Barbara Hebert - USA
The challenges we face in our world today seem almost impossible to overcome. We often look to our leaders—religious, political, and spiritual—to make a difference, but it doesn’t happen. Instead of looking outside of ourselves to make change happen, it is time to start looking within. Each of us has the power—as well as the responsibility—to change the world. We cannot wait for others to step up...each one of us needs to take matters into our own hands.
Everywhere we look, we see evidence of cruelty, anger, hatred, injustice, and so on. These things aren’t just happening to other human beings. They are also happening to animals and to our great mother, the Earth. We want it to stop. We want to live in a world filled with love, with equity, with compassion. We want the legal and judicial systems to protect human beings; for humans to protect our earth so that it is protected and nurtured for generations to come; and for spiritual and religious leaders to come together advocating for peace and unity.
The truth is, it doesn’t matter what we want. These are systems that are created by human beings and are run by human beings, and are therefore imperfect. Some might even say that these, and other, human institutions are actually responsible for continuing the status quo. Albert Einstein reputedly said “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
We may ask: what do we do? Who can change the world? In order to answer this question, it is helpful to understand ourselves as human beings. A number of theories regarding human growth and development have been formulated. Many of these are called stage theories because they discuss the development of individuals as they pass through various stages in their lives. Some of the better-known stage theories include Jean Piaget’s stages of cognitive development; Erik Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development; Freud’s stages of psychosexual development; and Lawrence Kohlberg’s stages of moral development. The theories imply that the stages are linear—passed through once and left behind forever—but this is not necessarily accurate. Individuals may vacillate between stages, given different circumstances in life. Some may skip a stage altogether.
There are two very important theories that relate to the development of faith: James Fowler’s stages of faith development that describes six stages of faith maturation; and M. Scott Peck’s four stages of spiritual development, discussed in his book, The Different Drum: Community Making and Peace. Peck bases his stages on Fowler’s theory. Fowler differentiates between religion and faith. He says that faith is part of humanity’s effort to find meaning and purpose in life and that religion is essentially part of a social structure. Faith, according to Fowler, is universal, and his focus is on faith development.
Pulling from both of these theories, we can create a theory that may shed light on our own spiritual development and answer our question of who can change the world. It may also help us to better understand those who are not working to make changes and may even be working toward divisiveness and aggression.
Our first stage in this theory could be called “Egocentric and Concrete.” The individual in this stage of faith development does not look beyond himself or herself and perceives situations in a very concrete manner without any analysis or evaluation. In other words, this individual isn’t concerned about what is happening in the world, as long as he or she isn’t impacted. “So what if people are starving in Syria, I have enough food.” He or she will also make meaning from his or her own experiences regardless of the reality of the situation. “We had lots of snow last winter, so global warming isn’t real.” If this person holds any religious or spiritual beliefs, they are likely to be anthropomorphic and literal. Some individuals remain in this stage throughout their lives. We are not likely to see these individuals taking steps to change the world, and through their own selfish perspectives may encourage divisiveness and aggression.
The second stage in our theory could be called the “Hang onto my Security” stage. Individuals at this stage of spiritual development are more capable of analysis and self-reflection; however, they also tend to attach themselves to institutional thinking. They find safety and security in the structure of the institution as well as in its beliefs. Because the institution provides a sense of safety and security, and even a sense of community, individuals in this stage will strongly defend the institution and its beliefs. The institution can be any type of organization: religious, spiritual, political, etc. The focus in this stage is being a part of and protecting the institution--whatever it is. We can clearly see the egocentricity in this stage of spiritual development, although it is not quite as narrow as we find in the first stage. Once again, we are not likely to see these individuals taking steps to change the world. In fact, it is likely to be just the opposite. Individuals in this stage of development work to defend and preserve institutions or organizations, regardless of the cost because of the sense of safety, security, and community they provide. They want the institution or organization to last forever and cannot perceive otherwise.
We move on to the next stage of our theory, “Questioning.” In order to grow, we must question. Most importantly, we question institutions, organizations, and beliefs, looking at them analytically and reflectively. For an individual in this stage of faith development, he or she determines what is true at this particular point in life. He or she is growing spiritually. There is no defensiveness about protecting beliefs or the organizations that espouse them. Rather, there is open-minded inquiry and an active seeking of answers to the meaning of life. Many individuals in this stage focus on and work toward social justice for all beings and for our earth. It is in this stage that we see individuals who not only wish to change the world but are taking steps toward changing it.
The final stage of our theory could be called “Unity.” As an individual grows spiritually and deepens understanding through questioning in the previous stage, he or she moves into a recognition of the unity of all beings. This individual becomes comfortable with the paradox of separate individuals within the unity of the All. The work for social reform deepens as the individual realizes that what happens to one individual happens to all beings.
Most of us would likely consider ourselves to be in the third or fourth stages of our theory. We are open-minded, seeking, reflecting, and most importantly, working to manifest the unity of all life.
Therefore, we find the answer to our question: Who can change the world? The answer is: you and me and many, many others who not only want change but are willing to take steps to implement change.
Many of us have spent our lives trying to help others, either in our full-time jobs or in our volunteer work. Many individuals work with homeless shelters, in food pantries, with social service organizations. Others have joined demonstrations and marched for social justice while others have worked with animal rights groups and ecological organizations. The list goes on and on.
However, there is another very important way that each of us can change the world. We are talking here about an occult or hidden way to change the world, and like many occult teachings, it is hidden in plain sight.
H.P. Blavatsky writes in Key to Theosophy: “It is an occult law …, that no man can rise superior to his individual failings without lifting, be it ever so little, the whole body of which he is an integral part” (p. 203). She is telling us that every time one of us takes a step forward on the spiritual path, no matter how small, all of us move forward on the path. It is an occult law that when we expand our consciousness, no matter how large or small, we are expanding the consciousness of all beings. The importance of expanding our consciousness cannot be overstated. It is of paramount importance, and it is the answer to our question: We can change the world by changing our consciousness.
When we contemplate the many instances of inhumanity inflicted on others, on animals, and on our earth, it becomes clear that they are symptoms. When people don’t care about others, when they are stuck in stages one and two of our spiritual development theory--we find that cruelty, hatred, anger, injustice, etc. is often the result.
We must address the root cause because constantly addressing the symptoms will never solve the problem. We are simply putting a bandage on a festering wound that continues to infect the body of humanity.
The root cause of this infection is the lack of understanding of the unity of all life. Especially in stages one and two of our theory, there is no understanding that all life is connected, that we are all One. As the consciousness of humanity expands, then awareness of that essential unity expands. Until the consciousness of humanity changes, very little, if anything, will change.
Every step we take on the spiritual path is a forward movement for all of humanity. Many of us are already using techniques such as meditation, contemplation, listening to the silent voice within, self-examination, in-depth study of the Ageless Wisdom in order to expand understanding, and so on. We use these techniques in order to walk the path…and we must continue.
There is more, however, that we can do. Many individuals think about reaching enlightenment, expanding consciousness, becoming one with the ground of all being, whatever we want to call it—as reaching a destination. The perception is that we are moving toward this place of enlightenment and expanded consciousness and will one day arrive. This, like much that we experience in the manifested world is an illusion.
In order to continue our journey in walking to path and expanding consciousness is to reach deep into ourselves and recognize that we ARE consciousness. We are not these physical bodies; rather we are consciousness inhabiting the bodies. When we break through the veil that blinds us to this reality, we begin to see clearly. We recognize the impermanence of the physical and work toward the dissolution of the personality while still using it as a tool.
This is a difficult concept to discuss using language; however, it is more easily grasped through contemplation and meditation. The closest I can come to describing the process is based on an old Persian story. The fish were swimming in the pool. One of the fish began to think about water and had a desire to experience it. Little did the fish know that he was surrounded by water, that it supported him, it provided him with life, and it passed through his gills. Water was so much a part of his life that he never stopped to look at it and realize that he was immersed in it.
The same is true of us and our awareness of ourselves as consciousness. We are immersed in it, supported by it, and filled with it, but we are not consciously aware of it. While we may understand and accept that we are consciousness itself, this is simply a cognitive understanding. To recognize ourselves as consciousness requires an intuitive understanding or experience that is much deeper than simply a cognitive understanding. Many reach this intuitive awareness through meditation or contemplation which then allows us to begin the dissolution of the physical and to step into Consciousness which is unitive.
Mystics and spiritual leaders throughout time have talked about dissolving the self and merging into the Whole. For example, Thich Nhat Hanh writes: “Enlightenment, for a wave in the ocean, is the moment the wave realizes it is water. When we realize we are not separate, but a part of the huge ocean of everything, we become enlightened. We realize this through practice, and we remain awake and aware of this through more practice.” And again, Lao Tzu says: “To the mind that is still, the whole universe surrenders.” And, Rumi tells us, “I have lived on the lip of insanity, wanting to know reasons, knocking on a door. It opens. I’ve been knocking from the inside.
”There is no door. There is no outside. There is no inside. There is just consciousness. This is how we change the world. You and me. We change the world by losing ourselves and expanding our consciousness, thereby expanding the consciousness of all beings. As it says in The Voice of the Silence, “Thou art enlightened—choose thy way,” (Fragment 3, verse 310).
References
Blavatsky, H.P. The Key to Theosophy.
Blavatsky, H.P. The Voice of the Silence.
Fowler, J. (1981). Stages of Faith: The Psychology of Human Development and the Quest for Meaning. Harper Collins.
Peck, M. Scott. (1988). The Different Drum: Community Making and Peace. Touchstone.