Self-Sentimentalism (160)

Introduction

The thought process and its corresponding emotions that we call sentimentalism is something that is very painful for us. We at first don’t think that, but after some time of putting our attention on this point we come to realise that it is indeed true.

So for us, if we don’t want to bring pain to ourselves, one excellent really thing to do is to not think about ourselves and those we love sentimentally. In other words don’t take yourself sentimentally. It seems cruel but the real cruelty is hurting ourselves or getting hurt all the time because we think about or regard ourselves sentimentally.

What Life Shows Us Time and Time Again

The events of life show us this very often that the more we expect others to think about us in the sentimental way the more we are going to be disappointed, feel upset and even betrayed. We even in fact believe that children, friends and parents should because they love us think about us sentimentally or be sentimental towards us. The main thing about sentimentalism is that it is not so practical. We can do so many impractical things out of sentimentalism and not to mention how much money we can waste as well.

At First Difficult

At first to remove sentimentalism from ourselves or the thought that no-one will see us sentimentally horrifies us. We think that we will become cruel, that there will be no love in life. Everyone will be hard, tough, practical and exact with us. Sometimes though being sentimental seems the best but it is not often. It can make things more complicated.

Question the Beliefs

We really ought to question all these things or these fears that we have. People should be sentimental towards us? Expecting others to think sentimentally towards us does not have anything to do with us receiving or not receiving love. That love comes from others and from ourselves whether we are expecting to be thought of sentimentally or not.

We need others to feel sentimentally towards us. We say I can’t be happy or live without it. I need it for my psychological well-being. Give it to ourselves, feel positive towards ourselves by not thinking in a negative way allowing ourselves to feel pain.

Gurdjief called this sentimental ego self-consideration, because we are expecting ourselves to be considered. In fact we are wanting ourselves to be considered by external parties, we actually consider ourselves through a third party. We don’t consider ourselves directly if we were to consider ourselves directly it would not be self-consideration.

Worst Aspect

We don’t want others, because of this ego, to think, feel or act negatively towards us either. There is a very strong desire in that ego and if that desire is not met we get very angry. We can never expect others to think lovingly and positively about us. It is just too hard, too very hard to control those things, people cannot be controlled in their thinking, they are all free just as we ourselves are and expect ourselves to be.

Conclusion

Try hard within yourself to break all these beliefs and see self-sentimentalism as something harmful as it truly is. Once you see and understand that it is harmful you are getting free.

Really though are we poor and little? Are we worthy of being thought after sentimentally? I think that if we look hard at ourselves we will see that we are not like that and that we are strong, astute, cleaver and resourceful and often take advantage of others and the various circumstance of life to benefit ourselves.

End (160).