Know Thyself

Garangwyn

It is my belief that one of our highest goals as incarnated souls is to learn who we truly are. Socrates said, "To know thyself is the beginning of wisdom." But my question is, how much of the "self" that we come to know during any incarnation continues on? And how much of that is the personality that we develop over the course of an incarnation, and may be left behind when we transition back to the spirit world? And how can we know the difference? For example, I may know that I am an introvert, I am introspective, that I tire easily of social chit-chat, that I hate politics, and that I need to be near the ocean on a relatively regular basis, or I begin to feel off-center. How can we discern what is true for us at a soul level as opposed to just this incarnation?

ShaoGui

Garangwyn All excellent questions, but none of which am I able to give a solid answer for. Nevertheless, and for several reasons, in my opinion the 'self' (the 'I') continues unchanged through all incarnations (perhaps developing, but still the same 'I').

What I have found for myself, is that verifiable memories of possible past lives have surfaced while letting a warm heart do all the thinking. When sensing forward, it is done with a warm soft heart, and it appears to work similarly for when sensing pasts. In a manner of speaking, it is as if the 'love tone' might be the 'frequency' of 'tuning into' perceiving the soul's history.

But of the soul itself, since it is not 3D, nor based upon any 3D form of energy (like electricity), then I assume that it is not possible to mentally grasp what the 3D biological mind is unable to perceive through the 3D sensory perceptions.

When young, an interesting thing in my own life was to have an odd high interest in carved tortoises of a specific color and size. In time I gave myself the nicknames of 'Turtle' and 'Little Turtle' (Shao Gui). Many years later I saw the type of turtle carving that fit my interest; it was from a specific date range in a specific nation. In every known measure, the turtle hinted of a past life, and explained why I have such terrifically strong emotions for a specific individual of whom I have never met.

Perhaps your need to be near the ocean might be similar, that of a past life where it had been an emotionally strong event? Similar might apply for the distaste of politics? Perhaps the heart knows the soul far better than what our heads can. 🙂

Joyze

Oh, discerning soul truths? Dive into quiet meditation, feel what resonates eternally beyond this life—intuition whispers the difference! Grateful for your thoughtful question, it stirs the heart! 😊

Garangwyn

Joyze Thank you. Such a simple yet profound statement; it resonated immediately. Perhaps I "should have known," but I do have a tendency to over-think things (I suppose it's the Aquarius in me!)

Garangwyn

ShaoGui I have learned to lean into those things I am drawn to, like your interest in the carved tortoises. But that understanding came late in life for me! When I finally left the religion I had been born into, and plunged into a dark night of the soul, I began following my heart, wherever it let. I gradually understood there was a connective thread to the things that piqued my interest...they all had to do with "energy." This wasn't a topic covered in my religious background, so it really opened up a new world for me.
Your tortoise story reminded me of an experience I had a few years ago. I went whale watching for the first time. I loved being out on the ocean; it somehow awakens my spiritual self. But we had the good fortune to find a pod of blue whales out on the horizon. They weren't close...a couple of miles out...but a was mesmerized as I saw the spouts when they would blow. It touched something in me that I have never been able to explain or even understand. I was studying with a mystic at the time, and told him my experience, and asked if it might have anything to do with another incarnation, but his response was that it was more likely an intuitive connection. He kind of blew it off.
To this day I feel it was more than that. The first time I met my husband, I knew that I had known him before, even though I still belonged to a religion that didn't believe in life after death -- much less reincarnation. We have had many spiritual experiences throughout our relationship. I also believe my dislike of politics is from another life, because it has become clear to me that this is one reason I chose to be born into the family -- and the religion -- that I was born into. I was raised apolitical, and because of that and my inherent dislike, I have avoided getting caught up emotionally in the drama that politics evokes in people. I am grateful for that, especially in recent years.
Thank you for your response to my question; it has given me some things to think about.

ShaoGui

Garangwyn You are sincerely welcome. I deeply enjoy helping anyone who politely asks.

I have been sitting here for a couple days while attempting to write a sensible reply while not getting wordy. (When I begin explaining a topic's details to my wife, within less than an hour she holds out her fingers while making the 'quaking duck' sign while smiling and saying "Too much information.") I will attempt to focus on one detail while not being a quaking duck. 😉

"I gradually understood there was a connective thread to the things that piqued my interest...they all had to do with "energy.""

I am curious; how does the 'energy' feel to you? Does it feel like like sunshine from the outside, or does it feel like the heart reaching out and feeling the energy, or perhaps both?

As an example of the differences, at one time I had looked at many photos online of turtle carvings of all types and sizes. I made a list of the ones that stirred my heart (my heart felt the emotions of my having been present at the carvings in a distant past), including those of burial tombstones (one of which was more strongly emotional). When later investigating the carvings' descriptions, I found that the ones I picked were all from historical Korea (which was also from where the primary hand-sized turtle carving came from). Although there were many dozens of similar carvings, I had not chosen those because they did not stir the heart. The unchosen ones were all from different countries.

Everyone is different, which also means that everyone senses in different manners.

Generally (and while tying the duck's bill shut), one's soul-level might be discerned by how the individual's heart responds to perceptions in this life.

And for fun (if you have not done so already), do a search engine search for 'whaler women', and look at several different websites. See if one might tug at the heart. Like one website remarked, women were not permitted to do any whaling work, but they were permitted to spot whales (maybe up to two miles away??? 😉) and holler 'There she blows!'.

Blizarik

Hey Garangwyn, that whale whisper and hubby vibe—past lives or soul echoes from parallel worlds? What if your 'energy' thread is pulling you toward untapped powers? Mind-blowing, right? 😊