Masters tell servants what to do, doctors tell patients what to do, parents tell children what to do, teachers tell students what to do, spouses tell each other what to do, religions tell followers what to do, self-help writers tell readers what to do, advertising tells everyone what to do, government tells working class what to do, the rich tell the poor what to do, friends tell each other what to do, and employers tell employees what to do. Should we keep going? Essentially, we could list this type of dynamic almost indefinitely.
Makes you wonder with everyone telling each other what to do all the time. Is it even possible for free will to exist? When we are born, our family generally decides what religion we are going to be, so the majority of us don't even get a choice in our own religion. Our genetics and environment determine our character or persona. The wealth level of our family usually determines our wealth level in life. Often our parents influence the type of career we will have and the person we will marry. Our associates and friends influence our interests and hobbies.
We are required to go to school and as an adult we are required to get a job in order to be alive. We need a job so we can eat, drink water, see a doctor and have a home. A huge percentage of us can't even make enough money from one job to eat, drink water, see a doctor, or have a home, so we usually go without one or more of life's essentials or are forced to work multiple jobs. If we are lucky enough, we are able to retire after studying and working our entire life. Assuming we haven't died, lost our mind, or been placed in a senior citizens home against our will, we might have a few years to do as we please. Which usually entails meeting other senior citizens to have coffee at Denny's since we're too old and frail to actually do anything exciting.
At least we have all of our freedoms here in the United stated of America. We have freedom of speech; except we have to be careful what we say since it could be recorded, and we could face repercussions or punishment based on what we say. Not much of a "freedom" when we could be punished for it. How about freedom of the press? If you consider the fact that the majority of the media is owned by a select few and is heavily biased while truly unbiased media is almost non-existent, that wouldn't really be constituted as a freedom neither. Well at least we can all vote and have a say on how our country is run unless you're a permanent legal resident, convicted felon, currently serving time, or have a certain type of mental disability. A "freedom" should be equal to everyone otherwise it's just a privilege.
How about the freedom to just exist somewhere? As long as no one owns the land you're existing on, otherwise you can get punished for loitering or trespassing. We also better make sure we aren't being too obnoxious in a public space since we might get punished for disturbing the peace. At least we have the ability to exist in our own home without being punished, that is unless you live with abusive people, or if you can even afford a home at all. Even then, there are laws telling us what we can and can't do in our own homes.
We must surely have free will over our own bodies, that is unless you're a child, a woman, a criminal, or part of the LGBTIQA+ community. All that's left is our minds, surely, we must have free will within our own minds, am I right? Except we don't. Free will is simply a delusion within our minds. The majority of our thoughts, behaviors, and actions are dictated and determined by outside sources. We constantly hear everyone else's voices in our minds. That time a teacher told us we were stupid influences us to be "stupid" if we believed them or to prove that we aren't stupid if we disagreed. A parent who told us we weren't good enough influences our actions whether they be proving them right or wrong. How do we know anything about ourselves? We get the information from other people. It is other people who tell us who we are in order to shape and define us.
The only ability we have to truly know who we really are is mindfulness and self-awareness. The vast majority of us lack any self-awareness whatsoever. Anyone who practices mindfulness and self-awareness will quickly realize that they don't know why they do anything that they do or why they think the thoughts that they think. The more self-aware one becomes, the more aware they become of the fact that no one actually knows what the hell they are doing. We are all a bunch of preset ideas and beliefs acting themselves out within human actions.
Do you want free will? Do you want to know what it is like to be truly free? Do you want to know who you really are? Forget everything that you think you know, forget everything that you think you are, forget everything that you think you like or don't like, forget every idea you've ever had, and forget every belief that you hold onto. This is meant in the most literal sense, forget everything. Anything that you believe to be definitive. Admit you don't know anything and see what happens. Don't try to make sense of anything, don't try to explain anything, and don't defend anything. It is only by giving up your free will that you are able to see you never had it. When you see that you have no free will then you shall truly be free! Love and Peace!
