Oneness creates an empathic connection between you and everyone else. You realize you’re not an island unto yourself, and you begin to see that invisible threads connect you to others. In some ways the realization of oneness is a blessing, while in other ways it’s a curse. It’s a blessing to realize we’re all inherently connected. It’s a curse to notice that many people still live without this awareness.
Because oneness empathically connects you to others, it invited feelings of deep joy as well as deep sorrow. When you accept its pleasure, you also accept its pain. As Kahlil Gibran wrote in The Prophet:
The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain.
Is not the cup that holds your wine the very cup that was burned in the potter’s oven?
And is not the lute that soothes your spirit, the very wood that was hollowed with knives?
When you are joyous, look deep into your heart and you shall find it is only that which has given you sorrow that is giving you joy.
When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your delight.
While in a state of oneness, you tune in to the joy as well as the sorrow of the larger body, transcending the lower single-cell level of awareness. Sometime this state induces the most exalted feelings you can imagine, while other times it feels like being hollowed out with knives.
The truth aspect of oneness determines the emotional impact. When you predict a positive outcome for the larger body and you feel that humankind is headed in a positive direction, you feel wonderful. When you predict a negative outcome, you feel intensely sad that the larger body is off course. You can never completely insulate yourself from the fate of the larger whole. Humanity’s triumphs are yours to celebrate; the mistakes are yours to commiserate. It isn’t enough to do no wrong. To honor the principle of oneness, you must commit yourself to doing good.
* Source: Personal Development for Smart People by Steve Pavlina