Mother's Day Special- the true meaning of the COVID 19 pandemic

The true meaning of the COVID 19 Pandemic and what we should be learning from it

Sometimes lessons are presented to us in ways that are so obvious that we miss them.

This pandemic has shut the world down now for two months, taken thousands of lives and threatens to crash our economic structures globally. In short, the human world has been brought to a standstill and nature is waiting for us to learn our lessons or prepared for more pandemics which will be worse.

Honestly I feel I am repeating myself, again and again.

But when I listen to dominate media sources, I don’t hear the wisdom of these times being clarified or elucidated in any but the most superficial and panicked way. The narratives run towards survival, blame, and victimization of humanity. I’m tired of hearing the whiney voices of people bemoaning their losses. And I reply:

You think this is bad! Unless we mend our ways, there is much worse coming!

Nature or Gaia, represents a whole network of interconnected beings, who like us, exist physically, emotionally and spiritually.  The three worlds of Gaia are: animal, plant and mineral or inanimate. These worlds are composed of many beings who all share the same morphic structures. These morphic resonances create a shared energetic field which all members have in common. Each species has a collective consciousness called species mind. All beings of the earth are nested within a greater hierarchy called Gaian mind. These energetic communities can be compared to conferences or courts where beings congregate in dream states, discuss and come to decisions about the future of the planet. These worlds were seen clearly by our ancestors, of all races. But in this misguided Cartesian flat world of modernity, we have forgotten and minimized our awareness of the Gaian mind, and our responsibility to all our siblings of Gaia.

This pandemic can be an opportunity to return to our older, wiser understanding of nature as embodied, sentient and representative of our own souls. The earthly networks of life are putting us on notice, and because She has ultimate power, we must either surrender to the lessons of growth and evolution or face extinction.

Gaian mind speaks to us in very simple terms; Her language can be understood by all. We don’t need to be an academic, priestess, or epidemiologist. We just need to pay attention to the events of our lives and be open to the environment around us.

Let’s follow some of the clues.

First, this especially virulent virus spread from wild animals to humans. There is controversy about the exact location, but the dominate narrative appears to be that this virus came from a dirty, disgusting wild animal market where wild creatures are caged, tortured, made to live in horrible unnatural circumstances. The animal kingdom is already angry at us humans, we have destroyed about two thirds of animal life on the planet and replaced it with our own domesticated animals which we need for meat, leather and manure. Of course, the animal world is infuriated by our dishonourable use of the earth’s resources, and the extinction we have caused to hundreds of their members every year.

So the pandemic is a lesson to teach us how to treat the earth’s creatures and resources more honourably with a spirit of compassion and love which we would naturally extend to the loved humans in our lives. These are our brothers and sisters, not just metaphorically, but actually. They share the same DNA, live in the same environments and we share a common mother, the earth. The animal world is developing viruses which are uniquely virulent to humans. They are designed to stop us in our tracks and take a step back. Gaian mind is giving us notice to review our behaviours, world views, and core values.

Clearly the earth is moving towards ridding her environments of the pesky parasites, humans, who have become arrogant, dissociated from the values of life and liberty, and are heading towards mass destruction not only of their own species, but taking a whole lot of other species and beings with them.

Here’s the thing to consider in this great shift we have to make towards realising our interconnection with nature. You can’t connect with someone or something you don’t know. Most people I counsel know almost nothing about their natural environment. When they go for walks outside, they have no idea of what trees, shrubs, flowers or fungi they are seeing. They don’t know the names of the birds they see and hear. Most people have zero nature relatedness. For most humans right now, we are living in a phantasy world of human-only inventions, technologies and consumables.  As Terrance McKenna said- we are the only species in the history of the earth to entertain ourselves into extinction.

We have also completely lost the ancient wisdom of recognizing the environment as the greater soul of human consciousness, which we are intimately connected with. The olden techniques of feeling intimately connected with Gaian mind, omen reading, using the environment as a mirror of the soul. These are all rituals and strategies to develop our awareness of interconnection. These techniques were minimized and fulminated by the last four to five hundred years of Cartesian thinking of separateness, control and commoditizing everything we can get our hands on.

We have also become incredibly disconnected from the first and most essential tool for understanding interconnections-our individual bodies. Many people don’t live in their bodies and treat these sacred vehicles of consciousness, like unconscious tools to be used and ignored when not needed like they use their cars, grass mowers or  computers. We have also learned how to abuse other people, turning them into slaves to our desires; underpaid workers, stressed care givers and sexual commodities.  The Cartesian era was needed to help lift us out of the control and manipulations of the spiritual hierarches of the past two thousand years. It has given us many benefits and insights into the complexity and awesomeness of the natural world. But we must proceed with scientific investigation hand in hand with the core truth of inter-connection.

What I do to the Other, I also do to myself.

The Other, can be anything or anyone who is in your life in an unconscious and un acknowledged way-your own body, those you have conflicts with, the environment, the animal and plants worlds, and natural resources from the earth of all kinds.

As long as we can collectively catch and torture wild animals of any kind, if we can keep wild animals in horrible filthy conditions, and sell endanger species for insane needs of corrupt medical models, as long as we can treat the earth’s resources like commodities, not gifts-then get ready for the next pandemic coming your way brought to you by the more-than-human natural world.

Theory is wonderful and can direct our lives in effective, compassionate and holistic ways. But theory must be put into action in small daily ways.

Try this!

1.       Develop earth honouring livelihood

The quarantine is giving all of us humans some time to reflect and grow. Reflect on right actions can you begin in your daily life-is my livelihood harming or caring for Mother Earth? What actions that dishonour the Mother would you like to diminish or stop? Be realistic. Develop right livelihood, right diet, right physical movement, use of materials from the earth.

E.g. I will volunteer for the board on a local non-profit recycling organization and give four hours a month to them.

2.       Develop earth honouring relationships

Reflect on your relationships-with other humans, other animals, the plant and mineral world. Can you imagine that each being is conscious and sentient and participates in its own unique way to the interconnectedness of the world at large- eagles, beach stones, someone half around the world whom you have never met. How could you bring this awareness more in line with earth loving ways-celebrations, honouring rituals and gathering, simple gathering together as a community?

E.g. I’m going the women’s circle next full moon and participate in the sharing circle.

3.       Develop earth honouring spirituality

Develop an awareness of the outer world, especially the natural world. Spend time every day in the more-than-human world to appreciate nature. Take your meditations outside and let the beauty of nature remind you how to be joyful, present and mindful. Learn Soul Catching (Star, 2014) to develop ways to feel closer to nature. Develop a spirituality that honours the earth. If it doesn’t than abandon it immediately. 

Let your inner light shine!

Be radiant in all activities.

Love the Mother.