The 2 States of Self are ideas that are found mostly in literature but exist in our waking life as a duality of our psyche. These states are used as an identifier for our current emotional states of emotional being. They are easy to understand once explained.

We ourselves can be looked at as characters existing within the confines of a movie. As actors, it can be hard to direct the movie because that is someone else’s job. We can change the movie slightly by saying a few extra lines with emphasis, or improv a scene, but ultimately the ending we cannot change. We exist within a movie where the scripts of the other characters are hidden from us.

As the protagonist in our own movie, there is only one reality that we can define in any given scene. That is our state of self for each scene and determines the end of the movie. These states are The Hero or The Antihero.

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THE HERO

The Hero itself has many different subcategories but in this book, we will keep it simple. The Hero and The Antihero have character traits that determine how a scene is perceived. Let us review the character traits of a hero so we are on the same page:

• Courage
• Helpful
• Integrity
• Resilient
• Confidence
• Friendly
• Content

Now, we are not comic book superheroes. We are men and women in the real world and while Walking the Path and utilizing Middle Way’s principles, it humbles us into radical acceptance of the world around us. That said, empathy does not appear here, nor selflessness, but helpful does. Even the most narcissistic and sociopathic person lacking empathy can still understand the human need of and concept of helpful.

Note that nowhere in this list did bravery appear either. Courage is facing a task despite fear, whereas bravery is facing a task with no fear. Courage is for smart people who can predict the future and know the situation they are going to be in; they have a pretty good idea of what the next few scenes will be. Bravery is a dissociated fear and being the proverbial “meat in a grinder.” Bravery has a purpose but for the average person, everyday courage is acceptable.

A hero is not always happy but content. We try in vain to self-improve and strive for an unattainable reality of infinite happiness. We have believed the marketing by pharmaceutical companies that the natural state of existence is in happiness.

This is not the case. Imagine living in the 1600s. Take a moment. Do you think anyone classified as introverted could exist to the extent they are now without hundreds of books and no means to purchase these luxury items? Do you think people existed in infinite happiness watching the clouds for hours and contending in their own thoughts? If you threw a teenager today into the period of the 1600s, the chemical withdrawal in the brain could produce psychosis in the true dopamine addicted.

A hero has meaning and purpose. These are not bestowed to you by a purpose god existing in the heavens who shines down a purpose ray on you during the night. Meaning and purpose are found at the bottom of a bottle of whiskey or while taking a dump and reading the back of a shampoo bottle. It may be extreme, but it’s true.

When we are content in life and find our purpose, we exist as the Hero in our story and in others. As the hero, we can live a productive and content existence.

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THE ANTIHERO

Chaos drives The Antihero because they lack a justified and moral purpose. Be aware, we are not talking about the anti-villain here. If you intend to be the anti-villain you are reading the wrong book. Chaos magick is real and it is not found here.

The difference between The Antihero and the anti-villain is approximate of this. The anti-hero is:

• Someone who possess less than noble qualities and is flawed but their morality is intact or lacking insight but generally, they mean well
• The anti-villain is someone who possess some good qualities but their morality is absent and they intend to harm

The Antihero is someone you want to help, the anti-villain someone you want to be destroyed. The anti-hero will possess some of the same qualities as the anti-hero but will generally have the following characteristics:

• Antisocial and/or narcistic
• A wavering sense of morality
• Lacks integrity and honor

This state is complex but it exists within us. You may remember a time where that state you experienced was abundantly clear. In this state, you may have the charm to sway and use people in order to achieve your goals. Generally, the state of the anti-hero is out for its own interests and betterment.

The purpose is usually self-serving and goals and meaning driving the state are driven by selfishness. People possessing this state may have a grim outlook on life because they view the world in a hyper-realistic and negative in every way. Removing The Antihero elements of your life takes effort but you and the world will be better for it.

These states exist within us and show their presence daily or just on holidays or around your ex-spouse. Some of us present more of the anti-hero than the hero. Sometimes these states are triggered by events, words, or people.

With each event that we encounter and experience, our life further dictates the use of these states driven by emotion. These states influence our decisions. Our decisions dictate events. An endless cycle of events, states, and decisions. It’s usually a negative state.

Once we understand this point we can find out how to deal with them. How to pull back away from the anti-hero state, and focus on being the hero in our lives and the lives of others. Embracing the 3 Truths of Living is the first step. Walking the Path and being able to identify these shifts in states is the goal.