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The Concept
"We recognize what is lovely because we
have seen it somewhere else, and as we walk through the world, we are
constantly on the watch for it with a kind of nostalgia, so that when
we see an object or a person that pleases us, it is like recognizing
an old friend; it hits us in the solar plexus, and we need no
measuring or lecturing to tell us that it is indeed quite perfect. It
is something we have long been looking for, something we have seen in
another world, memories of how things should be."
Plato and Socrates
I remember a story that Plato wrote about his teacher's, Socrates's, belief in a pre-existent life. While teaching his students Socrates called over a young slave boy, drew a crude triangle in the sand, and asked the slave boy what it was. The slave boy answered, "It is a triangle." The teacher drew a second triangle making the lines much straighter, "And this?" he asked? "it is also a triangle?" the lad responded. Then Socrates took a straight edge, drew the best triangle he could, and asked again. The puzzled boy gave the same answer.
Then Socrates asked, "Which one of these three triangles is perfect?" The now frustrated boy said, cautiously, "The last you drew is the most perfect,... but actually, sir, none of them are perfect?"
Socrates, smiled, thanked the lad and dismissed him, then turned to his students. "How can this slave boy, draw that conclusion? Unlike you, has had no teacher, no training, yet he understands that my triangles were not perfect. He has never seen a perfect triangle in his life on this earth. For him to understand perfection, he must have seen it, and he must have lived, somewhere else, before he came to earth."
I remember a story that Plato wrote about his teacher's, Socrates's, belief in a pre-existent life. While teaching his students Socrates called over a young slave boy, drew a crude triangle in the sand, and asked the slave boy what it was. The slave boy answered, "It is a triangle." The teacher drew a second triangle making the lines much straighter, "And this?" he asked? "it is also a triangle?" the lad responded. Then Socrates took a straight edge, drew the best triangle he could, and asked again. The puzzled boy gave the same answer.
Then Socrates asked, "Which one of these three triangles is perfect?" The now frustrated boy said, cautiously, "The last you drew is the most perfect,... but actually, sir, none of them are perfect?"
Socrates, smiled, thanked the lad and dismissed him, then turned to his students. "How can this slave boy, draw that conclusion? Unlike you, has had no teacher, no training, yet he understands that my triangles were not perfect. He has never seen a perfect triangle in his life on this earth. For him to understand perfection, he must have seen it, and he must have lived, somewhere else, before he came to earth."
Here are my thoughts on perfection.
ReplyDeleteIs a perfect triangle the same as a perfect human?
No. One might define a perfect triangle using math, that straight three lines between three points, with total angles adding up to 360 degrees. A human in this configuration would be hilarious, but not perfect.
So how do we define a perfect human?
And is a perfected Dann anything like a perfected Luna?
I conclude that, no, a perfected Dann is no more like a perfected Luna than a perfected triangle is. And while mathematicians can largely agree on what makes a perfect triangle, we can't really agree on what makes a perfect human. The concept is too complex. While you probably would say that God knows what makes a perfect Dann and Luna, I'd say that only I can know what will make me perfect, and only you can know what makes you perfect.
I also like that the word Christ used for "perfect" in "Be ye therefore" τέλειος, was a term with strong agricultural roots, meaning "ripe" or "whole." The nuance there is important, and in this, when I'm feeling at my most emotionally and spiritually centered, I feel that I /am/ perfect, in that moment.
That is, I don't have to follow every rule, or develop every talent.. I don't have to "do" to "be" perfect.. I don't even have to be happy to reach this state. I have to merely be mindful and aware, ok with myself, grounded in the moment, and "Whole."
I've also realized that I'm not meant to be in that state 100% of the time. To everything, there is a season, and in this, too. The agriculture nuance in Christ's words imply to me that for a thing to be "ripe," there must be a time when it is a seedling, then when it is getting rained on, then when it is green. Only then can it be ripe.
This concept perhaps is reinforced by three verses prior, where he talks about sun and rain falling on everyone alike. The rest of this verse's context has to do with love, and I cannot get into that state of "perfection" (wholeness, acceptance, and awareness) without some measure of love, at least for myself, if not a fuller feeling of connectedness to all beings. I don't think it's possible to feel whole while also feeling that others are beneath me.