Freedom to Obey

I am still in search of the thing, or the word, or the concept of what it is that moves us from knowing something to choosing to do that something. (See other posts under Discussion)

Some describe freedom as the right or the ability to choose (what you're choosing is irrelevant, the subject for other discussions about morality or the like). Some think that freedom is linked to morality or society, the ability to choose what is right. Some would say that freedom is merely an illusion, that we think we have this ability to choose, but really all of our choices are predetermined, either by our biology or the divine.

My proposition is that choice, or freedom, is a decision to obey something. We can choose to obey or disobey the law. We can choose to obey or disobey our bodies. We can choose to obey or disobey a system of religion or philosophy.

Freedom then is distinct from independence. We can be free from one thing, but that means we are choosing to be dependent on something else. How we learn or decide to choose one over the other is still a mystery to me, but at least I think this clarifies some of the choices I make.