The world is a hospital full of sick people. And when you’re in the hospital, you don’t get angry for the people being sick; you just acknowledge that they’re in that hospital because they are sick. So it really changed my expectations to accept that people are ill in varying degrees—some people obviously very ill; some people don’t look ill, but they really are. And the illness is ever present. It’s just the degree of the illness that changes from person to person.
Marshall Vian Summers provides a powerful metaphor of the world as a hospital and for viewing everyone as suffering in separation. Recorded on the 4th night of the 2020 Steps to Knowledge Vigil.
The world is a hospital full of sick people. And when you’re in the hospital, you don’t get angry for the people being sick; you just acknowledge that they’re in that hospital because they are sick. So it really changed my expectations to accept that people are ill in varying degrees—some people obviously very ill; some people don’t look ill, but they really are. And the illness is ever present. It’s just the degree of the illness that changes from person to person.
So living in Separation is an unhealthy environment for eternal beings. And seeking to find happiness and equanimity in a changing and hazardous environment such as the Earth is a kind of very stressful experience for eternal beings. We weren’t designed for this. This may be one of the reasons why it takes us so long to grow up, to finally get acclimated to being here.
So I think if you can accept that everyone is mentally ill—some people obviously more than others, but everyone’s suffering under the weight of Separation—that can be a real change in how you’re looking at people. Otherwise, your expectations people should have their act together; they should be doing well; they should be honest; they should be self-aware; they should be able to account for themselves but they can’t or don’t…So I think accepting this image that everyone’s mentally ill to varying degrees can lead to real acceptance and compassion.
This is a place where people are not well. Even if they’re living in splendor, even if they don’t seem to have a care, they’re not well. Some people are under terrible oppression and terrible suffering.
So if you were an Angel walking the world, this is probably how you would look at it. I mean, to love people you have to accept them, which means you have to grant where they are…it’s a starting point. I mean this person is in this situation, this person’s…like, I mean, that’s your starting point. And some people are easy to like and some aren’t. And some are abusive to themselves and others, but we’re all suffering from the consequence of living in Separation. This is what the New Message teaches us. And if you can embrace that, it will begin to really alter how you look at people.
