Wholeness and Courage

A quote from Marsha Sinetar:

“…Wholeness exists to the extent an individual is conscious of and receptive to his innermost self…When we think about our own growth we probably think simultaneously of two co-existing and equally necessary elements: self-knowledge (i.e. knowing who the self within us really is and awakening to the values, needs and wants of that self) and the ability–perhaps I should say the will–to act out that real self in our lives. This close tie between knowing and doing can explain why, for many, self-knowledge is generally resisted. Certainly it takes great courage to know ourselves as we truly are since this knowledge makes demands on us–demands not everyone wants to fulfill. For some, self-knowledge means letting go of the idealized image their intellect (and perhaps family or friends) thinks they “should” be. For these people, living out the real self may mean living quite unspectacular lives. For others, knowing the truth of their being may mean stretching into untried, frighteningly difficult arenas…For almost everyone, in order to accomplish the knowing part of the wholeness equation, courage and the will to know must be paired traits within the personality…Paul Tillich’s phrase, ‘the courage to be,’ is insightfully descriptive of what is required of one who would be whole…” From Ordinary People as Monks and Mystics.