QUESTIONS When discussing truth, why do we never begin with what we don't know? Think of your earliest memory, who were you before then? Where do memories live? You have changed since you were a young child, but has something remained the same? Have your eyes seen your own face as others' eyes do? When two mirrors face each other, how many reflections are there? If you answered "infinite", did you count the reflections? If not, how do you know? What is the awareness which perceives these words? When we sleep, where does awareness go? Why does it come back? Why is my awareness only ever in my body? Other than words, has anyone shown you, what becomes of awareness after we die? Other than words, has anyone shown you, where awareness comes from before conception? If we don't know for certain, where awareness comes from before birth, or where awareness goes after death, can we ever truly be certain we know purpose or meaning in life? can we ever harm another and be certain of our virtue? If I tell an intentional lie, and others unquestioningly repeat it, (perhaps even after I die), who is to blame? When someone tells us words, who decides if they are true? Trunk, stump, timber, log, branch, stick, twig, sprig: Why are there so many words for parts of trees? And so few words for the sun, moon or sky? Before a tree is chopped down, who decides how many logs there will be? When listening to a ticking clock, or a ticking metronome, what is physically changing each tick? Who decides how long a second lasts? When is a second too long or too short? Who stops you from imagining others naked? Is money freedom? Is work slavery? Why is ownership (i.e. wealth) desirable or admirable? When is wealth not responsibility? If suddenly today you got everything you've ever wanted, what would you want next? Who is responsible for the work, the one who ordered it, or the one who did it? Who decides when society is wrong for harming others? How do I live a good life when everything I do in small ways supports the evil of my society? If most people don't know that they don't know then perhaps the best that can be done is to simply ask better questions?
Contemplations
Artwork: “The Lovers”, Remedios Varo, 1963 (source)
