Think of our conscious mind as occupying a house. The ground floor living room is where we live consciously day to day, entertaining ourselves and friends. We like to be there.
Think of the basement as our ‘stored consciousness’… a repository where we keep many unused things, including troublesome emotions from the past.
Troublesome emotions are stored dormant feelings, like seeds waiting for the right conditions to sprout. If we entertain these emotional seeds without conscious thinking, as if we should feed and water them, they do sprout, growing up through the basement ceiling. They show up in the living room as plants of anger, fear and resentments.
Untouched by our inventory, seeds of these old hurts gradually morph into snarled mutant seeds not resembling the originals. If we neglect to examine our inventory of seeds they further accumulate crystallized lumps of suffering. This is how stored consciousness affects our view of today and others in our living room.
The living room contains our ‘mind consciousness’. The living room is where we conduct our daily activities and enjoyments. The living room contains our conscious perception of what is going on around us, and how we interact with it. The living room contains today… what is here and now. Being present, aware in the moment is mindfulness.
Much goes on with everyone in the living room. Someone says or does something that touches a seed of fear, anger or jealousy in the stored consciousness in the basement. That touched seed awakens anew.
Sprouted, if we neglect or deny the basement sprouts, they grow into the living room, showing up as revolting mutant plants not resembling the original.
If we allow them to spread, they infect us, spreading to the guests we have touched.
Now, everyone is suffering.
If we are mindful of this sprouted seed of negative energy from the stored consciousness (basement resentments) we can invite the energy of mindfulness to the living room, overcoming the invasive growth from the basement.
Applied mindfulness helps inventory which seed in the basement is causing the trouble, to dispose of it. Mindfulness allows us to refuse to feed or water the seeds we have failed to examine. Mindfulness clears the living room of negativity and resentment, enabling enjoyment of life and happiness.
What’s in your “basement”?
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