The Illusion of Separation: How Our Minds Limit Our True Nature
By a Brother of Reseda Lodge (Name removed for anonymity)
As human beings, we generally consider ourselves to be intelligent, right? At the very least, we consider ourselves more intelligent than the other species around us. The front part of our brain, the cerebral cortex—the part that’s responsible for our logic, our abstract thinking, and our decision making—that’s way more evolved. And that’s the part that makes us not just stand out, but also dominate all the other animals on this planet.
So, it makes sense that we would feel superior to these other creatures. We have an ability to think and to remember better than any other animal out there, so far as we know. But, what if on the most fundamental levels, this part of our brain holds us back? What if it keeps you from realizing something significant? Something that stems deep into the truth of our nature? I’m talking about the truth of who we really are and where we come from.
As Carl Jung once said, “We should not pretend to understand the world only by the intellect. The judgement of the intellect is only part of the truth.”
See, concentrating primarily on these faculties of intelligence, mainly our logic and our memory, Western Culture’s philosophy has influenced a viewpoint that we, as human beings, are separate, isolated beings, living apart from the rest of the world around us, needing to confront and control everything just to survive and feel secure.
But… this can’t be the only perspective we have on our species. Surely, we can think up another approach than that of the Earth being a big, huge rock floating in space, covered with separate, distinct, living organisms, each in competition for their place to survive.
So, what if we were to entertain another approach? What if just like all the planets are in balance with each other in our solar system, and all the organs our body are working in harmony together, all the animals and every species on this planet were in balance and working in harmony together also?
Taking this further, what if, just like the skin grows hairs and the trees grow leaves, the Earth grows people? See, within this worldview, our existence on this planet would be an expression of the solar system and its balance, just as much as all the planets are an expression of our galaxy and its balance.
This would mean that we are not separate from one another and the universe, and that we are actually one in the same, coming from the same source. Everything would be connected, and, behind the scenes of our intellectual understanding, everything and everyone would be in perfect harmony with each other.
Now, you might think, if there is in fact perfect harmony, what about all this conflict between people and nations, and all these wars? Well, let’s look at the human organism as an example.
When we take a look at the human system and our bloodstream through a microscope, we see all sorts of cells in what looks like an all-out battle to the death with one another. And at that level, it looks like chaos and illness—it looks like disharmony.
It’s not until we take a step back, zoom out, and look at the being as a whole that we see a properly functioning immune system. And by studying just a bit of biology, we see that our entire organism depends on the continuance of this battle between the cells. It actually strengths our bodies defenses and is a sign of great health. What looks like conflict and disharmony on one level is actually health and harmony on another. All it takes is looking at it from a different view—a different level of awareness.
So, why is it that some of us don’t see this harmony in life? Why is it that some of us don’t recognize things from that higher level of awareness? And why is it that we have special titles like mystic or sage for people who do? What is it about these people that gives them the ability to not just recognize this perspective but to understand and experience it with their entire being?
I’d like to suggest that it has something to do with the way we use that front part of their brain, that part that’s responsible for our thinking, particularly the way we think when we identify ourselves.
See, there’s a specific transition one makes within themselves when they go from being completely connected and in harmony with the universe to feeling separate and isolated from everything and everyone around them. We all go through this shortly after we’re born. Up until the age of about 2, we don’t have a clear sense of being separate from our environment. We’re still swimming in that sea of oneness.
But after that front part of our brain develops a little more and we begin to understand and use language more, we begin to develop a concept of self. We begin to recognize ourselves in the mirror as an independent being. Then through our schooling, as our social world expands, we become even more aware of our independence, and with that, our preferences and our sense of individuality. We start to see how our abilities and characteristics differ from others, and how we fit into the larger social context.
All of this, including the contributions of our culture, go on to put us through something we can call “somebody training”, where we develop an ego, a sense of self, and learn to navigate the world around us as an independent entity. And then with that, after a while, comes a deep sense of anxiety, because unless everything outside the bounds of our skin is going exactly how we want, inside us, we feel a sense of insecurity, of lack, of loneliness, and of fear. That’s what then goes on to influence our behavior in our relationships, and our decisions in our careers. We move with this longing to fulfill something within us by wanting to change and control everything around us. But, as those of us who’ve tried already know, we waste a great deal of energy trying to do this… trying to get everything perfect to our preferences.
So, what’s the alternative? And what about that harmony that’s already there? If we’re connected to everything around us, and everything is flowing in perfect unison, just like the earth is connected and flowing in balance with the solar system, how do we acknowledge that and align our perspective to it? Align our lives to it?
Well, we can study the field of ecology and know how deeply intertwined we are with our environment, but this will only give us knowledge of these connections. It won’t give us an understanding that we can feel and really live with. In other words, it’ll do little to change the way we identify ourselves. To do that, we have to first undo the influence of Western societies cultural conditioning.
You have to undo the training that tells us that we’re a separate individual, bound to the limits of what’s within our skin, playing out a serious role in society. Because that idea of who we are is just that, an idea. It can only include what we can fit into our conscious attention in any particular moment. What we can fit into that front part of our brain.Our names, our bodies, our profession: this isn’t who we really are.
These are just thoughts we have about who we are. A tiny, insignificant fragment of who we are. It doesn’t include all that’s in the unconscious. All the biological processes. The way our organs and blood flows work. The way our muscles work. The way our breathing happens. The way we interpret the vibrating energy around us. Or even the very way we experience consciousness altogether.
With just a little consideration, it’s clear that this idea we have about who we are is not complete. We’re not exclusive to our body and its mechanisms. There is a self that is greater than ego. There is a way of knowing that is higher than logic. But to truly understand this, you must break the bondage of your brains’ processes.
To do that, you must inquire. You must ask yourselves the fundamental questions. Who am you? Who would you be if you had no words to describe yourself? Who would you be if you knew no language with which to express yourself?
The above was a talk given by the brother at Reseda's April 2024 Stated Meeting