You can have your "isms"

You can have "isms" and your "ists"

Let us look at this lists...

Existentialism 

Imperialism 

Cynicism 

Mysticism 

Materialism 

Anarchism 

Nativism 

Communism

Socialism 

Let's forgo these listed words beneath to divorce them from my illustrated point. 

Schism ( yea I can see the irony here ) 

Prism 

---------

Etc....etc... 

"Isms" are identifiers to mark a certain ideology or a way of thinking. Ideologies are driven by conceptual constructs derived from cyclical thought in the mind. Ideologies are designed to group a set of ideas and classify and discern from other conceptual constructs. 

It is important to understand ideological constructs. Ideological constructs are constructs of the mind. They do not actually exist in the material world. They emerge from the imagination and cyclical thought. Thoughts float into the human mind like clouds in a sky. They are impermanent and perpetuate more thought. Thought shows value when questioned and not immediately identified with. The complete identification with thought is the departure from presence. The ego perpetuates itself through the distraction of thought and emotion. Ideological constructs observed through passive awareness in the mind, will help facilitate in the growth of self knowledge and humanity. 

What good do isms do for the evolution of human consciousness or progress? 

It is good to see that all ideologies have some sort of "ideal" attached to it or are designed to make you "think" in a certain way. Do isms promote the idea of a fixed mind set? Since isms are constrained to a certain set of rules and regulations, they have limited flexibility in ideological change. 

The key thing to look at is the concept of isms itself. What makes narcissism different than cynicism? What makes anarchism different from communism? 

Obviously, these words all share "ism" in their structural nomenclature. The difference lies in the meaning of the words themselves. Of course, this goes for saying for all words. The word dog has a completely different meaning than the word fire hydrant. 

The effect of isms are the important issue to look at. The problem of isms comes into place when a person or a group of people attach themselves to a certain ideology associated with isms. The identification with isms can let a person relate to another persons method of thinking. From that, people can do things that fit in alignment with the ism without really questioning its legitimacy. The legitimacy of an ism depends on it's success rate when put into an action. 

When a person blindly adheres to an ism, they are subscribing to a fixed mind set that can deteriorate critical thinking, rationality and the ability to reason. The communist identifies with the idea of communism. From there, a communist can seek out other communists based only upon the adherence to communism ( an ideological construct ). 

" I am a communist! "

" Why? " 

" I feel like it is the right thing to do and I agree with the idea of communism." 

" Have you questioned the legitimacy of communism based on facts of reality?" 

" Communism works becaus it is built on good ideas that will benefit everyone!" 

The moment someone identifies with an ism they are separating themself from their authentic self and the humanity of others. The person that classifies another as a socialist or communist, is choosing to label a person as a mythical construct stripped of his or hers humanity. In reality, the person in front of you is a reflection of your contentment or insecurities. Labeling helps to strengthen the ego and illusory separateness. 

Isms are not stupid because calling them stupid serves no value in understanding the legitimacy of isms. Calling anything stupid is a forfeit of argument and plunge into unconsciousness. 

As soon as we start to identify with an ism, we must question its very nature. We must ask these questions: 

Does this ism serve me?

In what way does this ism help me or add value to my life?

In what way do isms hurt me and others? 

Am I subscribing to an ism out of the need to fill a void or combat insecurities? 

Does an ism constrain my ability to think? 

Does an ism create conflict in the way I interact with others? 

An anarchist may not agree with a communist. An anarchist who calls a communist a communist has chosen to adhere to a fixed mind set and seperate from the humanity of the other person. The identification with labels strengthens the self to divide and conquer. 

Progress lies in the questioning of all ideologies. Progress lies in seeing past the illusory conceptual fog that divides people into unconscious and sometimes violent groups. 

Progress lies in the courage and presence you bring to the interaction with others. When you can see past the ideological identifiers, you can be compassionate and dissolve conflict. The rejection of isms is not the key. Bringing awareness to why we identify with isms will shine a light on our unconscious manifestations both on the inside of us and in the real world. 

DG