Humanity is a species notoriously slow to learn: only as we approach the end of Obama's (hopefully, first) term in office have we begun to finally see demonstrations of popular discontent and frustration at the monumental mess that Republicans left America as a little parting gift. It took over three years... but there is much to be excited and optimistic about. No, really.
In life, things aren't always what they appear to be. Personally, I think that collectively, all of us as a species would do well to try and become a little more humble, a little less sure that we already have all the answers and a little more willing to start asking better questions - because in my mind, answers are fine but questions is where it's at. The questions I've asked have propelled me down my own path in life, one that could be called "spiritual" for lack of a better word, and I think a lot of people might be able to relate to me or to some of my insights for this reason. Allow me to explain what I mean.
There is a certain thought that bounces around in my head sometimes and I believe it's the core of what I'm trying to express here, so I will do my best to articulate it and expound on it. Basically, I think the majority of people don't fundamentally question the nature of their realities or even the nature of their own selves, and it seems that even the brightest minds among us, those who may instinctively agree with my statement above that questions are important, get to a point where they stop asking questions and stop pursuing lines of reasoning, and I think that is part of what's holding us back. Have you ever wondered, for example, why most of humanity's plights have been basically the same since the dawn of time? Have you even noticed that, though in the year 2011 we have Internet and Dreamliners and space stations, we still can't all get along, we still can't have world peace, and a tiny minority still manage to control the largest share of wealth and resources, and it's been this way since before recorded history? So what do you think is the reason for this?
Throughout my life I've heard many people do what to me amounts to a psychological shrug: that's just human nature. There will always be war, there will always be violence and division, some people are just like that and that can never change. I very much disagree because it seems to me we're all playing out a grand drama, we're all together in this world stage sharing this time and space, but many - perhaps most - have forgotten why they came here and what we're really trying to do.
Humanity has always been a spiritually immature race. It's true, there has always been war and violence, prejudice and deceit, but that is a reflection of our spiritual immaturity, and that is a transitory condition. The fact that it's lasted for thousands of years is almost irrelevant - remember, humanity has existed in this universe for an amount of time that is a blink and a sigh in the grand cosmic scale. We're still children, but we're growing up - the thing is, part of the growth process depends on increased awareness, and this seems to be occurring: I think we are starting to collectively wake up. Needless to say, the Internet has been an important tool in this latest phase of the process, perhaps the catalyst.
So as a movement like OWS begins to exist as an entity in space-time, growing and evolving, and perhaps discovering a motive or a purpose, it - that is to say, us - has a chance to ask some really great questions and get us pointed in the right direction. I think we can have a fair economic system that rewards hard work but grants opportunity to all - but we cannot bring this change about externally: we can't force each other to be always fair and to be less materialistic as a species. In order for something like that to happen, every last person on Earth would have to see for him or herself that it is in our collective best interests to embrace honesty and transparency completely, and in order for that to happen we'd have to see how intrinsically, deeply and irrevocably interconnected we all are, instead of the way we've seen ourselves so far - as egos, as individual entities surviving separately. Most of us have even believed in a myth called "survival of the fittest" to enhance and reaffirm the illusion of separateness - it's true, we are individuals, but we are also part of larger whole, and these two aspects of our reality aren't mutually exclusive at all. But a change like this can only come from the inside out -we're talking a major paradigm shift here.
Likewise, I think we can have peace on Earth, disarm ourselves completely and leave war and violence relegated to history. But for that to occur, every last person on Earth would have to stop fearing for his or her personal physical safety, and also refuse to use violence on another, ever, except perhaps as a last resort in extraordinary circumstances or in self-defense. Naturally, when you see yourself as a separate, individual entity in a threatening world, full of potential dangers, you will seek to defend yourself. But what are you defending, really, when you don't really know who you truly are? And what are you defending against, anyway? You only fear death because you have never wanted to face the fact in the first place. We're all going to die - this we all know. Yet we loathe thinking about death, we fear it greatly, and this is but another reflection of our spiritual immaturity. Why fear death when all living things die? Why not seek to understand it better and come to terms with it? Is it really better to push these questions out of one's mind... because they're scary, hard, confusing? Is that really so?
My own questions led me down my own path, and part of it was motivated by pain (depression) and a search for meaning and relief. Now I understand that our greatest fears are always connected to our greatest desires as well, but an important thing to discover about the nature of fear and negativity is that they are ultimately an illusion - they are only the absence of the light of knowledge and awareness. When you know the true nature of death, you neither fear death nor life. When you don't fear for tomorrow and you don't worry if you will have enough or feel the need to hoard because there isn't enough, but you understand that you are the source of everything you would enjoy in life, from your own sustenance to your grandest ambitions... you stop perceiving so fearfully and see the opportunities everywhere. At least I think so - try this for yourself. And don't take my word for any of this either - start asking some really great questions and get your own answers. Hopefully they will lead you to even greater questions.