Sunday 3 November 2013

#428 Like Cars, Humans are Hybrids

     Hybrid vehicles use two distinct power sources & corresponding engines - most commonly a gasoline-powered internal combustion engine and an electric motor. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hybrid_vehicle
     It's fascinating to carefully observe our own human sources of power, energy, and motivation. How many times have we felt "completely spent", with "nothing left in the fuel tank" - then a friend suggests an exciting fun activity, and immediately we're filled with all sorts of enthusiastic energy? How could "a change is as good as a rest" possibly apply if we had a single (eg gasoline) engine and its fuel tank was empty?
     Of course one could argue that there may be a second (reserve or emergency) fuel tank. However, the activity that had drained us, and the suggested fun activity that revitalized us are qualitatively different and thus may require a different engine-fuel combo. Another, equally likely possibility is that our approach, even to the same activity, may come from qualitatively different "places", attitudes, or levels of consciousness
     The crude default human drive - our gasoline engine - is simple, reactive, muscular strength-based, basically about survival and propagating one's own DNA (egocentric). Our evolved human drive - our electric engine - is broadly interconnected & distributed (allocentric / ecocentric), includes but also goes beyond mechanical concepts and practical necessities.
     When we understand the fact that we have not just one but two fully-functioning engines on board, and learn to let go of the fear of not hearing the gasoline engine noise, we gradually progressively learn to trust & operate from inner peace, silence, stillness - evolved human wisdom.


babalu   www.dpreview.com

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