What Does it Mean To Be Awake?
Thank you to everyone who took part in my contest which asked the question, "What does it mean to be awake?" I expect there may be a few more entries before the timer runs out, but I wanted to get started on my own interpretation of the word, as this is likely to be somewhat of a lengthy post. But, I do hope that you will all take the time to read this, just as I have read yours, because there will be much in this article that I believe could be of help to both of us.
What Does it Mean to be Awake in the Year 2018?
There are so many interpretation of the word "awake" that are thrown around today. We have many who consider their selves awake to the truth and many more who claim to be awake in a spiritual sense. When you really scrutinize the definitions, however, one thing becomes very clear. The word always speak to a level of awareness that one person possesses, in contrast to those living who do not. Regardless of who's saying it, this is what they mean.
So the question then becomes; what does one need to be aware of to be considered awake?
A Kundalini enthusiast will tell you that you need to be aware of your own senses, your higher self, and/or your energy centers throughout the body. If you know nothing of these aforementioned parts of yourself, then you, my friend, are not awake.
The Flat Earth conspiracy theorist will tell you that unless you are aware of true shape of the Earth(even though they do not know for sure themsleves), and the deceptions of NASA and their pseudo-force gravity, then you, my friend, are in a coma.
The Antifa liberal will put it to you that if you are not aware of people's feelings, and their right to be spoken to in the way that they most prefer, or (paradoxically) for that very same person to have the right to say, act or do anything they want to even if others would prefer not, then you unfortunately are fast asleep also.
A right-leaning YouTube enthusiast would likely tell you that unless you are aware of the crimes of the left, the insidious agenda behind feminism, or the deep state that's trying to fuck over Trump(someone who could never have made it to the oval office unless the "deep state" had first approved of it), then you are most definitely not awake.
Someone who has managed to avoid being sucked into the left or the right might say that any who are unaware that the left vs the right is simply a control mechanism used to fuck over the people, is sadly still asleep.
I could do this for days but the point I am trying to make is; if all these people are awake by their own account, is there anything that all of them remain unaware of?
There are very wise men in this world who will tell you that all these people above are unaware of the most important thing in this world; life.
Personally, I'm growing tired of wise men. They have discovered the secret to happiness, and so they sit around all day and do nothing. They live in the present and experience life, rather than wasting their life preparing to live a life.
I agree that we should all visit and experience the present as often as we have time to. But one can lose awareness of much by spending all their time in the present- most notably; how much they and their wisdom are needed presently by others who are not present.
So do I think that any of these definitions mean that someone is awake? I do not. Do I think that experiencing the world in the present and ignoring all other aspects of being is being awake? I do not.
In fact, I have come to believe that no one on this planet is awake, and that for one to be fully aware of all the information being transmitted through their body, and aware of all the power within their self and how to utilise it, would make that person God.
We might be awake to some things; but that awareness can only be achieved by drawing our focus away from another thing. Essentially, to wake one aspect of our consciousness, another has to go to sleep to provide the resources.
If you disagree than let's for a moment consider what happens when we sleep in the normal sense of the word. Our awareness shifts from the exterior to the interior as we fall asleep. I think being aware to certain things around you - or within you - works in a very similar manner. Any frequent meditators will know that as you progress deeper into such a state, you become less and less aware of the material world that surrounds you, and often unaware of your own body. Your senses have fallen asleep in one regard, and yet you are awake now to something that you could never be if you were running around with your eyes open.
Being awake in itself- means absolutely nothing. It's the same as saying "I have noticed something that I find important." With that said, I would like to demonstrate the validity of my own theory on the word, by telling you exactly what I am awake to, as well as that which I have been forced to draw my awareness away from in order to retain that focus on what I now believe to be more important.
Not too long ago, I was one of the happiest people on the planet. I even wrote a post on Steemit once named "How to be Happy," where I shared the method I had adopted to achieve this perpetual state of joy. In retrospect I can see that the post was aimed at myself, for that was around the time that I began to lose my grip on my happiness, and I needed a reminder of how I had managed to remain so positive for many years before hand.
If any of you read the post you will see that essentially it speaks on focus, and on living in the moment, paying attention to that which gives cause for one to be happy. This is effectively what the wise men I spoke of earlier also seem to have figured out, but they apparently are reluctant to turn back. I want to say I don't blame them; because I know what it feels like to love life. It's very addictive, and it's very healthy.
But it's only healthy for you and for those who you encounter long enough to have a positive effect on them. It's not healthy for the people of the world as a whole, as a look at recent history will surely convince you.
How many brilliant minds, that we have considered awake have come and gone in recent decades? Alan Watts is a personal favourite of mine when it comes to thinkers- people who are are aware of more than your average person. Terrence Mckenna is another person whose old lectures I still listen to.
These are just two of fuck knows how many "awake," aware, and brilliant minds that have lived in recent times. But what did they do with all their awareness? They talked. And they listened to people agreeing with and idolizing them, and then they talked some more. If this is what it means to be awake then why do so many of us chase after this esteemed adjective? Does being awake really mean nothing more than to have something to say that people want to hear?
If instead of charging money for tickets so that others might hear them speak at a lecture, these men had walked out onto a busy street and shared some of their understandings with those of us who lack the awareness to know who they are or that there is tickets available, then how much more of a difference could they have made to the world?
It seems that being awake today means to be right, and to love to hear others tell you that you're right. Perhaps on another level it means having the information necessary to awaken others- to spark the mind that might finally do something about all these horrible things so many of us are now aware of.
But, why cannot we be the spark ourselves? Why do we need others to agree with us first that what we're awake to is true, and wrong, and needs addressing? Why don't we take our awakeness and apply it to the world ourselves. Instead of trying to inspire others through words pertaining to our awareness, why do we not step into the responsibility, and do more than gossip about how many times we've been fucked in the last month- or how many times we will in the next?
I believe it's because we're all asleep to one thing that matters the most. We are ignorant of our responsibility. If we were all to truly embrace the fact that the future is decided by us, and therefore, if we do too little to ensure a better future for our descendants, then that blame cannot be attributed to any politicians, leaders or corporations. If we were to be aware that the blame will only be ours, for feeling that talking about what's wrong is more important than fixing what it is wrong, then we would not be able to live in the present, awake to our senses but asleep to the potential suffering of billions.
We all have the power to dream. But if we are asleep in our homes, enjoying the loveliest of dreams, then we cannot put out the fire that is burning the house down and about to kill our brothers and sisters.
This is why I'm not awake to the present all the time anymore. It's why I'm no longer happy by default. But life isn't about happiness. Life is about life. And the longer we continue to be awake instead of active, informed instead of inspired, and afraid for ourselves instead of afraid for the coming generations, the world will continue to get shitter, and the lives of our descendants will continue to get lonelier.
So please, the next time you find yourself considering your level of awakeness; ask yourself if you are aware of your own power to make change, and if you're aware of all who will suffer if you - and we - don't bother to try.