Many people think that studying sociology is just to observe society: the trends and phenomena that different societies and cultures experience. But what I come to discover thus far is not just trends, graphs, and patterns in society.
Sociology also explores man's need to be whole, to be fully human. Afterall, society is shaped by the imagination and worldview of mankind, thus society adapts to our needs as well, and at the same time we are socialised to be of a function to contribute back to society.
The essence of humanity is not just leading a very secular, practical life. We need the sacred and the profane aspects of living. Sacred is something that is transcendant or out of the ordinary life, while profane is the secular life. Some people might not agree with me that life today needs a sacred component, especially in the modern, rational scientific world. But the sacred aspect today does not just present itself in the religious or mystic sector, even things like watching fantasy movies, going on a exotic holiday, playing computer games, takes one out of the mundane life into something one can fantasize, escape into another strange, transcendant exotic world.
Man is a spiritual being who is not contented to deal with the realities of this world. Our minds can transcend reality into mysterious realms, as reflected in our stories, our beliefs in the supernatural, in our ability to create fantasy films. But then again, how do you define reality, given that all taken theories are not absolute, but relative?
So I say, to be fully human is to seek the unknown, to escape out of the 'ordinary' life at times. No matter how modern we are, we still have similar tendencies like our ancestors. After all, we are still humans. :)
Just food for thought... I'm too saturated with doing all my term papers now... need to leak out some intellectual gibberish into my blogging sphere.....
