Here are some assumptions I once upon a time embraced:
- That I exist as a distinct individual.
- That I am a single entity, with all my seemingly differing personalities being mere aspects or overlays of the one essential me.
- That there's also something outside of me called "the world", which is at least as real as myself and which I can perceive in various ways.
- That both I and the world are changing from moment to moment.
- That the events which constitute these changes occur within the medium of time, which is a linear, consecutive sort of thing.
- That the past, the ordered set of already-experienced conditions and events, is real and that memory is a record of it.
- That some conditions and events possible within me and the world are better or more valuable than other conditions and events.
- That I can interact with the world and make changes in it according to my judgment of what conditions or events might be better or worse than the conditions and events I currently perceive or expect to perceive.
- That the function of memory is to re-experience conditions and events of the past so that they may be evaluated with respect to certain standards or ideals, with the aim of making the not-yet experienced conditions and events of the future more in line with what is wanted.
- That identities other than myself exist within the world.
- That these not-me identities have their own ideals—and therefore their own judgments as to goodness and value—which may or may not be similar to my own.
- That conflicts arising from differences may be at least partially or temporarily resolved, either through conquest or compromise wherein balances of gain and loss are agreed upon.
- That happiness is determined by the overall gain-to-loss ratio, and therefore must be won through efforts of discipline, mastery, skill, knowledge, etc.
- That any such gain-to-loss formula must also take into account factors of "natural" law, which contributes to conditions and events in both the world and the identities experiencing them; and that these factors, while complex, may be at least partially known and mastered.
- That there is a timeless, immortal essence of me and others, but the ever-changing attendant personalities are subject to dissolution and death — as is everything else in the world.