A new kind of power – authentic power – is replacing the old kind of power – external power. Authentic power is the ability to distinguish love from fear within yourself and choose love no matter what is happening inside you or what is happening outside you. External power is the ability to manipulate and control.
From the perspective of external power villains are powerful and victims are powerless. From the perspective of authentic power, the callous lust of one who abuses others to satisfy his (or her) destructive desires and the rage of those who are abused are both experiences of powerlessness. There is no power in abuse or revenge.
It is appropriate to protect abused people from people who abuse them (think cells and rehab), but we do not know enough to judge abusers or abused. We do not know what roles they have played in other places and times. If we judge them, we create painful consequences for ourselves.
Long standing abuses (think centuries) are now coming into view, and long standing rage (think centuries) is rising to meet them. All of our experiences offer us opportunities to learn about ourselves (not others or the world). What can you learn about yourself from your experiences of these things? Ask yourself, “What do I intend to contribute to Life in this moment?” — harmony, cooperation, sharing, and reverence for Life (authentic power) or violence and destruction (external power)? This is the most important question.
Only you can answer it.
Gary Zukav
www.seatofthesoul.com