We spend entire lifetimes trying to avoid simple truths. Those truths are simple, yes, but they are also harsh. We are going to die someday. The people that we know are going to die. A memory is as fleeting as a leaf in the sky. We try to pretend that we are above the physical, that the mystical part of being human is the one that matters. We try to believe that everything happens for a reason, we try to reason that “we” are the ones in control. We avoid the fact that there are gears and cogwheels working in the background, making most decisions for us. It is scary to give up control to a system that we are not that much aware of.
But what would happen if we did the opposite? What would happen if we understood what truly makes us tick—the chemicals and the programming and the features that allowed us to survive and become the technologically advanced species we are today? Would that be so scary, or would it allow us to understand ourselves a little better, and in doing so, be able to manipulate our behavior to achieve the states we truly desire?
There is immense power in knowledge. gnōthi seauton
