Today I had a dream where an entity entered my room and I wanted it to identify itself, so that I could decide whether it was welcome or not. But, try with all my might, I found myself unable to speak. My lips would move, and although I was screaming on the inside, no sound would come out. I felt completely powerless, and despite the deep intention I had to make a decision for myself and my own well-being, I was unable to. When I awoke, I decided to explore this voicelesness, this disempowered feeling. What I found in the wisdom of my unconscious was not what I expected.
Of course, there was fear behind the paralysis of my voice reminiscent of the deer frozen in headlights. Yet, I realized it was not actually fear for my safety from this unidentified entity, but instead it was fear that it may think I was being judgmental in my asking. When I continued to meditate upon this, it resonated so deeply, that I wanted to share what I discovered. It seems the most disempowering place is to not be able to exercise discernment due to the fear of judgment of oneself and others.
To define these concepts separately is to realize that they are not mutually exclusive, nor do they really coexist on the same plane. I purport that judgment is a lower octave of discernment, meaning that as the spirit evolves, then the natural ability of discernment blossoms out of its more basic function of the binary nature and primacy of the split into duality of good/evil. Judgment is a method to fill the fundamental need for survival.
In Jungian terms, judgment is an expression of the Shadow, meaning that it is an unconscious drive for the need of protection that gets fulfilled in a way that does not support the highest manifestation of the being that exercises it. This also leads to projection, the externalizing of one’s own fears of inadequacy. So, the bringing of the light of consciousness to our own internal process and desire to feel safe will transform this shadow form into a powerful tool for self-care as well as empathy.
On this evolutionary journey out of judgment into discernment, we find that discernment is more of a taxis, a movement toward or away from something without placing a valuation upon it,
Discernment (Fr. Prediliction) – is the twelfth sense, which enables you to avoid all things antipathetic and to encounter everything sympathetic. This sense results in the evolution of Intuition.
– From the Tradition Cosmique:, transl. by Oscar Laurens Schrover
It is akin to changing the phrase “that is bad” to “that is not appropriate for me, so I will make a conscious choice to not involve myself in that direction”. Exercising this mode of honoring of oneself as well as others with the light of conscious awareness will then grow into a deep knowing of what is inherently in alignment. This intuitive capacity can be understood as the higher octave of instinct, as discernment is to judgment.
So, today I take back my voice and exercise the right to decide what is appropriate and in alignment for me without backsliding into dualistic valuation, and I challenge you to do the same.
Michelle, I enjoyed reading your discussion about judgement and discernment – I too have given a lot of thought over the years as to how to distinguish one from the other. Currently, I am practicing going into Silence when I find myself in judgement – perhaps in this place a discerning thought will come in – or perhaps I will just remain in Silence, which is a beutiful place to be!