There is perhaps no greater wisdom that can be found once you gain the ability to be still with yourself, and observe the natural world around you. In the age of distraction, it is all too easy to lose sight of the miracle of creation, and the sense of wonder that it can inspire within you.
The trees may teach us about being rooted in stillness. The rivers may show us the wisdom of formlessness, letting our thoughts flow as effortlessly as water. The leaves of autumn teach us of change and letting go. And the stars above us may generate awe and humility at a glimpse of a greater universe seemingly interwoven by the divine; a complex magnificence that our feeble human minds cannot even begin to comprehend.
There is a reason why Albert Einstein was once quoted as saying, “Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.” For he was indeed humbled at this finite glimpse of the “orderly harmony of all that exists,” sparking within him a sense of cosmic religiosity.
It is obvious that this humility has been sorely lacking from the collective psyche of our modern society, where we are ruled by the malfunction of our minds and ego identities, and science is so often stifled by its own hubris. This has manifested in countless forms throughout history, and although humanity no longer believes that they are at the center of the universe, many are still possessed by a delusion perhaps equally as insane—that consciousness on Earth is a cosmic accident (at least from the prevailing scientific perspective), hence we may very well be the only intelligent life that exists in the cosmos.
It is a delusion that is believed by even several top scientists, despite surely being a statistical impossibility given the hundreds of billions of stars in our galaxy alone. Recent estimates suggest that the Milky Way could be home to six billion Earth-like planets! (Before the 1990s, scientists weren’t even sure if there were any exoplanets orbiting other stars due to the remarkable conditions through which they exist). It gets even more humbling when you consider the very real possibility of alternate dimensions, and the extremely limited band of visible light that humans can actually see.
We wander about the surface of a tiny planet at the edge of a (relatively) small galaxy, unable to peer beyond our acutely narrow band of perceptual frequency.
As was espoused by Plato in his writings of Socrates, there is no progress when we think we know everything. Only once we let go of the illusion of knowing—discarding everything we think we know—can a true foundation of wisdom begin in its place, one not rooted in ego or mental conditioning but rather in a deeper sense of being.
Next time you find yourself out in nature, consider that there are beings observing us in the same way that we might view ducks in a small pond, floating about a tiny radius, completely oblivious to a larger reality. Perhaps even fish in a forest stream. Or ants in an ant colony, hidden beneath a tree. Indeed, it may very well be arrogant to think otherwise.
Hence, for the purposes of this article, let us assume we know nothing.
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