A simple seeker was meditating on a confusing dream of being lost in traffic and intensive construction, on her way to church to celebrate a harvest festival.
She could hear the service begin. A loudspeaker was being used, and yet it didn’t seem to cause her to wonder why, even though it had never been part of any previous experience.
“Perhaps, during a dream, we’re unaware of any other previous experience.”
“Then, why was I aware of where I was trying to go, to a church that I once attended?”
“Yes. There’s always a blend of the reality that we’re familiar with, and that which we are not.”
“Anyway, I was lost.”
“Were you alone?”
“No. I was lost with a friend. But I was not totally lost. I was aware of being close to our destination.”
“But something was different with the landscape?”
“Yes. Traffic was incredibly intensive, as was the density of new buildings under construction.”
“What happened next?”
“I was almost hit by an expensive-looking car attempting to make a left-hand turn at an intersection. It was chasing after another car that had now sped away. I must have crossed the street before the car shrieked to a stop, close to me. What did it mean?”
“What did what mean?”
“My dream.”
“What makes you think that it meant anything?”
“I know that it meant something.”
“How?”
“I experienced it.”
“What did you experience?”
“The possibly bad guys were very polite.”
“Would they have been polite to whomever they were chasing?”
“No. He’d likely be dead.”
“But you were impressed by their behaviour toward you?”
“Yes. They were well-mannered and seemed sincere.”
“And yet, they might be killers?”
“Perhaps whomever they were chasing was the bad guy.”
“Are bad guys necessary?”
“It’s easier to think of conflicting sides as having opposite values.”
“Yes.”
…..
A simple seeker’s note to herself
As Spirit seems to suggest, perhaps my ideas of good guys and bad guys are socially-conditioned attitudes. And yet, as a society we seem to need to develop values of right and wrong.
“How?”
“From lived experience, I guess. But, until we’re old enough and experienced enough to determine right from wrong and/or good from bad, we seem to need guidance and limits to what is acceptable and what is not, for our own sake and for that of the community we live in.”
“Yes, and that’s how certain traditions develop, over time and in different communities, with the elders of the community accepting responsibility for guiding the younger bodies and/or minds to develop healthy attitudes and ways of living that seem to fit the needs of a particular society, at a particular time.”
“That makes sense. But why wouldn’t the wise elders of all societies have a similar idea of what was right and what was wrong?”
“They did, as ancient writings of all societies show.”
“If they were similar in the beginning, then how did they become so different, now?”
“They’re not much different, even now, except on the surface. People are basically the same, all over the world. They each and all need to feel safe and loved.”
…..
Simple Seekers 