Consciousness and Facebook

The ‘About Me’ section on Facebook scares me. Who can summarize themselves into a little box? Human beings are complex creatures, filled with confusing, crazy, and often contradictory traits. Many of those traits are superficial, but others are extraordinary. How blessed we are to be what we are! But… what are we?

Humans have been asking that question since they’ve first existed. Throughout the ages, people claimed to know the answer. Transcendentalists believe that we’re spirits. Christian Scientists think that we’re aliens. Unfortunately, there’s no way of proving who (if anyone) is right, but I think that it’s crucial for everyone to wonder, even if it hurts our heads a little.

‘Know thyself’ is a simple concept, but nearly impossible to accomplish. I can tell you want I’m not: the clothes I’m wearing, the body I was born in, even the thoughts that I’m thinking are only a shadow of my being. Determining who I am, on the other hand, is no simple task. I’ve been given many adjectives and nicknames- world traveler, Cat Lady, generous, and strange are some of the kinder things people have called me- but those belong in the superficial category of traits. The truth is that I don’t entirely know who I am. Maybe that makes me ineligible for this scholarship, but another superficial trait of mine is honesty, so I had to let you know.

I have theories though, ideas that have been introduced to me by others and my own contemplations. My current belief is that everything is made of consciousness. The various levels of consciousness- including the senses, mind, and soul- combine to create grass, birds, human beings, and everything in between. By being made of consciousness, we are all connected. By being connected, we are all one.

What is consciousness? Eckhart Tolle, a very enlightened soul who has written several books on the subject, thinks that it can’t be described. Definitions exist in the physical realm, which is one of the lowest levels of consciousness. The universe is a big place, but beyond this sphere there is even more. Humans are greater than what can be seen or said. There is too much of us to describe in a 500-page essay, just like there is too much of us to put on Facebook.

Namaste.