The Importance of Being Human

Thousands of years ago, a wise man said, “We shape clay to birth a vessel, yet it’s the hollow within that makes it useful. We chisel doors and windows to construct a room, yet it’s the inner space that makes it livable.” 

The vessel can become full because it is first empty. A room can become useful because the builder first created the empty space. Mankind becomes a “human being” because he is able to internalize the feeling of emptiness, the inner hollowness we all feel until we become aware of its higher purpose.

I am not talking about the emotions we experience when we lose a dear one, a relationship, a job or when our plans are shattered somehow.  I am talking about a deeper sense of emptiness that shadows us from the day we were born. It is the pain of feeling incomplete, and differentiates us from other beings that only function on instinct. 

What is "That Something"?

This feeling propels us to search for “that something" that makes us feel whole. The clay vessel first must go through being empty before it can feel its fullness.  A room first must be empty before the furniture gives it character. 

Character is the very creation of the emptiness, the hollowness that we try to avoid or deny.

If we can stay with our emptiness without trying always to fill it with “stuff," we might have a chance to uncover its purpose in our lives. It is all a matter of perspective. We have the choice to deny our feelings or pay attention and learn what makes us human.   

Feeling Empty By Design

My intention is to demystify the fear of our empty spaces and propose a healthy perspective that liberates us of the shame of feeling empty and alone. As mentioned above, feeling empty is by design so we can seek ways to become human in a deeper sense of the word.  Just like the empty vessel has value according to the quality of substance that will fill it up, the emptiness we carry around becomes a virtue according to the content we intend to fill it with.

The wise man tells us that “nothing remains the same.”

Each emotional state we are experiencing prepares the way for its opposite.  Emptiness prepares the way for wholeness.

On The Subject of Being Human

I believe with all my heart that it is our responsibility to leave this earth better than we came upon it.  It is also a privilege and an honor to work on becoming as human as possible. No other life form has the privilege of choosing how to become the real thing.

Humans are fortunate and they don’t even know it. We’ve been given a brain and a heart that can make choices based on hindsight, insight and foresight.

How do we choose to honor the emptiness within and create it a sacred space of humanness?         

Some choose to fill their empty space with hatred and bloodshed. The wise one chooses to seek the higher grounds of love and compassion. In the light of the latest events, I believe that as human beings we don’t need to show hate for hate and violence for violence. 

I believe that what makes us human is defined by the way we choose to reflect upon our vulnerable spots, our emptiness or the feeling of feeling fragmented. 

The good news is that the moment we will realize that we are not broken, empty or fragmented and that we are always part of the whole, we will instictively gravitate towards what is good and wholesome. 

Let’s meditate and ponder upon our emptiness and make space for discovering our true nature as loving and compassionate beings. 

There’s no shame in being human.