Are You a Survivalist?

Once again I was caught reading some strange stuff.  My wife and I were traveling to CA for a wedding and to visit the grandchild.  On the plane I pulled out Survivalist magazine.  My wife asks me, “you’re not going to turn into a survivalist?”

I laugh and say, “I’ve always been a survivalist!” 

My father escaped from 2 concentration camps and was liberated from “The Train” during the fall of Nazi Germany. My mother worked for the Jewish resistance.  I have survivalism in my genes!  I have first aid kits, bug-out bags packed, all sorts of survival equipment packed away.  I’ve read for years about both urban and back-country survival.  I train physically to be fit and to use a variety of weapons. 

What she really was asking, “are you going to regress to a lower level of consciousness?”  Are you going to become a Tea-Party type?  Perhaps not really worried, but this interaction led us into an interesting conversation. 

http://enlightenedmdphd.blogspot.com/2013/02/just-stranger-in-strange-land-part-2.html

 

What can happen to us that might drop us down to a lower level? 

Maslow proposed a “hierarchy of needs,” beginning with needs for food and shelter, then safety and security, friendship and intimacy, respect and self-esteem, and finally the highest need is for “self-actualization. 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslow's_hierarchy_of_needs

What happens when your very existence is threatened? 

Well this can occur when rising up to the next level of consciousness, where the ego feels as if it is dying. 

There is an interesting story about a Buddhist monk who had a heart attack and ended up in the intensive care unit.  He was in terrible pain, and wrote about losing connection to Source.  Only after it was all over he was able to reconnect.

So, regression to a lower level can occur with disease of the brain or body.  If we have Alzheimer’s or another dementia, can we still be connected to Source, so that we continue to practice right action? 

A diagnosis of cancer or other disease can undo our sense of self, and drive us to a lower level of consciousness.  On the other hand, contemplation of our own mortality can raise us up to higher level as well! 

Often the aged will let go of all the stuff they obsessed about when younger, perhaps money or status.   When they truly understand what is most important in life, and then letting go of “shoulds,” they rise up to a lovely new higher level of being. 

Stress beyond our ability to cope can drop us down to a lower level.   Other severe stressors can be related fear of loss, where we feel threatened or our loved ones are threatened, isolation, relationship loss and grief, or even just feeling that you have no clear purpose in life.

A survivalist mentality can be connected to living in a low-level community or to living as a hermit.

Yet, truly enlightened individuals may choose to live in a closed monk-like community, or to live a hermit’s existence. 

So, what protects us from regression to a lower level of being?

My father showed an interesting behavior while in a concentration camp.  Everyone was starving and there was only a small amount of bread that they had to divide amongst themselves.  My father decided to build a scale from scraps of wood and string.  Then each piece of bread could be weighed, so that everyone could be a assured of being treated equally.  A small boy in the camp observed this action.  Later, as an adult, he painted a picture depicting this episode.  

Why would my father do this?  Obviously he was a survivor, he could have found a way to cheat and steal from his fellow camp members, and he did steal from the Germans to survive. 

Maintaining a sense of morality maintains sanity.  Within compassion you automatically help others.  To do this you must let go of some level of ego.  Giving of yourself, so as help others live better and more fully.  These are the acts of living at a higher level.  This makes living worthwhile!

Right action is the key. 

So, be a survivalist!  Be prepared for many possible eventualities. 

Train with weapons, be a sheepdog. 

A sheepdog might look like a wolf, to the sheep, but you know you have a different mindset. 

The mindset is that you are there to help your neighbors, to share with others in what ever way you deem to be right action. 

A higher level of being can be defined as the larger group of people you consider to be part of your “family.”

We can play the role of “fitting in.”  But, realize it is only a role you are playing. 

You are the bright shining embodiment of Source. 

Embrace this embodiment and enjoy to the fullest!