Eliot and the "world"

Eliot writes in Burnt Norton that "to be conscious is not to be in time." Such a thought centers around what I believe to be Eliot's understanding of time which relates to how we understand true being and reality. One might wonder why this matters...

It seems that Eliot connects understanding ones place in the order of things to how one views his current place in life. From a logical standpoint, why wouldn't there be a correlation?

What does Eliot mean when he says "that which is only living, can only die"? Perhaps "only living" equates to being "caught in the form of limitation" which Eliot describes as "between un-being and being." Perhaps life in this world is being caught between living and dying, but never sure how to live between them until you actually die.

For Eliot this world, which is not permanent, is a problem because it attempts to satisfy what it is not able to satisfy.

Like Scripture, Eliot notes the folly within the wisdom and attitude of the world. He writes in East Coker "The only wisdom we can hope to acquire Is the wisdom of humility: humility is endless." Eliot reminds us of the inherently temporary state of the world:

In order to arrive at what you are not
You must go through the way in which you are not.
And what you do not know is the only thing you know
And what you own is what you do not own
And where you are is where you are not.

We are not created for this world and should never become truly satisfied in it. "As we grow older" writes Eliot, "The world becomes a stranger."

I do not think Eliot is suggesting that we not attempt to live or minister to this world. But fundamentally, we must have an understanding of our true place and being in something much higher than this world can ever offer.