MEANINGS OF POWER (Medium essay)

I am kind of obsessed with power. I think about it every day. Not because I am bent on achieving world domination! My interest is scholarly, and it is connected with very practical concerns about the world we all share. However, this connection is probably not what you might think.

“Power” is an incredibly rich concept. We can talk about it in the context of military dictatorships — or of an individual’s (potential) ability to escape the claws of anxiety. We can consider the importance of power balance in intimate relationships — or the popularity of superpowers in modern media fairytales (and also the power of media companies that produce them). There is power of speech and power of hope; power of mind (e.g., intelligence) and physical power (e.g., weight-lifting). While some of these things seem to be similar, others — not so much.

Perhaps “power” is just a word that has numerous meanings, many of them unrelated? After all, it is also used to talk about electricity, an order of angels in Christianity, and the process of washing cars with highly pressurized steam (the list goes on).

Setting aside the meanings that do not directly describe people and their relationships, I believe that all the aspects of power — ranging from political to personal — should be explored together.

So, yes, military dictatorships cannot be tackled if we don’t consider the power of mindfulness. The goal of this exploration is not to forcefully connect some random dots that just happen to have the same label. The goal is to better understand each other for the purpose of living better lives in a healthier society.

To keep reading on Medium, click here.
Or listen to me reading this essay out on Spotify!