Cosmic Channel of the Week

Many times I have written about the dualistic nature of the world in which we live. We are dualistic creatures in a world we define via polarities (right or wrong, man or woman, hot and cold, and so on). We manifest our beliefs within ourselves and project them into the world we see and create. Everything out there is us, remember? It is our projection. And because of the extreme polarities we project, division and divisiveness seem to be the rule of the day, causing great disruption and even violence.

We yearn for a “better” world, one of peace and happiness and enough for all to co-exist in harmony. But the truth is that if we lived in a “perfect” world, whatever that looks like to you, we would not flourish; we would stagnate. No growth, no challenges, no awareness; just same old, same old. We have forgotten that we created this world, exactly as it is, through our own inner chaos and imbalance. Even as we enter the coming new age, our purpose is to see all as unity. Remember?

Chaos in and of itself is not a negative thing, in opposition to harmony. Chaos is simply part of Be-ing. If you visualize a pendulum, you will quickly come to understand that it swings to create balance. Balance is never exact because it is not a destination; it is the process. It takes chaos with this constant rebalancing to provide growth and stimulation to our lives and the world we create around us.

We are afraid of chaos. We have created a world in which rules, laws, and expectations corral and herd our chaotic natures into socially accepted behavior. In this way, we can live in harmony with others and live productive lives.

The truth is that right now chaos is leaking out the sides and our rules and boundaries aren’t working very well. Why? Because over time, the fear of chaos, the fear of knowing ourselves so deeply that we see the chaos within has become so frightening that we have chosen to ignore it, to pretend it doesn’t exist. We are all attempting to control our environments and ourselves in ways that prove to the world and ourselves that there is no chaos. The tighter we hold on, the less all the boundaries work. Our “safe” dualistic world is collapsing around us. Our Shadows are running rampant because they have been denied and ignored for too long.

I have never liked roller coasters. They scare me and I feel hopelessly out of control. They are fraught with the possibility of disaster. They are chaotic. Therefore, I never get on a roller coaster because it is scary and potentially unsafe.

But how is that different from driving a car to work, climbing a flight of stairs, starting a new job or going to the grocery store? Disaster can strike anywhere, any time but we live with the illusion (and illusion it is) that some activities are safer than others. Some are, statistically, but even so, we are deceiving ourselves with an illusion of “safety”, and as long we do this, our blinders will remain intact.

We have cut ourselves off from the true experience of life and our deepest Selves. Our tightly controlled lives, the world we create and our inner selves never reach full expression; we never fully embrace life. We never fully release our wings.

As long as we are fighting ourselves and resisting the chaos within, we will continue to see chaos played out before us and feel victim to a world out of control. We will be stuck waiting for circumstances and life to get “better”.

The truth is that we are not ever going to have a perfectly peaceful world or whatever vision of perfection you hold in your heart. Remember the story The Three Little Pigs? Perhaps we should reread it as a cautionary tale of the denial of chaos…

It is time our focus shifted from wishing for “better” into accepting that the chaos we see is the hidden chaos within. We all carry a vision inside of how we want our lives to be but we can’t get there without allowing ourselves the opportunity to completely know and accept all there is within ourselves.

No one can question how much we have opened, accepted and been willing to face in ourselves and our shadows in these last few years.

Time for the next step. Time to truly acknowledge that everything we see out there is our projection. We must embrace the chaos within and allow it to lead us to our absolute truth.

It is only when we can accept chaos and embrace it as part of our deepest selves that we truly begin to live.

Chaos is who we are. All of us.

And so I am told:

Chaos is the spoon stirring the soup, it is the change of seasons, it is the alchemy of the indrawn breath oxygenating the body. Without chaos, there is nothing. If you perceive it out in the world, then it exists within you. To deny this is to ignore a significant aspect of humankind’s most essential nature. That denial has lead to the karmic circumstances humankind now faces. As always, the choice is yours. Do you stay lost in your denial, seeing chaos as only “out there”, hoping, praying, and expecting rescue?

Or do you open the door and make room at the table for your innermost nature? Befriend your inner chaos and learn not to fear what is within you?

The path forward lies in acceptance of and taking responsibility for who you truly are, which includes all aspects of your most divine nature. The divine nature of chaos is your most secret self and your salvation, for it, partnered with your open heart, will open the gateways to the stars and beyond. The Path forward starts within.

Quote from the movie “Parenthood”:

[Gil has been complaining about his complicated life; Grandma wanders into the room] 

Grandma: You know, when I was nineteen, Grandpa took me on a roller coaster.

Gil: Oh?

Grandma: Up, down, up, down. Oh, what a ride!

Gil: What a great story.

Grandma: I always wanted to go again. You know, it was just so interesting to me that a ride could make me so frightened, so scared, so sick, so excited, and so thrilled all together! Some didn’t like it. They went on the merry-go-round. That just goes around. Nothing. I like the roller coaster. You get more out of it.