The Consciousness of Not Hurting

How far do you have to go not to hurt other living beings? Behind Ghandi's non-violence and held deeply within the Buddhist tenans of non-violence is the consciousness that decrees the higher our own consciousness, the more acutely aware we become of how our own actions hurt other beings.

The actions of others are not our concern, it is only ever our own actions that count for us. The more neutral we become, the more we evolve our consciousness, the more we become aware of what an intricate play there is between something we do when we are hurt by someone, and realizing that it may have hurt them even when it was only meant to solace ourselves. The more aware we become of the intricate play between really loving, and consistently acting from the the place of love and the stark difference when we act from the place of fear and it inevitably hurts someone.

The Buddhists tell a story of how they were building something, and there was a line of ants. The construction crew was going to wipe them out, but the Buddhists moved the site instead. The more conscious we become, the more aware we become of the intricate play between our every action and the delicate balance of the planet. Do we have the right to annihilate species, because they are bothering us? Who isencroaching on who's space, anyway?

Have we really come to the place where we believe we are entitled to hurt others, either through our actions, our words, and even our thoughts? "My ex did this to me and then you know, I did ..." or "I'm going to rot out all the bees, or all the wolves, or all the [pick an animal] because they are disturbing me"

The consciousness of not hurting is the willingness to go far beyond your own feelings and recognize that you are a microcosmic part of a macrocosmic whole. No action is ever completely disparate from the actions of another, from the actions of all the rest.

We must realize that it really is a delicate balance and that we are wholly responsible for how our own personal actions affect another - whether that other is a person, an animal, a planet. Because the consciousness of not hurting understands the Oneness of all, and recognizes that hurting another is really hurting one's self. It is only in this responsibility that we truly heal - - ourselves and others.

Until the moment when we can take this responsibility into our very breath and into every cell of our existence, we have room to grow in consciousness and in self-love.

Blessings.
- Darshan

© 2009 Darshan F Jessop