ACIM – The Fragmented Mind

A Course in Miracles (ACIM) is spiritual guidance using very clear psychotherapy and metaphysical principles. When these are understood, and applied, they provide solutions to absolutely every situation in your life. One of the key aspects of the metaphysical principles is that the mind is split and fragmented by the many judgments of the ego. In ACIM, correction of the mind is forgiveness; and relinquishing judgments corrects these fragments and returns the mind to peace.

In this article, let’s discuss how ACIM explains the split mind with the many judgments and fragments all pointing to one key judgment as a starting point. The rest is just icing on the layered cake. The ego is not as hard to overcome as the ego would have you believe. It simply doesn’t want you to know how it works because if you did, you could and would, choose against it. That is death to the ego.

The Metaphysics of How the Mind Split:

From ACIM, we know that a “tiny mad idea” entered the mind which split the mind between: (1) a part which remains with Knowledge; and, (2) a part that banished itself from Knowledge. To simplify things, let’s take it from the beginning to introduce this idea of the key judgment.

Imagine a diagram with an oval and lines dividing the levels of the mind as we’re discussing them. First, at the bottom of the oval, you have the non-conscious mind which is Knowledge, Heaven and Oneness, or all that is. Everything here is one and there is nothing to choose between. Now put a line just above this and we’ll move to the next section.

Next is the super unconscious mind and in this part of the diagram, you would write in: God, Christ. Notice we didn’t say God “and/or” Christ as these are not two different things, nor are they separate. They are the non-conscious mind (Knowledge, Heaven and Oneness) having the experience of itself.

Here’s why from the Law of Creation in ACIM:

You cannot create anything unlike yourself.
You love all your creations as yourself because the are like you.
All your creations remain a part of you.
Ideas do not leave their source (you).
The same rules apply to God.

Therefore, in these first two levels of the mind, everything: (1) is the same; (2) creates more of the same; (3) experiences the same; and, (4) all sameness stays with the same.

Now draw another line and this time, we’ll introduce the split in the mind. In the midst of this Oneness experience, a key thought (judgment) entered the mind that goes something like, “Hey, if I can see you, I must be separate.” This could not be true because it violates the Law of Creation. The problem is that judgment was listened to and believed and thus the ego’s judgment, or the “tiny mad idea” takes root in the mind.

This line is the split in the mind or the original separation; however, in ACIM, it simply means “banished itself from knowledge,” as judgment violates the Law of Creation. Judgment is thinking what is not true about you, is not a part of you, not like you and can only make more judgments to hide itself.