Here is an excerpt from a chapter in the new book Mind Before Matter:

Mind Before Matter:
The Primacy of Consciousness in Politics
© 2007 Corinne McLaughlin and Gordon Davidson

“Nothing is as powerful as an idea whose time has come,” Victor Hugo wrote centuries ago.  Ideas have changed the world – great ideas such as “love your neighbor as yourself” or “all men are created equal.” Why are ideas so powerful?  Because consciousness – not physical form – is primal.  Consciousness is the causal factor.  Consciousness refers here to the mind, the emotions, the intuition and the soul (or higher self, monad, Buddha mind, etc.)  As Buddha said, “With our thoughts we create the world.”  Christ said, “As a man thinketh in his heart, so he is.”

How would our politics be different if citizens personally understood that consciousness is primal and thoughts are the cause of everything that manifests in our lives and in the physical world?

If we knew consciousness was primary, we’d recognize that separateness is an illusion and that everyone and everything is interconnected.  We would all feel the suffering of the poor and the sick as our own and would naturally make sure they are taken care of.  We would feel our essential oneness with all of the human family and so would treat the peoples of other nations as we treat our own citizens. We would feel our interconnection with nature and all of life and so would prioritize environmental protection and sustainable agricultural and forestry policies.

We’d help people expand their consciousness and identify with ever more inclusive groups—from family to community to nation to world, and finally, to all life on earth.  With each expansion of identify, there would be a new focus on finding a sense of unity amidst the diversity and developing a shared sense of purpose.

If we experientially knew the reality of oneness, we could also avoid the “tragedy of the commons” problem, where each individual acting in rational self-interest creates a catastrophe for the community as a whole. Everything is related to everything else, so we cannot solve a problem in isolation from its context.  We’d realize, for example, that an unfair socio-economic system breeds poverty (as liberals argue), but also that an individual’s personal choices contribute to poverty (as conservatives maintain).

We’d train people in how to transcend dualistic thinking and find a true third way in politics beyond left and right. In ancient Greece, initiates to the Mysteries were trained in paradoxical thinking, in understanding how something could be “both/and” rather than “either/or.”  This type of thinking would transform all our political debates and help us find more effective, long term policy solutions to every problem.

Visioning and Consciousness Training

If our national politicians knew that consciousness was primary, our government would provide consciousness training for all so that more people could become empowered, wise leaders. We’d be called “citizens” again – not just “consumers.”  Education would be far more important than today, and would be a key funding priority for government tax dollars. Educators would be hired who have a more refined and advanced consciousness, and we’d prioritize raising salaries for them.

In addition to rational, left brain education, the curriculum would include right brain, affective education, such as training in character development and in right relationship with all life.  Educators would teach people how to align with a higher purpose, hold a positive intention, and develop their will so they could accomplish constructive goals effectively. They’d teach them how to think clearly and compassionately and serve others and the larger whole. 

If we knew how powerful our thoughts are, we would learn how to think positively and focus collectively on solutions rather than problems.  We would learn how to control our negative thoughts and emotions and create harmonious, compassionate ones. We’d learn how to avoid projecting our disowned shadow or negative patterns on our political adversaries, accusing them of what we ourselves are guilty of. We’d no longer see political ads with one candidate accusing the other of being dishonest or aggressive, as people would realize that candidate may be in fact describing his/her own behavior.

If we focused on consciousness and addressed the root causes in both individual and collective thinking, we’d be more effective in eliminating social ills such as poverty and drug abuse. We’d find, for example, that the root causes of these problems are dysfunctional thinking about resources and society. We’d see clearly the illusion that a small percentage of greedy people can somehow isolate themselves from the effects of their selfish economic decisions on the majority. We’d see that a lack of self-esteem is the root cause of self-destructive, addictive behavior like drug abuse to numb personal pain. People would realize that true happiness and fulfillment comes not from how much they accumulate, but rather from what they give to others.

Knowing the primacy of consciousness, we’d also focus more on prevention of social problems, and would be proactive, rather than reactive, to crisis and change. We’d have visioning and dreaming sessions engaging a wide cross section of citizens in determining our political priorities, as we’d recognize this was how to best prevent crises and create the future we choose. Trained facilitators would lead policy makers or groups of citizens in guided imagery sessions on key issues, such as healthcare.  For example, they’d have people imagine they had traveled ten years in the future, to see what our healthcare system looks like. 

The city of Chattanooga, TN was the most polluted city in the country before they held city-wide visioning sessions.  Citizens built a consensus on a strategy for becoming the most environmentally sustainable city in America, and successfully achieved this several years later, attracting new green businesses and many awards. 

Consciousness and Public Policy

If we knew consciousness was primary, we would prioritize the need to think together as citizens about our problems, using public dialogues and whole systems approaches, where all ideas are heard and included in decisions. The more perspectives on a problem that are aired, the closer we would get to the full truth and to the root causes of a problem. The solution would thus be more effective and long lasting.  Just as diversity strengthens an ecological system, so different political points of view give more information and a wider perspective on an issue. We could then find the underlying unity in the apparent diversity and conflicting opinions, and work towards a new political synthesis. If we knew the primacy of consciousness, our main focus would be to synthesize as many points of view as possible and build a consensus on our shared political priorities.

Citizens would attend these dialogues with an open attitude and a willingness to change their thinking and be transformed. They would refuse to become entrenched in a polarizing position on a controversial issue. Violent demonstrations would then no longer be needed to get the attention of those in power, because all relevant concerns would have been aired and included in the final decisions. We’d avoid the usual political strategies of winning at all costs and we would be far more sensitive to relationships.

If citizens could agree on a preferred future in a specific area such as transportation or energy use, we could all then visualize very clearly and with much detail this desired future and so help it manifest in the present.  For example, we might want to solve the problem of smog, crowded freeways and depleting oil reserves by visualizing and desiring the creation of low cost, totally energy efficient cars that run on solar or other alternative energy.  If millions of people did this type of detailed, regular visualization, we could precipitate into human consciousness the solution to any problem.

If we knew consciousness was primary, we would also be more aware of the battle of ideas and the impact of evolutionary, spiritual thinking that serves the good of the whole vs. involutionary, materialistic thinking that is dysfunctional and benefits the few at the expense of the many. We would be aware of the need for equal access to the means of projecting ideas, especially the media. Our media would not be controlled by financial interests as it is now or by a particular political agenda – it would be more accessible to all legitimate ideas and points of view.

Supporting Each Nation’s Evolutionary Purpose

If consciousness is seen as primal, political leaders would seek to discern, and then implement, the higher evolutionary purpose and spiritual intention for their nation. Understanding a nation’s evolutionary purpose would then be the goal of all political leaders and political activity. The higher purpose of the United States, for example, is to demonstrate human equality and show how true freedom and democracy can benefit an individual’s growth and development.

Once a nation’s higher purpose is known, political leaders who are purely motivated can shape this into a clear, effective thoughtform, energize it with passion, and widely broadcast it. The purpose then becomes highly attractive and draws the people, energy and resources to help it express in the world through specific strategies. The purpose then becomes unstoppable. 

This was the process, for example, that unfolded with the Marshall Plan after World War II, as an effort to express something of the higher purpose of the United States. Rather than punishing them, the U.S. helped the defeated Axis nations rebuild along democratic lines. This approach was far more effective and beneficial to people than punitive action.  Today, however, America’s “democracy-building in many places around the world seems to be failing due to questionable motives and bad planning.

Each nation has a higher destiny. Each has an historical experience, a unique cultural and racial makeup, and karma (or debts) to be fulfilled. When consciousness is seen as primary, each nation will become aware of its destiny and the contribution it can make to the whole. A measure of the maturity of nations is how consciously they accept their world responsibilities and help other nations.  For example, the Scandanavian nations model support for social and humanitarian action at home and abroad, as well as at the U.N.

Harnessing the Power of Meditation

If we knew that consciousness was primary, we would all learn how to meditate and still our minds, so we could contact the wisdom of our higher self or soul and be more fully present in the moment. We’d learn to listen to our intuition and the inner guidance of our soul, rather than relying on the rational mind or the opinion of so-called “experts”.  We’d realize that help is always available from higher levels and from the wisdom of our soul. The soul would be our guide in both our personal lives and also in our collective political life, providing solutions to larger social problems.   

To create a powerful thoughtform of a solution to a social problem, we would meditate collectively to receive an inspirational vision or an idea.  Then we would think out the idea clearly and concretely, seeing the practical details. We would then energize the thoughtform with our desire, our passion and enthusiasm to give it the power to manifest physically.  Finally, we’d have to detach ourselves from the thoughtform, letting go of it emotionally, in order that it may be free to do its work and precipitate onto the physical plane.  If the idea is held onto too tightly and possessively, it can’t be free to manifest.

The practice of meditation would also help us become more detached observers of the political scene, able to see things clearly, rather than seeing through the distorted lens of our own limited beliefs, fears or desires. This would make it very difficult for politicians to manipulate our fears and hatreds for their own ends, or to promise endless government services without raising taxes.  We’d then have balanced federal budgets and no national debt.

We’d also have trained meditators in the room whenever important negotiations or political decisions were being made.  They could maintain a positive, intuitive energy field of goodwill that would lead to greater insights and wiser decisions. We’d train people in how to use group meditation and a consensus process for making political decisions.  People would learn how to meet together and begin by sharing all the known facts and opinions about an issue. Then they’d work on releasing their opinions and enter a meditative silence together.  They’d ask to be inwardly guided to find the wisest decision that would serve the highest good of all stakeholders.  After a time of silence, each participant would share what they’d received in the meditation, and then they’d all work to build a consensus on the wisest course of action.

If all citizens were trained meditators, we’d be more detached from outcomes, knowing that politics, like everything in the world, is impermanent and ever changing. We’d then have the patience to work for the future, for long-term change and so wait out short-term difficulties, knowing that things will change again. If more citizens would meditate regularly, we’d have a more peaceful society with fewer violent crimes and fewer wars, as inner peace leads to outer peace.           

Invoking Enlightened Leaders

And lastly, if we knew that consciousness was causal, we’d elect those truly enlightened thinkers and leaders whose consciousness was more advanced – rather than those with TV personalities and lots of money. We would elect politicians who are wiser and more compassionate, and who embody honesty, integrity and courage.  Our leaders would be truly concerned about the common good, rather than about their own personal ego. We’d have fewer power-hungry, self-serving politicians, and more leaders like Mohatmas Gandhi, Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy serving long term in elected office – rather than getting killed striving for justice.

In order to create the right conditions that invoke more leaders of this quality and truly transform politics, there is work we each need to do now.  We can adopt a leader who has high potential, and support him or her inwardly by sending our prayers and positive energy in meditation so s/he might align with his/her highest self. And most importantly, we can each realize the power of our own consciousness on others, and so take more responsibility for refining and transforming it.  Only thus can we collectively create a better world that works for all and be truly happy and secure.

Corinne McLaughlin and Gordon Davidson are co-authors of Spiritual Politics (Foreword by the Dalai Lama) and Builders of the Dawn and are co-founders of The Center for Visionary Leadership. Corinne coordinated a national task force for President Clinton’s Council on Sustainable Development and Gordon was formerly the Executive Director of the Social Investment Forum. They can be reached at:  The Center for Visionary Leadership:  corinnemc@visionarylead.org; www.visionarylead.org.

(This excerpt is from Mind Before Matter: Visions of a New Science of Consciousness, edited by Trish Pfeiffer and John E. Mack M.D., foreword by Larry Dossey, and is available from http://www.amazon.com/.)