Oh man, and it can be so subtle too. Most of the time, we don’t even notice it’s going on or its effect on us. The other day, I was in a restaurant and happened to notice a lady, overweight, stuffing her mouth & talking at the same time. For some reason, there was enough presence to notice, not only the judgment and slight disgust about her, but a subtle, uncomfortable feeling inside of being separate from myself, from life. The interesting thing is, that, as soon as that was noticed…no gap, no effort, there was an immediate sense of ease, of freedom…and I have to say, instead of pain of separation, there was an spontaneous affection for the person, like a welcoming into the open space that I am.
“…nothing augments the illusion of separation from life as does value judgment.” So, so true, Mike!
Oh man, and it can be so subtle too. Most of the time, we don’t even notice it’s going on or its effect on us. The other day, I was in a restaurant and happened to notice a lady, overweight, stuffing her mouth & talking at the same time. For some reason, there was enough presence to notice, not only the judgment and slight disgust about her, but a subtle, uncomfortable feeling inside of being separate from myself, from life. The interesting thing is, that, as soon as that was noticed…no gap, no effort, there was an immediate sense of ease, of freedom…and I have to say, instead of pain of separation, there was an spontaneous affection for the person, like a welcoming into the open space that I am.
Beautiful, Mike…I’m not sure my judgement engine will idle itself so readily…but that’s fodder for observation too, I guess!