EVOLUTIONARY ENLIGHTENMENT

 for Andrew Cohen

Just think of it: for all we know, we are
The leading edge of the whole universe,
The quintessential product of some star
Exploded since, that eons would disperse

Then finally coagulate as Earth,
The seedbed for a species that could know
The cosmic consciousness causing its birth
And realize how it was meant to grow.

We are that cosmocentric species, well
Designed to manifest the mind of God,
Provided we avoid the lure of hell:
Thinking ourselves not angel but a clod.

     Divinity within makes us aspire
     To know what’s here below—and all that’s higher.

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