"I believe in symmetry"

That's the title of one of my favorite Bright Eyes songs. It deals with the undeniable and inescapable symmetry of life. Life and death, more specifically.

The arc of time, the stench of sex
The innocence you can't protect
Each quarter note, each marble step
Walk up and down that lonely treble clef
Each wanting the next one
Each wanting the next one to arrive
Each wanting the next one
Each wanting the next one to arrive

An argument for consciousness
The instinct of the blind insect
Who never thinks not to accept its fate
That's faith, there's happiness in death
You give to the next one
You give to the next on down the line
You give to the next one
You give to the next on down the line


It's fantastic, really. I don't necessarily believe in fate, but I hold to the notion of there being some sort of pattern in this existence. I don't believe that life begins at conception and ends with your last breath. It's a cycle. Life began billions of years ago, and it continues in an endless cycle, and it probably will on into eternity.

This somewhat strange, and undeniably Judeo-Christian view of the human experience is such an amazing force in what shapes "western" thought and society.

That was one of the most comforting and beautiful things about Thailand. They weren't concerned with saving their souls. They weren't concerned with going to heaven or hell. They were trying to do the best they could with their current lives so that they could be reincarnated at an even higher level the next time. Samsara.

...we need Samsara here. Seriously.