The Phenomenal, Indomitable Human Spirit

By Wayne Saalman

[Photo by Zac Durant]

BE INSPIRED. BE VERY INSPIRED. So we should tell ourselves every day, for this world of ours is a treasure trove of possibilities. One need only look at what we humans have brought into existence in the realms of the creative arts and scientific innovation, and one is left marveling. Clearly, the fire of desire occupies a very special place among evolution’s prime directives, for otherwise, the intensity of that passion would not be so compelling. After all, if nature cared only that we survive, we humans would be as incapable of self-awareness as the insects, animals, birds of the air and the creatures of the sea.

Humans do more than survive, however. We thrive.

Over the centuries, we have fought against stifling heat and the freezing cold, beasts of the wild, deadly diseases and so much more. We have organized ourselves into tribes and nations, erected great governments, cities and monetary systems, invented innumerable necessities and created fantastic cultural artworks. We have also surrounded ourselves with wondrous luxuries and technological marvels. We have triumphed in too many ways to count.

That’s not all. We have tended, not only to our physical interests, but to our metaphysical intrigues, as well.

Hardcore scientific materialists doubtless believe that far too many of us delude ourselves, however, in terms of what is possible as biological entities born of sheer happenstance. Admittedly, we’re great, they say, but only in a limited manner. Yes, we can dream big in certain imaginative ways. We can seek and achieve worldly fame and fortune. We can grow intellectually and thereby become acclaimed in a specific field such as business, science, politics or the arts. We can even win our ideal lover if we are charming and persistent enough.

What no hardcore scientific materialist will agree to, though, is that humanity possesses an innate ability to achieve spiritual salvation or enlightenment, obtain psychic powers or enjoy survival beyond this physical, material world in which we now find ourselves.

Scientific materialists, of course, believe that the brain generates consciousness, as well as the sense of self we experience as human beings and that with the demise of the body these sensate qualities simply cease.

Yet, from a certain perspective, one might say that if our consciousness and sense of self are “only” the product of a physical organ known as the brain, then the dreams that brain conjures are still pretty spectacular.

According to polls, however, most of us believe that there is, indeed, an actual spiritual dimension and that our essential being is what we call the “soul”. The soul, most say, continues on after the demise of the physical body and subsequently resides in a realm that is both boundless and eternal in nature.

Despite these major differences of ideation and perception, the one thing that can be definitively stated is that even if our sense of self is but an illusory figment of electrochemical processes, it is still phenomenal and remarkable, for even an atheist can live a robust, moral, creative and fulfilling life, despite having nothing but oblivion on his or her personal horizon.

This implies that, at the very least, the human spirit is an immaterial, evanescent “something” possessed of a numinous, transcendental quality of some nature. It is a quality that is inherent to our essential being, even if that essence is limited and given to a sense of boundlessness only within the sphere of the human imagination.

While brain activity may be the source of the self-reflexive mind, the possibility exists that the psycho-spiritual complex might not only be real, but sourced in a supraluminal plane; a domain where energy and information actually move faster than the speed of light as we know it in this universe of ours. After all, neuroscientists admit, straight out, that they cannot prove that the brain gives rise to consciousness and a few have even argued that the brain may indeed be more like a radio receiver, mediating waves of energy and information external to it, rather than being the actual generator of thought and perception.

Some cutting edge thinkers have even gone so far as to propose that the one thing that may be genuinely supraluminal within our cosmos — and us — is thought itself.

Thought, of course, is an activity of the mind and if the mind is indeed sourced in a supraluminal plane, then the possibility exists that the mind may not be bound by the laws of physics as we know them. Perhaps, this can account for such “impossible” phenomena as telepathy, remote viewing, psychokinesis, clairvoyance, out of body experiences, and other events of “high strangeness”.

One of the most esteemed psychoanalysts of all time, Carl Jung, postulated that there may indeed be a supraluminal dimension and that dimension may be the source of the archetypal forces that shape psychic reality. Archetypes are a recurrent constellation of motifs within each of us that drive us toward a definitive destiny.

What archetypes are believed to do is propel us into acts of heroism, transform us into lovers, mothers, fathers, teachers, political or religious leaders, soldiers, police officers, merchants, artists, dramatic actors and comedic tricksters, among other roles (some of a dark nature, unfortunately, such as dictators, murderers, thieves and gangsters, for example).

In short, these recurrent forces are what motivate the human spirit.

Ideally, of course, that motivation is for noble ends, not for greedy nor evil ones.

Perhaps, what drives each of us to continually reach for all that we desire in this life (both the possible and seemingly impossible), is down to the particular archetypes that dominate within each of us. We must remember, however: there are karmic implications to all that we do. As we sow, we reap.

One thing is certain: the more creative we are with our personal energetic constellation of psychic dominants, the more powerful they become.

So, yes, be inspired! Be very inspired (rather than “afraid, very afraid”), I say, and create in a positive manner as you desire with boundless passion. We can do that for the duration of this known lifetime or go further and choose to create as if there is not only tomorrow, but all of eternity in which to enrich ourselves and everyone else in this amazing world of ours.

In brief, we humans are blessed in too many ways to count and that is down to one thing: the phenomenal, indomitable spirit within.

[Photo by Julia Caesar]