Sapiens - Our Strange Species
- freedomforthetaking
- Aug 13, 2024
- 4 min read
Do you ever step away from the hustle and think about the strange, complex system we humans have established?
I am currently listening to the audio version of the book, “Sapiens - A Brief History of Humankind” by Yuval Noah Harari. It’s super interesting as long as you can handle a lot of science, science, and more science. However, I have to work to keep my brain engaged because the voice of the guy who reads it isn’t exactly exciting. Otherwise, it is an excellent source of information about the human species and how we have evolved and changed our world. What blew my mind was how the author revealed that our meticulously constructed systems are all just a figment of our imagination. I know this sounds ridiculous but just read the book. It's pretty crazy shit.
Riches, cars, property, money, and possessions… are all a part of a system we have concocted. As we evolved, we developed trading partnerships in order to have supplies from areas we didn’t inhabit. Someone at some point, decided how much something was worth, and over hundreds of thousands of years, it has now become a complex system. Not only that, but all the millions of complicated rules we have are just a collection of ideas from humans designed to control and rule over large amounts of our species. It’s kind of bizarre. The book “Sapiens”, talks about how an LLC is treated as an actual thing of substance, when actually it’s only something we created in our minds as a way of protecting our services. An LLC can be easily started by applying for the name in whatever state you live in as long as the name is available and then paying a small fee. Boom. You now own an LLC. Can you see it? Can you touch it? Nope. It’s a corporation. The word corporation is derived from the Latin word, “corporare” which means ‘combine in one body’ except an LLC corporation isn’t tied to any actual body. It’s literally in our imagination.
I reflected on all of this as I was biking through a new area. I rode past some extremely nice houses. The front properties were huge with rolling hills and meticulously mowed grass. The houses, better described as mansions, were lined with well-shaped evergreens giving it the look of a presidential suite. Luxurious, sports cars sat in the circle driveway as if to say, "We're here just for fun." I tried to picture the lives of the people who lived there. Were they happy? Does owning such an extravagant property feel as amazing as it looks?
Honestly, I don’t know. What I do know is that research has proven happiness does not come from material things. However, it’s hard for me to picture being miserable if that was my house… I mean - come on - can’t I do my internal work to heal and also have lots of money? I may never know the answer to that question but I still wouldn’t be against testing it out. :)
In reality, no matter what kind of home a Sapien has or how nice of a car they drive, the money in their pocket was harvested and made from a tree, their credit card is manufactured in a plastic factory, and the funds in their bank are just a bunch of numbers on a screen. All these things are part of the complex system designed by homosapiens. Sapiens created the rules of how it all works and now we all go about every day, following the rules, (well, most of us. 🙂)
What is my point? Well, it certainly is not to go off the grid. I basically lived off the grid when I was in a cult and I certainly will not do that again. But I think it can be quite valuable to remember that everything in our culture is a result of the human pursuit of success. What they don't tell us is that we get to decide what succeeding means to us. Our society would love nothing more than to dictate what should be important to us - but that’s because it’s quite beneficial to the hierarchical system.
What if I did what felt good to me but left out things that did not?
Who gets to say how I should use my precious time?
Why do I rush through my days as if completing my checklist equals success?
Success in what?
What does success mean to me?
For hundreds of thousands of years, the definition of success was survival. The species that found ways to adapt and evolve were the ones to pass on their genes. And though the lives of our ancestors looked much different than ours do today, the goal of Sapiens has not changed. Survive for as long as you can.
Over time, we have climbed our way to the top of the food chain. Out of all other species, we have the most evolved brains. Our ability to adapt and create has changed and reshaped our entire planet. While I don’t love all the ways we have stripped our resources bare, I am still astounded by our unparalleled intelligence. Sometimes I wonder though, “How can we be so damn smart but also so dumb?” We are the ones responsible for creating the system of constant stress that is literally killing us. It’s bizarre.
How do we build a life in this day and age, make a living, and find fulfillment and belonging, but not allow our lives to be controlled to the point we become slaves to the system?
I don’t have all the answers - but here is what I am starting with:
Awareness.
The more I can learn about my ancestors and how we got to where we are today, the more I see things clearly. It makes sense. And yes, knowledge is power, but another aspect of science I really appreciate is that there are more questions than answers. It reminds me that it’s healthy to ask questions - and also that just because we will never know all the answers doesn’t mean we should stop questioning.
I know I have been a bit all over the map today but I hope if nothing else, this blog has sparked some of your curiosity. It’s a strange world we live in but the more I learn about Sapiens the more I realize that it’s strange… because of us.
Takes one to know one, I guess.
Commentaires