Last month, Elizabeth Gilbert posted a Martha Beck video explaining her concept of the Pyramid and the Pool. Martha Beck points towards the Chaos in today’s world and that everything seems upside down. Chaos is often a forebode of Change. In her view, this Change may constitute an Awakening. That word hit a nerve inside me. I realised that Awakening may represent the 4th and final layer in my 2nd concept of Needs, Wants, Beliefs.
In my 23 March 2015 blog, I mentioned that I expect a New Renaissance following the Technological Revolution of 1800-2100. Such a New Renaissance could also be called a collective Awakening and is based on several joint developments: increase of global population, increase in average human age, urbanisation, and mass unemployment of seniors due to AI and Robotics (e.g., BBC, my blog). The end of Beliefs may trigger an Awakening.
The new astrological Age of Aquarius, following the Age of Pisces, points to an Awakening. Wiki: “Astrologers believe that an astrological age affects humanity, possibly by influencing the rise and fall of civilizations or cultural tendencies.” The Age of Aquarius (see my 18 April 2016 blog) is said to bring “a period of group consciousness“. And also a “purification of our inner and outer selves” and a “cleaning up of our planet”. This is however mirrored by “the appearance of dictators, self-expression, and the rising influence of the entertainment industry” (Wiki).
The pace and volume of individual changes may feel overwhelming today. It’s still unclear whether we are heading towards Chaos or a new Equilibrium. Whatever the outcome, Change is the default continuum and Chaos and Equilibrium are its temporary states (see my 12 March 2016 blog).
In my recent “Upside Down” blog, I wrote that Change may be brought by people rather than their leaders. This was another example of upside down Change. The Martha Beck video essentially claims the same: the Awakening happens as water (pool) is stronger than a structure (pyramid). Water is represented by enlightened people and pyramids by social structures.
Wisdom is at the center of my 1st concept of the 7 Belief systems. How do you arrive at Wisdom? It’s easier said than done. My 2013 burn-out created a life altering moment because of its severity and its 18 month duration. Perhaps, an awakening follows such life altering moments. Similar to (part of) the Tao philosophy: the more I’m quiet, the better I can listen.
The willingness to sacrifice your own life is the key criterion for a Belief system. This resulted in my concept of the 7 Belief systems, being: Love, Money, Philosophy, Politics, Religion, Science and the Truth. However, these 7 Belief systems are also the reason to take someone else’s life. That alone made me wonder about the existence of another layer in my concept.
Adding the layer of Awakening on top of Needs, Wants and Beliefs makes perfect sense as it finally points to Wisdom. BBC Future 2017: “Wisdom is something that’s hard to define and yet somehow we know it when we see it.” [] “Wisdom mustn’t be confused with intelligence” (eg, my 2016 blog). [] “The wise people tolerate uncertainty and remain optimistic that even tricky problems do have solutions. They can judge what is true or right. It’s quite a list.”
According to Star Trek, Space is the Final Frontier. For futurists, the brain is the next logical frontier. I think, feel and believe that Wisdom is the final frontier to mankind. To quote William Shakespeare: “The fool doth think he is wise, but the wise man knows himself to be a fool.” Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish!
Awakening (2007) by Switchfoot – artists, FB, lyrics, video, Wiki-1, Wiki-2
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