The Living Universe - Duane Elgin [73]
With social reflection from the local to global scale, we can explore the core questions raised here: Is the universe dead or alive? Who are we as a species? What kind of journey are we on? As our capacity for social reflection grows, we can choose social conversations more wisely and look for promising pathways more effectively. Actions can come quickly and voluntarily as we develop a capacity for building consensus for a promising future. With a shared vision, each person can contribute unique talents in creating that future. Voluntary, self-organizing action will be vital to our success. Our swiftly developing world situation is far too complex for any one individual, group, or nation to design remedies that will work for everyone. While being mindful of the conditions and needs at the global scale, we can work creatively at the local scale to adapt to changing conditions. This is a time for diverse local experimentation undertaken in a context of rich communication from the local to the global levels.
Bringing Our True Gifts into the World
At this time of supreme testing, we are being challenged to give nothing less than our highest and best gifts to the world. The Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh describes how we each have what can be called “near gifts” and “true gifts.” Near gifts, he says, are those things that we are pretty good at doing. Often we make our living and have our lives absorbed in our near gifts. He also said that we each have true gifts. True gifts are those things in which we are soulfully gifted—activities in which we feel at ease, where we naturally excel, and that bring us happiness in our personal lives and the lives of others. I believe the times ahead will be so demanding that our near gifts will not be sufficient to get us through. At this rare moment in history when our human capacities are being tested to their utmost, we are each challenged to bring our true gifts into the world. The window of opportunity is brief. Don’t hold back. Give your gifts to the world at this pivotal moment in the human journey.
The Promise of the Journey Ahead
We have come full circle in the great story of our journey of return to our cosmic home. Now we can look again at the three questions that have oriented this inquiry.
Where are we? The combined wisdom of science and spirituality speak with stunning clarity. We live, not in a dead universe, but in a living universe that is almost entirely invisible, flowing with an immensity of energy, continuously emerging anew, and brimming with sentience. We live in a universe that is vastly larger, more alive, subtle, intelligent, purposeful, and free than many of us have begun to imagine. With humility, we can turn back to the cosmos and freshly rediscover our home.
Who are we? Life exists within life. Our life is inseparable from the aliveness of the living universe. Our aliveness and consciousness extends beyond our biological bodies and into the further reaches and depths of the living universe. Our physical bodies comprise only the smallest fraction of the full scope of our being. Our bodies are biodegradable vehicles for learning that we are subtle beings of light, love, music, and knowing. We may have thought we were physical beings in a material universe, but now we are discovering that we are beings who are an integral part of the life stream of a living universe. With renewed feelings of wonder, we can open to a larger sense of self that connects into the subtle aliveness of a living universe.
Where are we going? Humanity is growing up and growing into the reality that we are beings of both biological and cosmic dimension. We are on a heroic journey of awakening—learning how to live within the deep ecology of the Mother Universe. Our journey of awakening and discovery has reached