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Spirituality in the Elections

It's been pointed out that the analysis of election results often just reflects the assumptions one started with (see Crispin Sartwell's op-ed at latimes.com, May 14, 2008).  For example, an analyst may tell you that working-class white men decided an election, but that's only because you were looking at that portion of the vote. 

Sartwell is right.  And what's worse, the things that pollsters and analysts tell us are the opposite of what we need to know spiritually.  Analysis of "sectors" isbased on the past.  Spiritual approaches look toward the future.  Factors that analysts look at - whether economic or racial or gender - are factors from our personal history - we were born into them or certain past choices landed us there.  Those factors do not determine us!

From a spiritual perspective, the important thing is how people fit their perceptions of the present into their hopes for the future.  We are all pulled toward the future  whether we like it or not.  People who resist their own fulfillment concentrate on the past, and thereby give themselves a ball and chain to carry around.  People who are willing to imagine, dream, hope, and then plan accordingly have a better chance of becoming what they dream.

On the collective level, our imagining of the future affects our politics. We wrote earlier about people's astrological dominance in certain Quadrants.  Let's first of all summarize what these are.  I call them "Windows of Holiness":

Quadrant #1:

There is true holiness in the Personal - the reality that each person, each self, is a divine creation and a microcosm of the Divine.

Quadrant #2:

There is true holiness in Community - the reality that we are interdependent in the most basic ways and are never really alone.

Quadrant #3:

There is true holiness in the Ideal - the reality of collective thought, hope, and effort that moves us forward toward future fulfillment.

Quadrant #4:

There is true holiness in the Whole - the macrocosm that is also a divine creation, including and interrelating everything.

Each of these realities is a window on life, a specific perspective.  We agreed with our soul-clusters that we would allow our bodies to be a window through which the Soul could perceive.  But, just as you can't look out all the windows of your house at once, you can't look from all Quadrants at once.  Just as you probably have a favorite room in your house from which you can look outside, so you have a particular 'favorite' quadrant or two.

Now back to the election. Election campaigns give us a clue to how the people imagine their future, and what will give them the best hope for fulfillment.  In this case the Democratic candidates have run neck-and-neck, with swings back and forth.  One candidate, Barack Obama, is a dominant Quadrant #3, while Hilary Clinton is dominant in Quadrant #2.  This is very interesting spiritually.  The people know intuitively that we need both a commitment to keep our eye on the Ideal - the thoughts that can change the world - and a commitment to work on our society, from the ground up - our basic communities, the ones we live in every day - famillies, neighborhoods, cities, ecological environments.  

Contrast with John McCain.  He's a Quadrant #4 person, so it makes sense he would focus on international affairs which relate to the bigger whole. But, according to current estimates, he's not that popular compared to the Democratic candidates - certainly isn't generating as much excitement.  Part of the reason is that people don't see solving international problems as the thing that will most help us develop our future potential.

Does GW Bush have anything to do with this situation?  You betcha.  Bush is a Quadrant #1 person - his Sun is in the 4th Quadrant, but he has 7 planets in Quadrant #1, plus the Ascendant.  He ran on a 'personal happiness' agenda.  Now, there's nothing wrong with a goal of helping everyone in the country achieve personal happiness.  After all, the Dalai Lama talks about happiness a lot ! (He's also a Quadrant #1 person.)  But GWBush wasn't the guy to do it because he doesn't exemplify happiness on a spiritual level.  Do you remember when he waved dollar bills during his campaign speeches?  He conveyed the message that personal happiness comes from an extra check in the mail.  Lower taxes, more happiness. -- Well, not so much.  Then after 9/11 he turned to international affairs, and took us into a war.  Is this personal happiness cowboy-style - whuppin' the enemy? Basically, he was out of his league.  There's more to say on that, but let's go back to the main topic.

The American people definitely want to look at the world through a different window.  We'll get to personal happiness too, but not by a myopic focus on materialism.  Let's hope that whoever gets elected has the sense to open all the windows - that his or her Vice President, Cabinet, and the elected leaders s/he consults with offer the widest and the highest quality perspectives!