Throughout our lives, humans naturally develop their “conscience,” capacity for empathy, and their “knowing together,” by “liking” more people; discovering that we actually “like” those who are “like” us. This affinity hopefully matures throughout life, helping us to connect with a broader fellowship. We discover that, despite differences, we share fundamental similarities with different cultures, religions, and regions—based on physical likeness, like-mindedness, like-principledness, and like-spiritedness; as we share this universal experience of life.
Level 1. Like:
Our foundational community is rooted in visible genetic markers, like the eye color we share with our family: our parents and siblings. Our physical likeness fosters a deep familial empathy and ethos, shaping the initial conscience from which we act, guided by loyalty and affection.
Level 2. Like-mindedness:
Beyond family, we find community with those who mirror our language and cultural expressions. Intellectual and cultural resonance forms a shared ethos, developing our conscience which directs our actions towards those with whom we share a mental and communicative kinship.
Level 3. Like-principledness:
At this level, community is defined by shared ethical principles, transcending superficial differences. The common principles (like love, truth, justice) become the ethos of the fellowship, growing our conscience and guiding our actions towards those who, regardless of background, reflect a like-principled moral compass.
Level 4. Like-spiritedness:
This most expansive fellowship or ‘tribe’ recognizes the shared ‘spirit’—the pattern of life and death—in all life, from humans to animals and all nature-based ecosystems. This spiritual connection broadens our ethos, elevating our conscience to a universal, “world-soul level,” where actions are motivated by the deep instinct of bravery and holistic interconnectedness it takes to live a full life.
In the Spirit of Adventure, The Guide
