By the very absence of the healing that ought naturally follow any form of injury, we should be able to deduce that certain counter forces must be at work within us. There have to be unseen anti-healing forces with a vested interest in our continued suffering. If we can see the truth of this startling fact then we should also realize how vital it is for us to shed light on this unseen enemy of natural healing. Such insight is not just necessary, it is critical if we are going to be able to help ourselves realize a true self-healing.

Let’s begin this investigation with a simple illustration. Imagine for a moment the familiar pain that comes with having eaten ice cream too quickly, when one’s mouth or throat gets that painful freeze feeling. When we experience a pain like this, we don’t worry about what to do because, in this instance, we know a certain truth about the nature of this pain that prevents us from getting embroiled in it. What is this truth?

We simply know that this pain will pass as soon as its cause goes away. We may hop around a bit, but we know better than to leap into fear, blame, or self-loathing. Yet, in sharp contrast to this natural wisdom, whenever we get handed a cold-hearted blow from someone or something in life, everything about how we handle such moments changes. Our pain, instead of passing with its cause, persists. And rather than healing, our hurt gets constantly refreshed with every remembrance of that initial moment. Why is this so? What is happening within us? Follow the next few ideas closely to see these truths at work in you.

First, as we now suspect, there is at work in us an undetected nature that will not allow the cause of our pain to pass so that the healing may take place. Can we see that we have parts of us that just won’t let go of being angry with someone who got angry with us? But that’s not all!

Can we also see that these same smoldering parts of ourselves would have us believe that being on fire is the best way to get over being burned? Of course! Once we bring such self-destructive behavior out into the light we can also see that these actions must be unconscious to us; no one would consciously harm him- or herself.

Any part of us trying to drag us into a heated stew over “who” or “what” should be blamed for our pain is secretly working to divide and conquer us. This spiritual fact cannot be overstated, nor should the understanding of its rescuing power be underestimated, which is why we will now bring light into this dark deception… [to be continued]