The human brain limits itself. You have every reason to do so, even if it’s a nuisance to us. We build our own obstacles and install our own roadblocks. And then we limit our ability to even see these limitations. That’s why other people’s problems are so easy to solve. We have no blind spots for the flaws of others.
In mythology, Pandora’s Box contained everything bad in the world, plus the hope of enduring it. I like this idea, although I don’t think it’s entirely correct. In fact, it’s probably the other way around. But before explaining Arodnap’s Box, the opposite of Pandora’s, consider the seed of a tree.
A seed has enormous potential. The branches of a tree can grow in any direction, but they cannot grow in all directions. If they could, a tree would quickly turn into a mass of wood with a few leaves sticking out. Such a dysfunctional tree would not last long. It could be argued that the space around the branches, where the branches could have grown but didn’t, defines a tree as much as its branches do.
Your brain is like this tree. It could adopt any configuration, but not all configurations. As you grow from baby to child to adult, you lose brain function as much as you gain it. Think of all the destructive or antisocial impulses you don’t have. Have you ever been tempted to eat your own arm? It is a possible brain configuration so, if not, it must not have developed in you.
Inside your mind, some branches develop and others do not. This pattern defines who you are and what you can do. However, you might wonder what happens to those thoughts that never form.
For example, in our society, courage is a virtue. Can you imagine a world where it is not. In a brutal and effective dictatorship, perhaps the best strategy is to keep your head down. As noble as the freedom fighters are in such a country, their courage leads to a life of suffering, emotional pain, and death. So a child’s mind, seeing how futile and painful courage is, might not develop the skill of courage.
Where are you going? And can he come back as an adult?
Your unconscious mind seals off everything harmful or unnecessary. Some of those traits will be close to the surface. If an ambitious child has too many setbacks as a teenager, the result could be an adult with barely suppressed ambitions. Other things, like the need to commit autophagy, lie much deeper.
But I don’t need to tell you that your mind is messed up. It is not a warehouse with differentiated storage units for each concept. Things come together. If the smell of roses makes you think of your grandparents’ house, it is because they are closely linked to your brain. The same thing happens with everything that is inaccessible to your conscious mind.
And your mind is excellent at protecting you. If you can’t (consciously) handle something, you probably won’t (consciously) trip over it. Your unconscious mind buries truly devastating ideas away from your dirty little fingers. If something like this appears in your consciousness, it probably means that you are ready to face it. It may not be pleasant, but you will get through it stronger.
Take these two ideas together. Your mind is full of unrealized potential: branches that never grew from the tree. And these branches -or boxes, to mix the metaphors- contain more good and neutral things than bad. Hence Arodnap’s Box, which is filled with happy creatures and the occasional grumpy beast.
How can you use this idea? Pay attention to your own mind. On the periphery of your consciousness are thoughts that you don’t like to think. When they approach, you turn your head away. One could be a dream you gave up on years ago. Another could be a fear that you don’t want to confront.
These monsters protect the Boxes of Arodnap. Don’t be afraid of them. They lead the way to your greatest untapped resources.
Great geniuses, whether they are Einstein-level scientists or fantastic parents, can access more of their minds than most people. They are not smarter in the sense of having more brainpower. They can consciously access material that is sealed in others. If you can’t access the mind stuff, it’s nothing but clutter in your mind. However, the more you can access these, the more flexible and original your thinking becomes.
When people use clichés like ‘the life of your dreams is on the other side of fear’, this is what they mean. If you don’t process a thought, then your unconscious mind buries it. But when it does, it buries other things with it. People who regularly suppress their emotions end up neurotic, in part thanks to the enormous collateral damage this causes to their mental landscape.
Compare this to people who face their fears and succeed. Aren’t they suddenly leading richer lives? They describe the experience as a release: a release of energy, a release of the contents of the box. It’s liberating, like there’s less mental clutter tripping them up.
Your mind is like a mother cleaning her teenage son’s room. The mother does not know what is trash or treasure. She just sweeps everything into a box and dumps it into the base. If the garbage scares you, you will never find the precious relics.
But if you actively look for discomfort in your mind, who knows what you’ll find behind it?
