Archive for April 14th, 2011
Focused on Trivia and Data
Tianning Pagoda from HongMei Park
Another recent photo taken in HongMei Park finds its way into the blog. The image of the Tianning Pagoda in the background is one of two distinctive skyline symbols for the city with the second being the China Dinosaur Park structure in the northern part of the city. Both presences reach up and have an attitude of authority, a patriarchal presence.
It seems that no matter what one looks at, there is a large presence in the background, sometimes not always overtly visible, but there non-the-less. I have been spending a good amount of time focused on the election debates and controversies happening in Canada. What is not often stated are the visions and foundational beliefs – the towering principles – behind the chatter. It is hard to sift through the chatter in order to make informed decisions. It is much easier to focus on the noise and accept the chatter as truth and as the vision. It’s hard work to dig where major efforts and money is focused on avoiding exposure. Shadow doesn’t like being exposed, doesn’t like transparency.
In many ways, this is what happens at the individual level. One is often so wrapped up in the little things, one has no time or energy for doing the real work of becoming more conscious. One begins to believe that an accumulation of facts and trivia becomes consciousness. And as a result, one often finds oneself to be a victim as there are too many facts, too much trivia to be held, acknowledged. One is left chasing data in the outer world at the expense of getting to know one’s self better.
