Picture the World Unbroken

Miles Hitchcock

Even though there is distance between objects 
there is no separation
because consciousness occupies no space.                                                                 

Even though there is time between events
they are eternal
because consciousness is always now.

To understand the true nature of what we are perceiving
we need to shake away the sensations created by the brain
and experience the medium in which the world forms.

Picture the world
an image formed in water—
give it one shake
it disappears
leaving just water.

The Science

Recent research in neuroscience has suggested that what we experience as the objective world is created in the brain, which selects and edits sensory and cognitive information into a seamless and coherent illusion. This view also proposes, along with many meditation traditions, that our sense of self or ego is a similar mental construct. The poem tries to express these philosophical conundrums through reference to the Greek myths of Narcissus and Plato's Cave.

The Poet

Miles Hitchcock is a writer, teacher, and musician living in Perth West Australia, on Noongar land. He also has an interest in bushland regeneration, ecology, and meditation. His poetry has recently appeared in Westerly Magazine and Science Write Now in Australia, and Synkroniciti Magazine in the United States. His novel The Meeting Ground is currently out on submission.

Next poem: Remade by Amy Ringrose