Philosophers and psychologists alike all debate the question of whether our actions, along with their intentions are simply our nature or the product of the way in which we were nurtured. Under traditionalism, it would be that our thoughts and the way in which we perceive the things around us come from our upbringing and environment. We adopt our parent’s religion, our friend’s music taste, and the fashion of our idols. Even if you choose to reject these things, that habit of rejection could probably be traced back to some source in the way you were raised.
This thought process means that humans inherently experience things and act upon them based on their nurturing, as every group of humans subconsciously adopt traditionalism to a certain degree. So, under the assumption that our thoughts are the product of our environment, a person that is not self-aware acts solely based upon the way in which they were nurtured. This is where Plato’s theory of fulfillment and Eastern philosophy’s modes of enlightenment and mindfulness come into play; both revolve around the idea of thinking about your thoughts. It is the awareness of your thoughts that breaks the chain of doing as the people who raised you. It is the awareness that your thoughts are separate from the vessel that carries out the actions; your thoughts are not you, the things you do are you.
Back to acting upon traditionalism, the choices we make are subconsciously to preserve your nurtured self, acting in self-interest, it is human nature to protect where you came from. When Plato’s ‘thinking’ or mindfulness is brought into our thought process we are able to step away from acting on impulse and operate in a more utilitarian manner.
The theory that when individuals act apart from their thoughts that they have been nurtured to hold proves that humans are inherently good, so long as the mindful decision goes beyond immediate self-interest. If humans are able to be aware of their thoughts and separate them their actions from them, must be their natural predisposition.
We act naturally based upon the way in which we are nurtured, however, we can nurture ourselves to act solely based on our inherent nature.
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