The Power of Identification (Red Hawk)

Identification is the great law that governs all human life. We are enslaved and quickly swept away by it as it captures and consumes our attention, which is what we are in essence. Yet, we are blind to it and believe we are free. All human problems are caused by identification. Imagination and identification are identical twins that work together. We are powerless to hold attention for long before being captured by imagination. We are identified with the body and ego structure and by attachment to objects, people, ideas, belief systems. A root of identification is self-importance when we see ourselves as the center of the universe. Identification is fear, which blocks love. It has one aim only—the survival of the false self/ego structure. One of the primary tools of identification is judgment, which can become a reminding factor. The mark of a person who is willing to work is self-honesty. Freedom is freedom from identification. There is only ever one problem: an unwillingness to confront the need to cease all identification. We can loosen the hold of identification with the practice of presence by self-observation and self-remembering. The body is an objective feedback mechanism to help orient the attention in the present. If we’re not conscious of the body, we’re not conscious. Conscience can be seen as the Will of God, or Love. In saying and doing things that violate conscience, we suffer remorse and our hearts can change. Beauty is everywhere but we don’t see it due to fear or identification. We can come to be grateful to those who offend us. Intuition can be distinguished from imagination. Love is the standard by which we can compare and come to disbelieve reactions and feelings. Red Hawk is an acclaimed poet and the author of 13 books, including Self Observation, Self Remembering, The Way of the Wise Woman, Return to the Mother, and Book of Lamentations.