“So if you are spiritual and your house is burning down, you yell “Fire!”. You don’t just say your mantra five times and trust the outcome to God. God needs to be able to trust the outcome to us.”
– Marianne Williamson
This is a post about activism. The healthy kind that will heal the world.
Activism must come from a place of wholeness, or it wil only cause more suffering. If all you can do is point fingers or fight or otherwise divide, it’s better to keep silent for now and do your inner work first.
But once the blaming has stopped and judgment has been seen for what it is, healthy action can come and the work of love can start moving you.
Marianne Williamson
I was greatly inspired by Marianne Williamson in her Buddha at the Gas Pump interview (video below). She rightfully points out that we have to do whatever we can to actively defend and promote the forces of good in the world, especially now:
“This is an urgent moment in the history of the world. We now have holding the levers of power in the most powerful country of the world, [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][Donald Trump] whose mindset does not seem to promote a sustainable option, necessarily, even for life on Earth”.
I share her view of the dangers that a policy of divisiveness poses for the world, as well as the chances it brings for transformation and unity and so I do whatever is in my power to stand up for what I believe is right.
Holistic politics
I advocate holistic politics. Politics that operate from an integrative world view and recognize we are all part of a larger whole. Where we take care of the Earth and no longer see ourselves as the center of everything, but recognize we come from (are!) nature and start treating her with the respect she deserves. Where happiness is more important than growth and love prevails over possession. Where we listen to each other with the intention to understand, in stead of make our own point.
As Marianne Williamson wisely mentions in the interview, great activists don’t work AGAINST anything. They work in favor of what they want. Gandhi always said how he was not against the British government, but rather FOR a free, self governing India.
We can work together in healing the climate, sharing our wealth and resolving our (inner) conflicts. And the work, of course, starts with ourselves.
Love hard
Love and forgive yourself. Love and forgive others. Take good care of yourself and others.
Recognize that if we flourish at someone else’s cost, we can not fully flourish. Because we are all connected and as soon as we become aware of that, we can no longer hide for the fact that in this world, too many beings are suffering for the so-called welfare of a few.
Also… if you love someone, let them know. And treat people how you would like to be treated. It really is that simple.
Pray hard
Meditate, walk in nature, play music, pray, whatever it is you can do to get out of your ordinary daily mind and connect with something greater than what you call ‘you’.
Sometimes, action is prayer. ‘Karma yoga’ means you support the right people and causes to help create, sustain and spread the good stuff. Cleaning a beach can be incredibly liberating.
Prayer, meditation and heartful action help us to let go of our mind-made self image and live from the deeper source within.
Kick ass
Acting from that place again, we are re-sourceful: we are creative, efficient and we effortlessly move mountains. That state is called flow and it happens when we stop creating barriers for ourselves.
We are the grownups now. It is up to us to act. Somewhere in the interview, Marianne Williamson says: “You know how they say it’s a pity when people miss their childhood? Well it’s a pity when people miss their adulthood, too!”
We are what we repeatedly do.
– Aristotle
My invitation: right now, kick some ass. Find one thing you can do to contribute to something you care about deeply. Even a comment on this article would be great! Do it right now, don’t stop with just reading this post. It can be small, but you will inspire yourself and others because you are one who acts.
Some suggestions: sign up for Avaaz or SumOfUs to get involved (even if just by signing) with great people power causes. Change your bank to one with a high rating for social and environmental investments. Donate time or money to a great campaign, and share about it on social media. Write a weekly Facebook post on something you care about. Eat more plants and less meat. I could go on and on. More suggestions? Put them in the comments!
Do this every day in the coming week and you’ll see that by the end of the week, you’re a different person.
Here is Marianne Williamson’s interview with Buddha at the Gas Pump:
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