Incentive was a topic that lead us to an amazing discovery. We started with seemingly simple ideas driving actions to maintain skills and relationships, to challenges and frontiers that result in acknowledgement and moments of self-worth. Before we knew it each of us discovered that these layers of incentive were driving us towards a love of our human animal and a merging with nature.
What incentivises you to take a leap of faith or face the prospect of adversity?
What gets you up in the morning?
Incentive comes from the latin word incentivum, which means ‘something that sets the tune or incites’. Following the etymology, incentivum comes from the latin word incantare; ‘to chant or to charm’.
How do you charm yourself to take a leap of faith?
One human mentioned their inner child charms her into the decisions she makes; inciting a childlike wonder, awe and a vigilant awareness to the present moment. Another spoke of the idea of walking with the dogs outside in the cool early morning charms them into getting up and outside into the reality of the idea. For others surprise, potential, change and the prospect of growth lead them to face the possibility of discomfort.
We all seem to have these magical incantations to set us up for the day, the challenge or the unknown territory to come. We do this with an ignorance towards the rituality of it all. We are magical beings in the way we use meaning, thought processes, ritual and story to deliver the results to our reality. Priming ourselves towards where we wish to be.
This destination as a pattern across the humans contributing to the discussion was the unification of self with nature. A moment in which the mind drops away and the senses deliver a submerging quality within the present and its surroundings.
At first, having this pattern in mind, there were incentives to grow, change, expand, evolve and challenge ourselves. The merging with nature destination was not clearly visible. Why are we incentivised to find the edge of what is known to be possible. One human contributed the idea that it was to test their strength. The group inquired further; why?
To feel accomplished, to feel effective at life, to feel a sense of self-worth. This was interesting and produced a thought related to something I have read in Hesse’s Steppenwolf.
‘I have good reason to suppose that he was brought up by devoted but severe and very pious parents and teachers in accordance with the doctrine that makes breaking of the will the corner-stone of education and up-bringing. But in this case the attempt to destroy the personality and to break the will did not succeed. He was much too strong and hardy, too proud and spirited. Instead of destroying his personality they succeeded only in teaching him to hate himself.’
— Hermanne Hesse, Steppenwolf.
Hermann Hesse seems to suggest that our mode of teaching creates a contrast to our persistent inner animal. There are two distinct parts: the human idea of who we ought to be and the animal that follows its curiosity, instincts and intuition. When we are subjected to knowledge with little time dedicated to allowing our inner character to birth forth a rift occurs. Leading to a fragmentation of self, a disowning, relegating the animal human to the shadows.
To prove self-worth, a controlling of our wild human is encouraged. However, the result is paradoxical in that becoming someone built from ideas produced from past happenings, we become nobody as we replicate what has come before without a listening as to the relevant context and ecosystem. It is a huge self-sabotaging assumption to expect the future to be predictable. The more we pursue this path of becoming somebody the cup of satisfaction remains empty.
The affects of this way of thinking and acting in the world are clearly illustrated by the present day crisis’; climate change, covid, social unrest, etc.
Not only has this static legacy of information taught us to ignore our relevant nature it has become dangerous to our continual existence.
So it seems from what has been explored through the discussion and this reflection that our central incentive is to be one with all. Sounds cliche, yet profound having come to this realisation through the vehicle of ‘what gets you out of bed in the morning?’.
So after an insight like this, what’s next?
It seems society as a whole has to do some work with the relationships we have with our inner wild human animal. We need to forgive ourselves. Take care of the wise most relevant being within us that needs no reasons or meaning for it is receiving faster from the present moment than our minds can think. Perhaps we drop our ideas, identities and facts to embrace our instincts, intuitions, imagination and creativity to witness the amazing qualities built within us through billions of years of evolution.
A structural transformation within our education systems would also contribute to the empowerment of nature. Second-hand knowledge can be an aspect of education whilst listening to one’s self and learning through first hand experience creates the balance and a healthy interpersonal relationship.
What does the world look like with healthy empowered individuals creating our communities?
A question that is only limited by our imaginations.
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