It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows. – Epictetus.
This is a form of welcome to all who find themselves in this space and reading this column. You are welcome.
This is also a kind of promise. A promise to sincerely embark on a journey to find the Truth where-ever that search may lead. As we all know, the Truth is not for the profane, the dabbler or the impatient. It is not for the arrogant or the self-righteous, nor is it for the opinionated.
It is for those with open minds. Open, child-like minds. Correctly has it been said that only an open mind can contain the secrets of the Universe.
This then is an invitation to let us go together to a place that is NOT on the beaten path. It is a place for the adventurous, for the Pioneer, for those unafraid to go beyond man-made boundaries. It’s been asserted also, correctly in my view, that man is born free, but everywhere he is in chains.
Yes. The man of today is in heavy chains everywhere. Very firm chains. The strongest chains, of course, are the invisible ones because they bind more firmly, and more completely, than chains of iron and steel…
A call for a jailbreak
Correctly has it been asserted by a wise one that the strongest prison to escape from is The prison of your mind. Because you are your own jailor, at the same time as you are the prisoner .
\’Jailbreak and jailbirds\’
The journey the reader is being invited to undertake is a Journey of Liberation. A demand to escape from jail. Right now, many of us are jailers, many of us are in jail. But there are also jailbirds … escaped prisoners. We have once been prisoners of our own mind, before we staged a jailbreak…
This journey to liberation is no picnic. It is not a trip for the halfhearted or the faint hearted. Many times on the journey, pain will have to be endured. But we know pain liberates. The pain here is a liberating one. The only requirement in this journey is an open mind, ready to absorb new things; a sincerity of purpose willing to follow the trail of Truth wherever it may lead, a boldness and courage to surrender former opinions if new information and logic command it, and determination to use the thinking faculty we have been mercifully granted, always in conjunction with our intuition with which we have also been mercifully endowed.
We must use the two, (logic and intuition) and therewith discover the Truth.
A call to Search and learn, and discern behind the shadows….
O judgement! Thou art fled to brutish beasts! And men have lost their reason! – Shakespeare
If we use our two God given faculties together (our intellect, and our intuition) as they are meant to be used, we can make a claim to disclaim the above Shakespearean quote.
The fact however is that our modern society, apart from having abandoned logic in thinking, has also lost the delicate and valuable ability to grasp subtleties.
Thus we are left with a complicated mass of struggling and contradictory concepts and conducts which we now call civilization. This explains the present state of near collapse of all our structures. But it is not too late.
\’To move our country forward\’
Best step is not always to move forward .
To make progress, it is not the case that we must always have to move forward. Today our country is awash with the phrase \’to move the country forward\’ but it is questionable in our case. If you are on a journey and have made several turns in the course of the journey, and you and your passengers dey kampe, and finally find yourself at the edge of a precipice, it is obvious your best move is NOT to move forward but to go back… retrace your steps .
Journey into progress, one kind at a time
Our journey is a Journey into progress. But from where we have found ourselves, the way of progress demands that we retrace our steps. Back to where we missed the turn. And it is not difficult.
Searching for truth with logic is NOT a Secret teaching, but a teaching of Secrets
Our journey will take us into secret places. But this is not a cult teaching. All the knowledge is accessible to all. So spiritual teachings are not Secret. But not everyone is ready to accept the Truth. Hence, the teaching of Secrets is necessary. Spiritual Secrets are not secret, that is, shut away from people. It is secret because not many are ready to accept what is in plain sight. So to such, it remains hidden in plain sight and Secret to such people. Because of personal choice.
If you are put In a room containing treasure inside many locked boxes and told to \’Seek and you will find\’ what should you do ? You should search that room for the key to those boxes and open them to discover the riches inside. If you neglect to Search for the keys (which are right there In the room and choose to lament that the suitcases are locked, the riches in the boxes will remain a mystery, a Secret).
Same with us and our planet. We have been equipped with all the treasures that we need on this planet, and all the tools for discovering all the treasures we require. The admonition to: ‘Seek,’ followed with the promise … \’and ye shall find ..\’ is all the advice we need.
In this journey, we shall be exploring Contemporary Issues, Foreign affairs, Issues of life including ones assumed to be secret but which are no Secrets as explained above.
Are you ready to join in this journey?
For me, I am ready.
