Power vs. Force: The Hidden Determinants of Human Behavior (Power vs. Force, #1)

by David R. Hawkins

Banishment is a traditional accompaniment of shame

banishment is equivalent to death.

sexual abuse, which lead to Shame, warp the personality often for a lifetime unless these iss...

destructive to emotional and psychological health and, as a consequen...

physical i...

Shame-based personality is shy, withdrawn, a...

Shame is also used as a tool of cruelty, and its victims often become cruel themselves. Shamed children are cruel to...

hallucinations

paranoia;

psyc...

Shame-based individuals compensate by perfectionism and rigidity, and often become driven and intolerant.

I recognize these were traits in me as a consequence of religious shame conditioning and unhealthy ignorance about the power of my body, my creativity, and my sexuality.

Serial killers have often acted out of sexual moralism, with the justification of punishing so-called “bad” women.

Because it pulls down the whole level of one’s personality, Shame results in a vulnerability to the other negative emotions, and, therefore, often produces false pride, anger, and guilt.

remorse, self-recrimination, masochism,

others desperately attempt escape by amorally denying Guilt altogether.

This seems to be a tendency of those that swing from the extreme side of a moral spectrum - hyper moral code adoption, to the other extreme side - hyper abandonment.

Guilt-domination results in a preoccupation with “sin,” an unforgiving emotional attitude frequently exploited by religious demagogues, who use it for coercion and control. Such “sin-and-salvation” merchants, obsessed with punishment, are likely either acting out their own guilt, or projecting it on to others.

OMG, this is very accurate to the high demand religious upbringing in the LDS faith. Full of moral contradictions, oxymorons, non-fully informed consent.

Capital punishment is an example of how killing gratifies a Guilt-ridden populace.

unforgiving American society, for instance, pillories its victims in the press and metes out punishments that have never been demonstrated to have any deterrent or corrective effect.

poverty, despair, and hopelessness.

victims, needy in every way, lack not only resources but also the energy to avail themselves of what resources may be available.

passive suicide

Without the will to live, the hopeless stare blankly, unresponsive to stimuli, until their eyes stop tracking and there is not even enough...

The apathetic are dependent; people in Apathy are “heavy” and are felt to be a burden by those around them.

Part of the syndrome of loss is the notion of the irreplaceability of what has been lost or that which it symbolized.

There is a generalization from the particular so that the loss of a loved one is equated with the loss of love itself.

Once they start to cry, they will begin to eat again.

Fear is the favored official tool for control by oppressive totalitarian agencies and regimes, and insecurity is the stock-in-trade of major manipulators of the marketplace. The media and advertising play to Fear to increase market share.

Desire moves us to expend great effort to achieve goals or obtain rewards.

Desire is also the level of addiction, wherein desire becomes a craving more important than life itself.

Desire, however, is a much higher state than Apathy or Grief.

In order to “get,” you have to first have the energy to “want.”

seek a better life.

Desire can, therefore, become a springboard to higher levels of consciousness.

Anger can lead to either constructive or destructive action.

Desire leads to frustration, which in turn leads to Anger. Thus, Anger can be a fulcrum by which the oppressed are eventually catapulted to freedom.

Desire creates an identification with -or attachment to- expectations. This creates suffering when the attainment of the expectation is not met. Desire, the , has to be checked by the beginner’s mind, the middle way. Anger can act as a catalyst for improvement, positive change, necessary growth.

Anger expresses itself most often as resentment and revenge and is, therefore, volatile and dangerous.

Anger as a lifestyle is exemplified by irritable, explosive people who are oversensitive to slights and become “injustice collectors,” quarrelsome, belligerent, or litigious.

Anger stems from frustrated want, it is based on the energy field below it. Frustration results from exaggera...

People feel positive as they reach this level,

rise in self-esteem is a balm to all the pain experienced at lower levels of consciousness.

Pride feels good only in contrast to the lower levels.

“Pride goeth before a fall.” Pride is defensive and vulnerable because it is dependent upon external conditions, without which it can suddenly revert to a lower level.

inflated ego is vulnerable...

divisive

nationalism.

arrogance and denial.

emotional problems or character defects are denied.

empowerment.

exploration, accomplishment, fortitude, and determination.

exciting, challenging, and stimulating.