Our cosmic (in)significance

[doolhoofd]

Upon The Sand by Khalil Gibran (taken from The Wanderer)

Said one man to another:
"Long ago, at the high tide of the sea, I wrote a line upon the sand with the tip of my staff; and people still pause to read it, and they are careful that naught shall erase it."
And the other man said,
"I too wrote a line upon the sand; but it was at low tide, and the waves of the vast sea washed it away. But tell me, what did you write?"
And the first man answered:
"I wrote this: 'I am he who is.' But, what did you write?"
And the other man said,
"This I wrote: 'I am but a drop in this great ocean.' "

If only Gibran were alive today, I would've loved to have e-mailed him this:
https://www.reddit.com/r/funny/comments ... rspective/

[Impenitent]

One day, an old man was walking along a beach that was littered with thousands of starfish that had been washed ashore by the high tide. As he walked he came upon a young boy who was eagerly throwing the starfish back into the ocean, one by one.

Puzzled, the man looked at the boy and asked what he was doing. Without looking up from his task, the boy simply replied, “I’m saving these starfish, Sir”.

The old man chuckled aloud, “Son, there are thousands of starfish and only one of you. What difference can you make?”

The boy picked up a starfish, gently tossed it into the water and turning to the man, said, “I made a difference to that one!”

(https://starfishproject.com/the-parable/)

-Imp

[doolhoofd]

Good one.
Always happy to hear parables like that.
Thank you Impenitent.
P.S.: I hope you noticed my thread in the "Religion" section...

[-1-]

One day, an old man was walking along a beach that was littered with thousands of starfish that had been washed ashore by the high tide. As he walked he came upon a young boy who was eagerly throwing the starfish back into the ocean, one by one.

Puzzled, the man looked at the boy and asked what he was doing. Without looking up from his task, the boy simply replied, “I’m saving these starfish, Sir”.

The old man chuckled aloud, “Son, there are thousands of starfish and only one of you. What difference can you make?”

The boy picked up a starfish, gently tossed it into the water and turning to the man, said, “I made a difference to that one!”

(https://starfishproject.com/the-parable/)

-Imp

The French Resistance worked on saving Jews one at a time during German Nazi occupation.

[-1-]

I personally don't like this insignificance talk about humanity on a grand scale.

This is a matter of perspective. In the finitely three dimensional world, there is always smaller things than something, and always larger things than that same something. It is futile to marvel at the scale of things.

Especially when you consider that the biggest finite thing you can think of compares the same way to infinity as you, the galaxy you live in, and the known universe, together with each cell in your body, each atom, each electron.

In this sense, I see no reason to marvel at our sig/ or insignificance. We are what we are, our relationships to each other is more important than any gazing at stars and marvelling at the futility of life.

[Dubious]

We are what we are, our relationships to each other is more important than any gazing at stars and marvelling at the futility of life.

It's the relationship to each other and our collective relationship to the planet which is the main problem confronting us which seems less and less solvable.

[-1-]

It's the relationship to each other and our collective relationship to the planet which is the main problem confronting us which seems less and less solvable.

I see you and raise you 20. I mean, you're absolutely right if you ask me.