Our consciousness can rise, like the sun rising in this stunning photograph taken in the Carpathian mountains in Ukraine. And it is my belief that as my consciousness rises, the tension in my life decreases.
Inversely, when there is tension in my life, the tension pulls my consciousness down to lower levels. So one of the ways I can help myself elevate my consciousness is by reducing the tension in my life.
Certainly there are some forms of tension that are constructive, like the tension that comes when we push ourselves past previous limitations. But, in general, I think most of the tension in my life, especially interpersonal tension and conflict, is unnecessary. And when I engage in interpersonal dynamics that create tension—fighting with my wife—I experience a double whammy. Not only is the tension unpleasant, but it causes my consciousness to devolve. Then, from a lower state of consciousness, I become more reactive and judgmental, less capable of understanding and connecting.
When I speak about states of consciousness, for simplicity, I condense them to three levels. Some Shamanic teachings speak of seven levels of consciousness, Buddhist teachings speak of nine level of consciousness. The three that I work with include: safety, openhearted, and spacious. In another article I will explain more about each of these. The point of this article is to suggest that the more tension we have in our lives, the more we inhibit our ability to elevate our consciousness.
Consciousness matters
Being able to elevate my consciousness matters a great deal to me, because as I do so, I experience a different relationship with everything in my life. What seems threatening to me when perceived through safety-consciousness, stimulates compassion when viewed through openhearted-consciousness, and enlightens when viewed through spacious-consciousness.
In recent weeks I’ve been focusing more on shifting my consciousness and less on trying to shift the events in my life. The results feel profound. I am approaching this from both ends—one involves a meditation practice and the other involves reducing sources of tension.
To learn more about ways you can reduce tension in your life, watch the video below. The “video” was recorded this morning, using new technology called a “Blab.” A Blab allows four people at a time to interact over the internet while being viewed by many other people. This is something we are experimenting with. We’ll be offering more Blabs in the coming weeks and we invite you to join us.
Take a peek below and see what you discover.
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