Authenticity is the quality of being Yourself in the world.
It is the connection to your own sense of 'yes/no' and the ability to stand for those choices without apologizing.
It is the connection to your own inner compass and the ability to follow it.
It is the connection to your own energy and expression in the world.
It is the connection to your own 'truth', whatever that truth may be in that moment in time.
It is the connection to your boundaries and your likes and dislikes.
It is the connection to the inner essence that is You.
Upon studying this topic for a number of years, I am now aware that there are layers to authenticity.
When we first begin to 'claim our space' in the world, we may remove ourselves from situations that no longer resonate, that don't feel aligned or appropriate for us anymore. That's the first layer - being true and honest with our environment and asking 'does this work for me?'. At this stage, I realized that corporate sales world wasn't really 'ma thing' and I removed myself from it.
Then, we begin to explore our true desires and wants, independent of others' expectations. That is another layer. At this stage I began continuously pursuing what some may still call 'woo-woo' stuff, like energy work, but hey, that was authentic.
Then, we may stumble upon shadow work and realize that there are places that we continue to hide from within ourselves, certain emotional states or feelings or unresolved situations that we are not quite ready to face yet. We start to slowly peel away at those shadows, allowing them space to be, embracing and accepting them. That's yet another deeper layer. At this stage I recognized repressed anger and rage. Plus a whole lot of other interesting stuff. :)
Then may come a point when you are ready for the next transformation of the Self - and what felt authentic before is no longer 'fitting'. Here, an example may be exploring the opening of your voice to find out that it's huge, and you can sing, but you identified with a much smaller voice and 'I'm not a singer'.
So authenticity is fluid and it's got layers to it, like the Russian matryoshka doll. The more that we observe societal conditioning & programming within, the more we understand where we truly stand in relation to it. The more that we explore, the more our inner Being guides us to the next 'truer' expression of ourselves. And so - infinity!
And then may come a point when the Self dissolves and becomes one with the endless ocean of Love (some call this enlightenment or Siddhi). I wonder what becomes then of authenticity?
Would love to hear your thoughts on what is authenticity to you and how do you connect with it?
