“Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.”
This
statement, originally recorded almost 2500 years ago by Aristotle, one
of the greatest of the ancient Greek philosophers in the 4th century
BC, remains as authentic and as relevant today as it was so many centuries ago.
The statement was made at a time when the concept of self-knowledge was
considered to be paramount by the ancient Greek society and received the
unqualified support of his students Plato and Socrates as well.
In fact, Socrates actually went further by declaring:
“An
unexamined life is not worth living.”
These three great teachers, who together have undoubtedly laid the
foundation of our current western society, firmly believed that the very essence
of any knowledge must begin first with self-knowledge, and that before
anyone can begin to understand any other person, he must first know himself.
We are all so busy trying to understand
and evaluate everyone else, that we often fail to take the single most
important step of first truly knowing who we are, and what our needs are. We fail
to acknowledge that much of our contentment and satisfaction, however successful
that may be, comes not so much from our evaluating and passing judgment on others,
but from our determined efforts to learn and understand our own self, and then deliberately
taking the right steps to improve ourselves. Unfortunately, because of our underlying
insecurities, or perhaps possible arrogance, except for a few genuine people, the
great majority of us are inclined to be resistant to the idea of trying to
really know ourselves. And even when we do so, we tend to be far more lenient and
liberal on ourselves, and less likely to accept our faults and self-criticisms.
But in spite of its great relevance in ensuring a good life, the task of trying
to know ourselves is always a formidable and an onerous undertaking. The real
truth of this was clearly demonstrated by Benjamin Franklin, the great
American author, polymath and founding father of America when he observed:
“There are only three things that are
extremely hard;
Steel, Diamond, and to Know one’s self.”
The fundamental urge to know
yourself is not the result of an inborn, instinctual trait that can be passed
on from generation to generation. It is in fact, more likely a learned response
that relies partly on personality, emotional intelligence, perceptiveness and
critical thinking. It requires a degree of underlying self-confidence and motivation
to be able to search out one’s strengths and weaknesses and place them in the right
sequence. And without this firmly in place, the task of knowing yourself will become
virtually impossible to undertake. In a setting such as exists in this current
society, heavily dominated by feelings of inadequacy, fear and insecurity, the individual
will quite often prefer not to try to find out and risk failure and embarrassment.
In such situations where there is underlying suspicion and distrust, it is
always difficult to understand and adapt, and where there is rigidity and inflexibility,
there is little chance of adjusting and modifying. These are the obstacles that
must all be recognized and neutralized before anyone can truly benefit and
avoid the confusion, uncertainty and distrust that will invariably result from
a lack of self-knowledge.
Knowing yourself means
more than just recognizing who you are, your likes and dislikes, or your preferences
and rejections. It goes much deeper than the routine outer trappings we
associate with people in the course of living. It means giving yourself
permission to search out the deeper truth about who you are, to unravel the
complex structure of your inner core, and to accept the weaknesses and the
strengths that make up the person you have become. It is about clearing away
the smoke and debris built up from years of habit and other influences, listening
to the deeper voices and the wisdom within, and following your intuition and
your heart. It means also, recognizing that quite often you will not know the
answers to many things, and you must do what is necessary to find them. It means
that you must be conversant with, and trust your core values, your priorities
and your hopes and dreams. These after all, make up the very foundations of who
you are. Ralph Waldo Emerson, the respected American 19th
century author, poet and philosopher, placed this in the right context when he observed:
“To be yourself in a world that is
constantly trying to make you something else, is the greatest accomplishment.”
With all that has
transpired in the present world, there has never been a time when to know
yourself, and to bring out the very best of yourself and your capacity has been
more necessary or more needed. The endless trials and stresses precipitated by
the current global political uncertainties, and the health crises that are
engulfing us on a daily basis have impacted our minds and our emotions, and
have created doubts and insecurities, and have even rendered many of us to
question ourselves and our abilities. This loss of self-identity and inability
to know who we really are, and what our needs are, has resulted in grossly exaggerated
confusion and disturbance. Without doubt, much of the turmoil and the suffering
that has overwhelmed most of the world’s population can be traced to loss of
the ability to know who we are, and what we are capable of achieving. We have
lost sight of that very vital component so very well identified by the following
ancient
Chinese maxim:
“Know yourself and know others, and in
100 battles you won’t be destroyed.”
-Although no one, in his right mind,
can ever assume that he will succeed in every venture, every time, yet irrespective
of the outcome, he can learn something from each encounter. But this will only
take place when he knows himself, and understands the reasons for his actions.
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