point in your life, there will exist no buffer between you and what you actually are . . . consciously. Of course, you can deter this process by avoidance which is probably what has happened most of your life . . . and then, if your lucky you hit a brick wall. What exactly is that brick wall? For each of us it is defined differently, however, the experience becomes terrifying when realized . . . consciously. You can sidestep this process indefinitely, by avoiding the obvious . . . youself. Unfortunately, this happens every moment, minute, day, week, month and year of your life resulting in conscious mediocrity. How would you like to be on the receiving end of what you say, project and do to your fellow man? You may be extremely pleased with your personal answer, but ask those who will give you the un-varnished truth without caring about your feelings. No . . . this is not brutal, it’s honest and in the words of Thomas Aquinas . . . “Whatever is received, is received according to the nature of the recipient.”
Reverse the process of being so subjective in how you function, and begin perceiving what you are. Observe how it is received by your fellow man in whatever situation you find yourself, irregardless of what you believed to be acceptable. Is what you are doing or saying insensitive, ungracious, over-bearing, discourteous, presumptuous or just plain rude? Put yourself in the other person’s shoes. We have become so accustomed to being reactive and not responsive or responsible in our lives, that the skill of present awareness has become dulled, veiled, dark, repressed and lost. Eckart Tolle simple suggests . . . “Become conscious of being conscious.”
Once you become aware of your conscious mediocrity, while accepting what role your controlling ego has played throughout your entire life . . . is the first step toward enlightenment. Your fellow man can give you an extremely clear view of how you have affected their lives on every imaginable level. You may not wish to learn about how others see you, but without objective honesty . . . growth is not possible. The leap means giving up your precious ego and listening without judgement. Conscious Mastery takes courage without excuses. That’s it! Albert Schweitzer projects it another way . . . “The tragedy of life is what dies inside a man while he lives.” JLR