The heart knows that which reason knows not of.
— C. G. Jung
In P-B most of us exist in a meaningless and irrational universe in which our life, if we have the courage to be honest, makes no sense and has no discernable purpose. We have become the dictionary definition of ridiculous, incongruous and unreasonable. And yet we persist. Why?
The truth is that we create our own reality and we can do so unconsciously or with an awareness of why we do what we do. Therefore, to continue to create an unsatisfactory experience and then go into afflictive reaction to that experience is an exercise in absurdity. We can learn to give a deep and resonant meaning to our lives or as Deepak Chopra put it: “Today I will accept people, situations, circumstances, and events as they occur. This means I will know that this moment is as it should be, because the whole universe is as it should be.”[1]
An example of the how ridiculous false-self driven behavior can become is revealed in this anecdote about George Steinbrenner relating to the 1978 Yankees-Red Sox playoff game. Steinbrenner chewed out Al Rosen for losing the coin toss. How’s that for being unclear about the nature of reality.[2]
As mystics (those who experience the present moment) we have the opportunity to become creative teachers by passing along and or modeling the principles of Simple Reality. For example, as perfect individuals within a perfect creation, we surely regard the notion of sin as absurd. It is indeed nonsensical as is this easy-to-remember acronym suggests.
SIN = Self-Imposed Nonsense
After we have all had a good laugh observing our nonsensical, and at times comical behavior, we can begin the joy-filled process of learning to respond to the wonderful life we have been given with rational, compassionate and wholesome behaviors. Then the only absurdity about our behavior would be, why did we take so long to do this?
[1] Chopra, Deepak. The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success. San Rafael: Amber-Allen Publishing, 1994, p. 57.
[2] Schnall, Harley. “The Lives They Lived.” New York Times Magazine. January 9, 2011, p. 8.
