The Hole In The Whole

In every system, every organization, every person, and every belief, there is a hole.  A "flaw".  A dissonant piece that seemingly goes against the efforts of the rest of the being.

There are those within our society who fight against the society.

There is the underground of the aboveground.

There is the germ fighting its way through the system.

There is the family member who doesn't get along with everyone else.

Our feelings about the dissonant parts of a system depend on our point of view.  

Think of any popular movie about a social uprising and you'll get the gist.  

In the movies of corrupt government and a society enslaved, we want the underground faction to rise up and succeed.  The system is bad and we want that glimmer of hope to shine through.

In the movies of a society looking to hold itself together while a small band of terrorists threatens everyone from the leaders to children, we want the whole to remain strong.  Those who threaten it are bad.  We want to remain whole, united.

Get it?

Those movies mirror reality, and the whole mirrors the individual.  Within our societies and within each of us are the bits that threaten to rise up, to disrupt the system.

Our feelings about those dissonant parts depend on our point of view.

Ready for your challenge?

The dissonant parts are necessary to the whole.  The challenge is to remove judgment from fractions of the whole yet remain a creative part of it.

Challenge accepted?

Awesome.

This means that the giant corporations and governments with all the secrets aren't bad.  However, we can still work to effect change in them.

This means that the collective American culture (or European or Canadian or Tibetan or Australian or "insert-your-place-of-residence-here") isn't good.  However, we can still embody the sense of unity that these feelings provide and work to help those who threaten that unity.

Too big of a challenge for today?

Start here.  Start now.

Perhaps you just received a nasty email from someone who doesn't like how you are going about your business.  The email, the person, the belief isn't bad.  It is the dissonance that helps you to experience the whole.  

The accolade you just received?  It isn't good.  It is the acknowledgement of what is currently working and flowing.  Do not overlook the tension that lies beneath it (nor judge that tension).

Become aware of impermanence of any system or being or belief.  Become aware of the change that is inherent in life.

We can work to live life beyond good and bad, to be aware of both the whole and the hole, to be intimately familiar with the system and the bits that create tension within it.

We can do this while playing a creative part in these systems - while taking part in the creation of the system.

Peaceful creation doesn't mean ridding ourselves of those holes or tensions, rather, creating while understanding all parts are necessary.  

We play with sthira (steadiness, firmness) and sukha (gentleness, softness) of life, the yin and yang, the successes and the fallbacks, the health and the illnesses.

Whatever hole or "flaw" or dissonance that you notice right now (back pain? inkling to quit your job? hunger?), be aware of the call to change.  Try to release judgment and your attachment to the outcome of the events.  Don't worry whether the hero is going to win.

Play a creative role in this moment, moving from a place of understanding that what is, is necessary for this moment to be.

One breath at a time.

Namaste.