The beginning of spirituality

Have you ever wondered about wonder? Many believe that wonder belongs largely to childhood. The newborn enters a world where everything it encounters is wrapped in wonder. Colours, forms, sounds and tastes have to be explored and classified. A child’s world is filled with surprises and, as each mystery gets resolved, the mind grows in knowledge. With the passage of time though, the sheen of wonder fades away. Much of the child’s wonder, we could say, emanates from ignorance and innocence.

A young adult is a practical person. His feet are firmly on the ground and his head is distant from clouds of any kind. Reason and rational thought are valued and practised. There are goals to be achieved and everyday living and survival are foremost in the mind. There is neither time nor inclination for indulging in wonder. Soon, however, the dull realities of life become apparent. Disappointment, pain, loss and grief make inroads and, whatever the outcome, one is left musing over the meaning of Life. A new sense of wonder now surfaces.

It is the start of charting a working philosophy of Life. This is illustrated well by what the late Doug Henning, the renowned magician, experienced. He was invited to a show for a group of Innuits (Eskimos). They were in a wilderness, 400 miles from the North Pole. Henning did some of his most stunning tricks, but nobody applauded.

‘Did you like the show?’ he asked.

‘Entertainment good,’ they answered. ‘But why are you doing magic?’

‘Didn’t the sudden appearance of doves and rabbits surprise you?’

‘But the walrus appears each spring from nowhere!’

‘I made a beautiful silver ball float in the air…’

‘But there is a ball of fire floating in the sky every day. It keeps us warm, gives us light and life. That’s magic. Your people have forgotten this magic. You are doing this to remind them of the magic of Life.'

Henning answered, ‘Thank you for teaching me of the magic I didn’t know about.’

Henning also tells us that for the first time he understood what real wonder was and never forgot it. In things big and small, wonder never ceases. To recognise this is indeed the beginning of wisdom and spirituality.

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