Three hours of Slow Living

It goes without saying that it is always necessary to be a critical thinker and have a deeper sense of understanding and awareness of our surroundings and ourselves. Philosophy is a major school of thought that helps us become a critical thinker, that is, more open-minded, self-aware, analytical, creative and thus a better human being. It brings out important questions that makes us think about our own selves, decisions, and morals. However rapid the change and development in people’s mindset or the society is, the true meaning of one’s life always remains unanswered. The importance and meaning of life differ from one person to another, but we can all collectively agree that philosophy brings us closer to finding an answer to this mystery.

This is a small exercise for me to understand myself better and have a deeper understanding of my views and ideas towards many aspects of life. In the light of this, you can take up this exercise too, answer these questions yourself and be one step ahead of having a better understanding of yourself. The best way to start this quest would be answering the simplest question, “Where do I see myself 10 years from now? What is it that I want when I think of my future?”

Undoubtedly, the answer to this question might come across to be a cliché answer, nonetheless this is what I stand by. When I’m 30, I want to have a family I could lean on and achieving a job that I am striving to pursue today. I wish to work in an atmosphere that keeps me motivated and one that brings out my full potential. It took me a while to come to get a picture of what resonates my happiness. From when I realised that teaching gives me utmost happiness, I have always aspired to be a teacher. Consequently, I want to work in a place filled with an atmosphere where my knowledge could be best at use. On the lines of what I want I want from my future, I wish to have a family I could lean on too, a family that gives joy and most importantly a peace of mind.

This made it easier for me to answer the question “What I value the most in my life and why?” Envisioning my near future, my knowledge, loyalty, and happiness cumulatively are of the most value to me. These are the things I want my future to built on and hence are the things I value the most. These values help me bring out the best version of me and would help me lead to a wholesome and happy life. 

But what exactly is the reason for me to make these choice or in better words, what exactly is my belief system that determines my choice, behaviour, and my “right” thing to do?

The set of values I strive to follow each day is to be considerate and empathetic towards everybody around me, to the best of my capacity. I do not have any religious beliefs, and even if I do, I tend to not let them interfere with my choices and actions. Religious beliefs are neither a criteria nor a filter for me to make a particular choice or decision. My belief system, I think, strongly stands on being considerate, kind, and just believing in the ideals of humanity. My choices and behavior are mostly driven by these beliefs and thoughts.

Values are the foundation that decides what is wrong and what is right for a person. It is very subjective and situation dependent. As a confused being, I can’t generalize the right thing to do. However, my “right” thing to do it is highly dependent on my morals and beliefs and to a great extent, my emotions and my equation with people.

Although religious beliefs play no importance in my life, I do believe in the existence of God. I believe in the existence of supernatural power but clearly deny the personified version of God. The idea of God created by humans is corrupting the true and pure idea of the power.

This brings us to the most obvious question about the afterlife and existence of a soul. This is a very conflicting question and due to my inability to be conclusive about it, I’d say afterlife is a concept that has varied perspectives and I’m still on my way to exploring it further.

Our beliefs help us to find our truth and make our choices.

Speaking of choices, the question of whether one’s choices are free comes up. As much as I want to believe that our choices are completely free, I would disagree. If the society is black, as a social being we can not be completely white and we tend to be a shade of grey.

Coming to our truth, even though a major part of what we believe is based on facts and research, a few beliefs of blind us to the entire truth. For instance, religious beliefs like the idea of flat earth blinded a major population from believing in the actual shape of the earth. Elaborating, Darwin’s idea of evolution was a slap on the face of religion and thus these beliefs, blinded people from believing the actual truth. We are also often led by emotions and expectations while finding our truth. However, being rational, I try and make my truth more factual and logically driven rather than emotionally or religiously.

This brings me back to the primary quest of philosophers as to “What gives your life meaning? What is the purpose of your life?”. Although, I am still in pursuit of my purpose, an idea of knowing what I am looking forward to in the future, has helped me find some meaning in the today. I think living a balanced life without being overwhelmed anybody, anything, or any emotion is what I want to achieve in my life. My job, my family, and my peace of mind will give my life true meaning.

I truly believe that’s one’s ultimate purpose in life is to leave this world in a better condition than it was in when they got here. Hence the other important beliefs I stand for are believing in humanity and standing true to being human, that is being considerate, understanding, and accepting of people around us.

These paragraphs represent the introspection of my experiences. It would be a great way to slow down and give yourself more time to find to find a true and conscious meaning of your everyday.

·         What do you most value in life? Why?

·         What moral beliefs influence your choices and your behavior toward others? How do you determine the “right” thing to do?

·          What role do religious beliefs play in your life? Do you believe in “God”? Why or why not? Is there an afterlife? If so, what is the path to it?

·         What gives your life meaning? What is the purpose of your life? What do you hope to achieve in your life?

·         How do we find truth? How do you know when you “know” something is true? What is an example of something you know to be true?

·          Do you believe that your choices are free? Do you hold yourself responsible for your choices?

·          What are other important beliefs in your life?