Masculine energy, doing, striving. Feminine energy, being, playing.
To be honest, I think in modern society, we’ve nailed down the former much better than we have the latter.
For instance, just yesterday, I spent most of the day working on music, including composing for a new song with actual music accompaniment. Halfway done at least, I would say.
In the evening, I participated in a Japanese group session.
On to this morning, and huh! I was naturally, automatically! predisposed towards striving again. Like, for instance, maybe actually finishing the composing? And moving on towards recording and releasing>??
To tell you the truth, this being very obvious to be honest…
This is totally prioritising doing over being!!! Like, granted, I may indeed have really enjoyed the session last night, but in a sense, it’s mechanical, about efficiency if you think about it. Like, packing your schedule with a whole array of activities, doing them, and then it’s ‘Done, on to the next!’
Then I’m totally bashing my brain for ideas to write for today’s article, because I really want to get it done by Tuesday cause see I kinda have volunteering tomorrow and dun wanna push myself too hard… yikes.
Anyway, basically, what I arrived at is this conclusion: Striving vs playing.
In this society where masculine energy is so predominantly prioritised, there is this real danger of totally forgetting how to play or really truly enjoy!!! ourselves, with the sense of ‘Ahh! How good it is to be alive!!’
Rather, we’re always in this ‘rush mode’ as is characteristic of striving. I mean, even I myself only managed to kinda extricate myself of its clutches so very recently.
Our subconscious is totally in a frantic state when doing things, then once something it’s done it’s in a frenzy and spluttering ‘what’s next!’… In the process we lack the one crucial element of calmness, groundedness, presence.
In response to that I’ve learnt to really calm my state of mind by default such that once something is over it ain’t just caught in a whirlwind frenzy…
But you can just glean all this in your own time if it’s relevant and applicable to you really. Basically, the main thing I want to focus on today is this – romanticising life. Comfortably taking your time to complete your passion projects as opposed to pushing yourself super duper hard, and just borderline burning out each time.
No, no. As I’ve learnt from personal experience, you have two options truly. One is to push, hard, striving and seeking efficiency and fast, visible progress and completion at expense of enjoyment. The other is just… easeful, to say the least. Stimulating enough, but also relaxing!!
Sure, I believe that it’s really good to have drive and ambition and baselines that you want to abide by. That’s really cool. However, in the process!! Do notice that there’s the potential trap of falling totally into striving, while losing playing in the meantime.
I’ll just use an example from a webnovel I read earlier in the day heh. Basically it was about a National VR esports competition…
(What, really??? VR AND Fiction? It’s like I’m coming full circle here lols)
But anyways, it was the finals of the competition. And such was the mindset of the enemy commander, Anto, in a Best of 5 finals.
He did NOT let the stress of being in the finals get to him, the frustration of being thoroughly trumped by a team in the previous match break his mentality. Rather, this was his attitude. He truly loved the game as a player!!! These challenges posed by the opponent was merely a trial to try to beat from many different angles, and then surmount. And he relished that process, and felt joy at having a worthy opponent appear.
Such was his true! heart as a gamer, what he had started out with in the first place!
In life, even whilst our striving, let us never forget the playing of Anto.
Yes, obviously, he strove to win the national championships. In fact, his team was the strongest team, very strong indeed, and he did go all out.
However, in the process, he retained the primary passion of playing!! Rather than let it be all cold, mechanical and just about winning only.
Yes, obviously, he wanted to win. But also, beyond that! Dang, did he also!!! live to the fullest, enjoy like a swag baddie.
So this brings me to the main idea I want to convey today – never forget.
Never forget what it is like to truly be playing. liberated and in wonder.
I’ve reflected a bit, and I’ll just give some examples that come to mind for me.
Today, after lunch, I saw a post about not giving when your cup isn’t full and went straight to reading that novel… I was super!!! emotional when reading it, for reals! Man the onion ninjas were there even. Playing isn’t necessarily something you are doing, yeah! Consuming media is fine. Basically, playing is when striving isn’t there and you’re just totally in it for the positive experience itself, and totally having the time of your life.
Another example is yesterday’s Japanese session. Man, we were laughing like crazy when VA-ing those manga raws. It was also really really fun, adding emotions and such into the reading… Just being goofy and ourselves having fun. I see it as being priceless and invaluable even!
Another example would be when cycling a week or two ago. I mean, sometimes I add in singing while riding to up the intensity of the exercise? It was crazy and I was high lols.
Well one last example. I realised while rehearsing for an upcoming performance that I could actually roleplay the character even more! See, it was based on myself, so I was actually just using tekitou or appropriate emotion. But then I realised I could totally act out the me versions enacting and bringing them to life! I could totally be doing this acting out a character element of acting that I’d previously discounted since I thought I was just doing myself! I was just using a more public speaking kinda mode!
Anyways I found a whole sea of enjoyment rising up from doing that yeah alongside my direction for upcoming rehearsals.
So I hope you get my point. See the main mode of thinking in masculinity and its productivity emphasis is naught but this. Get all the main work done, and then well, I suppose you can just relax and do whatever you like in the remaining time! However!!! Why not think about that feminine!! approach too?
The way I see it is this – being a lover of life. Romanticise it!
Way 1: You do everything today. Why, good job you. On to the next!
Way 2: Well, how about a change of pace! It doesn’t always have to be doing doing doing! Yeah, maybe I’ll just be cozy for the first part of today. Snug and comfy, not say very productive but having the time of my life!
Way 1: Oh no! The situation today doesn’t really seem to going very well for me! So and so elements are not really what I’d prefer at all.
Way 2: You transmute that potential negativity into positivity and still have the time of your life anyways! Bad situation! Bleh! I stick out my tongue at ya!
Way 1: You are in an environment that is not conducive for you. People are all judgy and you feel like you have to put up a mask around them and play along.
Way 2: Bye peeps! I’m going somewhere where I can just fully be my silly self, with no expectations of anything at all, to just truly be. Hah!
Yup, and so with that I have more or less come to the end of an article that is just totally spur of the moment and I only really ideated on a post binge-reading afternoon walk. Hope it made sense yeah!
Meanwhile, I would just like to quickly reiterate my intentions. As I have generated only recently, the higher perspectives that I blog about here overall fall under my self-proclaimed philosophy of elevated embodiment. That is where people can ideally get inspired and become a better version of themselves! And I’m totally doing this out of goodwill ofc yeah!
With that said, I’ll be keeping an eye out for places where I truly be playing as opposed to striving. Now that’s the good life like none other… Huh come to think of it something comes to mind… Like at badminton they better not enforce too much boring rigidity where what I truly want is to just freely play in my own style and fully be myself. Don’t cramp my style! Develop it instead kay! Stop doing lobbing over and over forever! I really!! far prefer close range, fast quick reaction time shots to long balls, y’know!!!
Alright, I guess maybe that’s a sign for me to work on my assertiveness instead… Okay whatever I’ll stop that complaining. Till next week then!
Man, those instances of woah! it’s truly good to be alive are so kickass…
Until you have those, you aren’t truly savouring life’s peak experiences 🙂