Kyrielle
New member
- Joined
- Apr 26, 2007
- Messages
- 1,294
- MBTI Type
- INFJ
- Enneagram
- 4w5
Hmm, but wouldn't you say, deep down, there are core values and a general belief of what is good and what is wrong?
Indeed those are influenced by our parents, our culture, but,
Still, when you listen to your heart, it tells you what is wrong and what is right, wouldn't this be considered the 'foundation of your personality'? The 'foundation of "me"'?
[slight blathering]
Not necessarily to me. I think it's because I don't have an absolute clear-cut "this is me and this is what I stand for" view of myself. It's a little odd to imagine things that way. Yes, I have a core set of values, but I realise they coincide with so many other people's values that it's almost impossible to distinguish which ones were there first. I can tell you what I will probably say is right and wrong, but I'm not definite about it. I'm overly aware of varying perspectives and can easily feel what would be right and wrong for a very different person from myself. While seeing things from another perspective doesn't necessarily change what I originally thought about the situation, it does put a wet blanket over my certainty on the matter.
The main trouble is in telling which set of values were there first and where those values came from. It's probably a useful thought exercise to make those distinctions, but it's just not something that's terribly important to me. Organising my inner values and knowing which ones are mine wouldn't really help me in any major way. Sure, it'd be nice to know--a fun fact, but as far as I'm concerned, if I end up making reasonable decisions that benefit as many involved as possible, I don't particularly care when and where the values originated. Yet, I usually don't doubt that the right ones are there. I suppose I place a greater trust on my unconscious to sort through and pick up some of the pretty good ones so that my conscious mind may then decide to keep or disgard.
And there are some values I feel very strongly about. However, I consider them as basic values that hold true for most human beings operating in a relatively peaceful society. Which is to say, they aren't exactly mine...they're more a part of a collective thought process that many humans share and are generally based on creating win-win situations, satisfying the self in an efficient manner, and not performing actions that will endanger the self.
[/blathering]