• Bio
  • Mind-Body Therapy
  • Events
  • Resources
  • Contact

Katherine Marr

~ MA, CCC, RP, E-RYT

Katherine Marr

Monthly Archives: March 2020

Why Ignorance Is Bliss

14 Saturday Mar 2020

Posted by katherinemarr in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

IMG_9164 “Ignorance is bliss” is quite a common expression – mostly used in one of two contexts: 1) some use it to explain their own conscious choice of ignoring, as in not seeing something as it is in order to preserve a more ideal or optimistic perspective on the world; or 2) some use it to describe, often resentfully, how they feel negatively affected by another person’s choice to “burry their head in the sand” or to “turn a blind eye”, or to “push something under the rug”.

Why is ignorance bliss? On the surface, it seems simple. The expression is self-explanatory. The choice of not seeing something as it is, of not understanding, of turning our attention away, is a choice that protects us. Or so it seems.

To remove the judgment that may be implied with the use of the word ignorance, let’s define it as not knowing. To not know protects us from the adverse affects of living in the knowing. To live in the knowing of something, that is – to stay consciousness, to keep paying attention once something is known – requires being responsible… which takes courage, which can be confronting, and which raises the bar of a life worth living. To wake up out of ignorance demands bringing awareness to areas of incompetence we have within our way of being. The type of incompetencies I’m referring to include areas related to grieving well, sitting still, letting go, staying present through discomfort, accepting, managing disappointment, swelling rejection, not personalizing actions of others, and so much more. Whatever your incompetency is where likely lies your patterns of ignorance. There is nothing more naturally human, however, than circling through cycles of awakening and dormancy.  Ignorance can essentially manifest as any of the typical psychological defence mechanisms we consciously or unconsciously resort to in the face of new information that has shaken the ground under our feet: denial, projection, regression, acting out, dissociation, repression, intellectualization, rationalization, displacement, compartmentalization, among others. We get comfortable seeing the world in a certain way. It allows predictability, which can feel safe and stable. Even just a glimpse of an alternate reality from the one we know can, in fact, be too much to process. This is especially true when we know that accepting certain types of new information as valid will require that we be: a) willing to feel things we may not want to feel, and b) that we be willing to face everything else that will unfold from leaning into a new truth.

I’m speak vaguely, with intention. The examples are so vast. Ignorance pervades our relationships – with ourselves, with one another, as well as with our environment. On the daily. Our defence mechanisms come up often. Relationships are hard.

The problem with staying ignorant – choosing to not know certain ultimate truths – is that we end up missing out on connection, growth, and wholehearted living. Ignorance and all the defence mechanisms it expresses itself as keep us in delusion, disconnection, and suffering. When love dies in a relationship and we stay. When violence has occurred and we fail to acknowledge the impact. When our actions are causing harm to our planet and we keep their harmful habits. When our health is at stake and we pretend it’s not. When we’ve harmed another and we blame.

What are you unwilling to feel? A question Tara Brach often poses in her retreat talks and teachings. If you answer this question, you’ll open the door to the areas in your life where ignorance has been bliss. The illusion of bliss, that is.

Advertisement

New post:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Email
  • Print

Like this:

Like Loading...

Every moment of every day presents us with opportunities to practice being present, speaking truth, listening, letting go, grounding, observing, paying attention to what is and what isn’t happening inside and all around us.

I am interested in all the beautiful complexities that make a person whole. I can only offer what I know. The rest I still have to learn.

 

Recent Posts

  • Farm Stand
  • Holding the Sacredness of Life
  • Why Ignorance Is Bliss
  • Prayer for the Ending of your Suffering
  • Breakfast with Phippen

Archives

  • July 2021
  • March 2021
  • March 2020
  • December 2019
  • May 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • April 2018
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • July 2016
  • May 2016
  • March 2016
  • January 2016
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • March 2015
  • January 2015
  • October 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • Katherine Marr
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Katherine Marr
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...
 

    %d bloggers like this: