It seems to me that most people (myself included) view their life or place in the world through one of two points of view.
1) everyone is basically good and we should work with one another to help one another.. to better not only ourself but our brothers and sisters and our environment.
2) Everyone is out for themselves, out to better only themselves, to screw anyone and everyone over in the process. That the world is screwed, we might as well only worry about ourself because in the end that's all that matters.
Of course these are the two extremes of the spectrum, most of us likely fall somewhere in between.
but where do these Point's of view (POV) come from? Are they cultural, are they formed through experience? Maybe more important, can we change our point of view? If so how?
Please keep in mind I am not a psychologist, sociologist, or any other "specialist" nor do I play one on TV..
In my experience the negative POV seems to be based in the masculine. No doubt it has always existed to some extent. I believe that the industrial revolution and the advent of capitalism exacerbated it. This follows the logic that industry, has always been owned and controlled by men..
The men in power want to keep that power so they tend to promote individualism instead of community. This breeds greed and paranoia. and thus the cycle continues.
This sells so well because it is always backed with visions of indentured servitude, reliance on government, etc..
It puts forth the idea that "why be tied or indebted to someone for something, when you can be a free individual?"
But what it leaves out is that by "being free" we are losing our ability to be self-reliant. What happens when that 100k job dries up and no jobs are available? How do you eat? how do you barter for needed items if you don't have trusting relationships with your neighbors and community?
I associate the positive POV to the feminine. Women have (IMHO) always been the voice of reason. Typically thinking in terms of what best for all
involved. From cooking a nourishing meal for the family to teaching others a valuable skill, to trying to make sure that communications in the family and community stay viable and civil.
This is why you hear that women are the "weaker" sex. But I disagree. I say the Wiser and Stronger sex.
Obviously these area generalizations and no doubt I'll catch flack from some of my readers.
The point I'm trying to make is that we need to reverse these negative thought patterns and turn them strongly to the the feminine side, if we hope to survive.
Someone is bound to say "We need balance, not to much of one or the other". Agreed, BUT At this point in time the masculine is so ingrained and so dominate that only a strong feminine mindset can bring us back into balance..
We've now dealt with the cultural aspect of POV so lets look at "experience based"
Speaking from my own experiences, it seems that in our current culture things are much easier to get done if we take the masculine (dominate) stance. "This is what I want.. I'll do whatever it takes to get it.. screw everything and everyone who gets in my way". Forcefulness works for a lot of things... But it leaves the forced ambivalent and the forcer less human (and one would hope, remorseful).
On the other side, if we try the same task from a feminine POV, it may take longer to get things done (people in a male centric society tend to downplay the importance of anything they see as feminine), but will be better for both the person seeking something and the one(s) responsible for implementing the change. And likely for the peoples the change will affect.
The problem with this model is the person using it often burns out because they are often brushed off as ineffective. But I feel it is worth the effort and is really the only viable option.
So how do we bring about the paradigm shift? There is no easy answer.. I believe that to affect change in others, one must first acknowledge their own issues. That's not to say we must be perfect before we can be part of a greater good. It just means we need to be aware of our strengths and weaknesses as we work with others.
Try to see things from their POV. Don't throw stones; be a compassionate ear. Don't just extend these values to your friends but to everyone and everything.
Now my confession!!
I tend to view life from a negative prospective, while I know that is destructive, it is also a habit that is hard to break.
It's easy enough for me to get into the positive mindset in a ecstatic environment
such as a ritual or witch camp space, but to bring that energy into the muggle world is another matter entirely. That's what I strive for.
I am tired of being angry and feeling like I'm out of control when it comes to life. I don't have any wisdom to impart on how to overcome this but I do have some Ideas I'm going to implement that will hopefully help.
Here's what I'm going to try this year:
find out how to get into my creative state and write some poetry.
re-learn to read and play music.
try and be less critical to myself, but especially of others.
journal daily.. to vent frustrations of the day
blog more regularly. I'm hoping by journaling I can take some of the past negativity out of the blog and get it back on track with pagan content.
I'd like to also start a daily practice. Though I'm not sure yet what that means. Perhaps just spending a few minutes free writing out in nature.
I'm at a point with pagan practice that I don't really want to read about it.. I want to do it. But more than just for a week a year at camp. I want to live it.
Books are good but they can only take you so far; They'll always be there as a resource.
As always, I welcome thoughts and comments.
So what are your resolutions for the new year?
Blessed Be
