You have to wake. Some people are not in touch with theirselves. And some "selves" are vacant of sustenance. There are some people that look towards the sun, and can only remark "oh that's bright". There are some that look towards the sun and think....nothing. Then there are those that look towards the sun and feel it. Hold reverence for it. And they see the beauty in it. There will always be these distinct groups of people. One individual may move among the groups. But some will stay in each forever.

When people use the term ‘woke’, it automatically sends them to my nonsense pile.

My mind is simply logical. So it is probably logical that I would reject that which is illogical.

I think there was something innate that I tapped into, but I also think there was an external trigger. It seems I needed to walk further down the path before I could see it led nowhere.

Destiny aside, this makes me think of Plato's allegory of the cave. We are all dreaming of shadows but by cultivating a little humility and self awareness life will consist of a series of awakenings right up to the end. Certainty seems like the bedrock of dreams. If you have all the answers you need then you can dream until the end. At least these are the shadows playing across the wall of my cave. I prefer a painful truth to a comfortable dream.

Destiny is such a strong word.

I think for me it was a little of both. I was always questioning from a young age, but didn't own it until I got older, and only then was I able to wake up more.

I started to awaken after my 1st communion..it was all uphill from there..and I mean that in a good way..

I don't ascribe to the destiny hypothesis. I do know that I just never believed anyone's religion or superstitions. I think that I just happen to have been born with a sceptical mind.

I do not believe in "destiny" in any way.

My view is that speaking of "awakening" is just reinforcing the notion that there's some subtle, ineffable, esoteric knowledge that humans are generally unaware of, which if ferreted out, will bring joy, happiness and enlightenment. When what the actual situation is, is that there's a lot of subtle, ineffable, esoteric cruft that we've layered over prosaic, ordinary reality to make it more to our liking. Seeing life as it actually is, is not a portal to some transcendent, awe-inspiring vision; it is simply the opportunity to deal in reality. Of course -- that generally means that you will be LESS comfortable at first, rather than MORE comfortable.

I think we should not be looking for peace, joy and tranquility per se ... we should be looking for what's real, and then learning to incorporate it (and cope with it) in honest, productive ways. But this is FAR less attractive than chasing after some epiphany that's going to magically do away with all your angst.

Pretty good description. Whether it was destiny or a subconscious rejection doesn't matter. I'm just very glad it happened.

I don’t know. I never fell asleep. We are all born agnostic. Some of us were taught to believe in a higher being that created everything. The others chose the logical route.

I don't see this as a religious quote.
I see this as a human quote and how much like primates and other species we are.
Alpha, Beta, Omega, holding eye contact, body language, the seeking of the best candidate for procreating.
It is what it is. When you start viewing all humans as primates, you'll see what I see, and it changes you and your reality in which we live... hidden in plain site.

I love that it completely sums me up. I was the annoying kid that kept asking why? after being fobbed off time and time again.

Crossing the threshold of sleep to wakefulness has always been an adventure for as long as it can remember. Dreaming of doing things and realizing that the dreaming has transitioned to thinking is a common experience for me. I use sleep as a problem solving tool. However, when I become aware of being awake with an answer, I cannot sleep again until I do something about it. Since, the world runs on daytime hours, I write out my thinking on my white board. This relieves the creative tension and lets me go back to sleeping. The solved problem waits on the board to be discovered and dealt with in the morning.