[valensds]

I remember a conversation I had with an older mentor of mine. It was one of those instances where you aggree, but with reservations.

This mentor was an older female, who was reminiscing on her views about why people don't like themselves. She boils it down to the subject of morality. In her view, People who do immoral things end up disliking themselves.

I disagree.

For one, I feel like alot of our denigration of ourselves comes from our self-alienation. That is my view, and I am convinced that self-alienation is a prominent factor in our sense of disatisfaction about ourselves. I see that we are afflicted by negatively negative self judgement to the degree that we are self-alienated.

And this is an interesting phenomenon to think about, in terms of where it comes from. I suspect that self-alienation is a learned behavior, but as to where it comes from I do not know.

But I mention my mentor's theory of it boiling down to morality because I do not think that self-alienation comes from a rejection of the self. I think it comes from an an inability to find enjoyment in the present moment. And where is there to go besides where you are? Is it not logical to surmise that if one did exist, that one would exist immediately?

If you are not present, you are alienated from the present.

I see that because we do not properly relate to the Now, we seek out all sorts of objects and experiences in order to fulfill ourselves, such as vice/sin, or self-improvement.

That brings up an interesting subject: perhaps Vice and Virtue are two sides of the same coin.