The Covering
We are accustomed to believing that we interact directly with the world. We assume that our eyes act as clear windows and our minds as objective recorders. We believe that the personal self is a solid, independent entity navigating its way through an external world.
In the process we overlook the coverings or conceptual layers that filter reality.
The idea of a covering implies safety. We build psychological barriers to cover or protect ourselves, much like the story of our ancestors who stitched together fig leaves to hide their vulnerability.
But coverings also create separation, not only from each other, but from the direct experience of life. In this text we look at how words conceptualize reality, how time distracts from the present, and how the ego obscures the open space of awareness.
The goal of this investigation is not to remove the fig leaf, for it serves a useful function. The goal for now is simply to know that it is there, and how to wear it.