The current development of a pandemic divides people into two opposite groups. On the one hand are the people who,driven by panic, empty grocery stores and pharmacies to secure private reserves. On the other, are those who deny the gravity of the situation by comparing it with other disasters in this troubled world.
However, independent of these reactions, the fact is that the world is currently in a pandemic, and that the virus proliferates at a high speed. Yet, people are still subject to ignorance when it comes to understanding the causes of this crisis not seeing that it is not about the virus, but about the people whose unconscious actions are the root of the problems that humanity is in general facing.
Many people are still ignoring preventive measures, justifying such behavior with low mortality due to COVID-19 viral infection, particularly when compared with mortality due to some other major tragedies in today's world. This ignoranceincreases spread of infection and exposes vulnerable members of our communities to greater risk. The claim that natural selection currently plays its part is true, but it is also true that a humanity that lacks compassion and shows no concern for others does not deserve to be called humanity.
The current situation becomes a litmus test that reveals the true color of each person, but also provides an opportunity to raise awareness and recognize our own color. It allows us to look at our own actions and behavior with honesty, and reconsider mocking the importance of protective measures. We are invited to express respect for health-care professionals who are currently risking their health in helping others, and to feel compassion for those who are infected or whose family has been quarantined. But, by taking this crisis seriously we do not deny other diseases this world faces: nor the social disease manifested through wars, modern slavery, hunger, mass migrations and poverty; nor the diseased natural environment manifested by climate change, the death of forests, the drying up of rivers, or the melting of ice. Indeed, by cultivating compassion in present situation, we strengthen our understanding of the cause of all those diseases regardless of the level at which they occur – great ignorance.
When creating an opinion about level of threat that present situation brings with, most people rely solely on information gathered through social media, thereby losing the ability to grasp all the facts and reach a deeper understanding. When such a lack of knowledge is associated to a low level of awareness, people are unable to distinguish which information is true and which is not. And with that, they fail to realize that without a basic understanding, they become the ideal incubator and vehicle for reproduction and spread of the viruses.
Since the conditioned mind always tries to resist changes and drives people to keep going as usual, many people move around even with an infection potentially caused by the COVID-19 virus. What is more, the ego makes them believe that with such behavior they show mental strength, intellectual greatness, and resistance to medial panic. Because of the egocentric mindset, people neglect that even when their natural resistance to infection is high, it may not be the same for the person next to them. With this, they put people around them at greater risk, regardless whether others are their family, friends, colleagues, neighbors, people that share the same transportation or even their own pets.
Yet, there is no need to panic. This is neither the first nor will be the last pandemic that humanity experiences. But despite this, we must take it as a warning and a sign that we have not learned much from our past. Although we have learned to treat the symptoms caused by pathogens, ways to stop contamination, or boost immunity against the targeted virus, we have not yet understood our role in destroying the natural balance that leads to the formation of new viral strains.
Instead of panic, it is necessary to change the way we view the world and finally start caring for other living beings as if they were our family, because, in essence, they are more than that - they belong to the same substance as us. And this considers also those living creatures that we may not like to have around. Indeed, all forms of existence, including viruses and humans, belong to the same life equation. When we realize that it is never about fighting one of the variables of this equation, but about achieving balance within the equation, we will also be able to understand the root of the pandemic and how to get out of it.
The catastrophes that occur one after the other show to what extent nature has been thrown out of balance. It shows that the variable that disturbs that balance - the human race, must be adjusted. Nature is already taking care of it, but this does not guaranty that humankind will remain in equation. If we want to stay in, we need to act mindfully. But, the only way to achieve this is through the cultivation of consciousness, and the establishment of inner peace and a clear mind which create a nourishing ground on which thoughtful actions can develop.
Yet, when we are in the midst of a pandemic, we must not forget to maintain not only those long-term measures but also those that are necessary at that very moment. For people living with higher awareness, these measures apply naturally, but for others, awareness has yet to be raised.
May your consciousness grow with each obstacle you meet on your way.