From our murky beginnings, all living creatures share the mysterious journey from nothing-ness to being.

In these gorgeous images, we are able to witness the genesis of that journey. Though computer generated, these pictures nonetheless capture the reality of life before life, and float the viewer into a jet stream of the unknowable, the miraculous, and yet, the absolutely mundane.

I will never forget the first image I ever saw of my son, which like most modern mothers, was on a sonogram. That grainy picture (the technology was in its infancy then) did not flood me with spontaneous love. Instead, it made me realize wholly, that this was a person lodged inside my belly with his foot wedged between two of my right ribs. He was a person separate from me, yet of me, with his very own face, heart, thoughts and ultimately, opinions.

Perhaps, I thought, I might not like this person (of course, I love him); perhaps he will not like me (the jury is still out).

What was most striking however was, until I saw him, I’d thought of him as me, and after I saw him, I realized he was him; a solid, complete boy.

And yet, the lines that make those distinctions are eternally blurry.

Yogic philosophy posits that everything is one and that the concept of “self” is an illusion. Once we accept this reality, we are taught, we can begin healing.

Like the images of my unborn son, these pictures of unborn animals wakened in me the sense of difference of all beings, yet also their eternal same-ness. They helped me see the connection between myself and all creatures of the world, and remember that I am them, and they are me.

Via Reddit:

Relephant: let’s love our animal buddies.

Bonus: If that didn’t fill your heart with universal love, check out these seals smooshing on a nature photographer. I think I might run away to Alaska…

 

Bonus: We really do live on an amazing planet with amazing creatures.

We really do live on an amazing planet with amazing creatures.

Relephant Reads:

> Stunning Photos of Little Girl Who Grew Up With Animals in Africa.

> Profoundly Touching Photographs of Elderly Animals.

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Editor: Catherine Monkman

Photos: via Imgur