Words are powerful, potent and empowering.
Words are apocalyptic, enigmatic and imprisoning.
Words are the framework of civilization.
Words are a crutch holding up false beliefs.
Pause for a moment and consider words.
The words above, the words in your head, the words on your walls.
Each and every word has meaning and power.
The construction of words into sentences and crafting of documents could be likened unto artistry. The work of a fine sculptor will result in a sculpture that will be treasured for thousands of years. Likewise, the crafted word will linger and impact for centuries.
Words are ideas and ideas shift. Definitions are redefined. And everyone has a different dictionary built into their minds. So as words are employed the impact on the reader will shift with each individual and with each passing age.
Consider the simplicity of a rose.
The smallest of words. Plain. One syllable.
Yet the images and senses conjure up by the word ‘rose’, can hold wonderful beauty and fragrance.
The use of a word can unleash, in the listener’s mind, memories, and experiences. The use of the right words will engage the 5 primary senses and trigger experience, real or imagined.
Words can also serve to restrict and cheapen real experience. The actual wonder and depth of the experience can become lost in the translation to words.
Viewing a rose, you can experience its uniqueness, admire its color, curves and aroma. However, when it is translated to a word it becomes a label. In the act of labeling it goes from the unique to the general. From the one in a million, to one of many.
“That is a rose,” you say. You can label it, and dismiss it.
Many words have become overloaded with meaning and definition beyond the ability of the word to hold their object.
God
Religion
Federal Tax Deficit
Think about the words you use in your daily life.
Each time a word comes up your brain fires to recognize and apply meaning to that word. You think you heard what the other person said, but what you actually heard was their words filtered through your meanings.
While each person will have similarities in their definitions, it is truly a personal dictionary. In your mind words are defined with other words, images, education and your experiences.
I invite you today, to look beyond the words we use as filters for reality. Step into your actual experience and see what is really occurring, not what your words tell you it means.
I invite you to start a journal
Practice the use of words as the great liberator of thought.
Engage them to illuminate and expand the experience.
Practice awareness to avoid the pitfalls of labeling to avoid experiencing.
Use your words as a power tool on your spiritual pilgrimage.
Namaste,
Kevin
