On November 4, 2008, Barack Hussein Obama, the most unlikely of candidates by his own admonition, won the office for President of the United States. Much has been written about what contributed to the success of his campaign but while these factors are significant they fail to shed light on what each of us can learn personally that can be applied to our inner lives. While the use of the internet, the incredibly organized grassroots ground organizing of key states, and a perfect storm of factors from incredibly poor performance by the failed policies of the current administration, and the ailing economy where key factors in this landslide election such factors fail to speak to the heart of his appeal, and the importance of examining what we can learn individually by the genius of his example.
Barack Obama has often been compared to another famous American orator Martin Luther King Jr. But it was not simply Dr. King’s ability to deliver a speech with emotion, skill, and style that made him great. It was his ability to invoke universal archetypal qualities—justice, hope, freedom to name a few—that spoke and still speak to the heart and soul of each of us that made him a great orator.
Dr. King not only invoked universal qualities in his speeches and sermons but he also called on each of us, in his most important sermon “A Tough Mind and a Tender Heart” to embody strongly marked opposites; toughness and tenderness; idealism and realism; humility and assertiveness. Quoting Jesus in the scriptures who admonishes his disciples to “be ye wise as serpents and gentle as doves” Dr King calls on us each to have a “tough mind and a tender heart.” The ability to integration of dynamic opposites into a creative unified whole is speaks to both Dr. King and President Elect’s genius.
Barack Obama embodies these qualities—intelligence and compassion; idealism and realism; vision and pragmatism. Furthermore, he has the ability to speak to both the tough minded, those who have learned to discern the truth for themselves from all the various sources available to them in this modern internet age. Historically many Democratic candidates have built their campaigns on this approach and they have lost the last twelve years because of it. Most importantly, something that most Democratic aspirants to the national office have neglected and the Republicans have done well, president-elect Obama has been able to appeal to the hearts of the electorate by invoking the same universal qualities—hope unity, faith, which Dr. King invoked in his sermons and speeches.
What then are the lessons that each of can take away from this extraordinary presidential election and the inspiration of these two gifted visionaries and orators? First, in creating change in our lives, it is important to look to what we aspire to create and to frame them in terms of universal archetypal qualities—love, passion, peace, prosperity, freedom. These are fractals, core patterns of the universe and the way in which is created. The power of your intention and consistent meditation on these desired qualities will gradually create more of what you desire in your life.
Secondly, in what way are you primarily one way in your life that you need to embody the opposite to embody and embrace a dynamic holism in your personal life? Are you idealistic but not realistic? Are you passionate but not calm? Are you orderly but not spontaneous? Likely if you are not readily aware of your most common personality traits and their opposites your closest friend would gladly tell you what she/he wished you were a little more in the way of balancing your personality! Finally, a key significant factor in President-Elect Obama’s genius is apparently authentic desire to serve the greater good. The question then becomes are you motivated in your life for what it is in it for you or are you motivated to serve other’s? In what way can you use your talents and abilities in their dynamic entirity to be of service to others in your community?
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