Growing old and growing up
This month, August 2026, there will be a series of articles about the ideas expressed in Michael Pollan's book, A World Appears. The book is also being discussed on the Allnonfiction book discussion group during August, 2026. You can join by going here.
The main questions which A World Appears explores are ‘What is consciousness” and “from where does it arise?”
Before we get too excited about exploring these questions it is important to understand that nobody knows yet. Homo sapiens is just beginning to explore these questions scientifically although it has been explored in philosophy, psychology, and the arts for centuries and even millenium.
The bottom line observation is “how it that we are aware that we are aware?” In psychology this is called “metacogntion”. In spiritual models the word I like best for this phenomena is “witnessing.”
I find that this awareness that one is aware grows as a human being matures if they do. We all grow older but not everyone grows up and those that do grow up do to different levels. Who is the most grown up person you know? On a scale of 0-10 with 10 being fully aware and actualized and 0 an infant how grown up are you?
Re "homo sapiens"
ReplyDeleteThat self-given label is utter fake. The biggest lie ever!
At the core of homo sapiens is unwisdom (ie, madness) and so the human label of "wise" (ie, sapiens) is a complete collective self-delusion --- study the free scholarly essay “The 2 Married Pink Elephants In The Historical Room" ... https://www.rolf-hefti.com/covid-19-coronavirus.html
“When a well-packaged web of lies has been sold gradually to the masses over generations, the truth will seem utterly preposterous and its speaker, a raving lunatic.” --- Dresden James
Once you understand that humans are "invisibly" insane (pink elephant people, see cited essay) you'll UNDERSTAND (well, perhaps) why they, especially their alleged experts, perpetually come up with myths and lies about everything ... including about themselves (their nature, their intelligence, their origins, their "supreme" status, etc).
Isn’t it about time for anyone to wake up to the ULTIMATE DEPTH of the human rabbit hole — rather than remain blissfully willfully ignorant in a narcissistic fantasy land and play victim like a little child?
"Growing up means realizing that none of the worst villains are in prison." --- Caitlin Johnstone, Independent Journalist (https://archive.ph/zDqoh)
"The problem we face is that few people really care beyond being fed and entertained. Few are educated and capable of thinking." --- Paul Craig Roberts, Ph.D., American economist & former US regime official, in 2026 [https://paulcraigroberts.org/the-lies-used-to-deceive-us]
This answers your question ("On a scale of 0-10 with 10 being fully aware and actualized and 0 an infant how grown up are you?") if asked any 'advanced' homo non-sapiens... it's a ZERO.
How can the masses get out of this whole mess (and create justice, freedom and peace for all)? First, EVERYONE needs to learn, and teach others, what TRUE morality is ---99% of people don't know what it is because (1) it's NOT taught in the official indoctrination system, better know as the "education system," and (2) it's NOT the same as religious morality: https://odysee.com/@woeih:e/Mark-Passio-Government-Is-Slavery:a
Because if you don't know what TRUE morality is you will not stop doing, unwittingly or wittingly, evil things...
"The solution is NOT to create something new (eg, new systems of organization, new technologies, etc). The solution is to STOP being complicit with evil. To STOP doing things that are not moral for a reward. To STOP being complicit with anything the control system tells us we must do." --- Mark Passio, Spiritual Teacher
"As financial access, employment, and administration become conditional on algorithmic systems, freedom does not disappear through overt coercion, but through participation that is scored, filtered, and managed." --- Mark Keenan, Dec 2025 [https://www.globalresearch.ca/ai-operating-system-digital-totalitarianism/5909796]