What is power?

brisktiger56 said:Exactly. If you can think for yourself and make independent choices, you have the agency to act.

Maybe a situation gets heavy enough that all my willpower and logic just fly out the window—mostly because I've never really practiced using them.

Spot on. There are plenty of people wired that way. Honestly, that sense of helplessness is tucked away inside all of us; it's entirely up to us to fix those mental glitches. But the real kicker is: how? How do you repair something that's been neglected for decades—or maybe even intentionally suppressed (in the case of someone who grew up in an abusive household)? A young person with shattered self-esteem doesn't feel powerful, nor do they even know how to reclaim that power. They might not even realize anything is missing, since they've never actually known what it feels like to be at peace with themselves.

Anonymous said:The whole concept of "reason" is incredibly subjective.
I mean, in certain cultures, blood feuds are still considered perfectly rational.
Don't tell me they aren't, because to them, they are. And just like a blood feud makes sense to them, you and I have our own set of beliefs that feel totally logical to us, even if they seem crazy to someone else.
In other words, we build our entire "rational" world on such a fuzzy, undefined foundation.

So, what exactly stops me today from pausing, stepping back, and choosing to act exactly how I want—completely breaking free from the way my past experiences "shaped" me?

Nothing. The only real limit is how much you're actually capable of thinking, deciding, and acting outside the mental cage you built based on everything that's happened to you before.
But hey, I'm sure you'll bring up "reason" again.

Maybe a situation gets heavy enough that it overrides me. No amount of self-control or objective judgment could save me, since I've never really worked on those skills.

I'll give you that—practicing those things would definitely sharpen your ability.

That said, if I've put in at least a little work to develop those traits, then in 80% of cases, I'll definitely be acting out of true freedom.

The kind of freedom you think you know. The kind that lives entirely inside your own head.

And I don't need any supernatural powers for that—just an open mind, some consistency, practicing my self-control, and having a decent radar for what the actual, objective reality is.

I didn't see anyone here talking about "supernatural" powers.
An open mind—is that based on reason?
Self-control—that's probably the one area where we actually have some influence, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.
As for the "objective" or "actual" state of things? From a human perspective, nothing is truly objective.

nothing. except the question is really about how much you can actually think, decide, and act outside the box you built based on everything that happened to you before.
And you're going to bring up "reason" again.

that freedom you know as freedom—it’s all contained within your own reason.

I didn't see anyone here mentioning "special" powers.
An open mind—is that based on reason?

objective or actual state of things—nothing from a human perspective is truly objective.

casualmaker13 said:Power is basically just the flip side of helplessness. That’s pretty much the whole definition right there.
It works just like anything else we talk about in terms of dualities—you know, positive versus negative, light against dark, yin and yang, all that stuff that keeps the world spinning.
I guess you could try throwing in other concepts like knowledge versus ignorance, possibility versus impossibility, or fear versus courage, but honestly? Adding more layers just muddies the water and drags the topic out further.
And it probably won't actually help us get any closer to figuring out what power really is...😉

brisktiger56 said:Look, we didn't get a vote on our parents, our looks, or our basic temperament—that was all decided before we even had a say in the matter. But friends? We actually have some agency there, both back then and still today. There are things we can steer, and things that are just out of our hands—or were, at least, a long time ago.

Whether it’s all just random cosmic noise or some grand, pre-written destiny—well, that’s really down to your own philosophy. But when you start following a specific thread, an energy, or a particular idea... you're bound to run into similarities more often. You find what fits you best, and in those moments, it feels pretty easy to conclude that everything was meant to be.

Personally, I don't think much is set in stone on a day-to-day basis. Within those 86,400 seconds we get every single day, we make choices. We choose what’s good for us, we try to pivot toward something better, or we attempt to squeeze some kind of meaning out of a messy situation.

Having that sense of agency is huge—it's basically the only way to steer your life in the direction you actually want to go. If we don't even realize we have the power to choose, then everything feels pretty hopeless. But if you grew up learning, say, how to stand up to bullies in middle school or how to dodge a bad crowd, then you've hit the jackpot. Of course, it’s never too late to tap into the potential sitting inside you—that power belongs to us. Whether we’re actually aware of it, or whether we're brave enough to actually use it... well, that's a whole different story.

Is everything just a massive coincidence or is it all predestined? Honestly, it depends on how you look at it, but when you start following a specific path or vibe, you inevitably run into more similarities and things that fit your mold—so it’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking everything was scripted from the start.

I really feel like very little is set in stone. In every single one of those 86,400 seconds we get each day, we're making choices—trying to do good, aiming for improvement, or squeezing the best out of a bad situation.

Anonymous said:Isn't that just a circular definition, though? If you claim power is just the opposite of being helpless, I still don't actually know what "power" means until I understand what "helplessness" is.

wearyhawk83 said:For someone who doesn't know how to actually use their brain, I'd say that's a pretty spot-on take. Basically, saying we're no different from animals.

So, tell me: what's stopping me today from pausing, thinking things through, and deciding to act exactly how I want to—completely defying the way my past circumstances "built" me?

Sure, maybe a massive crisis could knock me off course, and if I've never bothered to work on self-control or objective reasoning, then yeah, I'd be stuck.

But if I've actually put in the work to develop those qualities, then 80% of the time, I am absolutely going to act out of true freedom.

And I'm not talking about some fake, subjective nonsense either. I mean real, genuine freedom. It's the greatest gift we've got.

We don't need superpowers for this; we just need an open mind, some discipline, regular practice with our self-control, and a decent radar for seeing things exactly as they actually are.

Maybe a situation gets heavy enough that it overrides any self-control or objective reasoning, especially since I've never really focused on training myself that way.

But if I actually put in the work during my life to develop those qualities, then in 80% of cases, I’ll definitely be acting out of true freedom.

And I'm not talking about some fake, subjective version of freedom, but the real deal. The greatest gift we actually have.

You don't need superpowers for this; you just need an open mind, some discipline, practice with self-control, and a decent radar for seeing things as they actually are.

Brian Foster3 said:It’s simple: we gravitate toward people who mirror our own traits. The more someone acts like me, the more I want them around, and the more different they are, the faster I'm running the other way! It's just that spiritual law where like attracts like.

Is everything just a massive coincidence or is it all predestined? Honestly, it depends on how you look at it, but when you start following a specific path or vibe, you inevitably run into more similarities and things that fit your mold—so it’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking everything was scripted from the start.

That's not about "personal viewpoints." Those views are totally arbitrary and subjective; they don't show you what's actually happening, they just show you a version of reality filtered through your own selfish desires and quirks. Spiritual paradoxes exist perfectly fine without needing your opinion, and you only get the real truth once you stop looking through that lens.

I really feel like very little is set in stone. In every single one of those 86,400 seconds we get each day, we're making choices—trying to do good, aiming for improvement, or squeezing the best out of a bad situation.

That's just the ego playing its game. You think "very little is set in stone" because reality is incredibly complex, but honestly, the whole system is rigged to create this illusion of free will and random chance. In the spiritual realm, space and time aren't even real things.

It isn't about having a personal opinion. These things are arbitrary and subjective; they don't reflect the actual state of reality, but rather a version of reality filtered through a person's specific desires and personality. Spiritual paradoxes exist without any issues—in fact, they work perfectly. It's only when you experience them directly that you get "true knowledge" of how things are.

That's all just the ego's programming at work. You might feel like "too little is mapped out" because reality is incredibly complex, but it's actually designed that way—to create this illusion of free will and randomness. In the spiritual realm, for instance, space and time don't even exist.

brisktiger56 said:Personally, I find that other definition of darkness—the one Einstein floated—to be way more logical and grounded: darkness is simply the absence of light. It follows the same pattern, really. Cold isn't some opposing force to heat; it's just the absence of heat. Even evil isn't a standalone thing; it's just the absence of good. Take electricity, for instance. We call them "plus" and "minus" poles, which makes it sound like this big dualistic struggle, but it's actually just electrons moving from where they are concentrated to where they aren't—it's all about equalizing potential. So, this whole "duality" thing... honestly, it's a stretch. Duality feels more like a convenient little construct our minds use to make sense of things.

What do you think about those Einsteinian ideas? They clearly don't fit into that lazy, broad-stroke dualism people love to apply to everything, but most of us tend to oversimplify things—stuffing everything into extreme categories—just because we lack the patience to sit back and actually sense the nuances.

If we follow that logic, powerlessness would just be a state where power is missing. People who are powerless usually end up looking for help 😉, essentially searching for what they don't have.

Anonymous said:I don't agree with your first point, at least not at first glance. I saw very clearly why I ended up being born into my specific circumstances and why I turned out the way I did... obviously, that decision is part of a much larger picture where you could ask whether I (well, who am I actually talking about here?) truly have any control.
I do agree there's a part where we have control and a part where we don't. Actually, saying it that way isn't even quite right. You can't simplify it into a single sentence like that.
Here's a question: if I completely surrender to God's will/fate/(whatever you want to call it), do I still have control over that choice or not?
I'll read the text, but probably tomorrow, and then I'll get back to you.

I agree there's a part where we're in the driver's seat and a part where we're just along for the ride. Actually, even that isn't quite right. You can't really boil it down to a single sentence like that.

Question: if I completely surrender to God's will, fate, or whatever you want to call it, do I still have control or not?

I'll read the text, probably tomorrow, and then I'll comment.

Brian Foster3 said:Fine, let's break it down. First off, logic is really just an extension of our impulses—basically, it's just a tool used to chase pleasure. Or if you want to get all poetic about it, the mind is just a servant to the heart. The heart wants something, and then the brain starts sweating, trying to figure out how to make it happen. The stronger the craving, the more frantic the brain gets trying to find a way to satisfy it.

The only real thing separating us from animals is one single factor: animals can't choose to endure some immediate pain now if they think it'll lead to a bigger payoff later, but we can. That's the whole game. Animals just react to whatever gives them pleasure or causes them pain right this second. We, however, can decide to suck it up for a while if we believe that suffering will eventually lead to a massive reward.

It's totally normal to either follow or rebel against what you've been conditioned to do; it's just two sides of the same coin. At the end of the day, the deciding factor is always just how much anticipated pleasure is on the line. Even in high school, kids rebel against authority because of biological drives, not because they've suddenly mastered free will. It's the same thing later in life.

I highlighted the main point here: our desires dictate our actions. And we don't even choose those desires; they're just hardwired inside us, ruling our lives while we delude ourselves into thinking they're "ours."

Maybe a situation gets heavy enough that it overrides any self-control or objective reasoning, especially since I've never really focused on training myself that way.

But if I actually put in the work during my life to develop those qualities, then in 80% of cases, I’ll definitely be acting out of true freedom.

And I'm not talking about some fake, subjective version of freedom, but the real deal. The greatest gift we actually have.

You don't need superpowers for this; you just need an open mind, some discipline, practice with self-control, and a decent radar for seeing things as they actually are.

What's the point of all that? It's precisely so you can better calculate the situation to maximize your pleasure or minimize your pain. So, yeah—it's still just programming. Sure, it might be sophisticated programming, but it's still programming.

casualmaker13 said:What you’ve laid out here is basically just a specific philosophy you've picked because it fits your worldview.😲
Actually, you're saying the exact same thing I am.
By that logic, we could just as easily say light is the absence of darkness, or heat is the absence of cold—it ends up being the same argument.
That’s just how we see nature, right? This constant cycle of night and day, light and dark, birth and death. These are just opposites sitting on the same spectrum. Having versus not having, plus versus minus, positive versus negative.
It would be pretty silly to claim one can't exist without the other, just like it would be silly to argue that light is somehow "stronger" than darkness.😁

The other thing is, you seem to be rejecting this other side entirely, but maybe that's just because you're afraid of death, and that fear pulls everything else down with it.😉

It’s obvious how light and life emerged from pure darkness and stagnation. It’s a pretty incredible transformation for the better.

So, a day is just the absence of night, just as night is the absence of day.

Anonymous said:

It’s obvious how light and life emerged from pure darkness and stagnation. It’s a pretty incredible transformation for the better.

For whom? God, the Absolute, the Universe, eternity... it doesn't really matter.
If we only look at these concepts through a strictly human lens, we’re never going to grasp the deeper levels. Just try to imagine a reality where "good" and "evil" don't even exist. Try looking at the world through that perspective for a second.

So, a day is just the absence of night, just as night is the absence of day.

The technical definition would be more like: daytime is when a specific part of the planet is exposed to the sun's light...
Circular definitions like that don't actually explain anything, nor do they help anyone truly understand what's happening.

brisktiger56 said:So, let me get this straight—first I write whatever fits my mood, and then somehow, by some stroke of cosmic luck, it turns out I actually said what you were saying all along?! Pick a lane here. 😉

I actually dig that logic, though—it highlights the actual direction of change.

First off, you’ve got darkness and coldness (specifically out in deep space), and then you’ve got a sun that, due to the fundamental forces of nature, lights up and warms a tiny little corner of the cosmos. It’s pretty easy to see how light and life emerged from that state of void and stagnation. It’s a fascinating shift toward something better. Is it technically correct to say that life is the absence of nothingness—or rather, stillness—or that the opposite of life is stillness? We could debate that forever, but it's a bit of a circular argument... long, long ago, before there was any life on Earth, how could life even have an "opposite"?

Basically, your starting point is looking at things and their opposites in the present moment, whereas I’m taking a wider view. When I look back into the distant past, I see the total absence of life, light, goodness, and power.

Powerlessness isn't the opposite of power. Powerlessness is just the state caused by the absence of power. That condition we call "powerlessness" is what existed long before power ever showed up. And once power finally arrived, it triggered a shift with a very clear direction, and again—that’s the part of the Einsteinian perspective I really like.

p.s. It’s kind of funny how day and night don't actually exist from the perspective of the sun! That whole concept is just a byproduct of our limited human perception, where we interpret everything through opposites—day being the absence of night, night being the absence of day. Whatever. There aren't really "opposites" there; it’s just a result of the Earth's rotation making it impossible for sunlight to hit the entire surface at once.

wearyhawk83 said:I’d go as far as to say you're looking at this through way too narrow a lens. Unless I decide to adopt your specific worldview where everything just boils down to pleasure and pain, we're stuck. Look, it's not a bad take—I totally get where you're coming from—but it’s just not deep enough for this conversation. We were actually digging into all sorts of different relationships here, not just the whole pleasure versus suffering thing!

So, I’m gonna jump back in here because, honestly, I still don't think you actually addressed my point from earlier. Your response just didn't quite hit the mark or defend my position nearly as well as it should have!

I’m still standing by my word on this: people absolutely have the power to reshape their own future, no matter how much their past tries to hold them back. Honestly, the more capable you are at breaking away from that old conditioning, the more powerful you truly become.

I hope that finally clears up my little "sketch"—even if I ended up using a bit too much ink this time!

Quincy:

It’s totally normal to see people reacting either exactly how they were taught or doing the complete opposite. Honestly, those are just two sides of the same coin. At the end of the day, the real deciding factor is always just how much anticipated pleasure someone expects to get out of it. Take teenagers, for example—they rebel against authority because it's basically hardwired into their nature, not because they actually have the freedom to choose otherwise! And that’s exactly how things play out later in life!.

I totally disagree. Once someone actually builds a solid identity and finds some real self-awareness, they aren't going to be swayed by every little thing happening around them like they were back in their teenage years. It’s just different once you grow up!

Go ahead and react—honestly, you totally should! You can try to lump it all together in one bucket if you want, but let’s be real: you and I both know that's a completely different way of looking at things.

Look, you might find one person like that in a hundred, which totally blows your rule out of the water! And honestly, that's a massive deal because when you're dealing with those kinds of relationships, the rules just don't apply anyway.

Quincy:

I think I just hit the nail on the head here. Our desires are what drive everything we do, but get this—we don't actually choose those desires ourselves. They're already baked into us, running the show from the inside, and we just fall for the illusion that they're "ours."

What part of what I said did you miss? I clearly stated that humans are capable of choosing all sorts of things—including their own desires! We’ve got the power to pick our own motivations and our own will too (I mean, obviously not in every single area of life, but you get the point)!

Maybe I’m just fighting against my own "weakness" by putting this out there, but I honestly think I'm hitting the nail on the head. Like I said before, even if I am light-years ahead of what was actually said!

Quincy:

What’s the point of all that? It's strictly so you can read the room better and figure out how to squeeze every last drop of pleasure out of a situation—or, you know, dodge the misery altogether. It’s basically programming. Super sophisticated, sure, but it's still just programming.

Look, obviously pleasure is the end goal here. But everyone’s got their own way of getting there, and different tools for the job. That’s exactly what I’m talking about!

If you're trying to argue that someone isn't "in control" just because they're wired to chase pleasure that doesn't prove anything about their freedom—it's literally just how they're built.

Look, if seeking pleasure or even experiencing "struggle" is just part of my nature, that's not some kind of "shackles." It's just a fact, like having ten fingers on my hands, and I'm totally fine with that.

The whole idea of being "trapped" only works if you look at things from a perspective I have zero interest in pursuing. First off, life is way too short for that nonsense, and second, everything happens in its own time—including progress.

Honestly, I embraced my "role" a long time ago, so I don't feel controlled, powerless, or programmed in the slightest.

If we're going to debate this constantly, then there was no point in me even speaking up. There’s no sense in overanalyzing obvious stuff, if you know what I mean. What I was actually trying to do was offer a different take on the situation.

At the end of the day, maybe you just phrased things a little clunkily, and I ended up getting hung up on your specific wording.

So, following up on that, I’m basically building on my previous comment regarding your post, which, if you ask me, still hasn't been even remotely "defended" properly by the words you've actually put down.

I still firmly believe that a person has the capacity to reshape their own future, regardless of how much their past tries to dictate it. Basically, the more capable someone is of doing that, the more "powerful" they truly are.

Hopefully, that fleshes out my "sketch" with a bit more actual ink this time.

I disagree. Once a person develops a solid identity and a decent amount of self-awareness, they aren't going to react to external pressures and social influences the same way they did when they were teenagers.

They’ll react correctly—meaning, they'll act freely. Now, you could try to lump that into the same category as before, but we both know we're talking about two completely different approaches here.

Even if there's only one such person out of a hundred, it completely breaks your rule, and that's a massive point because rules don't exist in these kinds of relationships.

Which part of what I said makes you miss the fact that a human being is capable of choosing many things, including their own desires? Their motives and their will? (Not in every single area, obviously.)

Maybe I'm just fighting against my own "impotence" through these words, but I still think I'm making sense. Like I said, even if I am lightyears behind what's being discussed personally.

Look, obviously pleasure is the goal. But there are a million different ways to get there and a thousand different tools to use, and that’s exactly what I’m getting at here.

casualmaker13 said:That’s a nice little fantasy you've got going there, but honestly, you might want to open your eyes for a second. Look around. There's day and there's night on this planet where you're currently standing. When it's night, there isn't any light—at least none coming from the sun. Unless, I guess, you actually bother to flip a switch and turn on a lightbulb.😁
Maybe in some other galaxy, it’s just constant night, or maybe it's perpetual daylight, or who knows—something else entirely. But honestly, you can only really sit there and daydream about it. You have absolutely no clue what it's actually like out there.😲

P.S. Good grief, when you really think about it, day and night aren't even real things. It’s just light and dark. The sun is basically just pure light, and then there's all this darkness surrounding it. I guess that's just how it works.
The sun can only light up such a tiny little corner of this universe, which is mostly just darkness and nothingness, I guess.😉

briskeagle3 said:Here’s how I’d define true power:

It’s when you have the ability to act, but you choose not to—not because you lack the capacity, but simply because you can afford to stay still.

dustyskipper3 said:True power is essentially 'inner peace,' having self-control, or perhaps just the ability to master one's own selfishness and those more primitive, animalistic impulses we all carry within us.

Winning against other people makes you strong; however, the one who conquers themselves is what I would call truly powerful. (Lao-tzu)🧐

It’s similar to what Zachary Cook2 mentioned regarding spiritual 'black magic' being a way to 'conquer' others, whereas spiritual 'white magic' is about mastering oneself—it's how you defeat those who lash out at others simply because they lack the capacity to control their own negativity and ego.

Nathan Perez5 said:👍...but real power is actually having the ability to act on that whenever possible, because that inner voice telling us what's right in any given moment is always screaming inside us, provided we actually have enough strength to silence all the other noise and distractions just so we can finally hear it...

brisktiger56 said:👍

Power is a lot like money—you can use it for good, or you can absolutely wreck things with it if you aren't careful...

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.