Caroline Myss: Challenges of a Spiritually Conscient Person
Caroline Myss: Well, I think that’s a high-risk definition, actually, so that I think there isn’t one definition for that, you know. There’s the Buddhist way of approaching it. There’s a Christian mystic way of approaching it. There’s, you know–what does it mean to be spiritually conscious? That’s a huge–it’s subjective. Consciousness is very subjective, Sylvia. I mean, for some people it means, you know, they’re conscious of what they eat, they’re conscious of themselves, and they don’t pay attention to what goes on in the world around them. They don’t want to look at the political sphere; they don’t want to look at their connection to the greater whole. They’re disconnected with that. And so, their notion of conscious is–it extends as far as their–the parameters of their personal life. For other people being conscious includes the animal kingdom and the environment. For others, it doesn’t. For other people conscious means to be an activist, to be very much aware that if this world is going to change for the better, you better participate in it because it’s not going to change by itself. So, consciousness is like a layer cake. I mean, what–it’s like a building. What floor do you want to live in because if you’re on the first floor, you’re going to see very little. If you’re in the penthouse, you’re going to have a global perspective–in fact a cosmic one. So, it depends what floor you live on.
Sylvia Henderson: So then, do you feel that as a whole just having that awareness of divinity or other than self or the connectedness is part of that definition of being a spiritual consciousness that’s a little bit more global?
Caroline Myss: We’ve become very mental, and there’s nothing–your mind is not your ally, Sylvia. I don’t care what your awareness is. You could be aware that you’re not supposed to walk across the street with traffic. But, unless you pay attention to that and actually don’t–I mean, we’ve become–we’ve taken our spiritual practice, and we’ve turned it into discussions. Discussions are not a spiritual practice. What you’re aware of does not help you at all. You can be aware that–“Eating certain things are bad for your health,” says the diabetic. But, you eat it anyway. Who cares what you’re aware of? Awareness doesn’t help you at all. What does that mean? It means–it’s what do you actually live? You can be aware that being judgmental is a bad thing, and you’re judgmental as hell. You can be aware that being charitable is a good thing, and you walk past every homeless person on the street. So, I don’t care what someone is aware of. And conscious is a very dangerous word. I wish it had never been introduced because it’s eclipsed the word conscience, which is the real powerhouse word. Conscience. People don’t pay attention to their conscience. And that’s the word that matters.
