In life, we can choose to listen to our head or our heart. Which will be for the better?
Written & Illustrated by Alysa Ng
The Conflict
It is said that those who listen and follow their conscience will find true salvation.
In the tale of Pinocchio, we are introduced to Jiminy Cricket - a wise, anthropomorphic character who was sent by the Blue Fairy to serve as Pinocchio’s conscience in hopes to guide him on his journey to become a real boy. However, Pinocchio often finds himself going against Jiminy which begs the question - should we listen to our consciousness or conscience?
The Heart
Tethering the mind to conscience allows it to sense thoughts, words, actions, and can act as an inner light that illuminates the truth, helping us to do the right thing even when no one is looking.
Take for example telling a lie. Do you find yourself feeling guilty? Or maybe you felt like coming clean after? These feelings may seem minute but they are your inner voices guiding you to moral goodness.
Although your conscience always has an opinion, it speaks in a humble, low volume, easily drowned out by our desires.
The Head
But it is not all that bad. Our conscious mind helps us stay grounded when we have to combat a guilty conscience.
Our consciousness will usually take precedence over our conscience when we have to make a quick decision. For many of us, peer pressure and temptations are what our conscious mind succumbs to and it is up to us to snap out of it.
The Being
Ultimately, consciousness is simply the awareness of things happening around us.
When a child is born, it is aware of its surroundings but it has yet to understand the concept of right and wrong.
A wrong-doer is equally aware as a do-gooder when they commit their deeds. Memory and experience make all the difference. If someone does not have a conscience, then he does not know any better.
In simple words, remaining conscious will give us the opportunity to use our conscience for the greater good.