The Inner Dimension
“To end the misery that has afflicted the human condition for thousands of years, you have to start with yourself and take responsibility for your inner state at any given moment.”
— Eckhart Tolle
Dear Friends,
I have been noticing recently how easy it is for me to blame other people, especially in times of difficulty
Yet it can help to inquire:
When we sit by ourselves, and we are suffering, who is responsible for that suffering?
We might answer:
“My boss is for being a jerk to me earlier today.”
Or “My child is for screaming at me this morning.”
Or “My friend is for not returning my call.“
All great reasons. But are they responsible?
I think it has to, at least in part, be us. Which means we have some agency.
THE OUTER
From the outer, we tend to see the world from separation.
There are people who are on the side of the right and those on the side of wrong … and it just so happens that we (however we view the world) are often in the righteous position!
We have the correct perception, and if we find the relevant media to watch, our particular view gets reinforced all day, but there is so much we miss.
THE INNER
However, if our main responsibility is the state of our consciousness, we engage differently.
Of course, actions need to be taken, words to be shared, news to be watched, but if the most important dimension is the inner one, we tend to that first.
As we engage our life, there is at least some awareness to:
“What is the state of mind in which I am meeting the world?”
THE SHIFT
I sense this is the needed shift in the world today.
It is not that the outer world is unimportant; it is that we best take care of the outer world by tending to the inner.
This has been a hard lesson for me, and I often forget it, but again and again it has proven true: the inner dimension is key.
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Blessings,
SOREN
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“To end the misery that has afflicted the human condition for thousands of years, you have to start with yourself & take responsibility for your inner state at any given moment.” - Eckhart Tolle
“To end the misery that has afflicted the human condition for thousands of years, you have to start with knowing what narcissists, sociopaths & psychopaths have done, are up to, & planning at any given moment.” - Sam Ray
Inner-state understanding is essential but it is not currently #1. Tolle’s analysis is incomplete because pathological narcissists are virtually incapable of taking personal responsibility for more than a moment. https://samray.substack.com/p/what-is-evil-part-i