How Your Beliefs Can Hurt You

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In this article, we’re going to take a look at beliefs – what they are, why they are not necessary true, and how they can hurt us.

So, what are beliefs?

A belief is something we hold to be true, even though it may not necessary be so. It is merely a perception of reality – a way we see reality – and it may not be the only way. Thus, it is important to realize that a belief that we hold is not always true.

Believing that our beliefs are always true can hurt us, sometimes terribly.

Why are beliefs not necessary true?

Beliefs are not necessary true because they are often formed without the need for evidence. Very often, people believe something simply based on faith in the source of that belief, whether it is from a person they trusted or a religious book, or something else.

As children, we grew up believing in what our parents told us, and what our teachers taught us. We also believe in the information we get from televisions and other social media outlets. We believe them simply based on trust, not on evidence.

We also form our own beliefs from what we ourselves perceive through our five physical senses – what we see, hear, smell, taste and touch – and then make conclusions based on what we already know or believe in.

In our relationships and interactions with others too, we form certain beliefs. We believe someone is trustworthy or not. We believe this person is good or that person is bad, very often without enough evidence to support those beliefs. A lot of beliefs are formed tinted with our own prejudices and biases.

Thus, beliefs are not necessarily true because they may be formed based on very little or very flimsy evidence. They are quite subjective, not objective.

On the other hand, not all beliefs are false, either. Some of our beliefs may be true.

For example, we believe that the sun will rise from the east tomorrow morning. We believe that we will wake up to another day tomorrow. Very likely, for most of us, these are true beliefs, and we live and behave based on those beliefs.

Beliefs are not harmful when we are able to see them for what they are – simply beliefs. They may be true, or they may not be true. Knowing this, we can then be more careful dealing with our beliefs.

Unfortunately, for most people, they do not have such an awareness about their beliefs. Instead, they regard their beliefs to be the gospel truth, and some may even fight or die for their beliefs.
Why are we so convinced that our beliefs are right or true?

We are convinced that our beliefs are true because we have invested a lot into our beliefs. The more heavily we invested in our beliefs, the more convinced we are of their truth, to the point that we refuse to see their flaws.

Very often, our initial belief may be related to many other deeper and not so obvious core beliefs.

For example, I believe I am right, and I insist that I am right. This initial belief may actually be based on another belief, that if I am wrong, then I am stupid. And if I am stupid, then I am worthless. And if I am worthless, then I am a failure.

All these underlying beliefs are not necessarily true, but beliefs being what they are, we believe them to be true. So, they form a vicious cycle.

That is why when we work on our beliefs, we often have to dig deeper. Our initial superficial belief often leads us into deeper, not so obvious, core beliefs. This is like pulling a tissue out of a tissue box. Each time you pull one out, another pops up. We just have to keep pulling them out one by one until the box is empty. Then, we move on to another box.

Another component of beliefs is emotion. Often, our feelings are so closely intertwined with our beliefs that the very thought of facing and dealing with them makes us feel terrible and miserable.

Thus, it may feel much easier to stand and fight for our beliefs than to actually face them and see them for what they truly are. So, dealing with our beliefs takes courage and honesty. These two qualities are necessary prerequisites for personal transformation and self growth.

Our conviction that our beliefs are true is the third component that we need to know in order to deal with our beliefs. This conviction is not necessarily based on evidence. Very often, it is simply the ego’s way to prevent us from looking inward to seek the truth. It is the perceived need of our fragile ego to protect itself.

And that brings us to the fourth component or layer of beliefs – the ego identity. Our beliefs are very much related to self preservation and function. They are formed to help us function better, and also to protect the ego from harm and destruction. That is why beliefs are self-preserving, self-perpetuating and self-validating, making them quite resistant to change.

Finally, all these components or layers – initial belief, core beliefs, emotions, conviction, and ego-identity – may end up being embedded deeply in the cells of our body. This embodiment of our beliefs into our cellular memory may eventually show up as physical symptoms.

So, our beliefs affect our mental, emotional and physical well-being. They also affect our behavior and influence our decision-making. There are many ways that our beliefs can affect us negatively.

For one, the nature of beliefs is that they narrow or limit our perspectives. They can create a tunnel vision within us that we may not even be aware of. Our prejudices and biases are beliefs that create blind spots, and prevent us from seeing things clearly and fairly. Being closed-minded, we cannot critically evaluate new information or alternative perspectives, thereby inhibiting our own growth, reinforcing our ignorance and entrenching our resistance to change.

False beliefs about ourselves can undermine our own well-being. Beliefs that promote unhealthy attitudes and behaviors, such as about our body image, self-worth, or relationships, can negatively impact our mental, emotional and physical health. Some negative beliefs create self-fulfilling prophecies.

False beliefs about other people, groups, or religions can contribute to divisions and conflicts, and justify harmful actions. Misunderstanding, intolerance and the need to be right can easily ignite a conflict, leading to violent and harmful actions. Extreme or radical views are often the results of such beliefs.
False beliefs about the world can lead us to see the world as hostile. A hostile world view leads us to become fearful and anxious, unwilling to take reasonable risks, thus hampering our progress.
That is why it is important for us to understand our beliefs well, so that we can manage them accordingly.

To deal with and manage our beliefs, and in particular negative beliefs, we will need to work through each of these components or layers, recognizing false beliefs, releasing negative, blocked emotional energy and cellular memories, shifting our perspective, and healing ourselves with self-compassion and deep insights.

So, are beliefs always bad for us?

Not necessarily so.

In the same way that negative false beliefs can harm us, positive true beliefs can help and heal us.

So, what we need to do is to recognize that beliefs are not always true and good for us, and then to sieve through our own beliefs to identify and differentiate the good positive true beliefs from the bad negative false beliefs.

Only then can we deal with each of them accordingly.

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