Selfishness is a Virtue

"It's not wrong to be selfish.

It's actually the most beautiful thing a person can be. 

To be selfish means to be yourself."

- You tell me who said that in the comments without googling it

I've heard many people being called selfish for many things, none of which could be considered particularly admirable. Unfortunately due to some incompetence, ignorance, and arbitrary occurrences we have arrived at a culture that misrepresents the value of selfishness and demonizes the supposed selfish individual. Not without good reason either, but my point remains.

My point being that the word selfish, just like every other word you think you know, needs to be redefined. That's a great practice btw, notice how when you're reading something you sometimes work out the meaning of the word from the context in which it's used? Well, guess what? Most of the words you know have been learned in the same manner, by assumption rather than inquiry. By someone giving it to you rather than you seeking it out. From the outside-in, instead of the inside-out. So practice defining, or redefining the words you think you know. 

Selfish; 

- Being self-oriented vs. self-obsessed: you can prioritize yourself without being a dickhead.

- Loving yourself: accepting your circumstances, situations, behaviors, characteristics, etc.

- Being yourself: a natural extension of loving yourself is being authentic and honest about your truth. 

*But wait.. What is my truth!!??.. Now that you mention it...WHO THE FUCK AM I EVEN!!?* ...You say? Well, that brings me to....

Gnothi Seauton: Know Thyself

"You are not a drop in the ocean,

You are the entire ocean in one drop."

- Rumi

A great sage once said, "Know yourself to know all of existence." That. Is. Profound. I think God said that one. Or was it the Toothfairy? Doesn't matter. What matters is how YOU can actually do it.

I dunno pick up a book or something tch tch tch.

Psychke!!! Gotcha bitch, I know everything there is to know 😌 (if you're not big on learning might as well skip the next paragraph, and also reassess your entire life decisions maybe? m'kay)

Well, there are certain components that make you who you are, I'll try to prioritize them based on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, a popular practice in Psychology, so you have:

- Experiences: Your past, history, circumstances, etc. that make you who you are by leading to...

- Thoughts: Cognitive or pre-cognitive reactions to external stimuli which can be either positive or negative, causing associations in your brains by wiring neurons together making neural pathways in their wake that accumulate over time and form patterns. These patterns may also become...

- Beliefs: Thoughts recurring over time, accepted as fundamental truths that are essentially the programming of your brain the computer. These come together to form complex systems of data and knowledge which are also called a person's "attitude" or "perspective", the lens through which they see the world, the universe as a whole, and thus, their entire existence. All of which might cause one to feel certain...

- Emotions: Energy in motion that propels or compels you towards a certain action. You can't think about everything all the time because the conscious brain is slow AF, so your body in its infinite wisdom makes short-cut reactions that can influence or even dictate your....

- Behaviour: What you do day-to-day, the end goal of your existence and your entire life. "You"* might exist in a non-physical, cloudy state of being, but actually, you truly exist in the real world, where actions are all that matter. Your actions accumulate to form habits, muscle memory, instincts, they influence your body and your entire "external"* life.

*Side note: You can also observe that you are actually not separate from the world at all, but instead, inherently a part of it, in the sense that you are a part of nature, a continuity of everything that came before you, and a prologue to everything that is yet to come. In that sense, separation is truly the greatest illusion, but like all illusions, it has a certain purpose to fulfill, and the nature of that purpose can potentially be anything.

One might also propose that other people's perceptions of you, your place in society, the role you are playing in life, are all a part of who you are as well. One might also be an idiot. But that's beside the point. Here's my actual point though, Humans are selfish creatures because ultimately, we all have to rely on ourselves the most. You are the one most capable of caring for you, the one most capable of protecting your interests, the only one who can decide your own interests. 

Now I'm not saying go live on a mountain somewhere alone all by yourself because you are also inherently a social creature, but what I am saying is that EVERYONE WILL ALWAYS MAKE SURE TO TELL YOU WHAT'S RIGHT, WRONG, GOOD, BAD, ACCEPTABLE OR OTHERWISE, BUT RIGHT FOR WHO? GOOD FOR WHO? GOOD FOR YOU? No one even knows you.

So make sure that you do. 

For every child enrolled into a complaisant education, there is a brain sacrificed.

For every slave whipped into submission, a soul that died.

Behind every sound advice, is a failure experienced

and with every free individual thought, a hope regained.

Anyone can tell you their truth, but no one can truly see yours.

Anyone can tell you what to think, but no one can tell you how.

But just as the wind blows and the sun rises,

You are you, whatever the size is?

So make sure to be selfish, and enjoy some Shellfish.

(but actually, no the oceans are dying)

(why can't I stop my words from rhyming?) 

#micdrop

P.S. Osho said the quote on top :)