DID YOU KNOW?

I haven't always believed in "psychic" abilities. When I was younger I tried to ignore certain aspects of myself. I grew up in what I felt was a very religious family. Even my extended family members are religious. Not only did I fear being different from my ENTIRE family I feared the supposed repercussions that could happen to someone like myself. Repercussions that were believed by many people of this religion. From a very young age I inherently *knew* that a few things about this particular religion just weren't true... for me at least. :-)

Through the years I have extensively studied many religions & belief systems in search of my truths. What I have come to find is that every religion is much too confining as well as conforming for my taste. I have come to understand that as there is zero scientific proof to completely support any entire belief system then there is no actual way to determine what is and what is not real, what is and what is not true nor what is and what is not correct.

I have slowly but surely come to a point in my life where I believe that the concepts of right and wrong can not be accurately defined as they are both purely subjective theories. What is right to one person from one culture may be completely wrong to another person from another culture. With that said, how can any man on this planet ever truly judge another man's beliefs or actions? It can not be done in a definitively just manner, for doing so would be hypocritical in and of itself.

I believe there are two equal parts that create human sentience. The Ego and The Self. The Ego is that part of us that provides raw, tangible instinct. It is that part of us that we rely on to keep our physical body protected in times of peril. It is that instinctual protector that gives our personality the more abrasive traits such as dominance, arrogance, denial, aggression, etc. The Self is that part of us that provides insights beyond the physical world. It is that part of us that allows us to understand & realize human emotion and the causes behind the emotions. It is our insightful understanding side that gives our personality the more conciliatory traits such as compassion, peace, unconditional platonic love, etc.

In realizing the existence of these two parts in humans I have come to see the world in a completely different light. I now understand why people cling to their beliefs and also why some are willing to die or even kill for them. The answer is fear and fear alone. For me, I chose to cling to my beliefs because I feared what my family would think of me and because I feared what could possibly happen to "me" when "I" died. Had I have never faced those fears, never embraced my presumed differences, and never taken the chance to not believe in something then I never would have found me.

The journey was not an easy one and it certainly isn't complete by any means, but I am glad that I had the courage to not just look down the less trodden path... but also the courage to take it!