GIVING BIRTH TO NEW BELIEFS
Imagine if our parents told us from the very beginning ‘As you go through life, parts of you will pass away whilst new facets of yourself will be born, again and again.’ Wouldn’t that be an interesting way to start life, being told you have thousands of chances when it comes to reinventing yourself?
Imagine if our parents and/or guardians also said to us in our early years ‘Your beliefs throughout your life will shape who you are at any given time so be careful what you choose to believe in!’ And what if they added ‘If you find yourself suffering in some way, make sure you change a belief system so as to evolve and not suffer too much!’ WOW!!! Wouldn’t that have been a great piece of advice to have been given from the beginning? How different would your life look now if this was the way you had been living all along? Even more amazing, what if those who had the greatest influence on you said ‘I will show you, through example, how to change a belief system so as not to suffer too much. Watch this…’ Good advice coupled with action, FANTASTIC!!!
Typically, human beings are more about holding onto belief systems as opposed to letting them go, no matter how destructive. My grandparents, for example, came from an era where your religious beliefs defined you as a person, you did not speak of divorce but suffered an unhappy or abusive marriage until the day you died and children should basically not speak unless spoken to. This was all common practice/belief for them and the many generations before them. Fortunately, my parents knew better for as they grew to largely dismiss these beliefs, they (1) gained a truth which allowed their religion to complement their life, not define it (2) evolved happily as separated individuals who blossomed far beyond what a troubled marriage would have allowed and (3) continue to invite, revel in and learn from the unique personalities of their grandchildren. In summary, as they altered the beliefs systems from the eras before them, they evolved. If they’d held onto those beliefs, they would not be the people they are today. In changing their beliefs, no one suffered – it was quite the opposite actually.
As a species, we typically insist on holding onto certain beliefs for a myriad of reasons. Whilst some belief systems help support an overall social structure, others may offer us a form of personal definition we can relate to. Of course, there will also be those beliefs which give us the opportunity to simply avoid the challenges that come with change, especially when things ‘appear’ to be working just fine. We are generally not a species which encourages or welcomes change of any great proportion unless we’re forced into it or unless the payoff is worth the effort involved. Considering this, why would we promote regular change as being a necessary part of life?
There is almost nothing more debilitating than to be stuck in a personal belief system or set of systems which causes incredible sufferance. More often than not, such belief systems hold no real truth. And in the battle between truth and untruth, that part of you that so desperately longs to live in ‘the flow’ (aka spirit) often becomes the greatest casualty of such a war.
So, whilst considering the idea that we are inevitably born again and again, reinventing our self every time a new belief comes into our life, if you are to contemplate your own suffering at this very moment in time (grand or small), what is it you are being asked to let go of? What is the belief or set of beliefs YOU need to change, so as to find that all important flow or sense of reinvention? Be honest with yourself, do your current beliefs really hold any truth or are they simply ingrained ideas that have never been challenged before today?
Keep in mind, there is nothing more liberating than when we find our self reinvented within a moment of undeniable truth.