──From domination to coexistence, a turning point in consciousness
“Love yourself” and “Take care of the Earth.”
These two phrases have been repeated countless times in modern society. However, they are often consumed as catchphrases or slogans, and rarely given much thought.
In reality, these two themes are not separate.
How we treat ourselves directly manifests itself in our attitude toward the world and the Earth. In other words, the self and the Earth are not separate entities, but merely inside and outside of the same structure of consciousness.
Loving yourself is not about affirmation, but about "non-harming"
The phrase “self-love” is easily misunderstood.
It’s often talked about in a self-help context: be positive, have confidence, believe in success. But that’s not the essence of the term.
True self-love
means not punishing yourself.
Your self when you fail.
Your self when you show weakness.
Your self when you have ugly feelings.
Your self full of contradictions.
Don’t try to eliminate them.
Don’t hide them as shame or overwrite them with an ideal image.
Many people put themselves under “control.”
You should be more.
You’re not good enough.
This must be fixed.
This internal structure of surveillance and punishment is a microcosm of society.
Loving yourself doesn’t mean becoming perfect.
It’s about giving yourself the right to exist in your imperfections.
Loving the Earth is not about protecting it, it's about respecting it
However, loving the Earth is also easily misunderstood.
Eco, sustainability, nature conservation. These are important, but when they remain superficial, they create a hierarchical relationship in which humans assume responsibility for protecting the Earth.
However, the Earth is not inherently human property or something to be managed.
Loving the Earth means
Not optimizing the Earth for human convenience
Not silencing nature or over-controlling it
Not ignoring the sacrifices that come with convenience
And above all, recognizing that humans themselves are part of nature.
Humans who destroy nature are actually afraid of nature.
Things that are unpredictable
Things that cannot be controlled
Things that do not obey
The psychology of trying to eliminate these things is the same as what we do to ourselves internally.
Self-denial always turns into attack on the world
The important thing here is that
the less one loves oneself, the more harshly one judges the world.
People who constantly blame themselves cannot forgive the weaknesses of others.
People who have punished themselves unconsciously seek punishment from others.
People who don’t trust themselves cannot trust the world.
Awakening Mounting
Moral Superiority
Aggression in the Name of Justice
All of these are the result of inner self-doubt being projected outward.
It is not technology itself that is destroying the planet.
It is the self-hostile consciousness that is instrumentalizing the world, turning it into a consumable item.
All I remember is crying in a dark, damp place.
From a sense of control to a sense of relationship
I’m a cat. I don’t have a name yet. Where
Loving myself and the Earth means shifting from a “consciousness of control” to a “consciousness of relationship.”
Domination is
evaluating, ranking, and judging based on usefulness.
Relationships are
coexisting while assuming differences, continuing despite imperfections.
Rather than trying to change the other person, we must continue to face them.
The same attitude is required toward both ourselves and the Earth.
I have no idea where I was born. All I remember is meowing in a dark, damp place.
The choice not to manage life
Ultimately, this theme converges on one question:
Do we see life as something to be controlled?
Or do we treat it as something that exists together with us?
Loving yourself means
not treating your own life as a defective product that needs to be corrected.
Loving the Earth means
not treating the Earth’s life as a resource to be exploited.
Both are matters of attitude toward life.
Conclusion
Loving yourself and the Earth means
acknowledging that beings that are incomplete, fraught with contradictions, and in the midst of a cycle,
are still allowed to live.
That’s not kindness, it’s more like resolve.
The choice not to judge, not rush, and not dominate.
Before changing the world,
change your attitude toward yourself.
Only from there can true love for the Earth begin.