Parenthood and the Higher self
As with many things in life, during parenthood we experience both the sweet and sour in parallel.
Let me explain more…
We connect with, and can embody our higher self in the present moment, or you could say the now.
When are in the now, our ego is silenced and there is no separation between the experiencer and the experience. There is simply just energy flowing and transforming.
When babies are born their ego is yet to form, this means they embody their higher-self all of the time.
There is no inner child… it is on the outside!
Right there Infront of us we have little zen masters teaching us.
But parenthood… the act of reproduction… does not necessarily create the most fertile grounds in our minds for their teachings.
The physical human body creates an illusion of separateness and the sparks the idea of the self. At the same time it is the physical body and the configuration of atoms in it that enables life energy to be channelled and as such, life to manifest in to the conscious dimension.
The process of reproduction uses biologically stored data (DNA) to orchestrate the necessary chemical processes to manifest an organism (a new physical body) capable of channelling life energy.
This is a phenomenon that is coded in to all living things.
When the physiological system is activated to reproduce, this triggers the activation of the psychological systems that have evolved to aid reproduction too.
What has made humans so successful?
The development of our egos has enabled complex social interactions, collaboration, and the formation of a collective imagined consciousness of shared understanding – a vision of an imagined higher set of values to unite humans.
Our ego is designed to learn from the past and try to predict the future.
I am not talking about being fortune tellers (although in a way we are), what I am talking about is the ego using emotions such as fear to influence our behaviour and keep us safe.
What evokes a stronger emotional reaction in you?
Imagining something attacking you, or imagining something attacking someone you love?
The answer to this underlines the reason why we need to be compassionate and kind to ourselves during parenthood.
Our Egos have gone in to overdrive to try to keep us and our family safe.
This does not mean our work to develop and grow ourselves has been lost. It simply means that we need time to adjust by accommodating our new life priorities in to our schemata for life.
Remember that learning is not a cumulative process, it is one of constant accommodation, adaption, and evolution.
Each new perspective includes all of the previous perspectives, but it is not built upon them, it encompasses them.
Take Away
Having a regression in our connection to our higher self during parenthood is only natural. It is understandable.
We are not monks; we are connected in to a westernised society and a collection consciousness that has forgotten about the higher-self.
We need to be kind to ourselves while we travel this undulating road.
Life is all about becoming more engaged with everything, while at the same time becoming less attached.
-Ram Dass.
Enjoy, for now.