Myth debunked

I grew up believing, knowing that life matters, that I make a difference, that love makes a difference. Somewhere along the way, I began to challenge and question that belief. As a matter of fact, I eventually became convinced that the Universe did'nt really care. The Universe seemed to be perfectly willing to let species go extinct, to allow violence and hatred to rise exponentially... It did'nt care whether I was loving and kind or cynical and indifferent. The trees, the stars, did'nt care whether I was out there in the world making a difference or I was wrapped up in being self-indulgent and comfortable. A spiralling whirlwind of silent desperation overwhelmed me and in its wake unravelled and ravaged my long-cherished, fundamental view of the world.

As a natural progression, the indifference of the stars was projected onto people. "The Universe does not care" quickly became "people don't care" and to "no one cares". With this, I began to understand and even relate to the desolation and desperation that people must feel when they are prompted to commit violence upon themselves or upon others (which may be the same thing). My favorite causes - the end of world hunger, enlightenment, conservation, peace - began to fall by the wayside. In thought and in action. If no one cares, then why bother with any of it?

But there was a fallacy in my thinking. The fallacy came to light when a question arose in my mind. The question was this: If the Universe did care, how would it express itself? My answer startled me. I am a part of this Universe and me caring is how the Universe expresses caring. (The same is true for you, for all of us, but more on that later). If I care, it means the Universe cares! The fallacy was thinking of myself as being separate from the Universe. Does the Universe care when an entire species goes extinct? Unequivocally yes! Beacause I care! I am the little bit of consciousness of this vast Universe, by means of which it cries about senseless violence, about poverty, about hunger....how else could it?

A corollary of this realization is that a myth can be debunked. The myth is that no one cares.
Whether the trees and stars care or not, I don't know, but the truth is that I care....about peace, about the quality of life on this planet, about all of it... about you. And single-handedly, by proclaiming myself as at least one exception, the myth of "no one cares" may forever be banished. I may never know who you are, but I care what happens to you and how you live. The next time in a dark, desperate moment of your life if someone tells you that no one cares (and the someone telling you that may be yourself), you can point to this obscure corner of (cyber)space and say no way!

My belief is that the human spririt is how the Universe expresses the caring, loving, difference-making aspect of itself. If you too care (and in our own unique way, each one of us does), feel free to post a response to this blog and include the phrase "I care" in it. Let the Universe resound with this self-knowledge of itself. Let there be joy!

Tatvam Asi (I am That) - The Upanishad.

And, so are You!!