Time and respect
Nikos Kazantzakis’ books are renowned for little stories or phrases which, weaved into the main plot, are of such philosophical and spiritual profundity that, over the years, have turned into drops of wisdom adored the world over. While reading Zorba the Greek (here are a few thoughts on the novel), I was mostly inspired by the following excerpt that meditates on the concept of time and feels particularly timely today:
“I recalled one dawn when I had chanced upon a butterfly’s cocoon in a pine tree at the very moment when the husk was breaking, and the inner soul was preparing to emerge. I kept waiting and waiting; it was slow, and I was in a hurry. Leaning over it, I began to warm it with my breath. I kept warming it impatiently until the miracle commenced to unfold before my eyes at an unnatural speed. The husk opened completely; the butterfly came out. But never shall I forget my horror: its wings remained curled inward, not unfolded. The whole of its minuscule body shook as it struggled to spread the wings outward. But it could not. As for me, I struggled to aid it with my breath. In vain. What it needed was to ripen and unfold patiently in sunlight. Now it was too late. My breath had forced the butterfly to emerge ahead of time, crumpled and premature. It came out undeveloped, shook desperately, and soon died in my palm.
This butterfly’s fluffy corpse is, I believe, the greatest weight I carry on my conscience. What I understood deeply on that day was this: to hasten eternal rules is a mortal sin. One’s duty is confidently to follow nature’s everlasting rhythm.”
Standing on the brink of a potentially-new world, we become impatient and wish to force into blooming the fragile strands that are just about to sprout. Our motives may seem justifiable, but, deep inside, they are selfish, mindless and arrogant. We have persuaded ourselves that we have the power to control the natural unfolding of life, but all we have managed so far is to disrespect it. Let us find, once again, the inner strength to honour the time that is needed for something new to mature. This “something new” may not be the world: it may simply be us, the ones destined to breathe life into this aspiringly improved version of our social being. It is definitely a task worthy of heroes, for it is hard and formidable; and yet, all we have to do is wait. And dream. On this day, this seems more than enough.
Photo credits: © Konstantina Sakellariou
