PHILOSOPHY
Who are we? Why it matters
How differently would we live our lives knowing that we’re more than the product of random evolution? by Gregg Braden
S
ince the time our earliest ancestors looked with awe into the distant stars of a moonless
night sky, a single question has been asked countless times, by countless numbers of people, sharing the same experience through the ages. The question they’ve asked speaks directly to the core of every challenge that will ever test us in life, no matter how big or how small. It’s at the heart of every choice we’ll ever face, and it forms the foundation for every decision we’ll ever make. During the estimated 200,000 years or so that we’ve been on Earth the question we’ve asked is simply this: Who are we? In what may be the greatest irony
of our lives, following more than 5,000 years of recorded history and technological achievements that stagger the imagination, we have yet to answer this most basic question with certainty.
Why it matters The way we answer the words ‘Who are we?’ penetrates to the essence of each moment in every day of life. It forms the perceptual eyes – the filters – through which we see other people, the world around us, and most importantly, ourselves. For example, when we think of ourselves as separate from our bodies, we approach the healing process feeling like powerless victims of an experience that we have no control over. Conversely, recent discoveries confirm that when we approach life knowing that our bodies are designed to constantly repair, rejuvenate and heal, this shift in perspective creates the chemistry in our cells that mirrors our belief. Our self-esteem, self-worth, sense of
confidence, well-being and our beliefs of spirituality and God each stem directly from the way we think of ourselves in the world. From who we say ‘yes!’ to when it comes to choosing a life partner and
how long our partnerships last once we create them, to what jobs we feel we’re capable of performing, the most important decisions that we’ll ever make in life are based in the way we answer this simple, timeless question. What we teach our children is also
affected by our opinion of ourselves. When their delicate sense of self-worth is so overpowered by the relentless bullying from rivals and classmates, it’s their answer to ‘Who am I?’ that gives them the strength to heal their hurt and, sometimes, makes the difference between when they feel worthy of living and when they don’t. The way we think of ourselves
determines the corporate policies that either justify the dumping of 12 million(+) tons of used plastic and thousands of gallons of radioactive waste in the world’s oceans each year, or that cherishes the living oceans enough to invest in preserving them.
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2017 7
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