Humans Are Weird
We humans are weird. Think about it…
I am guessing that you have probably had some sort of dream where someone you know is really mean to you, or does something really bad, and then you wake up from the dream, but for a while you’re still hurt or mad with that person. Even though it was a dream, for a while it still felt real, so you were still upset until the sleepy ‘dream residue’ wore off and you could fully see it wasn’t real.
In truth, what you were really upset about the whole time was an idea your own mind cooked up. Inside the dream, it was your own mind that created the image of the person hurting you, made you forget that you created it so you actually thought it was someone else doing crappy things, and then you felt hurt as a result. All of that was you. The whole idea, the other person, the mean stuff, the hurt feelings. All of it — you. What a bizarre thing to do to ourselves, right?
I think there is a lot to see in that, because it doesn’t only work that way when we’re asleep with our eyes closed.
When I look at “what’s wrong with the world” most of what I see is people fighting over, arguing with, getting upset by … ideas. Thoughts, of all things. We have ideas of how people should act, ideas of who people should be, ideas of what symbols mean and how they should be treated, ideas of what makes us great. Ideas, ideas, ideas. Then we treat those ideas, those thoughts, as if they are tangible, immovable objects that are real and actually exist in the physical world. We argue over whose ideas are right and whose are wrong, forgetting it’s all in our own heads. We’re debating dreams, acting as though we have facts in our corner… Then we wonder why we aren’t making more progress.
We do it with ourselves as well. Ideas of who I should be, how I should look, how I should act, how much money I should make, what kind of career I should have, the kinds of clothes I should wear or friends I should have. We measure ourselves up by arbitrary, fleeting, nonsensical ideas, and wonder why we never feel satisfied with life.
We live our lives in dreams more than we ever live them in “reality”. We are asleep more than we are awake. We shadow box with illusory monsters of our own design, which at best leads to our own exhaustion, and at worst collateral damage. We curse the apparitions our minds create, forgetting they come from our own minds, and wonder why we live in so much distress.
Like I said, humans are weird… but, we’re also kind of amazing. Because something as simple as waking up and changing your mind will transform the world you live in. That’s why I’m in the business of waking people up. I want people to be able to see the difference between fighting an idea, and living life. I’ve found that to be a whole lot easier and more impactful than arguing with a dream.
Originally posted on aclearlife.com
