Living Your Truth: A Roadmap to Authenticity

Discover the essence of authenticity and come with us on discussion of self-discovery with "Living Your Truth: A Roadmap to Authenticity." This episode guides you through the process of uncovering your genuine self, shedding masks and embracing the freedom of authenticity.

In "Living Your Truth: A Roadmap to Authenticity," we get into the importance of being true to oneself, the dangers of self-deception and the liberating experience of acknowledging and living as your true self. 

Through personal anecdotes, philosophical insights and a powerful self-discovery exercise, we explore how being authentic is not just a facet of personal integrity but the foundation of a deeply fulfilling life. 

This video not only provides viewers with the tools to identify and remove the disguises we wear but also offers practical advice for living in alignment with one's true values and beliefs. Whether you're on a quest for personal growth, spiritual development, or simply seeking a more authentic life, this video serves as a beacon, illuminating the path towards genuine self-expression and inner peace.

For more insights and to join a community dedicated to authenticity and spiritual exploration, visit https://Kishar.org

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#Authenticity #TrueSelf #PersonalGrowth #SpiritualJourney #SelfDiscovery #LivingYourTruth #BeTrue #InnerPeace

Transcript

0:34

Do you lie to yourself? Chances are you probably do. And you probably do it way more often than you think. Have you ever felt like you're wearing a mask around in the world, and so that people will see you in different ways, or maybe even that you'll see yourself in a different way? Today we're going to discuss what it means to be true to yourself, and why it's probably the most, like, critical and important journey that you'll ever take. If you aren't true to yourself, you can't know yourself. And if you don't know who you are, how can you ever know the universe? And we're going to be going through a really important self-discovery exercise later in this video. It isn't about who we want to be. It isn't about what we think we should be. It's about who we are. And it doesn't mean that we can't change. And I think change may be the only universal constant that exist in the universe. And change is this amazing thing, and we're really massively capable of changing. But how can we ever see real change if we don't first acknowledge who we are right now? If we see this as our present state and who we are right now, it changes everything. Because we know ourselves. We start to understand the universe and our place in it, and we understand what this divine thing is inside of us. That self with a capital S, God or nature, consciousness, whatever you want to call it. And then we can really look at fully exploring our spiritual path, because how can we fully know what spirituality is to us and what this beautiful journey is all about? If we don't know who we are? Life is too important to be taken seriously. Oscar Wilde wrote that, and I've tried to live it ever since I was a child. It's always been my favorite quote, and for years as a kid and a teenager, I partially lived that way. I lived up to that. But somewhere along the way, I realized that I was also wound up too tight. I was anxious, and I didn't understand why. And so as a person, I didn't want to take life too seriously. But at the same time, I was a person who was taking life too seriously. And it wasn't until I could finally admit to myself that I was both of these things, that I could work to be more of what I wanted to be and what I needed to be. And that was someone who didn't take life too seriously. But I couldn't address it until I admitted that I was this ancient. I couldn't address it until I admitted to myself that I was this anxious, kind of tightly wound person sometimes. And it was this real shift for me. This is where I would encourage self-reflection. Can you see the dangers of self-deception? And if you look at yourself right now, where are you deceiving yourself? Where are you lying to yourself? Consider the last time that you avoided a hard truth about yourself. And what was the impact? How did it hurt you and prevent you from living a better life? Explore how ignoring your true self can lead you down these paths that don't align with where you truly need and want to go. Shakespeare said, to thine own self be true. We see this reflected across the world and throughout time in multiple religions and philosophies. In Buddhism, they discuss the Noble Eightfold Path. This emphasizes living authentically through right speech, right action, and right livelihood. These principles encourage you to act in harmony with your true nature and values. In Hinduism, the Bhagavad-Gita outlines the concept of fulfilling your innate duties in accordance with your own nature, and that underscores the importance of being true to your own nature and path. Again, we see this theme go through all these different religions. In Daoism, the concept is there on or naturalness advocates for living in a state that is true and authentic to your inherent nature. It emphasizes flowing with the Dao and the Dao is the way, and you should flow with it in a manner that spontaneous, in and contrived. It's just the way that you're meant to be, and this embodies the essence of being true to yourself. In Christianity, we see the importance of authenticity in the Bible, particularly in the teachings of Jesus. There's a strong emphasis on integrity of the heart and living in truth, and that's being true to yourself. In Islam, we can look at the concept of loss, which represents sincerity and purity of intention in your actions. It involves being true to yourself. In stoicism, you're taught the importance of living in accordance with your own nature and the nature of the universe. Stoics believe in being honest with yourself again, when you're honest with yourself. You're going to be seeing the world, everything around you in this like very vibrant and clear way because suddenly you're seeing the truth. In Judaism, there's a strong emphasis on the values of truth and integrity. The Torah and rabbinic teachings encourage individuals to live lives of honesty, both internally and in their dealings with the world. And that's the theme when you're more honest with yourself. You're able to connect with the world in a much more authentic and meaningful way. And Sikhism, you see the importance of living a life of truth, honesty and integrity. Sikh teachings contain numerous examples of living a life that's aligned with truth and righteousness, emphasizing the internal qualities of truthfulness and sincerity. Consider how you can identify your disguises. What are some common disguises? Think about different ways people disguise their true self. Things like conforming to societal expectations. Hiding your feelings. We have all these tribes around us that program us to behave in a certain way, or to act in a certain way, and all these tribes compete for your attention. And I'm talking about your teachers, your parents, your job, your friends, your coworkers, all these places, these communities that we live in are all influencing what we think we should be and how we think we should act. And you might not be conscious of it, but it's happening all the time. And so how many times have you changed your opinion, or maybe even what you wear based on who you are with? And think about other examples where you've changed your behavior based on the norms of a community or norms of the society. And was that truly in line with who you are? And before we move on to the exercise, we're going to talk about here in a second. Please subscribe by hitting the watermark in the lower right hand corner and share this video with any friends or family who you think might benefit from it. We're always trying to expand our reach and help with many people possible. Okay, now find a quiet, comfortable space where you won't be interrupted and create a no on your phone so that you can journal, or maybe have some pen and paper available so you can write down some notes. Take a few deep breaths, center yourself and set the intention to approach this exercise with openness and honesty. And the first part you're going to reflect on your disguises. Identify your masks. Write down roles that you play in your life, whether it be your professional, your parent, your friend, your spouse. What are these roles? Where are these masks that you wear for each role? Write down the behaviors, attitudes, or beliefs that you adopt that may not fully align with your true self. These are the masks that you wear and you might wear them to protect yourself. It might serve a purpose in your mind. You probably are wearing this mask. You're probably not being your authentic self for a reason. So we're going to get into that. You need to understand your masks. Choose one mask that you can focus on and reflect on the following questions, and write down your responses. When do you find yourself putting on this mask? What feelings or fears prompt you to wear this mask? How does wearing this mask affect your feelings about yourself? How does it impact your relationships with other people? And we also need to get into the origin of the mask. Think about when you first started wearing this mask. What prompted it? Try to pinpoint events or influences or even beliefs that you have that led you to feel the need to wear this disguise? In part two here, we're going to envision your true self. List out your core values. These are those really important principles that are deeply important to you, and that you feel are essential to who you are at the core. And then you're going to align actions and values for each core value. Write down one way in which wearing your mask prevents you from living according to that value. So how is wearing that mask stopping you from being who you really are meant to be? So for each value, write down an action that you can take to live more aligned with that value. Without the mask, how can you take that mask off and be more aligned with that value? Because sometimes we don't even know what our values and beliefs are. Because we're living society's values and beliefs. We're living someone else's. Like I said, our parents, our teachers are our jobs, our bosses, our friends. So what do you want? Who are you? And I think that's a really beautiful question that you can say, who am I? And that that's part of this exercise of being your authentic self is knowing who you are. And in part three, we're going to commit to authenticity. Take small steps towards being more authentic. Choose one mask that you're ready to shed and take off. And what's one small concrete action that you can take this week to start moving away from that mask and living more aligned with your true self? And you can pick anything that you want. This is up to you. And everyone needs a support system. Consider if there's someone in your life who can support you in this journey towards authenticity. Think about sharing your reflections or intentions with that person. If you feel comfortable with it, reflect on this exercise and any insights you gained and acknowledge the courage that it takes to look at yourself in these masks and commit yourself to being more authentic. Keep your reflections in a place where you can come back to them, and then periodically check in with yourself. As you're going down this path of discovery, of self-discovery. And as a follow up, incorporate this same exercise into your regular self-reflection practices so that you're constantly creating a deeper connection with your authentic self. It becomes a habit. It becomes a routine. It can even become kind of this ritual that takes you into this deeper place of personal growth and spiritual growth. Over time, you're probably going to discover that you're going to shed even more ways that you're masking yourself. And getting rid of these things that no longer serve you. And this is about, like I said, this is about growing. and we can all grow more. We can always be learning. There's amazing benefits in being authentic. You'll see improved mental health. You're going to have more genuine relationships that have reciprocity. That means it's a two way street. There's going to be give and take. You're going to be receiving things that you need to receive from your relationships, because you're going to be being real. Imagine a life where you're completely yourself in every situation. How would that feel being yourself all the time? Look at these strategies for authentic living. These are actionable steps that can align your external life with this internal truth that you're living with yourself. You can practice mindfulness and self-reflection. Mindfulness helps you become more aware of your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. You get into this present moment without judgment, and self-reflection involves taking time to question and examine. that thing deep inside of you? A lot of good things happen when you're reflective, and this can help go into the second thing, which is cultivate self-acceptance, embrace your imperfections, and recognize that being authentic doesn't mean perfect. That's not being perfect. It means accepting yourself as you are, and that includes both your strengths and your flaws. You've got to forgive yourself. You've got to let go of past mistakes and learn from them instead of letting them define you. And self-compassion is this key component of living authentically. And you could even call it grace. Have grace for yourself. The third thing is to set boundaries. Learn to say no. Protect your time energy by saying no to things that don't align with who you are, and communicate your needs with people. Say, this is what I need. This is what I don't need. And so being authentic means being honest about what you need with other people. If you don't tell them what you want or need, they don't know. So you get to set clear boundaries that help you maintain being yourself in these relationships. The fourth thing is to pursue your passions. Explore what you love. Dedicate time to discovering and doing things that you're passionate about that move you and then go do them. You know you can't just say, I love doing this. This is what I'm all about. And then not do it. You got to go out and do it. The fifth thing is to surround yourself with support. Seek like minded individuals. This isn't about. I'm not talking about living in an echo chamber. Surround yourself with people who appreciate and encourage you being you. And that's having authentic relationships that support and enrich this journey that you're on and try to limit your time with toxic influences. So while you're surround yourself with people that support you and help define you in a better way. Limit your exposure to people that are taking away from you and making you less. The sixth thing that you can do is to practice being vulnerable. Open up and share your thoughts, your feelings, and your experiences with other people. Vulnerability is a strength, and it fosters this deep connection and authenticity with the whole world around you. And you can embrace some of that discomfort and recognize that being vulnerable. It might feel uncomfortable at first, but it's something that's going to really grow who you are, and you can watch out for challenges along the way. Acknowledge the fear and discomfort that come along with being yourself. Sit down with yourself and consider how you can stand firm in your truth, even when it feels like the world is pushing against you. What can you do to say? You know what? I feel this resistance, but I'm going to keep being myself because I know that's the right thing to do. I know that's the best thing for me. I know it's going to open me up to the universe and keep me on this really great path. So just think about how you do that. It's going to be different for different people, and it's really important that you explore that. So as we come towards the end here, think about do you lie to yourself? Were you lying to yourself and not even aware of it? And how does living more true to yourself look to you? What do you think that you can do to be more authentic in your daily life? Like, how are you now? You know, go out and do it. How do you think that this would impact your relationships? And so please hit me up in the comments and I will absolutely get back with you. We have conversations just like this over at Kishar.org. It's the spiritual community that sponsors this YouTube channel and honestly, it's people like me. It's people like you just having really in-depth, meaningful conversations about our spiritual journey and path and how we live that spiritual, journey and how we stay on that path in the 21st century in this busy world that we're all in. So go check it out. That's Kishar.org. And if you want us to keep making content just like this, please like the video. And until next time, I wish you peace on your journey.