The Value of Judgments

I have recently noticed myself judging others, and I have found myself judging myself for it.  I don’t think I am alone in that, so I thought I would take some time to explore this issue of judgment.

Many who are on a conscious spiritual path have been taught that in order to be truly awakened or enlightened, one must give up judging others.  To expect ourselves to give up judging, and to hold that as a measure of our state of consciousness, is unrealistic and unnecessary.  I offer that we are actually more enlightened, not by giving up judging, but instead by becoming consciously aware of our judgments and striving to understand their value. Human beings judge.  It is an aspect of our human conditioning.  Rather than attempting absolution of judgment, I encourage us to acknowledge our judgments and invite them to inform us of what we deeply value.

On some level, all human beings engage in value judgments, by evaluating or judging based on our particular set of values.  In other words, we sometimes decide on the rightness or wrongness of persons or situations based on our values.  And, we can find ourselves reacting to the judged person or situation according to our learned behaviors.  Typically, when we judge something as wrong or bad, we criticize, fight against, and/or avoid it.  In short, whatever we judge negatively, we resist.  Further, we most often feel justified in our value judgments and our reactions.  The troubling result of engaging in unconscious value judgments is that we determine right and wrong, good and bad, and we assign labels. Unfortunately, this type of judgment frequently leads to conflict, even war, and sometimes, as has been the case in history and as we are currently witnessing in Iraq, genocide.  Fortunately, there is another way. 

Instead of unconsciously engaging in those types of value judgments, or thinking that we have to give up our judgments, we can learn to appreciate the value of our judgments.  In order to do that, we must first be willing and able to recognize our judgmental thoughts and admit to ourselves that we judge, without judging ourselves for judging.  Instead of making ourselves or another right or wrong, we can honestly observe our judgments and allow them to inform us of our values.  Then, rather than reverting to our base human behaviors, we can consciously choose to engage in behaviors that reflect our values and establish connection rather than create conflict. 

As an example, yesterday I drove into the church parking lot and noticed that our recycling bin was filled to overflowing.  Knowing that it had been recently emptied, and also knowing that there is no way the church had generated that much recycling content in such a short time, I concluded that it was being filled by our neighbors.  I immediately felt angry. I was judging the ones who made unauthorized use of our property as wrong and bad.  One might say that I was "warring" with them in my mind, and feeling the impact of the internal conflict.  As I allowed myself to acknowledge my judgment and connect with myself, I recognized that I value respect, and that I was telling myself that they were disrespecting our property and discounting the expense we incur to have the container emptied every other week.  However, after further consideration, I can also acknowledge that whoever used the container as their recycling receptacle, values care of the Earth and the environment.  I also value those things.  As I continued my contemplation, I realized that I cannot possibly know what is in the minds and hearts of whoever chose to place their recycling in our container.  Rather than “warring” with them, I decided to do my best to connect with our shared values and respond accordingly.  Perhaps I can have a sign made that says something like the following:

“While we appreciate that you share our care and concern for the Earth, we ask that you respect our rental of this container.  If you choose to use this container for your recycling, please respect the Earth by not filling it to overflowing resulting in litter.  Please also respect that we need room for our recycling materials as well.  Blessings to you.  Namaste.”

Appreciating the value of our judgments, rather than unconsciously engaging in value judgments is, in my evaluation, a more accurate measure of our level of enlightened consciousness.  When we are willing to honestly and authentically connect consciously with our values, it soon becomes apparent, that all human beings share the same core values.  Conflict is not stimulated by differing values, but by the ways we choose to live those values. 

Our judgments can, if we are willing to connect with them, give us a great deal of information about ourselves, our values, and how our choices reflect our values.  They can also, if we are willing, provide us with a way to connect with others as we consciously connect with their values.  Our unexplored value judgments serve to separate us, while our conscious exploration of our judgments can serve to connect us at a deeper level.  Instead of attempting to give up our judgments, or continuing to engage in unconscious judging, or judging ourselves for judging, I encourage us to acknowledge, learn to become consciously aware of, and appreciate the value of our judgments that ultimately connect us at our deepest levels.