To the Bwiti, life holds the greatest value. Truly the simple and prosaic nature of their teachings are evident in this concept; for nothing exists without life. Western, and other, societies have often tried to distance the individual from life. Man is a part of nature, and thus the study of nature includes the study of man. We must focus our study, first, on ourselves, since we are the one that dwells with us, always. By understanding who we are, we understand what we need, and what we want. We know that we will never be fulfilled by others, or by material things. Instead, we decide what we want (food, mate, job, children), and then we operate in a humble fashion to obtain that which we want. By being 100% invested in ourselves, we always bring our best self forward, for work, relations, or activities. If we fail to bring our best self to a cooperative setting, then, the Bwiti say that someone else has to spend some of their 100% on us to make up for the deficit.
Consequently, the Bwiti live in the moment—without holding on to the past or projecting into the future. They accept what is, always engaging all of their senses to help guide them. They are not ruled by their thoughts, and recognize that the basis of life is not thought, but rather is experienced through the senses.
