David Starr Jordan, the first president of Stanford University, who named over a thousand species of fish, had two rather happy marriages, several children, a prolific writing career, and statues standing in front of university buildings, with several buildings and roads named after him.
His life was like a laser beam, unwavering in its pursuit to find God's ordained hierarchy of species, even going so far as to poison Jane Stanford—the benefactor of Stanford University, the person who invited him to be president. He "had an outrageous confidence, believing that what he wanted was right." Ultimately, he inevitably turned his gaze towards humanity, entering the field of "eugenics," becoming a pioneer of Hitler in America, sterilizing thousands of innocent women because they were "unfit."
However, several years after his honorable death, scientists discovered that the "fish" that brought him a lifetime of honor did not exist!!
Birds exist, mammals exist, but fish do not exist; it is not a scientifically recognized species. It is as absurd as categorizing all animals on a mountain into one class: mountain fish, mountain birds, mountain humans.
What he pursued at all costs was utterly meaningless.
There is no order in the world; chaos is our only ruler.
We know very little about the world around us, even lacking understanding of the simplest things. Every moment, we must admit that we do not understand what is before our eyes. Approach each thing in the abyss of chaos with curiosity and skepticism.
Science itself is flawed. It is not the lighthouse illuminating the truth as imagined, but a blunt instrument that can bring about chaos.
We assume there is a well-ordered hierarchy in nature, but this is merely a fabricated, specious guess by humanity.
Language is the beginning of error.
Once we name something, we no longer look at it. For example, tree, greening, forest; we know very little about dandelions, and most people cannot even recognize a dandelion.
We use language to strip plants and animals of their agency, using vocabulary to maintain our own lofty status. For instance, "heart like a snake," "worse than beasts," yet beasts are beasts, and birds are birds; they are merely our neighbors on Earth.
There are no leaps in nature.
Everything is continuous; classification and language are fragmented. There is no clear boundary between donkeys and horses as language suggests.
This world promises me that there are beautiful things in my life. Not because I deserve it, not because I strive for it, but because they are part of chaos, just like destruction and loss. Life is the other side of death, just as growth and decay are interdependent.
Another world does exist, but it is within this world. It is another world hidden within this one, the unbound world outside the window. In that world, fish do not exist, and every dandelion is filled with infinite possibilities.
"From this perspective, the world is so magnificent and grand."
—"On the Origin of Species"