Know Thyself | A Call to Curiosity, Duty & Reverence - a podcast by Simon Drew

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Know Thyself | A Call to Curiosity, Duty & Reverence

I was recently reminded of a maxim that was inscribed on the temple of Apollo at Delphi - one which has actually been on my mind throughout this entire year. There are 147 of these maxims (you can find them here. Thanks to JC for sending this amazing list to me!), but this particular one has had such a transformative effect on my life that it's hard to know exactly how to begin the process of sharing this experience. Perhaps beginning with the words might suffice. The maxim simply reads, "Know thyself." Sometimes the simplest combinations of words can inspire within us the most significant changes, and I guess that says as much about the power of carefully chosen words as it says about the specific effect which they can have in an individual's life as well as the effect they can have on the course of history. 

The first time I really thought about these two powerful words was when I was reading about the philosopher Thales who, according to Diogenes in The Lives of the Eminent Philosophers, was the original purveyor of this proverb of "Know thyself." It was also Thales who said that what was most difficult was to know oneself. When I read these words I felt a sense that seeing as they came from one of the original seekers of wisdom, and seeing as my own wisdom pales in comparison to those giants who have come before me, these words must necessarily be taken on with curiosity, duty and reverence - these being an excellent combination of modes with which to face a set of words that have the power to transform one's life. Let me explain why.

We'll start with curiosity, or perhaps more accurately presented in the form of wonder. Must we not be curious about the transformative effects that words could have on our lives? Is it not completely necessary, if we are to derive any lasting value from words over the course of our lives, to first be intrigued by what those words mean? Or at least to garner a sense of wonder about what they could mean if we were able to fully comprehend and realise the depth of their utility in our own lives? This is what we call inspiration - a set of words that come to us, spelling out a hero's journey that has yet to be taken, a road that longs to be travelled, an idea that cries out to be developed, experienced, and lifted from the depths and into the light. This is that moment when, despite all your greatest efforts to improve your life and move in the direction that suits what you think is you, a few simple words in a book, a heartfelt comment from a friend, or the lyrics in a song seem to jump out at you and lift your soul while crushing you all at once. These words lift you because they show you a new side of yourself that you've never been introduced to before. They show you a new ideal, a new way of being, or a new trove of treasure waiting to be found. But as we all know, every cave full of treasure is guarded by a dragon, and that's why inspiration, or curious combinations of words, also by necessity crush you; because you're not who you need to be in order to live up to that new ideal - that new adventure. You don't have what it takes, ye

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