We are scanning the world around us all the time. This is what we are designed to do.
We are designed to be able to assess what energy is around us. Our instinct is to keep ourselves safe. The body responds to threat whether it is real or imagined, and whether it is biological or socially constructed. We have a biological response and a psychological response which is couched in social and cultural constructs.
As we have organised ourselves into societies, what we perceive as a ‘threat’ has changed. Our perceptions are dominated by cultural, social and political constructs that are engineered to serve particular outcomes.
Our options are something like this:
'I don't feel safe in this situation therefore I will create safety around myself by using judgement to keep myself separate from the situation'.
OR
'I don't feel safe in this situation therefore I will create safety around myself by changing my behaviour in this situation'.
If we cannot respond to what we are picking up around us in a way that keeps us safe, there is a possibility that we go into fear. When we are in fear we can feel backed into a corner. Then we are holding on to our position for the sake of our lives, and that fear spurts out as judgement.
Judgement creates a strong boundary between us and the potential threat. It separates us from the ‘other’. Judgement pings off a little drop of adrenaline in us. It perks us up and keeps us alive. We get addicted to adrenaline, and therefore, addicted to judgement. We know it gets identifiable outcomes.
Assessment is a bit more nefarious. Once we have assessed the energy of a situation, how can we be sure of our assessment? Who decides on the course of action? What should that course of action be? The outcomes are not as clear or predictable as when we use judgement.
When we judge something, we are adopting a fixed position as a strategy to deal with our fear. Fear inhibits our intuition and creativity. We are no longer open to taking on new information and we become polarised in our views. No love is present so no growth is possible.
If we can avoid going into judgement, the closing down process is interrupted. If we can stay out of fear, we can assess the energy that is around us. If we can assess situations and respond with our intuition, vitality and creativity, we can create the conditions for growth (love without judgement).
- We can be flexible enough to open to new possibilities
- We can have enough resilience to bring new resources to the situation.
- We can generate new solutions to old fear-based problems.
What needs to be present in your life to help you come out of judgement and enjoy the freedom of assessing the energy around you with your own intuition?
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