LAW #5
Life continually moves toward wholeness by integrating apparent opposites.
Whenever we cling to one side of a duality, imbalance and conflict follow.
The beauty of divine laws is that they continually move us toward balance. They often use disintegration as a steppingstone toward integration. In other words, life is always working to restore balance.
On the physical level, being in balance creates order. Imbalance leads to disorder. The temporary disorder of deconstruction is often a necessary step toward a more ordered whole.
All laws of physics, chemistry, biology—every conceivable science there is—are governed by the great law of balance. Some of these laws are known to scientists. Others, we haven’t yet perceived.
Mentally, balance equates to sanity, which leads us toward more balance through clearer thinking. Emotionally, balance feels like harmony. Imbalance always reveals itself through inner conflict and negative emotions.
Pain is often what motivates us to restore harmony. Too often we avoid pain, missing what it is trying to reveal—what needs integrating. In doing so, we lose the opportunity to regain our balance. So we remain in a state of disharmony.
Whenever we struggle, our work is to search for the side we’re missing. Then we can integrate apparent opposites and live in balance.
Two halves, one whole
Balance is the cohesive force that lives behind apparent opposites. It’s there in the receptive state living within the active so that the active movement becomes “effortless effort.” If activity feels strained, tiring and effortful, this is because it doesn’t contain the receptive principle in it.
This is often the reason that people shy away from movement—from making an effort. Because we can’t feel the serenity within the active space. This leaves us stagnant, since our effort feels so strained.
What we need to find is a balance of the active principle—which is movement and action—together with the quiet state of being, which comes from the receptive principle.
The active goes out and the receptive takes in. The active principle gathers energy and the receptive state relaxes. When we combine the two in proper balance, our efforts will be calm and relaxed, while our receptivity will be vibrant and alive.
In either case, both movements can be present. It’s just a matter of proportion. That’s what keeps everything in balance.
We can find another example of balance in the temperatures found on Earth. Both warmth and cold are indispensable for harmonious living. Either way, when temperatures are too far out of balance, they can kill us.
Everything we perceive as opposites is simply the two halves needed to create a whole. It is not possible to live fully in reality—to be in unity—and leave out any half. Whenever we struggle, our work is to search for the side we’re missing. Then we can integrate apparent opposites and live in balance.
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