www.1001TopWords.com |
Do We Have Free Will?
It is being suggested here that we have only one real choice in life: To let go of fear and resistance and be taken by the flow of life, or, to fight, screaming all the way, as the flow of life takes us anyway. Life is. It moves. The only way we can avoid that is to die - either to our awareness of ourselves (insanity), or physically (death). To let go of fear and resistance is, of course, not easy, and there are many different approaches to life that attempt to help us with that. The central confusion around this is exemplified by the two views: That we have no choice whatsoever ? that life is pre-ordained. Or, that almost all of life is choice ? that we make good or bad choices depending on our level of self awareness or luck. There is a "middle" way. That we do have choice, but just one: To recognise that we are going with the flow of life no matter what, in the same way that a twig in a stream is taken by the water and that to fight the water only brings pain and suffering ? the twig cannot of its own volition, go up-stream. A wise person, seeing this, lets go and enjoys the ride ? the multi-textured roller- coaster ride of life. This takes an extraordinary willingness to see through and let go of the (perceived) safety of our day-to-day views of life. Our day-to-day life is a complex mix of trauma, fear, mistaken ideas about life, inherited beliefs, competing "truths" about life and unmet childhood needs. All of this makes the roller coaster ride of life look like a terrifyingly uncertain and dangerous thing. We deny, we hide, we fight. We do everything we can to hold onto the sides of the roller coaster and not go on the ride ? no matter how painful and unsatisfying this is. How "free" is any action of ours anyway if we are unconsciously and blindly driven by all of these fear and confusion-filled survival motivations? In this situation our every next action is determined by the limited current state of our unconscious psyches, rather than the by the all of life. So, the challenge is, will we make the only choice we have and let go of all of our self-imposed limitations so that we can immerse ourselves in the free-flow of life? To become life. This challenge is deeply terrifying to our beings, because it means letting go of our deep-seated need to be in control of our lives. We need to believe that we are in control of our lives because we feel, in our earliest unmet childhood place, that we have no control and that's very scary. We need to decide for ourselves what kind of life we want to live: Being dragged along by life, terrified (but hiding it well), kicking and screaming, or, to leap onto the roller coaster and glory in the ride, exhilarated by every twist and turn, delighted by all the beautiful textures and experiences along the way. No one else can do it for us. It's up to us. Go well. About The Author Many years of research into consciousness, zero-point physics theory, emergence theory, memes and many other new understandings coming out of mathematics and physics. Ongoing relationship therapy with couples, families and post-natal depression groups is bringing deep revelations about the nature of our psyches. Author/illustrator children's picture books (e.g. I Wish My Dad Was A Pirate). Music CD (The Nothing Booth). Related web site: www.becomereal.com. For online access to unique self growth process.
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Motivation - The 4 Most Potent Ways To Awaken Your Enthusiasm ...it is in this whole process of meeting and solving problems that life has its meaning. Problems are the cutting edge that distinguishes between success and failure. Problems call forth our courage and our wisdom; indeed, they create our courage and our wisdom. It is only because of problems that we grow mentally and spiritually...It is through the pain of confronting and resolving problems that we learn. ? M. Scott Peck, The Road Less Traveled Teaching kids -- UGH!! (...and what I learned from it) I have a confession to make: I don't like working with little kids. Do You have a Dream? Do you find yourself sitting at work longing to be somewhere else and doing something you have always wanted to do? Do It Now! "At the end of our lives we never regret at the things we failed at but at the things we hope for but never attempted." Richie Dayo Johnson Self-Motivation for Trainers THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SELF-MOTIVATION FOR TRAINERS: Lack of self-motivation is an unfortunate side effect of our accelerated times. Many people today are cynical and disillusioned or feel that to appear sophisticated, they must become so. They find it difficult to muster a feeling of energetic conviction toward any subject. In training, however, it is crucial to success to possess self-motivation when making presentations. Knowing this, however does not do much for the trainer who lacks inner direction. Achieving a full understanding of the anatomy of self-motivation and mastering ways of obtaining it can lead to vast improvement in training presentations. Motivation: The Power of Celebration Cherish 7 Tips For Lasting Motivation And Greater Success Lasting motivation is possible once you adopt an outlook that allows you to be more successful. Here are seven tips you can use today to overcome procrastination and start achieving much more. Are You Travelling Along The Slippery Slope To Your Grave? When it comes right down to it where ever you go is where you are, whatever you end up doing, that's what you are doing, whatever you are thinking right now, that's what's on your mind, what has happened to you, has already happened. How To Deal With Denial Denial is a coping mechanism commonly used when something happens that we really don't want to see. Doing this is actually quite natural. After all, we want to keep our lives in order, and we resist taking in information that we feel would result in a loss for us. Increase Your Energy! It was only about 18 months ago that I could not even keep up with a 90-year old's energy levels. At my partner's family functions, I often sat with his grandmother who, by the end of the evening, was still lively and chirpy while I was barely able to keep my eyes open. Most evenings I would come home after work, curl into bed with a book and fall asleep. When I woke up I would feel tired and demotivated. I figured I didn't have enough time left to do anything interesting, so I would go back to bed. Sometimes I would even fall asleep at the book shop while choosing which books to buy! Motivation; 5 Steps to Get the Changes You Want Q: I just read your column in today's' Greensboro News and Record. For the last few years I've been struggling with change, and found your suggestions about "change tools" to be useful. I was wondering if you have a favorite "change tool", and if you would share it with us in a column? How to Change Your Negative Reality It is often taken for granted that the reality tomorrow will be the same as today. Curing the Blues - 14 Feel-Good Ways to Get Out of the Dumps Everyone goes through that "in the blues" feeling once in awhile. The best cure is to be around people that you care about; family, friends; and keeping yourself busy enough to change your mind. Here are some "mood changers" to help you overcome those "down- in-the-dumps" feelings. 3 Great Ways to Beat Procrastination at Work As more tasks become automated due to advances in technology there is a general expectation, whether it is realistic or not, that productivity should increase as well. How Much Risk Is Too Much To Take? The ladder was braced against the railings going to the basement. I started climbing up. I had to get to the ceiling and this was my Rube Goldberg way of doing it without having to put up scaffolding. I made it up two or three rungs before coming to my senses. It would be so easy for the railing to break and for me to go tumbling down the stairs. The Dawn On The Nile Valley Has Secrets To Tell! (3) Me and Mao Tse-Tung! Choosing Your Vision There is a new television show, called Blind Justice that will be replacing NYPD Blue. The show follows a Detective who, at the prime of his life and career, loses his vision in a heroic attempt to thwart a bank robbery and save other police lives. The shooting of this Detective results in his losing his eyesight/vision. He refuses the "disabled" label and sues to get his job back. What immediately struck me as I watched the promo for this new TV show was the idea of losing one's vision. Not physically becoming blind, but losing the vision we once had for our lives. The Secret Motivation Strategy That Never Fails No matter how much you want to make your dreams come true you still need some practical ways to keep yourself motivated over the long term. You need the ability to keep going in the face of setbacks, disappointments and short-term frustrations. i.e. a motivation technique that works. Motivation: The Power of Action, Part 2 The Three D's of Action are Decide, Do and Distinguish. Let's look at each of these in detail. Forward Motion The natural cycle of life is to grow and move forward but moving forward brings with it an element of the unknown. It is human nature to fear the unknown. Often it is difficult for people to take the steps required to move forward because of that fear. Deep down inside, they may know that much needed changes are required in order for improvement to take place in their life circumstances yet they find themselves unable to let go of the familiar comfort of the past. |
© Athifea Distribution LLC - 2013 |