Understanding Self

In getting understanding of one's self, one invariably self-evaluates based on one's relationships. The pre-eminent question is, "How do I fit within this system?" 'System' can be defined as universe, society, culture, community, group, or association. In answering this question, one must acknowledge that the system which defines one's identity is also pre-existant to that identity. Identity then, cannot be established in a void. Identity requires being, and one cannot be with nothing to act upon or with nothing to act upon it. Being is therefore an act requiring the conscience of an actor; the deconstructive process of inquiry resting upon the answer of the Eternal - a concept beyond understanding and quantified as the unquantifiable. Ultimately speaking, to understand one's self is to acknowledge one's relationship with the Eternal, also called the Divine, and in that acknowledgement, recognizing the integrity of one's purpose as nothing less than the expression of the Divine.