ACIM Discourses 1: The Level of Mind

This discourse can also be downloaded as a PDF file from this location.

Introduction

This first discourse on A Course in Miracles is the result of a short trial done by Igacim and Joe, a fellow student and friend. Having discussed the contents of A Course in Miracles for many years, the idea occurred to them to record their discussions and make them available in text format for other students. This idea was inspired by the Buddhist tradition of Dharma Discourses. It is the hope of both Igacim and Joe that these discussions will inspire others in their studies of A Course in Miracles and their journey to peace. You are welcome to contact either of them via the School for Inner Peace, which can be found online at www.schoolforpeace.co.za.

This first discourse started with a random quotation from A Course in Miracles, and is relatively short. It presents a spontaneous discussion that occurred in response to this quotation. Future discourses will be longer, but will follow the same spontaneous format. It is felt that this provides a space for theory and experiences to arise naturally in a way that is most helpful and easy to follow.

May you grow in peace and understanding. May you grow in love. May all beings be happy.

With Metta, Igacim

Discourse 1: The Level of Mind

Joe: We have a quotation here from A Course in Miracles: “I have enjoined you to behave as I behaved, but we must respond to the same Mind to do this. This Mind is the Holy Spirit, Whose Will is for God always.”

Igacim: What comes to mind from that is the idea that behaviour follows belief. You cannot achieve salvation by changing your behaviour, because then your behaviour will be in conflict with your mind, which causes acute anxiety. However, if you change your mind, then behaviour follows naturally. And ACIM also teaches that it does not matter what you do, the only thing that matters is how you see the world.

Joe: And how do you change your mind?

Igacim: Well, the process of changing your mind is what ACIM calls "forgiveness", and the result is a miracle, the change itself. So the whole ACIM is geared towards teaching us how to achieve the miracle, how to change our minds. It gives very precise instructions. It is a two-step process. The first step is to remember the true cause of things. This means to remember that you are projecting the world you see. In other words, you invented it. You chose it. The second step is to realise that this choice was mistaken. The result of such a choice is impossible to achieve. That result would be the separation from God.

Joe: So, then you realise that the separation never happened. But if the separation never happened, then there is nothing to forgive?

Igacim: That is correct in one sense. There is nothing in the world that needs forgiving. However, forgiveness as ACIM defines it is required. What you are actually forgiving, or letting go, is your own belief in guilt. Forgiveness can be said to be that recognition that there is nothing to forgive. ACIM says that forgiveness sees there was no error.

Joe: Okay, so, when you get to that realisation, forgiveness won’t be necessary anymore?

Igacim: Yes. You need to think of this in terms of two levels. The conventional thinking of the world is that you forgive things in the world that actually happened. That’s the physical level, the world level. But ACIM is always at the level of mind. Forgiveness in ACIM is about the thoughts in your own mind. You believe there is something wrong. To let that belief go is forgiveness. Traditional forgiveness would say that you forgive another person for what they did. ACIM says there is no other person, only pure spirit, so they could not have done anything, and there is no “you” as separate from God, so you could not have been done anything to.

Joe: Okay, ACIM is always at the level of the mind. That’s an important note.

Igacim: Right. Then the illusion may not change, but your mind will. Often the illusion does change, but that is not the focus. This non-duality of ACIM, the idea that there is no world, is the hardest for students to accept.

Joe: Does the illusion really change, or is it only you changing? Like the bending spoon in The Matrix. It is not the spoon that bends.

Igacim: Right, like the spoon in The Matrix, it is only you that changes. Remember, the illusion is your dream. When your belief changes, your perception changes. Your dreams are caused by what is in your mind. So if what is in your mind changes, your dream will change. Now, I must point out that this does not always seem to happen, and you should not expect it to. When you forgive, you are forgiving the entire illusion as one. You cannot forgive one thing and make another real. Forgiveness is based on the principle that it is all a dream. So you may forgive someone who is unpleasant, and thus release some guilt, but they may still appear to be unpleasant. One of two things will happen. You will either be completely peaceful about it, or you will still be upset. If you are still upset, there is more guilt to forgive. It is not a once off thing.

Joe: And everything you forgive is the same. There isn’t anything "bigger" to forgive than anything else.

Igacim: Yes. One thing need not be more difficult to forgive than another because in forgiveness there are no things. Either the illusion is real, or it isn't. There are no levels there. Either attack is not justified at all, or it is completely justified. Again, there are no levels. One mistake some people make is trying to forgive individual things. They make the error real, and then try to overlook it. ACIM says very explicitly this will not work. You cannot say, "This person is unpleasant, but it's okay, I will be kind."

Joe: Okay. What do you say then?

Igacim: You have to think, "This person is my own projection based on guilt, but guilt does not exist at all because only God exists. Therefore, neither of us is guilty.” Remember, being kind is an action. ACIM is not about actions. It is about beliefs, about mental actions. It is about changing how you perceive the world. This changed perception will lead naturally to changed feelings and changed behaviour. Then it will take no effort, because you are no longer fighting your own mind. You are living in harmony with it. And since the mind is healthy, the life and emotions will be healthy. Forgiveness is the healing of the mind.