Be Authentic to Be Fake

 

Authenticity! That magical word. Just be real man. And things will work out for you. 

There seems to me a push towards Authenticity in our current industrialized society. It's a word that makes us feel different things. Mostly positive and fairly elusive. It can mean different things, but mainly retains its bone structure in the grand scheme of things. Striving to be authentic seems to be a North Star. An ideal with perceptions and distortions. There is what we think about Authenticity and how it makes us FEEL. Or at least how we THINK we FEEL. It's an interesting thought cycle to ponder and get lost in if you're not careful.

If you are trying to achieve a certain state such as (Authenticity) then we are moving away from the present moment (what is). We are attempting to go inward while missing the mark of listening and experiencing what is happening within us. We may have an "Aha" moment, but then quickly retreat into an anxious state. The same old worries and insecurities. " Did I do the dishes? What's for Dinner? What can I do Friday?" And so on and so on. 

The idea of Authenticity can act as a mask. We want to be true to ourselves and express it outwardly towards the world like a beacon of light. A radiant being that is perfectly accepting of our own flaws and positive attributes. Anytime you revert to the Narrative "I" when looking at yourself you are only strengthening that sense of self. The attachment to that cyclical nature of thought which is tied to the past. Attempting to be Authentic relies on compensatory mechanisms and a myriad of precocious projections. All products of the past. It is that act of trying and pursuing that creates an illusion of Authenticity. A definition and a box. Limits within limits with pauses and breaks. 

How can we measure Authenticity? It's such an open concept. A product of analysis and thought. It means many things to many people and it is different based on everyone else's skewed perceptions. People are influenced from sense data and then process it in their own light. They may even just tacitly accept the definition of someone's version of Authenticity. An attribute of Memetic Desire (We want what others want or what they think they want). We might want to be Authentic because we want to feel freer or at least at more ease with out own self image. Is there a limit to all of this? What happens when we stop trying to be Authentic and simply move from moment to moment just accepting and experiencing each sensation and thought arise within us? When we stop trying to be Authentic, we may even attempt to scratch what Authenticity may even mean if it even means anything. 

Can one be Authentic if they are consistently resisting "what is"? Humans are great at being reactionaries. It's easy to push back against things and feelings that make us uncomfortable. Discomfort is a healthy messenger. Discomfort can signal growth and much more. How much of being Authentic is not about embracing the discomfort in all external and internal stimuli?

Just Be Yourself. We have heard that phrase parroted many times before. It's a platitude. It seems as if Just Be Yourself has been replaced by Be Authentic. A miracle in marketing and ambivalence. What would it even mean to be yourself and what would be a definition of the "true" sense of self? Perception is reality and reality is rather skewed. There is what we think of ourselves and what others think of us. They are not the same. 

What's the difference between being Authentic and faking being Authentic? If we can just imagine ourselves being authentic and "act it out" then what are we really doing? Are we really being Authentic if we are putting on a front or a type of image of how we think we see ourselves? Think on it. Let's say I would like to be brave. How would I go about doing this? Well I would have a general idea of what it means to be brave in the world. All the symbolisms and interpretations intact. Then I would act it out in how I thought bravery should be materialized in its own form. Does that make me more brave or does it give the illusion that of being brave? After all, being brave can have a vast amount of different interpretations. It is a definer thus it also acts as a limiter. 

Are we really being true to ourselves if we are attempting to be fake? Is it all just an elaborate rouse to escape the discomforts, slings and arrows of outrageous fortune that is foisted upon us on a daily basis? Is being Authentic just a way to run from how we want to see ourselves. The ugly bits and all. The sides we stuff down the bottom of our psychological sock drawer. It's more about how we look at it than how we respond to it. How we choose to be authentic rests more on how quiet we are in observing the world within us and outside of us. It's more than attempting to cosplay an amorphous idea that may not lead us anywhere, but more away from ourselves. 

But then again, once we start defining what Authenticity is we limit it and some of the mystery lost. Would being open to the idea of Authenticity as more of an unattainable ideal allow us to be flexible in how we see us as individuals without necessarily trying to define ourselves? 

DG