Waking Up Described - It IS Real.

Those who woke up

The world looks different.

Most people will laugh or joke when you talk about 'waking up' or mention 'sheeple'. For those who have woken up, it is no laughing matter - In fact, for those who are awake, it is as if they traded a dream for a nightmare.

Something happens when you wake up, you look at people differently and they look at you differently. Most of those who are still asleep will look at you strangely, they figure that you're different, but they can't exactly pinpoint why. It sounds like a cliche, but the experience is the same as in the Matrix movie. Things that you believed before and took for granted, just suddenly appear ridiculous, and you wonder how you were ever convinced that it was true.

Phrases that you thought were once full of wisdom appear to be common sense. Why do the sheeple look for words of wisdom? Because they have lost their own wisdom, which is the most natural thing in the world. They look for guidance and approval from others, and never question why they need to. When you're awake, there are no 'wise' words, only truth, and you're able to accept it because you realize that it was always a part of you, except you were told to think otherwise.

The reality which those who seek to control us is hiding, is the fact that we have the power to change our reality for the better. Those who control, brainwash us with lies. The lies are convincing, but when you're awake, you see them for what they are - it is like a parent telling a child about the existence of the easter bunny, but the child is unable to discern the truth. People who see the truth, the truth of the lies, perceives the harsh reality - there really is a war, a war for your mind. This is the truth, and those who get it, really get it, those who don't, continue to be blind, or are under the illusion that they are awake.

But you can tell if someone is awake. Maybe their eyes show more awareness than the average person. It is the loneliest place to be, among the crowds who cannot see how conforming they are to the ludicrous lies that they are told, unable to reason, or show common sense. Sheeple are deluded into thinking that they're capable of free-thought and reason, but they are as predictable as clockwork.

When you are awake, 'words of wisdom' seem like common sense. Stories told by the government seem like fairy tales. The possiblities of creating a better world seem more accessible. You notice and question everything around you. You have the confidence of yourself for guidance rather than relying someone in authority to tell you how to think.

How to recognize sheeple?

What drives people to wear a corporate brand logo?
The illusion of free-thought.

Sheeple are people who conform, they are like sheep, always following the crowd, but unaware of their adherence to regulations and conventional thought. They do not believe in 'waking up' - it is a complete myth to them, so there is no point trying to convince them that there is a state of extreme clarity. They find it hard to believe that when you wake up, you see the majority of people walking around like zombies, because they are one of the zombies. These words only make sense to those who have seen and witnessed it - those who have take a step out of the box, gone against the grain and found themselves recognizing a different world to the one they once knew.

Also a major trait of sheeple is that they're able to change their views to conform to the masses without much of fight, at times switching to completely polarized views without so much as a struggle. This is what happens when you allow authority or peer pressure to control your opinions, and this phenonmenon is observable in cults. The cult leader will give the impression that the follower has made their 'own' choice, that the follower used his 'own' logic, to come to a conclusion that had already been predetermined from the start. Most ex-cult members are often surprised at how they manged to get trapped into the beliefs, which make absolutely no sense to the free mind.

But you tell someone who has been brainwashed that their beliefs are crazy or insane, and they look at you blankly, as if you're the crazy one instead, except you're not following a leader, or blindly praising a system that doesn't work. Sheeple are proud to conform, it gives them a sense of belonging, they have a built in sense of naievety that those who lead them are pure and good, and those who criticize their idols are destructive and evil.

Once someone has truly woken up, there is no turning back, you look for others who have also woken up. Some are more prone to brainwashing/ hypnotism than others, as evidenced by the way they lead their lifestyle, and their obsession with celebrities and corporate brands. Those who are awake, will wake others to see the world as it truly is.

On Taking Risks, and Life Changing

The term "taking risks" is something that has been stolen by corporate culture. Corporations may have these 'staff team-building' events which are designed to promote loyalty and increase productivity within the company. When corporations talk about 'taking risks', the context often involves a type of 'conquest'. The British SAS (special air service) have a motto, 'Who dares wins', and it is this conquest mentality that corporations want to encourage.

Risks, what are they exactly? A gambler may be someone who is considered to take risks all the time, but he may not necessarily win all the time, and perhaps if he is particularly unlucky, he may end up with nothing. A stunt performer who does action movies, may not see his job as risky, although he may understand that there is risk involved, he has enough confidence in his abilities to not feel there is risk. Risk is something outside of your control - if you jump out off the top of a skyscraper without a safety, then you're going to die, if you run across a motorway blindfolded, you may survive or you may get hit by a car, but these types of risks are situations that you put yourself in, and whether you see them as risks depends on your perspective.

Bungee jumping is now included in the list of corporate team-building events - among other adventure activities - if I ran an adventure company, I'd certainly love to have some large finance corporations as my clients! I would sell them every adventure as a team-building activity to improve their staff qualities and other bullshit. The corporations are willing to spend money on these events because they believe that it builds relationships within the organization, enabling better cooperation, and teaching people to become go-getters! The idea that you can have everything you want if you put yourself outside your comfort zone is a complete falsehood perpetuated by the people that sell these theories.

Let's take for example the typical office worker, who works for a company with complete loyalty yet he hates his job and dreams of doing something else - we'll call him Bob. The company that Bob works for organizes bungee jumping, in the hope that the staff would learn to adopt the 'who dares wins' mentality and become more aggressive in work. Unwillingly, Bob under the pressure of his colleagues takes a jump, he experiences a few seconds of fear as he plummets towards the ground. Do you think Bob will be a changed man? He will most likely forget the incident and continue doing the job that he hates so much.

The idea of taking risks cannot be limited to the micro sense, but must envelope a macro sense of life and take on a grander all encompassing vision. The biggest risk that Bob could have taken would be to quit his job, and pursue his dreams, not someone else's dreams but his own - not a dream sold by an advert on television or a magazine, but something that will enable him grow to his full potential - mentally, physically and spiritually.

So how do we begin to do these tasks which will ultimately transform our lives? Firstly, for most people, their life will not change overnight - It requires patience, and the understanding that being on the path to our goal is better than not being on it. An object in the distance may be further than it looks, but when we change the way we think in terms of scale, then mentally we can bring the target closer to us. This is the first step in life transformation, and it is the hardest step, the choice to choose the way we think - once we change the way we think, then everything else follows without resistance.

The Buddha achieved enlightenment while sitting under a bodhi tree - once we align ourselves with the universe, we empower the natural spirit inside us - there is no resistance in being one with our environment, and when we move with the flow of the universe, we're effortlessly on the path to self improvement. But in order to be on the path, we have to learn to recognize what is real, and in truth, nothing is real, our desires are externally manipulated so that we become slaves to them and forget who we are. Most people, if they took a few minutes out of their schedule, to just meditate, and clear their mind, they can find their centre and their connection to the universe, this is where they find their strength, away from the distractions that destroy your individuality and creativity. The biggest risk in today's fast moving world, is to step outside of that box, the unknown which is really the core of your self and true nature. It's scary because we like to surround ourselves with what we know and understand, but many people do not really know or understand themself.

There is a Greek aphorism, "Know thyself", your strength lies in your self-awareness. Most people go through life as if on autopilot, letting the current of other people's ambitions and advertisements take them to places that they don't really want to go. Once you discover yourself through meditation, you can begin to see through all the control, and you become more efficient at being you - a more focused, stronger, and patient you. Choose the path of least resistance.