We live in an insane time. Maybe every age feels that way. Is being well-informed overrated, like science, logic, and rational thinking are these days? Is our very sanity overrated?
Miguel de Cervantes said, “Too much sanity may be madness and the maddest of all, to see life as it is and not as it should be.” Do we dare to open our minds and see life as it should be?
One must be mad these days to suggest that there might be better ways of doing things than the current status quo. OK. I will be mad. Be insane. I will continue to think crazy thoughts, like those of NBA reader Alex, who commented on the post "The Environment... is F***ed" from last week.
"Renewable energy needs to be quickly implemented. Cities should be car free zones. The world needs to go plant based. A universal world income should come into force. National parks need increasing in size. A return to primitivism as described by Lao Zi is probably the way forward. Internal cultivation is key."
Or how about these insanely good ideas from NBA reader and house fire survivor, Madeleine, while remaining optimistic and describing that more beautiful world she knows is possible.
"That would be a world where it was so expensive to drive a car that everyone would choose to cycle, walk, or car pool. That would be a world where there were no supermarkets, only farmer's markets and bulk whole foods suppliers, and where one could easily buy second hand and locally made clothing. That would be a world where your town centre housed little shops that repaired everything, from your toaster to your shoes and clothing."
Now that is crazy stuff for sure. Crazy good. Thank you, Alex, Madeleine, and everyone else that contributes such beautiful thoughts and ideas here on our blog. We need more thinking like this to build what Charles Eisenstein calls "The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know Is Possible".
Before this world is manifested, we must be able to brainstorm it, and visualize what that world looks like. We have to think, big, crazy, beautiful good thoughts, and take on the challenge to see life as it should be. As it could be.
Imagine that more beautiful world with an open mind, and eventually, Manifesting becomes Manifested. Despite what some may say, a better world is possible.
Then we can be both well informed, and a little less mad.
"When any of us meet someone who rejects dominant norms and values, we feel a little less crazy for doing the same. Any act of rebellion or non-participation, even on a very small scale, is therefore a political act."
- From The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know is Possible
The concept of the Dao, the way， 道 is useful. If humanity follows the way, life flows. Once people leave the Dao problems occur. It's in our DNA to follow the way. That's why there are so many hospitals, as humanity wants to eat a different diet than what should be consumed. Some activities leave people feeling drained while others invigorate. While there is a sattvic diet there are stattvic activities. Examples are gardening, spending time in nature, running, meditation, art, learning languages and enjoying time with others.
ReplyDeleteActually saving the planet makes people feel good on this level.
Peace,
Alex
It's not that long ago that I was a child and there was indeed a little shop in my suburb where you could take your toaster or anything electrical and have it repaired. My local farmer's market is growing and another organic food shop has sprung up in town. Sometimes the return to these good ways doesn't seem like it's happening fast enough, but today I learned that over 1 million Australian homes have solar power ( population of Aus is about 22 million.) However when you consider that the 1 million figure indicates 'growth of over 35 times the rate since 2008' that is indeed something to be happy about.
ReplyDeleteSolar power is just one example of what was I was talking about recently when I said we need to make it easy for people to make good choices. Solar power is becoming more and more affordable in my country and people are taking it on in droves. Perhaps we all need to be a bit more pro active in order to see the changes we would like to see in our communities. For my part, I would like to encourage my local council to put in more bicycle lanes as I'm convinced that many, many more people would cycle to work if it was perceived as a safer option than it is now.
What would you like to see developing in your own community?
Madeleine.x
We were watching a TV program (yes I know but this is ad free and Canadian by the way) and it mentioned agrarianism in an historical context. So I looked it up https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_agrarianism which led me on a search today for the New Agrarians, some of my heroes like Wendell Berry and Aldo Leopold among them. Reading quotes from these men gave me a new perspective and hope for the possibility of a different and better future that I've been lacking lately. Maybe we're just crazy enough to make a better world come true!
ReplyDeleteI relate to this cartoon and caption deeply. Agree, there's some crazy good stuff being shared on NBA! I see that Charles Eisentein's book about the beautiful world is available to read on his website. It's up next when I finish Trailersteading, thanks to a kindle loan from Miss Marla. We're going to see the old structure crash before we see the new stuff like we're brainstorming and visualizing take hold on a large scale. To answer Madeleine's question, I'd love to see repair shops like you describe in my town. I miss them. I visualized me walking into my local city council meeting and telling them that's what I want in my community! For certain they would think I'm crazy!
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