[carlo]

Free will should be considered from the two aspects, freedom and will.

That we are "will full" is apparent from our earthly life and in fact is that which describes(manifests) our individuality. ONe may build a bridge, compose a symphony or meditate on the ethereal and in each case we would be manifesting our will. Physiologically an expression of this will can be seen in our appendages especially our legs. In our "will full" activities is where we define our individuality.

The question of freedom cannot be extracted from our will which is very much a question of desire but will have to be clarified as that which guides this will. The clearest aspect of the human being is his thinking. That man is sure of his thoughts is apparent especially on this forum and we would say that the "will full" impulses can be guided by our thinking and indeed they are. Move your arms and a thought will preceed the movement but the mystery of the will manifests here as the connection between thought and movement of the arms becomes apparent. Man thinks his activity and guides the will in activities external or internal to his being.

One can see that in order to be "free" one must know that one is free as well as act in freedom. An example is the acceptance of the the commandment "thou shall not kill". If one accepts this as a part of a religious credo within fear then one is not acting in freedom but compulsion. It can then be said that this person is not acting in freedom. "Thought Full" consideration of the commandmant in thinking can lead one to conclude that "this is a good idea" and this person enters into an activity of freedom by being a "knowing doer". In subscribing to any creed, political system, race,folk, nationality,etc. systems of beliefs we act under compulsion but in "thinking into" the particular credo and experiencing it in thinking we will be acting in freedom.

It goes without saying that we are all a combination of free and unfree activities and in fact this is an evolutionary aspect of man in which he becomes "more free" in love.

The moral tenets of humankind are brought to us by human individualities such as Moses or Buddha who are able to rise to a thinking which creates newly that for which mankind is ready. All the various systems and creeds are brought to us by men, acting freely in an experience of thought and in this aspect we obtain the moral maxims of man. That this changes is obvious as we would not necessarily follow the moral activity of 3000 years ago unless it were pertinant to our melieu. Therefore we have the evolution of morals brought to us by human individualities.

It also goes without saying that in each individual act in our lives we can make a moral creation of our own which can be free or unfree and in a real sense act as Moses or the Buddha did by "working out" our own freedom in activity. We too, in creative thinking produce the moral tone of our lives and are able to do this irrespective of any compulsion from without or within.

carlo