Why are we alive rather than not is a question not instantly answered by an internet search.
"Why are we alive rather than not?" It's a question we either never ask, answer with the canned, generic answers provided by others, answer for ourselves, or live with unanswered.
Even though we do not know the answer to the question, I find value in allowing the question to move me into the altered state of wonder. There's nourishment for my spirit, vulnerable and wondering in the presence of the great mystery of life.
Have you tasted it? That wonder?
I was very much struck by your characterization of wonder as an altered state. I am well-familiar with the concept as applied in shamanic practice, where it captures the concept of journeying to other realities. Was this analogy connection deliberate on your part?
ReplyDeleteI honestly hadn't considered this more expansive and inclusive idea that wonder, mystery, and awe, among others, could also be a journey. Journeys very much nourish my spirit, showing as they do other ways and means to be alive. I appreciate the paradigm shift.
Hello Sara! I apologize for my delayed response. I just returned from a ver busy trip to California. This is the first opportunity I've had to reply.
DeleteYes, I think there is some overlap between what I wrote about the altered state of consciousness (ASC) I call wonder and the ASC used for shamanic journeys. However, the association was not deliberate on my part.
I had not thought of the experience of wonder as a journey itself or a state in which one could journey in the shamanic sense. But I do no think that rules that option out.
Great food for thought!