Everyday living has us speaking and interacting with our world as if it were peopled by 'others.'
The term 'others' derives from our experience of ourselves. We live our own infinitude as all the 'others' peopling our universe. This is what is meant by the definition of man as "the conscious infinitude of being." We can't live another except as ourself. We have no idea whether or even if another exists separate from our own discerning or perceiving. We believe we see another "out there." But is this the view of my own self-projection. I consciously am! This is known instinctively and intuitively by each individual out of the conscious existing that constitutes I or Us each moment. We identify the self as whatever is immediately present and controllable from within it"s own framework or sense of presence. Humanly speaking, at birth this demand and control encompasses our environment and from that point, over time, the domain of control narrows to the identity picture or label inaccurately called "I" and portrayed in our living as a specific point in space called the human being and its body. All else is relegated to what we call'others.'
It is in and as human living that we then learn to withdraw our conscious control with regard to our world and to focus our control on the two-legged animal we call "ourself." We are carefully taught by parents, teachers, society and the conditioned thought of our world and of our others to regard only this defined narrow area as who we are, while all the rest becomes "out there" or who we are not and therefore is inaccessible at an intimate level of self-consciousness, self recognition, being. We learn to speak of others in terms of judgment, opinion, like or dislike, agreement or disagreement, etc. and to regard them as separate from that which we regard as ourselves. This is generally how we perceive ourselves and our world coming from the domain of appearances. In this context we attempt to transfer thoughts and ideas from one conscious awareness to another - as if the world existed the way it is commonly perceived.. What occurs is either successful or unsuccessful depending on the degree to which we are able to stand in the "other's" shoes as we speak. When we succeed outstandingly in our "communication" it is when we are being our "other" without the separateness that occurs when we speak to our other as if separation existed and our "other" lived outside of our consciousness. Good communication, actually occurs because the fact that all is one, infinitely expressed, is the existential Truth present looking like a world of many. So, we might say that communication is the language on this belief level that all is intelligent Mind self-manifesting.
Living myself consciously aware that all is Mind, has my speaking and doing show up responsibly and effectively. This will occur as the right thing being said and/or done at exactly the opportune moment. Such self-conscious living has no 'accidental' happenings, but lives itself as Principle functioning in all ways and means. Self-aware presencing will always show up in experience as the language of Love meeting the human need.
Metaphysical Science defines the "I" in a very different way. Master metaphysician, Mary Baker Eddy, defined I or Ego as "Divine Principle; Spirit; Soul; incorporeal, unerring, immortal, and eternal Mind." Further along in the next paragraph of the definition she declares that this I is one and governs all. She also says "All the objects of God's creation reflect one Mind..." (S&H 588:9-19) Mrs. Laird stated that this definition does not mean that God and man are (like two united) but that the I or Ego is the Life-Principle commonly called God. "I" never refers to man or evidence. One existential presence accounts for all that is or seems to be. Recognition of this accountability is the Truth that frees one from the domination of appearances. "The...Scientist's medicine is Mind, the divine Truth that makes man free." (S&H 453:29) And, since all is infinite Mind, nothing is non-Mind. To suppose that anything is other than infinite Mind, is to disallow the allness of Mind. The appearance technique, whatever helpful language shows up, is never causative. Mind only is causative and generates the appearance identifying its allness in current language. Mind/Truth itself is therefore the only realm where accountability exists. So, all causation is the presence of the eternal. Because of the nature of allness, this includes every bit of the human picture as identity for what is, whether I like it or not. Speaking of an ulcerated lung, Mrs. Eddy said, "mind has done this." (1st Edition S&H 391) "Existence is noumenal," says Mrs. Laird in a seminar, "which means that all existence is subjective." "...Mind's self-awareness...is the condition, nature, characteristic of all being." (Recip.Being p.46) Mrs. Eddy said that a scientist does not trespass on the rights of mind! It behooves the serious student of metaphysics to consciously honor Mind as the source and condition of all of his living and experiencing.
So long as we hold ourselves to be 'entity' in place of 'conscious identity' we live small narrowlycircumscribed lives. As the conscious identity of Mind/Truth/Principle, the conscious human individuality exhibits the strength, power and law of perfect action in the universe. Lived as appearance or language, a supposed entity in space and time, human beingness is ineffectual and weak. It has no control, no power, no causative impact in daily living. Living consciously aware as Mind present, as Principle functioning, the world (a mode of consciousness), supports our well being. This is another way of saying Divine Love meets the human need. Nothing is impossible to Mind, the conscious infinitude of existence, which gives presence to all that is or seems to be. The spiritual power of Truth lives its self-expression with dominion and conscious control. The spiritual power of a scientific right thought without a direct effort, is thereby available in every avenue of daily existence. (Refer to Rud.9:21)
A friend says, "I can accept responsibility for my own actions, but I cannot accept responsibility for what others do." From the ground of being that has myself separate from my 'others' this is a true statement. From the Science standpoint that All is One, my world is my stage of accountability - not from a personal point of view, but as the allness of Mind manifest. With nothing outside of consciousness, what occurs as a complex world is my own best view of infinite perfection. The salvation of what I call my world lies in my own ability and willingness to have just one power and presence regardless of any appearance to the contrary. This oneness gives rise to successive views of reality that identify perfection emerging in the language of my present discernment. Perfection is what is. The currently visible language is the best momentary or conceptual view of perfection or divinity possible each moment. So take no thought regarding appearances, but acknowledge the source - present perfection - put a period, and walk on. Aboutness, i.e. attempting to take thought 'about' or do something 'about' locks you into the paradox language level of belief. Language is powerless to effect real change. The Scientist spontaneously says and does what's present to say and do without deliberation or taking thought.
The conscious acknowledgment of one Mind at all times and under all circumstances is the Reality constituting the seen, heard and felt as the world I walk through.
The commonly defined 'self' of daily experience is not sufficient to define the being that's present when my conscious human individuality appears in the world. Cognizant that the conscious human individuality, just by the nature of its being, honors God as it's source, frees one from the personal sense of one's self and one's 'others.' (See UN 25:16) Communication occurs only when there is no ego-image present, when the "I" is self-consciously lived as idea. Idea consciousness accesses the arena called communication in such a way that human understanding is elevated to the level of divine perception, illuminating the oneness of being.Whenever this occurs, we can concur with Dr. Dorsey's statement: "I like to speak to myself because I like to speak to an intelligent man and I like to hear what an intelligent man has to say." Then all speaking and listening is of one voice on-goingly self-manifesting and self-discovering. Life is a constant beholding of all things made new! (Laird Seminar, Evanston 1966)
