This posting is about the evolution of someone’s thought patterns as they transition from unfree to free person. I propose that the person goes through four cycles based on what they are focusing on at each stage: acquisition, inquiry, practice and meditation.

I’ve loosely based this on the Futures100 study into the luxury market which was commissioned by American Express. The pursuit of luxury is often a (poor) substitute for the search for self actualization, so I think the study is appropriate to this case.

Acquisition

At this point, the person is not yet free. They are fixated on fulfillment of self esteem needs. They attempt to meet these needs by consuming goods that other people perceive as “high status” irrespective of whether they like the item or not. They have not developed their own tastes, or cut themselves free from the herd.

Success is expressed purely in terms of ownership, whether material, of other people or of a “career”. The focus is on display and attempting to fit into the preconceptions of others. Attention and effort is projected outwards rather than inwards. Fear and greed drive behaviour. The acquisitive person looks at the external and the internal slowly dies. The person is robbed of their true wealth at will, but is never aware of it. Self actualization is not only irrelevant, but inconceivable.

Inquiry

During the inquiry stage, judgement and independent thinking begins to emerge. They become aware of a larger world and the possibility of greater fulfillment. The person starts to consider things for their own essential nature rather than their impact on others. More attention is focussed on the inner world of the heart, neglected to this point. The person becomes aware of an emptiness, of something lost and never regained, and of their mortality.

The person grows in maturity as they start to reach towards self knowledge and independence. This is a stage of evaluating information and thinking about the implications of the new direction chosen towards freedom. The person has not yet separated from their old nature but is moving towards the edge of the herd.

Practice

During the practice cycle, the person becomes proactive in reaching towards self actualisation. The person puts their knowledge and new outlook into practice. They can see that the journey is leading to something better – what was lost is identified and can be seen in the distance.

They actively seek to apply their new awareness to all facets of their life and proactively look for knowledge that can be applied to gaining freedom. Wisdom is valued above fitting in.

The approval of others becomes irrelevant and the person separates from the herd. The last vestiges of herd thinking are dropped away. The potential of a free life becomes evident.

Meditation

This is the final stage. Total freedom is achieved. Science, art and poetry are joined into one. Life is centred on achieving growth. The world of the mind is most important and the person seeks experiences that will enrich their life. Lifestyle shows true wealth and can’t be purchased at any price. Money is abundant as the person utilises their true skills and calling but irrelevant.

At this point, the person purely evaluates something in terms of their own need for beauty, order, integrity and wholeness. The name “meditation” implies that the freedom is of the mind and soul, and that it centres on the inner world.

The person moves between cultures and social groups at will as they experience the richness of life. What was lost is regained, never to be misplaced again. The person is willing to help others find themselves.

Tags: freedom, meditation, Self-actualization

This entry was posted on Sunday, May 6th, 2007 at 3:19 pm and is filed under Self-actualization. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.