Create the Life You Imagine~September 2018

Behind the Curtain

“The goal of the journey is to discover yourself as consciousness”

~ Joseph Campbell

Dorothy and her friends return to the Emerald City with the broomstick of the Wicked Witch in hand. Dorothy returns to the throne room of the Great and Powerful Oz, stronger and surer of herself, and demands that the Wizard fulfill his promises. As the Wizard bellows and blusters, Toto draws back the curtain to reveal the reality behind the magical façade. Despite the Wizard’s admonition to “pay no attention to the man behind the curtain,” the illusion of the Great and Powerful Oz is exposed and his illusory power melts away as surely as the illusion of the Wicked Witch. Dorothy now sees the truth of the Wizard, the man behind the curtain. After watching the Wizard dole out fanciful symbols for her friends—a hero’s medal for the Lion, a ticking heart for the Tin Man, and an honorary degree for the Scarecrow—Dorothy speaks from her newfound wisdom saying, “there is nothing in that bag for me.”

When we pull back the curtain and see with the inner eye of wisdom, we discover the truth of the Buddhist teaching that everything in the outer world is an illusion. We begin to understand that the drama unfolding in our outer life is merely a reflection of our inner struggles. In the darkness of the Witch we find only a symbol of Dorothy’s perceived confinement and limitation. In the majesty of the Great and Powerful Oz, we see only a symbol of her feelings of powerlessness and vulnerability. Dorothy’s belief in the power of the Witch and the power of the Wizard are both obstacles to her own unfolding. Her willingness to give her power away to things outside of her stops her from knowing the power she possesses within. Yet through her confrontation with the symbols of her inner struggle, she is able to reclaim more and more of herself until she discovers the power at the center of her being. As her own consciousness expands, as she melts the Witch and exposes the Wizard, she also melts her own false identity as “Dorothy, the small and meek,” and takes the first steps forward to reclaim her true power.

When we begin to see the world with the wisdom of our soul, the illusions that have held power over us melt away before our eyes. The fears and insecurities that used to stop us in our tracks now appear before us to show us something about ourselves that we need to know. When we are able to see our lives symbolically, through the inner eyes of our soul, we remember that things aren’t always as they appear. The Wicked Witch is no longer so ominous, and the Wizard no longer so wise. As the illusions that have controlled our lives and our choices melt away before us, we see spiritual truths buried in the lessons of each day. We begin to understand that everything that occurs in our outer life is a reflection of our inner life. Every experience then becomes an opportunity to expand our consciousness and to incarnate more and more of our own divinity in the world.

In the process of this expansion, we are not only called to melt the witch of our inner fears, we are called to reevaluate the false wizards we have created in our lives. False wizards give us the illusion of safety, security and protection. We may find them in our jobs, possessions or bank accounts, in our relationships, roles or rituals, and in our mentors, teachers, parents and preachers.

But as we surrender to our own unfolding, we learn that life is not about safety, security and protection; it is about consciousness, growth and evolution. If we have given away our power to others, we are charged to call it back. If we have built walls around our hearts, we are called to take them down. We are called to face our greatest fears and watch them melt away. We must even look into the eye of God and see how we have made God too small. We must explore all the choices we have made and become aware of how we have created obstacles to the unfolding of our own mystery. We must slay the dragon of ordinary consciousness—which is filled with the illusions of the opposites, separation and death—and expand our consciousness to see clearly with the vision of our inner eye. We must begin to really live from the truth of who we are.

Wishing you courage, blessings and light as you continue this journey to create the life you imagine.

Tracy

Awareness Affirmation: I experience life through my spiritual senses. I allow the experiences of life to draw me into greater and greater awareness of my relationship with the Divine. I say yes to the co-creative process of Life and am guided by the wisdom of my soul.