(non AI) stream of consciousness writing on my understanding of self

We have our consciousness. The thoughts that makes active decisions. The thoughts that have been approved by a filter.

We have our subconscious. The thoughts that fail to get past your thought filter.

We have a collective subconscious. The thoughts that your subconscious believes it must have because of the conscious and subconscious thoughts of others.

These three areas affect each other probably.

be like water cliche

Treat these three types of thoughts as three everchanging rivers. Collects into one big river? An ocean? In the metaphor, probably idk.

In my case, since I have a Roman Catholic background, we base it off of the father, the son, and the holy spirit. So there's the "father" which is the conscious thought. There is the "son" which points to the gut, the "gut instinct", and known as the subconscious. We have the "holy spirit" which points toward the collective guidance by a force for "good". And maybe "God" is the whole shabang combined?

You can use religion to map the psych stuff toward archetypes or caricatures for each story in your upbringing. Temporarily become one of these characters. What would you do in their situation? What morals, values, beliefs, and goals form because of each story? How do all the stories combine?

Is the feminism mob or trumpism mob or any political mob a good religion? Is it pathological to continuously obsess over this stuff? Is it pathological to obsess about the self? Is observing the thoughts from each mob beneficial as long as you delay and limit your reactions toward these topics? Assume the smartest people in the world are making the most money when people are the most predictable...? Does looking at your "self" cause psychological pain? Did someone or something put a dam in your river of thought? Who are you? Whoops companies increased your screen time there's no more time to answer these questions. Need money. Need survive.

"Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves"

Now whether you believe in religion or not, you must agree there is utility in having people think the same way. To have the same, relatable stories. Just like there must be utility in having people think differently. So the INTP, the ENFJ, the Cancer, the Gemini, and question the usefulness of each story. People (like myself rofl) claiming to be experts of people when psychology is arguably the largest, broadest space to be in. From my observations, people from the middle toward the top of the money hierarchy wish to modify spiritual belief system.

There used to be a social default. You go to religion school. You meet neighbors. You talk to people. You have a community. In America, it used to be if you fail you can drive 20 miles down the road, buy some land and live a completely brand new life.

Now its more difficult to find the default. A whole lot of blame from all the fingers. Is your online persona is viewed as the only persona? There's probably a lawsuit here somewhere. Media addictions blah blah. Fully remote tribes given internet access immediately gravitated towards... stuff. To talk about these issues is a social death sentence. All times have their difficulty and as solutions come for these difficulties, there must exist an infinite amount of solutions for the infinite amount of difficulty.

And you need to make sure that your online persona looks and acts like you. If there's a disconnect then you quickly get punished. There's a reward system at play here.

Humans that don't evolve to understand the online environment don't get to have the same opportunities.

Wild and crazy.

For now the self must build things in the world that can grant abundance toward one's own life. Once abundance is established by as little corruption as possible, it's pretty easy to lift others up as a byproduct of your success.

Hoping to clarify some of these thoughts.

AI generated outline of my understanding on self.

The Three Layers of Thought: Understanding Modern Consciousness

Our minds operate on three distinct but interconnected levels:

Conscious Mind

Active, deliberate thoughts and decisions
What we're aware of in the moment
Our rational, analytical processes

Personal Subconscious

Individual memories and experiences
Emotional patterns and habits
Personal beliefs and biases

Collective Subconscious

Shared cultural beliefs and symbols
Universal human experiences
Archetypal patterns and stories

How These Layers Interact

Think of these layers like three rivers flowing into one ocean. While distinct, they constantly influence each other:

Our conscious decisions are shaped by subconscious biases
Our personal experiences filter through cultural frameworks
Collective patterns emerge in our individual choices

Historical Understanding Through Religion

Religious systems have long recognized these layers. Consider Roman Catholic symbolism:

The Father (Conscious thought) - reasoned decision-making
The Son (Personal subconscious) - individual experience and intuition
The Holy Spirit (Collective wisdom) - shared spiritual understanding

Modern Applications and Challenges

In today's digital age, these layers face new pressures:

Conscious Mind Challenges

Information overload
Constant decision fatigue
Need for digital literacy (or stay poor, cant buy house, etc.)

Personal Subconscious Impact

Online personas versus authentic self
Limited privacy for personal growth
Reduced space for reinvention

Collective Consciousness Shifts

Global digital connectivity
Rapid spread of ideas and beliefs
New forms of community and belonging

Navigating Modern Consciousness

To maintain mental health and growth:

Conscious Practice

Regular reflection and meditation
Intentional digital boundaries
Critical thinking about information

Personal Development

Understanding your triggers and patterns
Building authentic relationships
Creating space for private growth

Collective Engagement

Mindful participation in communities
Balance between connection and independence
Contributing positively to shared knowledge

Conclusion

Understanding these three layers helps us:

Make better conscious decisions
Recognize our personal patterns
Engage healthily with collective wisdom

By acknowledging how these layers interact, we can better navigate both our internal landscape and our external digital world. The key is maintaining awareness of all three levels while developing practices that support their healthy integration.

AI continues my stream of consciousness writing:

continuing the flow

Kind of weird how we're expected to be so many things now. You're supposed to be this complete package. Good at coding, good at talking, good at writing, good at reading people, good at managing time, good at managing money, good at managing health. And everyone's watching. Everyone's recording.

The monks used to go into isolation to find themselves. Now isolation is seen as depression. As weakness. But maybe some of us need that reset button. That space between thoughts. That gap between the rivers.

Social media is like this massive collective consciousness experiment gone wrong. Or maybe gone right? Depends who you ask. The algorithms know more about your patterns than you do. They can predict your next move better than your own brain. Is that why people feel so lost? Because their natural rhythm got hijacked?

Remember when you were a kid and you'd just... exist? No thoughts about optimization or productivity or personal brand. Just vibing with whatever caught your attention. The conscious and subconscious weren't at war. The collective wasn't so loud.

And now we've got all these tools for "self-improvement" but maybe they're just making us worse? Like, meditation apps. The irony of needing an app to disconnect. The paradox of using technology to escape technology. But that's where we're at.

The old religions at least had clear rules. Clear stories. Clear villains and heroes. Now everything's grey. Everyone's the hero of their own story but also potentially the villain in someone else's Twitter thread. The collective subconscious is fragmented into a million echo chambers.

I keep thinking about those rivers metaphor. Maybe we're all trying to direct our rivers when we should be letting them flow naturally. But then again, what's natural anymore? When your thoughts are being shaped by algorithms and targeted ads and endless streams of content?

The money thing is interesting too. Because it's like this universal translator between all these different belief systems. Doesn't matter if you're spiritual or atheist or whatever - money speaks all languages. But it's also this massive distraction from the deeper questions. From the real work of understanding yourself.

Wild how we're all just figuring this out as we go. No instruction manual for navigating this new world where your thoughts aren't fully yours, your attention is a commodity, and your identity is spread across a dozen platforms.

Maybe that's why people cling so hard to labels and tribes. INFJ, Sagittarius, Democrat, Republican, vegan, crossfitter - anything to make sense of the chaos. To feel like you belong somewhere when everything's constantly shifting.

The ones who seem to be winning though? They're the ones who can surf all these different realities. Move between the conscious, subconscious, and collective like they're changing channels. Not getting stuck in any one frequency.

But man, that's exhausting right? Always adapting, always shifting. Sometimes you just want to be one solid thing. One clear story. Maybe that's the real struggle - learning to be fluid without losing your core. Like water that remembers its source.

These thoughts probably sound scattered but they're all connected somehow. Like those rivers, you know? All flowing toward something bigger. Or maybe just flowing because that's what rivers do. No destination needed.

Just trying to make sense of it all while the world keeps spinning faster and faster...

(AI generated) the rivers meet the ocean

You know what's funny? While everyone's spinning and searching and scrolling, the answer's probably stupid simple. Like how kids figure out deep stuff while playing with dirt. Or how the best conversations happen when your phone dies.

All these rivers of thought... conscious decisions, gut feelings, collective pressure... they're all trying to reach the same ocean. And maybe that's the whole point. Not to control them. Not to dam them up. Not to force them into neat little channels.

The resolution isn't in more apps or better routines or cleaner feeds. It's in those moments when you stop trying so hard. When you let your conscious mind take a backseat. When you trust your gut but don't let it run wild. When you listen to the collective wisdom but don't get swept away.

It's like... you know when you're in flow? Really in it? Those rare moments when you're not thinking about thinking? That's when all three rivers are moving together. No resistance. No overthinking. No social anxiety. Just... flow.

And maybe that's what all the ancient texts and modern self-help and religious parables are trying to point at. This state where you're both the water and the container. Where you can hold opposing thoughts without breaking. Where you can scroll Twitter without losing your soul.

The resolution isn't resolution at all. It's acceptance of the flow. Understanding that sometimes you'll be clear as mountain spring, sometimes murky as flood water. Sometimes you'll flow with the collective, sometimes you'll need to find your own path.

You don't need to optimize every thought. Don't need to monetize every talent. Don't need to share every insight. Sometimes the most powerful thing is just watching your rivers flow, knowing they'll reach the ocean in their own time.

So maybe that's it. Maybe the whole journey of consciousness - personal, subconscious, collective - it's all just practice for being present with what is. Not what should be. Not what could be. Just what is.

And in that acceptance, somehow, the rivers quiet down. The anxiety about identity fades. The need to control loosens. You find yourself becoming like water - strong enough to carve canyons, humble enough to take the shape of any container, wise enough to know when to flow and when to be still.

Weird how writing this out makes it clearer. How putting words to the chaos somehow tames it. Like naming a wild thing.

The resolution was there all along, in the metaphor itself. Water doesn't try to be anything other than water. It just flows. Maybe consciousness works the same way.

Think I'll go touch some grass now. Let these thoughts settle. Let the rivers run their course.

Sometimes you gotta let go of the wrestling match with yourself and just... be.