Questions to self:
If
I feel free, am I creating it for others? If I do not feel free,
perhaps I should, as compared to some countries and cultures, I am very
free?
Similar emotions: .
Opposite emotions: .
Bach Flower Remedies:
Centaury
[freedom from domination of others], Walnut [freedom
from limiting influences], Chestnut Bud [freedom
from needless repetition of life experience], Wild Oat [too
free, need life purpose].
California Flower Essences:
Bleeding Heart
[freeing oneself from needy behaviour in relationships],
Sagebrush
[freedom from clutter, whether things or lifestyle],
Iris
[winged creativity], Fairy Lantern [childishness
as inappropriate expression of freedom].
Quotes
Importance of Freedom
"Freedom
is the most important thing for a human being." (Refugee, BBC,
3m52s, posted and accessed 14 May 2016)
Any
non-violent attempt to escape from a Mexican
prison is not punished, because “it’s human nature
to want freedom”. (Seen on
the internet)
Personal Freedom
"Fantasies
can set you free." (Dr Stan Dale)
Viktor
Frankl, psychiatrist and Holocaust survivor, in his book Man’s
Search for Meaning:-
-
The one thing
you can’t take away from me is the way I choose to respond to
what you do to
me. The last of one’s freedoms is to choose one’s
attitude in any given
circumstance. -
Between stimulus and response, there is a space. In that space is
our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and
our
freedom.
"We
are not always free to determine the events we will have to face, but
we are free to decide how we will live them. Our freedom lies in the
inner
attitude we adopt towards them." (O.M. Aïvanhov)
"Like
a broken gong. Be still, be silent. Know the stillness of freedom.
Where there is no more striving." (Buddha, Dhammapada)
"You long for freedom? Whatever happens to you,
do not become troubled or discouraged, but see to it that your spirit
gradually
regains control of the situation. Because only the spirit is truly free
and
soars high over events. When you restore the spirit to its
place within
you, something tells you that no obstacle, no hardship, can destroy
your
balance, your peace or your love, on the contrary. And since these
illuminating
experiences have taught you values you can count on, cling to them. Do
not
doubt the beautiful and great things you have lived, but take them
along with
you as provisions on this difficult path you must travel. When the
storm has
passed, you will realize that these trials which might have caused you
to lose
heart, have actually strengthened you." (O.M. Aïvanhov)
Collective Freedom
"Real
freedom will come not by the acquisition of authority by a few, but
by the acquisition of the capacity of all to resist authority when
abused; in
other words, freedom is to be attained by educating the people to a
sense of
their capacity to regulate and control authority." (Gandhi)
"Real
freedom will come only when we free ourselves of the domination of
Western education, Western culture and Western way of living which have
been
ingrained in us." (Gandhi)
For
all our desire to stand out from the crowd, there is a freedom to be
found in being together [i.e. through unifying community practices like
singing, similar clothes, dancing]. (BBC,
1m37s, posted 3 November 2017, accessed 21 November 2017)
Responsibility of Freedom
"The
purpose of freedom is to create it for others." (Nelson Mandela)
"Liberty
means responsibility. That is why most men dread it." (George
Bernard Shaw)
"For
to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a
way that respects and enhances the freedom of others." (Nelson Mandela)
Freedom
