W-5: I am never upset for the reason I think.

Commentary (full lesson beneath commentary)

Fear, guilt and death keep us involved in ego “thinking” … in other words, the ego is playing us.

To be “played” is urban jargon for he/she used you for his/her own personal gain until he/she got what was needed and dumped you. Guys do it, spies do it, gals do it, cops do it, gangstas do it, mobsters do it, even people with angel-faces do it – you get the picture.

And guess who is the original player?  The ego.  The inventor of play — as in mind games.  Play in which the fun is short-lived at best.

Lesson 5 makes it very clear that we are never upset for the reason we think.  Listen to “That’s Not the Reason Why” and notice the lyrics.

The only reason we are ever upset, really, is we’re afraid of uncovering the truth of what we really are because then the personal identity disappears.  The ego tells us that to be without personal identity is death, but that’s simply not true.  And you can function in this dream realm, within the time-body, for a while longer after personal identity is gone … as Mooji says, it’s like turning off the switch on a fan.  The fan continues whirring for a while until it comes to a complete halt.

LESSON 5

I am never upset for the reason I think.

This idea, like the preceding one, can be used with any person, situation or event you think is causing you pain.  Apply it specifically to whatever you believe is the cause of your upset, using the description of the feeling in whatever term seems accurate to you.  The upset may seem to be fear, worry, depression, anxiety, anger, hatred, jealousy or any number of forms, all of which will be perceived as different.  This is not true.  However, until you learn that form does not matter, each form becomes a proper subject for the exercises for the day.  Applying the same idea to each of them separately is the first step in ultimately recognizing they are all the same.

When using the idea for today for a specific perceived cause of an upset in any form, use both the name of the form in which you see the upset, and the cause which you ascribe to it.  For example:

I am not angry at ______ for the reason I think.
I am not afraid of _______ for the reason I think.

But again, this should not be substituted for practice periods in which you first search your mind for “sources” of upset in which you believe, and forms of upset which you think result.

In these exercises, more than in the preceding ones, you may find it hard to be indiscriminate, and to avoid giving greater weight to some subjects than to others.  It might help to precede the exercises with the statement:

There are no small upsets.  They are all equally disturbing to my peace of mind.

Then examine your mind for whatever is distressing you, regardless of how much or how little you think it is doing so.

You may also find yourself less willing to apply today’s idea to some perceived sources of upset than to others.  If this occurs, think first of this:

I cannot keep this form of upset and let the others go.  For the purposes of these exercises, then, I will regard them all as the same.

Then search your mind for no more than a minute or so, and try to identify a number of different forms of upset that are disturbing you, regardless of the relative importance you may give them.  Apply the idea for today to each of them, using the name of both the source of the upset as you perceive it, and of the feeling as you experience it.  Further examples are:

I am not worried about ___________ for the reason I think.
I am not depressed about _____________ for the reason I think.

Three or four times during the day is enough.

Let’s practice together!  Watch and listen to me reading each ACIM Lesson on Youtube.  Also, check out Workin’ the Workbook, my online class which supports the ACIM Workbook practice.

To ask Amy a question, email [email protected]