Image by Vicki Hamilton
There are two major factors which, combined, make present day living extremely challenging for anyone who attempts to stay informed on major issues of our times.
The first one is the weakening of authority in so many areas of life. For thousands of years, people’s lives were run by a very few authorities, religion, the ruler, and later in the West, the Church, medicine and the family doctor, the schoolteacher, social customs, and in most cultures, men rather than woman.
The second one is the explosion of information since the invention of the internet. In the mid-nineties, the invention of fiber optics cables was to facilitate the flow of information in an amazing way. In 1997, only one percent of information flowed through two-way systems such as the internet, in the year 2000 it was 57% and over 97% in 2007. Anyone in the world, be she/he floating on an iceberg in the Antarctica or navigating in a small canoe in the Pacific, can, with a good internet connection, have access to the quasi totality of information available on the globe.
Choosing What to Believe
BUT – and it really is a huge but – the combination of the loss of authority in so many areas and the instant availability of huge amounts of often contradictory information anywhere means that we have to choose what we are going to believe. And the covid pandemic made this painfully clear to so many of us: top level medical authorities on both sides claimed the truth. So, the average citizen like you or me is faced with a dilemma none of our predecessors of any period ever faced. And I haven’t yet found (and hope I never will) the Big Pharma pill that instantaneously dissolves doubts!!!
My personal attitude when faced with this dilemma is to inform myself as best I can and then go into the silence. And just listen. For I believe in an infinitely loving providence which will always guide me if I seek that guidance. And still working at 85, with seventeen-hour days, it seems to work for me.
But the most important dimension for me is the honest intellectual research, followed by going into the silence with an immense trust in this providence which has saved my life in amazing ways, because I MANAGED TO TRUST IT.
My friend, you can do the same.
“I bless us all in finding that inner space deep inside us which is beyond all change because beyond time and space, where we can always restore ourselves and find that “peace that passes all understanding,” is our ultimate home.” (from my book: 365 Blessings to Heal Myself and The World)
The World of Books, Newspapers, and then Internet
The appearance and practice of “Fake news” complicates the debate. Although the practice itself is certainly not new it seems to have taken on a new dimension.
For thousands of years, humanity lived with an absolute minimum of information, as all information was either transmitted orally, or then in hand-written manuscripts. Mankind had to wait for Gutenberg to invent the printing press around 1440 for the first explosion in volume of written of material that circulated, and which enabled the majority of people to have access to important amounts of information via books and, later, newspapers.
But we had to await the end of the 20th century and the appearance of internet for the circulation of information to become a real deluge. Today, almost anyone with a good internet connection, be she or he on a tiny island lost in the Pacific Ocean, can access amounts of information on practically any topic that would take people hundreds of lifetimes (and then!) to read.
One of the main challenges of this situation is that on almost any topic one will find an amazing, almost distressing number of contrary opinions.
For some topics – e.g., how to prepare a specific, highly valued dish of French cuisine or various opinions about a great football player or brilliant pianist – this is of little importance. But for other ones – e.g., specific medical treatments for life-threatening diseases, the value of a new religious sect which is rapidly winning converts by the thousand or even more – it can be of great importance.
For instance, imagine two highly respected professors of medicine proposing totally opposite treatments for a given life-threatening illness, how would you react? Which reply would you select? And if the person concerned is your aunt Mathilda’s son (your cousin) and she asks seven family members to do research on the topic and they come back with seven different replies, how on earth can Mathilda choose?
The Problem of Confusion
Thirty or forty years ago, that outstanding figure in the field of personal development in the USA, Byron Katie, said that the main problem of the world was not the differences between the North and South, the dangers of war, political differences and so on (I don’t remember the exact factors she mentioned) but confusion. That statement has been a shining light for me for the past thirty years in understanding how our societies and the world function – or rather dysfunction!
My personal response to this upsetting confusion – which is all around us, daily – has been to create, deep down inside me, a place of such profound peace that absolutely nothing – and I really mean nothing – can disturb it. For me, this has implied a great deal of constant spiritual listening, not only in the early morning, but all through the day.
“I bless myself, first in my desire to truly deeply listen, and then in my ability to master the art of going into silence and listening to Spirit’s words of unconditional love and encouragement.
Despite the background noise of a culture on the run may I learn to calm the constant, strident chatter of the human mind and rest by the deep pool of inner contentment that is deep down inside me, awaiting my visit.” *
You too, friend, can reach that state, if you invest the commitment, perseverance, intent, vision and trust in some kind of Higher Power (however you define the latter). And if you feel the need for some kind of guide, you might look into the writings of that great American mystic of the last century, Joel Goldsmith (The Infinite Way is his main book – short and concise).
* From my book 365 Blessings to heal myself and the world
©2023 by Pierre Pradervand. All Rights Reserved.
Reprinted with permission from the author's blog.
Book by this Author
365 Blessings to Heal Myself and the World: Really Living One’s Spirituality in Everyday Life
by Pierre Pradervand.
Can you imagine what it would feel like to never feel any resentment for any wrong done to you, gossip or lie disseminated about you? To respond with full awareness to all situations and people rather than react from your gut? What freedom that would entail! Well, this is just one of the gifts the practice of blessing from the heart, i.e. sending out focused love energy, will do for you. This book, from the bestselling author of The Gentle Art of Blessing, will help you learn to bless all situations and people as you go through the day and add overwhelming joy and presence to your existence.
For more info and/or to order this book, click here. Also available as a Kindle edition.
About The Author
Pierre Pradervand is the author of The Gentle Art of Blessing. He has worked, travelled and lived in over 40 countries on five continents, and has been leading workshops and teaching the art of blessing for many years, with remarkable responses and transformational results.
For over 20 years Pierre has been practising blessing and collecting testimonies of blessing as a tool for healing the heart, mind, body and soul.
Visit his website at https://gentleartofblessing.org
