I have just begun watching a short documentary series narrated by Morgan Freeman. It is called Our Universe. In this world that we live in, we either eat – or we are eaten. Humans, being the top predator, are not literally eaten; but the rule still applies. We do not eat one another; but we often feed on each others’ energy. Our egos have ravenous appetites.
Like all animals, we never let our guard down for long. Our lives are driven by a hunger to reach some point in the future where we hope we can at last let out a big sigh. Those moments of reaching the top of whatever proverbial mountain we have climbed never last for long. We are soon faced with another challenge, for challenge is in a sense, the metaphorical predator that keeps us on our toes.
Human beings used to be nomadic, migrating according to the seasons and the availability of food. Millions of other species, birds, fish, herbivores and their predators, turtles, insects, and whales embark on annual migrations in order to reach their breeding or feeding grounds. They encounter danger and difficulty along the way. Sometimes, they are eaten. It is most often, the very young or the weak that are preyed upon. This has been the way of the world for millennia. The population of one species never outgrew the perfect balance that had been put in place.
When humans ceased to migrate, settled down and immersed themselves in agriculture, the stability of life on this planet slowly began to waver. In the past mere fifty years, our human population has nearly tripled! We are the sole cause of the extinction of hundreds of other species.
Some humans live selfish, greedy, egocentric lives, with no regard for any life but their own. Scientists are now revealing to us; however, what wiser humans have known for ages. We are all connected. Whether we are white, black, indigenous, male, female or something in between; and whether we are rich, poor, short, tall, thin, obese, intellectual, or artistic, we all are made of the same basic molecules. We are made of the very same stuff as insects, elephants, lizards, birds, fish, snakes, and trees. We breathe the same air. We drink the same water.
Whether we prey on other species, destroy their habitats and food sources, or whether we feel superior or righteous, we cannot change the mode of operation of life on Earth. We can prey mentally and emotionally on our fellow man to feed our egos, but whatever harm we do will return to us. The good that we do will also return to us. We can reverse some of the damage that we have caused to others and to our planet through good deeds, good thoughts, and love; for these too, are forms of sustenance. We must be willing to be eaten by allowing our divine nature to feed those around us. It is in giving that our hunger is satiated and it is in offering ourselves that we can transform our world and bring it back into balance.
