Blog entry by Lars Muhl from 22 December 2020
In the last six months, I have received countless requests from various people who want me to comment on the tense situation that humanity is in right now.
For me, there is no doubt that we are all, both on the personal and the collective level, right now being confronted with our own shadows. This means that we are forced to face themes about ourselves and our way of dealing with others. To see all that which we may not have had the courage to see until now? Partly to revise this behaviour, but also to break with and come clean with old patterns that are no longer useful. These times are marked by division and separation. Physically, we are encouraged not to have physical contact with each other, but also on the interactive level: in marriages, in relationships, in friendships and working relationships, we experience breakups and divisions.
We all have opinions about this and that. This is especially expressed on social media, where an irreconcilable tone all too often dominates. We get carried away into dramas that we do not really feel very good about being a part of, we lose our balance and often end up in a dead end of locked opportunities that ultimately make us unhappy. We sometimes act hastily and react immaturely because we did not allow ourselves to think something over which could mean a more positive outcome.
We accuse each other of this or that, while often forgetting to look at our own role in a conflict. It’s so easy to point the finger at others. But what exactly is ‘others guilt’ other than a veil over our own failures?
Yes, I feel deceived, but maybe the deception became reality because I allowed it to happen. Maybe I should have been more aware and should have realised that it was my own vanity that made me blind, so that I did not react to the alarm bells that tried to warn me against continuing on a path I would normally have realised, wouldn’t lead to anything positive.
If only we would realise that the ‘enemy’ is there to make us look at ourselves. And when we fail to do this, it is ourselves and our blindness that is suddenly the ‘enemy’. If we turn our backs on the painful truth, we will continue to project our own ills into enemy images: ‘There is something wrong with everyone else. I am the innocent victim.’ Then we have seriously lost all. We have no right to judge anyone because we do not know why other people act the way they do. And it is the ignorance that must always benefit these ‘others’. I write ‘others’ in quotation marks, because as such there is no ‘other’, there are only US.
Maybe, we should to a greater extent focus more on gratitude. Gratitude for all that we have each received through life, both large and small. Express our gratitude to all those who preceded us, who took care of us because they just did not focus on our mistakes, but rather on the light they saw we had hidden away in a smal corner of our hearts.
We need to realise that neither of us is ‘for’ or ‘against’ anything. We are TOGETHER on board a ship that will either founder or avoid the rocks that await ahead. And while it may seem as if some are in the process of drilling holes in the ship’s hull, while others are desperately bailing water out of the sinking ship, we are all in the same boat in the end. If the ship goes down, we all go down with it.
When we understand this connection, and when we come to ourselves and realise that the distress, the imbalances and conflicts that exist in the world result from our choices, then we also understand that it is possible to make new choices at any time. That is the responsibility we have now. What needs to change in our lives? What needs to change in our society? Every change must always stem from a refined sharpening of ourselves: Why do I act as I do? What are my innermost motives? Do I live up to my own innermost calling and the moral demands I face the world and my fellow human beings with?
Personally, I believe that an important part of a necessary change is that all forms of commercial economic interests should be separated from any kind of humanitarian and political task. The various industries should have nothing to do with the committees and agencies that exist solely to ensure the well-being of the citizens. If we can start there, much can be changed for the better. The recent many scandals have shown that money and the forces that govern them are unscrupulous. Here it is always the strong who survive and set the agenda. Therefore, it is our task, each and every one, to take responsibility for the fact that we do not increase the distance that has crept in everywhere, but that we instead build bridges and meet each other and the challenges. Untouched by the disagreements and differences that seem to separate us.
Whether you believe or does not believe in God, life for me is an expression of a completely unique form of divine generosity. I believe it is our job to let this generosity flow freely through us so that it becomes a reality wherever we go. This means that we also, despite the noise that surrounds us, always must try to focus on the light that shines in every human being, no matter how faint the glow from this light may appear. Through our focus, we can help to reflect another human being’s light, and thereby strengthen it instead of turning it off.
Therefore, Christmas this year is perhaps more important than any other previous Christmas. Light a candle. Be quiet. Listen. Can you hear it? There is music. I can hear it. It’s here. NOW! Sing, dance and let the rhythm of the heart and breath dissolve the discouragement and hopelessness. Send your generosity, gratitude and compassion out to humanity and the world. We need it. We need each other.
Reconciliation instead of punishment – Challenge instead of norm – Compassion instead of cynicism – Presence instead of distance – Humour instead of sarcasm – Organic instead of mechanical – Dynamic instead of static – Universal instead of national – Generosity instead of greed – Altruism instead of egoism – Enlightenment instead of escapism – Awareness instead of numbness – Cooperation instead of competition – Wisdom of the heart instead of artificial intelligence – Clear and loving instead of cold and cynical.
If not now – then when?
If not us – then who?
Lars Muhl
Beach Boys – I Can Hear Music: https://youtu.be/sOsial01K0g
Beach Boys – Good Vibrations: https://youtu.be/mdt0SOqPJcg
Beatles – All You Need Is Love: https://youtu.be/t5ze_e4R9QY