on/off

Though a great invention with many practical applications, the on/off switch has overtaken our lives. Turn off the lights, turn on the car, start the computer… there is no end… ongoing throughout the day.

However in nature, the day gradually turns to night and the night to day. The seasons change gradually. Temperature, climate, arrival of a storm and then sunshine…. it all happens gradually.  The few things in nature that are ‘on/off’ are at least somewhat shocking to the nervous system… for example lightening, thunder or an earthquake.

We run our physical life with on/off switches.  It is no wonder that people try to run the rest of their lives that way asking, “What is THE right answer?”,  “What time does it start?”, “How much do I owe?”, etc.  We are taught to answer when, how, and why all of them with on/off, yes/no, types of answers.  Then people wonder why they are so stressed by life.

The only straight lines in nature are sunbeams and moon beams.  You can’t grab on to either one. Enlightenment is life in accord with Nature, your own true Nature.

You can function through a world of on/off. That is fine. But cultivate a state of awareness that is not lost to on/off. Life just doesn’t work in accord with your on/off switches. It’s time for a new way of thinking.

After writing this, my wife told me that Apple Computer’s Steve Jobs could not stand on/off switches. My iPod does not even have one.  Interesting.

© Michael Mamas. All rights reserved.