Why Attention Is the Rarest Gift

Attention sounds simple. It isn't. Simone Weil called it the rarest form of generosity. Iris Murdoch saw it as the only way past the ego's distortions. Mary Oliver made it her prayer. Three voices, one question: what happens when you actually look — at another person, at a kestrel, at the world?Show Notes:Three thinkers who understood attention not as focus or productivity, but as a moral and spiritual practice.Voices:Simone Weil (1909–1943) — French philosopher and mystic. "Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity."Iris Murdoch (1919–1999) — British philosopher and novelist. The kestrel outside the window. Unselfing.Mary Oliver (1935–2019) — American poet. "I don't know exactly what a prayer is. I do know how to pay attention."Sources referenced:Weil: Gravity and Grace, Waiting for GodMurdoch: The Sovereignty of GoodOliver: "The Summer Day," Upstream, Devotions Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.