Thought train #4: on perception and reality or just die Wahrnehmung.

Sitting in the train, gazing at the snow-white mountains in this sunny mid-winter day, I was caught suddenly in this dreamy conversation that I now recall. He -I do not know who he really was, as I said I was suddenly drawn to this guy talking- started talking:

“Wahrnehmung/ Wahrnehmen” or Perception or just to perceive. “You know? If you cut it down it literally means the word true/real and the verb to take”.

I look at him questionably, wondering even if I was part of this conversation, looking for any other witnesses of this invasion of my privacy (no not really, I was actually eager to hear what he have to offer).

He continues: “Now, as a person who likes to play with words and make links between one in a language and one in another, I am always triggered to find the logic, the basic engineering, the, the architecture ingenuity behind a language, I really find this German word amazing.” Rubbing the back of his head, playfully passes his hand on his dark yet graying unruly unkempt curly hair, touching his balding crown. I half smile, enough to show my acceptance of hearing, but not enough to engage.

Still playing with his hair (I think he is trying to figure a way to make it look, look something, ah it doesn’t matter), he says: “In a sense, at least for me”. Moving his hand towards his heart emphasizing the self in the “me”. “Wahrnehmung basically means -in the German literal meaning of the word- that your perception is actually the taking of the truth, taking the reality of what you see, of all and everything before your eyes”. Smiling with arms wide open, looking at literally everything around him. “everything, everywhere” He says, looking at me. Confused as I was, I nod, smile, nod again, and then nonchalantly look around for any other participants in this theatrical act.

Fixing his hair one last time, looks at his watch, his face loses the smile, as he then closed his eyes, takes a couple of deep breath while grinning on his jaws, not in anger but more of deep anguish and despair. He opens his eyes, looking at me (scared by now, if you care), smiles again and says: “until we meet again” gets up, fixed his suit and off he simply went. Leaving me there bewildered bedazzled not even knowing where he went, I mean we are on a moving train for crying out loud, not to mention, uhm who even is this guy?!

Now, with only two words taking control over me, I cannot think of anything except for “Wahr-nehmen”, and that guy’s logic behind them. It is everything and everywhere now.

I start rationalizing the concept. The first word means "true or real", kind of implies that no matter how people perceive things, no matter how many views there are, this is all just the description of reality, a description of what is true. Yet, it also means that what one perceives as true and real is one’s own description of his reality, of his truth. And for each of us, there is a truth and a reality, right? I do not know, I am also wondering just as you are.

The trip doesn’t stop here. Questions, my dear Watson, questions, I have a container load of questions (writing this, I am interested on how much questions can a container carry). Questions about Truth and reality. For starters, is there many truths and many realities? Is there an ultimate truth? Is there one only reality? Do each of us have to seek one truth? Do each of us live in his own reality?

Or maybe it is all interconnected (Alles ist mit einander verbunden). Each have one truth to behold, to follow and each has his reality. Yet, yet on the cosmic sense, all of these are interconnected. We all serve an ultimate truth in a one single reality. To fathom this truth is to understand life, to understand what is life, what is the meaning of life, universe and everything (I hope it's not 42, because it is just not 42, ne? I mean please, pretty please).

I think I can visualize it as a huge network of nodes (each node is a cog, all cogs move, moving the whole network). Each node represents a person with his relevant reality, yet all these nodes are interconnected to each other, making this huge network of realities, which in a sense is the one reality in itself. A reality with its ultimate truth and cosmic mission, that we simply play what seems to be a trivial personal journey, yet also an existential part in the integrity of the whole system. The perfect piece movement in the right position at a precise point of time, and then off the world moves.

Oh well, the train has arrived to my next station, better get off here, and sure will tell you about my next journey in the thought train journey. Ciao now.