“What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the master calls a butterfly.” —Richard Bach

There is little doubt in the minds of the masses that an acceleration is occurring on planet Earth. What exactly this means is difficult to articulate.

In a world teetering on the brink of economic collapse, war-driven holocaust, and ecological catastrophe, we are collectively being challenged to examine who we are. We’ve reached a time in our evolutionary history where we’re being forced to ask ourselves what we’ve allowed ourselves to become to arrive at such a dangerous impasse.

In order to honestly answer this question, we must turn inward. This inward journey brings us closer to the truth in our own soul and awakens us to the potential of who we’re meant to be.

Many people can feel that humanity is undergoing a process of change. The final outcome is uncertain, but the prevailing feeling is that a new humanity—an upgrade so to speak—is currently being birthed. As the tired old story of patriarchal domination continues to implode on itself, many people are now questioning their concept of self and of reality.

In order for us to transform individually within this growing collective movement, it is imperative to be sourcing our own truth from within. The answers for the changes that this world needs don’t exist somewhere outside of ourselves, but deep within the framework of our own essential being.

The transformation of caterpillar to butterfly is a powerful metaphor that accurately describes the process of change we are now experiencing as a species. As Anodea Judith writes in her book, Waking the Global Heart (p.35):

“When a caterpillar nears its transformation time, it begins to eat ravenously, consuming everything in sight. The caterpillar body then becomes heavy, outgrowing its own skin many times, until it is too bloated to move. Attaching to a branch (upside down, where everything is turned on its head), it forms a chrysalis—an enclosing shell that limits the caterpillar’s freedom for the duration of the transformation.

Within the chrysalis a miracle occurs. Tiny cells, that biologists call “imaginal cells,” begin to appear. These cells are wholly different from caterpillar cells, carrying different information, vibrating to a different frequency—the frequency of the emerging butterfly. At first, the caterpillar’s immune system perceives these new cells as enemies, and attacks them, much as new ideas in science, medicine, politics, and social behavior are viciously denounced by the powers now considered mainstream. But the imaginal cells are not deterred. They continue to appear, in even greater numbers, recognizing each other, bonding together, until the new cells are numerous enough to organize into clumps. When enough cells have formed to make structures along the new organizational lines, the caterpillar’s immune system is overwhelmed. The caterpillar body then becomes a nutritious soup for the growth of the butterfly.

When the butterfly is ready to hatch, the chrysalis becomes transparent. The need for restriction has been outgrown. Yet the struggle toward freedom has an organic timing.”

According to this week’s Unplug podcast guest, Sailesh Rao, humanity has reached the end of the caterpillar stage and is deep in the midst of a powerful transformation. This is very good news!

Sailesh is the founder and Executive Director of the environmental organization, Climate Healers, an organization dedicated to healing the Earth through simplicity and compassion. As stated on the Climate Healers website, “A truly compassionate lifestyle leads to conscious simplicity and restores equity in human societies.”

Climate Healers core guiding principle states that, “Compassion for all creation is infinitely sustainable.” It goes on to say that, “A global adoption of a simple vegan lifestyle exemplifies compassion for all creation in all ou...