Webinar Series - 4

Faire, Avoir, Etre and Me!

We unconsciously adopt ideas and attitudes of others – also called introjects - whether culturally, socially or familial. A trigger to view these introjects was the article “Why the French don’t show excitement,” by Emily Monaco.  A Webinar for professional members of Aastha Foundation explored this theme over two sessions on July 31st and Aug 8th, 2020.

The meet on 31st explored the predominant way of one’s interaction with the world. The author believes the world lives either in the faire mode (to do) - long to-do lists, living in action mode etc or in the avoir (to have) mode – better, bigger, faster. Or some cultures veer towards être (to be) – watching the world roll past, observing and being with nature. Indians, it would appear, are naturally drawn to the être way of living but we are patterning ourselves now on the ‘Faire’ - ‘to do’ way.

Though the article focused on cultural differences between the French and American people, it triggered personal exploration avenues for our entirely Indian group of professional members. The group reflected on the article and individual journeys, and the second week saw deeper exploration on personal introjects and their impact on ‘I was; I am; what I wish to be,’ in the canvas of their own life spans in a 3 hour session. Each participant saw for her/himself the changes, the persistence, the feelings evoked in doing what they are currently doing. Most felt past tapes replayed from time to time and reflection and redefinition were in order. Each participant saw for her/himself the changes, the persistence, the feelings evoked in doing what we are currently doing. A majority of participants felt that past voices still had a powerful influence on them and that working with these persistent voices is constant, endless and leads to redefinitions. Some were in touch with the deep exploration of existential angst and questions of “whether I matter to my own self”. Certain other questions like “Does the context define me or Do I define my context?” were explored. In pursuing personal growth, one needs to revisit the meanings held of oneself and the world.

There was a marked commitment to continue to work with oneself. There were depths explored and the programme was intense and touched a deep chord with the group. Change comes only when one starts doing that which feeds the being. Deep personal experiences were shared and reflected upon. The consensus towards the end was that these sessions were indeed powerful in keeping each one connected with self and community. In today’s context both being very important.