The Power of Right Perception

The power of positive thinking is a concept that appeals to many of us. Henry Ford put this paradigm well a century ago, "Whether you think you can, or you think you can't - you are right!" We certainly don't disagree with this motto, though we would ask, positive on what exactly? Along the Tao we very much want to get things done like everyone else, but we are open to life at the same time to show us what exactly it is that we are rooting for. When the door opens, that's what we expect, but when the door doesn't open we can't wait to find to out which one will open instead.

When you are running after "success" you have to accept the yin and yang of life no matter what. Winning and losing are two sides of the same coin and it is the ego that does the flipping. You go after what you want, but aggression is followed by depression and guilt, which in turn are followed by aggression. The good news is that you can step out of all that once you start perceiving the Way.

Along the Way there is no yin and yang. There is only the perception of who you are and who your friends are. "Winning" makes a lot of sense to the ego; the Tao traveler is out to perceive the Way instead. Sure, we Tao traveler also have ego and in a sense a spiritual path starts with the recognition that we aren't where we want to be. Our notion of success becomes the feeling of being "there". So we start out in the name of the Christ (the path of love), or follow Krishna's path of righteous living (the path of wisdom), or track Buddha's path of mindful living and meditation just to mention a few. The path we travel doesn't really matter, what matters is our willingness to step outside our own perspective and let the divine symbols that come our way speak to us. All paths will merge into one, the way of right perception. Along this Way, love, insight and awareness all merge into one.

On our path, the power of positive thinking becomes the power of positive being instead. All negative emotions like aggression, depression, submission, arrogance, anger and guilt are nothing but a faint memory. You may still occasionally connect with these emotions but you realize that it is very much in your power to step out of it. Your steady companions are laughter, gratitude, insight, joy and love. Nothing in this world can top the feeling of being surrounded by people you love and being finally home.

By Christian