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BY ANGELICA LOUISE PFLEIDER
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WHAT do you think is the essence of identity?
Is it the way you look? The way you dress? The way you speak?
Most people relate identity with physical appearance; your signature hair, the color and shape of your eyes, the shape of your body. What you see when you look at the mirror is your identity.
This was what we discussed a few days ago during our company team-building. What if you do a few physical changes? Would you still recognize yourself? A haircut? Contact lenses? A gluta regimen? Yes, I’m sure you and those around you would still know it’s just a touched-up version of yourself.
What if you had an infection and you had to amputate a few limbs? Would you still recognize yourself?
What if Skynet was successful with their planned nuclear holocaust and all humans became cyborgs? What body parts would you still associate with the original you? You arm? Your torso? I think the first thing that would come into your mind is your brain.
Now why would you choose your brain? Even though you may not have realized it, the brain is where most of “yourself” actually lies. Your memories and experiences during your lifetime and the emotions you associate with certain events are a significant part of who you are. These allow us to look at identity in a new light; it’s not all about how you look but mostly about your character.
Let’s say you are one of the first humans who have been turned into cyborgs. Your body is all machine, you have been super-enhanced. Your mind, however, is still intact. You still remember your parents’ and friends’ faces. You remember how you felt when you would eat your favorite food, when you would do your favorite activities. Under all that metal, you would still be you.
I would like to relate this with the practice of All Souls’ Day. It doesn’t matter which walk of life you come from. Everyone makes use of this time of the year to remember their dearly departed. To stare at tomb stones and leave flowers, maybe even reminisce about the times you shared. That’s when you realize where a person’s identity really lies. Sure, the physical body is gone, but a person truly lives on through the lives he/she affected. The beliefs and memories that you pass on. The emotions people associate with you. Those are the things that keep you alive and make you somewhat immortal.
Maybe that’s why Undas in some cultures, including ours, is something more of a celebration than a mourning of the dead. You take this time to celebrate the immortality of a person. That even though you are not there physically, the fact that you have people who remember you, that makes you immortal.
Your identity lives on where your body ends. (angelica.panaynews@gmail.com/PN)
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