Sunday, September 24, 9797

Unconsciousness

A large part of our reality is unconscious. Our acquired beliefs cause thought patterns that operate on autopilot and compel us to say, do, and feel things. Everything we experience is evaluated by these unconscious thoughts – run through our mind’s filter – before reaching us, so that we don’t fully or purely experience anything. A politician’s words are wrong because he is a member of the “other” political party. The cashier is ugly because she doesn’t look like the photo on the magazine cover. Someone’s religious belief is wrong because it differs from ours. We never see things as they are; we see things as our minds are.

These unconscious thoughts get us into situations that our true selves would never consciously choose. For example, we might get into an intimate relationship with someone who verbally or physically abuses us, or uses us for sex or money. Why would our mind do this? Maybe it believes that this person will help us grow. Maybe it’s attracted to the familiar, even if the familiar is painful. Either way, we get into these unpleasant situations because our conditioned, unconscious mind runs our life. We have no conscious choice.

If we honestly look at and assess our beliefs, we can see that some of them are erroneous. If we let them go, we become conscious because we see things as they really are, without a filter distorting everything. We find our true selves because we no longer carry thought patterns that we mistake for who we are. Everything becomes clear and pure. We live in the present moment, not thoughts about the past or future. We are no longer controlled by unconscious thought patterns and we are aware enough to make actual choices.