The Secrets to Our Identity — Mind, Work, and State of Being

What makes us who were are?

Bryan Dijkhuizen
Mind Cafe
Published in
4 min readJul 21, 2024

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Image by Lawrence Chismorie on Unsplash

What makes us who we are?

The question about our identity has been around for a very long time and is mostly unanswered. When people ask you who you are you mostly reply with your name. Something that your parents gave you.

Or you tell them what you do for work, how you make your money — but is that who you are?

As you can tell, it’s a difficult question.

Is there an answer?

Who are we?

“The soul takes nothing with her to the next world but her education and culture. At the beginning of her journey to the next world, the soul’s chief concern is with her true identity.”

— Plato (The Republic)

Beautifully described by Plato, but we don’t get any further in our quest to find the meaning of our identity. The only thing we can derive from it is that all material possessions on earth are irrelevant.

Education and culture is what our soul consists of.

Yet, we’re living in a world that is continuing and developing to be one where material possessions and capital remain very important for us — it’s a way of defining our status. Without possessions, you…

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Bryan Dijkhuizen
Mind Cafe

Writing about the life of a neurodivergent creative in a neurotypical world. — https://bryandijkh.substack.com/