The end of freedom

[coberst]

The end of freedom

I am shackled hand and foot spread eagle on the floor of my cell. I ask my jailer everyday to set me free. Finally he compassionately sets me free.

For days I am exhilarated with the ability to freely pace about my cell. After a few weeks I begin to beg my jailer to set me free. After weeks he, being a compassionate man, sets me free from my cell.

For days I am exhilarated at the freedom to wonder about and speak with other inmates. After several weeks I begin to beg my jailer to free me and finally he relents and releases me from jail. I am overwhelmed with the sense of freedom until I, overcome with hunger and basic needs, seek some work so as to feed myself.

I find a job working on an assembly line and am exhilarated at the new found freedom. After a year I begin to seek other less strenuous and repetitive assembly line work. I wish to free myself from this robotic work I do everyday.

What is the ‘telos’ (ultimate end) of this series of ever persistent desire for freedom? Is hunger for freedom similar to hunger for food, never satiated? I don’t think so. I think the search for freedom can culminate in an ultimate and satisfying end.

Freedom, I suspect, is a search for self-determination. When we feel that we are master of our domain, when we are free to determine who we are and what we need to be our self we will have reached that ‘telos’ of freedom. I suspect this end is as unique as a finger print; it is an act of creation and can be made conscious to me only by me.

I think each of us must learn for our self what we need to secure freedom’s ‘telos’. Probably most of us find only a degree of freedom, but if we never stop looking we may continue finding more of it.

I think our degree of possible freedom is directly proportional to our degree of self-actualization. Self-actualization is a process of extending our horizons based upon our own unique potential. The further we can see the greater is our horizon for freedom.

Do you think self-actualization has any impact on the nature of freedom?

[coberst]

Self knowledge is the essence of self-actualization. Freedom and self-actualization feed upon one another. The more freedom we have the more likely we are to self-actualize and as we do we gain more freedom. They share a symbiotic relationship.

[Ilya]

That is a good question you are asking coberst. I like how you weave the work into the sequence of gradually increasing cages.

Your story could be continued, you know. The worker can become a foreman, then a manager, then start his own business. This is a dead end. This is a story of a financial freedom. It can be achieved. I did it in my early twenties. But it leads you nowhere. There are other kinds of freedoms out there as well. Spiritual, freedom of self-expression and so on. They also can be achieved to an extent.

But the greatest freedom of all is not there. Self-actualization is only a step on a ladder. It leads to purpose, to the life mission. Once upon a time you reach that point. It is not that difficult. You are standing there, one with the universe, shrouded in eternal warmth and light and kindness. At this moment it is possible to die with no regrets. You don't need anything anymore. Pure ecstasy. Pure happiness. Pure delight. Pure freedom. The only question that is left and hangs on the periphery of your mind is "Why come back?"
And the answer is surprising. Once you are completely free, the greatest freedom left is the choice to surrender this freedom and begin living co-dependently with the world. Co-dependently with other people, with work that has to be done for money or not. Co-dependently with you family - your parents, your spouse, your children. Freedom is worthless, it is the way you spend this freedom that matters.

Once you are free, you find out that it's better be needed than free.
Which, in my opinion is the telos of the quest for freedom.

[jippykid]

Originally Posted by coberst

Freedom, I suspect, is a search for self-determination. When we feel that we are master of our domain, when we are free to determine who we are and what we need to be our self we will have reached that ‘telos’ of freedom. I suspect this end is as unique as a finger print; it is an act of creation and can be made conscious to me only by me.

These lines hit home for me. Looking back on my life, I realize that a majority of it was spent serving others. Go to school; attend college; get married and find a job. I didn't really have a say in these things... when it comes down to it, I was doing it becuase I was told to. Don't misunderstand- I'm really happily married and I love what I do for income, but I'm coming to a place in my life where I don't want to settle for fulfulling others' desires for me. I want to control what I do with my life.

Thank you for your timely post. You've given me some clarity on a few things.

[coberst]

Searching never ends for those who have once discovered the meaning of understanding.

[Marvinq]

We can never be 100% free. We would still be bound by the laws of the universe and physics. And if we were free of this universe, and enter another. We would be bound by the laws of the universe and physics in that universe.