In selfishness, being independent means being separated; whereas, in bestowal it means being connected:
- Independence In Selfishness:
- In selfishness, independence means being separated, isolated, alone and unhappy.
- Independence From Family:
- As children grow and develop in their individual families, they learn how to do things for themselves, which means they become increasingly less reliant on their parents for help and support. Eventually, they gain full autonomy, move out of the house and begin a life of their own, completely separate from their parents. This leaves parents and children separated, isolated, alone and unhappy.
- Also, to be independent, people get divorced, separated etc., which doesn't necessarily lead to lasting happiness.
- Independence From Bestowal:
- When we become independent from bestowal, it means we become free of bestowal and immersed in selfishness - seeking to benefit ourselves with no regard for others. This leaves us separated, isolated, alone and unhappy.
- Independence In Bestowal:
- In bestowal, independence means being connected, united, in dependence (dependent upon, interdependent) and happy.
- A Jigsaw Puzzle:
- If we think of ourselves as a single piece of a jigsaw puzzle, we're each unique and independent and we independently contribute our piece to the whole.
- At the same time, when we contribute our piece to the whole, we lose ourselves to the whole, we lose our independence and become connected as one. When you look at a completed jigsaw puzzle, you look at the whole picture, not the individual pieces. The individual pieces 'disappear' and become united into one picture.
- When we connect in mutual bestowal, we're both independent (contributing our piece to the whole) and not independent (losing ourselves to the whole), our connection is so complete that we become united as one.
- Independence From Family:
- The whole world is one family. As we grow and develop in bestowal, we learn how to benefit others and Nature instead of ourselves. We become independent in that we can benefit others and Nature on our own, once we've learned how to do it. However, when we benefit others and Nature, we adopt their desires as our own and seek to benefit them, which means we become increasingly more connected to them.
- We become connected to others in mutual bestowal, and we become connected to The Creator through equivalence of form. This connection makes us really happy.
- Independent From Selfishness:
- When we become independent from selfishness, it means we become free of selfishness and immersed in bestowal - seeking to benefit others and Nature instead of ourselves. Connection makes us happy.
Connection is the answer. In selfishness, independence means being separated, isolated, alone and unhappy; whereas, in bestowal, independence means being connected, united and happy.
In everything we do, we should seek to benefit others and Nature instead of ourselves.
