Our Costumes: How to understand our identities and begin the process of letting them go

Bring about change by being real.  Forgive yourself for any shortcomings you perceive and be free.   Cast away the “shoulds” that keep you trapped in an identity that you would not otherwise embrace.    Let’s discuss these shoulds, they have been passed down from generation to generation throughout all history.   Even lower animal parents will pass shoulds to their children by example.   In the human species this behavior is amplified as is cognitive activity.   In recent times even more so as identities can be readily adopted in pre-packaged forms in ever evolving media.   Components of these embraced identities are modular and can be combined to form new identities for the ego to wear like a costume.  There are aspects of this system that are grounded in necessity for survival of the physical form in this world.  In fact, even the attributes of particles, atoms, and molecules can be thought of as identity.   Nevertheless,  an overabundance of identities comes with it a cost of ownership in suffering and dissatisfaction that can be destructive and deadly.   Although variance in form assures some degree of survival, it comes at what cost?

Make no mistake, your identities are a trap in this world and can hold you to a pattern of misery and despair.   They will keep you bound to a set of restrictions you would not otherwise have.  That being said,  an acknowledgement of our inevitable embrace of identity can help us to reach others and share deep and meaningful experiences that can help awaken others and guide them towards the light of truth.  Think of them like barnacles on a sea turtle, liberating when removed, but they may still leave an impression; a mark of experience;  a scar on our shells. 

Let’s list a few categories of self identities to make this more clear, this is neither a comprehensive list nor a complete definition of those listed:

• Religious: These beliefs dictate what you believe about the purpose of this world and how you are expected to attain freedom and acquire the favor of a power greater than the self.
• National: This form is beholden to the bordered cell of geography one is a member of.  You are either given this identity upon birth or must acquire it through another method.  As a member of a nation,  you are expected to favor the defense and wellbeing of your fellow citizens over those who are not part of your nationality.
• Political:  As a subset of national identity we enter a realm of political belief.   It carries with it the same constraints as national identity and pits citizens of the same nation against one another in an attempt to gain political power for the party’s leaders. It is often easier for opportunists to exploit political divisions than national divisions. 
• Regional:  Geographic not bound to a bordered cell of nationality.
• Gender:   This is dictated by identification with either the female or male of the species.  It can also include identification to varying degrees with both genders or neither.  
• Sexual:  This lies in the realm of sexual attraction and desire,  a complex set of biological and neurological traits creating a wide array of sexual identities as unique as the individual physiologies represented on the planet.   Sexual identities are often identified by a well known label which creates tribes of similar sexual identity.
• Racial:  Generally dictated by distinguishing indicators passed through genetic similarities with a physical being’s biological predecessors.
• Family:  Closely tied to racial identity it is generally defined as a group of individuals that share a common set of biological traits passed down from a common set of predecessors.   However,  this can also include members accepted in that do not share the common biological set.
• Cultural:   This is a meta identity combining other identities, for example religious, national, regional, political can be combined to create a cultural identity.
• Career:  Identity with one’s work profession.
• Belief:  Identity defined by a belief, shared or unshared.
• Tribal:  Another meta identity which can be associated with other identities.  For example; religious, national,  political, cultural, sexual, or belief identities can form a shared tribal identity.
• Addictive:  An identity created through a compulsive behavior or thought pattern, use of drugs, gambling, sex, other vices, work, or obsession with other identities, attachments, and aversions can also be considered addictive identity.

Do not think of identities as either bad or good,  right or wrong,  they are simply an aspect of how the ego mind functions in this world.   Identity can provide a sense of belonging, community, and togetherness with others and provide a foundational bearing for navigating the existential challenges of this world.  They can also cause great suffering and dissatisfaction when unhealthy attachments are formed to one’s own set of identities.  Suffering may also be caused by aversions that are felt and directed towards the identities chosen by others through the variance that naturally manifests itself in this world.

Identities also carry with them an individual and shared sensory response.   This collective sensory response can be positive, evoking feelings of love and joy in the measured form of this world.   Shared and individual identity sensory responses can also be negative and create uncomfortable and painful reactions that can have a profound impact on individual or group behavior.

This is a basic fundamental explanation of identities which is neither complete nor comprehensive.   We will refer back to the concept of identity and how freedom from identity can be realized.