To fix some problems you gotta break some rules
980 words
Rules impersonally convey needs. What if an impersonal law fails to convey a personal need?
While no one sits above the law, anakelogy points out how no law sits above needs. Laws exist to serve needs. Or it can be no enforceable law at all.
While many follow the law without question, anakelogy explains why some of us can’t. We’re compelled to mindfully serve needs over mindlessly obey laws. Principle before practice. Even at the risk of being jailed.
Conventionality
Anakelogy suggests you become oriented to how you experience your needs. Predictability provides some benefits.
Once you process your need for something in a certain way, you get predictable results. With sufficient results, you’re likely to repeat it.
This includes what anakelogy calls a "conventionality orientation." You respond to your needs either conventionally or unconventionally.
Your conventionality orientation
When aligned with conventionality, we call it cisconventional. From the Latin prefix for aligned, cis. You align with the law when entering the country through ports of entry through official channels.
When transcending conventionality, we call it transconventionality. From the Latin prefix for crossing over, trans. You cross over legal requirements when entering the country outside of official channels.
Your needs, their norms
You can have many good reasons for aligning with every legal requirement. Many benefits accrue when not giving law enforcement a reason to target you.
Likewise, you can have very good reason to cross over a legally established requirement. Indeed, civil disobedience prioritizes one’s conscious over unjust laws.
You either refuse to comply with an unjust law affecting you. Or risk being coerced into debilitating depression.
Both sides now
Cisconventionality pits you and your tribe against others. You overlook specifics to keep your coalition together. You trust generalizations to relieve the bulk of life’s pain.
You go for what’s practical. You prioritize what’s readily reachable. You’re oriented to get things done. If wrong, ask for mercy later. You stay within the bounds.
Transconventionality links you in communion with all life. You generalize less and less. You resolve specific needs. Resolving needs lets you remove their underlying pain.
You go for what’s principled. You prioritize what’s often overlooked. You’re oriented to get things right. If late, rebuild as necessary. You stretch out to life’s full potential.
Changing gender conventions
Cisconventionality includes nonlegal social norms. Such as gender norms. Not long ago, men were the dominate breadwinners while women were the expected homemakers.
Cisconventionality honored this traditional divide. Social cohesion depended on it for a long, long time.
Transconventionality transcends such nonlegal social norms. Women joined the workforce as equal partners, even if only ideally.
Men involved themselves more in childrearing activities. Social cohesion adjusted to the transconventional change.
Moral reasoning
You can see cisconventionality in Kohlberg's early levels of moral reasoning. Particularly, in level two. It trusts generalizing laws to hold us together.
Inclusion by others requires subscribing to the given rules. The more predictable you make yourself, the more others include you. The more others trust you. The more help you get to face life’s many pains.
You can find transconventionality in the third level. Primarily in the universal principles of stage six. Specific needs matter more than generalizing laws.
Norms—official or otherwise—are seen as imperfectly conveying needs. Transconventionality aims to resolve the widest array of needs in the widest array of lives, with little to no disturbance to others.
Spirituality
Anakelogy further suggests this conventionality orientation could shape one's spirituality.
Cisspirituality speaks to those finding deep connection and meaningfulness by going along with established norms. You could be a “cisspirit” if you’re more like Peter in the New Testament.
You accept categorical binaries. You’re self-confident, reliable, a firm foundation for others. Yet you tend to be impetuous, and often prone to error.
Transspirituality speaks to those finding deep connection and meaningfulness by transcending such conventionality. You could be a “transspirit” if you’re more like Paul in the New Testament.
You see beyond categorical binaries. You set a new path, toward greater freedom, and love. Yet you tend to be a late comer, and often tough to understand.
Transspirit like me
A "transspirit" feels compelled toward what Maslow called being-cognition. The pull toward inner balance can result in a fusion of gender-ascribed traits. For example,
being protective while also being nurturing,
being rational while also being intuitive,
being decisive while also being sensitive,
being assertive while also being conciliatory, and
being firm while also being humble.
Outwardly, this may appear as gender nonbinary, or even transgender. But not all transspirits I've encountered are outwardly transgender. My transspirituality happens to include a transgender dimension, while other transspirits remain cisgender.
It's against the rules to be me
Nevertheless, all the transspirits I've ever met experienced some integration, albeit less visible, of what is conventionally divided by gender.
Being transspiritual can seem noble. But I've encountered some pitfalls. For one, a transspirit
may be a very hard worker but underappreciated, or
can be prone to wrongful accusations for not fitting into established norms, or
become a highly sensitive person vulnerable to being hurt, or
Despite these and more, my life soars as a sacred misfit, like an eagle on high. Despite being falsely accused as a LGBTQ stereotype and then wrongly convicted without evidence, I enjoy a meaningful connection others would envy.
When evil calls me evil, their comparative low lifts me high above. When evil calls me evil, their consuming hate brings out more of my love. My reputable innocence is what they’re not thinking of.
Are you more cisspirit or transspirit?
Do you wonder if you’re more cisspirit or transspirit? You can quiz yourself here to see if you lean more cis or trans conventional. You can contact me if this speaks to you.
I look forward to building a sense of community among transspirits who feel compelled to resolve needs. Even if they must break some rules to do what is right. If not us transspirits, who will?
Steph Turner is the founder of Value Relating, offering a viable alternative to stigmatizing psychotherapy, by inviting clients to speak their truth to power.
