I am a student of life who is open to learnings from all spheres of life. However, I deeply appreciate those people who have had an opportunity to pursue ‘Biological Studies’, especially for their higher education. And, I say so because there is no better teacher than the ‘Mother Nature’ to teach humans the most valuable lessons on this planet. If you look around, you will find that mother nature is filled with the life lessons, provided we are willing to look deeper with a beginner’s mindset.
- To become a butterfly, the Caterpillar must accept its own death
Let me give you a brief story of Caterpillar – The process begins when an impulse deep within the caterpillar signals that it’s time for a radical change. When that signal arrives the caterpillar reverse itself on a tree or on a leaf and forms a chrysails. In this journey, the caterpillar begins to literally eat itself emitting enzymes to dissolve and digest all its tissues. Although, the transition of the caterpillar into a butterfly is often glamorised in popular culture but there is nothing graceful about it at least from an optics perspective. If you were to open the chrysalis , you would find a rotting caterpillar. The only survivors are a group of cells called imaginal discs. These are the Lego blocks of the caterpillar which allow to develop eyes, wings, legs and every thing else it will need to become a butterfly. And from this optically looking mess, a marvel butterfly emerges.
We as humans can learn a lot from this biological transformations of a caterpillar. For us, the transition from one life phase to another are different from each other. But nonetheless, It require us to stay in a transitory state for sometime to complete our own metamorphosis.
My time for metamorphosis arrived back in 2008. Until then, I had done some shedding of old skin. The safety nets in my life felt practical and security or stability that kept me clinging to them. Now when I look back, it may be that I was telling that story to myself, Or may be it was a fear of missing life as a caterpillar,Or may be it was a fear of not knowing if I could ever make it as a butterfly. During this intellectualisation of multiple thoughts and reasonings, I remembered this – “ Letting go can be an act of love, the Earth must be broken to bring forth life , if the seed does not die, there is no plant”. Change needs to happen. Yes, life lives on lives. Our old cells become compost for our new selves. Our old truths become seeds for new revelations . Our old parts become lighthouses for new destinations”.
So I decided to spin myself into a chrysalis and digest my past as fuel for my future. My former opportunities provided me wings for critical thinking to find my own imaginal discs which will help me to create a new me.
Remember – the transformation of the caterpillar into the butterfly is not immediate. A caterpillar does not run away from itself, it becomes itself, it embodies itself. It stays in that Chrysalis until it locates its imaginal discs and forms what it will need to turn into a butterfly.
I did spend few years in my own Chrysalis searching for my own imaginal discs. Make no mistake struggle is not fun but like caterpillar you cannot bypass your fair share of disorder. And almost certainly, you will doubt yourself the most when you are closest to your next transformation. And this is what has happened to all greats, from Arjun in Mahabharat to ground breaking corporate honchos like Steve Jobs, Elon Musk and many more such individuals. You will be tempted to go back to your life and on top of it a caterpillar society will do its best to convince you to resist the transformation and keep participating in the usual business of life. They will say look what you are about to leave behind and thousand more similar things .
My advice would be that when you are in your own chrysalis , do not compare yourself to the butterflies flying around. Remember that they have been at this for a while and you are still forming your wings. After all a young tree would not look at a full grown tree and feel ashamed. We would not criticise a seed for not having any roots. We would give it the time and water it needs to grow. So do the same for yourself even when you feel like you will be forever in trouble. After-all you are becoming the person you are meant to be and you will find your way out as long as you do not stunt your own transformation or allow others to keep you confined in that chrysalis.
My personal experiences almost compels me to share with you that most likely your metamorphosis might trigger people who have grown accustomed to seeing you as a caterpillar. Your transformation might remind them of their one-dimensional stagnation and are now holding a bucket full of personal regrets and only criticism for the rest. Your rebirth might cause them discomfort, but remind yourself that if they cannot wrap their head around your transformation – It’s their problem, not yours.
There is a great chance that some of you out there may not know it yet, but you might be walking around with your own imaginal discs within. You’re ready to sprout a butterfly. Just say thank you to the caterpillar and let it go. Let what is dying serve as fertiliser for what is awakening. As you merge out of your chrysalis, the possibility will appear endless. You have got wings and you can fly in a million different directions.
The Greek word of butterfly is psyche. And psyche means soul. And, Trust me – When you will undergo a metamorphosis, you won’t lose yourself instead you will discover the depth of your soul.
Joe
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