The problem with modern, or as some call it, Western morality is that it is usually externalized. Even if for most of us the bearded distant God in the sky is dead, we still act as children of the father, as subjects of the overlord who issued some arbitrary rules we should obey in order to get to the sweets cupboard, his heaven and “salvation”. When external reward is a measure of following certain commandments, of course we rebel and try to negotiate and cheat, to lessen our burden. Because it is a transaction, opposite of a non conditional relationship. And this translates to all aspects of our lifes. Just like the love of imaginary Father is conditional, so is often the relationship with ourselves. We negotiate with ourselves, continually judge ourselves, demand more than “good enough” and even try to cheat ourselves.
But heaven and hell are here, not there and after. Karma is not delivered upon us, it is created with every action. Going out in the rain is not followed by punishment from Thor who makes you wet for breaking his commandment of staying indoors. You get wet because it is the nature of things.
When you “covet the things and wives of your neighbour”, it is not a sin punished by overlord who cares for the harmony of society and so orders to you to behave yourself. If you think this way, the main tragic consequence is that you will try to cheat and find loopholes, that is what probably all billionaires do. But “punishment” for envy is envy itself, is the increasing thirst, dissactisfaction, is more and more uncontrollable sliding towards hell of wanting. When we teach people they should behave because exoteric law tells so, we take a terrible shortcut, away from esoteric understanding, inner knowing and feeling, realization that the same goes for hatred, anger, impatience, they take away from exactly the states of being we desire. When forced upon society, the values the missionaries and enforcers wish for actually decrease, and that too is the nature of things. But what is more, the same applies to yourself. When you exercise force and violence towards the emotions you repress, you create resistance. When the goal, that salvation, is obscuring what is experienced in present moment, the path disappears, and paradoxically the goal is more distant. If you slow down and observe, action and reaction, you will notice the path forward is very pragmatic one. It is a path towards “what serves you”. Every side glance, for example at “wives and things” of 6 billion neighbours we now have, or for that matter, that “better version of yourself could have had”, is a piece for firewood for the DIY hellfire no Satan needs to tend to.
[ Tata Mundo ]