Tag Archives: David Spangler

Subtle Activism with David Nicol

“The old will disappear. Human level consciousness by itself can no longer resolve the complexities it has created.”
–David Spangler

“We are all affecting the world every moment, whether we mean to or not. Our actions and states of mind matter, because we are so deeply interconnected with one another.”
― Ram Dass

“Subtle activism is a bridge between the inner world of spirituality and the outer world of activism (as normally conceived) that emphasizes the potential of spiritual practice to exert a subtle but crucial form of social influence.

“We have been weaving a multi-strand planetary Web of Light as energetic support and protection for humanity and the Earth as we pass through this global crisis of initiation.”
–David Nicol

How does the intention to wake up spiritually intersect with the intention to serve and make the world a better place?

I write this from 50 plus years of observations and personal experience with both spiritual communities and activist movements. I was initiated into the civil rights and anti-war movements as an angry young man in the Sixties. I withdrew into a disciplined spiritual group for the decade of the Seventies to find inner peace. Over the last forty years I’ve evolved through different approaches to integrating the two paths.*

For several decades now, spiritual teachers and communities have been shifting their emphasis from the individual journey of awakening or enlightenment to focusing on awareness of the inter-relatedness of life and the intention to reduce suffering and make the world a better place. This is, of course, not a new idea. It has been part of the wisdom teachings that come from almost all ancient, traditional religious or spiritual sources. We have been told, “Love your neighbor as yourself” and “You are here to heal and repair the earth.)”

But many of us in the last half century who became disenchanted with the religions of our families adopted a very individualistic notion of spirituality. We thought that if we sat and meditated or chanted or prayed long enough, we would become enlightened and that was the goal of life. Over time, those of us who were sincere and paying attention found that this pursuit of individual enlightenment was naive, unfulfilling, and ultimately not bringing about the beauty, goodness and truth we were seeking. It was not in alignment with the calling of their souls. Perhaps more importantly, it was not in keeping with Reality, wherein we are not essentially separate beings.

More and more spiritual teachers, even those whose primary focus is on “non-duality,” have been pointing attention to the need for those on a spiritual path to address the problems of the world. It is clear that the primary causes of human suffering (racial and economic injustice, poverty and hunger, the threat of nuclear war, the poisoning of the Earth, climate change and a host of related issues) stem from a terribly imbalanced collective human consciousness. Rather than simply sitting and meditating, a spiritual life means recognizing ones relationship and responsibility to these issues and the people and other life forms who are suffering.

The question then becomes how does one integrate or harmonize these seemingly opposite directions of attention. On the one hand there is the inward focus on acceptance, stillness, presence and being. On the other is the outward focus on resistance and confrontation with injustice and action to right what is wrong.

What I find most spiritual teachers suggesting is a process of alternating between the two. That is, take time to meditate or go inward to experience and merge with the refreshing flow of life energy from Source or Higher Consciousness, then participate in traditional actions of advocacy or protest, then come back to your meditation practice to recenter yourself. This provides a solution to the “burnout” often experienced in the frustrating work of political and social activism. It also helps avoid the tendency to react with anger and competition-based consciousness which are poisons that infect many activist movements. We develop the ability to take action with compassion, a loving heart, and a spirit of collaboration.

Additionallly, there is a very interesting alternative: subtle activism. This is the work advocated by David Nicol, (among others) applying the methods of spiritual practices to directly influence the currents of change in the world. I invite you to watch my recent conversation with David in which we explore his personal journey to understanding, practicing and teaching this approach. (Or if you prefer, you can listen to the podcast.) As he’s written, “Subtle activism is a bridge between the inner world of spirituality and the outer world of activism (as normally conceived) that emphasizes the potential of spiritual practice to exert a subtle but crucial form of social influence.” David elaborates the theory and practice of his ideas in his book, Subtle Activism – The Inner Dimensions of Social and planetary Transformation. He has founded several projects bringing together tens of thousands of people from all over the world for worldwide meditations dedicated to social change.

It does seem to me that the old ways of bringing about social change are very limited in our current environment of mass misinformation and polarization. The subtle activism approach, which draws from ancient understandings from indigenous spirituality and uses modern technology, may be a vital ingredient in the mix of what will bring about the necessary change in our collective human consciousness.

For more information on David’s work and ways to learn more about and participate in subtle activist projects, see: The Gaiafield Project – https://gaiafield.net/

Youtube link for interview with David Nicol: https://youtu.be/EEF0cws-pk4

Podcast link: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1827447/10630045

Learning from COVID

Covid InspirationsJust now·6 min read

“If I succeed in loving you, I will be able to love everyone and all species on Earth… This is the real message of love.”
― Thich Nhat Hanh

“The bullets fired by a crazed gunman only travel
a distance measured in feet;
the hatred generated by that gunman’s subtle energy field of
thought and emotion can travel around the world.
So can the energies of love.”
–David Spangler

“There’s a disturbance in the Force!”
–Obi-wan Kenobi

When I started the site on Medium, Covid Inspirations, like many other folks, I thought the pandemic would run its course fairly quickly. Wrong, at least insofar as “quickly” meant a year or so. I also thought that perhaps this visitation from the micro-organismic earth intelligence would serve to unify humanity in a collective effort to respond. Wrong again.

There were signs in the early days of the pandemic that a spirit of goodwill and cooperation was being fostered. It was noted that this was the first time in human history that people in all parts of the world were focused on dealing with the same sense of threat. Also, people were being asked to make sacrifices to keep themselves and their community safe and they were finding creative ways to do this, to help their neighbors, to make music across the streets in lockdown, to wash their hands as rituals for all of humanity. Most of the posts in Covid Inspirations had reflected this hope.

But it soon became clear that the strategies for responding to the pandemic became just another dividing and militantly polarizing issue in a humanity already at war with itself. This division about the response has compounded the stress of the physical aspects of the pandemic exponentially. Truthfully, I’ve found it hard not to contribute to the divisiveness myself in words and in my heart. It seems clear that the unifying lessons of the pandemic are not easy ones. Listen to the words of the Benedictine Sister Joan Chittister, “Land of the Free — Home of the Self-Centered.”

On the far other end of the spectrum, Robert Kennedy, Jr often references the holocaust and Nazi Germany in describing the vaccine and the mandates.

Perhaps it’s time to step back and revisit the question of what the virus itself may be telling us. David Spangler’s essay (the most read piece on Covid Inspirations), does this in reporting a message from a ‘subtle, wise entity’ that communicated with him about the pandemic. https://medium.com/@covid.inspirations/message-from-david-spangler-7ce7a700a665 . Spangler received the following suggestions from his non-physical friend:

“In this pandemic, you look upon the microbial realm as an enemy. This can only add to the imbalance. Please send love into this realm.

“There has been a cry for help from many sources in the natural world and the beings that serve it, and this virus is responding to this cry. You can build a civilization that serves your needs and aspirations while also serving the harmony and well-being of the world around you. You will need to make changes, but this is within your capacity. You need to see yourselves as citizens of a planetary, Gaian community. This virus reminds you of this.”

Dr. Carroy Ferguson, president of the Association for Humanistic Psychology does something similar. Dr. Ferguson calls attention to the ideas of quantum physicist, David Bohm, that there is an implicate order in the universe within which we can commune and communicate with other intelligent life forms. He “wondered what would happen if I opened my mind to see what would emerge from the implicate order in a dialogue with COVID-19.” The full text is here: https://www.academia.edu/68031590/An_Inner_Dialogue_and_Message_From_COVID_19_Carroy_Cuf_Ferguson_Ph_D_President_Association_for_Humanistic_Psychology_Professor_University_of_Massachusetts_Boston. Some excerpts:

“As I understand it, your Collective Consciousness as a species is seeking to become a more mature Collective Consciousness that understands its connection to All That Is consciously. It is why you are here at this time in human history, and why I am here…

”I also want you to know that just like all aspects of All That Is, I too have consciousness and purpose….

“My message is a simple, yet broad reminder message. That message is: It is time to change how you think about and act toward one another; it is time for each of you to get in touch with who you truly are as souls on the planet at individual and collective levels and to embrace your power as a creator of your reality. At individual and collective levels, it is important that you recognize and understand the true nature of your interdependence with one another as souls, your Group Soul-Linked Consciousness as a species, and your interdependence with the Soul of the planet that you inhabit. Your consciousness, like my consciousness, therefore, is very much linked to the Consciousness of All That Is and to the Consciousness of what you know as Mother Earth or Gaia….

“You know and call me a virus and you currently view me as an enemy against which you must fight. I am not your enemy, although I understand that I appear to be. As strange as it may sound to you, I am here as a collaborative teacher and learner with you at individual and collective levels. I learn and adapt just like you do….

“My mutations are my expressions of what I learn about how best to live with you, how to communicate more effectively and efficiently with you and your body consciousness so that I can do less harm and co-exist with you. Likewise, your vaccines are your expressions of what you learn about how best to live with me. Your vaccines, in other words, are the methods you have developed to learn how best to communicate more effectively and efficiently with me and my consciousness. You see, we are both engaged in a collaborative and cooperative learning process to figure out how to more effectively and efficiently communicate with one another so that we can co-exist together…

“So, why am I here? My role, my broad purpose, is to assist in the evolution of your Collective Consciousness as a species…..

“While my origin may be scientifically interesting, what is more important is that for the first time in human history, as you understand it, you are now engaged in the same global conversation. This external condition, which you call a pandemic, is a necessary context to assist you in the evolution of your Collective Consciousness as a species. Through this kind of global, external conversation, opportunities have been, are, and will continue to open up…

So does any of that resolve the questions about whether the vaccines are a good thing? Whether we should have mandates for mask wearing in public venues? Whether any particular medical intervention is worthwhile? Whether the public health measures that have been adopted have caused more suffering than the virus or saved us from a enormously greater toll of illness and death? I don’t think they answer any of these questions.

Whether or not you believe the source of these ideas is anything other than a human attempt at wise counsel is not really the point. There is no denying that humanity is in peril as a result of it’s failure to respect and live in harmony with the web of life of which we are a part, from the micro to the macro. It’s clear that this lack of an attitude of respect and empathy is in full expression in human-to-human relations, making it almost impossible to address any of our problems with a spirit of trust.

Einstein is often quoted as saying “A problem can’t be solved from the mindset that created it.” These “voices from beyond” are telling us to shift our consciousness, to expand our consciousness They tell us that only from a state of mind that loves and includes all beings will we find our direction not only with COVID, but with all the much greater challenges coming our way.

As a psycho-spiritual therapist I feel a need to add that expanding consciousness does not mean avoiding or suppressing the fear and anger that are a natural human response to behaviors that are hateful and abusive. While we need to recognize, accept and honor these feelings, we don’t need to feed them. We can learn to transmute their energy into the fuel for action with compassion in service to Mother Earth.

The very recent passing of the venerable zen master, Thich Nhat Hanh, brings to mind his explanation of the essential Buddhist teaching called “inter-dependent co-arising.” Nhat Hanh tells us that this means “that everything arises in dependence upon multiple causes and conditions; nothing exists as a singular, independent entity.” To paraphrase Rumi, “There is a field — a unified web of inter-dependent beings, co-arising — I’ll meet you there.”