A Course In Miracles from My Perspective

May 3rd 2014  Lesson 6

I am upset because I see something that is not there.

Today's idea, like the preceding one, can be used with any person, situation or event you think is causing you pain. 

• Intention:  To recognize that we do not know the "sources" of upsetting thoughts, but whatever the source or the form in which they appear, they are all equally disturbing to our peace of mind, and for that reason we will apply today's idea indiscriminately to all of them.
       
• Practice:  Begin by searching your mind for a minute or so for any upsetting thoughts, then apply today's idea to each of them specifically.  Do this for about a minute or so, and be sure to name both the form of upset (anger, fear, worry, depression, and so on) and the perceived source very specifically for any application of the idea.  For example:
  I am angry at ________because I see something that is not there.
  I am afraid of ________because I see something that is not there.
  I am worried about ________because I see something that is not there ... etc.
    
  Avoid the temptation to give greater weight to some subjects than to others.  It might help to precede your mental search with the statement:
  
  There are no small upsets.  They are all equally
  disturbing to my peace of mind.
    
     If you find yourself less willing to apply today's idea to some perceived sources of upset, than to others, think first of this:
  I cannot keep this form of upset and let the others go.  For the purposes of these exercises, then, I will regard them all as the same.
    
• Application:  The  upset may seem to be fear, worry, depression, anxiety, anger, hatred, jealousy or any number of forms, all of which will be perceived as different.  In truth, their form does not matter, and we will recognize this more and more as we apply today's idea to them separately.

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Insights/comments:

• We reason to ourselves that because the various upsets we experience express themselves in different forms—worry, anger, disappointment, etc.—that they are inherently different, but this is not true because they all have the same underlying source, which is the false identity we have taken to be ourselves.  The correction for them all is the same, to become aware of our true identity as the holy children of God.  We cannot know the reality of anything if we do not know the reality of our own identity.  It is this knowledge that enables us to know what is real and what is illusion; what is there and what is not there; what is true and what is false.
  How do we know the reality of anything is an important question?  If someone asks:  “Are you dreaming?”  The answer depends entirely on our ability to remember our prior state of mind.  If we cannot remember that prior state, then we have no basis to answer.  Only when we do remember can we answer the question and say for example:  “Yes, I was dreaming before, but now I am awake, for all that I thought were real experiences before are now completely gone!”  Only when we awake from a dream can we say “I was dreaming,” for it is only then that the awareness of both the previous state and this current state are available for comparison.  And as time passes we loose the ability to remember clearly the contrast between old dream and waking states, as our memory of them fades.
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I and my Creator are One.