‘There is almost a sensual longing for communion with others that have a larger vision. The immense fulfillment of the friendships between those engaged in furthering the evolution of consciousness has a quality almost impossible to describe.’

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin is credited with this quote. I feel de Chardin is an appropriate voice to christen my new blog because he was not only a prominent scientist (chemistry, geology, paleantology), but also a philosopher and a Jesuit Priest. He rocked some boats, to be sure (especially in the Catholic church), but what an inspiring figure, to break outside the typical mold and cross so many intellectual and societal boundaries.

From his perspective, the universe was moving toward one ultimate consciousness, and it didn’t matter whether you took the scientific road, the philosophical road, or religious road–they all led to the same place. This concept of “all paths leading to the same destination”, in regards to finding meaning or purpose in life, has been manifesting more and more frequently in my life, and I hope to explore it through this blog, as a way of sharing and building upon ideas from many sources (including you, reader!). I want to commune and engage with visionaries, to be inspired by those people who seem to radiate awareness and understanding. That’s what I strive for.

Now, whether or not we are actually moving as a species–or planet or universe–toward one ultimate consciousness remains to be seen; assuming one believes in the possibility of a higher consciousness (whether attributed to God, quantum mechanics, or anything in between). There are signs that some of us are indeed evolving in the direction of such consciousness, but there are many challenges humanity will have to overcome if we are to reduce suffering, greed, prejudice and isolationism in order to survive and progress.

Of course, if you ever get bogged down too much by all this, you can always gain a bit of perspective on the meaning of life and our place in the universe from the lovely folks of Monty Python:

At any rate, in the entries and weeks/months/years (?) to come, I hope to explore many aspects of the connection between mind and body, science and spirituality, internal and external, and other false dichotomies that in reality are all pieces of the same puzzle. I might also talk about food. Or manatees. Or driving in L.A. But its all connected, all interrelated, right?

Ok then, here we go!