Probably the greatest misconception and central pillar of the misunderstanding, is the belief in scarcity. Because most of us did not receive ‘enough’ love, acceptance, guidance, support, tuition, attention, encouragement as young earthlings, we came to believe in scarcity. Sibling rivalry, which is the genesis of all later competitiveness and angst, is the vain attempt to compensate for this lack, to fill the psychological void within. (Please see the primal paradox – blog 3)
We grow up simply believing there is never enough to go round, and that life is a zero-sum game – meaning my gain is your loss. Modern economics, moreover, preaches the scarcity of resources plus the Darwinian version of evolution is based in the concept of survival of the fittest and only the strongest survive to pass on their genes. The western world view is based in poverty and overcoming lack, thus leading to greed.
Our lives are based in scarcity: not enough money, time, approval, recognition, support, love, acceptance and so on. If you really examine your daily life, you will see how dominant this world view is in shaping your being. We all seem to be caught in the proverbial chase of seeking more while achieving less. This is because ‘more is never enough’.
Yet, if we look around, out there in the world of nature, there is no lack. Abundance is everywhere from the trillions of stars in the night sky to the profusion of nature in the wild. Everywhere, except for humanity, there is more than enough. Even Christ, in the Sermon on the Mount, alluded to the generosity of nature in that God cares for all beings even the birds in the trees and thus there is no need to worry and be greedy.
In the end, scarcity is just a misallocation of resources. The richest 1% own more than the poorest 50% by far. Scarcity is really a function of greed simply because ‘more is never enough.’ There is more than enough food on the planet to feed every living being handsomely. We just don’t distribute it well.
The universe is abundant. Abundance is our birthright and there is no need to struggle and fight for survival or more. But abundance is a skill. It must be learned and earned. It comes from believing in oneself and one’s own deserveability. The belief in scarcity is just another symptom of limitation.
The ‘celebrity crap’, where we all want and watch the lives of the rich and famous, locks us into the poverty syndrome because we believe it is OK for them but not for us. We all secretly want the wanton and indulgent lifestyle of the superstar.
But you are a star in your own right.
The most important ingredient is energy! To have abundant energy, vitality, prana, lifeforce, chi and personal ‘powah’ is fundamental, because from that energy all else flows. In the end, we all want happiness and material goods. Wealth and riches certainly do not guarantee happiness, although we all seem to believe it does.
If we lack energy, we become depressed and despondent. We look at the negative rather than the positive. Eventually, we become ill which is just our body’s way of alerting us to being out of alignment. Happiness is the number one determinant of health and health is essential to wellbeing. Even the word wealth derives from the words wellbeing and health. It has little to do with finance or external material goods and everything to do with focus and attention.
Abundance is the ability to live well, to enjoy one’s life, to be grateful for all the blessings in one’s life and to perceive beauty. For life is beautiful and beauty is everywhere if we pay attention. But too often we get caught in the ‘not enough syndrome’ feeling lack, becoming the poor me, staring into the glass half empty and feeling sorry for ourselves. This leads us into all manner of psychological co-dependency and addictive behaviour which only digs us further into the well of lack.
Abundance is jubilant joy and good cheer. It is the capacity for love, light and laughter. It is that inner certainty of being on our path and the beneficence of the universe. These are but two sides of the one coin. If we are on our path, being true to ourselves and living in the flow, the whole of creation supports us and has our back. Life becomes a joyous adventure in plenty rather than a sombre sulk in neediness.
When we digress off our path, life merely tries to nudge us back onto the right path like those big red signs on the freeway: go back, you are going the wrong way. There is no punishment, judgement or bad karma attached to the message. It just is.
When you experience any form of lack in your life – ill-health, dis-ease, financial distress, poverty or loneliness, seek the error within and get back on your trajectory. There you will find the joy and the abundance. Be happy!