Self-Improvement
9 Mind-Bending Epiphanies That Will Shift Your Perception Upside-Down
In our lives, as we grow and learn, we have many insights about ourselves and our lives. You may or may not have had these revelations. Let’s see what these are!
1. You and your mind are not one
Did it sound absurd? Did your beliefs just come crashing down? Well, it may seem like you are your mind but you aren’t. Your mind doesn’t define or control you. The mind and you are two separate entities. You might have thought that all the mental thoughts and talks were central to your existence, allowing you to experience life. Here’s food for thought: if you are your mind, how come you can observe everything that goes in there? Thoughts are just as important as any other observable sense, such as smell and taste.
2. Life unfolds only in moments
You experience life bit by bit, one thing after the other. As humans, we want immediate solutions. We want to have all the answers before time. We fail to realize that life unfolds itself moment by moment. It is the present moment which counts and it is the only moment we need to focus on. Focusing on the past or the future wouldn’t be any good.
3. Your life’s quality is dependent upon how you confront your moments
It doesn’t matter what you did or what you plan to do. It only matters what and how are you going to deal with your present moment. It is the “now” which will determine the quality of your life. This revelation will truly help you become a better person. It will equip you with the ability to cope with adversities willingly rather than complaining about them and doing nothing.
4. You are imagining most of your life
We as humans are constantly thinking, so much so that we don’t even realize it. Most of our interactions with this world are not real but a product of our beliefs about it, our expectations and our personal interests. We perceive it not as it is but as our thoughts want us to. Thus, most of our life is imaginary.
5. Humans have evolved to suffer and suffering is what we do better than anything else
It might not feel as liberating as you would want a realization to feel but it is indeed vital to understand the cause of our survival. Contrary to what most of us believe, suffering doesn’t signify that something is wrong with us, rather it defines the very state of being human. It is a simple and ruthless survival mechanism. If you embrace this realization, you will understand:
1. Suffering doesn’t indicate something is wrong with your life.
2. Since the ball is in your court, the degree of suffering depends on you.
3. All the problems and their solutions are the same.
6. Emotions promote biases in us
Wait, what? Really? You thought emotions guide us and tell us where we stand in our life, right? Well, it turns out our emotions make us biased. They can’t really be trusted for gauging your self-worth or position in life. Emotions make us forceful and teach us what it is that we can’t seem to let go.
Must read: In Less Than 10 Minutes This Man Will Shift Your Perception And Shake Your Belief System
7. Humans have two operational motivations: hedonistic tendency and the wish to fulfill all the desires
No one wants to feel bad. We all have an innate tendency to indulge in pleasure all the time and escape the sufferings. It should explain how people can step over each other only to achieve their own goals or become happier. We have different methods of exhibiting these two motivators but these are what drive our lives. Inevitably, completely embracing this epiphany will shake your notions of morality and justice.
8. Beliefs aren’t something you should be proud of
What are beliefs? They are the foundations of how you perceive your life. They are what drives your life. It isn’t really an accomplishment – beliefs mean you aren’t open to change or reconsidering this instilled opinion. When you become proud of a belief, you make it a part of your ego and once something is part of your ego, you can’t really let anything hurt it. This attitude can be detrimental in the long run. A belief means a closed door.
9. Objectivity is subjective
Uh, what? How can objectivity be subjective? Well, you realize how your life is yours alone? How you have a unique viewpoint of understanding the world? It means that life is a subjective experience. Nobody can evaluate your life for you or understand how you experience it. You perceive the world as you have built perceptions about it growing up. Hence, any objective understanding that you claim to have is the result of your own prior understanding which is subjective. There is no objective reality in our lives. Subjectivity is the primary experience.
So, which of these revelations hit you the hardest? Which of these have you already experienced and realized?
