THE
CULTURE
OF
CULTURES
The Hazards of Our
Prescribed Thinking
in a New Direction
by Elaine M. Grohman
O
ne online dictionary defines
culture in the following
two ways: “the behaviors and beliefs
characteristic of a particular social,
ethnic, or age group: the youth
culture; the drug culture,” and as
“the cultivation of microorganisms,
as bacteria, or of tissues, for scientific
study, medicinal use, etc.”
These concepts of culture can do one
of two things: enhance or detract from
life. Through observation and truth
seeking, we can begin to determine
what has the potential to either
enhance or destroy life. Once we are
aware, we can then work together
to find both personal and societal
antidotes and solutions to begin to
heal ourselves as one culture—the
culture of humanity. The first definition
qualifies what makes a particular
group unique and set apart from
other groups. These qualifications can
limit personal choice in favor of the
perceived preference of being part
of a group. But what happens when
the cultural norms that we adhere to
begin to erode that which makes us
uniquely human? When our ability to
work together to solve real problems
is compromised due to artificial
guidelines and inflated importance, we
then lose our ability to bring harmony
and balance into our lives.
Our unique human biology is designed to
maintain homeostasis, which is defined as
“the tendency of a system, especially the
physiological system of higher animals,
to maintain internal stability, owing to the
coordinated response of its parts to any
situation or stimulus that would tend to
disturb its normal condition or function,”
as defined by the same aforementioned
online dictionary.
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