SOCIAL CONDITIONING VS SPIRITUALITY AND THE SELF.
Wow! Whose head is not spinning after recent political developments? It is no wonder there is so much confusion. The media environment makes it very difficult to make an informed choice not based on hype. What does this have to do with social conditioning? BECAUSE IT IS THE SOCIAL CONDITIONING!
We get it from everywhere. It begins with our families, schools, jobs, religion, legal authorities, media, and politicians.
It makes it very difficult to know who you truly are and what you think. Not what someone else taught you to think. What does this have to do with spirituality?
Well in most spiritual realms, it is important to be the best self you possibly can be. It is difficult to achieve that if you are stuck with stuff that is not the real you. How can you make a choice that really works for you about spirituality if you are not being the genuine you?
For example. I had a certain way of dealing with money because that is the way I was taught to do it. I continued to do so because “that was the way it is supposed to work for everyone.” Never mind that it did not work well in my life. I plodded along trying to make it work because it was supposed to. The method was right, or so I was taught, and I was at fault if I could not make it work.
It was not until I broke out of this cycle of thinking that I began to make money and life work better for me and do things in a way that was comfortable for me, regardless of what I had been taught was the right way.
The same holds true for the way we think about ourselves, others, the world and its issues. I have met many folks who do not even know who they are anymore because they have gotten so caught up in their “roles” or the demands of everyday living as it is expected of them. Meaning the job, kids, relationships, what it means to be a particular gender, race and so on.
When I sat folks down and asked who are you? They begin to define themselves by the things I just mentioned. When asked who are you on the inside, in your heart? I usually get met with a blank stare and they reply, “I have been so caught up in stuff I do not even know” Once we begin exploring the true self, they usually find they are very different than what they have been doing. Spirituality comes from the inside and being in touch with our inner self and putting that into our everyday lives. In the current form of social conditioning, this is not encouraged at all.
This leads to a whole bunch of people that are not truly themselves. What does this do to an individual? It brings physical stress, illness, bad temperament, mental health problems and addiction, and intolerance to name a few.
Put a whole bunch of folks together that feel that way and look what happens. Because we feel we have no personal time, we fail to think or allow ourselves to express the kindness we really feel. In most cases, expressing kindness is considered a sign of weakness. Is this what we really feel? Or what we have been taught?
We all have to balance our personal life with everyday needs. However, a personal life has come to mean what you are doing with friends and relatives, not what you are doing for you personally.
Doing something for yourself is not encouraged in our current society. I hear folks all the time saying they have no time. All it takes is 15 minutes three times a week. You can sit anywhere, even a bathroom on the job and just breathe, let yourself feel, let go of the push around you and look inside and hear yourself, hear your heart, your feelings and I don’t mean the you that is mad at your boss or the kids and spouse but the real deep down you. Allow yourself to give you the answers you need, nourish yourself, and support yourself. When you do you will be able to move on more focused, relaxed and confident about what you are doing and why, and feel like a better you. Many blessings to you all!
