Let’s do a thought experiment today.
Imagine a dark cave where a group of people have been imprisoned their entire lives since childhood. These prisoners are chained so that their legs and necks are fixed. They can’t move, so they can’t look around the cave, each other, or even themselves. They are forced to gaze at the wall in front of them.
Behind the prisoners is fire, like a campfire or bonfire. Between the fire and the prisoner is a low wall with a walkway. People walk on the walkway carrying objects, puppets “of men and other living things.”
The people walk so that their shadows are not cast on the wall, but the objects and puppets they carry are cast on the wall for each prisoner to gaze at in front of them. The sounds of people in the walkway echo off the wall, but they cannot be seen, so the prisoners think the sounds are coming from the shadows.
The shadows are the reality for the prisoners, for they have never seen anything else. Remember, they have been imprisoned their entire lives, since childhood. They can’t comprehend that these shadows are just objects and puppets, and the shadows are just that.
So now, let us expand the thought experiment.
Suppose now one of the prisoners is released. The prisoner turns around and sees the fire. His eyes are accustomed to the darkness, so the fire seems scary, and the bright light would hurt his eyes. The prisoner turns back to the wall because that is what he is accustomed to. He turns back to what is familiar, as this is real to him. This is his reality.
Now, suppose someone were to drag the freed prisoner by force up the walkway, get him out of the cave, and into the sun.
What do you think happens?
The prisoner is angry and in a lot of pain. The bright sun hurts his eyes and overwhelms him. He wants to go back to his spot in the cave, facing the wall.
But slowly, the prisoner’s eyes begin to adjust to the light of the sun. As he gets accustomed, he looks around and sees shadows. Gradually, he sees the reflections of people, trees, and things, and then eventually, he sees the people and the things themselves.
Eventually, as the day becomes night, he sees the moon. He is also able to be in the sun without the light hurting or overwhelming him. It slowly dawns on him, and he reasons what he sees. He begins to savour his newfound freedom.
The prisoner finds this state superior to his life in the cave. He thinks of all his fellow prisoners in the cave and wants to “help” them. He wants them to experience the life outside of the cave.
So he runs inside the cave but finds that the return to darkness blinds him momentarily. His eyes have gotten accustomed to the light, and he finds the cave very dark. He tries to explain to his fellow prisoners about life outside the cave and how their life now is one of imprisonment. He implores them to come outside and free themselves.
The other prisoners think this fellow has gone mad from his trip outside. They conclude that the journey outside is dangerous and destabilises a person’s mind. So they decide they should not undertake a similar journey.
This thought experiment is known as Plato’s Allegory of the Cave.
The beliefs we hold for ourselves are the shadows on our cave walls. When they are challenged by others or by new information, we turn back from the light into the shadows because that is familiar.
Our brain likes familiar things because familiarity = safety.
What is the belief that casts the largest shadow on your cave wall? What is so familiar and safe to you, even if it causes a lot of pain?
P.S. If you are ready to level up, work with me for 1:1 career coaching. Hit reply, and I’d love to share more.
💌 Siri
