Is it true that life is a synonym for change and why stopping is impossible in principle, says philosopher Yulia Sineokaya.
Psychologies: Can we say that the modern world requires us to be more willing to change than before?
Julia Sineokaya: Probably not… Human nature is subject to little change. There is a breakthrough in the technological and information spheres. But progress is a concept applicable, to a greater extent, to the description of civilizational achievements, rather than changes in the sphere of spirit or personal existence. It would be strange to say that we come to correct conclusions or judge good and evil faster and more efficiently than Socrates or Descartes. Today we live in a world that is much more transparent, unified and open to the new than it was in bygone centuries. However, each of us, maintaining his own pace of life, his own speed of decision-making, his own emotional tone, leads his own time countdown. Yes, external time flies faster, changes in the world around us happen more often. The fashion for ideas, the way of life, the style of behavior are changing, but the inner melody of each of us remains the same. This unique personal rhythm is the thread that binds us together, allows us to distinguish ourselves from others, to recognize ourselves in different situations and ages. Every modern person has his own collection of masks and faces that we use on occasion, his own set of stereotypes of behavior in different situations. We change images, focusing on the situation, adjusting to it, but we are not talking about deep changes here and cannot go on. The speed of reaction is rather hypocrisy, a change of masks, and not an existential change.
What do we gain by changing lives? And doesn’t this mean at the same time the loss of something important in yourself?
Yu. S .: Obvious at first glance, the question of whether to change or not to change life loses its meaning if you think about its essence. Life is synonymous with change. How to distinguish the living from the dead? Life is always in motion! Imagine something lying on the road in front of you. How do you know if something is alive or not? You come up and touch it – whether it moves or not, whether it runs away or not… Of course, I don’t mean purely mechanical movement in space. Life is, first of all, a qualitative change, a change of different stages of being. The living is born, grows, matures, grows old, fades away, dies…. Only the dead cannot die, only in the dead there is no movement, no becoming, no change. Jorge Luis Borges has a wonderful essay “Immortal” about a man who finds himself in the city of the immortals. This place, which he had longed for before, made such a depressing impression on him that he ran headlong away, looking for the river of death. Immortality devalues life, deeds, feelings, meanings. Why finish building a flight of stairs, give water to the thirsty, or quench the pain of the afflicted? This can be done later, or not done at all… Without action, life ceases to be life. The inevitability of changes, both losses and gains, sharpens our feelings and meanings, saves us from despair and inspires hope. Having been born, a person is doomed to endless changes. We invariably find ourselves facing a choice, at a fork in the road, on the threshold of an open door. Whether we dare a new step or hesitate, seeking to take a breath, it doesn’t matter, the result is the same – it’s impossible to hide, the stream of life carries us on and on, it doesn’t matter whether we resist the flow or swim, surrendering to the will of the waves of being. The fragility of happiness and the exhaustibility of grief contain the wisdom of being, the possibility of a miracle, the chance that life has in store for each of us. Hermann Hesse’s novel “Siddhartha” is one of the most powerful revelations that nothing in life can be stopped, retained, found once and for all, everything leaves and everything returns, everything has an end and a beginning, its hour … in a series of losses and gains, the greatest a chance to recognize yourself, become yourself, return to yourself.
Read more:
- How not to die while alive
We strive to change our lives, and then, having achieved what we want, we want stability. Our impulse to change eventually leads to a halt. Are we falling into a trap?
Yu. S .: Not at all! What does it mean to “achieve the best and stop”? This doesn’t happen! The acquisition of something instantly makes us thirst for more, something new, and often even leads to disappointment in what has been achieved. Stopping is basically impossible. If we don’t move forward, we roll back. This is obvious to those who are passionate about their work, work. A person who has achieved success in the professional field and has stopped growing, improving his skills and knowledge, will soon become uninteresting to colleagues, lose credibility, and become ridiculous. This is true for private life as well. If two, having found each other, go further together, changing, improving themselves, helping each other to become themselves, their union is strong. But if one changed pace, fell behind or overtook a partner, the conflict begins to escalate. How to be? Do not look back, strive forward, into the future, remaining true to yourself, the melody of your life, and remembering that eternity for each of us is made up of a stream of moments that cannot be repeated.