Universal Human Values Foundations

TL;DR

Universal Human Values (UHV) explore what is truly valuable for us. It distinguishes between the temporary needs of the body and the continuous needs of the self, emphasizing how self-exploration and right understanding lead to human consciousness and mutual fulfillment in relationships.

1. The Mental Model

UHV is about understanding yourself and your place in existence. It helps you identify your core values so your actions consistently align with what's genuinely right for you, moving you towards a state of continuous happiness.

2. The Core Material

You're looking at the foundational concepts of Universal Human Values (UHV), which help you understand yourself and your relationships better.

Understanding Needs: Self vs. Body

A key distinction in UHV is between the needs of the Self (or "I") and the needs of the Body:

• Self (I):
  • Needs like trust, respect, and happiness.
  • These needs are continuous.
  • The Self does not assume things; rather, it's where understanding and realization occur.
  • It's the "doer" and "seer."
• Body:
  • Needs like clothing, nourishment, and physical facilities.
  • These needs are temporary and required in limited quantity.
  • The body is an instrument of the Self.

The Human Being: Co-existence of Self and Body

A human being is the co-existence of the Self and the Body. They interact via the activity of selecting/tasting.

The Process of Self-Exploration

Self-exploration is the process to find out what is valuable to you by investigating within yourself, what is right for you, and what is true for you. It uses two mechanisms:

1. Natural Acceptance: What you inherently accept as right.
2. Experiential Validation: Testing your natural acceptance through your actions and experience.

The Importance of Values and Understanding

• To fill human aspirations, both values and skills are necessary.
• Once you know what is valuable to you, these values become the basis, the anchor for your actions.
• Right Understanding helps the human being to transform from animal consciousness to human consciousness.

Relationship and Happiness

• In relationships, you seek mutual fulfillment.
• To be in a state of disliking is unhappiness. Liking, conversely, implies a state nearer to happiness or harmony.
• Behavior based on realization and understanding is called self-organized behavior.

What to Avoid: Preconditioning and Isms

• When you assume something based on a prevailing notion, it's called preconditioning. These are beliefs (thought systems) you've adopted, also known as isms.

graph TD
    subgraph Human Being
        A["Self (I)"] -- Continuous Needs (Trust, Happiness) --> B["Body"]
        B -- Temporary Needs (Food, Clothing, Facilities) --> C["Physical Facilities (Limited Quantity)"]
        A -- "Uses Body as an Instrument" --> B
        A -- "Selects/Tastes" --> B
    end

    subgraph Understanding Value
        D["Self-Exploration"] -- "Uses Natural Acceptance & Experiential Validation" --> E["Find What's Valuable (Right/True for Me)"]
        E -- "Basis for Actions" --> F["Actions"]
    end

    subgraph Transformation
        G["Right Understanding"] -- "Transforms From" --> H["Animal Consciousness"]
        G -- "Transforms To" --> I["Human Consciousness"]
        J["Relationship"] -- "Aims for" --> K["Mutual Fulfillment"]
    end

    subgraph Challenges
        L["Preconditioning (Isms)"] --> M["Not based on Self-Exploration"]
        N["Disliking"] --> O["Unhappiness"]
    end

    A -- "Requires" --> G
    D -- "Leads to" --> E
    E -- "Together with Skills" --> P["Fulfillment of Aspirations"]

3. Worked Example

Let's say you're constantly feeling anxious about your future career (a preconditioning that "more money equals more happiness"). Through self-exploration, you sit down and look within. You realize, via natural acceptance, that what you truly, continuously want is a sense of purpose and respectful relationships at work, much more than an endlessly escalating salary. You then test this through experiential validation by volunteering for a cause you care about and finding immense satisfaction, even without high monetary reward. This newfound right understanding then becomes the basis for your actions, influencing your career choices towards work that offers mutual fulfillment and avoids the unhappiness of disliking your daily tasks.

4. Key Takeaways

• The Self needs continuous things like trust and happiness, while the Body needs temporary, limited physical facilities.
• A human being is a co-existence of the Self and the Body, interacting through selecting/tasting.
• Self-exploration, using natural acceptance and experiential validation, helps discover what's truly valuable.
• Both values and skills are essential for fulfilling human aspirations.
• Right understanding is key to transforming from animal to human consciousness.
• In relationships, the goal is mutual fulfillment, not just self-satisfaction.
• Preconditioned thoughts or "isms" are adopted beliefs that aren't necessarily based on your own natural acceptance.

5. Now Try It

For the next 15 minutes, think about something you currently strive for (e.g., getting a good grade, buying a new gadget, or achieving a certain social status). Using the concept of self-exploration, ask yourself: "Is this a need of my Self (continuous happiness, respect, etc.) or a need of my Body (temporary comfort, physical possession)? Is it based on my natural acceptance, or is it a preconditioning I've adopted from others?"

Success looks like clearly identifying whether your striving aligns with your deeply held values (Self needs) or if it's more about external or temporary fulfillments (Body needs or preconditioning).