We are at one with all other creatures. Humans do not rank above other animals, or below them. There is no cosmic scale of value, no great chain of being; no external standard by which the worth of a life can be judged. Humans are humans, cats are cats. The difference is that, while cats have nothing to learn from us, we can learn from them how to lighten the load that comes with being human.
One burden we can give up is the idea that there could be a perfect life. It is not that our lives are inevitably imperfect. They are richer than any idea of perfection. The good life is not a life you might have led or may yet lead, but the life you already have. Here, cats can be our teachers, for they do not miss the lives they have not lived.
Feline Philosophy: Cats and the Meaning of Life by John Gray.
To state the obvious again; no one has influenced my thinking other than John Gray. Reading this is book is nothing but a guilty pleasure. Most of Gray's writings starts as a confirmation bias for me.
Nevertheless, Gray motivates and helps me understand that I am not alone. Thank you, sir.
Yuval Harri of Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind fame is a splendid writer but John Gray has been writing better books for decades and much more to offer. I might be wrong, I do see Gray's influence in Harri's writing (check out their interview together). I wish more people read and understand John Gray's basic wisdom.
Following are the ten lessons from the book; self-observation are in parenthesis:
1. Never try to persuade human beings to be reasonable
Trying to persuade human beings to be rational is like trying to teach cats to be vegans. Human beings use reason to bolster whatever they want to believe, seldom to find out if what they believe is true. This may be unfortunate, but there is nothing you or anyone else can do about it. If human unreason frustrates or endangers you, walk away.
(I understand this in theory and I do follow this in practice than most sapiens. But yet, I do forget this most important lesson often when in midst of sapiens. Call it Ulysses style self control; I spend most of my time with Neo, Fluffy, and Garph.)
2. It is foolish to complain that you do not have enough time
If you think you do not have enough time, you do not know how to pass your time. Do what serves the purpose of yours and what you enjoy doing for its own sake. Live like this, and you will have plenty of time.
(Well, Max taught me this lesson 14 years ago and still dominates lesson persists all my actions)
3. Do not look for meaning in your suffering
If you are unhappy, you may seek comfort in your misery, but you risk making it the meaning of your life. Do not become attached to your suffering, and avoid those who do.
(This I learned from Fluffy. I did go out of my misery against every cell in my body to bring Neo home within three days after Max passed away.)
4. It is better to be indifferent to others than to feel you have to love them
Few ideals have been more harmful than that of universal love. Better cultivate indifference, which may turn into kindness.
(Most of my disagreements with Sapiens come from this lesson. In these polite, white lies filled and politically correct disillusioned life has little place for people like me. I do understand that most people don't follw this lesson, and naturally, I don't give a fuck about it)
5. Forget about pursuing happiness, and you may find it
You will not find happiness by chasing after it, since you do not know what will make you happy. Instead, do what you find most interesting and you will be happy knowing nothing of happiness.
(Thomas Jefferson made the biggest mistake of his life by adding the phrase "pursuit of happiness". That mistake has eventually lead us to Huxley's Brave New World where people cannot emote even when Max passed away.)
6. Life is not a story
If you think of your life as a story, you will be tempted to write it to the end. But you do not know how your life will end, or what will happen before it does. It would be better to throw the script away. The unwritten life is more worth living than any story you can invent.
(No kidding! Unwritten is more worth living indeed. My favorite quote Mind as a River has been a guiding force to drop my "story" in a heart beat)
7. Do not fear the dark, for much that is precious is found in the night
You have been taught to think before you act, and often that may be good advice. Acting on how you feel at the moment may be no more than obeying worn-out philosophies you have accepted without thinking. But sometimes it is better to follow an inkling that glimmers in the shadows. You never know where it may lead you.
(I have written many times over the years on how depression is an "oil change" for the brain and has always helped me to think clearly.)
8. Sleep for the joy of sleeping
Sleeping so that you can work harder when you wake up is a miserable way to live. Sleep for pleasure, not profit.
(Once again, Max taught me this.)
9. Beware anyone who offers to make you happy
Those who offer to make you happy do so in order that they themselves may be less unhappy. Your suffering is necessary to them, since without it they would have less reason for living. Mistrust people who say they live for others.
(Same as #5 and #4)
10. If you cannot learn to live a little more like a cat, return without regret to the human world of diversion
Living like a cat means wanting nothing beyond the life you lead. This means living without consolations, and that might be too much for you to bear. If so, take up an old-fashioned religion, preferably one that abounds in rituals. If you cannot find a faith that suits you, lose yourself in common life. The excitement and disappointments of romantic love, the pursuit of money and ambition, the charades of politics, and the clamour of the news will soon banish any sense of emptiness.
(I cannot ever return to the human world of diversion. I don't fit it nor I want to fit in. Just the mere thought of it gives me nightmares)
There are thousands of more lessons I learned and still learning from Fluffy and Garph. I will continue to observe, incorporate those lessons into my life, and jot it down here until I fall.
The point is a cat is just one of many from the non-human animal creed. There are zillion lessons Max taught me and Neo teaches from a different dimension. I learn rich and diverse lessons from individual's from a single species namely dog and cat, There are other second-hand lessons I learned from Elephants, African Grey Parrots, Octopus, Ravens, and Dolphins for starters.
It is no accident that my time was filled with wonder every moment I spent with Max and now, the wonder continues in a different dimension with Fluffy, Garph, and Neo.
My little world with an infinitesimal allocated time and a life with no significance became richer since I stepped outside of myself and tried to step into Max's world. I can only hope that I stepped out far enough; that is one of the reasons I want to experience psychedelics.
To put it bluntly and paraphrasing John Gray - It's just plain boring to spend this precious life basking in my own and fellow sapiens' unwavering "imagined" radiance.
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