Power of ideals

The world around us, at least at human scale of perception, is changing fast in almost every way imaginable. The air, earth and water are changing - not necessarily for the better. The climate is changing. So many norms in the society are changing. Our ways of working are changing, and so are the ways of enjoying time off work. Our expectations for an accomplished life are changing, school curriculums are changing and laws are changing as well. The global landscape of relationships, people and financial flows, balances of power and international norms is also in a state of flux. And this sea of change at every level is testing heavily our capacity to cope, adapt and overall orient ourselves inside and outside.

Can we navigate in this multidimensional moving universe with an ever changing map ? How can we be sure that we are moving in the right direction without fixed reference points ? Or do we need to take advantage of the power of ideals - Ideal beings of the past, ideal sets of values and ideal visions of collective benevolence. On a closer look, the essence of many of those ideals who have appeared in different places and eras around the world is very similar. They are all based on innate knowledge and understanding of who we are, where is our place in the natural world and in relationship with each other. And their similarity is very comforting and helps in accepting our universal nature and notion of benevolence.

But an absolute perception is also required. Otherwise we can get lost in the conditionings and norms of our family, group, nation or other forms of collective organization. Or we get tempted by gains such as power, money or of other kinds and we adhere to so called ideals that maximize those gains. But with an absolute perception, such as we develop with Sahaja Yoga, we have a direct experience of what is ideal and what is not. We can discriminate and, like the proverbial swan in some of the spiritual traditions, drink just the milk even when it is mixed with water. This allows us to recognize the greater pattern that those ideals form and how it guides us through both calm and stormy waters. It can stop endless searching and worrying as well as careless forging forward. Thus our inner island of peace can be always sheltered by those ideals and eventually become a place where others can find their own peace as well.