We’re only here for a short while. And I think it’s such a
lucky accident, having been born, that we’re almost obliged to pay attention. In
some ways, this is getting far afield. I mean, we are – as far as we know – the
only part of the universe that’s self-conscious. We could even be the universe’s
form of consciousness. We might have come along so that the universe could look
at itself. I don’t know that, but we’re made of the same stuff that stars are
made of, or that floats around in space. But we’re combined in such a way that
we can describe what it’s like to be alive, to be witnesses. Most of our
experience is that of being a witness. We see and hear and smell other things. I
think being alive is responding. - Rilke
Sunday, 1 February 2015
Awareness
We’re only here for a short while. And I think it’s such a
lucky accident, having been born, that we’re almost obliged to pay attention. In
some ways, this is getting far afield. I mean, we are – as far as we know – the
only part of the universe that’s self-conscious. We could even be the universe’s
form of consciousness. We might have come along so that the universe could look
at itself. I don’t know that, but we’re made of the same stuff that stars are
made of, or that floats around in space. But we’re combined in such a way that
we can describe what it’s like to be alive, to be witnesses. Most of our
experience is that of being a witness. We see and hear and smell other things. I
think being alive is responding. - Rilke