“Like fish who do not know they swim in water, we are seldom aware of the atmosphere of the times through which we move, how strange and singular they are.” — Thomas Cahill
As we move through our lives the quote above refers . . . “like fish who do not know they swim in water,” our conscious awareness appears to be devoid of the “times through which we move.” What will it take to become consciously aware, alertly active, in-vigorously involved or presciently present with who we are, why we are here and where we are going? During the years I worked as an educator through a myriad of grade levels, the experience of watching these young people grasp an idea, understand a concept, realize exactly how something worked, create something from their vivid imaginations, develop a skill, change their position regarding critical thinking, or achieve what they believed was impossible at first . . . was almost a suspension of disbelief for all of us, and coming to the realization that we were witnessing an illumination of conscious awareness of the individual. In working with these young minds the words of Albert Camus became illuminating for them and for me, “You cannot create experience, you must undergo it.”
Unmistakably, the illuminating light that brings us out of the darkness is timed differently for the individual. This continues through our life’s journey without exception. However, when that darkness is dispelled and we become instruments of a creative process there is no mistaking our consciousness of being. We are no longer strange singular beings, but as an educator and performing artist I have experienced the following . . . consciousness at the point of creation is the catalyst in acknowledging your existence.
Throughout the history of mankind, technology has changed without question and given us unimaginable capabilities on many levels. However, although technology has changed the way in which we communicate, travel, involve in scientific practices/discoveries, space exploration, and artificial intelligence, the manner in which man relates to man appears to be in a quagmire of false starts lacking conscious responsibility. At closer introspection, the words of Sadhguru Joggi Vasudev reflects a greater awareness to an historic question . . . “We know how to go to the moon, but the tragedy is that we still do not know how to live on planet earth.” Can we yet discern, which of the two is more important? JLR