7/16/2012

Infinity vs Finiteness

Talking to someone very close to me I was told that they cannot cope with the ideas of finiteness vs infinity. The fact that something is either completely closed off with a beginning and an end or the idea that it is all open - there is no end to it, it's beyond space and time, freaks them out. Not only does it freak them out but causes them to hyperventilate and shut down.
To me this idea is astonishing, not only because so many questions in life are about mortality versus afterlife and how big space is, but also because I don't find either of those ideas worrying. To me, personally, I find it comforting to know that both sides could exist.

The idea of infinity is one that is as old as the thinkers; gods, afterlife, heaven, hell and even purgatory are all ideas of an eternal afterlife or, in case of the gods, eternal life. The idea that after we die there is somewhere without all earthly issues and worries is fantastic, eternal life in a way that we cannot even begin to fathom. We guess, we assume, but none of us really have a clue as to what would really be waiting for us on the other side. Personally I like to believe in the What Dreams May Come version of heaven, I think it's very beautiful and rather fantastic. If it exists, that is how I believe it would be, something personal, where you can be how and what you wish to be.
Personally I do not think a hell would truly exist if God was one that was truly benevolent, he would not be able to put his creations through such agony, surely. I do believe that purgatory exists, no fire, no joy just never-ending numbness.

However, if neither of those exist I don't have a problem with it. The idea that when we die we are completely done, finished, worm food is also something I find comforting. It gives me a feeling of satisfaction thinking about it that way, if we die we are dead. There is nothing left to worry about and there is no more of you. There is nothingness.
Certainly, it is strange to think about in a way that you will never again know that you have lived on this earth, you are in a way completely erased except for in the memories of the people still alive, in the stories they tell. Slowly all you will be, unless you were a mover or a shaker, is a name on a family tree - a distant relative long long ago. And that is satisfying. There is no wondering whether or not you will have to go through another life for all eternity, there is just the end.

Let me know your thoughts on this, I'd love to hear what you all think. Leave a comment or e-mail Isaab@live.nl

7/09/2012

The True Meaning of Hip Hop?

The reason I have such an extreme love for hip hop is because the message that lies in true hip hop. This message is that of equality. Not west coast versus east coast but the message before that. The message that it does not matter who you are or where you are from - everybody is equal, everyone was created equally and that is all that truly matters.

It is something which speaks to me, I am the kind of person who has big issues with unfair and unjust treatment of people. It is something which I absolutely can not stand and something that makes me truly angry and even upset. I personally can not understand that people would treat other people in such a way that they are denied their human rights. Denied the freedom. That they are denied everything that they believe in just because one person does not agree with the ideas.

That denial of personal beliefs and the pushing of someone else's ideas onto other people is disgusting. That is the only way that I can describe my emotions. I know that, in a way, I am doing exactly that which I have just describe by writing this, and yet - at the same time - I am also doing the opposite. It's a paradox.

Without those we would not be able to live our lives the way we do. I believe that there is beauty in the paradoxes of the world - they are things we should treasure. But that is for another day.

For me one of the songs which brings this message of true hip hop across is 'The Show Must Go On' by none other than Lupe Fiasco.

"So, no matter what you been through, no matter what you into, no matter what you see when you look outside your window. Brown grass or green grass, picket fence or barbed wire, never ever put them down you just lift your arms higher. Lift them 'til your arms tired, let 'em know you're here. Struggling, surviving. That you gon' persevere."

Not only does that quote from the lyrics point out the importance of equality but also shows the importance of fighting for what you believe for. Everybody should have that right, and if you don't get it you should do something about that. Live in the spirit of Hip Hop.
Equality above anything else, and if it doesn't exist for you - make it.