Preparing for Non-war

NOTE: This is an excerpt from the book The Art of Non-war.

Chapter 1.

The dualistic mind says:

The art of war is of vital importance to the State.
It is a matter of life and death, a road either to safety or to ruin. Hence it is a subject of inquiry which must be studied thoroughly.

The non-dualistic mind says:

War is indeed a matter of vital importance, both for the individual, for the state and for humanity. Thus, it is vital that war be studied thoroughly. Yet a topic can be studied thoroughly only through the non-dualistic mind.
When approached through the filter of the dualistic mind, war is not a matter of life or death. For there is no life in war; only death.

When approached through the filter of the dualistic mind, war is not the road to safety or ruin. For there is no safety in war; only ruin.

Only the dualistic mind sees war as an option, as a means to achieve any desirable end.

Only the dualistic mind can believe in the illusion that taking from others through force can secure permanent gain for oneself.

Only the dualistic mind can believe in the illusion that inflicting death upon others can secure life for oneself.

Only the dualistic mind can believe in the illusion that inflicting ruin upon others can lead to one’s own safety.

Only the dualistic mind can believe that the end can justify the means, so that the end of securing one’s own wealth or safety can justify the means of taking by force and killing others.

The reason is that there is no life in the dualistic mind; only death. Thus, the dualistic mind does not see infinite truth; only a finite illusion of its own making.

***
A thorough study of war should lead to an understanding of the cause of war. Then what is the real cause of war?

It is the illusion of separation from the Infinite!

The dualistic mind was born from this illusion, and it can never see the unreality of this illusion. Thus, anything done by the dualistic mind can only reinforce the illusion of separation.

Once a mind believes in the illusion of separation from the Infinite, it inevitably follows that the mind believes in the illusion of lack. For there is no lack in the Infinite. Thus, only when the mind thinks it is separated from the Infinite, can it believe in the illusion of lack.

Only when the mind believes in the illusion of lack, can it believe that there can be gain in taking from others through force—rather than seeking what one desires directly from the Infinite.

Thus, the true cause of war is the illusion of lack, which leads to the illusion of gain through force.

The dualistic mind precipitates threats to its survival by projecting its own duality into the cosmic mirror. It does not see that its own internal duality is what leads to conflict and thus precipitates its own enemies.
Once the dualistic mind has precipitated an enemy, it believes that only by destroying the enemy can it secure its own survival. Yet the dualistic mind fails to see that the use of force will only precipitate another enemy. For as long as there is duality, there must be opposing forces.

The dualistic mind might win a temporary victory over an outer enemy, and thus seemingly find safety. Yet any use of force will inevitably create another enemy, and in time it will grow to become a threat to one’s survival.

Ultimate survival can be attained only by transcending the dualistic mind so one no longer precipitates enemies. This self-transcendence to a state of ultimate freedom is the highest outcome of a thorough study of war.

***

The greatest of all illusions is the illusion of separation from the Infinite. This primary illusion leads to the illusion of lack. Yet the illusion of lack can take on many disguises, and many of them can lead to war.
There are two chief illusions that lead to war.

One is the illusion that the Earth is a world with a limited amount of resources. This causes the dualistic mind to believe in the further illusion that there is a direct proportion between the amount of material resources available and the amount of abundance that can be created.
The dualistic mind now believes that in order to obtain more abundance, one must take from someone else. This causes people to enter an endless struggle of competition for a greater slice of what is perceived to be a finite pie of abundance.

The non-dualistic mind sees that there is far greater abundance in the world today than a thousand years ago. It also sees that the Earth is not larger and does not have more land or resources than a thousand years ago.

The non-dualistic mind sees that the greater amount of abundance is possible only because some people have learned to draw wisdom and energy directly from the Infinite, using it to precipitate more wealth and thereby enlarge the finite pie.

The non-dualistic mind sees that because all things in the world of form are made of energy from the infinite world of formlessness, there is no limit to the amount of abundance that can be precipitated. Thus, it is auspicious to focus one’s efforts on learning how to precipitate wealth directly from the Infinite, instead of entering the struggle for a greater slice of a finite amount.

The non-dualistic mind sees that if all people learned how to draw upon the Infinite, there would be no more need for war over wealth, for no one would need to take anything from anyone else. Thus, the reason why there is still war in the world is that so many people are ignorant of the Infinite and the potential to precipitate abundance from this incomparable and inexhaustible source.

The non-dualistic mind sees that ignorance is the cause of war. The cause of ignorance is the illusion of separation. Thus, in order to learn how to draw abundance from the Infinite, one must be willing to overcome one’s sense of separation from the Infinite. This then points to a viable path that can lead—not to victory in war but to victory over war.

***

The second major cause of war is conflict over ideas.

The dualistic mind is blinded by the illusion of separation and cannot perceive the Infinite. Thus, it believes in the illusion that the living truth can be confined to a static framework – a theory, philosophy or belief system – in the finite world.

The dualistic mind fails to see that when the infinite truth becomes clothed in a finite framework, every idea must have an opposite idea. The dualistic mind fails to see that while an idea expressed in the finite world might contain elements of truth, the finite expression of truth is not the same as the incomparable truth of the Infinite. An expression of truth is not the same as the Spirit of Truth.

The dualistic mind now believes that its preferred idea is true in an ultimate sense and that the idea that opposes it is false in an ultimate sense. Thus, the dualistic mind believes it is justified in using force to destroy the opposing idea and that this will secure the survival of its preferred idea.

Behind these illusions is – again – the illusion of lack. The dualistic mind believes that there are limits for how truth can be expressed, and it has elevated one particular expression of truth as an absolute truth that could never be transcended. This “absolute” truth has defined limits for what people can understand about the world.

The non-dualistic mind sees that humanity has a far greater understand of the world today than a thousand years ago. Yet the world is not larger than it was in the past. So the greater understanding is possible only because some people have learned to draw upon the incomparable and inexhaustible wisdom of the Infinite. They have been willing to transcend a finite expression of truth in order to attain a greater understanding of the Infinite than was expressed in their old thought system.

The non-dualistic mind knows that the reason why there is greater understanding in the world today is that some people have engaged in an ongoing quest to have their finite understanding and experience of truth come ever closer to the Infinite. This empowers them to precipitate a life that is abundant both materially and spiritually.

The non-dualistic mind sees that if all people learned how to draw understanding directly from the Infinite, there would be no more need for war over ideas, for no one would need to cling to a finite expression of truth as being absolute. They would instead focus on the quest of receiving a progressive revelation of wisdom directly from the Infinite.

The reason why there is still war in the world is that so many people are ignorant of the Infinite and the potential to draw understanding from it.
The non-dualistic mind sees that ignorance is the cause of war. The cause of ignorance is the illusion of separation. Thus, in order to learn how to draw understanding from the Infinite, one must be willing to overcome one’s sense of separation from the Infinite. This then points to a viable path that can lead—not to victory in war but to victory over war.

***

The non-dualistic mind sees that human beings are designed with a survival instinct. This instinct has both an individual, a collective and an overall aspect.

On the individual level, if one person sees another person as a threat to his or her survival, many people will kill another human being in order to survive. On the collective level, if the members of one group of people see another group as a threat to the survival of the group, they will kill all members of the competing group in order to survive.

On the overall level, all human beings are designed to work for the survival of the human race. Thus, the need to secure the survival of the whole will temper the willingness to kill individuals and groups.
Killing is possible only when the concern for individual and group survival seems to override the concern for survival of the whole. It now seems as if the survival of the whole necessitates the killing of an individual or all members of a group, for they have been designated as threats to the whole.

Yet the sense that an individual or group is a threat to the whole springs from the illusion of lack. The illusion of lack gives rise to the belief that individual and group survival is linked to the preservation of finite resources or finite expressions of truth. Thus, a threat to one’s wealth or idea is seen as a threat to the survival of an individual, a group or perhaps even humanity as a whole.

This gives rise to the illusion that killing is necessary and justified in order to secure the survival of oneself, one’s group or the entire human race. Yet only the dualistic mind can believe that killing can secure life.
The dualistic mind believes this because it is separated from the Infinite and thus cannot see that the only source of true life and true abundance is the Infinite. The dualistic mind cannot see that by refusing to kill over finite resources, one will attain an incomparable reward from the Infinite—a reward that is more valuable than finite ideas, finite resources or even one’s finite life.

The dualistic mind will always seek to hold on to what it thinks it possesses in the finite world, for it cannot see that in the finite world nothing is permanent and thus nothing can be owned. Therefore, the dualistic mind does not see that in seeking to save its finite life, it is separating itself even more from the incomparable life that comes only through union with the Infinite.
The dualistic mind says:

The art of war, then, is governed by five constant factors, to be taken into account in one’s deliberations.

The non-dualistic mind says:

War is not an art, for war is fighting a finite battle with a finite enemy. True art is a finite expression that connects people to the Infinite reality beyond the expression.

War is not governed by five constant factors, for there is nothing constant in the finite world, nor in the dualistic mind. To find truly constant factors for one’s deliberations, one must access the Infinite.


The dualistic mind says:

The five constant factors are: (1) The Moral Law; (2) Heaven; (3) Earth; (4) The Commander; (5) Method and discipline.
The Moral Law causes the people to be in complete accord with their ruler, so that they will follow him regardless of their lives, undismayed by any danger.

The non-dualistic mind says:

Only the dualistic mind can operate with a view of humanity that makes some people superior to others; that makes some people rulers and others followers. This view is based on the illusion of separation, which makes it impossible to see that all humans came from the same source, namely the Infinite.

In the Infinite there is no separation and thus no space for comparisons that can make one infinite being superior to another. For how can there be divisions in infinity, and how can there be comparisons without divisions?

Only the dualistic mind can believe that moral law means that people recognize a ruler in the finite world and vow to follow that ruler blindly, even if it means losing their lives.

The non-dualistic mind sees that this is not moral law, but the height of immorality.

The non-dualistic mind sees that humans have no obligation to put a ruler in the finite world before the one true ruler, namely the Infinite.
When humans recognize the Infinite as the true ruler – and as the only source of moral law – they will never blindly follow a leader in the finite world.

Surely, people will realize that there are positions of leadership and that some people must fill these positions. Yet the people will always evaluate whether a person in a leadership position is in alignment with the Infinite and whether the leader’s rule and commands are based on true moral law.

If the people see that a person in a leadership position is out of alignment with the Infinite and instead worships a finite expression as the source of moral law, then the people are free to refuse to follow such a leader. Certainly, they are free to preserve their lives by refusing to fight a war for an immoral leader.

True moral law causes people to be in complete accord with their true leader, namely the Infinite in the kingdom within them. Only if a finite ruler is also in complete accord with the Infinite, should people follow that leader.

If the leader is out of accord with the incomparable moral law, non-violent civil disobedience becomes the highest moral responsibility for the people.

The dualistic mind says:

Heaven signifies night and day, cold and heat, times and seasons.
Earth comprises distances, great and small; danger and security; open ground and narrow passes; the chances of life and death.

The non-dualistic mind says:

Only the dualistic mind can see Heaven in terms of finite conditions. Surely, “Heaven” is a symbol for the Infinite in which there can be no conditions.

Only the dualistic mind can see Earth in terms of finite conditions. Surely, Earth is only a finite clothing that the Infinite is wearing temporarily, for without the Infinite was not any thing made that was made. The non-dualistic mind sees beyond appearances to the hidden cause behind the effects that are visible to the senses.

Once the mind sees that the cause behind all appearances is the Infinite, it cannot be fooled by the dualistic illusion that finite appearances are real, permanent or unavoidable. Thus, the mind cannot be fooled into believing that finite conditions can turn other people into enemies and that destroying them can secure one’s permanent gain or survival.

For how can permanency be attained by fighting impermanent appearances? Surely, permanency can be found only by looking beyond all finite conditions and reuniting with the Infinite.


The dualistic mind says:

The Commander stands for the virtues of wisdom, sincerity, benevolence, courage and strictness.

The non-dualistic mind says:

True wisdom is to see the Infinite as the first cause behind all finite appearances.

The true virtue of wisdom is to always put the Infinite before any finite conditions, thus never confusing cause and effect, never fighting appearances but basing one’s life on the reality that separation is an illusion.

True sincerity comes from seeking union with the Infinite before any finite goals. True benevolence comes from seeing all other people as expressions of the Infinite that one has seen in oneself. True courage comes from pursuing the incomparable cause of the Infinite before any finite causes. True strictness comes from never allowing the illusions and energies of duality to enter one’s mind.

Thus, people have no obligation to follow a commander who expresses finite virtues but has not discovered true wisdom and thus does not have true virtue.
The dualistic mind says:

By method and discipline are to be understood the marshaling of the army in its proper subdivisions, the graduations of rank among the officers, the maintenance of roads by which supplies may reach the army, and the control of military expenditure.

The non-dualistic mind says:

Once the mind has become engaged in the considerations for how to organize and supply an army, the battle is already lost.
True method means the study of how to avoid a finite war, so that one’s attention and energy is not consumed by fighting a battle against appearances.

Instead, one’s attention and energy is free to focus on learning how to draw abundance and understanding from the Infinite. Thereby, one can open the way for the precipitation of greater wealth, whereby all can be enriched without having to take from others.
One can open the way for bringing forth greater wisdom, whereby all can be enlightened and see beyond the need to fight the illusory battle of opposing ideas.


The dualistic mind says:

These five heads should be familiar to every general: he who knows them will be victorious; he who knows them not will fail.

The non-dualistic mind says:

Those who have true wisdom know that all generals are destined to fail. For a general is a leader in a finite army that is designed to fight another finite army in a dualistic battle based on appearances.

In a dualistic battle, there must be two opposing sides. In the short run, one side might appear to have won a victory. Yet in the long run, all those who engage in the dualistic struggle will fail.

For how can there be permanent victory in the finite world of appearances? How can victory be achieved by fighting a finite enemy, when the concept of enemies can only be based on appearances?
Those who engage in a battle based on appearances will ultimately fail, for they are seeking victory by reinforcing the illusion of separation. True victory, incomparable victory, can be attained only by reuniting with the Infinite.

When one unites oneself with the Infinite, one sees that all finite forms have the Infinite as their ultimate source. Thus, there can be no opposing sides, meaning that there can be no enemies. When there are no opposing sides, the concept of fighting a battle to defeat the enemy becomes meaningless.

People can then use true wisdom to overcome the illusion of separation. Thereby, they place themselves on the way that leads to incomparable victory, a victory in which all people win, for all grow in abundance and understanding.


The dualistic mind says:

Therefore, in your deliberations, when seeking to determine the military conditions, let them be made on the basis of a comparison.

The non-dualistic mind says:

Basing one’s deliberations on a comparison of the appearances and conditions in the finite world can lead only to ruin and death. To have true deliberations, one must begin with a clear recognition of reality. Reality is that beyond finite appearances is the Infinite. The Infinite is the source of all finite forms, thus it is the source of all self-aware beings.

When you know that you are an expression of the Infinite, you will know that all other people are also expressions of the Infinite. Thus, the concept of conflict between you and others cannot come from the Infinite. It can be only a finite appearance, an illusion that springs from the mind of duality.
Engaging in the illusion of having to fight an enemy only takes you further away from union with the Infinite. And since the Infinite is the true source of abundance and wisdom, seeking to fight a finite war can never lead to true gain or survival.

True abundance and ongoing life can be found only in going beyond all finite appearances and exercising one’s potential to unite with one’s source. Thereby, the finite being becomes one with its infinite source—and thus sees its oneness with all other beings who came from that source.


The dualistic mind says:

(1) Which of the two sovereigns is imbued with the Moral law?

The non-dualistic mind says:

This is one of the most dangerous and subtle illusions of all.

The dualistic mind springs from separation from the Infinite. When this separation occurs, there is no longer oneness, which means that you have the simultaneous creation of two sides. These sides can only be opposites, and thus they are locked in an ongoing battle in which each side is seeking to annihilate the other side.

The very foundation for war is the creation of an illusion that makes it seem like there are two opposing sides and that there can be only conflict between them. This gives rise to the further illusion that one side can gain from conquering and destroying the other. Which gives rise to the further illusion that wealth and survival can be attained by conquering or destroying the enemy.

Yet by partaking in the illusion of separation, one has only reinforced one’s separation from the Infinite and thus reinforced the wall – a wall that exists only in one’s own mind and heart – that separates one from the incomparable abundance of the Infinite.

To people blinded by the dualistic mind, the conflict between the two sides seems real, and it seems like they truly are enemies. This then gives rise to the illusion that fuels all war, namely that one side is right in an absolute sense and that one side is wrong in an absolute sense.
The dualistic mind believes that one side has the moral law and that the other does not.

The non-dualistic mind sees that whenever there is conflict between two sides, none of them can have the moral law, for both are separated from the Infinite.

Thus, it is an illusion that one side has the moral law. Why is this an illusion? Because when one believes that one side has the moral law, then one also believes that it is morally right for that side to kill its enemy.

Yet has not the message from the Infinite consistently been the same, though it has been expressed in different forms? And has that message not always been, “Thou shalt not kill!”

The Infinite is an unconditional reality. Thus, the command not to kill is an unconditional statement. It is impossible that the Infinite can be divided into opposing sides who are both willing to kill the other side. It is impossible that the Infinite can give rise to the illusion that it is morally right for one expression of the Infinite to kill another expression of the Infinite.

This illusion can be believed only by the dualistic mind, which is blinded by separation and thus believes in the appearance of two opposing sides. Because the dualistic mind lives in a world where there is nothing infinite, it follows that there is also no infinite way for this mind to define moral law.

***

The dualistic mind cannot define moral law based on the reality of the Infinite. Thus, it will define moral law as a relative concept that is based on conditions in the finite world. This means that one division of the dualistic mind will define moral law in such a way that it makes itself superior to other divisions.

When moral law is defined based on relative conditions in the finite world, it now becomes possible that you can have two sovereigns and two nations arrayed against each other in war, and both sides believe they have the moral law.

Both sides have the firm belief that they have the right to set aside the command not to kill. They both believe they have the right to take the unconditional command not to kill and override it with conditions they have defined based on the appearances of the finite world—their relative definition of moral law.

Yet the command not to kill came from the unconditionality of the Infinite. Thus, there are no conditions in the world of appearances that can override this unconditional command. Thinking this is so causes one to immediately lose the moral law, and it greatly reinforces the illusion of separation.

It is an incomparable reality that when two sovereigns are arrayed against each other in battle, none of them can have the moral law—meaning the non-dualistic moral law that is based on the unconditionality of the Infinite. Of course, both can believe and claim that they do have the moral law—meaning the dualistic moral law that is based on the conditions of the finite world.

Only a fool will be ready to give one’s life for such a sovereign.
Only a double fool will believe that giving one’s life for a sovereign who does not have the infinite moral law, will lead to fortune in the finite world or entry into the infinite world.

A wise person will know that true fortune and eternal life can be attained only through oneness with the Infinite. Thus, a wise person will know that one has an infinite moral obligation to refuse to fight for a sovereign who claims the finite moral law. Only by refusing to fight in a conditional battle, can one secure one’s unconditional survival.

Thinking that eternal life can be attained by entering the consciousness of death is a most dangerous illusion.


The dualistic mind says:

(2) Which of the two generals has most
ability? (3) With whom lies the advantages derived from Heaven and Earth? (4) On which side is discipline most rigorously enforced? (5) Which army is stronger? (6) On which side are officers and men more highly trained? (7) In which army is there the greater constancy both in reward and punishment?
By means of these seven considerations I can forecast victory or defeat.

The non-dualistic mind says:

It is true that by deliberating the conditions of the armies, victory and defeat in a finite battle can often be ascertained. Yet the non-dualistic mind can forecast victory and defeat from an incomparable perspective.
Engaging in a finite battle might lead to a finite victory, but such a victory cannot lead to permanent gain or ultimate survival. For when the victory is attained in the finite world of duality, the victory itself will generate an energy impulse. And in the finite world, every impulse has an opposite impulse; every action has an opposite reaction.

Any victory attained in a finite battle will automatically and inevitably create an impulse that precipitates the next conflict. Even if you win a victory in a finite battle, it is inevitable that your fortune and survival will soon be threatened by another finite enemy.

Surely, you can keep fighting such finite battles, and you might even be victorious in many of them. But as long as you are engaged in finite battles, you can never escape the possibility of defeat and loss.
When your energies and attention are always engaged in fighting a battle or preparing for the next battle, can it really be said that you have true fortune and true survival? Can it really be said that you have true life? Or are you simply one of the living dead?

Is it not, then, wiser to raise one’s mind above the dualistic struggle and discover how to precipitate incomparable abundance directly from the Infinite? Is it not wiser to seek everything from the infinite source, so that there is no need to obtain anything through force?

Thereby, one can attain abundance without generating an opposing impulse. Thus, one’s abundance will not be threatened and one’s survival has no finite boundary.

Is it not the greater wisdom, then, to pursue understanding of how to draw from the Infinite, rather than letting one’s life be consumed by learning how to win a temporary victory in the inconsequential finite struggle?


The dualistic mind says:

The general that hearkens to my counsel and acts upon it, will conquer: let such a one be retained in command! The general that hearkens not to my counsel nor acts upon it, will suffer defeat: let such a one be dismissed!

The non-dualistic mind says:

Those who hearken to the counsel of the dualistic mind might conquer a finite army, even gain a finite advantage. Yet they will inevitably suffer ultimate defeat, for they will remain separated from the abundant life of the Infinite.

Those who hearken to the counsel of the dualistic mind, have dismissed themselves from participation in the abundant life. For this life can be attained only by dismissing the dualistic mind and basing one’s life on the incomparable wisdom of the Infinite.

Let such unwise ones be dismissed from positions that can influence the lives of individuals, organizations, nations or the planet as a whole.


The dualistic mind says:

While heeding the profit of my counsel, avail yourself also of any helpful circumstances over and beyond the ordinary rules.
According as circumstances are favorable, one should modify one’s plans.

The non-dualistic mind says:

Why not avail oneself of the helpful circumstances that lead to an understanding of and union with the Infinite? Why not go beyond all finite rules and modify one’s life plans based on the realization that the most favorable circumstances can be obtained only through union with the Infinite?


The dualistic mind says:

All warfare is based on deception.

The non-dualistic mind says:

Here the dualistic mind has spoken a truth.

What is not being said is that in order to do something to another, one must first do the same to oneself.

In order to deceive another, one must first deceive oneself.

In order to kill another, one must first kill a part of oneself.

There is no deceit in the Infinite. Thus, deceit is possible only in the dualistic mind that thinks it is separated from the Infinite. In order to deceive another person, one must make use of the dualistic mind. Yet any use of the dualistic mind comes with a price.

In order to use this mind, you must enter into and become one with the dualistic mind. And you cannot remain united with the Infinite and at the same time be one with the dualistic mind. For no person can serve two masters.

It is impossible to enter the dualistic mind without becoming blinded by its illusions. Thinking one can make use of duality to deceive others and avoid being deceived oneself is the height of folly.


The dualistic mind says:

Hence, when able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must seem inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near.

The non-dualistic mind says:

By engaging in such deceitful measures directed at the enemy, you only bind yourself more to the mind of duality. Thus, for every measure you take in order to deceive the enemy, you bind yourself even more firmly to the mind of deceit.

Who then is really being deceived—the enemy or you? Or is it, perhaps, that both are deceived?


The dualistic mind says:

Now the general who wins a battle makes many calculations in his temple ere the battle is fought. The general who loses a battle makes but few calculations beforehand. Thus do many calculations lead to victory, and few calculations to defeat: how much more no calculation at all! It is by attention to this point that I can foresee who is likely to win or lose.

The non-dualistic mind says:

It is not the quantity of calculations that leads to victory, but the quality of calculations.

True victory can be achieved only by making the incomparable calculations that lead one to see the folly of any dualistic battle. This causes one to connect to the reality that true fortune and true survival can be attained only by rising above the dualistic struggle and reuniting with the Infinite.

Thus, one abandons all finite calculations and focuses all of one’s attention and energy on attaining oneness with the Infinite.

The ultimate preparation for non-war is to remove the beam of duality from one’s own eye. By allowing that beam to remain, one will inevitably be pulled into the dualistic struggle—perhaps while thinking one is fighting for a just cause.

The only just cause is the cause of the Infinite, which is to awaken all people from the illusion of separation. This cause can never be advanced through a dualistic battle in the finite world.

Death cannot be overcome by bringing more death.

Death can be overcome only by bringing LIFE, the incomparable life of the Infinite.
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