How Soon is Now by Daniel Pinchbeck

Author:Daniel Pinchbeck
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: How Soon Is Now?
ISBN: 9781780289724
Publisher: Watkins Media Ltd
Published: 2016-12-15T16:00:00+00:00

Part Four

God, Love and Revolution

7

Mythology

One of my personal beliefs is that the kind of transition that may save us is only possible if it is accompanied by a transformation of planetary consciousness – a shift in worldviews. The secular materialism that pervades postmodern society is, in the end, a form of nihilism. People are told to believe that their lives are accidental, that consciousness is a peculiar epiphenomenon and that the universe is meaningless. In many sectors of our culture, to question that viewpoint is to open yourself to ridicule.

I agree with Albert Camus that, in the end, only two worlds can exist for the human mind. We must choose between the world of rebellion and the world of the sacred. I know it seems unlikely, but I think our civilization may be approaching a turning point – a polar reversal – where we break free of the consciousness of rebellion and return to the sacred. This shift is indicated by many long-term trends – some continuing for more than a half-century – that include the integration of Eastern mysticism and indigenous shamanic practices into our technological society.

If we are going to find the will, courage and tenacity to confront this oncoming catastrophe, we need to reconnect with a sacred, transcendent dimension. I believe we can build a bridge between the mainstream religions – Christianity, Islam and Judaism – with their billions of devotees and the cutting-edge ideas of contemporary explorers who use psychedelics, yoga, meditation, seeking heightened awareness. Ultimately, as the Dalai Lama has said, everybody wants a better life. If they are shown a way to get there, they will take it.

I find many people I know are living on the razor-edge of nihilism right now, skating the edge of the void. In my own life, I have lived through the eruption and the projection of my own shadow material, particularly around sexuality – and I see many people undergoing their own versions of this, in different areas of their lives. I can’t help but see this as a perfectly appropriate and even necessary part of a process that could lead to our apotheosis as a species (the birth of the Übermensch, who, according to Nietzsche, represents the fusion of ‘the mind of Caesar’ with ‘the soul of Christ’) or our collective dissolution. It is exciting that this process seems to be happening within our current lifespans.

We lack a moral centre in our society as we rapidly plunge towards the abyss. It is extraordinary – in itself, miraculous – that the new Pope, Pope Francis, has shown up as one of the only people in our entire planetary culture able to speak directly to the needs of our moment – he calls for an ‘ecological conversion’, for shared sacrifice on the part of the wealthy elite, a new mode of empathic and compassionate action for us all. In the encyclical, On Care for Our Common Home, Francis writes:

All-powerful God, you are present in the whole universe and in the smallest of your creatures.

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