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| ~ ∞ ~ The Mystery of Human Life – The Essence of Life ~ ∞ ~ |
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As indicated in the earlier chapter, it seems that the story of the human species is one big mystery; it also appears to be the case that we are suffering from a certain level of collective amnesia – these are the topics of our interest in the following few pages. And so it goes that as we start to unravel the mystery of human life, we find that all the information about our past is fragmented at best, and quite mysterious to say the least; we also find that many of the books written in modern times are mostly author’s interpretations of other books, which indicates that we clearly prefer to write books about books, enriched with the author’s perception of the subject matter. On top of that, it seems that instead of contributing something new, exciting and useful, we get enjoyment from arguing against anything new or different; criticising and discrediting other authors and their work. In other words, there are huge amounts of books and information out there in the world, but very little substance, quality, or significance.
As the curious individual peels the layers of the mystery, it is revealed that our recorded history reaches only as far back as some 5000 years ago, and yet we find through DNA analysis that the human species can be traced as far back as almost a million years ago. That is to say, there is a huge gap between what has been recorded in the history books and what has actually happened. There is a saying that history is written by the victors of war, and that history is destined to repeat itself, which raises the question: Can we really trust the written records, or could we find out the truth about ourselves from some other way? Here we should also be asking the following questions: From whose perspective is history told? And furthermore: Is there any such thing as one history, or are there many histories? For example, we all know that the same story told by two different people will sound very different. Taking that into account, one should be inclined to ask the following question: What does it mean in the context of history if there is bias involved?
By virtue of the aforementioned with regard to many histories, it is important, then, to not only study many different perspectives, but also make wise choices about whose stories of history to read and what to incorporate into one’s view of the world. One must not only study many perspectives, but also progress on one’s inner journey before one can hope to acquire an inkling of the Truth. It goes without saying that we cannot blindly trust the written word. You see, the one who controls the narrative, controls history; the one who controls history, controls the society, consensus reality, and in turn the world; the one who is capable of telling a story of history and making that history accepted as true by a large part of the population – is the one who holds the power – see? And so it goes that from that point onwards that particular version of history becomes part of our consensus reality, and then there is very little we can do about it. Let us go a little further with this, shall we?
Needless to say, in today’s fast-paced information age, our history is constantly being written and rewritten, contested and reinterpreted, and thus it would be almost impossible for the average individual to keep up with all that information. This is why the vast majority of people take it as face value without doing research for themselves. Furthermore, in today’s fast-paced lifestyle, our attention span is quite low, and thus people prefer second- and third-hand information, or even worse – hearsay, rather than finding out for themselves by reading, studying, researching, travelling and experiencing. This, in turn, further reinforces the collective belief about ourselves and the world we live in – all based on the stories we tell each other. But here we should ask ourselves: Whose stories are to be told, and from whose perspective are they to be told?
Another side of the coin is that with all of this information, it is even more difficult to discern what is true. We are spoon-fed half-truths and sugar-coated information all the time – be it political, religious, scientific, medical, economic, or something else. This is nothing new. On the contrary, it has happened many times in the past and still happens today, regardless of the field or area – it is premature at best, and the height of hubris at worst, to assume otherwise. As an example of how it works: in a science-driven world, these half-truths are presented as unchangeable facts, although they are based on models and predictions that are very much subject to change. These half-truths masked as unchangeable facts are then quite conveniently marketed to us as “discoveries, breakthroughs, and inventions.”
This brings up a whole host of other related issues and questions, the most obvious being: Has anything changed since the dawn of man? Well, times have changed, yes, but humans have remained much the same. You see, there are still wars and conflict, there is a divide between rich and poor, people are still greedy and cruel, and we still have great suffering in the world. On top of that, we have developed a formidable intellect, science, and technology that we primarily use to build ever more powerful weapons; and not only that, but we have also weaponized information, largely for the same reason people weaponize anything – to win or gain something, shift perception, control narrative, history, society, consensus reality, and in the end, the world, you see? As such, nations are in endless arms race to not only acquire more and more powerful weapons, but also to develop ever more sophisticated tactics and strategy. Such is the nature of us human beings with the human condition and collective amnesia – the only intelligent, sentient bipedal species known to exist in this universe.
All this leads to only one conclusion: If there’s any mystery at all, it is most certainly we humans ourselves – how did we end up like this? As far as it concerns us human beings, this is, bar none, the greatest mystery of them all. If we can unravel this mystery, then we are able to answer the questions regarding who we are, why we are here, whence we came from, and where are we going. This presents an interesting conundrum: as things stand, we live in a world where everything has been turned upside-down – morally, ethically, spiritually, and logically: light has become darkness and darkness has become light; good has become evil and evil has become good; justice has become injustice and goodness has become wicked; the truth has become lies and lies have become truth. On that note, it is imperative to highlight the following: honesty is the beginning of all wisdom – without honesty, no trust is possible, without honesty, no true communication exists, without honesty, no progress could be made, without honesty, no one can better themselves, and certainly, without honesty, no great spirituality can be accomplished – honesty is the first step toward truth.
“Be honest with yourself. The world of men is not honest with you. The world loves hypocrisy. When you are honest with yourself you find the road to inner peace.” ~ Paramahansa Yogananda.
Unfortunately, as it has been in the past, so it is also now – for you see, once in a while, it happens that these lies, half-truths and fallacies are forced upon us to make it the “truth.” The only real solution to this conundrum is to unlearn what one has learned, and then relearn everything from scratch, from ground up; and not only that, but also transcend one’s views and beliefs. Unfortunately, as is the case with so many other things, more often than not, this process of unlearning, relearning, and transcending is too much for the majority of people, and thus they continue to buy into this deceit of half-truths, biased information, distorted facts and outright lies.
To be blunt – blinded by groupthink, people are like a flock of birds or herd of sheep, nearly all of them running at a given time in the same direction, which brings about the question: If an individual can be ignorant, naive, and short-sighted – taking into account the human condition and collective amnesia, how misguided and lost can a group of people be? Is it any wonder, then, that the mystery of human life continues to prevail? There is hope, though, for you see, when a curious individual looks deeper into the reality of their surroundings, instead of blindly trusting other people’s stories and interpretations – quite a different picture emerge, and so it goes that the mystery begins to reveal itself to those who seek the Truth.
From the aforementioned discussion, we can easily draw the following conclusions: there is an ongoing invisible war against our Souls – its nature is Spiritual; it is a war of narratives, of ideas, of knowledge – or the lack thereof. The battleground is our minds and hearts – see? What it comes down to is consciousness, and moreover – awareness, or the lack thereof. We should take heed of this and reflect on it; to be mindful and prepare for our spiritual warfare with a breastplate of faith and love, a helmet of hope and feet shod in peace – if not for any other reason than for the good of ourselves and our loved ones.
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~ ॐ ~ Sambodhi Padmasamadhi ~ ∞ ~
Get the Book: Awaken the Living Awareness Within – Discover the Keys to Happiness, Inner Peace & Harmony
~ ॐ ~ Sambodhi Padmasamadhi ~ ∞ ~
Get the Book: Awaken the Living Awareness Within – Discover the Keys to Happiness, Inner Peace & Harmony
[ Click » here « to read the next part: A Species With Collective Amnesia (The Human Condition) – The Essence of Life: Part III ]
Extra Material: Video: Society, A Perpetual Cycle [Alan Watts]. Video description: "Alan Watts talks about how our society conditions children to live with a constant frustration and worry about the future, and never learn how to live in the present."
