Human history is full of extraordinary moments

Even though this is true, when we bring things down to a personal level, it really is only this present moment now that matters. Of course the important proviso is, that you’re actually fully aware, and immersed in this moment now.

For me, being fully in the moment, involves an awareness of just how weird and wonderful everything is. I imagine myself feeling similar to how a child must feel when viewing everything for the first time. There is an added appreciation of this due to my awareness of just how much I don’t know or can come close to understanding. This only makes the moment even more fascinating.

All in all, human drama, pales into insignificance, when we glance at the bigger picture

We mustn’t become self-absorbed as a result of being present. There is the tendency to be this way during meditation. In fact, on reading a lot of the literature surrounding the subject, we can be misled into thinking that meditation is all about the self. Initially, it might start off this way, and yet in time we must gain an awareness, through our meditation, of our place in the world. Through this, we can gain a sense of how small and insignificant we are, and there is value in this.

The value, in seeing our insignificance, comes from understanding proportion

If we become overly absorbed with our own lives and problems we can easily make the mistake of losing our sense of proportion. Fear of death or illness is a prime example. Stepping outside of ourselves, we see how the bigger picture can help us to appreciate, that there really is, only one moment we can live in. It’s a bit like the wealthy man with all his money, possessions, and places he can be. He can only ever be in one place at a time. The more we grasp, and want to claim for ourselves, outside of this one moment, the less we’re actually alive. The more we have the more distracted the mind is from appreciating our insignificance. Never see insignificant as a negative. When we are insignificant so are our problems.

Take a moment to wonder at what exists outside and then marvel at the very fact you have an awareness of this

It may seem a very strange thing to assert, that within the grand scheme of things, you are no more then a spec of dust. None of us. Not even the wealthy and powerful. I believe true power comes from an awareness of this. There is true power in knowing that you know nothing and there is true power in understanding your insignificance.

I would much rather this than live the life of a dreamer seeking the illusion of recognition or significance. But then again, if none of us had dreamt of something different, would we have ever reduced the suffering we experienced in the past? An interesting question is it not? Perhaps, through understanding our individual insignificance, we could dream of a better future for all.