Self-Knowledge Regulates Our Relationship with Everything
Why is self-knowledge necessary? This question has already been answered in the previous articles. Now it is time to ask a new question: “Does it solve any of my problems?”
We humans have, by nature, foresight and self-interest to varying degrees. Therefore, before acquiring any knowledge or skill, we first ask ourselves: “What are the benefits of self-knowledge for me?” “Is it worth spending time on it?”
These are the types of questions which we used to ask ourselves while we were at school, and they were almost always left unanswered. So self-knowledge can completely change our point of view on whatever we have learned. However, the necessity of self-knowledge will be understood only when we achieve it. Whenever self-knowledge results in self-improvement,[1] it can significantly change our lives.
As the benefits of self-knowledge (knowing the true meaning of the ‘self’) would be countless, we will just mention the most important ones here.
Self-Knowledge and the Value of Moments
The path to self-knowledge makes us and every single moment in our lives precious. When our ‘true self’ becomes the basis of every plan we make for our lives, then it does not matter what we do, as all we do is of great value. For example, when an athlete’s ultimate goal is to become an Olympic champion, even her diet and downtime serve that goal. When we know the meaning of our life and existence and define our ultimate goal in life on that basis, then we can make the most of every second of life.
Self-Knowledge and Self-Worth
Some people tie their self-worth to the judgment of others. If others approve of their thoughts, actions, and lifestyle, they feel good. However, as soon as they are blamed or criticized, they feel crushed and humiliated. When a person knows her true worth, she knows that no one can disgrace her. If people call a jewel a pebble, this does not lower the value of that jewel. If we know ourselves the right way, we will become like a vast ocean that dissolves everything, even the greatest humiliations and insults.
Self-Knowledge and Responsibility
All our irresponsibilities are due to the lack of proper self-knowledge. The reason we neglect our duties and become irresponsible is that we do not have a proper understanding of what we are responsible for. For example, remember when we were at school, we would take every chance or even use some tricks to skip school. Our laziness and boredom were due to a lack of proper understanding about the necessity of education, something that we are now fully aware of. Today as adults, if we have a clear and true understanding of ourselves, we will know our responsibilities as well. If we know who we are and why we are in this world, we will never violate our own rights or those of others.
Self-Knowledge and Staying away from Anxiety
When we know our ‘true self,’ we do not tie our happiness to our goals. Therefore, we feel calm and happy, no matter whether we achieve them or not. The result will not be important to us. Rather, what is important is the alignment of our life path with the knowledge we have about ourselves. In that case, whatever happens in our lives will be an achievement.
However, if we get away from our true self, no matter if we achieve our goals or not, we will feel anxious and stressed. That is because we think our happiness lies in the result, not in doing what we are supposed to do. If we do not get what we want, we will feel depressed. If we do, we will not be satisfied and will pursue more and more achievements.
Self-Knowledge and Enduring Hardships
Some people are easily broken by the smallest hardships in their lives, while others, with still bigger problems, keep going on and flourish. All of us face hardships in our lives, but the way we look at our problems differentiates us from each other.
Let us go back ten years ago and remember the biggest problem that bothered us at the time, but now it makes us smile. That is right. The issues that we dealt with in the past have lost their significance over time. But why? It is because those challenges made us grow and the big problems of the past have lost their importance today.
All these differences lie in the way we look at life events. Our point of view, indeed, stems from how we define our place in this world. As our soul grows, our power to endure pain grows as well. If we had been well aware of our ability to deal with all those adversities, how would our behavior have changed in the face of problems? We would probably have gone through this path with more peace and happiness. It is not too late though. We can gain self-knowledge to continue on the path. We will not be overwhelmed by problems if we gain a new understanding of our ‘self.’
In this article, we discussed the benefits of self-knowledge and how self-knowledge can change our path of life and our behavior when we face challenges. We also stated that self-knowledge is not something besides other kinds of knowledge, but rather it forms their basis. It is a necessity, not a luxury to pursue only if we want to.
These were the most important benefits of self-knowledge. If you are familiar with this concept, you can add more points to benefits of self-knowledge.
If you have any questions or problems which might stem from a lack of self-knowledge, you can let us know, so we can address them in the following sections.
[1]. In these articles, self-improvement means self-awareness and the cultivation of spiritual virtues and qualities, while in today’s psychology, it is used in a more general and broader sense, and usually does not refer to the cultivation of spirituality.