Here are some ways we find out about ourselves  .  .  .  .  .

Shock : Some people gain deep insight into their own nature without intending or even wanting it. This is discovery by accident and usually happens as a result of trauma of one kind or another. Illness, near fatal accident, unexpected death of one close to them, severe financial misfortune - there are many ways it can happen but whatever the reason, this self discovery comes about because of a powerful shock. Either the event itself, the person’s reaction to it, or both cause a surprise so profound that the person, to varying degrees, does not fully recognise who they are or the world they are in. This is often described by people who have experienced this as ‘things looking the same but not feeling the same . . . I look in the mirror, it’s me there, but I don’t know who that person is anymore. . . . .my life before this was like a dream and now I have woken up’. A common aspect, is that life feels more real, even though this is often not welcomed by the person. Some assimilate and learn, some ignore and block out - either way, a new normality slowly grows. If the shock is too severe, people always need help to get over it.

Religion is our oldest way of understanding ourselves and our world. It is a description of our world, who made it, a set of rules to live by and in nearly all traditions, a set of methodologies to find out more about ourselves. These methodologies usually require a person to accept the dogmas of the religion though in some cases, like Zen Buddhism, this is not essential. Whilst it is possible to separate the methodologies from the religion, in practice, this is not done much by the wider population. As some people have found the relevancy of the traditional religions failing, they have turned to Eastern methodologies. From guru worship to conceptualising non-duality, people have grafted on Eastern systems to the Western consumer culture but these have not taken root. Most people, even those that admire an Eastern religion, do not want to actually engage with it.

Therapy was an inevitable consequence of the rise of increased leisure time and improved medical services. People in the affluent West have significantly higher expectations of health and well being since consumer culture has come to dominance. People have the time to pursue health and well being and the market will provide the means. There are many different kinds of psychotherapy and counselling from theory-laden classic psychoanalysis to pop-culture life-coaching but all have an intrinsic shared goal - you can be better and happier than you are now. Unlike religion, where the final destination is usually spelt out, therapy is light on models of “wellness”. Models of illness, dysfunction, phobia and insanity are well established by not so the full absence of these. Perhaps such a model or goal is not needed, after all, we all know what ‘being more happy of fulfilled’ involves, don’t we? Or, do we?  Ironically, greater happiness and fulfilment rarely corresponds to what we think they are going to be.  Our folklore, literature and movies are packed with stories about this.

Philosophy can be very impressive but at the end of the day it is building a description of what a person is and what life may be. You can spend years learning what other thinkers have said about life and the world and be none the wiser about your self, because, you would end up with a model of life and not actually experienced it more closely.

Science can make a machine to look inside your brain. You can get an MRI scan and see your brain. You can have an MRI scan whilst undergoing some mental activity and see different parts of your brain light up. You can even, through surgery, have your skull opened and your brain directly stimulated by small electrical charges and experience memories, thoughts and feelings ‘artificially’ generated but seeming very ‘real’. Yet in themselves, none of these will result in you knowing yourself better. Science may describe, predict and even modify behaviour; the quality of our lives may get better but our understanding of ourselves may not follow as a consequence.

Drugs are the rainbow and the pot of gold. One day, Scientists will discover drugs that appear to deliver ‘meaning’ when consumed. The same problem will arise then as for those now that have experimented with ‘mind-altering’ drugs. Drugs may provide a vision but not the means to realise it. Put simply, they may open some doors but they cannot guide you through them.  One day, perhaps science will create a pill or a surgical procedure that will deliver peace of mind, happiness, creativity, fulfilment, spiritual understanding - every mental state we have ever wanted.  Until then, we need truth-finding methods like Praxis.

Praxis is something both old and new. Old, because its methods are as ancient as human history; new because Praxis does not sit inside the dogma of any of the paths and systems mentioned above, though it can be harmonious with all of them.  It is closest to science, as it starts from a position of applying observations until you find things out.  In a way, it represents an individual 'starting from scratch', not solely relying on a religion, not just asking a god for help, not using a therapy to just feel better but starting in a simple way to apply a method of direct and personal discovery and not settling for anything less. . . . . . .