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Unwritten rules

I wonder about the unwritten rules we create for ourselves.
And how to break them.

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Posted on February 24, 2006
in Limit of my knowledge

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i think they are called conventions ... handy for living together as a society ;p
Origins seem to be mostly psychologically (the rules with which you try to cope life) or sociologically (in relation to others). I think religion tried to write them down in the first place, then we started to think we could think for ourselves ... and hence democracy was born. Ok. this might be too farfetched.
How to break them? Meditate!

Posted by   erik |     February 24, 2006 7:58 PM

If find your word choice very interesting. First there is 'unwritten'. Sometimes that also means 'unaware of'. You bump into them when you or someone else tresspasses. That's when you become aware of the rule or of the fact that is is a rule.

Then there is 'create for ourselves'. I don't think create is entirely the right word. Unwritten rules become part of us while we grow up. Even very young children are aware of unwritten rules. So they are defintely something that gets passed along with education. They become a part of your being an later on they mingle with your core values and it becomes difficult to disentangle them.

As to how to break them... First you should ask yourself why you should want to break them or one or a few. If you break them all I think you break the core of your personality.

So what I'm guessing here is that you encountered an unwritten rule you were not aware of and that it is bothering you. You probably can break it, but a lot depends on what kind of rule it is. And you should also consider that if you remove a rule there will be room for other things to surface. You might ask yourself if you are ready for that. On the other hand, if you really want to change it: awareness is the first step. Keep the awareness and observe yourself. When you catch yourself 'obeying' the rule, act upon that and try to figure out why you obeyed it in on that specific moment and occasion. With much questioning, comes much understanding.

Posted by   Lies |     February 25, 2006 7:05 PM








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