07-25-2021, 09:46 AM
I like to distinguish between judgment and having a sense of discrimination, like Ra says here:
We're constantly applying our sense of discrimination, constantly choosing what thoughts we consider of virtue and which we think lack virtue. The act of polarizing is all about choosing some thoughts and rejecting others. We are all things, of course, and so we recognize that we have the potential for the opposite of what we're presently choosing, but we make a conscious choice of potentiating one side of ourselves and not the other. In this sense, each other-self that we meet acts as an offering; an invitation to potentiate in ourselves what we see in them, or to walk a different path. This is where we apply our sense of discrimination. The STO entity thanks what it rejects, giving it respect and recognizing that, from the perspective of the other-self, there are good reasons for them to be choosing what they're choosing. But in its mind there is a very clear picture of which path to take.
Judgment is very different, in that it carries with it an oppressive energy. The implications of judgment always are:
"This is not acceptable".
"This is a mistake".
"There are no good reasons why this should have ever happened".
This contracts the one who is being judged, instilling feelings of shame and guilt, and closing them off to their joy and sense of self-worth. Rather than motivating them to be better and to joyfully seek something of higher virtue out of their own free will, it motivates them to remove the negative and oppressive energy created by the judging. I believe this usually results in one of two general situations:
First, the entity might rebel against the judging, and doubles down on its current behavior, thus reclaiming its sense of freedom and rejecting the self-worthlessness inherent to judging.
And second, the entity shrinks instead, internalizing the judging and thus the sense of self-worthlessness, seeing itself as defective and incapable of making choices of its own, thus submitting to the perceived authority of the one who judged it.
In this sense, I like to think of having a keen sense of discrimination as elevating everything, rather than denigrating anything. As such, a hierarchy of sorts does exist, in which those things of highest virtue are put on top. But instead of denigrating that which is perceived to have less virtue, it is seen with respect, it is understood and accepted.
It's so easy to confuse judging with enjoying our personal and much needed sense of discrimination. I too struggled with making this distinction. Judging is never necessary. But a sense of discrimination is necessary to all of us. We can't navigate life without it.
Quote:The entity which is given constant and unremitting approval by those surrounding it suffers from the loss of the mirroring effect of those which reflect truthfully rather than unquestioningly. This is not a suggestion to reinstate judgment but merely a suggestion for all those supporting instruments; that is, support, be harmonious, share in love, joy, and thanksgiving, but find love within truth, for each instrument benefits from this support more than from the total admiration which overcomes discrimination.
We're constantly applying our sense of discrimination, constantly choosing what thoughts we consider of virtue and which we think lack virtue. The act of polarizing is all about choosing some thoughts and rejecting others. We are all things, of course, and so we recognize that we have the potential for the opposite of what we're presently choosing, but we make a conscious choice of potentiating one side of ourselves and not the other. In this sense, each other-self that we meet acts as an offering; an invitation to potentiate in ourselves what we see in them, or to walk a different path. This is where we apply our sense of discrimination. The STO entity thanks what it rejects, giving it respect and recognizing that, from the perspective of the other-self, there are good reasons for them to be choosing what they're choosing. But in its mind there is a very clear picture of which path to take.
Judgment is very different, in that it carries with it an oppressive energy. The implications of judgment always are:
"This is not acceptable".
"This is a mistake".
"There are no good reasons why this should have ever happened".
This contracts the one who is being judged, instilling feelings of shame and guilt, and closing them off to their joy and sense of self-worth. Rather than motivating them to be better and to joyfully seek something of higher virtue out of their own free will, it motivates them to remove the negative and oppressive energy created by the judging. I believe this usually results in one of two general situations:
First, the entity might rebel against the judging, and doubles down on its current behavior, thus reclaiming its sense of freedom and rejecting the self-worthlessness inherent to judging.
And second, the entity shrinks instead, internalizing the judging and thus the sense of self-worthlessness, seeing itself as defective and incapable of making choices of its own, thus submitting to the perceived authority of the one who judged it.
In this sense, I like to think of having a keen sense of discrimination as elevating everything, rather than denigrating anything. As such, a hierarchy of sorts does exist, in which those things of highest virtue are put on top. But instead of denigrating that which is perceived to have less virtue, it is seen with respect, it is understood and accepted.
It's so easy to confuse judging with enjoying our personal and much needed sense of discrimination. I too struggled with making this distinction. Judging is never necessary. But a sense of discrimination is necessary to all of us. We can't navigate life without it.
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