Hello friends,

It has been way too long since I have posted to Secrets.

It is my intention to begin posting at least once a week now.

I have been writing but most of the thoughts are incomplete and I have not felt like they were share-worthy, as written. So, my hope is to rework some of them and share new thoughts as they appear in my awareness. I would love to return to posting once a day, as I did years ago, but to do this I must change the way I work, and that is, hopefully, in progress.

I have been wanting to start posting again. So, I sat down recently, stared at the blank page and realized I had no clue what I wanted to write about. After about fifteen minutes of this fruitless gaze, I turned to see what activity there had been on social media, over the night.

On Twitter, (@elliott_teters) I had posted the following quote: “I experience God in nature and behind the eyes of every person I meet when I’m fully aware… When my heart is open, what I see in other people is the Divine. I find it particularly easy to see God in babies. ~ Joan Borysenko, Ph.D.”

One of my friends responded: “I agree. I too see God in babies. However, Elliott, I’ve experienced EVIL behind some of the eyes of person’s I’ve met.” So, I decided this was what I needed to address.

To deny that evil exists in the world is to deny our human experience. As, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin is so famously quoted, “We are not human beings having a spiritual experience; we are spiritual beings having a human experience.” As spiritual beings, having some sort of journey in our human costumes, our true nature is that of our Source.

In the times I have spent in communion with the Source of all that IS, no such thing as hatred, evil or desire existed. But, what would a spiritual journey be without the freedom to choose Truth or to reject It?

Our life is about Awareness. It is understanding that in Truth, we are spiritual beings. As awake, individual expressions of Source we are Aware of our thoughts, actions and all of our other choices.

Unfortunately, many of us have no concept of what we are and no idea why we are here. This lack of awareness can cause some to think it is o.k. to lie, steal and cheat to get the things in life they think will lead to happiness.

This is a mentality which says, “There is not enough to go around; therefore, I have the right to take what I need, whatever the cost. Sometimes this means the taking of one or dozens of lives. Having no real moral compass, these people appear evil; and by all human definitions, they are.

I have looked into the eyes of evil before. It can be frightening. It is, however, our responsibility, as awakened beings, to see past the fear (both our own and that of the individual in whom we see evil) to the Light which exists at their core.

Now, I am not suggesting that we have to stand toe to toe with these unenlightened beings and search for the good in them. If we have a true sense that our lives are in danger, or our way of life is endangered, we need to get out of the situation and work on ourselves and them from a distance. What I am recommending, though, is that we take every such opportunity as a chance to learn more about ourselves and to allow Love to show us the power we have in any given situation.

That last paragraph kind of sounds like a disclaimer. “Love can overcome all problems, but be careful not to get hurt nor allow yourself to become a victim.” It is not intended to mean we should embrace our fear, but that we are given fight or flight capabilities for a reason. Sometimes, listening to and honoring these inner urgings is important and are there to encourage us to take steps to extricate ourselves from harmful environments. In other words, I would never encourage someone to stay in an abusive relationship while looking for the Light in another. Learning to love ourselves is life’s greatest work, and part of that practice is eliminating dangerous or self-destructive choices.

So, this is a bit longwinded explanation that says, “Yes, I believe evil exists. I do not believe it is a real power but it does have a pool of collective consciousness from which to draw its strength. While Love is the only real power and is capable of overcoming all evil that does not mean that one should not run when they feel threatened.”

While any real explanation of the way I think evil works would take more time than I have spent writing this, but suffice it to say our journey would be pointless if we did not have the possibility of choices. We can either choose to be in alignment with our true nature (Love) or we can make the choice to reject Truth. Sometimes this choice is made without any conscious awareness. Some choose to wreak havoc, knowing that it is not the right choice. Others feel they have no choice and are truly ignorant about their True natures. The former may require intervention. The latter needs patient Light and Love; something we can only offer if we, ourselves, are committed to being True to our own Essence.