Not knowing my audience among men is a good thing. Have you not also found it so? Not having to tailor one’s thoughts and words to anyone in, or of any particular assumed grouping is a great relief.
A good friend, upon some reading and with some welcome advice said he didn’t know “who I was courting” or that perhaps I was just engaged in “thinking out loud”. But what is speech? What is writing? If not…that? It matters little what form it takes from lengthiest fantasy novel to weightiest treatise on some profound discovery in nuclear physics, thought is being revealed.
And I concede here, and have already, that all of us are something of experts in regards to consciousness. Or equally ignorant. The nuclear physicist might have to consider his audience, unless he sets out to cover all of nuclear physics so that even the uniformed novice is brought “up to speed” if possible.
But all of us have been working in? with? using?…consciousness for at least as long as we can remember. It may well exceed even memory though, mightn’t it?
And consciousness in man (of man?) seems always about a connection to other consciousness in some seeing of same, or likeness…but not knowing with any precision where it may be found. Or in whom it may be discovered as seen.
Even the nuclear physicist in his treatise, with to him a very strict audience in mind, can still be surprised to find it is grasped by a 12 year old skateboarding prodigy somewhere. Someone whose jackets do not yet have elbow patches, or even eschews pocket protectors. We even betray our own consciousness when we “have in mind” those to whom we speak, or write, or for whom we create.
And it is not as though this is spoken of as a negative or bad thing, to hold some “in mind”. Quite the contrary. Nevertheless, if able to find, be led to, or discover an acceptable place that might include all, or some, or any…or even none, is very liberating. On the one hand it leaves open every door to surprise, and on the other, closes every door to disappointment. So, I assume you are conscious. (And I’d be delighted to hear any argument against that)
Nevertheless, in any of this stuff “about consciousness” were I to discover (by the whole of the world coming to my door) that “but no one else thinks the way you do”, can you imagine my surprise at exclaiming “I knew it! I always knew it!” And who of you…doubt?
You see, we are all very much the same, or not. Either in hope for some likeness discoverable or, if contrary in all conviction that none exists…how profoundly we continue practice to all our own perfect frustrating. What impels to, on the one hand, if convinced all communication and attempts at it shall never find likeness or is fruitless…even meaningless, yet absolutely forbids the man from settling into all isolation inherently accepted by that? Is it not…terror? And dare we agree to this? For if we do, some likeness is already found.
Do not even nihilists hold some meeting(s)? Or write? Or speak?
Why?
Is there a terror in consciousness?
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