Know yourself (meaning) - everyone must study himself in order to understand the meaning of life, to develop the right attitude towards it (the commandment of the Delphic Oracle).
“Know thyself” is a translation from the Latin phrase “Nosce te ipsum” and from the Greek “Gnothi se auton”.
The ancient Greek philosopher Plato in the dialogue “Protagoras” reports that the seven sages of ancient Greece (Thales, Pittacus, Bias, Solon, Cleobulus, Myson and Chilon), coming together in the temple of Apollo in Delphi[ 1 ] in the 6th century. BC uh, they wrote: “Know thyself.” Therefore, this thought is also called the “ commandment of the Delphic oracle .”
Plato in the fresco "The School of Athens" by Raphael Santi
The ancient Greek philosopher Chilo formulated this thought as: “Know yourself, and you will know the gods and the Universe.”
The young philosopher Socrates, having visited this temple in his youth, made this phrase the motto of his philosophy.
Notes
1) Temple of Apollo (Delphi) - now the ruins of an ancient Greek temple dating back to the 4th century BC. It was built by Spintar of Corinth, Xenodorus and Agathon on the remains of an earlier temple dating back to the 6th century BC. e.
Definition of the concept
Self-knowledge is a process in which an individual (personality) studies his own mental and physical characteristics and characteristics, and engages in self-understanding.
The process of self-discovery continues throughout life, starting from the moment of birth.
“Know thyself,” who said that? The famous expression “know yourself” belongs to several sages of Ancient Greece.
As reported in Plato's dialogue, it was Thales, Pittacus, Bias, Solon, Chilo, Cleobulus and Misone who met in the temple of Apollo at Dolphin to debate. In the course of lengthy disputes, they came to the truth , which they later carved on the wall of the temple.
Some sources indicate that the author of the wise saying is Socrates. But in fact, he only made this idea public, explaining to his students the very essence of this “formula”.
What does it mean to know yourself? The meaning of this saying is that every person needs to get to know his true “I”, to see his fears, desires, hopes, strengths and weaknesses. At the same time, you cannot turn away from vices and indulge yourself in self-deception.
A person’s attention, like a two-way arrow, should be directed both to the external world and to the internal one . It is important to notice not only changes in things, bodies, objects and matters around us. It is also necessary to trace the connection between these changes and the internal response to them.
Unconscious ignorance
Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves. Or do you not know yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you? Unless you are what you are supposed to be.
2 Corinthians 13:5
In order to know yourself, you first need to understand who man was at creation, and who we are now.
So let's look at human nature:
- Man was originally “created in the image and likeness of God.” The fundamental goodness of human nature is its spirit, which is located in the depths of the heart and illuminates soul and body. The first people were literally the breath of God. Therefore, our essence is capable of unlimited development - transformation into the image of Jesus Christ.
- The human spirit is our true Self. Its center of gravity is God. The Lord and our true Self were inseparable from each other.
- The Fall is the state of people after they apostatized and disobeyed God and rejected His will. Man lost unity with his Creator and died spiritually.
- Original Sin - gives rise to our deep feelings of incompleteness, separation, isolation and guilt. It produces a pervasive sense of alienation from God, from all people, and from one's true identity.
- Separation from the Lord and our true essence is the basis of our false self. False identity develops in opposition to the true Self. Its center of gravity is itself, and its basis is egocentrism.
- God's grace is given to us through faith in Christ's death for our sins and His resurrection for our justification. Our false self is put to death and a new self is born. We have the victory over sin won by Jesus. It is not our individuality that is destroyed, but our separation from God, from creation, and from other people.
- Experiencing how God loved us and gave His Son allows us to let go of our false ego and go on an inner journey to our true identity. Diving deeply into the true Self that resides in our heart is the path to our center and union with Divine love.
Basically, in these points, I have described to you a brief history of humanity. As well as human degradation due to certain actions and events. It turns out that the human soul has not only undergone a fundamental change, but has been completely distorted. And this distortion penetrated not only into human thinking, emotions and feelings, but also permeated all areas of life.
In fact, we see this world not as it really is. But the way we pass it through ourselves. Information comes to us from the world through the five senses and is instantly distorted by our perception.
As they say: “garbage in, garbage out.” Initially, this is a computer principle meaning that if the incoming information includes errors, then when passing through a certain system, erroneous conclusions will be obtained. There is a constant system failure in our mind that affects the entire reality of life.
As are the thoughts in a person’s soul, so is he.
Think about this: Do you think you are the person you see in the mirror?
But in reality, you do not see yourself, but only your reflection in the mirror. It's just an image in your mind. Each of us carries with us a mental image of ourselves. Psychologists call this mental image of ourselves an “internal mental image.”
Imagine for a few minutes that you were born not in Russia, but in France. Your parents moved to Europe before you were born. You learned French, not Russian. The culture was the opposite of the one you grew up in. We received a different education and profession that we had not even thought about in our current lives. But you are the same person: your parents' genetics, temperament and personality are the same. Only the surroundings and environment have changed. Accordingly, friends, society and upbringing were different.
Do you think you will remain the same person as you are now? Or will you become a different person?
A mental internal image is like glasses through which we look at reality. And so, based on what we see through these glasses, we choose the behavior that we consider appropriate for the given situation.
The false “I”, which I have already written about, is the dirty glasses of our self-perception and distorted vision of the world around us. Therefore, our behavior will not correspond and harmonize with reality.
But if we have poor vision, then we can go to the doctor to correct the current situation. Check our eyes and then make glasses with suitable lenses that will improve our vision. Or, at least, they will give you the opportunity to see everything in a more correct color. Correcting your inner vision is not such an easy task. But not hopeless.
Of course, many believe that “the grave will correct the hunchback.” People really rarely change, and as Dr. House said: “everyone lies.” After all, we are all by nature inclined to hypocrisy, and therefore the appearance of truth is more pleasant to us than the truth itself.
There was one robbery in America that interested psychologists. In 1995, McArthur Wheeler from Pittsburgh robbed two banks in broad daylight without any disguise. Security cameras captured Wheeler's face, allowing police to quickly apprehend him. But the most interesting thing is that the criminal was shocked by his arrest. And during interrogation he uttered strange words: “I smeared juice on my face.”
Psychologists conducted research and discovered the Dunning-Kruger effect. Our brains have a tendency to succumb to it. This means that we have certain mental models and beliefs in our heads that we truly believe, even if they are not true. In other words, our subjective ideas sometimes replace objective reality for us.
Thief MacArthur Wheeler was convinced that smearing himself with lemon juice would make him invisible to video cameras. He was so convinced that he smeared the juice on his face and went to rob banks without fear. Therefore, what is absurd to most people may be an irrefutable truth to some.
Role
What is the importance of human self-knowledge?
The role of self-knowledge is difficult to overestimate, since it is not just a function available to intelligent beings.
It is rather a tool with which you can achieve harmony, success and balance at all levels of life.
Through self-knowledge, you can achieve personal maturity and form an objective self-esteem. A person who is aware of himself, his strengths and weaknesses, can choose the right way to achieve his goals.
Thanks to self-knowledge, a person can understand his own desires, discarding externally imposed stereotypes and the desire to meet other people's expectations. This is very important because often we choose the wrong path.
For example, a born ballerina goes to study to become an accountant because her parents convince her of the rationality of such a choice. And a talented artist spends his whole life trying to please his mother, who dreamed of seeing him as a doctor.
As a result, people live an “alien” and unhappy life. But they cannot find that very saving thread that they can grab onto and get on the right path, because they are afraid to look into the eyes of their grievances, fears, attitudes, etc.
Self-knowledge fills life with meaning. After all, mechanical actions limited to earning a living and rare entertainment cannot replace the highest meaning and purpose of existence.
And a person who directs attention deep into his “I”, sooner or later finds his true purpose and begins to strive for high and fulfilling goals.
The result of self-knowledge is control over your own feelings. They are no longer a mystery to a person who has come to know himself. The nature of anger, envy, irritation, joy and sadness becomes obvious.
All feelings become in a person’s eyes not just a hurricane that captures the mind and deprives one of the will. They turn into logical, predictable and expected processes that can be analyzed and controlled.
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If you ask me where to start self-development, then I will immediately answer - from knowing yourself. Self-knowledge is an important component in the process of personal self-development, along with self-improvement and self-actualization. Having come to understand the meaning and awareness of your abilities, you will become interesting not only to others, but also to yourself, your personal self-esteem, quality and fullness of life will increase.
Start with yourself and explore yourself first
Marcus Aurelius
For the first time, the topic of self-knowledge arose in the religious concepts of the Ancient East, where it was attempted not only to reveal the essence and meaning of self-knowledge, but also to analyze the very technology of self-knowledge, the elements of which are used in modern psychology. The theme of self-knowledge is most fully reflected in Buddhism, where, according to the sermons of the Buddha, a person must renounce his Self and achieve enlightenment through meditation.
Self-knowledge in Christianity is viewed somewhat differently. It acts as a means of comprehending one’s divine essence, unity with God. The more a person realizes his sinfulness, the more he takes the path of self-development. Personal self-knowledge is knowledge of one’s true calling, which consists in discovering the image of the Living God, and the means for one’s development is faith in oneself.
Self-O-Knowledge of Man-o-Vek-a - these words literally express their essence. SAM - means “OM”, that is, one with the Divine Monad of the Higher Self, with an internal teacher, without impositions from the outside. Software is the way. KNOWLEDGE means Light, understanding, knowledge of the plan. To know means to be, to know, to gain awareness. CHELO – means a student, a cognizer. CENTURY - means the time allotted for self-knowledge of a person.
Know yourself - and you will know the Gods and the Universe
Motto of the Delphic Initiation
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Structure
Self-knowledge consists of several elements:
- of “I” May also appear under the name "Ego". The definition includes a person's relationship to himself and his dominant ways/strategies/ways of interacting with others.
- Self-control . This is the subordination of one’s own behavior, state and actions to the standard accepted in society (through the volitional component).
- Self-esteem . A range of feelings towards oneself, which are reflected in an intermediate meaning between the polar categories of “acceptance” and “non-acceptance”.
To be or not to be?
A person who completely relies on providence and lives by the principle “we are not like this, life is like this” perceives the events occurring in his life as an accident. Bad luck, troubles at work, in communicating with others, in personal life - everything is attributed to unfortunate circumstances and bad fate. Negativity directed towards oneself perceives it as injustice and feels one’s own powerlessness to change anything for the better.
Photo: Depositphotos
In general, this approach can be differently called the position of the victim. A victim who is used to crying, complaining and looking for enemies around him. For her, the world is full of dangers and enemies, any discrepancy between personal plans and life circumstances is the machinations of fate, injustice and the notorious law of meanness. This is the bleak picture that has formed in my head since birth. Everything is the result of a general misconception about the relative place of man in the world around him.
On the contrary, sometimes there are those who at least partially accept the postulate of responsibility and personal choice for their own lives. And I am ready to look at the world around me as a reflection of my personal inner world, my views on it and the people in it. Although, of course, the first category is dominant. Which is not surprising, since we all came from a society that, in turn, developed in a similar direction over many centuries. As a result, the position of victimhood and victimhood is so common among people.
Functions
To summarize, the basic functions of self-knowledge can be called introspection and introspection . In addition, when considering the issue in detail, the functions of the process of self-knowledge include:
- Understanding yourself (working with detailed knowledge about yourself).
- Increasing personal significance (choosing positive knowledge about yourself and working with it).
- Self-test (comparing your own knowledge about yourself with the assessments of others).
Types and forms
There are many types of classifications of self-knowledge, but the traditional classification includes three basic types:
- analytical (intellectual work and mental concentration on it),
- spiritual (knowledge of one’s own purpose, higher spiritual categories, etc.),
- creative (sensual sphere).
In psychology, the following types are distinguished::
- natural,
- indirect,
- confession to yourself
- reflection,
- knowing yourself through the people around you (during interaction with them).
Stages
Where does it start? The stages of self-knowledge must be overcome sequentially, achieving 100% “passage” of each stage.
- Self-recognition .
At this stage, a person seems to draw a line between his own “I” and the rest of the world. The personality notices and recognizes its unique features, distinguishes itself in the current reality as an independent element. At this moment there is no complete picture yet. But individual moments to which the individual previously closed his eyes lift the “veil” of the secrets of his own sensory world and make it possible to explain many processes on an intuitive level. - Concept "I", . A person develops an opinion/idea about his own personality. From the noticed features, characteristics and individualities, a complete portrait is formed. At this stage, a person develops claims, aspirations, personal boundaries, etc. The individual is aware of his desires, needs and sets constructive limitations for himself. A full-fledged personality portrait is a powerful tool that keeps you on a particular path in life. After all, the established “I”-concept does not imply responsiveness to external assessments.
- Self-esteem . The formation of self-esteem often occurs under the influence of others, who give their assessment of the appearance, skills, abilities and actions of other people. But if a person is in the process of self-knowledge, self-esteem is formed at one of the stages of this process and depends on an objective assessment of the individual himself, who, like no one else, understands his own advantages and disadvantages.
Links[edit]
- "Pausanias, Description of Greece, Phocis and Ozolian Locri, chapter 24". www.perseus.tufts.edu
. - Plato Charmid
165 - "Nosce te ipsum - Definition and more from the free Merriam-Webster dictionary". Merriam-webster.com. 2010-08-13. Retrieved March 16, 2011.
- "AllExperts.com: temet nosce". allexperts.com. Archived from the original on December 31, 2011. Retrieved February 17, 2013.
- "ΕΓΓΥΑ, ΔΑΤΗ in the JSTOR literature" (PDF). Quote journal requires |journal=(help)
- ^ abcde "Plato, Protagoras, section 343a". www.perseus.tufts.edu
. - ^ abc "SOL Search". www.cs.uky.edu
. - Doctoral dissertation, "Know Thyself in Greek and Latin Literature", Eliza G. Wilkens, W. Chi, 1917, p. 12 (online).
- Pausanias 10.24.1 mentions a dispute over whether Periander should be listed as the seventh sage instead of MYSON. But Socrates, whom Pausanias cites as a source, supports Maison. Paus. 10.24
- Vico, Giambattista; Visconti, Gian Galeazzo (1993). On Humanistic Education: (Six Inaugural Addresses, 1699–1707). Six Inaugural Addresses, 1699–1707 From the final Latin text, introduction and notes by Gian Galeazzo Visconti. Cornell University Press. clause 4. ISBN 0801480876.
- "Plato, Philebus, section 48c". www.perseus.tufts.edu
. - ^ ab "SOL Search". www.cs.uky.edu
. - H. Park and D. Wormell, The Delphic Oracle
, (Basil Blackwell, 1956), vol. 1, p. 389. - ↑
Dempsey, T., The Delphic Oracle: Its Early History, Influence and Fall, Oxford: B.H. Blackwell, 1918. With an introduction by R.S. Conway. Wed. pp.141-142 (Alternate source for the book at the Internet Archive in various formats) - Aeschylus, Prometheys Bound
, p.
309: γίγνωσκε σαυτὸν
. - "Xenophon, Memorabilia, Book 4, Chapter 2, Section 24". www.perseus.tufts.edu
. - ↑
Plato, Plato's Dialogues translated into English with analyzes and introductions by Benjamin Jowett, MA in five volumes. 3rd edition, revised and revised (Oxford University Press, 1892), (see Index: Knowledge; "know thyself" at Delphi). - "Plato, Charmid, section 165a". www.perseus.tufts.edu
. - "Plato, Charmid, section 164e". www.perseus.tufts.edu
. - "Plato, Phaedrus, section 229e". www.perseus.tufts.edu
. - "Plato, Protagoras, section 343a". www.perseus.tufts.edu
. - "Plato, Protagoras, section 343b". www.perseus.tufts.edu
. - "Plato, Philebus, section 48c". www.perseus.tufts.edu
. - "Search for SOL". www.cs.uky.edu
. - William Schupbach, Rembrandt's Paradox "The Anatomy of Doctor Tulp" (Wellcome Institute for the History of Medicine: London, 1982). pp. 67-68
- Hobbes, Thomas. "Leviathan". Civil Peace and Social Unity through Perfect Government
. Oregon State University: Phl 302, Great Voyages: A History of Western Philosophy from 1492-1776, Winter 1997. Archived from the original on November 27, 2010. Retrieved January 6, 2011. - "Alexander Pope Begins His Essay on Man, Epistle II" Know thyself. » » .
- ↑
Maxwell, Mary (January 1984). Human Evolution: Philosophical Anthropology. ISBN 9780709917922. - ↑
Franklin, Benjamin (31 January 1904). "Autobiography: Poor Richard. Letters". D. Appleton - via Google Books. - "Emerson-Poetry-Gnaughty Suton". archive.vcu.edu
. - ↑
Samuel T. Coleridge wrote the poem "Self-Knowledge" in which he discusses Gnôthi seauton or know thyself. - "O Livro dos Espíritos> Parte terceira - Das leis morais> Capítulo XII - Da perfeição moral> Conhecimento de si mesmo". kardecpedia.com
. - See Entries on Google Books.
- Rhianna
McGrath, Patrick (10 January 2011).
"Know yourself." The most important art lesson of all." patrickmcgrath
. Retrieved October 3, 2013. - Ipek.edu.tr.
- "Thompson surname, family crest and coats of arms". House of names
. Retrieved April 19, 2021.
Examples from history
Vivid examples of how self-knowledge acts as an engine of spiritual, cultural, scientific and technological progress can be found in history.
For example, the principle of yoga “Ahimsa” or non-violence is the fruit of spiritual quest, self-knowledge and the search for truth within oneself.
This principle implies the rejection of cruelty and eating animal food as a form of cruelty. This concept of behavior was developed by followers of yoga and was born through self-knowledge.
Methods and methods
There are many ways to discover yourself. Some of them are available to a wide range of people. Others are attached to religious movements or spiritual practices.
- Self-observation . Observing your own thoughts, feelings, and resonant responses to external stimuli helps increase your level of awareness. You can ask various questions and look for answers to them in the depths of your consciousness. You can take tests, keep a diary, or fill out questionnaires. It is important to pay attention to your feelings, mental images, thoughts, actions and sensations.
- Introspection . It is not enough to simply collect information about yourself to consider the process of self-knowledge complete. It is important to find connections, establish the causes and consequences of certain actions. Why does the emotion of anger arise? When do tears come to your eyes? For what reason does greed arise in certain situations?
- Comparison . The comparison should not be derogatory. It only allows you to derive general patterns, think in categories, and turn your assessment of yourself into an objective and real indicator based on several studied precedents.
- Self-acceptance .
It is important to accept yourself as a whole person. It is useless to divide and crush your own “I”. Even if you turn a blind eye to the negative aspects of a personality, the picture will be biased, and life plans will be ineffective (due to one-sided consideration of personal characteristics).
How to know yourself?
Where to begin? On the path of self-knowledge, a person experiences great difficulty in opening his eyes and seeing the real picture of his “inner world .
And those individuals who manage to force themselves to get to know the dark corners of their souls begin to reproach themselves, hate and punish.
Therefore, it is necessary to begin self-knowledge with the assumption that ideal and exclusively positive people simply do not exist. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages.
And by taking the path of self-knowledge, everyone gets the opportunity to change the situation for the better (even subjective better).
The most important thing at the first stage is to look at yourself as if from the outside, without feeling remorse and disgust, without ignoring “dark spots” and nasty thoughts.
They truly are part of your personality at this point. And your reluctance to admit this fact will not save you from reality. But courage will allow you to stay on the path of self-knowledge.
Questions for self-knowledge
Self-knowledge is reflection . Internal dialogue, during which you answer questions addressed to yourself. But what questions should you ask in order to quickly form an image of “I”?
- What am I doing?
- Why am I doing this?
- What am I thinking about at the moment?
- What emotions am I experiencing now?
- How would you characterize my current condition?
- Where am I now and where do I really want to be?
- What brings me pleasure and joy?
- At what points do I get angry and offended?
- What makes me sad?
- Am I satisfied with my own life?
- Who do I envy? Why am I jealous?
Attribution [edit]
The Greek aphorism is attributed to at least the following ancient Greek sages:
- Priene's Bias [6]
- Chilo the Spartan [7]
- Cleobulus of Lindus [6]
- Heraclitus [8]
- Mayson Shensky [6]
- Periander [9]
- Pittacus from Mytilene [6]
- Pythagoras [10]
- Plato [11]
- Solon of Athens [6]
- Thales of Miletus [12]
Diogenes Laërtius attributes it to Thales ( Lives
I.40), but also notes that Antisthenes, in his
Sequence of Philosophers,
attributes it to Phemonoe, a mythical Greek poet, although he admits that it was appropriated by Chilo.
Discussing moderation and self-consciousness, the Roman poet Juvenal quotes a phrase in Greek and states that the commandment came down from heaven e caelo
(
Satires
11.27).
The 10th-century Byzantine encyclopedia Suda
recognized Chilo [7] and Thales [12] as the sources of the maxim "Know thyself".
The authenticity of all such attributes is questionable; according to Park and Wormell (1956), “the actual authorship of the three sayings inscribed on the Delphic Temple may be left unclear. Most likely, these were popular proverbs that were later generally attributed to certain sages.” [13] [14]
