Yes, you can see the Milky Way

It’s really easy to think that our galaxy is just something that exists out there. It’s so big and vast; it’s hard to connect to it in any emotional way. Most human beings process reality on an emotional level. Most of us would not want to admit this, and continue with the fiction that we make our decisions purely on a logical and rational basis. That’s the story we tell ourselves, but according to several scientific studies, most human beings arrive at decisions based on impulse or emotional triggers.

Logic and rationality are not part of the equation usually. However, when you ask them how they came to a certain decision, they would always search for a reason that seems logical. We try to rationalize what ultimately are impulsive or purely emotional decisions. This scientific truth highlights the fact that human beings often perceive something as real only if it impacts on their emotions.

It’s not surprising our relationship with our galaxy, the Milky Way, is quite distant. Maybe in your busy daily life, you have the luxury of staring up at the sky, and appreciate the moon. That may be as far as it goes. This really is too bad, because there is a lot to be excited about the Milky Way.

Interestingly enough, a lot of these reasons have everything to do with your practical reality. It’s tempting to think that any kind of discussion about the Milky Way is necessarily academic or intellectual. Put simply, these are things that we can safely set aside in our minds as we go on with the rest of our daily lives.

If you only allowed yourself to be open-minded about how the Milky Way impacts the rest of your life, as well as its broader implications, you would develop a greater appreciation for it. It would become less of an intellectual or academic concept, and more of a guiding principle. At the very least, some sort of feeling that enables you to perceive yourself to be connected to a lot of the other things going on in your life.

The Milky Way is still wrapped in mystery

Although we have highly complicated and powerful telescopes, that enable us to peer into not only the darkest recesses of the Milky Way but also galaxies beyond it, there’s still a vast amount of unexplored space. There is no shortage of mystery in our galaxy. This highlights the fact that regardless of how hard you try to rationalize, and explain away your life, there will always be a mystery. Instead of something that we should fear and worry about, it’s actually something that we should celebrate. Mystery, in the sense of discovery, adds spice to our lives.

It’s not flat, it’s warped

When you look at the Milky Way in the artists’ depiction of it, as well as actual photographs, it’s easy to conclude that it’s flat. This is actually an optical illusion. Based on how our eyes are shaped, when we look at the Milky Way, the effect is that it seems flat. However, in reality, it’s actually warped.

This aspect of our galaxy has a great amount of implication regarding how we choose to perceive things. We are limited by our physical faculties. There’re just certain things that seem naturally normal and “real” to us, but they are more than what they appear to be. By wrapping your mind around the reality that the Milky Way is not flat, but warped, you gain an incredible appreciation for the limitations of your senses. You also gain a lot of respect for the power of the mind to identify and describe absolute realities. In many cases, what you perceive and absolute reality usually don’t square with each other.

There’s an invisible halo around the Milky Way

There is an invisible halo that wraps around the Milky Way that we can only detect through powerful telescopes. This fact about our galaxy highlights our reality. Have you ever seen a radio wave? When was the last time you saw an X-ray outside of the printout you got in your doctor’s office? There are many forces in our natural world that we cannot see. Just because we can’t perceive them with our eyes, doesn’t mean that they don’t exist.

This invisible halo around our Milky Way highlights this fact. The key implication here is, we often have to live based upon the assurance that there are other forces out there that may not be easy to perceive physically. Perception, in many cases, does not necessarily mean reality.

There are no actual photos of our galaxy

This is quite a shocker to other people. While there are many snapshots of the corners of the Milky Way, there is no comprehensive real photo of the entire Milky Way galaxy. This is mind-blowing because of its implication. It’s easy for you to think that you have a rough idea or impression of your own personal reality. You are tempted to believe that you can see the big picture. In reality, most, if not all, of us are unable to see the big picture because it’s that vast and unexplainable.

There is a black hole in the center of our galaxy

Black holes are collapsed stars that have so much gravity that light cannot escape. They also suck up matter. This is scary because eventually, the rest of the Milky Way will collapse into that black hole. This also gives a sense of perspective because you cannot expect life to continue forever. If anything, death plays a very important role. Why? As a black hole sucks up life and light, it also produces a lot of x-rays and energy that can ultimately lead to rebirth.

According to some astrophysicists, the universe that we live in now is actually a fourth or fifth version of a pre-existent universe. In other words, preexisting universes expanded, died, got sucked up by black holes, and then exploded again into another universe. Instead of looking at this process as an endless chain of horrible disasters, one can get a sense of peace from it.

Life and death are interrelated; there is nothing to fear about these two. This is all just a part of a process in this continuum for maybe 120 years maximum. When you look at it at that perspective, as far as space and time go, you can’t help but feel connected to something bigger, broader, and more powerful than you.

Our galaxy is a part of a larger structure

As huge as the Milky Way galaxy is, it is only one of the billions of galaxies. Quite mind-blowing because in the Milky Way galaxy itself, our Sun is just one of over 200 billion stars. I need you to grasp the huge numbers involved here. The universe is so immeasurable that you run out of zeroes to describe the full numeric size of the stars that are out there. I’m not even counting the planets, asteroids, and other near heavenly bodies. That’s just how vast our reality is.

Unfortunately, it’s too easy to get caught up in our personal drama that we feel that whatever we’re stressing about now is reality. Get a grip and get over it. Ultimately, it doesn’t really mean much in the greater scheme of things. What’s meaningful is being at peace with your place in the galactic and universal scheme of things.