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Forget about the symptom. Focus instead on the deeper issue. It makes no difference whether the issue is an addiction, an inferiority complex, an anger problem, financial predicament, or even procrastination, it cannot be resolved until you understand and tackle the deeper issue — unconsciousness, a disconnection from the source of being.

When the connection is there, so are inspiration, purpose, poise, confidence, happiness, abundance and intuition. When it is not there, instead of inspiration, there is apathy, instead of purpose, aimlessness. Instead of poise, there is anxiety. Instead of confidence, doubt. Instead of happiness, despair. Instead of abundance, scarcity. And instead of intuition, confusion.

Unconsciousness is essentially a forgetfulness of one’s true nature. When one suffers from it, the problems that arise cannot be fixed without attending to the source of the problem. For instance, with the problem of procrastination, it is not enough just to get back to work. That’s no more of a solution to a serious problem than is the temporary relief of a toothache by taking an aspirin. If a car keeps overheating, you don’t just put water into the cooling system. You find out what is causing the water to run low. You find the leak.

The solution to unconsciousness is consciousness. Just as the solution to darkness is light, consciousness is the eradicator of unconsciousness. But before any work can be done, there first has to be an acknowledgment of what the deeper problem is. It’s the same principle that is used in Alcoholics Anonymous – the alcoholic acknowledging that he or she is an alcoholic.

And just as an alcoholic will at first deny that he or she is an alcoholic, the unconsciousness person will deny that there is a problem in being conscious. This is to be expected. The reason for this is that the ego, sitting in the driver’s seat of the mind, depends upon unconsciousness for its existence. The ego can only exist in unconsciousness, for that is the realm of separation, and that is what the ego thrives on. Just as consciousness is a state of unity and wholeness, unconsciousness is a state of separation and fragmentation. The ego understands that the pursuit of consciousness is a pursuit of its own termination. The ego tries to avoid oneness at all costs. Its identity is in separation.

It is a big first step to bring consciousness into the equation. For to realize that the deeper problem is one of unconsciousness is an act of consciousness.

In the pursuit of consciousness on the spiritual path, the mind plays an important role – reflecting the light of consciousness. But it can only do this when it is tranquil, like a peaceful lake without the ripple of a wave. When the mind speeds up with an infinite number of thoughts, which is usually the case, there is no tranquility. There is no reflection, only distortion. It is then that we forget who we are. It is then that we are severed from inspiration, poise, intuition, and creativity.

What causes a mind to get out of control? It’s a lack of awareness — a lack of attention. Awareness is a witness to thought. It’s an act of consciousness. It keeps thoughts under control. Like a shop that has security cameras, when they are operating, shoplifting is controlled. But when they are not activated, looting can run rampant. So it is with the mind. When we are aware of our thoughts, they stay controlled. Just writing them down or identifying them will do the trick. But when we don’t have awareness of them, they tend to run wild.

When that happens, the mind allows what is unimportant to become important and what it important to become unimportant. This is the operation of ignorance — ignorance of one’s own true nature. In the East, it is called the principle of Maya, that which makes the false seem real. It’s like being under a spell.

To be awakened from this spell is to know the real as real and the false as false. But what prompts one who is under a spell to have the desire to come out of it? That is the role of consciousness. Consciousness is always within everyone, even if it seems otherwise. It is latent, just as an oak tree is latent in an oak seed. When it lands in the proper environment, with favorable conditions, the seed begins it transformative process. When a human being steps into favorable conditions, the same process begins. Consciousness takes root and begins to reach for the light.

If you are someone who is striving for more consciousness, then your seed has taken root. It’s just a matter of time and nourishment.

The high road of inner development, and the greatest nourishment of consciousness, is love. It cultivates oneness and encourages thinking more of others than oneself. It elevates the vibration of consciousness to higher and higher levels. It creates a restlessness of the soul. The highest spheres of love reflect the oneness that pervades all of creation. It brings into play the inner realities of spirit.

But what if you cannot experience love like this? If your inner life is dry and love seems inaccessible, then secondary measures need to be taken. And one secondary measure is to slow down the mind. Rampant thoughts are like weeds that prevent the growth of a new plant. To remedy this, sit still and focus on your breath. This will take your mind off of all the thoughts that are running through it. It will help you to get back into the present moment, which is the dimension of consciousness.

The mind tends to worry. It ponders problems. It focuses on what it lacks and on what it needs. “What if this happens? What if that happens?” It goes on and on. It imagines divisions where none exists. It imagines problems where none exists. It creates fear. How can love flourish in that inner environment?

These thoughts of divisions, problems, and insufficiency cause ripple effects on the surface of the mind. Through meditation techniques like focusing on the breath, these thoughts are slowed down, allowing the mind to become tranquil enough to reflect, at least partially, the nature of the soul, of consciousness, of the source of being. With this reflection of light, love can begin to blossom.

This blossoming of love cultivates more subtle and higher levels of consciousness. With this comes the ever-growing and ever-deepening perception of spiritual reality as wholeness and oneness and light. In this level of consciousness, with this deep connection to the source of being, limitations begin to fall away.

Imagine the limitations (doubt, confusion, despair, etc.) as undesirable plants that cannot survive in full daylight. Imagine their opposites (knowledge, clarity, inspiration, etc.) as beautiful, blossoming plants that thrive in full daylight. With that understanding, you can make a conscious choice of where to create your metaphoric garden – in the shade or in the blaze of full sunlight. That choice determines what will grow and what will not. For the quality of life is essentially a matter of light — the light from our source of being.