The Cure for an Ancient Virus

According to our family legend, it was in 1958 when my parents went to the local movie theater in Culcairn to see The Bridge on the River Kwai. There is a scene where the allies are trying to demolish the bridge that they, as prisoners of war, had just finished building for the invading Japanese forces in Burma. All is set to go when the protagonist is injured; he staggers towards the bomb plunger as a trainload of the enemy begins to cross. It’s a tense moment. So much so that my dad rose up from his seat and shouted to the screen, “PUSH THE DAMN THING!”

He never lived that one down.

Most of us, most of the time, can separate fact from fiction and yet – do we really?

I admit that I often shed a tear while watching a movie; I get scared seeing horror scenes, the movie makers and musical directors have me in the palm of their hand, even as I know I’m watching a movie from the comfort of my couch.

But what about the big movie we all watch together? “All the world’s a stage…” as Shakespeare repeated in As You Like It. And it’s obvious that we get lost in it. Am I an actor, the audience or director? Why the confusion?

Recent events have brought these questions to mind as the 2024 election the United States brought out the fears and anguish of many of my closest friends, people I have known for decades as caring, honorable souls with generous and kind hearts now expressing their repulsion at the new, democratically elected leader and his team; their hatred of those majority of Americans who elected him, with one friend even sharing a meme calling all ‘red’ voters 'retarded’ while another warned his Facebook audience that he'll 'unfriend' anyone who wanted to speak up on behalf of the president elect.

It was those posts that jolted me into writing this one and made me remember a lesson from my days of training with The School of Thinking, by Michael Hewitt-Gleeson.

We're All Infected by an Ancient Virus

Hewitt-Gleeson, who got to know me as ‘Hobart’ at his workshop some years ago, came up with the concept of PTV: Plato’s Truth Virus. His books, available for free on the SOT website, include Software for your Brain and are worth studying.

In short, PTV is the idea that there is one Truth, one reality. Fair enough! I agree, but this idea has been lost in translation and under the influence of those with a certain agenda, the agenda of control of other humans, has morphed into the thought ‘I am right, therefore you are wrong if you don’t agree.’

Our entire system of education, law and science is infected with this virus: right/wrong, good/bad.

PTV is responsible for more wars, deaths and suffering than any other virus and the more educated we are and the more we expose ourselves to other infected individuals the more likely we are to show symptoms of PTV.

Let’s imagine a world where respect, dignity and compassion rule and let’s play our part in creating that world.

What are the symptoms of PTV?

Resistance to controversial information. Some facet of another person, even someone we’ve never met in person like a political leader, is bound to become a mirror for us and if we don’t like that aspect of our psyche we can start yelling at the screen like my dad.
Fear, worry, concern over things you can’t change
Identifying with a cause, such as a political party, religion, or spiritual leader due to its logical arguments over your own intuition and heart-sense

What are the results of PTV?

Look at our societies today.

Division, arguments, blaming and shaming, fear mongering, wars, greed

Lack of progress towards humanitarian goals

Inequality...

How is PTV spread?

I estimate that by age seven the infection has taken root in most brains due to the influence of parents, peers, educators and the media. Especially the media.

Michel Desmarquet’s conversation with his mentor,Thao pointed out that the real dangers to life on Earth include religions and journalists.

My personal experience with journalists starting with two interviews in 1976 and through to recent events has made it clear that any writer (pod-caster, producer etc.) may be unconsciously infected to some degree with PTV, believing that they are doing the right thing while they are fabricating the facts to suit their own perspective or agenda.

What’s the Cure for PTV?

Recognise the symptoms (as above)
Focus daily on self-Knowledge; on your heart’s intuition and the gift of each breath
Spend some time looking, listening, and feeling within
Spend time in nature, observing and enjoying sun and fresh air
Notice your emotional responses and try to listen to others’ unique points of view

These ‘cures’ have some elements in common: they all are within your power to choose, and they take practice: constant, lifetime practice to overcome this ancient virus and its after effects.

But let’s imagine a world where respect, dignity and compassion rule and let’s play our part in creating that world.

The Cure for an Ancient Virus

We're All Infected by an Ancient Virus

What are the symptoms of PTV?

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