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| Image credit: http://tekka-croe.deviantart.com/art/The-Aspirant-350558534 |
Another story is about military
officers seeking promotion, in which the candidates are asked to dig a ditch.
Some of them ask why they need to do that in the first place, or argue about
details of the best way to do it, until eventually someone remarks “who cares
why they want a ditch” and actually starts digging, at which point they get the
promotion because they can follow orders and take action. However, in a related
situation, anybody who starts digging gets rejected for promotion, because labor
like that supposedly “isn’t an officer’s job” and they don’t know how to
delegate. In other words, the right thing to do is find the nearest soldier and
order them to dig the ditch! ;-)
In the “Wheel of Time” fantasy
series, those in the Aiel clans training to be “Wise Ones” would eventually be only
given more and more menial tasks to do, until they finally put their foot down
and said enough already, at which point they were wise enough to actually become
a “Wise One”. Sometimes refusing a test because it serves no purpose or goes
against your values is the real test! Of course, balance is needed, in that if
one refuses required discipline too early, they can be kicked out of training
altogether.
What do all these cases have in
common? In all of them there’s a dominant power defining what’s right, and a
submissive applicant being judged based on their conformity to those standards.
The nature of any test is the same, in that there’s some authority defining
what it means to “pass” or “fail” the test. Many people try to pass various
tests in life, however fewer people have the independence to question the validity
of a test in the first place. Some tests aren’t based on positive qualities, in
which technically failing them can be considered a good thing. Samuel L.
Jackson in the movie “xXx” saw this when he quoted, “Why is it always the
a**holes who pass the test?” Ultimately, the real tests in life are given by
ourselves to ourselves, and it’s up to ourselves to determine which tests are
important in the first place, and what it means to pass those tests.
Of course, it’s possible to err
in the opposite direction and go too far in refusing tests, and out of pride or
rigid independence refuse to learn from sources that can actually teach you
something. Similarly, it’s okay to recognize someone else’s test and
intentionally conform with it, if the circumstances are appropriate. If you
want a job, you by definition want to do what your prospective employer is
looking for. Therefore, however they define tests and how to pass them is what
you want to align with during an interview, provided you don’t have to
sacrifice your morals to do so. Whether the best thing to do is to methodically
analyze data or quickly promote a vision (story #1), or whether it’s better to start
work yourself or receive help from others (story #2), or whether it’s best to
put up with minor things or take a strong stand (story #3), all depend upon the
job or situation in question.
Even our planet and the
afterlife is often believed to be a test, in which after physical death one
will be judged by various criteria as to whether they lived a good life, and as
a result experience levels of hell, purgatory, or heaven, or receive bad or good
karma. Many believe they’ll be judged by various Angels or guides with human-like
personalities. However, a more esoteric view is that afterlife conditions
aren’t decided by somebody as much as they’re natural outgrowths of energetic
cause and effect, and therefore don’t require Lords of Karma or whoever to
decide how one gets rewarded or punished. For example, a life of hatred and
paranoia will fill one’s aura with dense vibrations, and on non-physical realms
will naturally make one experience such energies in return. Similarly, love can
expand one’s perceptions and identification to include others, which naturally
brings in new and exalted energies, resulting in enlightenment, wisdom, and
joy. ♥
