The Morality Compass

 

 I would like to say it all starts with a blank page and writing is catharsis. That's it.

Today's blog is going to be posed with a lot of questions. It is all open ended, which means that it is subject to multiple perspectives... and none of them are wrong or right....just a difference of opinion. I strongly encourage you all to let me know your answers in the comments below, so I can know the meaning of life deeper as I hope you might also come to know as you read this blog.

Now there are somethings that I just can't grasp. Firstly, there is so much going on in a day and  several instances; not one or two, when experienced by humans tend to shift their moral compass: provided they experience it fully. eg: The things that bother me now never bothered me back in the day when I was 17. I used to never buy tickets for train- Because 1) no one is there to check  if I have it or not everyday. 2) Government is corrupt, why should I pay more when they steal  from us? If they steal from us, I will also steal from them.

But now I have started to see things with a bigger angle. If I were a Government official of Railways and services for instance, I would want that money to improve the efficiency of tracks by building them in places that can make the life of a working man easier; hiring qualified and dedicated experts( that most often come only when you pay them a good salary).

But all of this change in me is drastic, sudden and unsettling.Because it is a happenstance. A moment that happens in a single day of my life which suddenly unsettles me and in order to deal with it I have to reluctantly shift my perspective. It's like the Jigsaw puzzle game where you fit a puzzle piece and then suddenly you found a piece which you think would fit better and now if you leave it thinking "it's okay I don't need a better fit", it will bug your head ( because humans crave for perfection) or you have to reluctantly let go of the puzzle piece you found first and go back and fit this piece instead.

Allow me to drag this example:

1) You have an entire puzzle to complete with only limited time( which is basically life).

2) You keep finding pieces that help you complete your picture ( meaning of life ) but as you go on with the game( grow up, get influenced by environment around you: friends, work, family, personal experiences) and you become "experienced" ; you find these " better pieces" that would make a " better fit " to your puzzle which you possibly cannot avoid and it irritates you.

3) The ideal situation should be that either towards the end of the game you will be happy that you changed the pieces at the right time ( being flexible comes only if you reflect upon life when it gives you something to think upon... and then act on it) or you will be dejected because you didn't change those pieces that if they were changed; they would have a double edge or a hole on two sides that would have allowed other new pieces to fit in which was required for the puzzle to complete.

 

In the long term, you might want to change the pieces to complete the puzzle (find the meaning of life) but there is only little time; or no time left.

This same thing is mirroring Erick Erickson' explanation of  the different stages of life as we age.

But I am more interested in what is truly shifting inside of us rather than physical reality. What shapes a human being? It is the values.

In my case , I used to consider myself an honest person but then honesty is also a spectrum. eg: If you are honest and never steal but let's suppose you are not honest in your words when you are speaking with someone( your friends, boss, spouse etc) that is still counted. And honestly, it is not the cognitive mind that grows( like me thinking about the govt official because I too want to someday attain a higher position in my material life which drives me to be obsessed with how people at an influential position think and make decisions and as a result what actions they would take) but in fact; deep...deep down, like Freud quoted the "subconscious mind" ; it is actually my morality compass which grows and drives me.

When our conscience(which is our morality compass) is triggered, we know that our values are not strong and we must change our deeds to attain this value. And this all comes with awareness (like in my case it was honesty, yours might be different). Also, this means we have to keep calibrating our morality compass so that it works in the most accurate way possible.The attribute of  "values" is reserved solely for humans. Values give us the power of "Decision- making". It is our choices that truly make our life. To answer my friend's question here which is tied to this: She said she wants a miracle in her life. Answer: I believe miracles depend on the choices you make as you live life.The possibility of your wish coming true depends if you are working hard to MAKE that miracle happen someday or you are working hard to never LET that miracle manifest! ( the power of decision making is ultimately in your hands; fortunate or unfortunate?)

Now here are my mind-twister questions to you:

1) Did I get influenced to not travel in train without a ticket ( because of my working status in life, or reading spiritual books or going through an experience that changed me and my life) or was I wrong all this time and the realization dawned upon me suddenly and drastically?

2)Is there truly no right or wrong in life, or is there a right choice which leads us to live the "best" kind of life? Or a "better" life than we are living now if we change our choices?

3) What are the values a person should have to leave an impact on their life and other's lives; considering their short lifespan?

4) Is it true good people die early? Why?

5) What differentiates animals from us?

As we come to a close, I would love to know the different perspectives of your morality compass in the comments below. Once I was attending a class on Lawrence Kohlberg's stages of moral development in B.ed. I heard the story and I answered the questions which "psychologically" put me in the post conventional level stage. But note, till then I had not actually " lived" or rather "realized" life yet. (Those who are unaware of this theory and would like to know more about it, I have pasted a youtube link below so you can find it here, enjoy!)

Kohlberg's stages of moral development by learn my test

Yesterday, while walking back from work towards the bus stand doing my chores dutifully, I thought about this theory again and this time "I" put myself in the conventional stage which is the third stage (Justice orientation). So remember, your answers could always change and the best answer is the one which you get on your own; while experiencing moments happening to you in your life!

I would like to close with a quote from Viktor E. Frankl, the founder of logotherapy and author of "Man's search for Meaning". His thoughts on freedom and responsibility, which are the north and south poles of our morality compass goes like this:

"That is why I recommend that the Statue of Liberty on the East Coast be supplemented by a Statue of Responsibility on the West coast".

Thank you for reading!