Desires are like lamps on our path in life marking the direction towards our purpose. As any force of nature they can be perilous and destructive or propel us towards our purpose in life if managed by a skilful captain. We are free to choose to guide the ship of our life towards exotic places or left without direction towards the only place our life will naturally go: the bottom, no matter how much we wallow in self pity.
To find out where we are and where we want to go we try to base our decisions on fact and proven theory. But life is much more complicated and on top of that personal so its often hard to find useful advice and guidance. What are we and were do we want to go? Everyone certainly has some idea about that. So do your friends and wider circle of relatives, workmates etc. There view may be close to yours or widely different. And somewhere there is the real you independent of opinion but certainly moving or being moved in one or other direction for good or bad.
Among all that we have our beliefs: the things we hold to be true without decisive proof because we didn’t have the time or the opportunity to check their validity. We still act upon them because we need to act and make choice big and small in every moment of our lives. So these beliefs influence reality and so in fact create into reality. Again we may be successful but that would be entirely due to chance. Only by sharing our beliefs, assumptions, hypothesis with other reasonable people and accepting any constructive criticism can we see clearer in the fog of complexity created by contemporary society. Our desires, passions, values, goals being the compass the best map will be the one created by thinking and experience, and open to corrections by fellow travelers.
And not only for advice often if not always we need outright help from others to achieve our goals. But how do we enlist that help? There are two obvious ways: Cooperation or Coercion. Coercion might come first to mind and seems like a quick and easy way to achieve your goals but it's self-defeating in the end. Cooperation builds on common reasoning and pooling of resource to reach goals both personal and common trough understanding, compassion and common sense.
The desire is fundamental to mankind, but how you say the cooperation is the best for reach it. It’s a pity that the society hadn’t acted this way.
ReplyDeleteRegards
Aurasacrafames.blogspot.com
Read this article any one who whats increase his self motivations.
ReplyDeleteWOW...Passion for life...and the desire... ;)
ReplyDelete"Desires are like lamps on our path in life marking the direction towards our purpose. As any force of nature they can be perilous and destructive or propel us towards our purpose in life if managed by a skilful captain."
ReplyDeleteWell then, the first assumption was wrong. Desires obviously don't mark the direction towards our "purpose". You've contradicted your self. Unless of course your saying that our purpose can be a destructive one.
And further, if we do not even know what ones "purpose" is, how can we say that our desires point to it?
"We are free to choose to guide the ship of our life towards exotic places or left without direction towards the only place our life will naturally go: the bottom, no matter how much we wallow in self pity."
I disagree. People are simply using the cards they are dealt as they live, there is no choosing about it. And further, the society chooses how, when and why you can use your cards according to the social norm. If your desire was to perform as a singer, but your society said no singing, you could hardly choose anything. Unless you moved to another society, in which other social norms that restrict on your desires would be.
But perhaps this is what you mean when you say; "guide the ship of our life towards exotic places". Your desires send you to "exotic" societies.
However, you say that if left without guidance our desires will send us to the bottom, which I do not understand. Where is the bottom? The bottom of society? Then that would be true. The rest I agree with.
You are a great thinker and you have proved it. It is interesting. Thank you .
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment Richard. Although I don't agree with you and you don't agree with me such critical discussions are the main stepping stones on our path to the truth.
ReplyDeleteAs to the society it's not the society it's you who have to find your purpose in life. No one else can. Here's a quote from a man that I admire:
"Your time is limited, don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma, which is living the result of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinion drowned your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition, they somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary."
~ Steve Jobs
That's all that is about it.
Cheers
Hi Wiz,
ReplyDeleteI quite like your comments on beliefs bit, and how they can shape our reality if we do not seek truth.