We are human, and therefore we all succumb to the most basic human trait – the need to survive. Add to this the fact that we are social animals who for most of our history lived in tribes because we wouldn’t survive solo, then it’s real easy to see that our first survival mechanism is to be acceptable to the tribe.
We have a very deep programme that finds rejection traumatic, and it responds from instinct, trying to make ourselves acceptable to the humans around us. Even if it means that we completely reject ourselves in the process. All in the name of survival.
This isn’t wrong, it’s just human. It’s not something we should judge in ourselves or others, but it is something we can free ourselves from when we take a step backwards and become an observer.
Mooji says:
“Step into the fire of self-discovery, this fire won’t burn you but it will burn everything that you are not.” – Mooji
As we grew up we’ve had to make so many adaptations in order to feel like we could survive, or cope. Even in our adult lives we’ve had to put on a mask or wear some kind of armour in order to feel like we could make it through the day.
Stepping into the fire of self-discovery as Mooji says is the process of realizing that: “what I have always thought of as me, is really the collection masks and armour that I’m wearing. And that the real me might be buried so deep under all of this that I might have forgotten who I really am.”
In today’s meditation we dust off the masks, not with shame, but with curiosity. We examine their patterns, the stories they whisper of childhood fears and societal pressures. This isn’t a witch-hunt, but a treasure hunt, unearthing the gold of our authentic selves.
Mooji warns that change is a stubborn beast though and that old habits tend to cling like barnacles, so please be kind to yourself when you find yourself slipping back into old patterns. Change takes time.
“Being who you are is the easy part, what is difficult is to stop being who you are not.” – Mooji
Inside of you, under all the layers of armour and masks is a beautiful being of pure love. Trust that this is what you are. Trust that your work is not to fight against all your “bad” habits, but simply to keep leaning into your light.
“Whenever we attain a higher vision, the lower vision disappears of itself.” – Swami Vivekananda
Don’t fight against your own low vibrations, simply reach for the higher vibrations again and again, the masks and the armour and bad habits will disappear of themselves when it becomes clear that you don’t need them to survive anymore.
Mantras for your unmasking:
- I choose acceptance, of myself and others.
- I shed masks, embrace vulnerability.
- Being me is enough.
- With kindness, I evolve, one mask at a time.
- I shine brightest when I let go of the need to fit in.
Join me for today’s LIVE meditation. Let’s shed the masks together and reveal the radiant souls within!
– pierre –
Today’s LIVE meditation is: The masks we wear.