The following excerpt is from the new book from Unity—Birthing a Greater Reality: A Guide for Conscious Evolution.

By Robert Brumet

About 100,000 years ago a gradual, but very powerful, shift was occurring on our planet. For the first time since the origin of life on earth more than 3.5 billion years ago, the leading edge of evolution shifted from biological evolution to the evolution of consciousness. Since that time we have changed very little physically, but look how far, and how fast, we have come in just 100,000 years. (This is a long time for us, but it's only three-thousandths of one percent of the history of life on earth.) Evolution has shifted into high gear!

About 200 years ago another profound shift occurred. At that time a few individuals began to see that we are now responsible for our own evolution. We are becoming evolution itself. As we personally evolve in consciousness we are advancing the evolution of all life on earth.

Right now we are at another critical point in human history and in the evolution of consciousness; the choices that we make in the near future are crucial. This is so not only because of the mind-rattling events and changes that have occurred in recent decades—along with the unprecedented dangers precipitated by some of them—but also because it seems that, like never before, the time is ripe for a quantum leap in conscious evolution.

We are living in a new era, an era not defined by the calendar or even by world events, but by an incipient transformation of consciousness that now rests upon the horizon of our vision. Many are aware of this, but cannot name it. Such awareness can cause excitement, anticipation, anxiety or dread, depending on the readiness of the psyche to acknowledge it. For many, this awareness is a clarion call to awakening. For some, it is a call to action.

The most important choice facing us today is the willingness to do the work of transforming consciousness—beginning with ourselves. This last phrase marks the most difficult part. Many may be ready for someone else's consciousness to be transformed; and we may have been waiting for a long time. But it just doesn't seem to work that way. We can begin only with ourselves.
 
We begin this work by recognizing the illusions that keep us asleep and addicted to conflict and suffering. Indeed, conflict and suffering are symptoms of our illusions. Just as we check for fever to see if the body is ill, we look at the rough edges of our life to discover our illusions.

To be transformed we must be willing to do the vital work of personal healing and awakening—both within ourselves and within our personal relationships. Suffering is often catalyzed by others. By their presence or by their absence, they rub against the raw spots of our psyche, making us aware of our need for healing. Focusing on the faults of another is a common way of avoiding a look at our own unhealed wounds. Our personal healing depends upon this willingness to look at and compassionately accept what is there.

As we do this transformative work, both personally and interpersonally, we set the stage for global transformation—even if we aren't trying to do so. A fascinating, and perhaps inexplicable, relationship exists between personal and global transformation; perhaps they are two sides of the same coin. As soon as we begin the work of personal transformation we are already engaging in global transformation. We are all related in profound and mysterious ways. …

… Evolution is on our side; it is the river in which our lives flow. The river moves us whether we like it or not, but we can no longer drift mindlessly. We are at the point where we must evolve consciously. Yes, we still go with the flow, but we now influence the course of that flow.

Evolution no longer occurs entirely unconscious of itself. We must now understand this process—and even more, we must become the process. It is time for us to become conscious evolutionaries and bring forth the needed global transformation. We are pioneers blazing the trail that will be followed by generations to come.

  *Photo credits: Original artwork Innerverse ©2010 by Jenny Hahn, http://www.jenspaintings.com