In Wonder

Boredom

If science succeeds, the whole world will become known; if religion succeeds, the whole world will become unknown. If science is victorious, you, the knower, will be full of ego and the world will become ordinary because where there is no sense of wonder, everything becomes prosaic; where there is no wonder, there is no spirit; if there is no possibility of mystery, the process of evolution comes to a dead end. The thirst for knowledge has vanished, curiosity has died.

If science has its way, the world will be filled with such boredom as it has never experienced before. If Westerners are more bored, science has to blame for that, because people are losing their capacity to feel wonder. They are not amazed by anything. They have forgotten to be amazed. If you put a problem before them which has no solution, they will say, “Oh! It can be solved!” – because according to science, basically, there is nothing that can remain unknown forever; it can be unveiled.

The religious journey is, however, paradoxical. The more we unveil, the more we find that the mystery goes on deepening. The nearer you come, the more you come to know: it is very difficult to know. And the moment we penetrate the very center of the existence, everything becomes mysterious. For the Buddha, the stones and pebbles lying on the ground are as mysterious as the twinkling stars high up in the sky: It is not only the enormous that appears to be mysterious, the smallest happening holds the same mystery for him. A seed sprouting in the soil is as mysterious as the creation of the whole universe.

So, as the sense of wonder becomes intense, your eyes will become like those of a small child. A child is wonderstruck by everything. Watch a child walking on the street – everything surprises him.

A colored stone looks like a diamond. You laugh at him because you are the knower; you know that it is colored stone. You tell him, “Don’t be crazy, this is not a diamond.” But the child wants to put it in his pocket. You will say, “Don’t carry this burden. After all, it’s a dirty stone lying in the mud. Throw it away!”

But the child grips it harder. You are not able to understand it. It is a wonder for the child. This colored stone is in no way less valuable than the diamond. The value lies in the sense of wonder.

Stones are of no value. A tiny butterfly can mesmerize the child immensely, but you will not be mesmerized by the almighty himself even if he comes to see you! The child starts chasing the butterfly….

The highest state of wonder, of buddhahood is just like the innocence of a small child. One becomes childlike in that state. That’s why Jesus has said: Those who are like small children will be able to enter the kingdom of God. Jesus is saying the same thing that Shiva has said: the sense of wonder is the foundation of yoga. Wonder is the first stage of yoga. In that case you have to understand many things.