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How to Change One’s Nature · Sri Aurobindo Studies

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  As the awareness develops of the influences that have shaped our
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  character and active nature from our ancestors, our parents, as
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  well as the influences from our peers and from the society at
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  large, we begin to develop a respect for the complexity of
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  the task and the reasons why we cannot simply use our mental
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  conception and will power to change our own nature.
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  There's too much embedded in the subconscious layers of our being
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  not to speak of what resides in Universal nature to Simply
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  isolate ourselves from all those influences and create ourselves
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  a new out of whole cloth. At the same time the task
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  becomes easier. If we view it as one that
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  addresses factors that are not part of our core conception of
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  our own personality, the power of this approach then is the
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  ability to separate oneself from the factors that need to be
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  examined and changed and to recognize them as influences and
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  forces outside ourselves and thus less embedded in our sense
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  of self. As we sift through these
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  influences, we begin to recognize patterns that can be
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  modified adjusted or simply removed as no longer relevant in
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  the present day. Atavistic formations can be
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  dispensed with one simply can ask oneself.
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  Why must this be done? Just because my parents or
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  grandparents or more ancient ancestors, did it.
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  This way. We actually see this example,
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  working out today and Various ways.
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  It is a known fact that children who were subjected to corporal
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  punishment by their parents tend to exact similar corporal
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  punishment on their own children.
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  That is the way it was done to me and it worked so I should do
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  it to them. Yet we see here and their
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  parents Awakening to the harm that corporal punishment can do
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  to the children and finding another way, to address the
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  education and development of the child without resorting to
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  physical violence. This illustrates that indeed
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  change can take place when conscious awareness and
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  understanding is brought to bear on the old habits, folkways
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  traditions, and customs. The mother notes quote if you
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  really want to transform your character it is that you must
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  do. It has always been said that it
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  is impossible to change one's nature in all books of
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  philosophy. Even of yoga you are told the
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  same story. You cannot change your
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  character. You are born like that.
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  You are like that. This is absolutely false.
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  I guarantee it is false, but there is something very
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  difficult to do to change your character because it is not your
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  character, which must be changed.
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  It is the character of your antecedents, and then you will
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  not change it because they have no such intention, but it is in
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  you that it must be changed. It is what they have given you
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  all the little gifts made to you at your birth.
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  Nice gifts. And is this, which must be
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  changed, but if you succeed in getting hold of the threat of
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  these things, the truth read, since you have worked upon this
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  with perseverance and sincerity. One fine morning, you will be
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  free all this will fall off from you and you will be able to get
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  a start in life without any burden.
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  Then you will be a new man living a new life almost with a
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  new nature. And if you look back you will
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  say it is not possible. I was never like that. and
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  quote, reference SRI aurobindo, and the mother living within the
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  yoga approach to psychological health and growth, disturbances
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  of the sub-continent collective subconscious influences Pages
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  111 to 118