Reclaiming the Soul of a Nation

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I find myself returning again and again to the origins of this country because it feels important. History leaves clues, as they say, and something about this beginning continues to call my attention.

This country emerged from a soul-level idea, one that was new in human consciousness at the time. A question was being asked.

Could a nation be created on the belief that dignity is inherent?
That worth is not assigned by bloodline or class?
That a human life is free to determine its own destiny?

That question was revolutionary.

And yet, even as the soul of the country spoke truths that still resonate today, the identity that formed around it struggled to live them.

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The consciousness that gave rise to this country was new, but the identity that emerged was shaped by an older one. How could it have been otherwise? The world had little memory of anything beyond familiar patterns of power. So while the soul-level ideas of this country pointed toward freedom, inclusion, and equality, the identity that formed could not yet embody them.

Instead, structures were put in place in an attempt to enforce freedom and equality. And that’s the paradox. Soul-level truths cannot be forced. They can only be lived.

And so a collective identity took shape. America, the land of the free. But even at its inception, it was never free for everyone. To maintain that identity, force became necessary. In many ways, it had to be. Identity, whether individual or collective, can only be maintained through force because it is not inherently real. It is a construct of the mind.

The soul, and the soul-level ideas this country was founded upon, such as freedom, equality, dignity, operate differently. They are sustained not by force, but by coherence. By power, not domination.

Returning to our ideals isn’t about more legislation or better politicians. It’s about something quieter and more personal. It’s about each citizen embodying what they wish to create.

Peace can only arise from within. The same is true for equality and freedom. We must know them as true for ourselves and then extend them to one another.

This is how a country remembers. This is how it reclaims its soul.