Bicentenary Poems and Prose

Overview Effect

Overview Effect:
To The Blessed Beauty

"The Overview Effect is a message from the universe to humanity. The message is that the Earth, when seen from orbit or the moon, is a whole system, where borders and boundaries disappear, and everything is interconnected. Our planet is a tiny spaceship in an enormous universe, which is itself a whole system, of which we are an important part."

Frank White, founder of the Overview Institute1

Step outside of self
see the planet as a whole
and boundaries disappear.

From orbit
astronauts see Earth
without boarders
separating
one country from another.

From the moon
astronauts view the planet
as a single
interconnected system,
not a collection
of individual entities.

To transcend self
individuals must step outside
their own selfish illusions,
and view from a new perspective.

Poet's Note: ▼

This is Poem 133 of 200 Dedicated to The Blessed Beauty.

Footnotes
1  http://bahaiteachings.org/overview-effect-astronauts-see-spirit