Consciousness

Something of a blessing, something of a curse
A lifetime of thinking only makes things worse.
What to do with it, where to take it
Am I getting wiser or am I just faking it?

They say it separates us from the birds and the bees
They say it makes us superior to the apes in the trees.
They say it’s akin to the greatest gift
But it’s a damn heavy burden and it’s damn hard to lift.

I’m aware of my birth and of my impending death
And I’ll struggle for meaning until my dying breath.
I study my books and I look up in the sky
But what happens to my consciousness when I finally die?

And what exactly is it that I think I know?
What has life taught me blow by blow?
That every day we need food and shelter
And a sense of freedom amidst the helter-skelter.

And the need to live free from arbitrary arrest
And what’s good for me must be good for the rest.
And to make our way free of crippling debt
It’s a universal requirement, it’s a guaranteed bet.

So consciousness is about both me and the tribe
A universal philosophy to which we can all happily subscribe.
The tribe is homo-sapiens, one and for all
The end of pre-history, humans standing tall.

Consciousness is knowing about the nature of power
And how the wealthy get richer hour by hour
And seeing the flaw in private ownership
The very essence of our stunted relationship
Between the owners of wealth and those who produce it
The only motive being personal profit
Where the accumulation of things is the only destination
While the impoverished producers feel a deep alienation.

Consciousness is working out why some people get more
Why there’s one law for the rich and one for the poor.
Why global corporations hardly pay any taxation
Why governments are in favour of light touch regulation.

I admit it all sounds like a cliche in this dog eat dog planet
Fine sounding platitudes for this cruel lump of granite.
But my consciousness tells me that I still have a choice
To surrender to despair or live life and rejoice.

But how to rejoice when there’s no food in your belly?
How to be cheerful when it’s all doom and gloom on the telly?

I’ve studied the dialectic and come to the conclusion
That human consciousness is no mere illusion.
It starts with humanity and our material needs
Which are hampered by tribalism, religion and greed.
So we should create a system where the basics are met
Whereby the conditions for the future are finally set.
Where we treasure the planet and break open the bars
Between our African origins and the most distant of stars.

John Lennon Imagined it decades ago
And poets and artists have developed the flow
Of human consciousness wherever it may lead
Our ultimate task being to nurture that seed.

It’s a war on two fronts, for the body and the mind
Look after the body and who knows what we’ll find.
It’s a war against superstition and a war against class
Everyone’s invited, it’s a collective task.
The parameters of battle have been set more or less
To finally celebrate our consciousness.
Don’t hold back, don’t hesitate
Leave it too long and it may be too late
To distinguish ourselves from an ape in a tree
To defiantly declare for humanity.
It’s a lifetime’s mission and it starts today
There really isn’t anything more to say.

Be the first to comment on "Consciousness"

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published.


*