Interconnectedness is Seeing Beyond Borders and Distinctions

The illusion of separateness holds no water upon deeper inspection

Recently, we got the chance to work while traveling in Himachal Pradesh, in a village called Jabli, located in the Himalayan Mountains. On the first day, we took a walk with no a particular destination around the village, and we came across a small footpath leading up the mountainside. There were local women walking from the main street up into the hills where the village streets narrowed.

As we walked, we saw people going about their daily living: a woman cooking dinner over the fire, two men walking with a donkey, and children playing. We followed the lane as far as we could until it reached a hill and suddenly became a narrow footpath that led down a steep ravine into a valley. We decided to stop there and go no further, as the sun was setting. Standing there, we watched water flowing over a waterfall at the bottom of the valley. The clouds took forms and colors in the sunset that were striking. At that moment, we shared a feeling of oneness with all-that-is. There is no separation when we simply watch what unfolds in each moment, as it is presented to us from the Source.

Those of us who spent childhood years in Western culture may tend to think of seeing all as part of Oneness, or interconnectedness, as non-Western, or at least more of an Eastern worldview. But lately, I wonder: is this true? Or can anyone, regardless of background, tap into our shared Presence? I think it’s possible. Why? Because I’ve experienced this myself, through sheer grace. I’m happy to share a little about what that was like for me, and weave in some words from the Masters along the way.

We are taught that culture is a great divider among different people in the world. Yes, there are some differences that may be seen in how we greet people. In the West, a handshake or nod or “Hi” is the norm. But, here in India, I have noticed firsthand that people address one another, even strangers, with words like “Brother” or “Sister” or “Dear.” Even among the younger generations, I often see schoolkids walking with their arms slung over each other’s shoulders, holding hands while crossing busy streets, or linking arms while chatting or not saying anything. To my mind, this expresses the feeling of merging with a shared common sense. I call it Aliveness sometimes. It’s not complex, and it radiates from the Heart. We all have access to it if we choose to use this God-given natural function. The way to the Heart is openness and courage of expression. It can also be called one’s innate Truth.

This sense of not being separate in our mind, of not being separate from God, or even from each other, comes up in common phrases I hear in some day-to-day interactions here in India. Calling a stranger “Brother” or “Sister” or “Dear” is not uncommon here; and it does not mean anything literally. My feeling is that it conveys simple positive regard for another fellow human, without expecting anything in return. That is a quality of interconnectedness, as I see it.

To me, interconnectedness goes beyond the concept of the familiar in the traditional sense and into a feeling of universal, shared Presence. Money, class/caste, appearances, and nationality don’t have any relevance or power in the Heart-space. This is freedom from concepts, which happens when we turn within and act from that place in ourselves.

Here, it feels comfortable to think about common sense among all living things. Even Banyan trees here are lovingly adorned with strings of orange flowers and other anonymous offerings; the work trucks rolling through the streets are hand-painted with birds and poetic calligraphy; decorative stickers of cheerful flowers can be seen on the ceiling of intercity trains; a bus carrying passengers in Punjab displays a handmade sign saying, “Don’t look – Just feel.” Philosophy and aesthetics are a part of life around me since spiritual awakening. The sense of sacredness often strikes me as pervasive in this way.

As I traveled recently through mountains and the foothills, we stopped for water at the home of a Himalayan villager, in a small hill station named Jabli. The woman smiled at us with friendly openness and retrieved a set of special cups for us to drink from, remarking that “God gives us reasons to meet.” I noticed myself thinking about the connection between everyday experiences like this and spirituality.

That same day, my travel companion asked me about a Western mystic named Saint Teresa of Avila. She had come to mind, and we talked about her for a few minutes. I kept thinking that she was somehow relevant to my current learning, although I did not yet know why. Then, a thought came to me about the pathless path of the mystic, which is known in every part of the world. That connected, for me, my current explorations and life experiences in a way that made sense. The common thread is unitive awareness, to me.

In the small number of courageous people known to have ventured into the pathless terrain of Western mysticism, Teresa of Avila is said to have been what is called a late bloomer who, after 12 years of trying, came to realize that there is no separateness between herself and God. After her awakening, she wrote a book called Interior Castle, which points to the wisdom of turning within.

“Here it is like rain falling from the heavens into a river or a spring; there is nothing but water there, and it is impossible to divide or separate the water belonging to the river from that which fell from the heavens. Or it is as if a tiny streamlet enters the sea, from which it will find no way of separating itself, or as if in a room there were two large windows through which the light streamed in: it enters in different places, but it all becomes one.”

Saint Teresa’s words, at least to me, point to a kind of folding into oneself and finding gold there: the inner voice, one’s own perspective, untouched and beyond concepts of right and wrong, good or bad. There, all is whole, without exceptions. This is where Teresa of Avila found the Source she had been seeking for a dozen years.

In contrast, where I was born, seeking is generally frowned upon as the foolish pursuit of people who are labeled as “lost.” I don’t believe that seeking is a bad thing or a good thing – it is something that just happens for some of us. Instead of “lost,” I like to see it as an exploration, and adventure, without attachment to any particular goal or outcome. It is like letting an arrow fly and having an aim in mind, but not being disappointed if the arrow strikes somewhere unexpected. The mystics from all over the world knew this and shared this wisdom with all sincere seekers. This has been immensely helpful to me on my own journey so far.

Mystics like Teresa of Avila had no special powers but had simply turned within. That is the simplicity of mysticism, at least to me. Yet these seekers are so dedicated to what I could call Presence, and so highly devoted to what I could call Oneness, that their essential character blossoms into beautiful maturity without hiding, for all to see. This is the confidence of a mystical person. And, from my perspective, those who look to the Self do shine from within themselves, and they are able to do this with such a graceful, unified sense of spiritual connection with every thing, beyond good/bad or right/wrong, in simple existence.

Separateness is an illusion that holds no water upon deeper examination. People make up concepts, and we can see them for what they are, without judging them. Concepts are just there; however, we can look beyond discrimination between the self and perceived others, whether from an Eastern or Western perspective, and deconstruct what we have been told, what we have been taught, and what we have believed before each new day.

Then, a regenerative recognition of our inner Being becomes vast and strong, just like the branches of a Banyan tree that I see in a nearby park in New Delhi. When this unfolding happens, it can feel natural to start seeing the world, and each person in it, as a child of God, or an expression of the Source, beyond boundaries, nations, borders, or labels of any kind. There, we can see each other (and ourselves) through the pure eye of the Heart.

What we love, we stay with it as we keep going each new day. Let each day awaken with this: a rebirth of consciousness, God willing.