Is there a unique human or universal possibility in “we” that simply is not available to even the most finely developed “me”? When two human beings meet in purpose — really meet, not just be in close proximity — can they unlock in each other a greater growth and evolutionary potential than either one can even perceive on their own?
We can see in world history the obvious survival and evolutionary benefit to living collectively in families, tribes, communities and cities; safety at many levels in numbers. We also see where survival and "safety" can fuel fierce competition and rivalry over resources, ideology and culture. Will fear always override every higher human impulse that would naturally bring people together?
Fortunately, no. We can find stories all across the planet of miraculous healing and transformation that take place when people cultivate with each other an ecology that’s open and trusting, creating a new sense of what is possible as we evolve mutually and collectively. What else could be holding us back?
In this conversation, Aviv Shahar is joined by two Portals friends and life-long spiritual seekers, Nigel Geeves and Well. Through their own journeys they explore and reveal what becomes possible when humans seek to evolve together.
Among their insights:
This conversation is part of the continuing Portals discovery into what is emerging on the frontiers of human experience in this time of profound change. Information about upcoming special events can be found on the Events page. Also visit and subscribe to our YouTube channel.
“I realized psychology is really important and, in the West, we've got this psychology that we are individual and when we come together it's like putting blocks together. But when I traveled to Africa, I came across this word Ubuntu which means something I don't think we've got a literal translation but it's something like “I am because we are,” and in the deep feeling of myself, it feels like that, we do have a deep connection that all comes from the same source. But we are separate among all beings.” (Nigel)
“One thing that's come up is how I think about meeting others because, firstly, we meet on the outside, and there's validity in that in the way that our senses look outward. So often, another person will see more about me than I see about myself. So in reflection, there is great assistance possible. But one thing I'm currently discovering and have discovered over the last few years is that those that I spend time with and meeting on the outside, they come to live in me as well.” (Nigel)
“If you look at the two words, react, which clearly says doing something again that's been done before and is mostly an automatic process, and response, which is very different and tends to have some element of consideration inside it. Now if you look at the defense systems by their very nature, they are designed to preempt attacks, and they need to work fast and actually block attacks, preferably before they happen. So they're both very much in reaction. As we've already identified, there is so much in us that is set up that way. But mostly, we go on an automatic process of defending even when we don’t need to, rather than actually considering, responding, and going deeper. (Well)
“I had a very potent experience early in my journey where I kind of met a signal that switched me on to the whole idea of being a part of evolution and playing a part in evolution consciously, and so that turned on in me, and I was very grateful for that. I've been looking around the world and thinking, ‘Where do I fit in this place?’ And I hadn't really found where I fit in. But I felt I fit in by playing a part in that bigger process. So that was important at the beginning of a journey I've been making ever since.” (Well)