Red Vmeme - Power
Red Vmeme - Power
As we continue to move through the Spiral, we notice that the Vmemes alternate between "I" focused worldviews and "we" focused ones. The Red Vmeme is the response to the deep "we" connection found and demanded in tribal society. Everything is subject to the will of the elders and is for the good of the group. At some point this was no longer enough. This brings us to the "terrible twos" in the individual when we first learn to say "no" and "mine", and the cultural swing toward rival chieftains who seek to live by the power of their sword and their ability to take things they want to have from others to increase what's "mine".
This could be called the "will to power" or the discovery of our personal power. It can be aptly described when, in our anger, we "see red". For many people, especially in New Thought, this is a worldview that we seek to avoid. Power, especially personal power, has become almost a dirty word, right along with the ego development that comes with it. We often confuse the notion of power with the idea of force. Yet for us to prosper, we need to have a healthy sense of self. We need to become effective with our own personal power. This would be a healthy expression of the Red Vmeme. There are, of course, unhealthy or dysfunctional expressions of every Vmeme - sometimes, however, we throw the baby out with the bathwater.
The healthy ability to say "no", to take responsibility for one's own life, and the willingness to exercise one's power in a healthy way, are all necessary parts of our individual development. Our "yes" is only as strong as our "no" is. This is true in an organization as well. Knowing what we will and won't do, what we will get behind with the power at our disposal, becomes very important. Of course, we keep practicing the idea of using our power, not forcing something on someone.
The unhealthy expression of red, we see in gangs and tribal warfare. One of the reasons it can be so difficult to do healing nonviolence work is because we are often dealing with people who are living in the Red Vmeme. When we try to meet them with our current thinking, which for most of us is much higher on the spiral, it doesn't help. What meets the needs of red and takes us to a new, healthy place, is the blue. So that's where we go next.
- 1 year ago
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