Discernment
Mar. 14th, 2022 11:44 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
serafaeryIt refers to the ability to see the difference between two paths and know which one is the better way forward.
Discernment is an essential skill because it's a process for making decisions that includes but also transcends rational analysis. It's critical for deciding which desires to pursue, and which desires to leave behind. After all the rational considerations have been laid out, what if there isn't a clear-cut way forward? This happens all the time in life.
Many books have been written about improving ones ability to discern well. Here is a distillation of some key points.
1. Pay attention to the interior movements of the heart when contemplating different desires. Which give a fleeting feeling of satisfaction, and which give satisfaction that endures?
2. Ask yourself which desire is more generous and loving.
3. Put yourself on your deathbed in your mind's eye, and ask yourself which desire you would be more at peace with having followed.
4. Finally and most importantly, ask yourself where a given desire comes from?
Desires are discerned, not decided. Discernment exists in the liminal space between what's now and what's next. Transcendent leaders create that space in their own lives and in the lives of the people around them.
From "Wanting: The Power of Mimetic Desire in Everyday Life" by Luke Burgis.
Discernment is an essential skill because it's a process for making decisions that includes but also transcends rational analysis. It's critical for deciding which desires to pursue, and which desires to leave behind. After all the rational considerations have been laid out, what if there isn't a clear-cut way forward? This happens all the time in life.
Many books have been written about improving ones ability to discern well. Here is a distillation of some key points.
1. Pay attention to the interior movements of the heart when contemplating different desires. Which give a fleeting feeling of satisfaction, and which give satisfaction that endures?
2. Ask yourself which desire is more generous and loving.
3. Put yourself on your deathbed in your mind's eye, and ask yourself which desire you would be more at peace with having followed.
4. Finally and most importantly, ask yourself where a given desire comes from?
Desires are discerned, not decided. Discernment exists in the liminal space between what's now and what's next. Transcendent leaders create that space in their own lives and in the lives of the people around them.
From "Wanting: The Power of Mimetic Desire in Everyday Life" by Luke Burgis.
