The Way Toward Health - February 6 and 7, 1984 Self-Approval

February 6, 1984

There is one other point in particular I wanted to mention, though it has, of course, been discussed often before.  This is the matter of self-approval.

Many of the contradictory beliefs and negative ones discussed in yesterday’s session led to strong feelings of self-disapproval.  The beliefs were so contradictory that in living up to any one of them you actually seemed to be denying others in which you also believed.  Hence, no matter what you did you were both left with strong feelings of self-disapproval.

You are largely over that kind of reaction – yet it is still apt to return now and then when you fear that you have not done as well as you should have, or when you have momentarily caught yourself behaving in old ways.  A feeling of self-approval is absolutely necessary for any true sense of well-being; it is not virtuous in any way to put yourself down, or to punish yourself, because you do not feel you have lived up to your best behavior at any given time.

Do keep an eye out for that kind of reaction, however, so that you can nip it in the bud.

February 7, 1984

All creatures are also born, then, with a keen sense of self-approval.

Each creature is born proud of itself, and loving itself.  That same self-approval is also experienced in varying ways not only by creatures as you think of them, but also by atoms and molecules, and by all orders of matter.

Ruburt once wrote a poem about a nail on a window sill.  He endowed the nail with consciousness and self-awareness.  Now every nail is indeed in its own way responsive to stimuli.  It acts and reacts.  A nail may not choose to jump down from a window sill and dance about the room, but a nail is indeed aware of the room, of the window sill, and aware of the temperature on both sides of the window.  The atoms and molecules that compose the nail possess their own lively consciousness.  Their motion is directed by electrons, so that within itself the nail actually experiences constant motion.  Indeed, a dance so executed of great symmetry and rhythm.  The nail, then, is indeed filled with its own sense of self-approval.

I am mentioning this only to stress the fact that self-delight and self-approval are natural characteristics – characteristics that actually make your entire physical world, and world of experience possible.

It is very unfortunate, therefore, when adults inadvertently undermine a child’s sense of self-approval.  A small boy might be caught in a lie, for example, and therefore labeled by an adult in the angriest of terms as a liar.  Instead, a distinction should be made: the child made an error – he lied – but he himself is not the error or the lie.  He can then determine to change his behavior while still saving his self-respect.

All creatures are basically of good intent; even when they commit the most dubious of acts, these are usually caused by misdirected good intent.  Actually, many criminals are motivated by distorted versions of righteousness.  We will have more to say about this later in the book, but for now I want to stress the importance of self-approval in connection with exuberance, health, and well-being.

End of dictation.  I may or may not return, again according to those rhythms of which I speak, et cetera, but I do indeed accelerate those coordinates that quicken Ruburt’s healing processes.  I remind you also to read the session of the day before yesterday whenever possible.