Imagine a world without the controlling devices of obligation and money! Can you? If you are finding it difficult, please realize that it is not because you do not desire such a world but simply because you believe it to be impossible! After all, you were born into societies built on the foundations of obligation and money (or some other form of artificial control).
Yet, as serious, awakening spiritual travelers, you must realize that obligation and any other form of control (including the device of money) is not natural to us. On the contrary, we are by nature, free, limitless, expansive, creative, unconditioned and unconditional! Obligation and other controlling devices, however, derive from conditionality.
OUR TRUE, UNCONDITIONAL AND FREE NATURE
Many of us believe, or at least want to believe, that true love is unconditional. We are greatly encouraged by and take consolation from the belief in a god/being/presence/ultimate reality that is unconditional. Many of us also believe that we are expressions of god, of ultimate reality. How can we not be? Consequently, to the extent that we live in denial of our unconditional nature, we live in denial of truth. And we have all experienced, to varying degrees, the suffering that results from living ‘outside of truth’ or, as some would say, ‘in ignorance’.
THE FREEWORLD CLUB
The FreeWorld Club is a project that I have been inspired to initiate. In my personal, spiritual journey, I have sought to deepen my experience of unconditional living. From small, perhaps less obvious acts of kindness and thoughtfulness towards myself and the people, animals and plants that I live with and encounter, to the more overt expressions of love, I have sought to be motivated by nothing other than the joy and satisfaction of performing the act.
This does not mean that I have performed each of these acts without ever wanting, hoping and/or expecting some kind of extrinsic reward such as a smile, perhaps, a thank-you or some gift or service that might be offered in return to me :-). Not at all! The desire for reward or some form of compensation is quite strongly embedded in my psyche. However, I wish to live more freely. I wish to live and act in this world motivated by nothing other than the joy of being! It is a strong desire in me. I believe that, on some level, it is your desire also!
There are several sources for my inspiration and aspiration, some of which are reflected in these experiences, thoughts, beliefs and feelings:
· I have been the beneficiary of many free ‘gifts’, many of which have helped me enormously.
· I do not believe that any meaningful value can be placed on any human being or what they do – who we are and whatever we do in love is priceless. There are no exceptions to this.
· When we give freely what we value and what we enjoy most, we are no longer living within the constraints of obligation or money – artificial devices which have the effect of controlling rather than freeing. Instead, we are drawn to live at a level of consciousness that allows us to realize our unlimited, creative nature! In other words, we are more likely to be intrinsically motivated rather than extrinsically motivated.
SURELY WE ALL WANT THIS?
This may seem like an unattainable ideal, but I refuse to believe that it is. In fact, I believe that true and lasting happiness is only fully revealed in the unconditional life. It is this ideal that itself has inspired me to consider sharing it with you; hence The FreeWorld Club!
As an awakening spiritual traveller, do you not also wish to live the unconditioned life? You have probably, by now, experienced the harshness and lack of true satisfaction with conditional living. Let me give an example:
You smile at someone. They return a smile. You are happy. You feel they like you. It adds to your sense of worth and confidence. On the other hand, they may scowl back at you. In this case, you start speculating about why this may have happened. Was it something you did or didn’t do? Is there something wrong with them? Has somebody bad-mouthed you to them? And so on and so forth. Your sense of wellbeing is clearly regulated by how people respond to you. This is conditional living.
UNCONDITIONAL LIVING IS TRUE LOVE
What’s the alternative? This: Regardless of what someone does, you maintain equanimity. Your motivation for doing anything is nothing other than maintaining your natural state of being – the state of equanimity. This is unconditional living. Which kind of living would you rather do?
Our lives are driven by the principle of ‘give and take’. If I ‘give’ you something, I expect something in return, whether it is a smile, a favour or a material good or service. We have become victims of our self-perpetuated myth – that there is no such thing as a free lunch. Is this really how we wish to live our lives? Is this what we believe we truly are by nature?
The FreeWorld Club is about helping us reacquaint ourselves with our true nature – free, unconditioned, expansive, creative, joyful and peaceful. In short – the nature of LOVE! The FreeWorld Club is about living the love that we are – unconditioned and unconditional!
HOW IT WORKS
By becoming a member of this club, you make a commitment to explore ways of giving and receiving unconditionally. You may give and receive ANYTHING, from a smile to a palace (if you happen to have one to give away!). In other words, what you give may be material or non-material.
There are 4 conditions that you must fulfil when you choose to give or receive. They are as follows:
THE FOUR CONDITIONS FOR GIVING AND RECEIVING UNCONDITIONALLY, I.E. IN LOVE
1. Give only what you value. Make them things of the highest quality. People are not your dumping ground. Honour them.
2. Give only if you enjoy giving. In other words, give in love. If you don’t enjoy giving something, don’t. Wait till you can enjoy it or find something else to give.
3. Give without expecting or wanting anything in return. When considering receiving something from someone, ask them if they are giving it to you in love. If they are not or are doubtful, do not accept it. Also, do not accept anything if you feel a sense of obligation about it.
4. Give as if you were being paid top dollar for your goods or service. In other words, do not compromise on quality.
That’s it! Not that difficult, is it??? And the rewards, whether you think about them or not, are already there – joy, peace and freedom! They are just waiting to be allowed expression which your unconditional giving and receiving will do! Woo hoo!!
EXAMPLES OF WHAT YOU CAN GIVE
Now, here are some examples of what you can give. It is not an exhaustive list of course, but it’ll give you some ideas.
Essentially, any goods or services that you make/do well and that you enjoy doing, are the kind of freebies that you want to give. Nothing is too small or too big. Engage your imagination. Let it go wild! However, please check that all four conditions for giving and receiving are fulfilled.
- A smile, hug, listening ear
- Food that you cook/prepare for someone or some event
- Writing (for example, one of the things I am giving for free is my writing – articles, motivational messages, ecards on Personal and Spiritual growth)
- Manual/Artistic/Intellectual skills eg tidying someone’s yard, fixing a car, designing a website
- Organizing an event
- Training for adults or children
- Buying goods or service for someone eg a ticket to the opera, someone’s weekly shopping, a bus ticket etc
JOINING THE FREEWORLD CLUB
1. Take the pledge for unconditional giving and receiving which you will sign and submit to Lucy.
2. Register so that you can start posting.
3. Post about your unconditional/free giving and receiving. I recommend a weekly post using your first name (or a nickname if you prefer). There is no obligation to post but your experiences will encourage others and help keep the spirit rich and strong!
I hope you have a wonderful time reacquainting yourself with the limitlessness, creativity, joy and love that you truly are! May the practice of unconditional giving and receiving swing open the doors to your infinite self! Woo Hoo!
Lucy
