I was thinking about all the amazing traditions we have on the planet for expanding consciousness. It occurred to me, that in practical terms, a spiritual process might be described as an act of consciously polishing the mirror of awareness. This mirror is like a very sensitive screen. What appears on it are our thoughts, emotions, desires, expectations, and various conditioning.
We can define consciousness as the context in which we hold an experience. It is not the content. Only through being conscious, aware of the context of the experience, can we recognize what we habitually hold in our awareness.
So, focusing our attention on the sensitive screen of awareness, rather than becoming completely absorbed in its content, breaks us free of so much limitation. Our feelings and our thoughts are the content of the mirror, but not the mirror itself. If we begin to recognize our stories and projections as reflections on the mirror, we begin to clear the mirror, sometimes only momentarily.
Don’t we ordinarily experience an assortment of personal compulsions and the conditioning from the social mind? Might we conclude that by developing the skill of polishing the mirror of its superficial contents, we will discover much deeper levels of ourselves in the mirror of the Heart?
Our experience shows us how the reflective capacity of the mirror is reduced by the quantity and quality of thoughts. We can start to notice that all the layers of mental-emotional conditioning obscure this beautiful, sensitive surface of awareness.
A reflective object can be polished. So, we can regularly wipe the mirror of awareness clean, and in so doing, begin to reflect the light of Being itself. And this light of Being will reflect outwardly as light pouring out of our eyes. Such eyes see with tolerance, optimism, compassion, kindness and love.
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