Courage – Taking Your Stance in the Universe

Spiritual awakening and living in your own unique sense of conscious authenticity is not for the faint of heart – it requires an immense amount of courage. I’ve discussed the need for a warrior’s spirit in the book and past blog posts. I’ve talked at length about the courage needed in order to overcome your own ego, to still the mind, to be yourself, and to live in a sense of freedom. But today, I’m referring to an even deeper sense of courage, a degree of courage that’s unthinkable to most and unbelievable to some.

When I say “courage” in this article today, I’m not referring to the average, run-of-the-mill, bravery it takes to face common daily challenges personal growth practices. I’m talking about the ability to stand strong in the world while walking your own path, to take your stance in the universe while resisting all distractions from who you really are, and truly living authentically with a deep sense of freedom – even when that means giving up the acceptance of everyone around you and facing their disapproval head on.

We’re living in a time, at least in the US, where society is twisting everything, turning it inside-out and forcefully, even violently, insisting that everyone conforms to their ways. It’s becoming dangerous to stand alone against the herd. They want to trample those who don’t fit in. Those with viewpoints that differ from the herd’s; such as being fit and living healthy, consciously deciding not to have children in an overpopulated and unstable world, not giving into the mind-numbing distractions of television and the internet, and holding your own sense of self without the need for ego-stimulating beliefs, are all being viciously attacked as society applies pressure in order to force free spirits to conform. This form of awakened consciousness threatens the herd, it makes them uncomfortable, it causes them to see their falseness, and they don’t like any of it. They don’t like it because they don’t want to have to change or take responsibility for themselves – and they surely don’t like it when you do.

Society likes to create a norm based on the control of the herd. In order to be accepted, you’re required to live according to the rules they dictate. Otherwise, you cannot be one of them, you will no longer fit in, and no one will like you. You will be viewed as bad or weird. In order to be accepted, one must hold the beliefs they deem acceptable in order to continue existing in their sleep-like trance. You must surrender your own thoughts and feelings and mindlessly accept theirs while convincing yourself that those are your original thoughts anyway. You must fully give yourself to the distractions they deem acceptable. This way you can feel as though you fit in and have something in common with everyone else, that you’re accepted by them. You must surrender any sense of personal empowerment and authenticity to remain accepted. Society goes to great lengths to condition you for this from the very beginning by telling you that you’re a bad person, you should be ashamed of who you are, and need to be more like them in order to be good. To follow them, without question. Society tells you that if you accept your Self as you truly are, that you’ll be rejected by everyone else. Living as a member of the herd results in living a false existence where you become increasingly more phony and more disconnected from anything real, with each passing day.

In order to be accepted by society as a respectable member of its culture, you must reject your authentic Self. You must repress, surrender, and destroy the very being you were meant to be and surrender to the comfortably numb existence that they demonstrate to well. You must ignore the feelings in your heart and the guiding voice of your own essence. You must become stuck in your head and live as a slave to your own ego. You must willingly give in to all the senseless distractions that society places before themselves in order to continue living a mindless, ego-obsessed existence. This is a shallow, empty life of purposeless hypocrisy that take you farther and farther away from your own authentic reality.

Most people just blindly follow the herd without ever having a thought to the contrary enter their mind. They mindlessly accept what they’re told on the sleep walking notion of faith and act in the way they see everyone else acting so as to fit in and not be singled out. The nail that sticks up the farthest gets hit hardest by the hammer, right? Or burned at the stake, or stoned to death, or banished, etc. It’s human nature to take the easy way out, the path of least resistance, the road most travelled, letting others do the thinking for them. But that doesn’t make it right. It does, however, explain why there are so few extraordinary people in the world when the human race as a whole is overflowing with potential. Today, there are very, very few real leaders in the world and it’s now that we desperately need them.

Are you courageous enough to be yourself no matter what? Are you willing to face the disapproval of others and even danger in order to hold what you know to be right in your heart? Are you sure? Are you ready to remain steadfast in your own essence when the cultural norm insists that you act as a mindless, ego-driven, belief-stricken, clone of the herd? Can you hold strong in your sense of knowing that you’re worthy of your independence and individuality when everyone around you is telling you that you’re not? Can you remain true to yourself by being yourself even when society does their damnedest to convince you to be someone else and threatens to ostracize you? Are you willing to take your stance in the world to set your essence free instead of for attention to feed the ego?Do you have the courage to accept yourself as your Self when everyone else around you refuses to accept you? Are you willing to accept yourself no matter what may come of you? This is when a deeper sense of courage is needed, because this can be a very difficult dilemma to find yourself facing. This is the point where most people weaken and cower, as they go running back into the safety of the delusion created by society.

Just imagine the incredible courage required to face the fear of standing alone, separating yourself from the herd in order to live freely in your own authenticity of essence when nearly every single person you know in life is insisting it’s wrong. Consider the strength it must take to hold your stance and remain filled with joy when you’re being condemned or losing respectability. Think about that for a moment and ponder the courage necessary. Do you have what it takes to stay true to yourself or would you fold under the intense pressure of the opinions of others? Do you have the courage it takes to take your stance in the world and hold it as your own sense of truth – no matter what may come? Understand the amount of courage it takes to reject the beliefs forced upon you by society in order to know your own truth. Fathom the inner strength required to resist the social pressures placed upon you to conform to the norm.

Do you truly have what it takes to live your own authentic, awakened life? This is the courage necessary for true spiritual growth, for the ultimate freedom of the essence, to take your stance in the universe as the being you came here to be and to live authentically. One cannot know what it is to be awakened until they exercise this degree of courage. Take your stance in the universe and hold it with a sense of inner knowing. Know who you are and what your purpose is. Reclaim your individuality and hold on tightly to what you know in your heart to be the truth, your truth – it’s a rare and precious gift. This is the path to intense happiness because it’s only on this path that you can take responsibility for yourself and through this sense of responsibility you can become completely free. This type of freedom is where authenticity resides and only a free and authentic individual can grow through the layers of consciousness to reach the heights of an awakened being.