I've seen it before, and i'm seeing it more often now. People don't just want to be alive. I mean we all are alive, we all are people. We are human, we have this damn humanity that we can never shake off of ourselves. That just isn't enough anymore. People want to feel like they're part of something bigger than themselves. People want to feel like there's something out there, something you can't put into words.
This used to be religion. Religion was the biggest thing in our world, because it was profound and transcendent. Joseph Campbell was friends with a man named Heinrich Zimmer who would always say, "The best things can't be told, because they transcend thought. The second best are misunderstood, because those are the thoughts that are supposed to refer to that which can't be thought about, and one gets stuck in the thoughts. The third best are what we talk about."
In this way, think of God. God is something that's talked about all the time, he's referred to everyday, by any person. We talk about him, he's one of those best things. He represents the mystery of life, the questions we ask, why are we here? Why are we alive? What is our true purpose? Those questions, the misunderstandings of what the meaning of life really is, those are the second best things. And the answer to those questions? Well that's the greatest thing of all. But it can't be answered. The answer is transcendent, it's beyond our understanding. It's why they can't be told, it's why it's misunderstood, and this is why we created this man called God as a sort of proxy to think about this. It's the very root of mythology, trying to understand the human condition.
But let's stop thinking about religion now. This topic is not about religion at all, it's just an example. How does this correlate to everyday life? Let's dumb this down, let's simplify it.
People on Facebook, they go through everyday, posting hundreds of statuses, sad, happy, mad, glad, whatever. But then you see the rants. You see people talking about something that's going through their mind for the day. A rant is a scope into that persons day, what they thought so much about. Anyone is capable of this. But why are they posting up personal information up on a public forum? They'll post something about their parents, or people, money, women, men, love, or even religion. They'll talk about something that really isn't the business of anyone else. Why? It's because they want someone to say something, they want to share an idea, or a topic and discuss it with a large group of people.
I have a friend, he's part of a pyramid scheme, but they're all happy. I mean obviously pyramid schemes are stupid and really shouldn't be encouraged. But for the first time in a long time, my friend is finding themselves happy. Why is this? It's because she's part of something, she's found a place that welcomes her. It's the same thing as religion, as a cult, as an after school group, as a charity, as any kind of group. It's something that's bigger than her, and she's part of it. No one wants to be alone, everyone wants to feel accepted. Encouraged. They want to believe in something that not even their own family will do. People want to believe in something that's bigger then themselves. That's what life is all about, the experience. Everyone wants to experience something greater, because no body wants to only be human.
And that's what it all comes down to, belief. Belief is stronger than knowledge, believe it or not. To know something, is to know something absolute. But to truly believe in something, that's to give yourself, 100% mind body soul, to something. Something bigger than you. Everyone knows that death is right around the corner, everyone knows that one day, you're going to die. But it's that person that truly believes death is coming that people worry about. I can easily say that i'm going to die one day, and that's nothing. No body would bat an eye, but to say that i truly believe i'll be dead soon, and to believe with all my soul, you'd be worried wouldn't you? You'd stay away. You don't want to be anywhere near me when i go off.
This isn't an opinion on anything. Back to my friend, how can i judge him? He's happy. To judge him, on how he found his happiness, i have to offer a proper substitute, and how can i when i don't have my own? I'm not part of anything, i'm not following any group, and i'm not trying to find something bigger than me. He found his own happiness, and a friend, i'll just stay to side and be glad that he found something to be happy about. Until then, i have to chase my bliss. Bliss, is happiness.
