Most people have heard of the Easter Island statues – the huge mysterious heads carved out of stone that stand on a remote island. Such power and mystery in those heads. There are hundreds of these statues, some standing over 30 feet tall and weighing several tons.
There are all sorts of theories about why and how they were conducted. Because the making and movement of these statues must have required the cooperation of all of the people on the island, the people probably believed that their gods required them to build these statues.
They carved the statues out of a volcano and then dragged them long distances. Many of the statues were abandoned along the way, but others succeeded in bringing the statues all the way to the desired destination. Of course, some people believe that aliens or some other force were involved, but really when people decide to do something, no matter how difficult it may seem at first, they really have all the resources that they need to succeed.
Recently, scientists have discovered something amazing. Although outside visitors have been able to see the heads since the island was discovered by a Dutchman in 1722, nobody realized something very important until quite recently. Below the head is a body! And that body is really important. Each head on Easter Island has a huge body underneath it, and archaeologists and other scientists are now beginning to understand that there are many important symbols and meanings within those bodies.
Even though the people buried their bodies, at some level, they realized that their bodies were really important and were sending out messages and maybe even receiving messages from outer space or the gods.
The heads look out upon the strange sights of the world, noticing so much, yet in a way, they are not connected or complete without the forgotten bodies.These bodies also store many important meanings.
They store many of the beliefs and values that these people considered to be important in the form of carved symbols. Now that we know that there are bodies below the heads, we can get extended cognition … of the world … and thinking of these people.
The feast of Easter is a celebration of rising from the dead, and it’s interesting to see these bodies and all the beliefs and values that were hidden for so long … come to life again.
Month: October 2012
Gregory Bateson used the analogy of a man cutting down a tree with an axe (Bateson, 1991, p 164) to explain the system- based nature of reality.
He points out that in order to swing the axe, the man needs to pay attention to where the last cut was. The cut, it could be said, causes him to swing in a certain place. And each cut could also be said to result from the specific properties of the axe; how heavy it feels, and how well balanced. So the axe, it might be claimed, controls the cut, which controls the man.
Actually, of course, Bateson is claiming that the tree-cutting is a system, and that cause and effect descriptions of it may be useful for communication, but have little use scientifically. Even the arbitrary divisions between man, axe and tree merely simplify in ways which suit our communication style.
There was one patient who said he was Jesus Christ. He was very paranoid and yet he was harmless and had ground privileges. And Worcester tried to use patients with ground privileges at useful tasks. And the Psychology Laboratory wanted a handyman. And here was this patient, wrapped up in a sheet, walking around communing with God . . . very polite and courteous. And so I was told to do something with him. I told him how desirable it was for the doctors to play tennis in the recreation hour. They were using muscles and skills and abilities that God had endowed them with. And it was very imperative that the tennis grounds be kept in good shape . . . dirt court. And we wandered down to the tennis court. We made a lot of comments about the trees that God had made, the beautiful grass, the creations of the earth itself, and then I noticed that there were some rough spots on that dirt court and I told him I was sure that God didn’t want those rough spots there and could he in some way succeed in having the tennis ground leveled carefully and smoothed out? He said he certainly would TRY, he was there to serve Mankind. So I left him. He was an excellent tennis court grounds keeper. As for the Psychology Laboratory, they wanted some bookcases built. I happened to mention Jesus was a carpenter. So he built the book cases. He became a handyman around the Psychology Laboratory.
Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling some five balls in the air. They are Work, Family, Health, Friends and Spirit, and you’re keeping all of these in the air.
You will soon understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. But the four others – Family, Health, Friends and Spirit – are made of glass. If you drop one of these, it will be scuffed, nicked, damaged, even shattered. And it will never be the same.
Work efficiently during office hours and leave on time. Give proper time to your family and friends, and take a decent rest.
Value has a value only if its value is valued.
When Avicenna (Ibn-e-Sina), the great Iranian physician and philosopher, was young, one day he was traveling to another city. He was riding a mule and had all his books loaded on another mule. As it happened he crossed the territory of a band of brigands. The bandits saw the lone rider and the two mules as easy prey and attacked and overcame the hapless scholar. They robbed him of all his belongings and the two mules. Avicenna pleaded with the chief of the outlaws to let him have his books back since they were no use to them, but they were the sum total of his knowledge. As it happens the head bandit was a wise and insightful person and could tell that this young student had much potential. He gave him a single mule and his books back and told him, “Remember only that knowledge is yours which is contained in your head.” Avicenna headed the thief’s advice and was on his way to becoming one of the greatest physicians in the history of humanity.