It
Takes an Honest Heart to See
The
Mystery of Universal Wisdom
Carlos
Cardoso Aveline
Illusion depends
on mental habits.
The level of accuracy in one’s view of any particular
fact is inseparable from the degree of exactitude we have in looking at every
other aspect of reality.
If, therefore, one blocks from himself an accurate
view of something, the door is opened to subconscious delusion in other areas
of life. All the ways we look at life are interdependent. We may deny a fact
because it is emotionally painful, or because we are attached to some sort of
imaginary pleasure or sense of security which the fact will erase: it does not
matter. One lie brings another. One illusion produces two or three more.
And each true vision produces another. As we look
honestly at one fact, we look at ten others.
Entire waves of illusion relating to all kinds of
interconnected facts can get unmasked in the same second. When this experience
is wide and deep enough, it is called “enlightenment”. And when the lights are
turned on, all kinds of things get visible - the beautiful ones and the ugly -;
and then truth and ethics gradually prevail.
Observing Polemics
One’s discernment will certainly be tested all the
time in self-renewing and unexpected ways.
Some tools can help us not to be trapped in collective karma situations
where illusion dominates. Let us see two
practical examples.
When you see a fierce debate, examine how people use
words. Who is ascribing negative feelings to whom, in an intense way perhaps,
and with no proof or evidence?
Check the facts. Identify those who speak with honesty
while the discussion goes on. Examine the varying degrees of respect for truth
and consideration for each other.
Only he who respects himself is able to have due
regard for the facts. To say falsehoods - even while being carried away by
emotion - expresses a lack of self-knowledge, for the knowledge of oneself makes
self-control possible. In a war of words, truth is often the first victim. It
is worthwhile observing who uses falsehoods as a weapon, and who does not; who
acts as a false friend of whom, and who is loyal in words and deeds.
The Criterion of Sincerity
The harmony between words and deeds is an effective
criterion. If an individual praises something but will not defend the thing
praised when it is unjustly attacked, then there was no praise: there was
instead flattery, a blunt form of falsehood. Many an insincere person unmasks
himself or herself in this way.
Similarly, as one adopts a philosophy, one must be
able after some time to defend its point of view and teaching. If one purports
to adopt a teaching and will not defend it, one has adopted nothing. He or she
just made an opportunistic approach to the teaching, and tried to take lower
forms of benefit from it. This is a self-defeating kind of effort. For selfishness
prevents any real benefits in the approach of a philosophy whose basis is
altruistic.
The mysteries of universal wisdom are not sealed off
mainly through secret codes. They are established in the territory of Ethics
and Discernment: only an honest heart will be able to read them. However, a friend of truth must be ready to tread a
thorny road. Any deep form of honesty looks like an unforgivable sin for hypocrites. If sincerity is strong enough not
to be seen as a form of weakness or naiveté, then it sounds like a personal
insult for those who decided to lie to themselves; and they get angry at it, even
if they try to conceal the anger.
Renewed Waves of Facts
Karma unfolds in waves of events, and not through
isolated facts.
In order to develop a higher accuracy in his view of
life, the pilgrim must face the renewing waves of facts that life sends him as
a result of his trying his best in the science of right action.
The first approach to any difficulties is “a patience
that nothing can disturb”. Only self-restraint allows us to calmly see when to
wait, when to act like a lightning bolt, and when to choose a gradual approach.
Obstacles and opportunities come together. Continuous observation will pave the
way to a deeper understanding.
Rejecting mistakes is a decisive tenet on the road to
wisdom. Justice and accuracy are inseparable: one’s sense of right and wrong
must be confirmed by practical decisions, so as to protect the exactitude of
one’s views. The subconscious distortion of facts is the gravest form of
blindness.
A living combination of time and effort produces
accumulated experience. Then one’s understanding improves, positive potentialities
are seen, and the occasions to take initiative multiply.
000
The above article
was first published at the March 2016 edition of “The Aquarian Theosophist”, pp. 11-12. It had no indication as to
the name of the author.
000
