The North Star

The North Star, so called because it is less than 1 degree away from the north celestial pole. 

The North Star (Polaris) has forever anchored the skies. As our ancestors looked up the North Star seemed fixed in place as the rest of the cosmos revolved around it. When looking for direction they would look up at that star and know their next steps.

We all need a North Star in life. What is yours? In other words what are you moving towards?

On a basic physical level we are concerned primarily with survival and reproduction. So it’s no surprise then that most people tend to worry about these things primarily. In that case you might expect goals like making a certain amount of money, living in a nice area and a nice house, being fit and healthy, achieving career success and recognition. Or you might obsess about being desired, or meeting your dream spouse and having 2-3 kids.

All of that is well and good. And if those are things that you want (I do too) then I hope you achieve them. But if all we have in life is survival and reproduction then aren’t we just a more complicated version of every other creature on the planet?

Clearly we aren’t just another version of every other creature though. Sure physically we are similar, but the subtle changes in our makeup result in us being orders of magnitude more capable than any other animal. Other animals can run, climb, swim, jump and even use tools. We can do all of the above. We can also venture into every environment on the earth and now even beyond it. And more importantly we have a conscious mind. We can imagine, plan, communicate and learn.

So if our trajectory in life is the same as a simple deer, then aren’t we missing something?

Since we are on the natural theme think about how things work in nature. Every feature that an animal has is for some specific purpose. The cheetah can run fast to catch a gazelle. The hawk can see a mouse 1km away so that it can hurtle from the air and snatch it. The whale can produce subsonic songs to communicate through the oceans with their companions.

Do we have this advanced nervous system just to do a more complicated dance of survival and reproduction? Why would nature waste it’s time on us if that were the case. We could do plenty of surviving and reproducing with lesser brains, I’m sure you can think of many who do just that.

Let’s take the deer, once it has eaten for the day and is nestled safely in its herd under a broad tree, does it have anything to worry about? Clearly no. Unless some threat comes along, it is perfectly content and happy. Or perhaps a more familiar example. Once you’ve fed your dog and he is curled up next to you on the coach does he have any worries? No, he is perfectly content. Even looking at him makes you smile and feel at ease.

What about us. We can have a nice house, roses in the garden, beautiful kids, an amazing career, good health and yet as we sit on that sofa at the end of a full day, deep down we still feel that something is missing. Why? What is that thing that is missing?

We are very good at finding the answer to what is missing mind you. It’s our neighbour that is annoying us, fix that and all will be well. Or it’s the crappy weather, move to a better climate or go on holiday and that will be fixed. Or it’s the people we live with. Or the job we have. The funny thing is every time you ‘fix’ the situation, something else pops into your mind that needs fixing. And so it goes on forever.

I’m as guilty as anyone else of setting the wrong course. Lately it’s been to achieve a certain amount of wealth, to ‘make it’ in the world of finance. To have an investment fund with x amount invested. And on and on. Nothing wrong with those things. But they are no North Star. The list of the unfulfilled who made a means (like wealth) an end, is a very long list indeed. You could spend your life pursuing something like that. And perhaps by the end of your life you end up very wealthy. Then what?

Wealth, success, relationships, family, these are all part of the journey, but where are we going?

Eckhart Tolle says that the purpose of life is not to make you comfortable, but to make you conscious. Conscious of what? That’s for you to answer. If I try and answer it for you, then it becomes a matter of belief. If you enhance your consciousness, or your ability to perceive, then it becomes a matter of experience. What you experience doesn’t rely on belief. When you experience, you know.

Towards the end of his life Carl Jung was asked whether he believes in a higher power, he said, “I don’t believe, I know”.

Ultimately we are all moving towards that North Star or higher power, whether we know it yet or not. So as I remind myself, don’t sweat the small stuff too much. And be careful not to measure you success in external achievements. Admire those who are further along the path to realisation, not just those who have done the best job at accumulating possessions and accomplishments. All physical accumulations are temporary. Realisation is eternal.

There is also no substitute for realisation. We might get a temporary bump from an achievement at work, a new car, or meeting someone we like. What about those people who have achieved everything in life and still have that niggle? Now that’s a desperate situation. You’ve achieved your wildest dreams but still have that feeling of emptiness. What then?

There is only one answer.