First steps

Submitted by: Laksilu Perera

One point eight million years ago the first Homo erectus stood upright and continued to do so, setting into motion a chain of events that has pushed boundaries and brought mankind to where he stands now. As Darwin states, evolution is the reason. But when it comes to questioning such a scientifically proven answer, skeptics as well as the common population ask a simple question: How? Religion answers this easily but in different ways. Some of us are satisfied with the answers, some are not. But only a very few asks the real question: Why?

For the answer to be complete, the proper question has to be asked. But that's not what happens most of the time. We require perfect answers to the vaguest questions we ask. This practice is common to both standard math examinations and the deepest mysteries we ponder over. But we're stuck with the question. Why did man come such a long way? The answer is that we don't know.

But we can clear the dust around a possible answer by forming another similar question. What is man's purpose on Earth?

Was he born to die as ascetics say? Was he born to wage war on his neighbours and annihilate himself? Was he born to use up the entirety of his only home Earth? Was he born to accumulate pieces of printed paper and live in constant fear of theft? These questions are endless but they all define the same question: Why?

Ignorance and selfishness have become another limb to humans. It's difficult to move from and start all over again but it's something we humans need to tackle for a brighter future. A person's first steps are not his hardest; his last steps are. For a better world we need a less ignorant and less selfish species of Homo sapiens. It's time to work for it.