James: I’ve received many emails of late asking for my views about the vaccination issue. Rather than respond to each one individually, here is my opinion based, I believe, on solid logic. Henceforth I will refer those who are troubled by this issue to this satsang.
Dear Concerned, I’m a firm believer in Occam’s Razor, to wit the simplest, most logical explanation is the right explanation 98% of the time. But fear causes projections; we see things that aren’t there and it makes us believe our projections are reality. If reality is non-dual as Vedanta contends, everything positive and negative serves it one way or the other. Therefore the virus is God-given. A half-empty glass is also half full, which implies a choice. You can let this idea upset your mind or you can see it as an opportunity to seek the Self, which is free of worry.
Conspiracy theories sprout like mushrooms after a good rain in trying times. I absolutely hate them, not because they are true or false but because they indicate a reactive weak mind. It’s very easy to assume that your first impulse is the “real truth,” as if there were an unreal truth. You meet somebody whose vibes are negative and ugly and you immediately dislike them. You don’t take time to get to know them. You reject them and look for someone who makes you feel good. You can’t think past your reaction. You don’t think that maybe people don’t like you when your mind is judgmental and negative, nor do you look for the good qualities in the person. You need things to be black and white because you can’t stand ambiguity. You want one simple answer so you don’t have to think. You imagine that you are very clever and intellectual but actually your mind is gross and dull. Life is shades of grey.
The only confirmation of the veracity of conspiracy theories is fear itself. You will notice that these theories are never resolved. They continue ad infinitum, not to mention ad naseum, when there is a perceived crisis. The problem, however, is not how you feel. The problem is ignorance itself. You owe it to your mind to train it to think rationally. Ignorance is so pervasive that any undesirable event can look like a conspiracy.
If there is some kind of evil cabal that wants to force vaccination on us, what good does it do for one’s mind to dwell on it? “They” are obviously more powerful than little me so I’m screwed anyway; the fear doesn’t solve the problem. Isn’t it wiser to deal with one’s feelings about vaccinations when the mandatory vaccination law is passed than to get myself worked up over something that may very well not come to pass?
Having said that, if enough people make a big story out of it, the evil, “they” will probably make it optional. “Evil” corporations that we empower with our purchases fear boycotts like nothing else. I feel I have benefited by the vaccinations I received as a child, so I’m not dead set against the idea. Anyway, letting fear eat at one’s mind is not healthy. If people put the same emotion into loving God as they do into fearing the future, which incidentally never arrives, the world would be enlightened in no time.
I think the impulse behind it – herd immunity – is a God-given idea. We have survived for millions of years because life is eugenic; in one way or another it eliminates the weakest genes from the pool, otherwise we would be dinosaurs. Suddenly Bill Gates, whom I admire based on his philantropy, is the ringleader of the latest iteration of the Elders of Zion.
Ignorance goes hand in hand with blame. Our sense of dissatisfaction with ourselves can never be our fault. But not every rich and powerful person is a demon. Most of us have never met a very rich or powerful person. Probably most are decent and reasonably honest. And even demons don’t set out to be demons; their circumstances mold them. Nobody would be who they are if they could help it. So, who am I to judge?
Finally, having said that, there is no way to determine the nature of anything in the world. It is in a state of constant flux and there are too many factors required to produce a given result to allow us to reduce our suffering to a simple word like “conspiracy.”
~ Much love, Ramji
