One thing that ALL WARS have in common:

They have all been started by leaders…

And in the absolute majority of the cases, these leaders are politicians. Because of this and other reasons, maybe it’s time for each and everyone of us to take our power back. Maybe the idea that the world would descend into chaos without a centralized government is just an illusion?

In 1970 there came out a movie with the title Suppose They Gave a War and Nobody Came. I haven’t seen the movie, but I like the message of the title. 

It is a given that a leader needs national support to start a war. And whether the media in our “free democracies” (LOL!!!) says that the leader is a good guy or a bad guy, propaganda is needed to garner support for the war. And no matter how much lies the propaganda is based on, it is never created out of nothing. This means that any war needs actions taken by leaders on both sides of the fence. And the leaders are always the last ones to take the hit. 

I believe that those that really govern the world are part of the same little club. But whether you believe this or not, why not ask yourself why it should be self-evident that the masses should take part in the leaders’ power games and suffer for it? Peaceful non-compliance has always been a powerful “weapon”, as Gandhi might have been the best example of. You may be able to lie enough to get support for attacks on peaceful people in the short run, but peaceful non-compliance seems to have a way of winning in the end. When Jesus said “turn the other cheek”, those were not just empty words. He said something essential about real power.

How do we take our power back? Well, if we don’t want to have anyone governing us, we need to take responsibility for our own lives and not engage in criminal behavior whether it is lawful or not. And notice that I make a very clear distinction between criminal and illegal behavior. I of course believe that it is criminal to steal. But I also believe that it is criminal to scam someone, whether you do it illegally or not. But I don’t believe that it is criminal to use illegal substances as long as you do not harm someone. 

It all comes down to us as individuals. How we treat our inner lives and the choices that we make. We are not here to force the world to change. All we have to do is to be the change, open our hearts and stop complying with what our hearts tell us is wrong.

Learn focused, systematic thinking!

As with so many other things, this ultimately comes down to awareness. And I’ve thought a lot about the importance of what is going on inside our heads. What I’ve thought less about, is how we consciously direct these processes. How we can do so to focus and sharpen our thinking. 

Now, this happens spontaneously as I take the time to sit down and write down my thoughts on a daily basis, as I do with this blog. But I can definitely be more careful and stringent in my approach. I can be more deliberate in how I practice this skill. 

I believe that focused, systematic thinking is something that also fosters more present moment awareness. The question: “What do I really mean with what I say?” is not a trivial one. Because this is in no way obvious. To be clear, I’m here talking about both what we say in our day to day speech, and what we write. Which is two separate things, but also two things that overlap to a large degree. If you, for example, become more clear and focused in your writing, it will have an effect on your speech, and vice versa. But there will not be a perfect causal relationship, mainly because speech is direct, is generally a dialogue and entails a completely different kind of connection. This while writing is generally a one way communication that gives room for more afterthought and separates the sender and receiver in both time and space. 

What I’ve realized is that it does not really matter how smart we are. If we acquire the habit of being sloppy with our thoughts, the thoughts that we produce will be sloppy. And even thought our thoughts is not the only tool that we have at our disposal when we try to understand ourselves and the world (there is also emotions, intuition and direct sensory experience), they are an important one. One that is indispensable if we want to orient ourselves in the world properly. And it all starts with being aware of what we are actually saying and thinking and what it implies. If you think that this is obvious, you probably engage in sloppy thinking.

Debating...

What I’m saying here, is not to say that an open debate is not important. In fact, I believe the opposite. In a world in crisis with loads of differing opinions and views about what is going on, it is crucial that all voices can be heard in an open, uncensored debate. That is not exactly what is happening today, but that is not the topic of today’s post. What I am saying, is that debating is very far from a reliable way of getting to the truth.

In debating, in the best case scenarios, the one that has the best arguments and the best rhetoric wins. But it also depends on the audience. Does the audience favor one debater over the other, for irrelevant reasons, such as that one view is simply more popular and cool than the other? Can the topic be objectively proven by logic and rational arguments? What of issues that fundamentally are about subjective experience, such as God or spirituality? What about the fact that everything ultimately is subjective experience?

When we form beliefs and opinions

I’m going to go ahead and sound really dumb here. But maybe it becomes one of those the-emperor-is-naked moments to some people. What I’m going to say is that when I analyze how I’ve formed a belief or opinion, it has often not been because of some rational deliberation. 

I don’t have a concrete example, so I’m going to make one up that is representative of this: I hear someone whose judgment I trust express a belief or opinion about something. I find what the person says fairly reasonable and a few of my own experiences actually support what he/she is saying. Maybe it’s one possible conclusion that can be drawn from what I already know. Here I want to pause for a second, because this is important. Here, I believe, is where many people go wrong. We know A and that from A B might follow. But not necessarily. Then someone might offer some ideas that contradict B. But since I’ve already made an emotional investment in B, I find reasons to discard those ideas. And instead I find other ideas, that I don’t at all put under the same scrutiny, that support B. And so I hold on to B for reasons that are in no way reasonable. 

Seeing it written out like this, this looks pretty absurd. But in reality this is, at least in my case, how my beliefs often are formed, when I don’t pay attention to what is going on inside my head. Which is something that happens quite regularly, even if I’m becoming better and better at it. And if you say: "This would never happen to me", chances are that you haven't really payed attention to your thought processes.

Some thoughts and questions concerning politicians PART 6

Some people say that we shouldn’t vote at all, because then we just end up supporting the corrupt system. I respect this opinion and believe that this is up to each and everyone to decide for him- or herself. And I agree that voting every fourth year for candidates that are in no meaningful way held accountable afterwards, is a scam. Candidates that only disagree on a very small amount of issues, that are given a vastly disproportionate amount of attention, since the mass media still, to a large degree, control which issues we focus on. And if you follow the chain of owners, you will find that the news flow is for the most part controlled by a small number of global actors…

Personally I plan on voting though. But only for a party that respects what I regard as universal and inalienable rights. I will only vote for a party that respects my bodily autonomy unconditionally. Only for a party that will always act in the interest of the people and never allows itself to be influenced by financially powerful special interests. This, as far as I’m concerned, is not a matter of opinion. It’s simply a matter of right and wrong. 

So, what party will I vote for? From where I stand right now, I don’t know. If there is no such party, I will not vote. I will not vote for the least bad alternative, just to not throw away my voice in society. The way I see it, this would be to support the corrupt system. Then I would say that it’s better to stay home and do whatever one feels like doing. I remember that the comedian George Carlin had a good suggestion, but I think that I would do something more productive with my time ;).

I believe that for the time being, we are in a situation where the old and the new has to exist side by side. This means that while we have to recognize the dominating system as corrupt to the core, we cannot simply ignore it, even if it is up to us as individuals to choose how to interact with it. I’m very doubtful that the system can be changed from within. But spending an hour every fourth year just in case that I and others that believe the same thing are wrong, might be a good time investment. 

But as I’ve said before, in the end I believe it is up to us to build communities that are independent of the majority culture. Communities of spiritually awakened people that respect each other’s individuality and help and support each other, not because they are coerced to do so, but because they want to. Because more and more people are waking up. The veil is being pulled from our eyes. More and more people are starting to see the limited ways we have been conditioned to function from. We don’t need such things as power hunger, control and mindless gratification of the senses anymore. There is something so much better on the horizon. And we will get there. The question is just how much pain it will take for enough people to wake up and see it.

Some thoughts about the NEW WORLD that is emerging

I have noticed that there are many other people that have the same idea right now as I do, of creating communities that are independent of the larger society. This cannot be a coincidence. I however believe that this needs to be extended.

That these communities need to cooperate with each other is a given. This needs to stretch beyond national borders. I also believe that we need to develop systems of support for those that find themselves mistreated by the systems that they live in, i.e those that have their autonomy violated by these systems. For this to be effective, we need local communities, consisting of individuals that function within a global community. I believe that only one guideline is necessary: No one ever has any right to force their will on anyone else in any way. As far as I’m concerned, this is an idea that any awakening soul eventually has to embrace on their journey. 

This is an idea that I hope that someone eventually picks up and elaborates on.

Among awakened people I don’t believe that people have to be forced to help each other. When we realize that we are all one and that there is no joy or meaning to be found, in living to gratify one’s ego, it becomes natural to do what one can to contribute to the whole in any way one can. Of course we need to help ourselves in order to help others effectively. But for an awakened soul, when the basic needs for survival and security are met, the ideas of just gathering more money and material possessions, living for oneself or using others become completely pointless. Pointless because we know that we can walk with God and connect with other people. That we can live in a glorious, spiritual reality, reaching higher and higher states of awareness and spiritual experiences. We know that all of this is completely free and never on anyone’s expense. 

What I also believe, is that however it may seem at the moment, those of us that live by spiritual values and values such as love, freedom, care and personal responsibility, rather than fear, coercion and “every man for himself” will eventually win. Because ultimately it is a choice between paying millions for sand or receiving diamonds for free.

Some thoughts and questions concerning politicians PART 5

Today I will continue making suggestions on how we can start freeing ourselves of the people that have made themselves our leaders. As a starting point I will use something that I realized a few days ago, which I think is a step that we awakening souls will have to start taking. So this is my little attempt at doing my part in putting the idea out there.

This is what I would like to propose: That those of us that are awakening start organizing to become more independent of society. This does not mean fostering a “us against them” mentality. But spiritual awakening is not an artificial construct that separates people. It is a very real thing. There are however different degrees to this. I know some people that are awakening, but that have not recognized this fact yet. But the majority is still asleep. The first great divide is between those that believe that the world is more or less what we perceive with the five senses, and those that have at least started to suspect that the world is more than this. The second would be between those that understand that something very strange is happening in the world and those that just think that humanity is facing a huge crisis with no significance beyond itself. I.e between those that understand that this crisis is spiritual to its nature and those that don’t. This understanding also entails that we’re facing the end of the world as we know it. This is also where my understanding ends. Some may know what this end means, but here I’m at a loss. I believe that there are basically two options here. Either the whole world has to crumble for something else to be rebuilt afterwards. Or we start building something new now, while the old collapsing world still exists. The only certainty here, I believe, is that the old world is on its way out. And I’m not going to wait around to see which option proves itself correct, even if I, at this point, don’t know exactly what I should do, besides keep on using my writing skills to try and reach as many as possible with the little that I know or suspect.

Some thoughts and questions concerning politicians PART 4

I know that it’s not as simple as just pushing a button, when it comes getting rid of our politicians. Neither do I believe in getting rid of all of the institutions that keep things in order, even though I believe that the abolishment of any type of coercive authority is the end-goal of political evolution. 

But there are a few things that we as individuals can do: We can stop complying with laws that we don’t agree with. We can get clear about our values, so that we can start trusting ourselves more, when it comes to ethics and what to believe and think. Simply put, we can do our best to come to terms with who we are and what we stand for. What I find helpful, and which doesn’t need any deeper reflection, is the golden rule, both in its positive and negative form. In other word, both “treat others as you want to be treated” and “don’t treat others in ways that you would not like to be treated”. As far as I’m concerned, with regards to my interactions with other people and my role in society, this is the only moral code that I am required to follow, whether or not it is written into law with regard to the particular issue that I am facing. 

We can stop allowing mass-media to control our attention and instead consciously choose what to focus on. Right now we don’t know who to trust or what to believe in. But we can always work on ourselves and our character. We always have a choice when it comes to our morals, attitudes and how we conduct ourselves in the world. Our only limitations here, is or physical circumstances and how developed our characters are.

Some thoughts and questions concerning politicians PART 3

Let me propose something: What if a veil has been pulled over our eyes, making us think that we need politicians? What if in fact the politicians, together with those they truly work for (not the people!), are the very reason our world isn’t a paradise right now? What if we are all glorious children of God? What if we are all one and all connected (yes, this goes even for our rulers, even if they are among the ones that are most cut off from this connection)? What if we only need to answer to God? What if God’s authority is never based on obligation, coercion or fear of punishment? What if God’s rules, stemming from his infinite love and wisdom, are always good for us? What if God’s guidance is always available to us, in meditation, prayer, the reading of sacred scriptures or whatever other ways to connect with him that we find? What if the first step towards this connection and towards letting go of the need for worldly authorities, is to let go of the ego’s selfish, fearful wants and desires? What if the ego’s wants and desires will only lead to dissatisfaction and frustration anyway, so that we don’t ever have give up anything of true value to us? What if we just need to start stepping into our true identities, if we want to get rid of worldly rulers forever?

Some thoughts and questions concerning politicians PART 2

 “Wait a minute”, you might say. “Don’t we have a democratic process that guarantees that we have an influence over the political system?”

I don’t know how many seriously still believe this, but for argument’s sake: Do you really consider choosing what party to vote for, among a small number of real choices, in a gigantic political machinery that most people have very little understanding of, real influence? Parties that differ only with regard to a very small number of questions, while being in relative agreement on many important questions, such as surveillance, bodily autonomy, copyright, corporate influence over politics or censorship. Or why not how society should respond to a global crisis?

Parties that are not even really held accountable when it comes to the small number of questions where they do differ. Parties that function within a system where the bigger parties have their campaigns funded by tax money. Where only the bigger parties get their voices heard in the mass-media. Where the same mass-media, together with the parties, decide what questions get attention and what questions aren’t acceptable to discuss at all. In a society where social- and professional consequences prevent many people from even discussing certain issues, privately as well as publicly. 

With this in mind, can we really talk about “influence over the political system” and keep a straight face?

Spirituality, self-development and "politics"

The reason I wrote “politics” with quotation marks, is because none of the things that I talk about are really political. My “political” posts are rather an invitation to start breaking free from the whole political system together with other awakening souls, build something new, work on ourselves and our relationship with God. And this is the reason I talk about these three things in conjunction, which is the topic of this post. 

These things are, as I see it, connected. The way I see it, a huge part of the spiritual awakening, is to see through and free ourselves from the corrupt control system. And if we want to free ourselves from our corrupt control system we need to understand ourselves and spirituality. If we want to understand ourselves, we need to understand the system that is controlling us. And if we want to understand ourselves and the system that that controls us, we need to understand spirituality, because these are fundamentally spiritual matters. And so on. I hope I haven’t lost you.

Now, until a just a few years ago, I believed in struggling and fighting the system. But what I’ve now come to believe, is that we are not here to fight the system or even change the system, because the system is rotten to the core. We are here to free ourselves from the system and create a new system. A spiritual system centered around God. A system based on love and values such as freedom, connection, cooperation, equality and care. And if we want to be part of such system, we need to get clear on who we are and, with compassion towards ourselves, strive to be the best that we can be. 

I hope that I’ve made it clear why I see these things as connected.

Some thoughts and questions concerning politicians PART 1

Considering everything that is going on in the world, are our lives better or worse because of our leaders? Are they deserving of the salaries that we pay them? Or would we do better without them? Just saying…

Do you think that the world and your life is better or worse because of people like Vladimir Putin, Joe Biden, Xi Jinping, Justin Trudeau, Volodomyr Zelenskyj, Ursula von der Leyen, Emmanuel Macron, Boris Johnson, or why not Magdalena Andersson here in Sweden? Do you think that it’s better or worse to have these people in power instead of no one at all? Do you think that the people that came before them in general did a much better job? Did you ever say yes to having a government? When did you ever say yes to giving them your money in order for them to govern you? To start wars? Or shut down society so that everyone becomes depressed and the economy crashes?

If you were an employer and had employees that managed their jobs so that you actually lost money, would you let them keep their jobs? If these were the only types of employees you could find, would you keep running the company the same way, or would you rethink the whole structure?

Now, I’m of course not saying that these people, or anyone else, have no right to exist. That is the job of people in power…

But why not give them more modest salaries and create meta-verses for them, where they can play around with our non-elected, real rulers and other, less successful people with similar personalities? There they can play games that satisfy their power-hungers instead, whether this power hunger consists of sending people into war, forcing people to do things against their will, or forbidding people from doing things that they want to do but does not harm anyone. Then those of us that want to live as sovereign, free people together with God in all the multiple dimensions of the real world can do so in peace.

Polarization

Let’s all hate Russia. Let’s all hate Putin and call him the next Hitler. Or let’s do the opposite. Let’s see everything Putin does as totally justifiable and let’s see the USA and the West as the real enemy. Let’s believe everything that the mainstream media tells us. Or everything that alternative media tells us. Or every new meme that is spread in the forums that we frequently visit. Or Russian media. Or Russian media is all propaganda while we can trust our media. Or vice versa.

And let’s hate everyone that disagrees with us and call them idiots, nazis, communists, misogynists, sheep etcetera. Because value loaded labels usually make way for a productive discussion and show that we are truly prepared to understand each other and try to take in new perspectives. It is much better to uncritically listen to those that we have been taught by society to regard as trustworthy sources, or those that our friends tell us are trustworthy, or those that we happen to agree with on other issues, instead of actually trying to understand the issue at hand with all its nuances and complexities. 

Or we could take a step back, realize that at the core we are all one, all beloved children of God, that very few of us actually want to harm anyone or deliberately believe harmful lies. We could try to feel sympathy for each others’ struggles with coming to terms with what is going on, in a world where we are more and more coming face to face, with the fact that sources that once were deemed trustworthy, have become corrupt. With the fact that no clear-cut alternative has presented itself. With the fact that power hinges on the control of perception and beliefs. That all global actors know and exploit this. Not just the ones that we happen to disagree with.

I believe that no matter what side a person is on, we need to be very cautious with people that spread hate, demonize their opponents and cast blame while completely ignoring their own shadow. This goes for all conflicts.

I also believe that in these times where it is literally impossible to know what worldly sources that we can trust, we need to first and foremost look inwards. To seek God and his guidance, because God is the only one that we always know that we can trust. As long as we look to the world for answers, we will only find more confusion. But when we start to shift by looking within and take responsibility for who we are and our part in the mess that we are in, rather than blaming others for it, others will start to shift as well. When others see our change, they will want to follow. Because this is doubtless a crucial and necessary step in human evolution. And once someone understands this, there is no going back for that person, even if he/she naturally will stumble many times along the way. And for such a person, truth becomes more and more important, while being right becomes less and less important. Because such a person will gradually come to the realization, that what is important is his/her connection with God and other people, not to force one’s will on the world. And such a connection leaves no room for lies, deception and manipulation. Such a connection is the antithesis of polarization.

A way that smart people reach conclusions based on faulty premises

One of my most fundamental insights into the conditions that we live under, is that with regards to most situations, events and phenomenon, we only have access to our own distorted perceptions, of a very limited amount of the total input that pertains to the situation, event or phenomenon. 

With this in mind, I want to talk about a curious observation that I’ve made, especially among people that are generally regarded as pretty smart. Namely that they often tend to dismiss claims as untrue, because from where they currently stand, they cannot see how said claims could possibly be true. 

Let’s take something that I hear over and over again with regards to “conspiracy theories”. Namely that for certain conspiracies to be true, too many people have to be in on it and there is just no way that no one would blow the whistle. Or that those conspiring would never be able to get along and therefore the conspiracy would fall apart due to internal power struggles. 

Here I want to ask some important questions, aimed at expanding the information-processing perspective. Because so much is dependent on what perspective we take and what questions we ask ourselves.

I’m not saying that what I just said cannot be used to invalidate certain conspiracy theories. Perhaps these are even waterproof arguments against every conspiracy theory that exists and ever has existed. But do you really know this? What do you base such knowledge on? Do you know that there is no possible way to organize a cover-up in such a way, that only a handful of people know what is really going on, even though a large mass of people have to be involved in the totality of the conspiracy? Do you know for a fact that no one has tried to blow the whistle? Can you for example know that all people have basically the same psychology, which would make the cooperation required for the cover-ups impossible? Do you know that there are no ways around such obstacles? Do you even know that everyone that runs the world are humans?

The last question was meant to provoke. But how do you really know? That something sounds too far out to be true has never been a guarantee that it is false. Why do we assume that we know so much more about the world today, than we did 2000 years ago? Hasn’t the whole of human history been one discovery after another, of how little we know about the world and existence itself?

I don’t think that Occam’s razor was meant to be used to discard any alternative explanation to the most obvious one. Especially when we lack firm criteria to determine which explanation is the most obvious one. Is it the one that the majority believes? The one spouted by the mass media and the public figures that function within the establishment? How and why is it so? Do you feel that the people that you put your trust in have earned your trust?

Identity and selective perception Part 2

I believe that once we realize beyond any doubt, that life and the world is more than matter and what we can perceive with the five senses, we need to accept the limbo that we inevitably will find ourselves in when we realize that our current way of perceiving the world will not lead us to the truth. And we need to do this without grasping for whatever new branches that are extended to us. Otherwise, we will just go from one confused view of the world to another, while once again convincing ourselves that we are standing on firm ground. 

This is so important now that consensus reality is falling apart. Otherwise, we will replace the faulty consensus reality with our own, equally faulty, individual reality, or the reality of some fringe group. And in all likelihood, we will sooner or later go out and try to convince others of this reality. 

What has helped me in this confusion, is my absolute knowing that God exists and has a personal interest in us. This belief makes me confident that the truth about what is going on will sooner or later be revealed. Because we are way past the point where what is going on can be written off as mere coincidences, human folly, random greed and power hunger. The world is about to change radically.

Maybe it’s something completely new. Maybe one of the “truths” out there will be proven to be the correct one. Or maybe it will be a mixture of the “truths” available. 

In short: Be careful what you believe and always question why you believe what you believe. Be cautious of the impulse to create an identity around your beliefs and try to be conscious of the fact that your identity always distorts your perception. And if you haven’t done so, a first step might be to ask yourself what your identity looks like, especially in relation to your current worldview.

Identity and selective perception Part 1

The content of this post can be summed up as follows: Our identity shapes how we filter and process information.

This post will be the foundation of much of what I am going to talk about, as I’m trying to make sense of the world.

Let’s start with an example that is a hot topic these days: The term “conspiracy theory” will mean two completely different things to a person who sees him/herself as a down to earth voice of reason that sees through nonsense, and someone who sees him/herself as a truthsayer who sees through the lies of the establishment. And depending on our identity, we will handle information related to the label completely differently.

I gladly confess that I belong more to the latter category and I in no way believe that I’m exempt from these biases (even though I think, for the sake of humility, it’s probably a good thing to stay away from the label “truthsayer”). What makes me believe that I at least have truth a little more on my side than the down-to-earth guy, is that I know for an absolute fact that the world is much more than we can perceive with our five senses. And no debating in the world is going to change this fact. 

So, this is the situation we find ourselves in: We only have access to a limited amount of input regarding a certain situation or phenomenon. We seldom have access to anything that even comes close to resembling the whole picture. And our identity, rather than cold objective reason, plays a huge part in what input we choose to discard and what we take to heart.

Other factors that play huge parts in what we take in, that have no relevance to what is actually true, are how things are being said, what emotional state we are in when the information is presented to us, in what context it is presented, in relation to what other information it is presented and how present we are while we perceive it. To name a few things. But let’s stick to identity here. 

People will also be uncomfortable when we act contrary to our identity, which adds a social aspect to it, where it’s not only us, but the people around us, that help keep us fixed to a certain way of being, which includes how we filter and process information. 

As long as we primarily use our intellects to try and make sense of the world, we will be subject to these limitations.

I don’t know an easy way out of this. The best solution I can come up with, is to cultivate other faculties that we can use to make sense of the world. These would be faculties of perception such as intuition and the ability to sense energies, so that we can get a feel for the energy behind for example a statement. But the danger here, is that we are so used to using our intellects to comprehend the world, that the other faculties are very poorly developed. But this can be changed by practice.

So while developing these faculties, we need to be careful not to fall prey to the temptation of adopting an equally false worldview, when we have been given sufficient reasons to discard the worldview of the majority. Which we will, once we start to question it, while letting go of the idea that reality has to be more or less the way we perceive it, together with fear of ridicule that comes from believing things that many would consider as crazy. When we understand beyond any reasonable doubt, that “down to earth” is the real madness.