A Course In Miracles Lesson 12

A Course In Miracles Lesson 12 states: 

I am upset because I see a meaningless world.

We know that we are living in an incomprehensible world and it is confounding to know this.  To cope with this confounding awareness, we choose to believe that the outside world is what is upsetting us, rather than our strange inner impulse to separate from and challenge truth.

We resist and challenge truth in thousands of imperceptible ways every day.  We believe that we are upset because of the way someone is behaving or because of the conditions of our environment.  But we have assigned all the meaning those conditions have.

The world we perceive is meaningless in itself.  We ascribe meaning to things that do not have meaning inherently.

This idea will likely be a depressing one to the part of us that is interested in self-generating meaning. (Our ego)  Fabricating meaning where no meaning exists is the source of all suffering.  All perceptions are occurring inside the minds of people.  It is not out in the world, separated from the context of mental perceptions.  Some perceptions we share collectively and some perceptions are our own personal inventions.

Because of the cosmic law of free will, which is a property of reality, you can not change another person’s mental perception.  Everyone freely chooses how they wish to think and what they wish to place attention on- even when what they believe is saying that they have no choice in what they think.  They are wrong, but they can believe they are right.  What is true does not care if it is recognized.  What is true does not lobby or pursue in any way.  It is as it is and is available to be recognized whenever we choose to see it.  You decide to place your attention on your way of thinking. You determine what you sign up to believe in.  Do you understand the nature of what you believe in? Do you know and understand the deeper ramifications of what you believe?  Are you truly certain that you agree with what you believe?

Having beliefs is a condition of this dimension.  We do not have a choice in the matter.  We must have beliefs in the same way the heart must pump blood.  Beliefs hold their own state of logic that hold in place the core belief being validated by that logic.  

We are free to believe any platform of logic that we choose.  If it turns out that the choice we make is founded in untruth, it will only be a matter of time before what we thought was true is disillusioned and destroyed, leaving us open to choosing beliefs that aline more closely with the truth, or to chose beliefs that lead away from truth and towards more pain.

When we look to confirm our choices in logic,  we find confirmation every time.  That is because we are making up the belief and the confirmation of it.  We are duping ourselves.  

No one in their right mind would actively pursue pain.  But we are not in our right minds.  We are in a mind build to generate illusions of temporary experiences.  This idea will only be distressing to the part of us that is generating that illusion.  It is not distressing to the part of us that is beyond time.  Nothing distresses the part of us that is beyond time.

There are two things we can say for certain we know about this physical world we are in.  

1. It changes. 

And 2. I do not understand this world at all.  

It is not possible to understand this world.  It is not structured for logic and comprehension.  It is structured for self-generated experiences.   Self-generated experiences are disconnected from the Source of life.  The Source of life is where true meaning can be found.  Separating from It will always cause distress.   Keep in mind that we are not needing to fully understand or embody today’s lesson.  This is an introduction to the logic that will release us from our self-made logic (the fear-causing logic)

Here is today’s message again: The reason I do not understand this world (the reason it makes me afraid) is because I am seeing a world without meaning.  The reason I am seeing a world without meaning is because my meaningless thoughts are presenting me with a meaningless world.  My thoughts do not mean anything.  I ascribe all the meaning that my thoughts have for me.

If today’s lesson generates anger or frustration, we can give that experience the space it needs.  We can feel angry or frustrated and still lay the logical foundations this course offers.  We are not being asked to buy into a belief system.  We are not being asked to believe in something.  That which is true does not care if we believe in it or not.  It will be there regardless of how it makes us feel.  Ultimately the logic of these lessons releases us from the cycle of beliefs altogether into a state of aware presence.  It is possible for our brains to stop churning out thoughts.  There is more the mind can do beyond thinking about the past.  

A meaningless world need not cause sadness or anxiety.  That which is meaningless is neither good nor bad.  It has no meaning and so has no charge either way.  Being upset about a meaningless world only indicates that we are preoccupied with past thoughts and we have assigned meaning to the meaningless.  We are creating illusions and that will always cause pain.

Meaningless means nothing at all.  But because we are compelled to ascribe meaning to things that do not have meaning, we will find the concept of meaningless to be disturbing.  Our minds ascribe upon the world what it would willfully define rather than observe what is true about the world.  We conjure a definition of this and that which is inaccurate and therefore, meaningless.

Why would we do such a thing?  Why would we fabricate misguided logic?  It is very difficult to experience a state of not knowing or understanding something because understanding and knowing is our truest state of being.  While in physical form, we do not have ubiquitous awareness, we have limited awareness.  And this is hard for us.  Our brains compulsively conjured definitions  and answers where there are none as a means of comforting a mind that is struggling with having separated from the state of one-ness we all are from.  Self-made logic is intended to comfort a mind which is fixated on experiencing separation.  

We alone do not have the power to create meaning.  But we do have the power to generate illusions.  And that is what most everyone is doing every day.  

We also have the power to connect with That Which does have the power to create meaning.  That would be a higher power than our small, individual creative powers.  Connecting to the Creative Field brings meaning to everything we do.  To connect, we must first recognize our current preoccupation with self-generating notions that seek to create meaning where there is no meaning.

The meaning I assign to the people and things around me, as well as the meaning I assign to my thoughts (which are really the only way I am seeing people and things around me), are in truth meaningless.  This concept upsets me at this time but when I learn how to stop compulsively ascribing made-up meaning to people, things, and thoughts, I will see what is always there.  

A Course In Miracles describes this idea in this way:  When my words have been erased, I will see God.

This is the first use of a religious word in the original publication of A Course In Miracles.

What is meant by the word God?  

God is the Source of everything real.  God is an infinite Field of Creation.  Creation is inherently meaningful.  Connecting to the Creative Field brings profound peace and sense of purpose.

If we replace the word “God” in the above quotation we have:

When my imposed, self-made definitions of reality have been put down, I will see the inherent truth and lasting meaning of what is really there.  I will know and be Peace.  I have already done this, and already am Peace, no matter how many clouds may obscure this fact.