This isn’t just another horoscope forecast. 2025 carries a unique astrological blueprint, marked by powerful planetary transitions and rare alignments. Themes of growth, introspection, and reinvention will echo across the months, inviting individuals to harness this cosmic momentum and chart their course for the future.

What do the stars have in store for you?

Aries (March 21 – April 19): A Year of Transformation and New Beginnings

In 2025, Aries individuals are set to experience a transformative journey marked by significant planetary movements that will influence various aspects of their lives.

Saturn and Neptune Enter Aries

Starting May 24, 2025, Saturn, the planet of discipline and structure, moves into Aries, encouraging a period of self-reflection and the establishment of new foundations. This transit emphasizes the importance of responsibility and long-term planning, urging Aries to focus on personal growth and maturity.

Following closely, Neptune, the planet of dreams and intuition, enters Aries on March 30, 2025. This alignment inspires visionary thinking and the pursuit of ambitious goals, blending practicality with creativity. However, it also calls for caution against idealism that may blur reality.

Career and Financial Outlook

The convergence of Saturn and Neptune in Aries suggests a period where dreams can be materialized through disciplined effort. Aries may find opportunities for career advancement, particularly in fields that require innovation and leadership. Financially, this is a time to implement structured plans and avoid impulsive spending, ensuring stability and growth.

Relationships and Personal Growth

With Venus entering Aries on February 4, 2025, a fiery and passionate energy infuses personal relationships. Existing bonds may experience renewed excitement, while singles could be drawn to new, dynamic connections. It’s a period that favors authenticity and direct communication in love.

Health and Well-being

The planetary influences encourage Aries to adopt a balanced approach to health. The discipline of Saturn supports the establishment of consistent wellness routines, while Neptune’s influence promotes mental and spiritual well-being. Engaging in activities that combine physical exercise with mindfulness, such as yoga or martial arts, can be particularly beneficial.

Key Dates for Aries in 2025

• February 4: Venus enters Aries, enhancing charm and attracting positive attention in relationships.
• March 30: Neptune enters Aries, inspiring creativity and visionary pursuits.
• May 24: Saturn enters Aries, marking a period of increased responsibility and personal growth.
• October 6: Full Moon in Aries, offering a moment to reflect on achievements and set new intentions.

Taurus (April 20 – May 20): A Year of Growth and Transformation

In 2025, Taurus individuals are poised to experience significant growth and transformation across various facets of life, driven by key planetary movements and alignments.

Career and Professional Development

The year begins with promising prospects in your professional life. Jupiter and Saturn transiting the 7th House indicate substantial business success. Venturing into new business endeavors is favored, with destiny supporting swift success. As noted, “Aim as high as possible when it comes to your projects.”

Educational Pursuits

For those engaged in academic endeavors, 2025 holds the promise of success. The planetary positions suggest favorable outcomes in competitive exams and admissions to prestigious institutions, particularly after May 14th, potentially leading to job opportunities.

Financial Outlook

Financial stability and growth are prominent themes this year. The influence of Jupiter in the first house until mid-May enhances your earning potential, while its subsequent move to the second house further solidifies financial gains. This period is advantageous for implementing strategic financial plans and investments.

Relationships and Personal Life

In matters of the heart, 2025 encourages deeper connections and emotional stability. The planetary alignments foster stronger bonds with family members, enhancing domestic harmony. Your personality will attract others, and your opinions will be valued, aligning you with the views of your loved ones.

Health and Well-being

Health-wise, the year advises maintaining a balanced lifestyle. While no major health concerns are foreseen, adopting regular exercise and a nutritious diet will contribute to overall well-being. Prioritizing mental health through relaxation techniques and mindfulness practices is also recommended.

Key Dates for Taurus in 2025

• April 27: The Solar Eclipse in Taurus opens doors to material prosperity, signaling a period of financial growth and new opportunities.
• June 9: Jupiter enters Cancer, favoring mental expansion, studies, and communication, enhancing your ability to learn and share knowledge effectively.
• September 21: The Solar Eclipse trine your decan brings harmonious and relaxing influences, making it an ideal time for personal and professional gains.

Gemini (May 21 – June 20): A Year of Expansion and Transformation

In 2025, Gemini individuals are set to experience a dynamic year filled with opportunities for growth, self-discovery, and significant life shifts.

Career and Professional Development

The year begins with a focus on career advancements and meaningful collaborations. The North Node’s entry into your ambitious 10th house on January 11 presents an opportunity to clarify your purpose and professional goals. Idealistic Neptune conjoins the North Node on February 7, followed by serious Saturn on April 21, providing focus and determination in your quest.

Financial Outlook

Financial prospects may start modestly but are expected to improve as the year progresses. Jupiter’s influence ensures professional success and an improved financial outlook post-May. It’s advisable to maintain consistent financial pursuits and avoid impulsive spending to ensure stability and growth.

Relationships and Personal Life

In matters of the heart, 2025 encourages deeper connections and emotional stability. The planetary alignments foster stronger bonds with family members, enhancing domestic harmony. Your personality will attract others, and your opinions will be valued, aligning you with the views of your loved ones.

Health and Well-being

Health-wise, the year advises maintaining a balanced lifestyle. While no major health concerns are foreseen, adopting regular exercise and a nutritious diet will contribute to overall well-being. Prioritizing mental health through relaxation techniques and mindfulness practices is also recommended.

Key Dates for Gemini in 2025

• January 11: North Node enters your 10th house, prompting career focus.
• February 7: Neptune conjoins North Node, inspiring idealistic professional pursuits.
• April 21: Saturn conjoins North Node, emphasizing discipline in career goals.
• June 10: Jupiter completes its transit through your sign, marking the end of a 12-year cycle and offering an opportunity to address what makes life meaningful for you.

Cancer (June 21 – July 22): A Year of Renewal and Stability

In 2025, Cancer individuals are set to experience a transformative journey marked by personal growth, financial stability, and deepened relationships.

Personal Growth and Self-Assertion

Emerging from your shell, 2025 is a pivotal year for claiming your rightful place, shedding any false modesty, and embracing life with newfound courage. This transformative phase encourages you to sift through your relationships, distancing yourself from those who drain your energy and welcoming a space that’s truly your own.

Career and Financial Stability

The year begins with harmonious energy, as the Moon amplifies your emotional intuition and empathy. Saturn and Jupiter play significant roles, encouraging stability and expansion. Saturn supports you in building strong foundations in your career and personal life, while Jupiter inspires growth in learning and exploration. This year, you are called to find balance, managing your inner emotional world alongside outward responsibilities. With careful planning and mindfulness, 2025 can be a year of personal growth and fulfillment.

Relationships and Emotional Well-being

In matters of the heart, 2025 is a year of deep emotional connection and relationship growth. Venus and Jupiter bring positive energy to your love life, particularly in February and October. These months offer ideal conditions for strengthening relationships, addressing unresolved issues, and building long-term commitments. Your nurturing nature will help foster deeper emotional intimacy with partners.

Health and Well-being

Health-wise, the year advises maintaining a balanced lifestyle. While no major health concerns are foreseen, adopting regular exercise and a nutritious diet will contribute to overall well-being. Prioritizing mental health through relaxation techniques and mindfulness practices is also recommended.

Key Dates for Cancer in 2025

• June 9: Jupiter enters your sign, illuminating new opportunities that redefine your identity.
• March 14: A full moon and total lunar eclipse in Virgo bring powerful transformation and renewal.
• September 7: A full moon and total lunar eclipse in Pisces, making it the most powerful day for you to manifest your desires.

Leo (July 23 – August 22): A Year of Community and Collaboration

In 2025, Leos are poised to experience a dynamic year emphasizing community engagement, professional growth, and personal development.

Community and Social Connections

The year begins with a focus on expanding your social circles. Jupiter and Uranus each spend six months in Gemini, activating your collaborative eleventh house. This alignment encourages you to “posse up with your pride,” emphasizing the importance of community as your path to freedom.

Career and Professional Growth

Professionally, the influence of Venus early in the year may bring opportunities for progress. However, it’s advisable to proceed with caution in financial decisions, avoiding ambitious attempts for short-term gains that could lead to unnecessary burdens.

Personal Development and Relationships

On a personal level, 2025 encourages Leos to embrace new hobbies and ventures with open arms. This year unfolds with you stepping into the light, embodying the majestic spirit of the lion, ready for a year of respect and admiration.

Health and Well-being

Health-wise, the year advises maintaining a balanced lifestyle. While no major health concerns are foreseen, adopting regular exercise and a nutritious diet will contribute to overall well-being. Prioritizing mental health through relaxation techniques and mindfulness practices is also recommended.

Key Dates for Leo in 2025

• January 29: The New Moon in Aquarius prompts a deep reevaluation of affective relationships, friendships, and partnerships, urging you to take more responsibility for the affections you cultivate.
• May 2025: Jupiter transits to your 11th house, enhancing your professional work environment and career prospects.
• July 2025: Uranus begins its six-month transit through Gemini, further activating your collaborative eleventh house and emphasizing community engagement.

Virgo (August 23 – September 22): Embracing Transformation and Authenticity

In 2025, Virgos are encouraged to balance their innate practicality with a free-flowing imagination, allowing creativity and personal interests to take center stage. The lunar eclipse in your sign on March 14 will help you release perfectionist tendencies and embrace authenticity. Saturn’s presence in Aries this year challenges you to restructure routines for greater efficiency. Building confidence through enjoyment and stepping outside your comfort zone can make 2025 a truly remarkable year.

Love and Relationships

In 2025, your romantic relationships will find stability as the year begins. Early decisions aimed at resolving issues are on the horizon. A sense of calmness is advised, especially with the arrival of spring, bringing clarity to your love life. Unmistakable signs of affection will quickly convince you of others’ intentions. This year promises more stability and deeper trust in your relationships. By June, a turning point may bring you closer to someone special, concluding the year on a high note, with solitude being the last thing on your mind.

Career and Finances

Professionally, 2025 presents opportunities for growth and advancement. Your analytical skills and attention to detail will be assets in navigating workplace challenges. Financially, prudent planning and budgeting are essential to ensure stability and achieve your goals.

Health and Well-being

Maintaining a balanced lifestyle is crucial. Incorporate regular exercise and a nutritious diet into your routine. Prioritize mental health through relaxation techniques and mindfulness practices to enhance overall well-being.

Key Dates for Virgo in 2025

• March 14: A full moon and total lunar eclipse in Virgo bring powerful transformation and renewal.
• September 21: A new moon and partial solar eclipse in Virgo bring changes to your personal relationships, encouraging you to let go of old habits.

Libra (September 23 – October 22): A Year of Transformative Partnerships and Personal Growth

In 2025, Libras are set to experience significant transformations in relationships and personal development. The celestial movements this year encourage a reevaluation of connections and a deeper understanding of self-worth.

Transformative Partnerships

Neptune’s transit into Aries will redefine your relationships, prompting a shift towards more balanced and reciprocal connections. This planetary movement encourages you to take bold steps to achieve harmony in both love and professional partnerships.

Career and Financial Outlook

Jupiter’s alignment with Gemini and Cancer brings optimism and potential financial growth. In the first half of the year, anticipate unexpected windfalls or successful investments. As Jupiter moves into Cancer, focus on nurturing your professional relationships, as they may lead to lucrative opportunities.

Personal Development

The solar eclipse in Aries invites you to embrace self-love and assertiveness. This period is ideal for practicing self-love rituals and affirming your worthiness of success.

Health and Well-being

Maintaining balance is crucial. Engage in activities that promote mental and physical health, such as yoga or meditation. Be mindful of overexertion, and ensure you allocate time for rest and rejuvenation.

Key Dates for Libra in 2025

• March 29: The solar eclipse in Aries encourages bold steps towards balanced relationships.
• July 2025: Uranus enters Gemini, supporting exciting collaborations and learning opportunities.
• Late September to October: The sun transits through Libra, highlighting your natural traits and bringing personal insights.

Scorpio (October 23 – November 21): A Year of Transformation and Growth

In 2025, Scorpios are set to navigate a year of profound transformation and personal growth. Your innate resilience and adaptability will be your greatest assets as you embrace the changes ahead.

Career and Finances

The year begins with promising prospects in your professional life. Your instincts and creativity will drive you toward success, especially in the first half of the year. However, be mindful of Mercury retrograde periods, which may introduce turbulence and require careful navigation to maintain harmony in the workplace. Financially, it’s a favorable time to focus on savings and building stability.

Love and Relationships

Romantic relationships are poised to flourish, particularly during the spring months. Expect an infusion of romance and harmony, with opportunities for singles to find meaningful connections. However, mid-year may bring challenges that require patience and understanding to navigate. By October, a sense of calm returns, fostering cooperation and strengthening friendships.

Health and Well-being

Your health is expected to be robust, especially in the first half of the year. Post-May, opportunities for travel or relocation may arise, contributing to your overall well-being. However, remain vigilant in the latter half, as potential health concerns, particularly related to the stomach or infectious diseases, may surface. Adopting a balanced diet and maintaining a healthy lifestyle will be beneficial.

Key Dates for Scorpio in 2025

• March 1 – April 12: Venus retrograde influences your approach to love and relationships, prompting reflection and reassessment.
• June 9: Jupiter enters Cancer, enhancing opportunities for growth and expansion in various aspects of life.
• September 22: Mars enters Scorpio, intensifying your drive and passion in personal and professional endeavors.

Sagittarius (November 22 – December 21): A Year of Exploration and Personal Growth

In 2025, Sagittarius individuals are poised to embark on a journey of self-discovery and expansion. The celestial alignments this year encourage you to embrace your adventurous spirit and seek new horizons.

Career and Education

The year presents favorable opportunities for academic and professional advancement. Success in competitive examinations is likely, especially after May 14th, making it an ideal time to pursue higher education or professional certifications. Diligence and perseverance will be key to achieving your goals.

Love and Relationships

Neptune’s transit into Aries will ignite your passion for exploration and creativity to a heightened degree. This planetary movement encourages you to live out your fantasies in real time, fostering deeper connections with others. However, during the Mercury retrograde in your sign in November, it’s advisable to refine your communication and revisit past issues with loved ones. Embracing forgiveness and self-acceptance will lead to personal development.

Health and Well-being

Maintaining a balanced lifestyle is essential. Engaging in regular physical activity and adopting a nutritious diet will enhance your vitality. Additionally, exploring new wellness practices, such as yoga or meditation, can contribute to your overall well-being.

Key Dates for Sagittarius in 2025

• May 14: Auspicious time for academic and professional pursuits.
• November: Mercury retrograde in Sagittarius prompts reflection and improved communication.

Capricorn (December 22 – January 19): A Year of Steadfast Progress and Personal Fulfillment

In 2025, Capricorns are encouraged to adhere to their routines and confront career challenges directly, despite potential financial and health obstacles. This year is not ideal for significant investments; instead, find joy in familiar comforts and embrace the support of loved ones.

Career and Finances

Your professional life will demand resilience and determination. While challenges may arise, your inherent discipline and work ethic will guide you through. It’s advisable to maintain financial prudence and avoid large investments during this period. Focus on consolidating your resources and seeking stability rather than expansion.

Love and Relationships

The first half of the year may bring past partners back into your life, offering opportunities for closure or rekindling relationships. Significant, positive developments in your love life are anticipated around June, fostering deeper connections and understanding with your partner.

Health and Well-being

Your health is expected to be robust initially; however, mid-summer may require adopting new health approaches. Maintaining a balanced lifestyle and being attentive to your well-being will be essential to navigate this period successfully.

Key Dates for Capricorn in 2025

• January 8: Mercury enters Capricorn, enhancing your focus and communication skills.
• July 10: The full moon in Capricorn provides a moment to reflect on your progress and adjust your goals accordingly.
• December 21: The sun enters Capricorn, marking the beginning of your season and a time for personal reflection and goal setting.

Pisces (February 19 – March 20): Embracing Transformation and Spiritual Growth

In 2025, Pisces individuals are set to experience a year rich in introspection, personal development, and spiritual awakening. The celestial alignments encourage you to delve deeper into your inner self, fostering significant transformations that align with your true purpose.

Career and Finances

The professional realm presents opportunities for growth, particularly towards the latter part of the year. Support from senior colleagues will be instrumental in advancing your ambitions. However, Saturn’s influence may introduce financial challenges, necessitating prudent management of resources. It’s advisable to approach investments cautiously and focus on consolidating your financial position.

Love and Relationships

The year holds promise for deepening romantic connections. From February onwards, relationships are poised to flourish, offering opportunities to strengthen bonds and, for some, consider starting a family. Open communication and mutual understanding will be key to navigating any emotional fluctuations that may arise.

Health and Well-being

Health remains stable, though it’s essential to maintain a disciplined lifestyle. Saturn’s presence may cause occasional disruptions, emphasizing the importance of regular exercise and a balanced diet. Engaging in spiritual practices can also enhance mental resilience, aiding in overall well-being.

Key Dates for Pisces in 2025

• January 11: The North Node enters Pisces, initiating an 18-month journey towards self-discovery and alignment with your higher purpose.
• March 30: Neptune transitions into Aries, prompting a shift in your perception of the material world and encouraging a more assertive approach to your dreams.
• September 7: A total lunar eclipse in Pisces heightens emotions and intuition, offering a powerful opportunity for personal transformation.

A Transformative Year Awaits

As the stars align for 2025, each zodiac sign faces unique opportunities and challenges that encourage growth, introspection, and transformation. The celestial movements this year — from Pluto’s monumental shift to Neptune’s inspiring transit — act as cosmic guides, urging you to embrace change, let go of outdated patterns, and align with your higher purpose. Whether it’s a year of personal breakthroughs, career growth, or deepened relationships, the astrology of 2025 promises to illuminate the path forward with clarity and purpose. As you step into this transformative year, remember to stay grounded, trust your intuition, and harness the cosmic energy to create the life you desire.

Preserved in an ancient Syriac manuscript, the chapter challenges long-held assumptions about biblical texts and their seemingly static nature. With its subtle variations and expanded narrative, this rediscovery raises compelling questions: What does this mean for the modern understanding of faith? And how many more hidden chapters might still be waiting to be found?

Unearthing a Lost Piece of Biblical History

In a groundbreaking intersection of technology and ancient history, scholars have uncovered a hidden chapter of the Bible within a 1,750-year-old Syriac manuscript preserved in the Vatican Library. Using ultraviolet (UV) light, researchers revealed traces of erased writing—a palimpsest—buried beneath layers of overwritten text. This painstaking process illuminated an earlier version of scripture, lost to time but now reintroduced to the world.

The manuscript, part of the Syriac translations of the Bible, is more than just a relic. It represents a key moment in Christianity’s history, when scribes worked tirelessly to preserve scripture under challenging conditions. Early Christians relied on Syriac texts to disseminate their teachings across cultural and linguistic boundaries, making this find a window into their lived experiences.

What makes this discovery especially remarkable is its collaborative nature. Historians, linguists, and scientists pooled their expertise to decode the faded script, each stroke of ink offering clues to a story untold for nearly two millennia. This isn’t just a triumph for biblical studies; it’s a testament to the enduring power of curiosity and innovation to uncover humanity’s shared past.

The Hidden Chapter: What We Know So Far

The newly unveiled chapter offers an expanded version of Matthew 12, a passage where Jesus and his disciples are criticized for picking grain on the Sabbath. In this version, subtle textual variations bring fresh theological nuances to light, emphasizing compassion and mercy over rigid observance of religious laws. While the core message aligns with established teachings, these differences hint at the dynamic and adaptive nature of early Christian scripture.

Written in ancient Syriac, one of the earliest languages used to transmit biblical texts, the chapter provides a rare glimpse into Christianity’s early cultural diversity. Syriac was instrumental in spreading scripture beyond its Jewish origins, tailoring messages to resonate with varied linguistic and cultural communities. This adaptation reflects the pragmatic approach of early Christians, who shaped their sacred texts to meet the needs of a rapidly growing faith.

What’s particularly striking is the role of early scribes. Far from being passive transcribers, they actively engaged with the material, reinterpreting and preserving it in ways that reflected their own spiritual and societal realities. This hidden chapter, with its emphasis on mercy, reveals a faith not rigidly bound to dogma but alive with reinterpretation and evolution—a window into the beliefs and priorities of communities navigating the complexities of their time.

The Technology That Unveiled the Forgotten Chapter

It’s hard to believe that something written almost 2,000 years ago could still be hiding in plain sight. But that’s exactly what happened here. Using ultraviolet light, researchers managed to reveal a forgotten chapter of the Bible, hidden beneath layers of overwritten text on an ancient manuscript. It’s like uncovering a secret message written centuries ago, invisible to the naked eye but waiting to be found.

The process wasn’t exactly a walk in the park. Think about it—this manuscript is old, fragile, and irreplaceable. Every move had to be precise, every scan done with the utmost care. Months of work went into piecing together faint traces of erased ink, with experts from all over—historians, linguists, scientists—working side by side. It’s amazing to think that this discovery wouldn’t have been possible even a few decades ago. The tools they used, like UV imaging, are giving us new ways to see the past in ways we never thought possible.

But here’s what really gets you thinking—what else is out there? If something as groundbreaking as a hidden chapter of the Bible can be uncovered, what other secrets might still be lying in wait? This is more than a cool tech story; it’s a reminder that history always has more to give, as long as we keep asking the right questions.

A Manuscript’s Journey Through Time

Think about this for a second: early Christians lived in a world where their beliefs could literally get them killed. Their sacred texts weren’t just important—they were lifelines, hidden and protected at all costs. That’s the world this 1,750-year-old Syriac manuscript comes from. Imagine scribes painstakingly copying and preserving these words, knowing the risks they faced if they were caught.

Back then, parchment wasn’t exactly easy to come by. It was expensive, rare, and, honestly, every bit as valuable as the words written on it. To make the most of it, scribes would scrape off old texts and reuse the material—creating what we now call palimpsests. It’s kind of wild to think that their recycling efforts accidentally preserved traces of history that they probably thought were gone for good.

Here’s another fascinating detail: this manuscript is written in Syriac. It’s one of the earliest languages used to spread Christianity and shows how the faith started to move beyond its Jewish roots. Syriac wasn’t just a language—it was a tool that helped Christianity adapt and grow, reaching new communities and cultures. That’s what makes this discovery so powerful. It’s not just about words on a page; it’s about the lengths people went to protect and share their beliefs.

And now, centuries later, we’re uncovering their story. You can almost picture the hands that wrote and rewrote this text, working in secret, determined to pass on what they believed mattered most. It’s a humbling reminder of just how much history can hide beneath the surface—literally—and how much these ancient voices still have to say.

What Scholars Are Saying: A New Lens on Scripture

This hidden chapter of the Bible has sparked lively debates among scholars. Many see it as a fascinating window into how early Christian communities understood and adapted scripture. The chapter’s emphasis on mercy over strict adherence to religious laws aligns with Jesus’ teachings but adds a fresh perspective to familiar passages. This nuance suggests early Christians may have tailored scripture to address the unique challenges of their time.

At the heart of the debate is the question of why this chapter was erased. Some scholars suggest it might have been excluded as church leaders worked to formalize the biblical canon, streamlining texts to unify doctrine. Others argue that its omission could simply reflect the practical realities of the time, with scribes overwriting older texts due to the scarcity of parchment. Whatever the reason, the discovery underscores the dynamic and evolving nature of early Christianity.

Ultimately, this find is about more than one chapter. It’s a reminder that the Bible, far from being a static document, was shaped over centuries by human hands and decisions. For scholars and believers alike, the chapter offers a chance to reexamine the past while raising new questions about the stories still waiting to be uncovered.

Hidden Truths, Endless Possibilities

The discovery of this hidden Bible chapter is more than a historical footnote—it’s a vivid reminder of how much the past still has to teach us. From the resilience of early Christian communities to the evolving nature of scripture itself, this find opens a window into a world where faith and history were deeply intertwined. It also shows how modern technology can breathe life into ancient artifacts, revealing secrets thought lost to time.

But this is likely just the beginning. Who knows what other forgotten chapters, erased writings, or hidden narratives are still waiting to be uncovered? Each discovery invites us to ask new questions, challenge old assumptions, and deepen our understanding of the stories that have shaped human history. Whether it’s faith, curiosity, or a little of both driving the search, one thing is certain—history still has plenty of mysteries left to share.

“Highly evolved people have their own conscience as pure law.” ~Lao Tzu

If we heed these wise words by Lao Tzu, then it stands to reason that we focus more on developing highly evolved people capable of honoring universal laws, rather than waste our energy bludgeoning people with invalid laws that violate the golden rule, the nonaggression principle, and the universal laws that dictate health.

But what constitutes a highly evolved person? What might a highly evolved person’s character look like? How do we define such a broad concept? In Five Counterintuitive Traits of Highly Evolved Humans, I broke down the emotional disposition of highly evolved people. In this article we’ll break down the political disposition of highly evolved people.

Choose a courage-based lifestyle over a fear-based lifestyle:

“A government which will turn its tanks upon its people, for any reason, is a government with the taste of blood and a thirst for power and must either be smartly rebuked or blindly obeyed in deadly fear.” ~John Salter

Does your government have a taste for blood and a thirst for power? A highly evolved person, with their own conscience as pure law, would choose smart rebuking over fearful obsequiousness.

Don’t allow such a government to have its way. Question its authority. Practice strategic civil disobedience. Count coup on overreaching power constructs. Challenge outdated, immoral, and unjust laws. Be the personification of checks and balances. Dare to be a courageous David facing down the Goliath of the state.

We don’t need more people who blindly obey in deadly fear. That’s already the vast majority of people. We need more people who are highly evolved enough to smartly rebuke any and all governments that use violence to “solve” problems.

Choosing a courage-based lifestyle over a fear-based lifestyle is choosing to no longer be a victim. It’s choosing, instead, to become a hero. It’s choosing courage over fear, self-sacrifice over comfort and security, adventure over banality, fierceness over obsequiousness, and ruthless skepticism over blind faith.

Understand that the vast majority of people are still willing to live fear-based lifestyles. Sympathize with them for having not woken up yet, but do not pity them. It’s not their fault they were brainwashed, conditioned and indoctrinated into living fear-based lifestyles, but it is their responsibility to educate themselves and to break themselves of their conditioning.

You can lead people to knowledge, but you can’t make them think. You can, however, remain ruthless with your courage-based lifestyle. Become a beacon of courageous hope. Especially for those who are still living fear-based lifestyles. Call it tough love. As Derrick Jensen said, “Love does not imply pacifism.”

Choose heart-centeredness over political divisiveness:

“We want to abolish the state and create a world free of oppression and suffering, but we must not lose sight of ourselves in the pursuit of this goal. Remain heart-centered no matter how violent the state becomes or how divisive the political climate. Every revolutionary through history who chose violence became a monster and a shadow of what they pursued. Remember, we are after an evolution of hearts and minds.” ~Derrick Broze & John Vibes

Bipartisan politics is old hat. It’s high time you toss that hat in the fire. Highly evolved people have already done so. They have gone Meta with politics. They’ve gone beyond the outdated, codependent divisiveness of bipartisanism and graduated into an updated, interdependent metamorality.

Metamorality, coined by Joshua Greene, is based on a common ground that all humans can agree upon while proposing a utilitarian deep pragmatism that empathically broadens the mind and compassionately opens the heart to the plight of us all as interdependent beings on an interconnected planet. Highly evolved humans use this strategy, along with the Astronaut Overview Effect, to go big-picture.

Going big-picture helps us change our minds. Or, at least be more flexible and open in our thinking. It puts things into proper perspective. It helps us feel more empathic and less psychopathic toward each other. We’re better able to see the world as one, without borders.

We’re better able to narrow our highfalutin politics down to a single concept we can all agree on: freedom. We’re better able to see through all the red herring cognitive biases of the climate debate and realize that our problem is a single problem we can all agree on: pollution. We’re better able to cut straight through the divisiveness of religion and narrow it down to a single concept that we can all agree on: love. Especially love for our children, and creating a healthy environment for them to grow up in. And suddenly there are not so many differences between us.

Choosing heart-centeredness over political divisiveness puts a compassionate spin on our conscience. Indeed, it puts the “conscience” in having our own conscience as pure law. For pure law is universal law, based upon the healthy interconnectedness of all things.

Choose self-improvement over self-preservation and create a better world:

“You are personally responsible for becoming more ethical than the society you grew up in.” ~Eliezer Yudkowsky

When it comes down to it, becoming a highly evolved human is about spitting out the unhealthy blue pill of comfort, safety, and security based on outdated laws, and having the courage to swallow the healthy red pill of curiosity, questioning, and skepticism that questions bad laws in order to create healthy laws that align with universal laws.

It’s about becoming the personification of checks and balances. It’s about putting in the hard and difficult work of becoming a highly evolved person who has the wherewithal to “use their own conscience as pure law.” And to teach others how to do the same.

The answer is not creating more bad laws to shove down people’s throats. The answer is creating people smart enough to question the authority that seeks to shove bad laws down people’s throats. Indeed. The answer is teaching people how to become bigger than the law, how to gain the capacity to have their own conscience as pure law, and how to become a more valuable human. As Niels Bohr said, “Every valuable human being must be a radical and a rebel, for what he must aim at is to make things better than they are.”

If, as Plato famously said, “Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws,” then it stands to reason that we should focus more on teaching people how to act responsibly and less on creating laws. Especially since humans are so terrible at making good laws. And especially-especially since humans are even more terrible about abusing their power regarding those ill-conceived laws.

As Edward Abbey wisely suggested, “Since few men are wise enough to rule themselves, even fewer are wise enough to rule others.” The few seeking to rule others do so through the enforcement of bad laws.

So, it is incumbent upon anyone with their own conscience as pure law to ruthlessly interrogate such bad laws and then mercilessly check and balance any authority seeking to enforce such bad laws. We do ourselves, our children, and our grandchildren a disservice when we decide not to.

There is no greater cause than becoming more ethical than the society you grew up in. Will you defend outdated unethical laws and merely turn a blind eye to those who unjustly enforce them? Or will you defend the people’s right to ruthlessly challenge unethical laws and those who unjustly enforce them? The choice is yours. As William James said, “We are all ready to be savage in some cause. The difference between a good man and a bad one is the choice of the cause.”

“The snake which cannot cast its skin has to die. As well the minds which are prevented from changing their opinions; they cease to be mind.” ~Friedrich Nietzsche

If you would be alive –if you would choose to live an examined life, a fulfilled life, a self-actualized life, a life well-lived– then don’t fearfully choose the safe road, what Jung called “The Road of Death.” Choose instead the courage to face the trials and tribulations of an adventurous road, a road full of danger and risk.

On the bridge from Man to Overman, there is no place for half-assed lifestyles and herd instincts. There’s no place for fear-based perspectives and cowardly excuses. There’s no place for play-it-safers and goodie-two-shoes clinging to comfort and light. The bridge is too narrow for narrow-mindedness. It’s too shadowy for those who have not reconciled their own shadows. It’s too full of dark nights for anyone who hasn’t experienced a Dark Night of the Soul. It’s too painfully real for those who have not overcome the Matrix and embraced the Desert of the Real.

The bridge is only for courageous self-actualizers and heroic self-overcomers. If your intent is not self-actualization and self-overcoming, then simply get out of the way. Don’t block those with a full heart just because your heart is empty. Better yet: fill your heart with courage. Join the ranks of healthy progressive evolution. “I teach you the Overman,” writes Nietzsche. “Man is something that should be overcome. What have you done to overcome him?”

Taking the leap of courage:

“Every valuable human being must be a radical and a rebel, for what he must aim at is to make things better than they are.” ~Niels Bohr

Can you feel the constriction of your comfort zone? Like a heavy life-jacket weighing you down? Like a too-safe straight-jacket keeping you out of harms way?

Can you feel the warm glow of contentedness quietly stagnating you? Causing you to feel like you’ve made it somehow? Can you feel the secure pressure of the status quo keeping you in line? Causing you to blindly accept, to myopically believe that you’ve somehow got it all figured out?

Taking a leap of courage is daring yourself to escape these feelings. It’s encouraging yourself to step outside your comfort zone. It’s having the audacity to think rather than believe, to take things into consideration rather than rely on conviction. It’s inspiring yourself to be heroic despite fear.

Look, I get it. Inside the comfort zone everything is safe and warm, solved and unriddled. But there’s also no adventure there. There’s no risk. There’s no challenge. There is everything in there to help you heal, it’s a great place to lick your wounds, but there’s nothing there to help you grow.

Healthy growth, the kind of growth that builds resilience and robustness, can only be achieved outside the comfort zone. There’s got to be risk. Like Nietzsche said, “Man is a rope, tied between beast and Overman – a rope over an abyss. A dangerous across, a dangerous on-the-way, a dangerous looking-back, a dangerous shuddering and stopping.”

Inside the comfort zone there’s placation, pacification and pity. There’s everything that keeps us appeased and satisfied. There’s God with his shiny promises and glossy platitudes keeping us pampered and coddled and giving us that warm fuzzy feeling. But there’s no growth. There’s no questions. There’s no humor. There’s no furthering of evolution.

Outside of the comfort zone God is dead. Or, at least, God is a garden. A vast and vital garden filled with the compost of every man-made God to ever have existed, rotting like deified fertilizer for the future fertilization of ever-improved and ever-updated Gods.

Alas, the bridge from Man to Overman can only be built outside our comfort zones. Building the bridge is building adventure. It’s building something to grow into. It’s rebuilding God. It’s building a path into godhood and creative evolution. Indeed, we stand upon the corpse of God in order to self-actualize our place as Gods in the making.

Building the bridge out of the bones of God (and Giants):

“We are all Mothers of God, for God is always needing to be reborn.” ~Meister Eckhart

The bridge is a symbol for revivification, a creative renaissance, a spiritual rebirth, an existential resurgence. The bridge is a path, but it’s also a crossroads –a snarling juxtaposition. It’s built out of the outdated bones of God toward the updated end of creative evolution. It’s fixed into place with existential glue. It’s sturdier than any bridge ever created, but it’s surrounded by an angry abyss, and it’s never completed.

We are all architects of this bridge to some extent. Some of us are aware of it, but most of us are not. Most of us are cluttered and stuck in stopgap ideologies. We’re clustered and bottlenecked before the crossroads. Unable to self-actualize. Unable to self-overcome. Unable to see how everything is connected to everything else. Like pre-enlightened Rumis, we’re incapable of seeing that the door to our prison is wide open. And always has been.

Building the bridge from Man to Overman is proactively engaging and leveraging open-mindedness through self-actualization and self-overcoming. It’s inflicting awareness. It’s launching existential flares. It’s highlighting creative evolution through courageous interdependence.

The bones of God are sturdy and steadfast. Solid ground upon which to keep moving, ever-forward, ever-overcoming, ever-evolving. It takes the Newtonian notion of “standing on the shoulders of giants” to the next level. It’s Meta-perceptual. We stand on the bones of God in order to see further than God did. In order to perpetually propel human imagination and ingenuity. In order to grow and keep growing, despite creature comforts, herd instincts, and psychosocial hang-ups.

Building the bridge begins with each of us taking personal responsibility for our contribution to human evolution. Indeed. We all carry the bones of God. Self-overcoming is taking the reins of our life into our own hands, and proactively going about improving upon who we were yesterday. It’s a personalized Fibonacci sequence (self-improvement) striving toward Phi (enlightenment), where our own development is predicated upon an individualized progressive evolution that will ultimately contribute to the evolution of the species.

If you meet Nietzsche on the bridge, kill him:

“If you meet The Buddha on the road, kill him.” ~Linji

As Zen master Shunryu Suzuki wrote in Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind, “Kill the Buddha if the Buddha exists somewhere else. Kill the Buddha, because you should resume your own Buddha nature.” Similarly, we should kill our notion of self-mastery in order to continue improving our mastery. Think of it as a kind of recycled mastery, where we recycle the mastery of yesterday into the remastered mastery of today.

This applies to the concept of deification itself. So as not to get stuck in a particular state of growth, it is vital that we “kill” the notion that we have “arrived.” That our evolution is somehow “complete.” That there is nothing further to grow into, nothing to question, nothing to overcome. For there will always be something to grow into, to question, and to overcome. There will always be a vast infinity toward which our limited finitude must strive. Indeed. The bridge from Man to Overman is built ever-finitely into the infinite future.

Killing Buddha (God) on the road and killing Nietzsche (Godhood) on the bridge is vital to keep creative evolution in perspective, so as not to get hung-up on any particular notion of Truth. The bridge from Man to Overman is filled with the outdated bones of dead Gods and the burnt-out husks of outdated truths. As James Russel Lowell said, “Time makes ancient good uncouth.”

Those who are proactively and courageously building the bridge understand that Truth is a fickle beast. Almost as fickle a beast as human fallibility. It’s for both reasons that those who are building the bridge consistently recycle their own mastery.

At the end of the day, the bridge from Man to Overman is a process of self-actualization and self-overcoming. It’s the collective personification of creative evolution. We build the bridge to provide a flexible and malleable path toward godhood. We keep building, destroying and rebuilding so that past growth adds to, without subtracting from, the healthy and progressive evolution of the species. We stand and face the Abyss, honoring each other… “Overmaste: the (r)evolutionary potential in me honors the (r)evolutionary potential in you.”

Image: Source

The Buddha taught that detachment, one of the disciplines on the Noble Path, also called ariyasaavaka, is not a physical act of withdrawal or even a form of austerity. Though the Buddha teaches of a “non-action which is an integral part of the Right Way,” if it is taken out of context it can give the impression that we should develop a lack of concern for others, and that we should live without truly feeling or expressing our emotions – cutting ourselves off from life.

These type of misinterpretations are sadly common, since there are not always direct translations from the Paali language into English.

This form of “detachment” is an erroneous understanding of the Buddha’s message. Master Hanh states that to truly let go we must learn to love more completely. Non-attachment only happens when our love for another extends beyond our own personal expectations of gain, or our anticipation of a specific, desired outcome.

Hanh describes four forms of complete detachment, which surprisingly, aren’t about holing yourself up in a cave and ignoring everyone who has broken your heart, or ignoring your lust or desire for a romantic interest. This is not detachment. Letting go, means diving in. For example:

Maitri (Not the Love You Know)

Hanh describes the importance of Maitri, not love as we normally understand in a Westernized use of the word. He states,

“The first aspect of true love is maitri (metta, in Pali), the intention and capacity to offer joy and happiness. To develop that capacity, we have to practice looking and listening deeply so that we know what to do and what not to do to make others happy. If you offer your beloved something she does not need, that is not maitri. You have to see her real situation or what you offer might bring her unhappiness.”

In other words, your detachment may come in accepting that certain things you would normally do to make another person feel loved and appreciated may not be what the person you are actively loving now, needs. Instead of forcing that behavior on another person, with an egoic intent to “please” them, you simply detach from that need in yourself, and truly observe what makes another person feel comfortable, safe, and happy.

Hanh further explains,

“We have to use language more carefully. “Love” is a beautiful word; we have to restore its meaning. The word “maitri” has roots in the word mitra which means friend. In Buddhism, the primary meaning of love is friendship.”

Karuna (Compassion)

The next form of true detachment is compassion. When we let go, we don’t stop offering a compassionate touch, word, or deed to help someone who is in pain. We also don’t expect to take their hurt or pain away. Compassion contains deep concern, though. It is not aloofness It is not isolation from others.

The Buddha smiles because he understands why pain and suffering exist, and because he also knows how to transform it. You become more deeply involved in life when you become detached form the outcome, but this does not mean you don’t participate fully – even in others’ pain.

Gratitude and Joy

In truly letting go you practice gratitude. Mudita, or joy arises when we are overcome with gratitude for all that we have, such that we no longer cling to some other longed-for result. The Buddha’s definition of joy is more like “Unselfish joy.” It means that we don’t only find happiness when something good happens to us, but when others find happiness.

If you’ve ever had to say goodbye to a love or friend so that they could continue on their life’s path – one that may not have continued to intertwine with your own – you may have felt pain when they found someone new to love, or made a new friend that seemed to take your place. This is not true detachment. Joy arises when you find happiness even when others find joy – and it has little or nothing to do with you.

Upeksha (Equanimity)

Master Hanh describes the final quality of true love which sheds inordinate light on the true process of letting go.

He states,

“The fourth element of true love is upeksha, which means equanimity, non-attachment, nondiscrimination, even-mindedness, or letting go. Upa means “over,” and iksha means “to look.” You climb the mountain to be able to look over the whole situation, not bound by one side or the other. If your love has attachment, discrimination, prejudice, or clinging in it, it is not true love.

People who do not understand Buddhism sometimes think upeksha means indifference, but true equanimity is neither cold nor indifferent. If you have more than one child, they are all your children. Upeksha does not mean that you don’t love. You love in a way that all your children receive your love, without discrimination.”

Hanh explains that without this quality our love tends to become possessive – a stomping ground of the ego. We try to put our beloved in our pocket and carry them with us, when they are more like the wind, or a butterfly, or a stream, needing to move and flow, or risk dying. This is not love, this is destruction.

For love to be true love, it must have elements of compassion, joy, and equanimity – and this is truly letting go.

The Art of Letting Go is Artless

The real secret is that letting go is not an art, it is an allowing, a being. A non-attached relationship is healthy, strong and filled with effortless love, kindness and compassion. It is completely selfless because your sense of ‘self’ is no longer asserted in every situation. If you want to truly let go, you’ve got to love more, not less. This is the most common misunderstanding about this priceless teaching of the Buddha.

Featured Image: Photo © Unified Buddhist Church.

The heart’s physical importance not to be underestimated, it supports life, sending the blood of life to the tree-like limbs of our vascular system – but this is an overly simplistic view of what the heart is capable of.

Gregg Braden’s latest research elaborates on the ancient technique of using the heart as an intelligent organ.

The heart’s intelligence has been ignored for far too long. What we’ve learned about the heart’s wisdom, however, in the past several years through the Heart Math Institute and through the research of psychologists, neurobiologists, and res-surfaced wisdom teachings from our ancient past – should inspire everyone to look at the heart in a completely new way.

For those who are not used to using their innate intelligence – that is their intuition — tuning into the heart for answers to the most profound and difficult questions they could possibly drum up might seem ridiculous. Why ask the heart whether to stay in a relationship that is challenging, or even if you should go through with a medical procedure?

It might seem ignorant or even haphazard to ask the heart questions like these, but it has wisdom that the intellect cannot match. Here’s why:

The heart does not send information through an egoic filter.

The heart knows your past, your present, and your future. Its intelligence does not care about your egoic constructs. The heart simply speaks from a completely neutral place.

You can think of it like a close friend who has your best interest at heart, and who does not care about making themselves look good in your eyes.

Hridaya

There is an ancient term that does not have a direct English translation that describes this intelligence of the heart. Hridaya, is the energy which is contained within the heart chakra. This is not just the physical heart, but the spiritual heart. It contains the intelligence of God, or the transcendental mind.

The word comes from the Sanskrit language, and the closest meaning to English would be something like this:

Hrid = center

Ayam = this

Thus, the spiritual heart always brings you to your center. It will not veer away from your highest self, always taking in a 360-degree (and beyond) view of any situation you could possibly face.

The yogi Bhagavan wrote once to explain this spiritual heart in more detail:

“Just as there is a cosmic center from which the whole universe arises and has its being and functions with the power or the directing energy emanating therefrom, so also is there a center within the frame of the physical body wherein we have our being. This center in the human body is in no way different from the cosmic center. It is this center in us that is called the Hridaya, the seat of Pure Consciousness, realized as Existence, Knowledge and Bliss. This is really what we call the seat of God in us.”

Conversely the mind-brain thinks of our past experiences, our past erroneous beliefs assigned to those experiences, and takes all sorts of twists and turns through a conceptual landscape that we’ve created to give us a “right” answer to life’s deep questions.

A Zen Buddhist can also describe what happens when we think with the head (brain) instead of the heart.

We place a fog – a type of perceptual overlay on top of a situation and then add an emotional investment. We call this “real,” but this couldn’t be further from the truth.

Yet, we think we have to obtain a siddhi (great accomplishment or miracle) in order to obtain supernormal wisdom or intelligence. So, we go on trusting the false perceptions of the mind-brain.

The Neuro-Biology of the Heart

Moreover, if we were to look at the simple neuro-biology of the heart – there are many more fibers leading from the heart to the brain than from the brain to the heart. This means – as Gregg Braden recently pointed out in a Gaia talk – that there is much more communication being sent to the brain then being received from it.

As the HeartMath Institute explains, the heart also begins beating in the unborn fetus before the brain has even been formed, a process scientists call autorhythmic.

We humans also form an emotional brain long before a rational one, and the heart has its own independent complex nervous system known as “the brain in the heart.”

The heart can also create a level of coherence in the body just through its rhythm, which regulates all its systems, and corrects even diseased cells.

And finally, the electromagnetic field of the heart is about 60 times greater in amplitude than the brain, and permeates every cell in the body. The magnetic component is approximately 5000 times stronger than the brain’s magnetic field and can be detected several feet away from the body with sensitive magnetometers.

How to Think with the Heart’s Wisdom

Here’s what Braden suggests to help us learn to tap into the heart’s massive wisdom: 

1. Focus on the heart (and heart chakra). This sends a signal to the heart that you seek its intelligence.
2. Slow your breathing. This sends another signal to your body that you seek higher intelligence, and not that of the normally stressed, and freaked out ego. Deep breathing calms the nervous system and quiets the brain.
3. Conjure a sense of gratitude, compassion, or love. These are the feelings which trigger an activation of the heart’s energy.
4. Ask your heart a question. The question should be brief and to the point.
5. Everyone will experience the heart’s intelligence a bit differently. You may feel butterflies in your gut, a warm sensation growing around your body, or tingling in your fingertips. You may not feel any bodily sensations, but have a clear, short answer that comes through your mind. Know that it likely won’t need a long-drawn out story to “justify” its wisdom. The heart speaks directly and clearly. If it isn’t try this process again to let your body know that you seek the intelligence of the heart and not the ego.
6. Practice makes perfect. The more often you do this, the easier it will be to tap into the seat of pure consciousness – the Hridaya.

Please republish this article freely with credit to The Mind Unleashed, Johanna Bassols, and with all links intact.

By: Johanna Bassols

Johanna Bassols is the creator of the Soul Reprogramming Method and founder of the Healers of the Light Academy.

“Love could be labeled poison and we’d drink it anyway.” ~Atticus

Love is a tricky subject. It’s multifaceted, both subjectively and objectively. It’s both lost and found within the complex folds of our unique mind-body-spirit dynamic. It’s both a spiraling in and a spiral out. We all know the “feeling” of love, but we can’t seem to describe it to each other. But boy do we try: in poetry, in song, in dance, in bed. Even in art.

Unfortunately, the predominant love paradigm in our culture is egocentric, ownership-based love. We live in a world where relationships are mostly based upon materialism, ownership and immediate gratification. It’s almost like we’re conditioned to consume to the point that we “consume” each other. Even the words we use toward each other imply ownership.

It’s sad. But no condition is insurmountable. We can recondition ourselves to form healthy relationships based upon respect, honesty, and trust. We can update the love paradigm into one of soul-centric, relationship-based love. But first we need to recognize each other as opposite sides of the same being. Our yin-yang dynamic is more dynamic than we tend to allow it to be.

The thing is, our language is dreadfully inadequate to do the concept of love any justice. There are over seven-billion people on the planet and we each have a different psycho-physiological reaction to any given stimuli, however minute that difference. And with abstract stimuli such as Love, Consciousness, and God, that difference is magnified.

The fact is: we each have our own definition for the concept of love (ego), but that definition is written in a language older than words (soul). So how do we understand this language? Simply put: mindfulness. More complexly put: we must become aware of what our mind-body-spirit is telling us, and then be honest about that information regarding our relationships. And poetically put: “You only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves.” ~Mary Oliver

The ability to love (vulnerability):

“Vulnerability is not knowing victory or defeat, it’s understanding the necessity of both; it’s engaging. It’s being all in.” ~Brene Brown

Our ability to love another person is predetermined by our ability to love ourselves. Similar to the airplane-crash-landing analogy, “Always put the mask on yourself before assisting someone who may be less capable,” we must put the Mask of Love on ourselves before loving someone who may or may not be capable of authentic love.

The irony is that we must first learn self-love to understand that egocentric love isn’t the healthiest way to love. We must first love our ego in order to transform it into an ego that isn’t just in love with itself. An ego that isn’t loved tends to become self-serving and egocentric (codependent or merely independent), but an ego that is loved tends to become self-actualized and soul-centric (interdependent).

An ego that has learned interdependence through self-love is more likely to love authentically. It is more likely to be vulnerable with another ego. And vulnerability is the key to loving greatly. It’s the secret of deep authenticity. A crucial aspect of self-actualized love, as opposed to egocentric love, is to allow ourselves to be vulnerable so that we may be astonished by love, taken aback by it, in awe of it. As the great Rumi once said, “Close your eyes. Fall in love. Stay there.”

The ability to let others love (freedom):

“The only way of loving a person is to love them without hope.” ~Walter Benjamin

Have you ever caught yourself saying this, regarding love and relationships? “I just don’t want to get hurt.” Or heard someone else say it? We hear people say this, and we nod in empathy, followed by an understanding pat on the back, or a sympathetic hug.

But, wait a minute! Who ever said getting hurt wasn’t a part of love? Are not pain and love two sides of the same coin? If we love something deeply enough, does it not hurt when we lose it? The thing is, the ability to love another person takes an enormous act of courage. And if we are genuinely allowing ourselves to love another person, then we must open ourselves up to the possibility of being hurt. This is what it means to be vulnerable. If we’re not “all in,” then what’s the point of trying?

Pain should not be avoided at the expense of love. Love should be embraced at the risk of pain. Indeed.

If we’ve already learned to love ourselves, which we should have taken care of before attempting to love another person anyway, then insecurities be damned! It’s time to go for it. It’s time to move all in. Rejection happens. But if we don’t at least give it a shot, and that means getting vulnerable and laying our insecurities out on the table like a bad hand of poker, then we’ll never know if it could have been something magical or not.

A relationship is actually two uniquely different people who have gone from being independent dancers to becoming an interdependent dance. This is the beauty of romantic, soul-centric love. It becomes a dance. But, and here’s the rub, the dance can only be enjoyable if both parties are free to dance… or not.

This is where it gets difficult: allowing our partner to love the way they need to love. This sounds simple enough, but it is deceivingly simple. Because we might not like the way they love. It requires good communication skills, brutal honesty, and an exemplary trust in the other dancer.

One of the biggest assumptions we make about love is imagining that the other person loves the same way that we do. In other words, we assume that what the other person means by love means the same thing that we mean by it. But this simply cannot be true if we are genuinely allowing the other person to be an individual with their own unique tastes and opinions.

Letting our lover love the way they need to love is just as much a part of the dance as our unique way of loving is. But we must be honest, first with ourselves and then with our partners. Sometimes this honesty will hurt, but pain is necessary for growth. And if a relationship is what we’re trying to grow, then pain is par for the course.

If the way another person loves doesn’t jive with the way that you love, then the dance either needs to end or it needs to take on a new form. If this sounds counter-intuitive, that’s because it is. As the great Victor Hugo cryptically stated, “Love is never stronger than when it is completely unreasonable.”

The ability to let love go (compersion):

“Everything we love is well-arranged dust.” ~Atticus

The ability to let love go is our ability to let go of our ego’s attachment to it.

Falling in love is both very easy and very difficult. It is easy when we are coming from a place of non-attachment and interdependence; when we’re allowing all things to mysteriously and majestically flow. But it is difficult when we are coming from a place of attachment and codependence, and we’re rigidly trying to control everything. It’s the difference between being Love, and vainly trying to pigeonhole love into the box of our expectation.

As Stephen Levine profoundly stated, “True love has no object. Many speak of their unconditional love for another. Unconditional love is the experience of being. You cannot unconditionally love someone. You can only be unconditional love. It is not a dualistic emotion. It is a sense of oneness with all that is. The experience of love arises when we surrender our separateness into the universal. It is a feeling of unity. You don’t love another, you are another.”

When we let love go, we’re not letting go of Love itself –not at all. We are letting go of the ego aspect of love. We’re letting go of the attachment, the need to cling. It’s not like we let go of love and then forget about it. No, it’s more like we are saying goodbye. Like proud parents who are sad that their child has left home, but are happy for their growth and open to the possibility of their return.

Love itself is never abandoned, nor is it forgotten. Only the needy, codependent, ego side of love that’s filled with unhealthy expectations and cultural predispositions about the way love should be is abandoned. Authentic love lasts forever, despite us, and even in spite of our egos. The more we let love go, the more we realize that we never owned it in the first place. It was never a thing that could be owned. It could only ever have been free, or it was never really love at all.

So, let’s learn to be Love in the face of expectation. Let’s be Love despite the love that thinks it needs validation. Let’s be Love even when others cannot. That is the heart of both compersion and forgiveness… Love, let others love, and then let go of your ego’s attachment to love. Do this, again and again, in a kind of loving life-death-rebirth process, and the ability of soul-centric, self-actualized love will not elude you.

Image: chombosan/Shutterstock.

“The important thing is this: to be able at any moment to sacrifice what we are for what we could become.” ~Charles Du Bos

What do you want to become? What do you want to achieve? Whatever it is, it will require sacrifice. The first sacrifice is time. You will have to decide between two contrasting options: One day, or day one. Will today be “day one,” or will you put it off until “one day” in the future?

Settling on “one day” leaves your life up to others and to fate. Deciding on “day one” gives you a little leverage, a little say so in the process. With “one day,” the day seizes you, and you’re powerless and left at the mercy of circumstance. With “day one,” you seize the day, and you’re empowered to make the best of circumstance. As Epictetus said, “Circumstances don’t make the man; they only reveal him to himself.” Don’t settle for “one day.” Cultivate the mettle for “day one” instead.

Whatever it is: writing a novel, starting a band, traveling the world, getting a PhD. Make today “day one” of that process. There will be challenges. There will be setbacks. There will be obstacles that seem almost impossible to pass. Don’t wait until you’re “ready.” Because what if you’re never ready? Fear not. Embrace the fear and begin. Use fear as a diving board and dive into your passion.

If you worry too much about what could go wrong, you’ll slip back into a “one day” mentality. If you wait until you’re ready, “one day” will consume your life. And that’s no place to be when you’re on the path toward something great. Don’t make excuses. Excuses are just you getting in the way of what you want to achieve. Get out of your own way and seize the day.

Of course, “day one” is itself a series of moments. So, seizing the moment must come first. Carpe punctum (seize the moment) leads to carpe diem (seize the day) leads to carpe vita (seize the life). Let’s break it down.

Carpe punctum (seize the moment):

“There are two mistakes one can make along the road to truth: Not going all the way, and not starting.” ~The Buddha

Here’s the thing: you have from this moment until the day you die (which could be tomorrow or eighty years from now) to live the life you want to live. But it all starts with this moment. Right now. What are you going to do? The same thing you’ve been doing, or will you try something new? Will you just keep pushing the broom of procrastination into the abyss of “one day” or will you seize the moment, toss the broom into the abyss, make today “day one” and get busy cultivating your passion?

Your goals, your dreams, your aspirations, they all begin right now. They may or may not come to fruition sometime in the future, but their seeds must be planted now. They may not grow the way you want them to grow, but you’ll never know if you don’t plant them now. They might mutate or grow awry or become a hybrid with a seed someone else planted, but you’ll never know if you don’t get busy planting.

Seizing the moment is all about embracing your inner gardener. Your seeds represent what you wish to become, or what you wish to achieve. The soil is fate, which you do not have control over. But that’s okay, because there are things that you do have control over. Like how much you water your seeds. But right now, even that is irrelevant.

Don’t worry about if the seed will take root or not. Don’t worry about if it may possibly get dug up by unforeseen circumstance. Don’t worry about if there will or will not be enough rain to help it grow. That’s neither here or nor there. Right now, it’s all about planting the seed. The action of planting the seed trumps what becomes of the seed.

Human flourishing, Eudaimonia, doesn’t just happen. It takes work. It takes perseverance. It takes blood, sweat, and tears. But it doesn’t have to be a daunting prospect. Just take small bites. Take it inch by inch. Or millimeter by millimeter, if need be. Either way it begins right now, in this moment. This is the first second, in a series of seconds, that has the potential to lead to your own human flourishing.

Carpe diem (seize the day):

“Seize the day, and put the least possible trust in tomorrow.” ~Horace

Life is a series of moments. So even when you’re seizing the day, you’re still seizing the moment. The only thing that changes is that you are collecting each moment into a series of moments that are all about the cultivation of your own personal flourishing.

Where seizing the moment was a declaration against time itself, seizing the day is a declaration against that which seeks to suck up your time. It can be as simple as taking a day off from work to cultivate your garden and water your seeds, or getting away from the things of man and seeking out meditation and solitude in Nature. Or it can be as extreme as giving your boss the finger and quitting your J.O.B. to become a starving artist, or selling all your worldly possessions and striking out on a life-changing trip around the world.

Whatever it is, it’s collecting all those moments in your day and then aiming them at a particular target. It’s harnessing their collective power and then focusing that power into a leap of courage. It’s using those precious moments to turn the sound down on your life so that you can finally hear the call to adventure. It’s channeling the power of those moments and focusing them on taking a strategic risk or crossing a dangerous threshold. It’s concentrating all the moments that comprise a day and fixing them on taking the next daring step, striving for the next rung on the precarious ladder toward Eudaimonia.

Seizing the day is the proactive task of watering the precious seeds of each fleeting moment. Because sometimes you cannot wait for the rain to come. Sometimes you’ve got to risk looking foolish in your Rain Dance. Indeed. Sometimes seizing the day is literally bringing water to the wasteland.

Carpe vita (seize the life):

“Life has to be given a meaning because of the obvious fact that it has no meaning.” ~Henry Miller

Seizing the life is embracing the journey. It’s allowing the journey to be the thing. There are still the precious fleeting moments to be mindful of, and there are still days in which you’ll have to collect those moments and transform them into courageous acts, but seizing the life is having a bird’s eye view of it all. It’s a big picture perspective that trumps the small picture perspective that trips so many people up.

Seizing the life is injecting meaning into your life. It’s collecting all the moments and all the days, and seeing them as an interconnected whole –the fractal construct of your life. It’s embracing your unique-as-your-own-fingerprint life task (or Immortality Project, as Ernest Becker calls it).

With a bird’s eye view and high humor in your heart, your big picture perspective oversees the tiny goings-on of the small mind and laughs at its need for attachment and inability to seize the moment. At this point, you’ve mastered the art of sacred humor. Your disposition is flexible yet robust. You’re able to forgive yourself, realizing, as Lily Tomlin did: “Forgiveness means giving up all hope for a better past.”

Your third eye is a cosmic owl, the symbolic overseer of your human flourishing, perched upon the high limb of the universe, putting your entire life into perspective. You see how it’s all connected like a giant web (or Indra’s Net), stretched like gossamer across all the moments and all the days that you’ve seized. The “one day” of yesterday is dust in the wind, ashes leftover from the fire of having seized all the moments and all the days of your life and declaring to the gods, “Today is day one of the life I genuinely want to live.” As Voltaire profoundly stated, “God gave us the gift of life; it is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well.”

Image: everst/Shutterstock.