What is power?

Power is ultimately just a matter of will...

I’ve been really digging some of the posts shared here lately.

The way I see it, we’re all born with the potential for absolute power. But right from the start, we hand over massive chunks of that agency to our families, our social circles, religious institutions... basically anyone who helps us find our footing in this world. As we grow up, we start picking up different flavors of influence—physical strength, the power of choice and relationships, intellectual clout, and so on.
Part of the learning process is realizing how much we’ve surrendered to those external forces, and then figuring out how to reclaim that power for ourselves throughout our lives.
True ultimate power, as several people have pointed out here, comes from finally surrendering to what some call "universal energy," "God," or whatever term resonates with you.
The most powerful person is actually the one who is completely surrendered and feels absolutely no need to exert control.
Honestly, any craving for power is just a deep-seated sickness.

I realize now that I totally missed the point of the original thread.
To me, power isn't some mystical force; it’s just our own personal energy. There's nothing supernatural or weird about it, nothing complicated.
People who seem to have an outsized influence on the world have simply managed to reclaim their own energy more effectively than the average person. This applies to everyone from extreme historical figures like Jesus or Mother Teresa to the ultra-wealthy and charismatic leaders we see today. They’ve all found a way to pull that energy back under their own control.
They didn't "steal" special powers from God or anyone else. They just took back what was already theirs.

Morgan King77 said:Power isn't something you can just call relative.
What *is* relative is where that energy actually comes from, kind of like how different fuel sources change how fast a car can go!

it's definitely relative.
try explaining how you can separate it from its source, then we can talk about relativity...

brisktiger56 said:Look, if you're a grounded person, you probably realize that you actually have the agency to make things happen—and how you choose to act ends up defining you, just as much as it affects everyone else. That’s what power is. Whether it's big or small, whether you're physically fit or navigating life in a wheelchair, you've got some kind of leverage, and you can do a lot with it. If Sršen had ever sold herself short, or played down what she was capable of by retreating into her own head... she'd likely just be posting depressing stuff in those "mental health struggle" threads, moping about how powerless she is.

"When she was 12, Ana Sršen had a leg amputated due to a sarcoma. She took up swimming and started competing at a serious level back in 1995[1]. In 2000, Ana Sršen launched training programs and a swim school specifically for children with special needs."

Link to the article

Today, Ana has that power, and she's channeled it into helping kids who really need it.

I disagree. If you're being realistic, you know that you can't just do anything you want.

Whether she was young or old, physically strong or using a wheelchair, there's always some kind of power to wield, and you can really do a lot with it. If Sršen had sold herself short, downplayed what she could do, or just shut down... she'd probably be posting depressing stuff in a "mental health" thread, crying about how powerless she is.

That doesn't really have much to do with power. Let's say she just worked incredibly hard to make the best of her situation...

Brandon Kelly6 said:it's definitely relative.
try explaining how you can separate it from its source, then we can talk about relativity...

Power is actually a constant phenomenon
so it isn't really relative at all
It’s just a relative fact that being aggressive makes you feel powerful.

slymaker9 said:I am curious how spiritual leaders would define the concept of power.
What does power actually mean to a spiritual person?🤷

Anonymous said:I’ve been really digging some of the posts shared here lately.

The way I see it, we’re all born with the potential for absolute power. But right from the start, we hand over massive chunks of that agency to our families, our social circles, religious institutions... basically anyone who helps us find our footing in this world. As we grow up, we start picking up different flavors of influence—physical strength, the power of choice and relationships, intellectual clout, and so on.
Part of the learning process is realizing how much we’ve surrendered to those external forces, and then figuring out how to reclaim that power for ourselves throughout our lives.
True ultimate power, as several people have pointed out here, comes from finally surrendering to what some call "universal energy," "God," or whatever term resonates with you.
The most powerful person is actually the one who is completely surrendered and feels absolutely no need to exert control.
Honestly, any craving for power is just a deep-seated sickness.

And here’s how I see it—pretty much the same thing, just worded a different way.

We all start out from scratch—totally blank slates. Feeling pretty helpless right now—just stuck..
To even stand a chance, we're gonna need... help me out here—any advice? others.
When we aren't needed anymore... help me out here—any advice? others—then we're set. powerful.
So, when can we actually make this happen? Help me out here—any advice? If we step up—then we're golden. overpowered—honestly..

🤷

Morgan King77 said:Power is actually a constant phenomenon
so it isn't really relative at all
It’s just a relative fact that being aggressive makes you feel powerful.

What do you mean by constant? Can someone be sick today and powerful tomorrow? Or the other way around? Where's the constant in that?

Power is completely relative, even setting aside what I'm saying here. And it isn't some "presence." I don't even know what that means... I've never had much patience for those kinds of vague, fluid definitions...

Sam Hayes said:Power is ultimately just a matter of will...

It isn't.

Brandon Kelly6 said:What do you mean by constant? Can someone be sick today and powerful tomorrow? Or the other way around? Where's the constant in that?

Power is completely relative, even setting aside what I'm saying here. And it isn't some "presence." I don't even know what that means... I've never had much patience for those kinds of vague, fluid definitions...

It feels like you’re focusing on how much influence a single person or a whole crowd actually holds, rather than looking at power itself as this fundamental force of nature!

Morgan King77 said:It feels like you’re focusing on how much influence a single person or a whole crowd actually holds, rather than looking at power itself as this fundamental force of nature!

But what if power isn't even a phenomenon? If I had to define it, I guess I'd just call it a current ratio of strength. Maybe. Constants don't really factor in here...

Brandon Kelly6 said:But what if power isn't even a phenomenon? If I had to define it, I guess I'd just call it a current ratio of strength. Maybe. Constants don't really factor in here...

Think of power as a phenomenon because it's something that actually manifests itself in our everyday lives, much like how a sudden summer storm rolls in over the Midwest.
And it acts like a law too, since it works to establish order, similar to how the Constitution provides the framework for everything we do in this country.

slymaker9 said:I am curious how spiritual leaders would define the concept of power.
What does power actually mean to a spiritual person?🤷

Jesus already laid it all out for you, and he did it perfectly.

If anyone keeps searching after that... well, I guess they aren't going to find anything at all.😉

Spiritual strength is essentially freedom—the refusal to let anything possess you. No matter what life throws your way, you maintain your power simply by remaining true to your authentic self.
The difficulty, of course, lies in the fact that none of us are without our flaws.

Nathan Cook4 said:Spiritual strength is essentially freedom—the refusal to let anything possess you. No matter what life throws your way, you maintain your power simply by remaining true to your authentic self.
The difficulty, of course, lies in the fact that none of us are without our flaws.

And those vulnerabilities are exactly where we either gain or lose our edge.

Anonymous said:And those vulnerabilities are exactly where we either gain or lose our edge.

I really appreciate how you're looking at this! 👍

I find myself agreeing with just about everything you've posted in this thread...

@ Nathan Cook4 - hey there!

Morgan King77 said:Think of power as a phenomenon because it's something that actually manifests itself in our everyday lives, much like how a sudden summer storm rolls in over the Midwest.
And it acts like a law too, since it works to establish order, similar to how the Constitution provides the framework for everything we do in this country.

Not really... power doesn't just show up, people build it. And as for the order you're talking about, I think power creates its own order naturally, so it doesn't need to be a law. It's all just about that balance of forces I mentioned before...

Brandon Kelly6 said:Not really... power doesn't just show up, people build it. And as for the order you're talking about, I think power creates its own order naturally, so it doesn't need to be a law. It's all just about that balance of forces I mentioned before...

I think you might have missed the heart of what I was getting at here.
Power is this fundamental force that exists as a basic part of our reality.
Because individuals and groups possess varying levels of influence, social structures and orders naturally emerge in the world, almost like gravity pulling things together.

Morgan King77 said:I think you might have missed the heart of what I was getting at here.
Power is this fundamental force that exists as a basic part of our reality.
Because individuals and groups possess varying levels of influence, social structures and orders naturally emerge in the world, almost like gravity pulling things together.

But couldn't someone have power simply because of the position they hold within your "order"? huh?

Brandon Kelly6 said:But couldn't someone have power simply because of the position they hold within your "order"? huh?

The kind of power we talk about in politics is one thing, but what we're discussing here is different. This is intrinsic power.