A Conscious Existence, Transformative Experiences, & Sublimely Beautiful
Wednesday Wisdoms for November 27, 2024
Welcome to Wednesday Wisdom, our 3x3 Newsletter where I distill worldly advice for better living with 3 quotes, 3 observations, and 3 questions.
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A Conscious Existence
🤨 Quote
“Consciousness is not solely our experience of reality; it is our experience of reality filtered and modulated by our expectations for it.”
Brad Stuhlberg
Source: Master of Change
Observation 🧐
Consciousness is one of the great mysteries of the world right now. Does it come from the complex formation of systems? Or is it inherently built within every living organism?
Our consciousness dictates how we interact and interpret the world around us.
Just like how you yourself change based upon those you hang around with, so too your conscious understanding of the world shifts based upon what you take in.
The goal then, as Iris Murdoch once put it, it to “pierce the veil of selfish consciousness” by way of virtue. By doing so, by aligning ourselves to a virtuous pursuit, we’re more able to “join the world as it really is.”
In so doing, we not only experience the sublime with all its beauty, but also live a more grounded existence.
🤔 Question
How do you keep yourself attentive to the present moment?
Transformative Experiences
🤨 Quote
“At some point in life the world's beauty becomes enough. You don't need to photograph, paint or even remember it. It is enough. No record of it needs to be kept and you don't need someone to share it with or tell it to.”
Toni Morrison
Source: The Measure of Our Lives
Observation 🧐
Toni Morrison’s sentiment seems counter-intuitive to the culture of today but resonates more deeply with the true value of living.
Experiencing the sublime and everything it entails is not about capturing the moment, it is about being enveloped in it, so much so that it is a transformative experience.
There is a shift that happens in the presence of awe, one that immediately removes you from the world you know and supplants you into one much larger. You no longer recognize the existence you live but are changed by the one you are experiencing.
When we open ourselves up to the present moment, when we remove the distraction and need to document every moment of our lives, we open all of our senses to the power of the world around us.
We see brighter, we experience deeper, and we grow faster.
There is a transformative existence awaiting us, but we have to take the first step and allow ourselves the ability to embrace it when it arrives.
🤔 Question
What action can you take today to open yourself up to moments of awe in every day life?
Beneath the paywall this week we explore the wisdom of Aaron James. Click below to support and get access.