Enlightened times have always been

Ta-Wan

In times of old, we stood and looked at the world and the sky above us and we thought the world went on forever, endless, we thought this was it. In those times, there were enlightened folk even if their knowledge was limited.

In later times, we found the world was round and we thought that our galaxy went on forever, we thought this was it and we stood amazed at our place in it. In these times, there were enlightened folk even with limited knowledge.

In more recent times, we found that we lived on the edge of a vast galaxy with a billion stars and we found that our galaxy was one of billions floating in a space, still infinite and limitless as we used to believe with the earth and our galaxy, but now at a level beyond the mind's abilities. And with this limited knowledge still there were enlightened folk.

Now we push to prove or accept that the seemingly infinite universe is actually one of many, floating in other dimensions, with whole new laws of physics. Knowing for sure now our knowledge is limited and may even never reach a full understanding, there are still enlightened folk.

The majesty of the cosmos has always filled us with awe and we have achieved incredible feats in understanding what we do. We will achieve more too. Some have the drive to achieve complete understanding and they'll keep on blowing our understanding minds in their findings. As science pushes the boundaries of the cosmos, so too they delve into the mind and the fabric of space, time and matter. This is naturally fascinating as we are all interested in who and what we are.

Useful to the process and existing without the big answers is a feeling of inner comfort and as has been shown, many have gone to their grave with an understanding, while obviously incomplete when it comes to the scientific world view, complete in a most valid way. This was a contentment known as enlightenment.

In all of the improvements in our understanding, some people were able to sit comfortably, amazed and impressed as we all are with our place in the cosmos and the whys and the what fors, they did not take solace in religion or by accepting the completeness of the current scientific paradigm, they found wisdom and completeness inside themselves.

Seeing the world as what it is from our own shared perspective, a place of change with good and bad, they were at peace.

You can check out Ta-Wan's other musings here.