There are certain beliefs we hold close—ones that define us, shape us, and give us a sense of self.
We at times
define ourselves as the product of these beliefs. As children, we inherit them
from our families, culture, experiences and they become the foundation of our
identity.
But as we
grow, we start questioning things around us, trying to unlearn and develop our
own take on the views of the world.
In this
process of change. we let go of the very thoughts that once made us and we end
up questioning if we still remain the same person or do we become someone
entirely new?
This makes
me think of The Ship of Theseus paradox. If a ship, over time, had each of its
parts replaced, does it still remain the same ship? And, if it still sails with
the same name, what is it that truly defined the identity of the ship?
Change
and Self-Identity
A few years
ago, we saw the world differently, the values we held, the things that mattered
to us, a lot of them did change, no matter how dear those thoughts were to us
at one time in our life.
When we
didn’t know much, we believed in absolute certainty, but now we embrace
ambiguity.
If we think
deeply, we might even realize that the original thoughts were not ours but a
product of our upbringing and our environment. Regardless of this, does the
change in our thoughts throughout the length of our lives mean that we are no
longer the same person we were back when we had different ideas?
If we say
that our identity is rooted in our beliefs, then every time we change, we risk
losing a part of who we are. But if we are not our beliefs, then what exactly
are we?
Are We
the Ship or the Sailor?
One way to
look at it is this: Maybe we are not the ship i.e. our beliefs, thoughts, and
experiences that change over time. Maybe we are the sailor—the one who
navigates through those changes, who remains despite the shifting parts.
This
reminds me of a movie titled “ship of theses” where the film’s characters
experience a change in their ideologies that shaped their world view. If, we
replace our moral foundations over time, what is that point, when we’d not be
our older self anymore. The film also touches the topic of organ transplant,
and how if we would have been limited to the idea of parts of a ship (organs of
body) to the identity of the ship, after a certain number of transplants, the
person would not have remained the same. But that isn’t the case.
Thus, the
idea that identity is not about holding onto a fixed set of beliefs but about
questioning and evolving with time. The continuity of consciousness—the
awareness that "I am"—may be is what defines us.
Perhaps
there is no single answer. Maybe identity is both a paradox and a spectrum, something
that is constantly in flux yet always tethered to something deeper.
There will
always be limitations of person’s perspective and tension between beliefs and
necessity to adapt with complexities of life. This can be either seen as change
or evolution depending on different perspectives.
So, the
next time we find ourselves questioning who we are in the face of change, we
need to ask this: Are we the thoughts that shape us, or are we the awareness
that watches them shift? If every part of you evolves over time, does that mean
we have changed, or have we just become more of who we were meant to be?
