rustymaker5 said:If you’re saying everything in the universe is interconnected, then sure, I guess you're right about that...
But if you mean that being attached to someone or something is actually a good thing, then I have to wonder why there are so many miserable, unfulfilled people walking around this country, considering how deeply attached everyone seems to be—not just to other people, but to material things, specific ideologies, abstract concepts, or even past events... 🤷
I was referring to the concept of attachment—the way species formulate emotional bonds that essentially act as a biological glue, serving the greater purpose of ensuring survival. This mechanism exists within all meaningful relationships, whether they be platonic friendships, parental ties, or those more "romantic" connections. It serves a fundamental function; if these bonds were to vanish, I suspect humanity would descend even further into chaos. Of course, there are instances where this becomes problematic—where excessive attachment triggers significant emotional and psychological distress—that much is true. But what can I really say about it? It is a natural phenomenon, certainly, yet ultimately, it remains neutral.
Jacob Sanchez7 said:You know what's actually fascinating? The fact that we've convinced ourselves that controlling the ego is an impossible task. Sure, centuries of societal conditioning have left their mark, but we are still free. Completely. You always have the choice to act on a thought or an emotion, or simply not to. Sometimes we just fall into the trap of thinking we *have* to react, so we give the ego a microphone.
Like you said, if a person has a goal and a focus, they won't be clingy or emotionally dependent on their partner. And if that goal and focus is simply "to be free," then there isn't an ego around to distort things. 😁
@Nancy Wilson2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZofi4ly8bg
Yes, selfhood is essentially the very nature of being—of self-consciousness—so there, they’ve hit the nail on the head. When we speak about someone being "self" in an ultimate sense, what we really mean is that they exist in relation to themselves—distinct, isolated, and fundamentally severed from anything or anyone else. That, quite simply, is the inherent nature of a conscious individual.
Robert Diaz2 said:Exactly. That’s what I'm saying. It's right there in plain sight, especially with that part in bold. I don't think anyone ever claimed it wasn't natural, either. I mean, obviously, it is. 🙂 I guess some souls have just already been through all of this before. You know, after going through a few different lives, they finally start to realize that maybe it’s actually time to rise above all these earthly attachments. They begin to see that even though being connected to everyone and everything brings a certain kind of happiness, it’s really just temporary. I mean, at the end of the day, you're always facing sickness, death, and—don't even get me started on the daily grind—all those constant stressors and worries that just drain you. Eventually, there comes this moment where it just clicks, and you feel this intense need to pull away from all that heavy heartache.
I was just sitting here wondering, how does that one psalm by John the Apostle go again? I think it was him who wrote it, if I'm remembering correctly.
I was thinking about this bit from the Bible earlier, and it’s honestly such a heavy concept when you really sit with it. It basically says we shouldn't get too caught up in chasing after everything this world has to offer. I guess the idea is that if someone is totally obsessed with worldly stuff, there isn't really any room left for the love of God. It’s kind of like how everything material—you know, those physical cravings, the constant desire for more things, or just that overwhelming pride in what we own and who we are—doesn't actually come from God, but from the world itself. Everything around us is so temporary; trends fade, stuff breaks, and eventually, all those worldly desires just pass away. But, if I'm reading this right, the people who focus on doing what God wants? They’re the ones who actually last forever. It’s a pretty deep way to look at life, I suppose.
My bad if I got any of the Psalm a little bit wrong, but I just memorized it once a while back, so I’m really hoping I remembered it correctly and stayed true to the actual wording. 🙂
Yes, it’s transient—and if that attachment was intense, the inevitable result is pain and loneliness. That is perfectly natural. Pain serves a purpose, after all. In this instance, its role is motivational, preventing someone from simply running in circles... circling through a repetitive loop of short-lived happiness and suffering.
Modern society is truly in a bind because it neglects the spiritual nature of the individual—which is, inherently, solitude. Everything is designed to ensure a person avoids being alone, pushing them toward building ever-larger social networks to surround themselves with noise. People are quite literally terrified of being alone with themselves; they flee from it as if it were some insurmountable catastrophe. Furthermore, people fundamentally misunderstand the definition of solitude, conflating it with loneliness simply because they look visually similar (in both cases, one is alone) and because they remind people of the sadness, pain, and depression associated with being lonely. That is what people are actually running from. Our environment is largely to blame here—and by environment, I mean the distorted, romanticized image of love and relationships that permeates everything. Life is painful and brief, yet it seems the collective "greatest achievement" or life goal has become this pursuit of finding a "soulmate" or similar nonsense (in terms of the concept itself).
http://chronicle.com/article/The-End-of-Solitude/3708It is an interesting observation that the number of single people is supposedly increasing. It is as if more people are beginning to see through the very nature of how they have been conditioned since childhood. However, this isn't always a positive development, as many of those individuals end up alone in the sense that they suffer from actual loneliness. That is merely a byproduct of what this world is turning into and how people behave toward one another. We are too distant... people who don't truly know each other don't even speak. Honestly, this is such a massive topic that I could write entire novels on it, so it is better if I remain silent; there are other threads for that. 😁