Thumotic Living, Part 4: Acorn-like

Thumotic living is not about "following your heart."

When  we live from our thumos and fulfill the life-affirming desires of our heart, we follow no one. We follow no thing, including our heart. Rather we manifest in our actions the life-affirming desires of our heart.

It's a  natural process. No exhortations like "Become who you are!" are needed. We do not have to try to become who we are. 

When we live from our thumos, just as an acorn naturally becomes the unique oak tree it is meant to become, so we naturally become the unique human being we are meant to become.

Thumotic Living, Part 3: Amorality

If a morality is a set of rational concepts about what is right and wrong, thumotic living is amoral. Not immoral. Amoral.

It's amoral because when we live from our spirit and heart, complying with our own or some else's rational concepts about right and wrong are irrelevant. 

What matters is fulfilling the life-affirming desires of our heart.

Thumotic Living, Part 2: Natural

Thumotic living is natural. It's living in accord with how we were born to live.

We're born to live from our thumos, our spirit, our heart. We're born to fulfill the life-affirming desires of our heart.

When our parents and others nurture and support us in becoming who we are naturally meant to become, they affirm our life and we live naturally from our spirit. We naturally become who we are meant to become.

Only when our parents and others "educate" us to comply, conform, and live according to someone else's ways do we later have to unlearn unnatural, life-denying ways. Only then do we have to learn later in life how to live from our spirit, fulfill the life-affirming ways of our heart, and become who we are naturally meant to become. 

It is never too late to unlearn life-denying ways, fulfill the life-affirming desires of our heart, and become who we are meant to become. 

Thumotic Living, Part 1: From Our Spirit

My next two or three posts will be about thumotic living. Here's part one:

Thumotic living is living from our thumos, our spirit, that which makes us alive.

Since we experience  our thumos in our chest, it is associated with our heart. Thumotic living is also living from our heart.

We can feel when we're living from our thumos. Sometimes we feel warmth in our chest, our heart. Sometimes the warmth blazes into a heated flame of passion. Whether it's warmth or flame it compels us to speak and act before we think.

Thumotic living is living not according to the dictates of a divine or human authority figure. It's not living according to a religion, philosophy, or moral code. It's not living according to reason, rationality, or logic. It's not concerned with conforming with current social mores.

Thumotic living is irrational. It's free-spirited living that manifests in our actions the life-affirming desires of our heart.  

Spirit is Natural

In my view, the view I propose for you to adopt if it rings true, the word "spirit" refers to something natural rather than supernatural, metaphysical, religious, or spiritual.

Specifically, "spirit" refers to "that which makes alive."

My understanding of spirit is informed by the Ancient Greek concept of thumos. As such, it is located in the center and heart of our chest. 

It is associated with our lungs and breath. It is also associated with our thymus gland due to the gland's location. 

Our spirit is the agent of our emotions and a specific type of cognition. It is also associated with our heart when heart is used to refer to our emotions, passions, and deepest desires.

As "that which makes alive" we are either spirited and alive or we are not. When we faint, our spirit leaves and returns. When we die our spirit leaves and does not return.

However, our spirit also varies in degrees. It can be high, low, or neutral. It can be introverted or extroverted. It can be expanded or contracted and vary in other ways as well.

Finally, for now, as "that which makes alive" spirit enlivens every living being. Everything that moves is spirited and alive- animals, plants, the ground beneath our feet, the wind, rivers, springs, oceans, the clouds, lightening, Sun, Moon, all the planets and starts- everything.

So, spirit, that which makes alive, unites us all.

I believe it is time for us to reclaim and redefine spirit as something that is natural rather than supernatural, metaphysical, religious, or spiritual. It is time to develop our knowledge of spirit and redefine both "spiritual" and "spirituality" as well. 

How to Know Your Purpose

If you want to know the purpose of your life, I recommend that you look no further than your own spirit.

Set aside some uninterrupted time for yourself. You might find it helpful to have some way to record your thoughts.

Get comfortable. Relax. You might want to place one or both hands over your breast bone and become aware of your heart beat. Let your attention be on the area beneath around your hands on your chest. 

This area has long been associated with our spirit. It has has also been called our heart as in "the heart of the matter" and the core of who we are.  

Relax and breathe. Let your intention be to know the life-affirming desires of your heart and spirit.

Be open. Listen. Listen to what your spirit says when you ask it to speak to you and reveal its life-affirming desires.

If you feel fear, let it come and visit for a bit. And let it pass.

Let  the desires of your heart emerge into your awareness. Feel them.

They show you the purpose of your life. 

Your purpose is to fulfill the life-affirming desires of our heart rather than deny them. 

The life-affirming desires of your heart are yours and yours alone to fulfill.

We need you fulfill them. Please don't let us or yourself down. 

Become who you are meant to become. We need what only you can give.

Make us proud.

I Believe In You

I believe in you. You are alive for a reason. 

There is only one of you. Only you can do you.

Only you can share with the rest of us who you are and what you do.

I believe that  you have a purpose that only you can fulfill...or not.

Only you can become who you are meant to become.

Only you can do what you are alive to do.

We need you to do you to the max.

Let nothing hold you back.

Please, for the love of all, do not let us or yourself down.

If you do not know what you are alive to do,

Attend to the life-affirming desires of your heart.

Fulfill them and you will do what you are alive to do.

Fulfill the life-affirming desires of your heart and

You will become who you are meant to become.

And every being will benefit and be glad you lived.