For most of this year I have been actively participating in a “Power of Eight” group. As per the groundbreaking work of Lynne McTaggart, this group meets once a week and sets a group “intention” for the next seven days. The eight members of the group commit to mediation/contemplation/prayer on this intention for at least 10 minutes each day until the next meeting. The objective is to use the power of our collective consciousness and focus to effect meaningful change in the quantum field and ergo our subjective reality. This week the intention was “to give ourselves permission to shine our unique light brightly and give permission for others to do the same”. This was inspired by a writing by Marrianne Williamson who is a well-known teacher of A Course in Miracles (ACIM) and it has inspired me to think more deeply on the topic.
“It is our light not our darkness that most frightens us.
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light not our darkness that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.
You playing small does not serve the world.
There’s nothing enlightening about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you.
We are born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.
It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone.
And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.”
There is much truth in what Marianne Williamson speaks here. We do fear our light for many of the reasons Williamson identifies but we also know (subconsciously) that the light will illuminate our hidden and rejected pieces. If we have not confronted them, accepted them, surrendered to them and integrated them they will continue to control us. I find it too “New Age” to suggest that just embracing the light before we have confronted our darkness will yield lasting results. There is no way to avoid the cross as they say - shadow work is required, and it is very unpleasant. This is the personal fear in shining our light.
There is also a very valid fear of shining our light that operates at a trans-personal level through the collective consciousness. There is a mind virus operating in our collective that seeks to isolate, imprison, punish and even kill those who’s unique light is shining too brightly. Individuals that go through spiritual awakenings find they face an uphill battle in the world around them. A world that wants to push them down and try to contain them forever in the darkness they have just overcome. A preference to see them broken and defeated, punished and suffering rather than encouraging them to be the light of the world they are evolving to become.
Our society is structured to crush our unique light because we are controlled though our darkness. Our light is the Divine within us, and God will have no master. Our society is built on the conformity of the ego and the collective is conditioned to try and extinguish unique brightness. The wagons will circle to isolate it, cancel it, mock it and ultimately crucify it.
Shine anyway. You are the warriors of love.
The Way
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