The subconscious mind is fully developed at birth, and because it has no filter, it believes everything from what society and our families tell us. It is where our beliefs live, and it runs 95% of our lives.
Since our beliefs run our lives without our conscious awareness, what if we had been taught as children that all animals have equal value? We have been taught to love our pets, and at the same time, we have been taught that farm animals are servant animals, providing us and our pets with food as well as materials such as clothing, shoes, furniture, and car interiors. But for someone who is Hindu, cows are viewed as sacred. In some countries, dogs and cats are used for human consumption. No matter where we were raised, our views of animals are rooted in a belief system deeply ingrained in our subconscious.
If you were to observe an elephant caring for and protecting her baby, you would know at your core how much that elephant loves her baby. What if you observed a cow caring for and protecting her baby? Is the cow’s love for her baby any different from the elephant’s? What if we were taught as children that all animals are created equal, that animals experience feelings of love and fear just as we do, and that they form bonds and have families like us? From this place, we would understand that all beings have the capacity to suffer and thrive. We see the cow’s life is no less indispensable than the elephant’s or our pets.
Our subconscious mind is powerful. Yet cultivating awareness offers us a way to view life from a different vantage point and to see the richness of all life on Earth.
Image courtesy of www.artofit.com
