Showing Up as Our Authentic Self
Aristotle is believed to have said, "Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom."
Self. What is it? Does anyone really know? A deceptively simple question, but one without a simple answer.
If we were to stop for a moment to reflect on all of our personal history, we would in fact see many "selves" emerge from the shadows of our past. We would see our childhood Self, remember our hair and eye color, remember our fantasies, remember our deepest joys and passions, and recall our dearest friends at the time. We might remember the clothes we wore, the schools we attended, the houses we lived in, our family and family gatherings, and the chores we hated to do around the house.
If we advance further in time, beyond childhood and into the adolescent and young adult years, a different version of our Self emerges. Residential addresses have changed, new friends have shown up, and old ones have moved on; our own feelings and awareness have developed into an outward expression of style, habits, activities and interests. Perhaps feelings are remembered with a mixture of joy and pain. Perhaps a troubled Self (or a longing Self, or fearful Self) was present in that early period of life as we embarked on our own personal adventure, shedding the safety net of our parents, and embracing the unknown and uncertain.
And then, there is who we are today. Intuitively, we each know that these transient forms and conditions cannot be the authentic Self, because all the external conditions have changed. Our bodies have changed. Our relationships have changed. And they will keep changing!
So, "know thyself" turns out to be a challenging call to self-mastery, because the Self seems to be always changing.
Or . . . is it? Perhaps the authentic Self is more consistent than our physical form or surroundings.
Perhaps the true authentic self is not at all related to the external forms, facts and conditions of life, but is more like the sum of our values, dreams, thoughts, and beliefs in any given moment. What if the truest vision of our Self is actually awareness of our feelings and interpretations of the events in our lives? What if our Self is actually the core essence of what we desire to share with the world? What if our most authentic self is actually the Self that shows up with the single intention of actualizing on the potential immediately available to it?
This idea puts the whole framework into a very different light because it shifts the focus away from the Self as static to the Self as kinetic. Instead of a fixed way of being, our Self becomes a fluid expression in the moment, like the River is to the Rock-bed it travels over and through.
When we define Self as a fixed identity, our desire for fulfillment can lead us down many dead-end roads; roads that are paved with societal roles and policed by social norms. When we travel in this context, our Self becomes obscured, and our desire for fulfillment quickly becomes the pray of fashion, technology trends, rules and regulations, pleasure vices, peer pressure; or the whims, feelings and needs of other people.
If we have lost touch with our core essence and what that essence wants to bring to the world, then we have lost touch with our truest, most authentic Self. Our truest, most authentic Self deeply desires to achieve fulfillment through being a gift to the present moment--seen, heard, and appreciated by whomever has the eyes to see, hear, and give thanks. It desires to give full expression to its feelings, perception, and values. It desires to be fulfilled by pouring out its heart for the sake of having an extraordinary experience.
I wonder, how well did Aristotle feel that he knew himself? I would wager that if we were students of his today and asked such a question, he might have answered simply and honestly something like "your Self is what you contribute to this very moment, and each and every moment is beautifully unique."
Self. What is it? Does anyone really know? A deceptively simple question, but one without a simple answer.
If we were to stop for a moment to reflect on all of our personal history, we would in fact see many "selves" emerge from the shadows of our past. We would see our childhood Self, remember our hair and eye color, remember our fantasies, remember our deepest joys and passions, and recall our dearest friends at the time. We might remember the clothes we wore, the schools we attended, the houses we lived in, our family and family gatherings, and the chores we hated to do around the house.
If we advance further in time, beyond childhood and into the adolescent and young adult years, a different version of our Self emerges. Residential addresses have changed, new friends have shown up, and old ones have moved on; our own feelings and awareness have developed into an outward expression of style, habits, activities and interests. Perhaps feelings are remembered with a mixture of joy and pain. Perhaps a troubled Self (or a longing Self, or fearful Self) was present in that early period of life as we embarked on our own personal adventure, shedding the safety net of our parents, and embracing the unknown and uncertain.
And then, there is who we are today. Intuitively, we each know that these transient forms and conditions cannot be the authentic Self, because all the external conditions have changed. Our bodies have changed. Our relationships have changed. And they will keep changing!
So, "know thyself" turns out to be a challenging call to self-mastery, because the Self seems to be always changing.
Or . . . is it? Perhaps the authentic Self is more consistent than our physical form or surroundings.
Perhaps the true authentic self is not at all related to the external forms, facts and conditions of life, but is more like the sum of our values, dreams, thoughts, and beliefs in any given moment. What if the truest vision of our Self is actually awareness of our feelings and interpretations of the events in our lives? What if our Self is actually the core essence of what we desire to share with the world? What if our most authentic self is actually the Self that shows up with the single intention of actualizing on the potential immediately available to it?
This idea puts the whole framework into a very different light because it shifts the focus away from the Self as static to the Self as kinetic. Instead of a fixed way of being, our Self becomes a fluid expression in the moment, like the River is to the Rock-bed it travels over and through.
When we define Self as a fixed identity, our desire for fulfillment can lead us down many dead-end roads; roads that are paved with societal roles and policed by social norms. When we travel in this context, our Self becomes obscured, and our desire for fulfillment quickly becomes the pray of fashion, technology trends, rules and regulations, pleasure vices, peer pressure; or the whims, feelings and needs of other people.
If we have lost touch with our core essence and what that essence wants to bring to the world, then we have lost touch with our truest, most authentic Self. Our truest, most authentic Self deeply desires to achieve fulfillment through being a gift to the present moment--seen, heard, and appreciated by whomever has the eyes to see, hear, and give thanks. It desires to give full expression to its feelings, perception, and values. It desires to be fulfilled by pouring out its heart for the sake of having an extraordinary experience.
I wonder, how well did Aristotle feel that he knew himself? I would wager that if we were students of his today and asked such a question, he might have answered simply and honestly something like "your Self is what you contribute to this very moment, and each and every moment is beautifully unique."
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