THERE’S A song on one of my CDs that has always struck me as unique. Its one of those songs you just know is different. It’s called Black Swan by Thom Yorke, Lead singer from the band Radiohead. Thom is an incredible songwriter whose songs are often political and always have a story behind them…
So one day I was thinking about the words, and how he refers continuously to this “Black Swan”. I decided to study further what the term actually meant, and why he wrote about it.
When I looked it up, it turned out that the term ”Black Swan” actually comes from ancient Western belief that all swans were white in colour. No one had ever seen a swan of any other colour, so it was just presumed that no other existed. The 17th Century discovery of black swans here in Australia metamorphosed the term to connote that the perceived impossibility actually came to pass. In that context, a black swan was a metaphor for something that could not exist.
It really made me think; just because we did not see something, did it mean it did not exist? I looked at it from a deeper point of view. How many things have I shaken off for that very reason?
As I looked further, the word ‘epistemology’ (Theory of knowledge), came up. This theory was first started by Plato, a Greek philosopher who explained it well.
He asked three main questions -”What is knowledge?”, “How is knowledge acquired?”, and “What do people know?”. There was a really good picture that totally spelt it out….
So here’s this big issue each of us are faced with – grappling with the fact that there is so much we don’t know that is real, so much we think we know that isn’t, and there is just a cross section when the two meet – a place where we can never be sure what really goes there…
There are so many Black Swans in our World, but one I specifically would like to address here is something which is usually a touchy subject, God.
If one has not encountered God personally, how can it be known that he exists?
Agnostics may say that one can never box God into the category of the Known Truth, but if you think about it, he is actually OUTSIDE the concept completely. He CREATED the truth. Until we die it is only Him that will know what fits into which category. He is the absolute truth, and not bound by the laws of our world.
Us mere humans will only be able to guess which goes where, but knowing that God truly exists and having a relationship with him helps us to box things into areas where they really go.
Not always comprehending the stuff that lies in the truth is ok, and to be expected. Take infinity – the lack of time. We live in a world where the law of time binds us, and because we have never experienced a timeless place, we can’t comprehend it. It’s like a Black Swan.
One day we will see it, experience it for ourselves, and realize that it really does exist. But until then… I guess that’s why we have Faith.
I thought I’d just share with you my thoughts – would love to hear yours…
