Introduction

Welcome, Dear Reader. Last issue I wrote about the phenomenon of "doubt" and intended
to continue this thread into this month. 

Instead of concentrating on the wayward ramifications of the critical process, doubt was 
discussed as a potential impetus toward growth and toward truth.

Doubting is closely related to the concept of thinking, which is a hallmark of the human 
condition. When the great thinker Descartes observed "cogito ergo sum," he meant, "I 
doubt, therefore I am." 

He arrived at this affirmation only after a substantial quest to discover truth. He set out to 
rid himself of all false propositions, acquired by years of his life experience and education. 
He believed that doubt was his avenue to truth and sought to find truths that were absolutely
free from doubt. And he came to realize that both his worldly perception and his worldly 
knowledge were suspect. Ironically, the only thing that he found impossible to doubt was
that he was a doubter. Therefore, his subjective pursuit of truth led him to an affirmation 
of the subjective. 

I am no philosophy expert and I know that cogito ergo sum is usually translated from
Latin into English as "I think therefore I am." But what Descartes meant by cogito was, 
more precisely, critical thinking, the process of inquiry, of taking doubt seriously. 

As Elio Fratarolli recently argues, Descartes was not merely doing philosophy, but 
following his conscience. I would call it the conscience of the mind. We can all question 
with our minds, through logic. But this is not enough. We can also question with our hearts,
with our feelings. Though our perception of the world is sometimes deceptive, as Descartes 
warns, genuine human communication is not. A mother's sensitivity toward her child is not 
mere perception, but conscience of the heart. 

In addition, we can also question with our souls, that part of us that is not terrestrial and 
that is responsible to our Creator. Conscience of the soul is guided by signs from the Divine. 

Sometimes the Way of the mind, the Way of the heart, and the Way of the soul are at odds, 
and this can lead to internal conflict. Listening to the soul and then recording these impressions 
through the symbols of language is often the starting point of great poetry. It can help organize 
the self. The process of shaping and refining these impressions leads to the creation of a 
message presented on a human scale that is also authentic to the writer. Poetry is a universal 
and timeless way to communicate to the depths of the human condition. 

Subjective Substance promotes the interface between different levels of the self and the 
discoveries created therein. I am thrilled to present this month's poems. They are gems. While 
reading them, you may agree.


Omar Azam