The denial of the existence of a spirit realm in western culture is a symptom of a bigger problem. We are hyper-focused on “positivity” to the point where anything negative or uncomfortable fosters a strong need to dispel it sooner than deal with it. Having endured mental illness in the past, I know firsthand the constant suppression that comes along with experiencing a terrible emotion blizzard. Personally, I always felt a pressure to NOT feel that way, not because I’m Chinese (though that probably didn’t help), but because I lived in a Westernized culture. Towards the end of my recovery, I read an article about how people experiencing mental illness viewed their hallucinations differently depending on what country they were from. Basically, people in other countries see their hallucinations as an entity coming to them and offering help, shrouded in a positive and helpful aura. However, in the United States, their hallucinations often are depicted as voices of other people screaming at them or telling them how worthless, stupid, unloved, etc. they are. The event (hallucinations) are the same, but the overall experience is wildly different, which begs the question, “What are we doing wrong?”
Unfortunately, that question for me brings up an entirely different question. Why do we have to be doing something wrong all the time? Though that research on hallucinations does point to a stark, almost disturbing difference between cultures, why is that terrible? To call that terrible would be to fall into the same Western hyper-focus on positivity, would it not? It’s understandable to crave happiness and peace all the time, but to actually only experience those two things would result in an in-balanced and somewhat boring lifestyle. If life brings up both good and bad experiences (which itself falls into a binary that probably adds to the whole “we can’t feel bad, we have to feel good all the time” ideal), then aren’t we meant to experience them fully? Suppression only multiplies the problem and acceptance is easier when we challenge the ideas instead of our own God-given emotions.
Question: Why are we constantly looking for something to be wrong?
References:
Haydock, S. B. (n.d.). I would always rater be abnormal than holistic: Nine micro-essays. Retrieved from https://themissingslate.com/byline/shana-bulhan-haydock/
Marohn, S. (2014, Aug. 25). What a Shaman Sees in A Mental Hospital. The Mind Unleashed. Retrieved from https://themindunleashed.com/2014/08/shaman-sees-mental-hospital.html
Pinterest. (2019, February 22). It’s OK to not be OK[digital image] Retrieved from https://www.pinterest.com/pin/634726141206549024/visual-search/?x=13&y=13&w=409&h=518
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