I think that to truly access the peak of one’s potential, a person must not deny their baser nature. Through talent or wisdom, that person should learn to channel/express their lower tendencies so that they aid—not hinder—their effort towards a greater goal. Denial works, but in the end it ties up a lot of willpower, and requires immense discipline. Most people I’ve seen who resort to denial end up mired in a battle with their desires, never investigating why, never investigating how, simply continuing to mindlessly struggle and eventually get pummeled into bitterness and irrelevance.
Dirty Sci-Fi Buddha 
The seeds of Western civilization – via the Greek and Roman empires – held a firm respect for the physical frame and its attendant requirements. The Judaic habit of bodily disgust was seen as the fetish of a slave class. And then later, monastic stoicism was built atop the greatness of these empires.
In short, I relish in my baser elements. They are the foundational stones of Western civilization. Before Socrates, there was a Thucydides.
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Yes! And before those, there were a host of humanoid ancestors which have given snake/fruit detection circuitry to both us and other primates, which among evolutionary psychologists, provides a strong basis for the propagation of the Garden of Eden narrative. The potential to do good rests largely on understanding the possible causes and root programs that are built into us, IMO, warts and all.
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I appreciate your wisdom. https://emotionalnotions.com/2017/10/28/nomination-the-versatile-blogger-award/
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Thank You!!! I’m a bit too busy to participate in blogging awards at the moment, but I REALLY appreciate the compliment!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂
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Wise words. You can channel a great deal of this part of our natures through writing. That’s why some of my villains have a really bad time towards the end of the book.
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Indeed! I think most heroes in myth and classics have to venture to the underworld and realize their darker nature before they can escape with the “gold,” so to speak and survive the dragon.
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Control and mastery – that is key.
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Balance is the key. Too much light or too much dark isn’t logical. Spring doesn’t exist without winter and fall and if you have never experienced burned popcorn you will never truly understand the scent of clean. Grey is ok, but living in the grey worlds is stagnant. Balance isn’t grey-
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Agree. And balance isn’t static either; it’s a moving target.
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I suppose it is a good thing I’ve chosen a creative path for the rest of my life rather then anything else. I don’t see any other way I can allow the expression of my baser nature without it going oh so horribly badly.
Irrelevance I think is the worst punishment a human soul can suffer.
What strikes me most after reading this post, is the idea of giving in to get out and ahead.
You make brain suffer thinky-pain. I must reboot.
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Hahaha! Yeah if someone’s lucky, I think they can express their bad half in a constructive physical manner, but man that’s hard on the body.
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Is that…experience talking? 🙂
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