Why do I believe what I believe? Why are my values what they are? Where do my thoughts come from? Are my ideals 'mine'?
The question of thought, is a complex one, not least because thinking is so difficult. Many of us do not think, we take the thoughts of others and use them as the foundations, walls, or thatching of our mental structures. But we rarely think, and deep enough on important matters anyway.
Thinking involves the admission that we do not know, an admission coming from a place of humility that we are ignorant and could do better. It does not, as is usually thought, have to be from a place of knowledge, even though knowledge can inform thoughts. If it was, then we would not necessarily be thinking, but just reorganizing previously known ideas.
It begins with asking the question, why. Why do we go to school? Why do we marry and have children? Why do we work to earn money in order to buy things? Why do we elect leaders? Why do we go to places of worship and perform rituals? Why do we die?
Thinking does not deny or seek to deny these things, it seeks to understand them. We seek to understand our assumptions like deference to the authority of those older than us in making 'important' life decisions. We assume that our parents know better, or the government knows how best to spend public finances, or the church has the information to guide us to a place of spiritual enlightenment.
Thinking, in a sense then, results in upsetting the apple cart. This may not be the intention of any person that embarks on serious thought, but it is undoubtedly the natural outcome of a sincere mental practice. In the end, relationships change because a person begins to think. It becomes uncomfortable to live the same way before and after thought, because the contradiction would be upsetting.
The alternative would be to live as an automaton, an unthinking robot. This is an oblivious and blissful existence, indeed. But the act of delegating one's agency to another, may eventually prove more painful than own pure and honest thought.
The learning curve, or more appropriately, the thinking curve is very steep. We are not taught to think for ourselves in school or at work. We are taught to accept things as exogenous, i.e. given and unchangeable facts. We read books and regurgitate the information to others, without truly asking questions and thinking. This does not have to be the case.
None of us can truly know the depth of our existence, until we think. We cannot grasp our place in the universe, until we mull over this topic over and over again, until we own the outcomes. The first thoughts may be unwieldy, weird and incomprehensible. They may not be shareable with anyone because even we do not understand them. But eventually, the dots begin to connect, and things take shape. Finally, our lives make more sense, and we realize our power to alter our destinies, and wonder how we lived unthinkingly. And that, may be worth a shot!
The question of thought, is a complex one, not least because thinking is so difficult. Many of us do not think, we take the thoughts of others and use them as the foundations, walls, or thatching of our mental structures. But we rarely think, and deep enough on important matters anyway.
Thinking involves the admission that we do not know, an admission coming from a place of humility that we are ignorant and could do better. It does not, as is usually thought, have to be from a place of knowledge, even though knowledge can inform thoughts. If it was, then we would not necessarily be thinking, but just reorganizing previously known ideas.
It begins with asking the question, why. Why do we go to school? Why do we marry and have children? Why do we work to earn money in order to buy things? Why do we elect leaders? Why do we go to places of worship and perform rituals? Why do we die?
Thinking does not deny or seek to deny these things, it seeks to understand them. We seek to understand our assumptions like deference to the authority of those older than us in making 'important' life decisions. We assume that our parents know better, or the government knows how best to spend public finances, or the church has the information to guide us to a place of spiritual enlightenment.
Thinking, in a sense then, results in upsetting the apple cart. This may not be the intention of any person that embarks on serious thought, but it is undoubtedly the natural outcome of a sincere mental practice. In the end, relationships change because a person begins to think. It becomes uncomfortable to live the same way before and after thought, because the contradiction would be upsetting.
The alternative would be to live as an automaton, an unthinking robot. This is an oblivious and blissful existence, indeed. But the act of delegating one's agency to another, may eventually prove more painful than own pure and honest thought.
The learning curve, or more appropriately, the thinking curve is very steep. We are not taught to think for ourselves in school or at work. We are taught to accept things as exogenous, i.e. given and unchangeable facts. We read books and regurgitate the information to others, without truly asking questions and thinking. This does not have to be the case.
None of us can truly know the depth of our existence, until we think. We cannot grasp our place in the universe, until we mull over this topic over and over again, until we own the outcomes. The first thoughts may be unwieldy, weird and incomprehensible. They may not be shareable with anyone because even we do not understand them. But eventually, the dots begin to connect, and things take shape. Finally, our lives make more sense, and we realize our power to alter our destinies, and wonder how we lived unthinkingly. And that, may be worth a shot!
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