February 8, 2011
Original Sin 0
I once read a book by a psychiatrist saying that basically all human communication can be traced back to the question “Do you love me?”. The longing for love, to be seen and accepted, is very deep in most people. Another doubt that might be even deeper and connected to the longing for love is the existential feeling of guilt. I say “existential” because I am pointing towards a deep guilt without any specific cause. Sometimes this is described as shame, when guilt is connected to who I am. Some Christians would probably say “original sin” as a name for this existential guilt or shame. Of course I don’t believe in the biblical version of Adam and Eve but I feel it says something about the existential dilemma of guilt.
To me there is no doubt that society and many of our relations as human beings are based on a sense of guilt or shame. Maybe more than we would like to think. How many times have not my actions being based on a sense of guilt and how many times have I not been hiding behind different kinds of masks and not showing my self out of shame? No matter how good or how hard we try, this sense of not being good enough, being wrong, ugly, unworthy or some other feeling connected to guilt and shame remains as a doubt lingering deep down, at least for me. I don’t know how it is for you, but it seems to be a part of every day human interaction, maybe so “normal” that we might not even notice it.
From my own experience I am prepared to say that guilt is one of the fundamental driving forces behind separation and human alienation and yet the cosmic joke is that it is nothing but a believe. Our true nature is innocence and we have nothing to be ashamed of …
Romanesque Arches
(trans. Robin Fulton)
Inside the huge romanesque church the tourists jostled in the half darkness.
Vault gaped behind vault, no complete view.
A few candle-flames flickered.
An angel with no face embraced me
and whispered through my whole body:
“Don’t be ashamed of being human, be proud!
Inside you vault opens behind vault endlessly.
You will never be complete, that’s how it’s meant to be.”
Blind with tears
I was pushed out on the sun-seething piazza
together with Mr. and Mrs. Jones, Herr Tanaka and Signora Sabatini
and inside them all vault opened behind vault endlessly.
Tomas Tranströmer, För Levande och Döda
… but at the end of the day, do we actually dare to be innocent?
Who would you be without any shame or guilt?
Richard
