May 24, 2022·edited May 24, 2022Liked by Carson Kivari
Wow, what a beautiful piece Carson. It started off light and gradually got more profound - lovely format.
Dogs certainly are at least semi-psychic, and who's to say humans aren't? The potential for humans to connect with each other the way they do with dogs is largely unrealized, and I think that's one of the main sources of existential loneliness that plagues the modern Westerner. Attempts to reach out for that sort of connection hit a wall - and that wall is something like the persona, in an attempt to hide all the aspects of oneself that are "unacceptable" socially. It's only in the presence of judgement-free loving kindness (or alcohol) that people begin to slowly unravel and allow themselves be seen. This is what we are simultaneously terrified of and yearn for - causing us to look for it in all sorts of strange places.
The Spirit of the Times which we unconsciously become embedded in as we socialize condemns acting 'weird' or 'crazy', and it takes real conscious courage to do otherwise. The first step for me was recognizing that sometimes my instincts and intuitions are asking me to move my body differently. But I wouldn't allow myself to, out of an overwhelming sense of social anxiety. And that sort of anxiety, as I discovered, isn't personal to me - many people I know are unable to embody the gentle requests of the lower aspects of the psyche. The fear of being seen runs deep.
The questions at the end are short and full of meaning: "Are you playing small? Are you hiding the most interesting aspects of who you are? Are you taking risks to allow intimacy with others?"
Certainly yes, to all 3 questions.
"Are you playing small?" It's funny how we think of false confidence as a great sin, but not false modesty (as phrased by Alan Watts). I see that also as a form of deceit, hiding your truth from others which is another way of hiding it from those condemnatory aspects in yourself.
“Are you hiding the most interesting aspects of who you are?” Well certainly, the most interesting parts are by definition those not commonly held by others. The parts of us containing our greatest potential for beauty and love are also the most repressed exactly because they highlight our differences.
“Are you taking risks to allow intimacy with others?” I see this as the recognition that intimacy is risk to the possibility of malevolence in others. To do so wisely requires us to learn how to see others’ intentions. To learn how to read the patterns in others requires us to also become aware of their manifestation in us. Therefore to break out of the cycle of loneliness we must first learn to see the darkness within and courageously contend with it.
Wow, what a beautiful piece Carson. It started off light and gradually got more profound - lovely format.
Dogs certainly are at least semi-psychic, and who's to say humans aren't? The potential for humans to connect with each other the way they do with dogs is largely unrealized, and I think that's one of the main sources of existential loneliness that plagues the modern Westerner. Attempts to reach out for that sort of connection hit a wall - and that wall is something like the persona, in an attempt to hide all the aspects of oneself that are "unacceptable" socially. It's only in the presence of judgement-free loving kindness (or alcohol) that people begin to slowly unravel and allow themselves be seen. This is what we are simultaneously terrified of and yearn for - causing us to look for it in all sorts of strange places.
The Spirit of the Times which we unconsciously become embedded in as we socialize condemns acting 'weird' or 'crazy', and it takes real conscious courage to do otherwise. The first step for me was recognizing that sometimes my instincts and intuitions are asking me to move my body differently. But I wouldn't allow myself to, out of an overwhelming sense of social anxiety. And that sort of anxiety, as I discovered, isn't personal to me - many people I know are unable to embody the gentle requests of the lower aspects of the psyche. The fear of being seen runs deep.
The questions at the end are short and full of meaning: "Are you playing small? Are you hiding the most interesting aspects of who you are? Are you taking risks to allow intimacy with others?"
Certainly yes, to all 3 questions.
"Are you playing small?" It's funny how we think of false confidence as a great sin, but not false modesty (as phrased by Alan Watts). I see that also as a form of deceit, hiding your truth from others which is another way of hiding it from those condemnatory aspects in yourself.
“Are you hiding the most interesting aspects of who you are?” Well certainly, the most interesting parts are by definition those not commonly held by others. The parts of us containing our greatest potential for beauty and love are also the most repressed exactly because they highlight our differences.
“Are you taking risks to allow intimacy with others?” I see this as the recognition that intimacy is risk to the possibility of malevolence in others. To do so wisely requires us to learn how to see others’ intentions. To learn how to read the patterns in others requires us to also become aware of their manifestation in us. Therefore to break out of the cycle of loneliness we must first learn to see the darkness within and courageously contend with it.
Can't wait to read more of your work!
Sam U.