Oneness

Oneness
The Universe, The Earth, our bodies, animals, plants,
minerals, cells—we are layer upon layer of the universe
experiencing itself as separate entities that are really all one
and the same.
To use an analogy: The Universe is a tree, and we are all
its leaves. Each leaf is kept alive by the total energy of the
tree, but from its own perspective, the leaf seems as if it
were separate from the rest of the leaves, and even the tree
itself. And what spiritual teachers refer to as
“Enlightenment” is simply the realization that the leaf is
connected to the tree as a whole, as are all of the leaves, and
that the true nature of the leaf is the entire tree. The leaf
cannot be without the tree. In reality, there is no separation.
Love is the feeling that we have when we can see that
we are not separate from the other leaves, that we are all
creations of the tree from which we emerged. When you
can see another as a reflection of yourself, then you have
compassion for them, and this kind of compassion for
others is what is truly needed to heal the world.
We never really know the circumstances that others are
experiencing. But knowing that we have suffered, enables us
to see that others suffer just like we do. People often hide
their suffering and look as if they are not suffering on the
surface, but deep down they may be in great pain. Knowing
that everyone experiences suffering in their own way, should
inspire us to do our best to free people from their suffering,
to be kind to others at all times, because even the smallest
act of kindness can feel like a breath of fresh air to someone
who is suffocating from their suffering.
We cannot continue to exist with so much violence, so
much disrespect, so much fear and judgment toward others;
we are only hurting ourselves by doing this. Our actions
ripple out into the Universe, creating a chain of events that
affects every single particle in existence. Actions driven by
love benefit more than just us or those in direct contact with
our actions, they benefit the entire Universe.
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