The creative spark of genius is not simply some capacity we all happen to have access to. It is a fundamental, essential element of our nature. We all deeply yearn to use and express this genius. We need it to feel truly alive. It is a basic human need.
As Noam Chomsky said, “A fundamental element of human nature is the need for creative work, for creative inquiry, for free creation…”
Our innate impulse to create has informed the entire unfolding of human history. Each generation brings new ideas and new ways of being. Humanity itself has demonstrated this creative capacity since the very beginning – from our invention of myth to law, religion, science, and beyond.
This power of and need for creativity is uniquely human, at least here on Earth. Every form of life is beautiful in its own way. And many creatures display abilities and even wisdom that humans never will.
Eckhart Tolle once wrote: “I have lived with several Zen masters — all of them cats.” Cats have presence seemingly without effort. Humans may spend a lifetime in practice to even glimpse such presence.
But cats will never create art. Plants will never create philosophy. Fungi will not dream up new values or belief systems to organize their societies around.
The universe itself will continue to evolve and emerge, as will life here on Earth. But humans are the only beings we are aware of that consciously, intentionally create.
In many ways, our genius, our capacity to create, is what makes us human.
This is an excerpt from my upcoming book The Antihero’s Journey: From Burnout to Real Contribution in Polycrisis Times. To read other excerpts, go here.
