“To recognize one’s own insanity is, of course, the arising of sanity; the beginning of healing and transcendence.”

– Ekhart Tolle

As a psychiatrist, I am very familiar with “insanity.” However, I’m not in agreement with more traditional psychiatrists who believe in an absolute delineation between sanity and insanity. I believe the reality is quite a bit more complicated. And I also believe that we are all insane at some point.

There is a common thread that runs through all religions whereby human beings are all considered essentially to be in the same boat. We are unenlightened, or unawakened, or sinners. And each religion uses different words to describe the process, but all of them have the possibility of reaching some form of transcendence, higher state, or being saved.

Humans beings all have an ego (and I don’t mean “ego” as it is sometimes used to mean self-esteem or self worth). Our ego is our thinking self, the part of us that is constantly planning and judging and many times responsible for our misery. The thing is, our ego is not us. It only fools us into thinking that it is. It also fools us into believing that we are separate from everyone and everything else. But the reality is that everything and everyone is actually connected. We are all one. This illusion of disconnection is a delusion, shared by millions of people. Einstein described it well:

“A human being is a part of the whole called by us universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feeling as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.”

I believe that this shared delusion of being separated is true insanity. This delusion is responsible for just about all of human suffering. It causes depression, anxiety, physical disease, murder, war, rape, and the destruction and pillaging of Mother Earth. However, the opposite is also true. When we acknowledge our insanity and recognize that we are actually all connected, we become more sane and miraculous healing can happen.

Sadly, millions of humans have been living for thousands of years in this shared delusion. From the perspective of organized religion, we are “unawakened,” or “unenlightened” or ‘”sinners.” However, the exciting news is that this is all beginning to change. Things have started to shift over the last decade and even the past few years. We are waking up. We are becoming aware. We are opening our eyes. We are finding transcendence. We are recognizing our connectedness. We are realizing that our egos are not us. We are being healed. We are finding sanity.

While it’s easy to feel hopeless when looking at the state of our current planet, I believe that it’s just as easy to feel hopeful. We each have a choice to make. And each one of us matters. A single human being who has opened their eyes can lead to an infinite amount of change in the world, including influencing other human beings to open their eyes. Each one of us has infinite capabilities and an infinite amount of love to share.

I always like to say “healing is an inside job.” It truly is, because no one else can heal you and all true healing starts from deep within. However, when one person opens their mind and heart and allows healing, it gives permission for others to do the same. It starts a chain of events and there is a rippling of energy throughout the universe. This ripple can start the healing process for everyone and everything, including our little planet in the universe.

If you’re reading these words right now, you have already taken the first step. All you have to do is continue on the journey of opening your eyes and heart as wide as you can. And don’t worry, you’re not alone. We are all right here with you.