Spirit as You and you, specifically YOU
At the end of the chapter on We in Integral Spirituality, Ken Wilber talks about how contemporary western spirituality tends to be very comfortable with Spirit as I and it, and less comfortable with it as You, or even you.
This goes at least for Buddhist and Adveita circles. I suspect those practicing within traditionally theist traditions, such as Sufism, Christianity, Sikhism and Hinduism, have more of a familiarity with the You and you of Spirit.
And there are of course several aspects to Spirit as You, and you.
Spirit as You
One is the traditional one of prayer and devotional practice, of praying to Spirit as You, of submitting to Spirit as You. To place myself, as a human being, under and at the mercy of Spirit as You. This itself can be very enriching and speed up the process of awakening and of maturing and deepening as a human being.
Spirit as you, yes you
The other is maybe less familiar from Western traditions, although it seems more common in some Eastern traditions. This is spirit as you, yes you - as a human being, as my partner, my children, my parents, my neighbors, my co-workers, homeless, politicians, those living half-way around the world. This too is Spirit, in all its richness and fullness, the current manifestation of Spirit as form and evolution.
The richness of Spirit as you
This is Spirit as you.
As confused, living from mistaken identity, with its inherent love and wisdom shining through the cracks. As awakened to its own nature.
This is Spirit as you, mirroring exactly myself.
This is Spirit showing me myself, in all my richness, as you. As my partner, my family, my friends, my neighbors, everyone.
This is Spirit as you. As lovable, annoying, as a helper, as a problem, as intimate, as a stranger, as infuriating, as inspiring, as one I want to spend more time with, as one I can't stand, as one I experience magic with, as one I am bored with.
As one bringing me face-to-face with myself, nudging me along in my own deepening as a human being.
Labels: 1st-2nd-3rd person, maturing, relationships