We began our generic talk titled “order, chaos and control” two posts ago on the footing of contrast …… stating ……
“The universe it seems loves contrasts and very tightly intertwines polarities be it an atom with electrons, protons and neutrons or be it galaxies, stars and the planetary systems within them, tightly strung (to perfection like guitar strings) by the opposing forces of gravity and centrifugal force.”
But then we swayed away from the generics of the universe into the specifics of personal interpretations, priorities and perceptions.
Maslow’s pyramid helped us appreciate as to why is it that different people perceive things differently.
Why is it that the answer to the questions like “who am I?”, “what is the purpose and nature of this universe?” might be the singular pressing urgencies in one person’s life. On the other hand they may be viewed plainly as futile psychological abstractions by another person.
Though the Maslow’s pyramid offered a wonderful window into the human conditioning and psyche it would be noteworthy to point out that it is not an absolute concept, just like any other concept.
And life offers stark examples to shake up the pyramids credibility. It is filled with examples of Kabir, Raidas, Jesus, Ramkrishna Paramhans, Al hillaj Mansoor, Tulsidas, Valmiki etc who had little if any means to get by in life. According to Maslow they would be at the bottom of the pyramid i.e. Biological and Physiological needs or at the Safety needs when rated at an exaggerated best and yet they have all attained a self-fulfillment, a personal growth and a peak experience humanly possible and gone further beyond.
Life it seems is repeatedly reminding that it is more specific than generici.e. even though theories and ideologies are good pointers to the path they themselves are not the path.
So what then is the path?
Paradox and contrast………………
The human mind drugged by its sense of rationality wants to see clear cut patterns and pictures and in its attempt to do so it willfully and skillfully ignores a lot only to observe and absorb that which conforms to its preconceived notions.
And that is precisely why the question ……. The question about finality of life …..The question about life’s purpose………The question about the path and the goal…….
Who is asking all this????
Is it the self ….the self that is ….the primal substratum of existence??
Is it the self, the singularity, that was prior to the big bang and then started out with the big bang becoming the chaotic soup of nebulous gases then molding itself into stars, galaxies and planets and then from the seemingly dead chemicals aggregating itself in remarkably calculated proportions with a rather unimaginable synchronicity to become alive. Single cellular, to multi cellular, to amphibians, to reptiles, birds, mammals and finally the ones who are writing and reading this on their computer screen.
Is that self asking questions?? And if so then to whom is it posing these questions??
Or is it something implanted upon it, something extraneous that asks the questions (the mind)???
And this is the point of confluence of all that has been discussed till now…….
That there is a deeper intelligence operational within us like every other living being and the so called non-living thing is amply obvious.
The heart continues to produce its own electrical impulses and converts it into an extremely precise and synchronized mechanical activity called the cardiac cycle in every beat (which takes pages upon pages of explanation in physiology text books to understand). The lungs effortlessly function to remove the accumulated carbon dioxide and refresh the body with oxygen with each breath. Stomach and the intestines breakdown the complex food stuffs we intake into the required essentials and absorb and assimilate them. The eyes are continuously sending electrical impulses to the brain which then interprets it as images. There is no real image anywhere; it’s just an interpretation or translation of electrical activity occurring on the retina by the optic lobes of the brain (beauty truly does lie in the eyes or more correctly optic lobes of the beholder). The ears are sending in compressions and rarefactions of air (the sound vibrations) as electrical signals that are then translated into meaningful words and sentences by the auditory lobe of the brain. So on and so forth with each and every organ, organ system, sense and the entire body. From the seemingly dead nails and hair to the infinitely complex brain (with its 86-100 billion neurons and around 0.15 quadrillion synapses) there seems to be an all pervasive intelligence that is functioning despite of us. That is to say that we have little if any say in our physiological functioning; and hence essentially life.
So it seems that there are two entities functional in this human body of ours,
1> The real primal intelligence that actually orchestrates the functioning of this extremely complex body and maintains life as we know it.
2> Something else that has little or no say in the “real life” and hence weaves an illusory web of control derived from a “reaction to the is’ness of life”
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