The Self

In continuation with the last entry - to truly understand human character, one must truly understand oneself. Thus raising the timeless question, "Who am I? Where am I going?" The question is so simple, yet so profound. The beauty of it is that the answer is what we make of it, or in other words, what we make of ourselves.

Let's explore the second part of this question, "Where am I going?" Objectively, this question translates to: What do we do with this precious lifetime that God has generously bestowed upon us? This gift of life. so vigorous, yet fragile. so beautiful, yet ephemeral. Resembling an annual garden flower, growing in the spring, blossoming in the summer, pollinating and then decaying in the fall, finally returning to the ground in the winter.

As we journey through the vicissitudes of life, we eventually discover our own answer. The shape and sizes of these answers seem immeasurable at glance, but after incisive analysis, they unite into two forms - the selfish and the selfless. Everything we undertake can be judged under the two categories. The former should be an familiar sound. It is, after all, a natural inclination and survival instinct to serve ourselves. Majority of us pursue selfish interests, and it is not deplorable in any way. Many great achievements of our modern day society have came out of personal interests. As Adam Smith postulated, "By pursuing his own interest he frequently promotes that of the society".

Of course, "frequently" is often not enough. Selfish ambitious of powerful men can, as history have shown, result in an adverse effect for our society. Therefore, the ones that strive for the altruistic latter are the ones to be truly commended, for their sacrifice reminds us of the goodness and purity that are still left in this world. They could be anyone, the brother that looked passed your faults and accepted you the way you are, the stranger that helped the you when you needed it the most, the friend that stood up for you when you were mortified. But the most precious gift they gave us is that - they inspire us, to be greater than we are.

In the end, it comes down to choice. The everyday choices we make in our lives. They remind us who we are, where we are, and how we are shaping our own world. Here I want leave you with a question to ponder, "How big will your world be?"

A person starts to live when he can live outside himself
- Albert Einstein

True Wisdom - Part 1

Comprehensively, I see four types of wisdom in this world - Wisdom of character, Wisdom of substance, Wisdom of systems, and Wisdom of morality.

Wisdom of character - the ability to discern individual character, the reasons for their words and actions, as well as foreseeing their probable future action in different circumstances. Each person is a mystery, each person has his own story, his own personality, and his own thoughts and beliefs. Truing knowing someone's inner self as well as outer is a daunting task, which makes this wisdom nearly if not the hardest to obtain. What we are given is their actions and words. At first glance, these give us their countenance and personality. But when you begin to seek the causalities of the actions and words, they become the clues that hints to their deeper and inconspicuous thoughts and beliefs. Of course, actions and words are never sufficient for complete picture. It must be paired with history and environment to be exhaustive. Eventually, through thoughtful analysis, we develop a hypothesis of their true character, which can be tested and sharpened until an acute picture can be painted.
Most people doesn't even know themselves, much less other people. Self analysis should be the first step for anyone that seeks this wisdom.

Know thyself - and thou shall know all the mysteries of the gods and of the universe
- inscription at the Temple of Apollo at Delphi

the first mark

Hello World!

I dedicate this place as an outlet for my thoughts, ideas, worries, and daily rants. It will also be an excellent place to polish my writing skills. For the lucky few that will know of this blog, I hope you find it as much of an edifying and entertaining experience as I do.

I'll part each entry with some words of Wisdom:

a goal without a plan is just a wish
- Larry Elder