Opening the Doors of Perception: Choosing To Be Present and Fully Aware

: By Ora Nadrich

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Opening the Doors of Perception: Choosing To Be Present and Fully Aware

If the doors of perception were cleansed every thing
would appear to man as it is, infinite.
—William Blake

In a crooked mind even the right thing gets crooked.
—Arsenie Boca

Our perceptions are based on our beliefs, and those beliefs influence how we see the world, which dictates our sense of reality.

If we're open minded, we'll see the world through a much clearer and wider lens, and be more accepting, tolerant and compassionate. But if we're closed off or small minded, we're not going to be as tolerant, and can make snap judgments before we even give something or someone a chance.

There's a much more expansive
and transcendent way in which we can see things that
goes beyond the limitations of beliefs, and that's by
being in a state of Mindfulness.

When we choose to be present and fully aware, we are cognizant of what it is we're seeing and taking in, but we're also aware of how we are seeing it and why. By being aware of how we are interpreting or basically sizing up a person or situation, we are doing it with a willingness to keep our mind open to discover and learn more, rather than being unwilling to consider someone else's point of view, or their perception of reality.

We live in a world where, unfortunately, many people are unwilling to accept each other's viewpoints or beliefs, and the way in which it's addressed is to use anger, hatred and even violence to express their inability to be tolerant of one another's differences.

Everyone has a right to see or perceive as they do, but don't have a right to hurt, harm, or kill because of it.

Defending Our Perceptions?

When our "human experience" is devoid of spiritual meaning, we will do anything to defend our perceptions, which are fueled by more animalistic needs, and that means we are capable of doing heinous things to one another because we are ruled only by greed and fear, and the drive to succeed and survive.

When man lives only caring about, and defending what is best for him, and is unable to tolerate or embrace what another person's needs are (which could be true survival necessities like a roof over one's head, or food to eat), then perhaps life becomes a game of "survival of the fittest", Darwin's evolutionary theory.

Yes, some people are stronger and more fit and able to survive, but if we no longer care about our fellow man, and live each day allowing for, and even participating in the harm or extinction of others less able than us, then we live and exist heartlessly. What a chilling way to go through life.

Have We Lost Our Way to Oneness?

Have we lost our way from our conscious homeland to such a degree that we perceive one another as a threat to our self-serving need to get ahead, so that we can be superior to someone else?

I know that the dualistic nature of existence is constant, and we've had these issues and problems since the beginning of time. Man's extinction tendencies have been alive in him since he walked this earth. But have we not come a long way from clubbing one another to death over a carcass, and communicating by scratching our armpits and grunting?

Sometimes it seems as if we haven't made any true headway in our evolution. Even though we've modernized ourselves materialistically, and created advanced technology like computers that a Neanderthal would have stomped on, at least some of the human population has made great strides in working on themselves psycho-spiritually, and feel that reaching a state of "oneness" is the only way we're going to be able to survive.

But "oneness" can easily be perceived as me-ness, and man will continue to strive to be "at one with" all that is good for him alone. He may have no use or need for the oneness that includes all living beings, and in some people's reality this planet is a place to live, not a place to respect or protect, and the other inhabitants are on their own. And if or when they get in the way, or think differently, or look differently, or need different things, or maybe the same things we all do, but can't afford it, or simply don't have the resources, they can either be controlled, ignored, dismissed or disposed of. Again, so chilling to even think about, and yet this is what's happening daily.

Just turn on the news and watch it for yourself. Sometimes it renders you speechless, and causes a deep ache in your heart that we have lost our way so far, that you wonder if we're going to be taken down in a nuclear blast caused by someone in power who has access to real weapons of mass destruction, and is ill equipped or unfit to be anywhere near them.

When life starts to mimic a movie like Stanley Kubrick's "Dr. Strangelove," (if you haven't seen it, I suggest you do to see how accurate art can imitate life) which is about what if the wrong person pushed the wrong button (a fear we have of North Korea leader Kim Jong-un), you know you better start cleaning your perception glasses good and fast, and see things for what they really are, not just what you want to see. Yes, the wrong person can push the wrong button, and go completely insane like crazy General Jack Ripper does in the movie, and they can push it at any time. If we can't perceive who or what is insane, then we are colluding to support a world gone mad.

Time to take off those rose-colored glasses.

But this takes us right back to each of us, and how important it is to know the house of self that you live in, and what your perceptions are up to.

Falling Asleep At The Wheel?

If you're not checking in daily with how present, aware and awake you are, then it is far too easy to fall asleep at the wheel, and either you or someone else who's also in an unconscious slumber, will continue to be disruptive and wreak havoc. Those that remain will have to keep pushing this beaten down planet along in hopes that the "awakened" will outnumber the "sleepers", and we can turn this ship around.

Please be a part of the turning, and keep waking up more each day. Stay mindful, be present, clean up your house of self, and make sure your perceptions are spot on and squeaky clean.

See what you are really seeing, and don't use your perception to just see what you want to, or need to, or have to. See what is possible, and see how you can help serve in making this world a much better place. Do it one moment at a time, and each of the moments of your life will add up to a lifetime having been lived with honesty, integrity, courage and, above all, authenticity. And when it is time for you to leave this earth plane, you will know that you were one of the true consciousness weavers, and you had a hand in moving this cosmic starship along.

We'll get to the land of oneness, and when we do, we'll be ready to live there as we were meant to all along, but not until we raise our consciousness collectively. Remember that "what you do with your today, and what I do with my today, will affect all of the todays of everyone on the planet."

Meditation for Perception

Sit somewhere quiet
Close your eyes.
Be aware of any sounds, thoughts, feelings or sensations in your body, and simply observe them.
Put your focus and awareness onto your breath.
Take a few deep breaths in and out.
Say silently, "I see."
Say silently, "I see truth."
Say silently, "I see all that is real."
Say silently, "I am aware of my judgments."
Say silently, "Let me be tolerant."
Say silently, "Let me be compassionate."
Say silently, "Let me see others as myself."
Bring your focus and awareness back to your body.
Slowly open your eyes.
Take your time transitioning out of your meditation.

Note to self:

I see clearly
I am tolerant
I am compassionate
I take responsibility for my perceptions

Article Source

Live True: A Mindfulness Guide to Authenticity
by Ora Nadrich.

Fake news and "alternative facts" permeate our modern culture, causing ever more confusion to what is real and true. Authenticity is more important than ever as a prescription for peace, happiness and fulfillment. Live True fills that prescription. Written in a down-to-earth, supportive voice, Ora's Live True offers the modern approach to Buddhist teachings of awareness and compassion; making them instantly accessible and adaptable to everyday life and everyday people. The book is expertly divided into four sections - Time, Understanding, Living, and ultimately, Realization -- to take the reader through the necessary stages of understanding how to connect to our authentic selves and experience the joy and peace - the ever-present wholeness - that comes from living Mindfully.

Click here for more info and/or to order this book.

About the Author

Ora Nadrich is founder and president of the Institute for Transformational Thinking and author of Live True: A Mindfulness Guide to Authenticity as well as Says Who? How One Simple Question Can Change. A certified life coach and mindfulness teacher, she specializes in transformational thinking, self-discovery, and mentoring new coaches as they develop their careers. Contact her at theiftt.org and OraNadrich.com.