Rational Synchronicity: The Mystery, and the Reality, of Existence

Have you ever tried to convince yourself that there is nothing strange, serendipitous, or seemingly magical about the world around you?

I find myself battling constantly with such ideas as this. Despite my whimsical demeanor, I view myself mostly as a very serious, contemplative individual, who often questions whether all around us in the world is as it seems, and whether supposing that there could be more to it, beyond a certain point, is actually akin to just believing in fantasies.

To phrase it differently, does allowing for the possibility that strange, synchronistic things happen, or that we have unique chance encounters with individuals, or remarkable discoveries that happen as if we were led to find them, actually take away from the beauty – and the tragedy, perhaps – of random nature at work?

I always allow for such possibilities. The universe, in all her enigmatic lattice, is far too great to presume we have mastered all the possibilities afforded us by nature. However, while allowing for possibilities, I don’t necessarily prescribe to belief in such things, for the pure sake of belief alone.

I read Arthur Koestler’s book The Roots of Coincidence years ago, and it, like many others, explored themes of randomness, synchronicity, and how the mind orients itself within the framework of reality such that strange, extra-sensory experiences appear to happen… however implausible they may seem.

Many amidst the modern Skeptic movement will reject such concepts, flatly. In equal measure, many of a spiritual disposition accept things like ESP and sixth sense as something tantamount to the everyday… and in truth, whether or not they have ever had the justification of having these things happen to themselves. I am not here to say that either perspective is “wrong”, but I do feel that ideological attitudes toward things we might deem “unseen” often clouds our perception of whether they truly have any place in reality.

Science continues to work toward unraveling whether events that appear to beat randomness are indeed remarkable, right down to the probabilistic exchanges that transpire among the quantum minutia in our universe. And yet, the true roots of coincidence, like those of an ancient tree, run very deep.

It’s branches have grown for longer than any of us have been here; the shadows they cast are long, and dark.

For me, synchronistic experiences, at least in the apparent sense, always tend to coincide with new meetings with certain people. I recall the very most apparent series of synchronisms I’ve ever observed, and even taken time to record due to their number, had coincided with meeting someone with whom I truly had fallen madly in love; literally “at first sight,” as the saying goes. To speak of her, and her story, is indeed of a deeply personal nature, and I might even say that any love to have followed has never quite been the same. Many of us have experienced this sort of thing… but again, I digress. 😉

My personal outlook on such things is that I don’t feel it’s a tragedy to find that a more rational mind has emerged from the ashes of love over the years. With every passing romance, including that “one” that finally burned everything to the ground, my personal experience has been positive; as if my focus appears to have sharpened, and my ability to conceptualize things occurring around us has almost heightened. Best of all, acknowledging this seems to allow for a more conscious movement toward perceiving the world in a more rational, thoughtful way. With age, I feel this is good, as it allows the reality of the everyday, even that which seems mundane or obvious, to be greatly appreciated. And thus, social issues, political themes, world events, technological advancements, and all such things which are meaningful to us by virtue of affecting all our lives, have become paramount.

Perhaps, in truth, this is simply what we call maturation with age.

Life, in essence, is about being aware: both of events, and of others around you, and then seeking to unite in harmony through coexistence amidst such things, with hope for peace and happiness for all parties. And all this, despite any adversities we may face. Yes, we find our strength is greatest when in numbers…

Anyhow, I like to share little musings like these publicly from time to time, as people often tell me they enjoyed, or could relate, to such things. I find it valuable because, like them, I have often felt this way when I read things that others have written, or contrast events going on in their lives with things I’ve experienced.

And here, at the end, I still wonder what’s it’s “really” all about. Why do certain events occur the way they do? What events transpire to allow that we meet certain people, when and where we do, and find that their presence is both remarkable, and beautiful, in our lives… where will it lead? And is there any greater meaning to any of it beyond the obvious: that our meetings have occurred, and had an impact, however great or small, on our lives?

Perhaps the greatest mystery worth solving, for me at least, is trying to unravel whether the world needs the strange, serendipitous, or seemingly magical in order to be mysterious, enigmatic, and beautiful.

Addendum: A final synchronicity would indeed be a fine way to conclude all this. Prior to posting, I had wanted an image to include with what I’d written, and the first thing that came to mind for this was a blue rose which, for whatever reason, seemed very fitting. I decided to look at the meaning attributed to blue roses, and I found it to be quite appropriate in relation to what I’ve expressed here, if not strangely so:

“Due to the absence in nature of blue roses they have come to symbolize mystery and longing to attain the impossible, with some cultures going so far as to say that the holder of a blue rose will have his wishes granted.”

Blue has been a rather interesting color for me lately, as it tends to keep turning up in interesting places… maybe that’s why the color had been on my mind. Thus, I find it equally interesting that the blue rose is attributed to mystery, as well as those seeking to attain the impossible. It is a nice fit in this instance, I do believe.