Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Why Do You Get Out of Your Body?

As far as I can tell, even though humans have physical bodies and live on a physical planet, our consciousness is largely at war with that fact.

Several of our religions promote the after-life as the really superior experience. 

Millions of us are addicted to alcohol, drugs, food, "love," work, shopping... anything we can find that gives us a sense of escape from our situation.

A number of spiritually oriented people I’ve met get excited about being out of their body, going beyond the body, etc. They want to experience freedom from bodily and physical limitations. 

From my perspective, believing in or doing any of the above weakens the vitality and resilience of humans. 

Religion that emphasizes the after-life doesn't give you the information and skills you need to create a superior experience right here and now.

Addictions deliver a series of temporary highs that give us glimpses of our potential. However, the price we pay for this method of self-study and growth is much higher than those highs.

And my question for those who seek freedom from bodily and physical limitations is,"How limited is the body, really?"

The truth is, we don't know.

Let's say your society tells you you can only put ORANGE paint on a canvas.  You, however, love BLUE paint. It's understandable that you might come to the conclusion that you need to go "off canvas" if you want to make a BLUE  painting. Of course, we all know that it's possible to put either or both colors on a canvas. And at this point in our history, when it comes to the possibilities inherent in our bodies and in physical experience in general, we are at the "you can only put ORANGE paint on the canvas stage."

I invite you to throw off a few cultural shackles today. What would it be like to accept and explore your body and physical world without demeaning it, without asking it to be anything other than how you experience it at the moment, without trying to move beyond it? That's a first step towards what I would consider true freedom.

A second step is to consider what could happen to change your life for the better if you infused your physical body and possessions with love and respect?

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