From The Daily Dialogue
From The Daily Dialogue
Broadcast of 11/9/98
Subject: [DailyDialogue #308] Blindness
"Or else, on the other hand, you have grown beyond supposing such actions to be either good or bad, and therefore it will be so much the easier to be tolerant of another's blindness." - Marcus Aurelius
Marcus Aurelius was a Stoic philosopher and Roman emperor from 161 to 180. Stoic ethics state that good lies not in external objects but in the state of the soul itself. Marcus Aurelius believed that "people are manifestations of the one universal spirit."
My greatest challenge is moving beyond the judgment of good and bad. I am often blinded to the good in others because I am prejudiced by my past experiences in life. I sometimes have difficulty understanding others because of my own perceptions. I create evidence that I am right and someone else is wrong. As we disclose our secrets, we create an opening in our relationships and there is no longer a blind between us that shuts out the light.
As a child, I went hunting with my Dad and we concealed ourselves in a shelter, commonly called a blind, so the ducks and geese would not see us. Then we could shoot them. In relationships, we often hide our good from each other and then it is more difficult to see the true nature of the other, the God-self.
I mislead others when I play nice guy and don't let them know when I am frustrated. This is an act of subterfuge. It is deceptive and leads others to believe something that is not true. As a result, they feel betrayed because I am concealing myself and misrepresenting the truth. I enter into this interaction blindly in a stupor, without forethought, unaware of the deadly consequences.
Experiment: Share new insights with your mate about your perception of others and how it relates to fears from your past.
Affirmation: I greet all situations today seeing the good in myself and others.
The Daily Dialogue is published each day of 1998 by e-mail. Copyright 1998, Eddy Brame and Marty Crouch, All rights reserved.
