Who determines what is considered moral and what is considered immoral? For most, it is decided early on by an outside influence or set of influences. If you grew up going to church your moral compass was created by your specific religious leaders. "Thou shalt not...", varying bibles, prophets from ancient and modern times: these are the designers of a vast number of human's morality maps. For others,their parents were the gods of their lores. Whatever they grew up with in the household became law. Then there are those who grow up to adopt an entirely opposite moral code than their parents for the sole purpose of rebellion and clearly asserting their independence. But this is still because of an outside influence. Some have been more influenced by media, authors, celebrity, or advertisements. Others still by their specific nation's set of laws and social norms. We get handed our morality on an invisible platter and then we fight to defend it, or get saturated in guilt and shame for breaking it...our entire lives.
So, my question is "What is Morality?" Merriam-Webster dictionary defines it as "a moral discourse, statement, or lesson", Moral as "of or relating to principles of right and wrong in behavior: Ethical" and Ethical as "conforming to accepted standard of conduct". So we start off very broadly and end with a blatant definition of conforming to norms. Then who determines norms? This is a never-ending worm hole with no real truths.
The next big question to ask is, who determines your morality? Is it you? Can you honestly say that? Can you say you came up with your own rulebook alone? Of course some would say it is an amalgamation of cultural influences, upbringing, media, experiences, traumas, country of origin, and religion...perhaps even brain structure that determine your specific moral code. And they would be correct.
So, in all of this awareness, how do we change this? How do we create our own, individualistic, creative, conscious, self-determined, experiential moral system? Also, how do we balance this without losing sight of a moral sense of responsibility to the whole (Of course this opens up another set of endless questions: are we inherently empathic and compassionate or is this a learned behavior etc.). I'm sure some out there have figured this out and are living from their own map right now (Oprah get it girl). Since I am not one of those people (yet) I am coming up with my own ideas on this complex and often difficult process.
I say start by doing nothing. Go blank. Meditate until your moral code has been sent into outer space. You will need a clean canvas. Working with a therapist is another initial step in the "Anarcho-morality" movement (do I need to hashtag that shit?). Feel all of your emotions, past and present. Welcome them. Allow them all to arise and bubble to the surface in order to evaporate. Endlessly question. Never determine anything as inherently right or wrong. Question everything. Deeply. Then dive ever deeper. When you naturally realize you don't know anything and you never have...then you are ready for the creation process. I suggest you be in this blankness a while, in this yin space, and then, once guided by intuition, begin again. Birth your own story, your own laws. Learn from your array of life experiences and figure out what is truly important to you. Use your intuition as this is your true moral compass and its built right in (ruby slippers anyone?). See what comes to mind, what inspires and enlivens you. Where are you of service or where can you be? Go into the forest, step into the rivers, ask the trees. They are wise and more generous than you could ever imagine (and they're strong mother fuckers). There, you will find your authenticity. Your inherent worth not determined by anything you do or don't do or how moral you are or are not, but solely by your existence. You are therefore you are worthy (haha sounding very new age here!). You will discover You, probably for the first time since early childhood, and you will know how to be in this world. You will know true love and move forward in and as that love. I suppose that is my definition of morality.
This leads us to the ever important question, who am I? To be determined.
