Connected Opposites
by The Liberator (Ordained Minister of the ULC)

Have you been taught wrong from right?

Most references of good are tied to light. "Within the light truth can be found," is often preached. On the other hand, darkness remains mysterious, frightening and consequently evil.

Could darkness exist without light? Webster's [1981] New Collegiate Dictionary defines the dark as "devoid or partially devoid of light." The definition involves its opposite. One definition for light is "something that makes vision possible." Take into consideration that vision is dependent upon contrast or shades of color--darkness. The same dictionary acknowledges the spiritual qualities of good and evil to these words.

The two opposites do go together. Many would agree that within goodness, a set of strict principles must be maintained and practiced. However, following a strict code of conduct to an extreme could have destructive ramifications. Do you disagree?

Example One: if the commandment "Thou shalt not kill" was practiced by the Allied Forces during the pre-World War II era, there would not have been a second world war. We might all be members of the Nazi party and the Jewish people might have been exterminated as a result.

Example Two: our bodies continually violate the same commandment daily even if it is on a smaller scale. Our bodies have white blood cells which attack and kill intruders. If scientists were to inhibit these white blood cells in order to abide by the no-kill commandment, all participants of the experiment would perish. AIDS patients eventually die from the exact same circumstances.

A no-kill extremism would actually be insane or evil since the principle is not Universally practiced on any scale. So instead of eliminating it, we should come to terms with it and strike a balance with it. We do have to kill to survive which even holds true for vegetarians! That is why we must view opposites as part of the same creature, not as separate entities.

In order to facilitate connecting opposites I have a technique to share with you. It was taught to me by a Taoist physics professor [Dave White, Ph.D. from Roosevelt University] during my senior year in college. Imagine any two opposites and place them on ends of a line segment. This line segment will be a continuum that connects the two. Now take the two endpoints and join them to make a circle.

What this means is that we can be so far left that we can actually be right, which is a common phrase used in politics. Tears of joy, becomes an understandable expression. This technique is not just a game. The Chinese have understood it, have tried to explain it and live by it for well over 10,000 years!^*

Scientists are forced to struggle with this phenomena too. Physicists are perplexed to this day why light exhibits two, seemingly opposite, properties. It behaves as both a particle and a wave. How can something exhibit two contradictory traits? Well, the professionals call it the duality of light. In other words, physicists have accepted this apparent contradiction!

I have come to personalize the conjoined dichotomy perception. When I first understood the method of connecting opposites, the world was transformed, yet remained the same. It all became clear and still fuzzy. I fell victim to a new, ancient perspective. I came full circle for a moment and was confused by my enlightenment. I fell in love with it even though it took nearly a semester of mild hatred to accept it.

Whoever claimed that there is a fine line between genius and madness was on to something. In fact, some people define genius as the ability to hold two opposite thoughts simultaneously. Might the same definition apply to madness?

Nevertheless, the ability to grasp connected opposites is not easy at first. Upon comprehension, a whole new worldview will result. The view will allow you to appreciate what you overlook, excel in what you lack, and love what you hate.

If you would like to learn more about this subject, you can always read The Tao of Physics by F. Capra and The Dancing Wu Li Masters by Gary Zukav. They are well written and inspirational introductory works on eastern philosophy/religion.

Keep on investigating. Keep on learning. Keep on searching for the truth from within and without yourself.

Keep one eye open and one eye shut.

^* Click on the yin-yang symbol to go to http://www.thetemple.com/TheBookOfChange/ and learn more about Chinese philosophy by studying The I Ching.

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