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Jacqueline McLeod's avatar

Great post, Melissa and wonderful food for thought.

In addition, I would like to suggest that we are now complex beings in an overpopulated, complex world which unfortunately has been dominated by masculine energy for roughly 6000 years.

You know my Feminine Masculine Balance table but to make sense of my comment to others, I'm adding it here

Blending of Some Feminine and Masculine Polarities

Feminine Balance Masculine

1 Cyclical Spiral Linear

2 Intuitive Sensible Rational

3 Emotional Aware Logical

4 Imaginative/Poetic Knowing Analytical/“Intellectual”

5 Holistic/Inclusive Integrative Hierarchical/Divisive

6 Reflective Proactive Reactive

7 Providing/Sustaining Nurturing Protective /Defensive

8 Amenable Collaborative Competitive

9 Dependent Interdependent Independent

10 Being – In the flow Mindfulness Doing – Action orientated

11 Sensitive Compassionate Detached (Indifferent)

12 Weak Flexible Strong

13 Allowing others

to control

their own lives Trusting Controlling one’s own life

14 Receptive (Receiving) Responsive Outgoing (Giving)

15 (Produces) Quality Discerning (Produces) Quantity

16 Chaos Creativity Order

17 Contraction equilibrium/stasis Expansion

Language develops and changes to reflect evolution both for better and worse, and I would like to suggest it’s not the language that is the problem but the use of the language.

Because we have been dominated by masculine energies (right hand column of my table), masculine meanings have been imposed on many words and feminine words have been denigrated. However, the energies in the table are neither “good “nor “bad”, they just need to be expressed appropriately.

Introducing a word like nature to language is not necessarily a bad thing if we are able to see that we all are all different and it’s okay to be different as well as interconnected or one/inclusive. Then we can co-create with nature instead of exploiting it. After all, I am very grateful for the garden in the property in which I live which provides me with fruit and vegetables that I eat. That could be seen as exploitative but looking at “nature” - all parts are feeding off one another.

It’s not easy to feel “at one” with people dominated by masculine energies like the blokes in the truck who are divisive in the separate sense of the word, hierarchical and like to reduce things to one Etc.

Here's another table - unable to put lines around them.

The Differences Between Some Characteristics of Masculine Dominated Behaviour and Feminine Masculine Balance Behaviour

Masculine Dominated Behaviour Feminine Masculine Balance Behaviour

Rampant Greed Able to share

Hierarchical beliefs and ideas which Recognises that we are all different and

can lead to intolerance of differences it’s OK to be different

Either/or …… Both/and

Leading to I’m right, you’re wrong Respects the ideas of others without having to

agree with them

Reducing things to one. Able to deal with complexity

Emotionally immature Emotionally mature

Control over Trust and allow others to lead their own lives

Power over Personal power

Fear of Change Comfortable with change

Denial Acknowledgement

Lack of or poor common sense Common sense

Tend to resort to violence Peaceful resolution of conflict

Believe they are independent Recognising we are all interdependent

Divisive Integrative

Thrive on adversarial behaviour

with little or no empathy Thrive on collaboration

The exploitation of nature comes from a line-up of masculine energies, unbalanced by feminine energies.

When we evolve to Feminine Masculine Balance, we will be integrative, use common sense, nurturing, collaborative, recognise our interdependence, compassionate flexible, trusting, responding, discerning and creative etc … Then humans will recognise they are part of nature, have respect for nature and coexist with nature.

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Sue MInahan's avatar

Magnificent. Your creative abode in your heart and mind exude truthful beauty. Love it. Love this article. Glad to receive another 'definition' of the chasm between humanity's consciousness when seeing existence in polarity in opposition - rather than in a tango exchanging balances of light and shadow in the music of life. You inspire and expand my poetic thought. Thanks for writing. Your messages have great validity I wish the multitudes might see. Each constitutes a wee book ....

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