The New Paradigm
vol. I, Number 25

Dear Friends,

One of the great fears of the keepers of civilization is of the eventuality of a breakdown and dissolution of civilization into anarchy, defined as a state of affairs in which "no-one is in charge;" literally, "without a ruler," the meaning of the Greek anarchos. The idea of fear has been discussed, either directly or tangentially, in prior editions (tnp vol. I #4, 13, 16, 23), but it bears repeating, if only to bolster the awareness necessary to shift paradigms gracefully and with relative ease.

The foundation of fear is the presumed eventuality of "death," meaning the cessation of existence. This is the crowning horror, the "Great Bogyman," and the source of endless perverse fascination for countless people throughout human history. That line from a popular song by Johnny Cash a number of years back, "I shot a man in Reno, Just to watch him die," seems to capture in a few words the flavor of the horror / fascination of "death" for a great many people. As is well known, large numbers of people used to gather at colosseums throughout the Roman Empire to watch gladiatorial spectacles which consisted, esentially, of people slaughtering one another in public; or people being devoured by large, revenous predators. And today, nothing much has changed: the vast majority of civilized people spend several hours a day watching television, a large fraction of the programming for which consists of graphic and realistic representation of people bringing the lives of one another to a permanent and violent end, under circumstances of endless variety. Public executions too have always drawn huge crowds of spectators, time out of mind.

What is the source of this universal fascination with "death?" It is a mystery; we watch it over, and over again, and are mesmerized. Here is a living, breathing, healthy Human Being; and by somebody's willful and violent action (usually), this miracle of animation, life and grace is suddenly reduced to a lifeless corpse, never to stir again. Fascinating. Horrifying. The message, endlessly repeated, is, "This could happen to you." Or more to the point, "This will happen to you, one way or another, sooner or later." And that, my friends, is the foundation of fear. It is the lever by means of which the will of one person is imposed upon another: "Do what I say, or I'll kill you." It is the foundation of what we are pleased to call "civilization."

But what, after all, when you look the grinning skull straight in its hollow eye sockets, is it that we fear in "death?" It is a mystery; and the more insistantly we probe the mystery, the more spectral and insubstantial it becomes. Really.

As I've said before, existence is a mysterious, inexplicable condition without opposite. So-called "non-existence" is an oxymoron; it doesn't make any possible sense. We may not have a satisfactory "explanation" for existence (I certainly do not; do you?), but it is nevertheless a self-evident fact that can in no way be dislodged, that You, and I, and Everything exist. We change in the flux of time, in ways that are likewise inexplicable and perhaps incomprehensible, at least to our four-dimensional, Earthly mentalities; but we, or anything that exist cannot ever, ever "non-exist." So much for so-called "death."

Get that, and you may realize you live in a transcendent reality in which nothing can "threaten" you; for every experience leads to yet further experiences, which in turn lead on, and on, and on. You, and I, are here in this frame of space-time sharing a communication of heart and spirit. We may not be able to remember at the moment "where we came from" or most of the experiences we have had during our endless quest through perhaps various dimensions and alternative realities; but we can be sure that we do exist; and existing, can never, and never have, "non-existed." We are a part of, and one with, all that shares this mysterious quality of existence. Our memories may be short, but our experience is long, and we can never be touched by anybody or anything that threatens us with, "Do this or I'll kill you."

Extrapolating from that realization leads to the further realization that all coercion, the imposition of the will of one upon another by threat of retribution in any form, relies ultimately upon a presumed fear of "death". It is a decidedly "old paradigm" presumption, and it is the lynch-pin of so-called "civilization." It is also the basis of slavery; and of the "might makes right" style of "leadership" to which all coercive systems boil down in the "end" - i.e. before they collapse into the detritus of their own self-destruction.

Thus, taking a "long view," we may observe with considerable accuracy that what we have been pleased to call "civilization" is in fact not measurably distinguishable from what we have elsewhere been calling "anarchy;" for if "civilized leadership" consists ultimately of the coercive capability of "some," be they "majority," "minority" or oligarchical or monarchical tyrant, to impose their will upon "others" by threat of "death," in what fundamental way does it differ from no leadership, i.e. anarchy? It matters not whether such "civilization" is overtly tyrannical or benign; to the extent it relies upon coercion it is naked anarchy, and indistinguishable from "mob rule."

Does that sound extreme? Well, perhaps. It is only an opinion, anyway; but consider. The history of the United States of America makes an illustritave example. Two hundred years ago the fledgling United States bore the prospect of becoming the pioneer and way-shower for all Humanity to a glorious civilization of a new style, crowned with "liberty and justice for all." Government was explicitly restricted by the consent of the governed, and Law was founded upon a Constitution that was a miraculous masterpiece of profoundly considered self-governance. Commerce was free and unfettered, and the young nation throve and prospered, to the amazement of all who beheld her. Never in the length and bredth of recorded Human history had Mankind witnessed such a glorious, free and virtuous civilization.

Well, but the young nation was composed of "ordinary people," after all, and was not without blemish. Human slavery, for one thing, was an integral part of the American economy; and as everywhere, if virtue was a characteristic of the nation as a whole, still it must be admitted that some were more (or less) virtuous than others. Then too, the forces of coercion and oppression that had been defeated on the field of battle continued to advance their agendas by other means after America's national independence had been secured and acknowledged.

Fast-forward to contemporary times, and the character of young America prior, say, to 1860 is altered beyond recognition. The contemporary "U.S. citizen" ranks among the most tyrannically oppressed people on Earth. Government is answerable neither to "the People," nor to Congress, nor the Courts, nor the Constitution. In fact it is no longer possible to say with any certainty what the so-called "U.S. government" actually consist of, or who ultimately runs them, or what their objectives are. The only certainty is, "You better do what they say, or they'll kill you."

This is the situation today for the one nation in the entire history of the world that two centuries ago seemed to have the best shot at establishing Paradise on Earth for the Human Race. That was its promise and ambition; what happened?

What happened was that what may have started out as an expression of a "new paradigm" ideal was derailed by "old paradigm" habits of thought. In particular, the universal fear of "death" provided the leverage for the "might makes right" power aristocracy to subvert with extraordinary ease the profound aspirations for liberty and love from which the nation sprang. After all, the nation was given birth on the bloody field of battle, where the brave Continental Patriots fought the despicable British Lobstarbacks to a standstill (as seen from the American perspective). But the bottom line is, it was but another episode of that long and wearisome game of "'Us' vs. 'Them'" that always ends up, finally, in the same kind of smoking heap. Call it "civilization," call it "anarchy," call it what you like. It doesn't work. That, to me, is the primary lesson of American history.

So what does work? What works, as exemplified on every hand by Nature, by Plants and Animals, by Planets and Suns and Galaxies, by Atoms and Molecules and Quarks, is the indissoluble Oneness of All Things, including You, and Me, and all our "Enemies" and "Friends." We find ourselves, as always, in the midst of a wondrous, self-regulating, self-balancing, free-wheeling Cosmos in which "nothing can possibly go wrong, because everything is out of control." To participate in the unfettered liberty and boundless joy of our Cosmic existence we have "only" to shift paradigms from our habitual / historical and manifestly dysfunctional "'Us' vs. 'Them'" paradigm, which I sometimes call the "old paradigm" or the "Law of the Jungle" paradigm, to the "new paradigm" realization of the Oneness of All Things, which naturally includes Ourselves. That's all.

Of course, making such a "radical" paradigm shift may be more easily said than done. It's not too difficult to say "All are One;" but to believe it, to know it, and act on it may be somewhat more challenging. It's one thing to say, as I have, "There is no 'death' and there is nothing to fear." But what if somebody actually confronts us with, "Do this, or I'll kill you." Will you really say, in effect, "Go ahead; make my day!"? Will I?

Neither you nor I may be able to reliably answer that question right now. We're in the process of a shift that is not yet complete. But the "old paradigm" so-called "civilization" may now be in its final stages of self-destruction. That could mean a rather sudden transition from relatively "organized anarchy" to relatively "disorganized anarchy;" or it could mean something quite surprising and unanticipated. The shift to the "new paradigm" is not necessarily heralded with loud publicity and front-page news. It takes place quietly, individual by individual, within the hidden recesses of our respective hearts and minds. Moreover, nobody is exempt from its appeal, no matter what our circumstances, responsibilities, habits, beliefs or presumed loyalties; for each of us is an existing Human Being, faced with essentially the same questions, dilemmas and challenges in a rapidly unfolding sequence of global and local human events. Anyone, anywhere, at any time may discover, possibly quite by surprise, that we are "old paradigm" people no longer, and no longer operate on "old paradigm" presumptions. After years of stress and strain, of striving and toil, any one, or multitudes, of us may discover with a sigh of relief and quiet confidence, that we really can "let go and let God."

There is a distinct possibility today that, just as myriads of individual fresh green buds dust the countryside in early Spring, and rapidly transform the landscape from the dead-grey of Winter to the vibrant green and rainbow tapestry of thriving, throbbing, humming Summer; so might we, individual by individual, transform the Earth practically overnight from a Planet of mounting calamity and despair to one of thriving optimism and vigorous, confident, cooperative Human endeavor. Believe it. And if it seems impossible, believe it anyway. And if you would like to do something to make it a reality... unplug your television.

Love & Light,

-- Harmon
J. Harmon Grahn