Who are we?

Who are we?



When you look into the mirror and stare into your own eyes do you ever wonder who you are?

What defines you? Is it what you think or what you do or what you want or what you think would be an ideal world?

Are you simply a prouct of conformity since when you were a baby? Would another person put through the same exact experiences be just like you or would he/she be totally different?

If you change your behavior due to an external change, will you stay the same person or will that change grow on you and change you?

Is there really a free person at all, or all we practically a mathematical result of everything that happens to us?

Are you who you are because you want to be a certain person or are you who you are despite wanting to be a certain person?

Are you yourself when you do whatever you feel like or are you yourself when you are ensuring a good future for yourself?

Do you change over time or do you just forget the "real you"?

Does asking who you are make you more or less like you? Does asking any of these questions defeat the purpose? Is this question important? Once you find the answer will you realize that you have known all along? Does knowing the answer make you less like yourself? Is asking questions about yourself dangerous or is it the key to success? Are questions that never need to be asked unimportant or are they the questions that are the most important? Is asking these questions important or answering them?

When you figure it out, let us know.

thats deep and yeah I do i think everyone probably does.

I just believe that I am who i am the way i think and act are all because of what I have been through in the past are the things that would define me today same with anyone else really.

yes, yes, and yes

We are who we are because of how we were brought up

and we are who we are now because of what we WANT later...

hardly free

about to get stoned so ill figure it out

I yam what I yam, and that's all what I yam --- I'm Popeye the sailor man!

can i have your dealers number?

We are a product of some combination of our surroundings when young, our upbringing (intended and unintended interactions with family), and our own brain chemistry... as we age, our outlook changes to see these factors not as boundaries, but beginnings.

I think that who we are as adults is a combination of how we came to terms with the things about ourselves and our upbringings that we could not change, and how much we have managed to separate that from who we are and who we want to be NOW.

Given an upbringing that was not 'perfect' (since none are, lol), who have we become?
Have we given up and resigned ourselves to it? Or have we taken its lessons to build a knowledge base and face the future?
Do we look at ourselves as VICTIMS of our childhoods or STUDENTS?
The victim does not progress into a strong sense of self. But the student does.

This shits too deep and depressive to comment on, Id rathar live my life then waste my time on mindless ramble.

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Originally Posted by Trip06

This shits too deep and depressive to comment on, Id rathar live my life then waste my time on mindless ramble.

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That's just who you are. Go forth and be yourself.

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Originally Posted by THClord

Who are we?

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When you look into the mirror and stare into your own eyes do
you ever wonder who you are?

Yes. Sometimes I stare deep into my eyes and sometimes think I can see my soul. Most time, it makes me smile.

What defines you? Is it what you think or what you do or what you want or what you think would be an ideal world?

What you think does define you. What you do allows others to define you, while their lens of observation is much narrower, and bearing the influence of experiences unknown to you. What I want is an ideal world. Does that help define me?

Are you simply a prouct of conformity since when you were a baby? Would another person put through the same exact experiences be just like you or would he/she be totally different?

I myself are not a product of conformity. I fly many a freak flag. Many are mere products of conformity. I call them sheep. Members of Congress who vote strictly party lines 100% of the time without considering the issues, fools who constantly refuse to listen to any music other than the current top 40, not because they have the ability to understand what is enjoyable about the music, but merely believe they find it enjoyable because they know it is in the current top 40. We simply do not know the answer to your latter question, and anyone who claims to know is only making an educated guess. Controlled tests are required. Likely not happening anytime soon.

If you change your behavior due to an external change, will you stay the same person or will that change grow on you and change you?

Change my behaviour due to an external change? SO I just got a haircut and now maybe I'll have more confidence talking to women?

Yes, this will grow on me. If I indeed do have more confidence, it is quite likely that my increase in confidence will initiate a increase in the number of dates I get. This further builds my confidence and with all the practice, I become more comfortable talking to women. Then my hair grows back and I forget to shave. Will I now have less confidence? No, not at first. You may be a tad self conscious, but with all the practice, you should be fine. Then a girl turns ya down. What went wrong? Maybe ya shrug the first one off. Then another one turns ya down. Girls have turned ya down before, but ya never gave it a second though. But now ya actually have something to think about. Its probably not even about your messy hair. But YOU might think it is. Slowly your confidence may lessen, prompting you to get another haircut. Because now, you have programmed yourself to equate getting dates with your short hair, despite the fact that it likely not correlated. Now remember, you are the same person who did not have confidence initially because of the hair. The haircut, an external change, did indeed have an impact on your behaviour. Why would we not expect an equal and opposite force to respond?

Is there really a free person at all, or all we practically a mathematical result of everything that happens to us?

No, formulas for becoming a movie star or cookbook recipes for creating a sociopath do not exist. We are all influenced by far more variables than we can name or even know are in existence.

Are you who you are because you want to be a certain person or are you who you are despite wanting to be a certain person?

Parts of our personality are developed through effort. We have always wanted to be gorgeous, healthy, and fit, so we make a New Years resolution to do so, and in the process of sticking to it, learn so much and not only adopt it for life, but become evangelistic. Other parts are going to stick with you for a while. Such as being pessimistic all the time, or my obsession with erb :D
I am not implying that these parts can't be changed, but perhaps require so much more effort than we are willing to put worth, or in some cases, more than we are capable of putting forth, so we may believe them to be impossible to change.

Are you yourself when you do whatever you feel like or are you yourself when you are ensuring a good future for yourself?

I believe the former to be the obvious answer. Ensuring a good future may indeed be a prudent idea, but remember, it might not be a future that includes the "self" that you knew when you stopped doing what you felt and starting focusing on the future.

Do you change over time or do you just forget the "real you"?

Yes, human beings change over time. We are not humans bes or human dos or human bees :D Be-ing implies a constant state of change.. we are being sad, then we are being a nurse, then we are simultaneously being something else to someone else. While we are busy thinking, (yet another of the many states of being, things we can "be") about how nice we are dressed this morning, we are also being "that guy that sits next to me on the bus every morning" to someone else. We can also be things we are not to other people. Someone may not be a racist. But someone who maybe overheard a comment incorrectly, etc deems this person a racist. The person then becomes "that old racist," something they are indeed 'being' in the mind of the offended party, but in many cases, without the innocent criminals knowledge whatsoever

Does asking who you are make you more or less like you?

If I am a curious individual, a philosopher, then it is an action that is consistent of my personality. The opposite is equally true. Either way, the choice does change the "you" we will be after the experience.


Does asking any of these questions defeat the purpose?

No. It stresses the importance.

Is this question important?

It is important, because I may have lit a candle for many with my response. For many other reasons as well.

Once you find the answer will you realize that you have known all along?

No, I will not. Before embarking on such a daring quest, one should make shore the answer isn't sleeping in his pocket.

Does knowing the answer make you less like yourself?

Not if I am a person who enjoys learning and retaining information, and strives to constantly be in a state of education.
However, the answer may not be pleasing. If our nature is overly cautious, or our lives model the saying "ignorance is bliss," then NO, finding this answer or any is less like yourself.


Is asking questions about yourself dangerous

Yes. It is also useful. It is also many other things, good and bad.

or is it the key to success?

A key to success. And also a key to failure.

Are questions that never need to be asked unimportant

No. The reason they are never asked is because everyone believes the answer to be so obvious. What in this universe exists so predictably that we should be arrogant enough to believe we should stop questioning this "great truth" we have all excepted. A truth must face dissection every so often. It must fight for itself and prove its worth against any false ideas. These false ideas should be allowed to be introduced in order for the old truth to defeat them and remind those who may have forgotten of its great truth. If indeed it is a great truth.

or are they the questions that are the most important?

Not necessarily, but perhaps. Case by case basis.

Is asking these questions important or answering them?

Equally. If you had not conjured up these deep and extremely important questions, I would have been denied the stimulus you have provided for what I deem to be some of the best words I have written. Perhaps the erb is influencing me as well. Did the erb inspire you in the creation of these wise questions?



This is going in my book I have been working on for quite a bit now..
thnx!

peace :rastasmoke:

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Originally Posted by stinkyattic

Given an upbringing that was not 'perfect' (since none are, lol), who have we become?
Have we given up and resigned ourselves to it? Or have we taken its lessons to build a knowledge base and face the future?
Do we look at ourselves as VICTIMS of our childhoods or STUDENTS?
The victim does not progress into a strong sense of self. But the student does.

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just wanna take the time to say thanks

as a 20 yr old struggling with boundaries that i myself have created, and find hard to destroy...what you said helped a bit...thanks

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Originally Posted by THClord

Does asking who you are make you more or less like you? Does asking any of these questions defeat the purpose? Is this question important? Once you find the answer will you realize that you have known all along? Does knowing the answer make you less like yourself? Is asking questions about yourself dangerous or is it the key to success? Are questions that never need to be asked unimportant or are they the questions that are the most important? Is asking these questions important or answering them?

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No, these questions are good. Knowing who you are is the key to leading a happy life. Think about this quote from Tao Te Ching:

"Knowing others is intelligence
Knowing yourself is true wisdom
Mastering others is strength
Mastering yourself is true power"