Tell me:

Why is it that people feed on other people's misery, yet can, at the same time, be so genuinely apathetic to it? Why is it that we pretend we care when we care so little about true friendship? Why do we show so much compassion for strangers, yet be so quick with our biases, point fingers, and pick faults of those who are within reach? Why do we say the words we don't understand, yet not be anxious to find out what they really mean? Why do we yearn so much for security, but never learn to appreciate what we have when we have it? Why can't we ever make peace with our past, see our present as now, and be in harmony with the future? What is this power that disempowers us? What is humanity with our undeniable, spiteful human nature?

Comments

Anonymous said…
I think you have alluded to what some call the "Human Condition".
We are all walking contractions of some sort or another. Although all this can be a huge pain in the ass. It can also be why we are always learning about ourselfs and hopefully growing. We are born pure and over time lose our innosence. I believe we can regain our purity by living by some simple rules that one must stick to. By doing this we will find Love, Peace, and Harmony through the struggle of day to day awareness. I am not going to go into what those rules are because we all need to find out for ourselves as we move through this life. Keep this up and you just might become enlightened if you aren't already. You are alive, congratulations.
Rona So said…
I don't know if I can agree with "we are born pure". I can agree with innocence, but purity seems altogether something else. Moreover on the comment of regaining our purity, I see it this way: let's say humans are indeed born pure, like a basin of clean water, once a single drop of ink drips into the basin, the water is forever unpure. No matter how much water we add into it, we can only dilute, but not cleanse. But let's assume we can retain "purity" by sticking to some fundamental simple rules, is that purity equivolant to humanity? What does it mean to be pure anyway? To lead a simple life? Does it mean we ignore the rest of the world? Ultimately everyone yearns for a simple life, but to lead a simple life, dear mate, is complicated.
Anonymous said…
your take on these questions has that theme of the coin: two-sidedness (or more).

i guess the real question is, what caused you to think about these things in the first place? the things you asked are things that people don't normally think or become aware of naturally.

I can't help but think that the answers to these questions can be all simply answered somehow just by changing them from a question to a statement.

For example:
"People feed on other people's misery and at the same time can be genuinely apathetic to it."

"We pertend we care yet we care so little about friendship."

i know it seems redundant, but i honestly feel that it is the "technical" truth. to try to answer in any other way would just be like beating a dead horse or just being artisitc.

i kinda took the moderator approach to try and answer this post, but i have yet to see an answer provided on my end, hahahaha...i dunno, i just like to think inconclusively.

oh yeah i forgot to greet you, RONA!!!!!!!!!!

- Alex
Anonymous said…
You focused on the concept of 'purity/pure'. This is good. But I think we also need to talk to the 'human condition' and the contradictions/paradox that we cannot avoid in our day to day thinking and acting. You summarized this perfectly in your last statement, "Ultimately everyone yearns for a simple life, but to lead a simple life, dear mate, is complicated.". In response to Alex; there is no answer to these questions. We are collectively wondering about them. I believe if we pursue the answers to these fundamental questions, life will just pass us by. Ultimately, we need to take action and not think too much. Let me pose this question; "Are our actions based on our thoughts or are our thoughts based on our actions?".
Rona So said…
"Are our actions based on our thoughts or are our thoughts based on our actions?"

If you're brought up in the Chinee tradition, you'll know the maxim: "Think thrice before you act." But if you're heavily influenced by the American mentality, or more than that, if you are an advocate of President Bush, then you wouldn't even know what "thinking" means.

I agree that "if we pursue the answers to these fundamental questions, life will just pass us by. Ultimately, we need to take action and not think too much." But the key is not to think TOO MUCH, as we all (should) know excessiveness leads to the lost in balance, and from there on everything goes berserk.

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