Climbing out of the'bowl' of conditioned thinking

Climbing out of the bowl of conditioned thinking          

    By Jimmy Henderson 
    (Hons BA (phil), MA (psych), FRC

     We are all presently like goldfish swimming around in a bowl. The water in the bowl represents our mind and present understanding of the world. Outside of the bowl is the universe and what we understand as reality. However, the water itself is murky as the result of our jumbled-up thoughts and perceptions, painful memories and emotions, limiting beliefs and fears which so clog up our minds that we have only a dim view of what is out there and cannot see things as they really are. The saddest thought of all is that we have all become so conditioned and accustomed to living in the bowl that we cannot even conceive of a larger world or universe out there, thus limiting our ability to dream and to realise our true potential.

     However, once we make the necessary commitment and conscientiously begin to follow a spiritual or metaphysical path towards the light, we will soon realize the need to clear the old clutter of the past from our minds (clean the murky water) by means of fully conscious thought and actions. Second, as a result of our intention, we can attract new experiences into our lives and be moved to raise our consciousness (poke our head above the surface) by opening our minds to new insights, possibilities and metaphysical processes, Finally, if we request the support of Spirit, we will be guided to shift our perception beyond the obvious to experience a new universe of depth and mystery (seeing beyond the bowl).

     But real transformation comes at that point when we realise that we are not goldfish at all and simply climb out of the bowl. In such moments of awakening or absolute clarity, we can radically alter our experience of ourselves, reality and the universe.

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