The "Not-Self"

We are not alone. Nor, from all indications, do we want to be. In fact, it has been suggested, that not being alone is a good thing. By that, I am not referring to the physical act of being without company. Instead, as author Aldous Huxley observed: not being connected with things that are not one's self. More to the point, Huxley wrote, "...a man misses something by not establishing a participative and living relationship with the non-human world of animals and plants, landscapes and stars and seasons. By failing to be, vicariously, the not-self, he fails to be completely himself." In other words, one should actively embrace all that is around him.

Perhaps coincidentally another author of note, Albert Camus, wrote, "At the heart of all beauty lies something inhuman." Taken together, the two are calling for all of us to communicate more effectively with all that is around us. Listen more intently. Observe more closely. What about that would any proponent of comunication oppose? How could focusing on our "not-self" be wrong? At the same time, communicating intensely with all that surrounds us is an intense way to get through the day. Talk about pressure.  Talk about intensity. Hyper-focusing in the manner suggested by Huxley and Camus, I concede, does seem like a bit much. After all, when would you have time for lunch?

One point about the reflections of Huxley and Cammus that I do like is a need for us to develop a greater sense of awareness of all that surrounds us. Awareness is the key. Daily, it seems, I see people passing by with their noses buried in their I-phone and not being aware of either me or others that have to step around them. The concept of not-self  is not something with which they are familiar, I would guess. Awareness? What's that? I say, "Look. Listen." It may not be total not-self but it is a step in the right direction.