The Goal of Life
Ken Drummond, October, 2002

There are times when we can seem to grasp a concept or inner image of an object "in all its fullness." We apparently comprehend it so clearly. Later, such vivid inner perception usually leaves us and we are left with only a glimmer of the previous effulgence. I believe that philosophers would do well to unleash the power of their minds. It seems that we create particular sets of rules (or read them from others) and forthwith confine our thinking within those rules. Of course it is logical that we try to build on what we believe to be correct. However the problem is that we are essentially coming out of the dark ages, in which the mental limitations were particularly severe. Prior to that low period I believe that the Greeks and others were not so hide-bound in their thinking processes. We have difficulty appreciating their advancement for two reasons: 1) We assume that our thinking must necessarily be superior because we live in a later time period, and 2) We do not easily comprehend the subtleties of their presentations due to difficulties of (time and cultural) translation. 

The unleashing of the mind that I refer to has to do with ranging farther afield mentally than we commonly do. In settling into a campsite we may remain complacently absorbed with the trees, shrubs, and rocks that are in the clearing we have chosen. We don't speculate that there is much other than more of the same in our surroundings. However if we should climb a tree or a nearby hill we might discover that there are flowing streams, rivers, lakes, wildlife, and other campsites in the nearby region. Our perspective is then enlarged considerably.

I suppose we don't imagine more because we have not heard of more. If we are from the western part of the world we have read certain books that purport to be more-or-less the epitome of learning. If we grow up in a particular country (this includes your country) we don't realize the unique brainwashing or conditioning that we have undergone. Our society and its historical underpinnings condition us to think and act a certain way. We more or less follow the herd, each individual thinking that he stands out a bit from his fellows. When I lived in Canada I wondered what strange coincidence and good fortune caused me to be born in the best country in the world (for that is common knowledge in Canada, at least it was when I was growing up). Years later upon moving to the US, I began to realize that Canada wasn't necessarily all that much superior, and some years later still I began to congratulate myself on having had the wisdom to move to the US, by then recognized by me as a country with very distinct advantages over any other.

The (for want of a handier expression) brainwashing system of the west is very intertwined. Supported by an extensive network of various financial incentives for particular types of research, its members (you and I) are convinced that they represent the finest thoughts and attainments yet imagined. I am merely pointing out the phenomenon of complacency of time and locale here; I am not propounding a conspiracy theory of education and philosophical research.

The world keeps many of us fully absorbed in day-to-day affairs of survival and with constant desires for more of everything, more variety, more and better, faster and newer. For many of us it is only when we suffer some setbacks or hard knocks, that we are motivated to seek a deeper understanding or meaning to life. The world is fairly reliable in providing such opportunities for encouraging our seeking after truth or reality. We are all at different levels; some are much further along than others. I see life as a school in which we are all gradually moving along through the grades toward eventual graduation.

When a scientist or other creative person is seeking a new discovery he may spend a great deal of time in study and research. His mind becomes absorbed in the subject under question. He has a sense that the elusive solution is near at hand but is not able to nail it down. He may struggle considerably to find it. As often seems to happen, at least in many historical instances, it is when all avenues seem to be exhausted, when the elusive solution has been grabbed for and escaped, when the inventor has imagined the success and acclaim perhaps that the solution would bring, but when the solution has still eluded him and he has been forced to give up the thought of the looked-for simple success. There are a thousand possible scenarios here but what seems to happen is that at some point the person essentially relaxes, and in doing so the thoughts on the subject in question seem to swirl around and kind of settle down after a time. It is usually in a moment of quietness or when he is not really thinking about it at all. It may be when he is sleeping or just awakening from sleep. It may be in a sort of daydreaming mode. But at some point of what I would call interiorization or withdrawal from his active quest, the solution seems to just sort of appear, it seems to just kind of -- materialize or suddenly be sitting there, almost unnoticed. Perhaps it is discovered in an experiment gone wrong or in speculation on some other subject. But suddenly it is there. It kind of pops into the mind or the test-tube. My questions for the philosopher and for the scientist with his instruments are:

1) What is that state of mind that seems to bring about or make possible such solutions?
2) Can such states be produced at will?
3) Is there a limit to what we can achieve in such states?
4) Can we benefit by researching related instances and related disciplines?
 
One thought I have on this (from vague personal recollection) is that there is a certain experience that one has at these times during which certain solutions appear. There is actually a very broad understanding that is experienced but (due to his mental preponderance at the time) the person latches on to a solution or discovery with particular application to what he has been researching. There is the feeling that more was there to see and to know, but, as I mentioned in an earlier instance, that vividness fades and he retains at least that which most closely relates to the solution he has spent time searching for.

Hearing about these kinds of creative experiences, you will get people who try to duplicate the accomplishment and others who will falsely claim or imagine that they experience it. Thus we have a lack of credibility and a disincentive to investigate the subject scientifically.
 
Are We All Created Equal?
Yes and no. The ideal in America is that we all have equal opportunities. That is a great ideal and it is true in many parts of the world (not all, sadly) to a large degree, certainly compared to the days of social classes and other divisions, when (short of revolution) only the aristocracy could hope to achieve their dreams.

At birth I would say that it does not appear we are created equal. In fact there seems to be a great deal of inequality. There are some born with strong perfect bodies, others who are evident prodigies of one sort or another, some born into good supportive families, others born into various social positions or into artistic or professional spheres of influence. Although it may be true that the underdog tries harder and may eventually surpass some of his more privileged brethren, it still does not seem fair that some should have to struggle so hard while others apparently have it easy.

In a random universe this would all make sense. Things are just the way they are, it is not meant to be any different. The situation you are born into is "just the luck of the draw" so to speak.

Still some part of us rebels at this unfairness. Let's say that you are some kind of incredible creative genius who kind of lives in your mind -- and only comes out on Sundays -- or for the Super Bowl, or anyway just on rare occasions. You know, you are really caught up in your thoughts, your shoelaces are sometimes untied, you ignore your wife (or husband), you essentially never come out of your lab, you are always just on the verge of the most incredible discovery the world has ever seen, you often let your meals get cold. We actually don't see too many people like this in the real world, it is more like something we would read about in fiction, isn't it? Such withdrawal from the real world we don't usually see, or do we?

Well, it is actually very common though in some different contexts. Old people: In some cases these seniors may be on medication or suffer from some memory loss. But they are often not really with us completely it seems. They are kind of like in some other world. There are a great number of variations of people withdrawn in these ways. Another even more common example is you. That's right. When you go to sleep at night where are you? If you are a sound sleeper and I come up to you, you may not respond. You will simply ignore me. Unless I make some noise or shake you, it seems that you are not in this world but possibly in some other. We often forget this aspect of ourselves, an aspect in which we may spend up to a third of our time each day. One reason we more or less forget it is because we don't observe ourselves sleeping. We don't even usually bother to watch other people sleeping, because -- it is so boring. They are not there so -- why bother?

They are somewhere else. Where are they? Somewhere in their minds perhaps, sub-conscious mind apparently. They might be dreaming that they are running around doing things. They probably won't believe that they are dreaming, until they wake up -- in other words, until they switch into this other dream of what may be called "waking reality." While dreaming I have sometimes asked myself whether I was dreaming. I was certain that I wasn't, but did so just the same -- to discover that -- I began to wake up, and had in fact been dreaming. 

So you see it is not so easy to distinguish what is reality (especially early in life and late in life, I believe.) These various states all have something to do with some aspect of our consciousness. During this current period of being "alive" we have convinced ourselves that this is normal, this is the way it always is, more or less. But when we sleep where are we? When you no longer feel the body responding to your commands to move and you enter the stillness of death, where are you? Some will say that you are nowhere, that you have ceased to exist. But try telling that to the person who has departed his mortal frame. He may not be inclined to agree. You see, it is a matter of opinion. It is fine to say that there is no life after death when you are hale and hearty, in the fullness of life. But let me ask you the same question when you go to the other side. I think that those people are entitled to their opinions too.

Created equal? Well, when you have no more physical form there is not a whole lot there to make you seem superior or more advantaged than I am. So, in that situation, we seem closer to equality, don't we? However let's say that I was a criminal who passed away unrepentant. If I became tired eventually of thinking about eating apple pie but not being able to eat any, and if I thought longingly of all the gold I might be able to acquire if I were smart enough and bold enough--by either the creative force of my own determination, or the grace of some higher power, or both--I might find myself reborn in another human form.

The point of this whole exercise is that, in this new body, I would bring with me more or less the same tendencies that I had in my previous life. I would likely be drawn to a family with some similarities to my own aspirations and liabilities. If I had been immersed in music or some other subject I might become a virtuoso from a young age. If I had intentionally caused pain or injury to others I might find that I was not able to attain a flawless body myself. Tendencies toward certain illnesses or strengths would draw me to a family with similar characteristics. Psychologists would say I inherited the tendencies from my parents, but it might be more accurate to say that the similar characteristics were already existent so I was drawn or wished to be in a family of like nature.

The determinism or cause/effect comes in here because nothing really changes from life-to-life. According to this scenario a person reaps the result of what he sows, whether in this life or the next. The inner place from whence seems to spring the flower of manifested life (the physical form) from time to time, is common to the withdrawn soul in death, in deep contemplation, and in the fount of creative inspiration.
Real equality exists in the sense that life is a school, we all have equal opportunities to make progress, to learn to choose actions that bring about harmony in the world and in ourselves. 

When, through necessary experiences of many dreams of lifetimes, we learn to love and to understand, the compulsion to experience the rounds of births and deaths will fade, the source of the fountain of wisdom and inspiration will become apparent.