On Monday morning as I awoke, I had one of those revelatory moments we all have at times in our lives . . . that life itself – all life — is a miracle, but even more so for we humans who can ponder the nature of our existence and marvel about the miracle of life. “To think,” I thought,“that everything evolved in the universe from nothing, and that I can think about it . . . It’s a freakin’ miracle!”

It seems we are the only living beings on Earth with the capacity to know ourselves, and to not take our existence for granted. Of course, we do take it for granted much of the time as we get caught up in the machinations of life, and often behave far worse as a species than those in the animal kingdom that live by instinct. We have the capacity to create an Eden much better than the forest from which we emerged. But too many humans choose to create hellish conditions that no animal in the forest could ever conceive.

I suppose the human species is pretty much at the adolescent stage of its evolution, with some people seemingly farther along than others. But a new Eden is not possible until we all are of the same mindset about brotherhood and the essentiality of true brotherly love. And there’s the rub: all humans are born with that innate knowledge. We know it deep in our souls. It is part of our inner design — another of the great miracles of human life. It’s not a question of evolution to come. We have the capacity now . . .

“Yes, we can change the world,” as Graham Nash wrote and sang. “We can re-arrange the world.”

And what better time to start than at the beginning of a new year, “traditionally a time of renewal and change when many seek to become better persons,” as Sarah B. Van Mater writes in one of my favourite articles about New Year’s resolutions, called Match Thyself.

Sarah writes about how so many New Year’s resolutions are doomed to fail, and then points us to an “ancient” Egyptian idea that is quite attainable as a personal resolution because it is already there within you, and I suspect that if everybody strives to cultivate it, the world would quickly become a much better place, too.

Writes Sarah:

 “Match thyself” — that is, strive to equal in your everyday consciousness that which you already are in the heart of your being. This implies that when we endeavor to change ourselves, we are not seeking to conform to some outer standard whether of god or man; nor are we setting up objective goals for ourselves to reach. Rather, we are seeking to become in our personality that universal essence which we are in our inmost.

Simple enough, yes?

Go for it. Match thyself, and change the world at the same time . . . and don’t underestimate the ripple effects of your kind thoughts and deeds.

Jillian

“The great lost chord of modern civilization is forgetfulness of the fact in nature of universal brotherhood, which means not merely a sentimental or political brotherhood; it means that we are all of one common cosmic or spiritual origin, and that what affects one affects all . . .” – G. de Purucker