The mother of all questions: Who am I?
It's Wednesday, and
wowowowow
…
we AGAIN reached half of the week. 🌺
If time actually exists... it's flying! Also, yesterday we cracked the 100-reader-mark on this broadcast. THANK YOU SO MUCH! 🙏 It's an honour to know that you lovely people are waiting for my messages every morning - and send me concerned reminders when I am running late. 😅 As I know many of you personally, I am excited to be introduced to all the wonderful new people who have joined us over the last couple of days. Welcome to the family!
How well do you know yourself?
The posts on the "Coronaisance" of the last two days have sparked many interesting discussions in direct conversations with you, and revealed questions such as
- Who am I if I can't do my job? Am I mainly what I do? (Or:What is my true essence?)
- Is it still me, when I suddenly enjoy solitude at home, and don't want to go back to my old habits of partying? (Or: What role plays company and environment in living out all sides of me?)
- Can I learn new skills and reinvent myself without loosing who I was? (Or: Was I always myself? How hard do I have to work to truly get to know me?)
- And why am I still emptying out my fridge every single night? (Or: am I in truth a little pig?) 😅 🐷
Seeking answers to the question of who we truly is as relevant for us humans as water, food or air. ☘️
Socrates, who never wrote a single sentence in his life, and instead spend all his time wandering through Ancient Athens to ask people philosophical questions, got yelled at many times by his wife Xanthippe. However, the man himself was on a different trip. Deeply inspired by the motto "Know thyself" that was inscribed on the Temple of Delphi, Sokrates thought that examining one’s self is the most important task one can undertake, for it alone will give the knowledge necessary to answer the question ‘how should I live my life’. When we turn our gaze inward in search of self knowledge, we would discover our true nature. And contrary to the opinion of the masses, one’s true self, according to Socrates, is not to be identified with what we own, with our social status, our reputation, or even with our body. Instead, Socrates famously maintained that our true self is our soul.
Many, many years later, Descartes countered this idea with "I think, therefore I am" (Cogito, ergo sum). While this statement takes all kinds of issues along with that our modern world is currently has to deal with, Adi Shankaracharya, the Indian philosopher who consolidated the doctrine of Vedanta in the 8th century, on the other hand stated that when it comes to identity, we humans simply fall into the ego-trap, revealing a persona that we’ve CONSTRUCTED our life around. Hint: It's all a big illusion.
We often think we are our ego because we define ourselves by it.
Our ego is defined by and defines the roles we play in this lifetime: I’m a mother. I’m a brother. I’m a rockstar in disguise! I’m a postman. I’m Ethiopian by choice. I only eat meat, or plants, or french fries with eggs (there is a women in the UK who ate the same for 30 years and is still alive). My eyes are blue. My race is Alien.👽 My past is this, my legacy will be that... you get the point! Often, our ego doesn’t have our best interests in mind. Don't we sometimes say "Put your ego aside?" when have difficult conversations with partners, family and friends? Let's do exactly that today. 🌺
Ask yourself: WHO ARE YOU REALLY?
The following two videos may help you find answers to maybe the most relevant question you’ve asked yourself in this lifetime.
1. WHO AM I by the amazing School of Life (7,5 minutes)
A brilliant introduction about what makes you you - and what not.
2. The wonderful song I AM LIGHT by India Arie. Close your eyes, and listen to the lyrics. This lady is woke AF! 🤩
Watch and listen to both, and then sit down and make two lists. First, the one about WHO AM I NOT (e.g. my kneecap, my elbow, my bad quarantine haircut), followed by WHO AM I ... TRULY? 🦚 Focus on internal adjectives (e.g. I am kind. I am fun to be around! I am full of love. I am hungry at night.), and don't get lost in external descriptions (e.g. I am rich, I am broke, I have only one tomato left in my fridge.). This second list is what will bring you closer to your true, amazing, most authentic self.
Have a wonderful day ahead full of soul-searching and discoveries. You are amazing. 💖 I would love to hear from you how the exercise is going for you!
With love from Goa,
Isabelle 🌿
PS: Identity seems to have nothing to do with your body, so go ahead and empty your fridge... it's clearly someone else. 🐷
