Embracing the Cold

What happens when your worldview changes?  Firstly, what has it changed to?  Has it changed to a more optimistic view or pessimistic viewpoint for example?  Do you believe that what you do has a purpose and makes a difference in this existence, or do you believe that what you do does not matter in the end?  A type of “Groundhog Day” type of existence if you will, where the status quo and societal norms running your life keep you so preoccupied that these questions never even come to mind.

I believe that everyone at some point craves self-realization of some kind.  Hedonism is not only a roadblock in self-realization but also a distraction from understanding more constructive means of achieving tranquility and happiness.   This in fact does cause a form of neurosis, from which escape is incredibly difficult.  Neuroticism causes a state of delusion not allowing one to recognize their true self and faults inherently present causing such a state.  Personal growth is therefore stunted and a form of “arrested development” is formed.

It is difficult to say what methods are most vital in pulling one out of such a state of neurosis, but many methods will present themselves to everyone at some point in life.  I recognize these points as a sort of “crossroads” or “exits” in one’s journey through life.  It is whether the individual at that crucial moment takes the “turn or exit” diverting from a life “driven” by societal norms and of hedonistic pursuits.  Every one of us is different in how we recognize or pick up on “signs” of subversion, and it is this ability that separates those who can break free from a state of “arrested development” and those who cannot.  

I firmly believe that once the true self can be realized, Nihilism can and will usually take its form.  At this point, I believe it is only the embracing of some Nihilistic beliefs that can overcome the Nihilism inducing state that has now taken its form.  It is not always full-on Nihilism that takes its form within oneself, but some form of it along with say, an Existentialism view perhaps. One individual can hold God and faith closely which is not Nihilistic in principle for example.  It does not have to be that nothing you do at all matters according to existence but perhaps a small combination of some of your most closely held principles or ideologies pertaining to achieving a state of tranquility or happiness in the absence of making a difference instead.  It only takes a small hit to a principle or ideology to crush the psyche into Nihilistic thought once self-realization is achieved.

In closing, I believe that an acceptance of some Nihilistic thought is not only productive to achieving tranquility but achieving a complete state of self-realization.  For me personally, I believe that the “shadow self” has always been the true self.  Once it surfaces, there is little hope in going back to the “persona” as a fill-in for your true self.  The Ego, simply a “middleman” has to be crushed to attain true self-realization I believe.  It is not a state of emptiness or nothingness, but a state of true tranquility where every thought, forming an action now matters more than it ever did before.  It is at this point where when most things no longer matter whether you interact with this existence or not that you are truly “free” from the confines of trying to constantly make any sense of it any further, allowing for true tranquility and happiness to seize each moment of every day.