Let us get back to the term freedom. I already mentioned it within the chapter cemetery of the march-fallen. Some time ago I found a video about John Trudell on Youtube. His deep wisdom fascinated me especially regarding freedom. Later on I read more about him. His origin is Native American. In his earlier years he was an active freedom-fighter arguing with the American government. This combative desire for freedom lasted as long as his family died when his house was set on fire by arson.
After that John Trudell became a different person, understandably. The young freedom-fighter changed and in his later years he became the sensible artist expressing himself through poems and talks.
In one of his interviews John Trudell talks about freedom and says that using the word freedom is a contradiction in itself. He says it is about responsibility not freedom. Only in taking over the responsibility for oneself, true freedom can be experienced. Freedom by itself cannot be lived as it neutralizes itself through normal speech.
From my understanding there is no absolute freedom, but always only the situations
from which one can escape.
Some time ago the following question was asked during a guided meditation:
"What it is that stops us from being free". In my deep meditative
state I got the answer "life itself". At first I was startled
because my immediate thought was that the only way to find freedom was to
die. I feared not being able to find freedom during my lifetime, although
it was one of my highest ambitions.
During the same meditation the corresponding question was asked: "What leads us to freedom?" I received the answer: "Being ONE". According to this answer it is a fallacy to believe freedom comes through separation. Once I am connected with everything then there is no room for feeling unfree, because I am the other thing or person, I am everything, I am ONE.
Hence, something with the term freedom is twisted. As I cannot describe what it really means I look at the feeling of being unfree instead and explore it in detail. Therefore, if there is an emotion of feeling unfree then I let it be, I let it get bigger and bigger, more intense and sense it completely. By welcoming the emotion I am accepting it. Quite often all that is needed is the emotion to be noticed and acknowledged. If we do this completely then the emotion vanishes again.
Of course it might still be necessary to make the according changes within our lives to escape from a certain situation, but first of all it is about the perception of the emotion, in this case of feeling unfree. By using this technique and releasing the feeling of being unfree then the longing for something unknown called freedom vanishes. There is no need to fight for freedom any longer, or even risking one's life for it.
Besides, I can only escape from that particular situation making me feel unfree. An absolute freedom does not exist as long as we are separated. From my understanding the concept of freedom in the current language is used to manipulate us because we are influenced to strive for a high good which can never be reached. Freedom does not mean to cut all ties, or to be completely alone. Freedom originates from the awareness of being connected with everything.