"Choice implies consciousness - a high degree of consciousness.
Without it, I have no choice. Choice begins the moment I dis-identify
from my mind and its conditioned patterns, the moment I become
Self-present. Until I reach that point, I'm unconscious, spiritually
speaking.
This means that I'm compelled to think, feel, and act in certain ways
according to the conditioning of my mind. Nobody consciously chooses
dysfunction, conflict, and pain. Nobody chooses insanity. They happen
because there isn't enough conscious Self-presence to dissolve the past,
not enough light to dispel the darkness. I'm never fully here in the
now because I'm either time binding with the past or the future. I have
not quite woken up, meaning I'm not fully Self-conscious yet. In the
meantime, my conditioned mind is running my life. As long as my mind
(with its conditioned patterns) runs my life, what choice do I have?
None. I'm not even there yet, and I won't be there until I become
Self-conscious. The mind-identified state is severely dysfunctional. It
is a form of socially acceptable insanity. Almost everyone is suffering
from this illness in varying degrees. The moment I realize this, there
can be no more resentment or guilt. How can I resent someone's illness
or my own? If I'm primarily run by my mind, I will suffer the
consequences of my mind identification, and I'll create further
suffering for myself and my loved ones. I will bear the burden of fear,
conflict, problems, and pain. The suffering that I'm creating is my
mind's false attempt to make me feel safe by ignoring, denying, or
repressing that which I'm experiencing."
~Eckhart Tolle
"The Power Of Now"
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