The image of freedom which is being pushed and promoted, even dictated upon people in subtle ways is an ego-centric image. It identifies with and takes pride in reactivity to any sort of authority, mainly those of traditional and religious boundaries. Once you question this form of “freedom” you can also meet this dogmatic and reactive posture, as if you have questioned an unquestionable absolute / universal value. It is not freedom itself, which as a word can function like a weapon to blow apart any other value system than the modern man, but the image sitting behind it; the ego-centric human. Two great examples to study this are Anne of Green Gables aka Anne with an E, and Masih Alinejad. In a recent interview with Jordan Peterson, our hero proudly mentions that as a child she was “out of control” rebelling against any authority of her parents, and that rebel has now evolved into a freedom-fighter.
In the case of Anne with an E, the way Netflix has pictured it, the story begins with her arriving in a “new” world. In this world she lives with a self-centered authority to constantly bend the conditions around her to serve her needs and desires. The way it is pictured, this behavior, or better said posture towards the “world” is attributed to an innocent “free” spirit. “She has a way with words…” is mentioned in the dialogues. It is so easy to lose sight of another attribute that stays behind the scene: being an orphan to the origin.
On the other hand, at the heart of almost all traditional, indigenous and ancient religious order is a soul-centric image of humanity. This is regardless of how they have been historically practiced. Is it possible that it is the ego-centric image that is trying so hard to break away from the “old” systems, misusing and misinterpreting the historical data to question the totality of old traditions, the soul-centric image included? The proportion of reliance on historical data and the absence of the symbolic reading in interpretation of the data gives us clear clues for an answer.
The ghost that was released in the world, who aimed to leave one continent behind and arrive to a new continent with new dreams of a “more beautiful world” has now shifted its domain to consciousness-continents. It makes bold claims about “collectively” leaving one level of consciousness and arriving at a “higher” one. Here again we can see the ego-centric image of humanity and the cosmos at play. The form of consciousness that is subject to evolution over time is a by-product of stripping away the dimensions of the soul. It is a consciousness flattened on time-space, subject to history and a materialistic view of reality, this planet included.
This is a hungry ghost. While eating teachers, elders, ancestors, cultures, value systems, spiritual traditions, highly-charged words, religious symbols, organic lifestyles, conscious communities… it gets even more hungry. Hunger is embedded in the image behind it. Instead of a sun, a blackhole of never ending desires is sitting in its center. The nature of desire will not change if you dress it with the word longing, just as the nature of the need to be in control of the world, to be the highest authority, does not change if you dress it with the word freedom.
