Everything We’re Doing Is Ass-Backward And Upside-Down

It occurs to me — and the idea keeps recurring — that there is a simple explanation for humanity’s intensifying ‘collapse predicament.’ As I see it, the root issue behind accelerating collapse and most human problems is this: almost everything we do is ass-backward and upside-down.

Of course, that could mean many different things. Here’s what I mean, specifically: our understanding of reality is so pitiful and backward that our actions keep creating massive destruction or deterioration of the world around us. And the core misunderstanding that drives us has to do with the nature of our inner world(s) vs. the outer world we find ourselves in.

For centuries, humanity has been on an absurd, self-defeating quest to dominate and “conquer” nature — to the extent that we’ve placed our entire focus on manipulating and exploiting the external world for our benefit. We’ve turned this endless quest into a perpetual, infinite, and (seemingly) glorious ‘reason for being.’ But in doing so, we have harshly restricted our desire/need for the infinite — and relegated it to only mundane, material experiences. We’ve mistakenly turned the limited, finite features of our physical existence into our infinity and a kind of god.

Meanwhile, we’ve also denied the validity and power of our inner worlds, and shrunk them down to almost nothing. We made the limited and finite material world into a seductive ‘faux infinity,’ and simultaneously made the truly infinite inaccessible and unreal to us.

Put differently, we’ve acted as if the truly finite — our material world — is both infinite and infinitely susceptible to exploitation. Meanwhile, we’ve ignored or denied the amazing, infinite opportunities for learning and growth that make up our inner world(s). Ass-backward, indeed!

Our perverse, corrosive understanding of ‘growth’

This concept is hard to deeply comprehend (for me, anyway), so I’ll try to make it more concrete and understandable. I’ll start by examining our twisted notions of ‘growth.’ During my 70+ years on this planet, I’ve noticed over and over again that most humans think of growth in entirely external terms. Thus, we constantly hear calls (demands, really) for more economic growth, faster income growth, more and ‘better’ municipal growth, more consumer goods, etc. We see human progress almost entirely in terms of external growth and ‘development.’

Yet, we live on a finite planet that cannot possibly sustain infinite external growth, an ever-growing human population, and ever-growing, voracious consumerism. This simple, basic fact — along with our utter denial of this truth — explains the worsening “ecological overshoot” that motivates all environmentalism and such concepts as sustainability and ‘de-growth.’ It is the basis for collapse awareness, ‘doomerism,’ and grieving the massive loss of biodiversity and bio-stability that’s taking place all around us.

The promise of endless external growth may be the most dangerous idea in human history. Not only is it impossible and horribly misguided, but it simultaneously insists that endless external growth is the only ‘infinity’ available to us. But think about it: endless (and reckless) growth and development in a limited, finite, and intricately balanced world is both impossible and, ultimately, highly destructive… while, conversely, there are NO limits at all to inner growth, exploration, and ‘development.’ None.

In the inner realm, there are truly no limits to what we can try, experience, explore, enjoy, and manifest. That’s why the ultimate human freedom must be a kind of inner freedom and transcendence.

Simply put, we’ve made a ridiculous and dangerous ontological error. We’ve insisted on viewing what is essentially limited as infinite — while also insisting that what is truly infinite, or contains infinite possibilities, is limited, boring, and/or meaningless. Why else would so many of us have such a strong aversion to ‘going within’ or engaging in lifelong learning, self-exploration, or psychotherapy?

Living in a frustrating, destructive ’faux reality’

Here’s one more way to look at this: We’ve successfully turned reality on its head, so our overall understanding of life is upside-down and inside-out. We’ve tried hard to create our own ‘substitute reality,’ in which the finite world is seen (somehow) as ‘infinite’ while the truly infinite is boxed in, denied, and suppressed. And when we keep imposing this made-up, exploitative ‘reality’ on the natural world around us, it always and inevitably leads to destruction and despair.

Why? Because, at a very basic level, most modern human beings are out of touch with reality — and, for this very reason, are busily trying (and trying and trying, endlessly) to mold, build, develop, and outwardly ‘grow’ their way to fulfillment and happiness.

But it never works, or not for long. That’s because it’s tantamount to planting a sunflower seed — and expecting to harvest a luxury automobile! It’s like searching and searching for the sun… at midnight. Or punching someone in the face and then expecting their undying gratitude. It’s totally absurd and crazy-making! We’re talking about two entirely different realms of experience — and grabbing for fulfillment and happiness through endless external growth (money, power, fame, possessions, etc.) is an idiotic and fruitless quest.

Still, the vast majority of human beings are limited to — stuck in — this perverse and frustrating external focus. Why? I believe it’s because we are trained to be and think this way. Western cultures in particular glorify external conquests and endless outward ‘growth,’ while simultaneously denigrating or even denying the possibilities of inner growth, healing, and transformation. That’s exactly why there are so many cringeworthy jokes about ‘shrinks,’ psychology, ‘witch doctors,’ and inner exploration. In the modern worldview, these phenomena/experiences are seen as pitiful, worthless, and above all, idiotic. The only world worth exploring (and exploiting) is the external world surrounding us.

But this endless, fruitless quest, when enacted by an ever-growing and increasingly frustrated human population, leads not to happiness or fulfillment, but to endless destruction, anxiety, and deep UNhappiness. And the more we pursue endless outer growth, the worse environmental and social conditions get, and the unhappier we become.

Pulling back from the brink: an inner revolution

WTF!? We humans have created quite a dilemma for ourselves: a vast and terrifying predicament. We’re stuck between a rock and a hard place. Today, it makes total, necessary sense to shift our main focus from the external to our internal and relational worlds — especially considering the rate of ecological destruction we’re frantically perpetrating — yet we’re resisting this vital transition with all our might. And I think I know why.

Again, it’s really quite simple. We’ve made external ‘growth’ and fulfillment into our infinite ‘ultimate reality’… while also demeaning, ignoring, or even denying the importance and infinite possibilities of our inner worlds. That’s a sure recipe for emotional and spiritual disaster; it ensures a tortured ‘inner life’ that is barren and lifeless.

We’ve cut ourselves off from deep, meaningful relatedness with our inner selves and inner growth and development. As a result, we fear that if we pull back from our manic outer focus and endless outer development, then we’ll be left with nothing at all. And nothing is scarier to us than being adrift in nothingness. If we give up on our external exploits and frantic, endless ‘development,’ it feels like we’ll be plunged into a dark abyss of nothingness and meaninglessness. Pain. Emptiness. Despair.

But the only reason we feel this way is that we’ve made ourselves feel this way, or been heavily trained to feel that way — for centuries! This bereft feeling of endless loss/emptiness is not ‘reality,’ though; it is just the way things look to us when we feel so cut off from our inner worlds and true inner fulfillment.

It’s time for a major reset. It’s simply not true that outer ‘growth’ and development are all we have, or can have.

A giant kick in our backward asses — from our ‘tough love’ universe

It seems that, today, the entire universe is lining up to give humanity a series of giant, collective kicks in the ass. Our world and our reality are telling us, in no uncertain terms, that the time has come to deeply revise the ways we relate to life, ourselves, and our own spirits/souls and growth possibilities. It seems like an insurmountable challenge for most of us, due to the very factors I’ve been exploring.

Yet, this IS what is happening, all across the world. We are receiving increasingly intense kicks in our collective asses, so there is no way to avoid this crucial lesson anymore (though we’re certainly trying hard to deny and avoid it). The time has come for humanity to grow up and embrace a whole different paradigm of ‘growth.’

Whether we can manage to do that is THE dominant, critical question of our time.

** So far, it is not looking very likely. **

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This post was previously published on Bouncin’ and Behavin’ Blogs.

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