Why Individuation

Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it.

- Michaelangelo

Aloha!

I’m sure you’re wondering, ‘ What is individuation? And why should I care?’

Our lives can be seen as two cycles - the cycle of socialisation and should we choose it, we can evolve into the cycle of liberation or individuation. As you might deduce, the cycle of socialisation is the default. We are born with a unique blueprint. In our early years, we are socialised by our parents, relatives, teachers - taught norms and values of being human. As we go through life these messages are reinforced by the culture we find ourselves in or by the organisations we belong to.

The expectations and norms are also enforced by various systems like reward/punishment, comfort/poverty, approval/stigma, empowerment/discrimination, etc. This socialisation process has an impact on a conscious as well as an unconscious level. This is what may leave us feeling guilty, angry, stressed, repressed or even hopeless. When there is a misalignment between who we are and the societal conditioning/expectations, we then have a choice to make.

We can either decide to accept it, not to ‘make waves’ and maintain the status quo or this is when we start to question. We can start to review and evaluate the expectations and conditioning - starting with our own internalised beliefs. This is when we pivot to the cycle of liberation or individuation.

Individuation is a core concept in Jungian psychology. It is ‘becoming one’s own self. We could therefore translate individuation as coming to selfhood.’

‘Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it’ , says Michaelangelo.

It is becoming more yourself. When you do that, your life starts to feel more meaningful. You get clarity on your unique contribution to society. You focus your energy on things that matter to you which leads to feeling fulfilled and at peace. This is the ongoing journey.