If we take a closer look at humanity’s ancient religions and spiritual traditions, we will see that beneath much of the superficial differences they present are two central ideas with which most of them agree. Although the words used to explain these ideas are diverse, they all refer to a twofold fundamental truth.
The first part, or bad aspect, of this truth is the realization that the “normal” mental state of almost all human beings contains a strong element of what we might call disorder, or dysfunction, and even madness. Certain fundamental teachings of Hinduism are perhaps the closest to the idea that this maladjustment is a form of collective mental illness. They call it maya, the veil of illusion. Ramana Maharshi, one of the greatest Indian sages, states bluntly: “The mind is maya.”
Buddhism uses different terms. According to the Buddha, the human mind in its normal state produces dukkha, a term that can be translated as suffering, dissatisfaction, or sadness, among others. For him, this is a characteristic of the human condition. No matter where we go or what we do, said the master, we will find dukkha, and this will manifest in all situations, sooner or later.
According to Christian teachings, the normal collective state of humanity is one of “original sin”. The word “sin” has been misunderstood over the centuries. Literally translated from ancient Greek, the language in which the New Testament was originally written, it means to miss the mark, as in the situation of an archer who fails to hit the aim. Thus, to sin means to miss the meaning of human existence. It corresponds to living in a disoriented, blind way and, therefore, suffering and causing suffering. Once again, this word, stripped of its cultural baggage and misguided meanings, indicates the disturbance inherent in the human condition.
The achievements of civilization are admirable and undeniable. We create sublime works of music, literature, painting, architecture, and sculpture. More recently, science and technology have brought about radical changes in the way we live and have enabled us to produce inventions that would have been considered miraculous even 200 years ago. There is no doubt: the human mind has a very high degree of intelligence. Yet this intelligence is tinged with madness. Science and technology have increased the destructive impact that the disturbance of the human mind has on the planet, on other life forms and on people themselves. By the end of the 20th century, the number of people killed violently at the hands of others reached over 100 million. These deaths were caused not only by wars between countries (1st and 2nd World Wars for example), but also by mass extermination and genocide, such as the execution of 20 million people of “class enemies, spies and traitors” in the Soviet Union, during Stalin’s rule, and the Holocaust in Nazi Germany, which left a record of unspeakable horrors. Just watch the news to see that the madness and disturbance remains and continues to intensify and accelerate in the 21st century.
One aspect of human disturbance is the unprecedented violence we are inflicting on other life forms and on the planet – the destruction of oxygen-producing forests and other plant and animal beings; mistreatment applied to animals on rural properties dedicated to commercial production; and the poisoning of rivers and oceans and the air. motivated by greed, ignorant of our interdependence of the whole, we persist in behavior which, if continued indiscriminately, will result in our own destruction. The collective manifestations of insanity that lie at the heart of the human condition constitute most of the history of our species.
Fear, greed, and lust for power are the psychological motivating forces behind not only armed conflict and violence involving countries, tribes, religions and ideologies, but also the incessant misunderstanding in personal relationships. They produce a distortion in our perception of others and of ourselves. Through them, we misinterpret all situations, which leads us to take a wrong action to get rid of fear and satisfy our inner need to achieve more, a bottomless pit that can never be filled.
It is important to understand, however, that fear, greed, and the lust for power are not the disorder, although they are created by this dysfunction, which is a collective illusion deeply rooted in the mind of every human being. Numerous spiritual teachings tell us to let go of fear and desire. But, in general, these spiritual methods do not achieve their goal. They don’t get to the real cause of the disturbance. Fear, greed, and lust for power are not the ultimate causal factors. Trying to be a good or better person seems like a commendable and evolved thing to do; even so; it is not an undertaking that anyone can do with complete success unless there is a shift in his consciousness. This happens as part of the same dysfunction, a more subtle and rarefied form of personal prominence, the desire for more and the strengthening of the individual’s conceptual identity, his image. One does not become good by trying to be good, but by finding the goodness that is already within oneself and allowing it to come out. However, this quality is only distinguished when something fundamental changes in the person’s state of consciousness.
The history of communism, originally inspired by noble ideas, clearly illustrates what happens when people try to alter external reality – in this case, create a new world – without making any essential prior changes to their inner reality, to their state of consciousness. . They make plans without considering the “model” of disorder that every human being carries within them: the ego.
Source: A New World – The Awakening of a New Consciousness – Eckhart Tolle.