We, is one of those books that everyone should read, but no one has. The first dystopia, which spawned countless others, e.g. 1984, Brave New World, Anthem and many more. Yevgeny Zamyatin, a Russian exiled by both a Tsar and Stalin, captures the simple but mistaken idea of the collective over the individual. This book is frightfully hilarious in its depictions of true futuristic collectivism, where mankind is on the verge of machine like accuracy and identity. This book is an exploration of philosophy, identity, and revolution.

The OneState and its reliance on routine versus the other side of the Green Wall with its spontaneity and naturalness are at odds in most dramatic fashion. The people of OneState are merely numbers, D-503 and I-330 being the main characters of this work. D-503 embodies the ideal of collectivism, a mathematician who is the head engineer on OneState’s biggest project the Integral, a spaceship to spread their philosophy to the other planets. I-330, the revolutionary woman who upturns D-503’s life and the whole of OneState is the embodiment of individualism.

D-503 and the rest of the numbers of OneState believe wholeheartedly in the benevolence and plan of the Benefactor, they are coldly rational without emotions, imagination or dreams. They do not question the situation they are in. They listen to dogma. However, when I-330 enters D-503’s life he falls in love (an emotion he did not believe in before and was difficult for him to comprehend.) I-330 made him question his entire life, and the system under which he lives.

When I-330 challenges his beliefs and he retorts she responds with, “Children are the only bold philosophers. And bold philosophers will always be children. So you’re right, it’s a child’s question, just as it should be: Then What? (p. 168)” Humanity must never stop questioning the conditions that it is surrounded by. Things can change, but if one merely accepts all the conditions that surround one’s life then nothing will ever change. No one can control everything, and the only constant in life is change. Others will not do it for you though; they will do things from themselves. Only your identity and you can make positive changes in your life.

Identity plays a huge part of this work of prose. All the characters are numbers, except the great Benefactor that rules over OneState. The numbers all follow the rules of a calendar, with specific activities at certain times and rhythms. In fact, all men and women eat as one, chewing fifty times before swallowing their petroleum-based food. When walking on the streets they walk in perfect lines of four across in rhythm. But as the novel continues more and more chaos is thrown into the machine.

The numbers are scared of being individuals; they have relied on OneState for so long, most do not know how to react to dissent. In fact, the scenes that show individualism of the numbers in any fashion cause chaos with the numbers, no one knowing what to do. The highly logical D-503 struggles with this himself:

When all is said and done, this being a point has its own logic (modern): A point contains more unknowns than anything else. All it has to do is move, budge a bit, and it can transform into thousands of different curves, hundreds of solids shapes (p.141-2.)

As the world slowly devolves into greater and greater chaos, with the tyrannical OneState trying to hold tighter and tighter on to the reins of power, I-330 continues to hold her ground. “What difference is it to you if I stay on here alone? What difference is it to you if I don’t want others to do the wanting for me? If I want for myself? If I want the impossible? (p. 200)” One has no duty to do for others, without thinking of themselves. The individual is the basic point of humanity. We form groups because we can achieve more together. However, we must not get locked into any specific station or point in space lest we lose the ability to control our own destinies. Others do not always know what is best for us, and we often need to make our own mistakes to truly learn. This is how revolutions take place, and without them the universe would implode.

Revolution is another major theme of this novel. A revolution pitting the individual versus the collective. Freedom versus the safety of the collective. These themes apply to this day. In fact, this novel was so inflammatory at the time of its writing, around 1920, that it was not published in Russia until 1988. There are strengths to both sides of the argument, which is inherent in life. But one side cannot rule forever. As there is no good without bad, no beauty without ugly, or up without down, control needs freedom or neither exists.

D-503 the paragon of collectivism sums it up perfectly, “The only means to rid man of crime is to rid him of freedom (p. 36)” This stark portrayal of his beliefs and those of OneState is shocking, but abundantly clear to everyone (or should be.) Man always has a choice of his actions, even under the most severe regimes. Man can change at any moment, or fight the established rules of his day, because the rules are not absolute, they are just made up to control him. But following and enforcing them are a choice to be made by all parties. And some men will always choose to disobey. Most times a woman is involved somewhere, as is the case in this novel.

This ability for man to always change at any moment as they always have a choice of what to do is not only stoic, but inherent in the idea of revolution. Change and time are continual; they will flip the coin of control and chaos until there is no difference between the two.

And how can there be a final revolution? There is no final one. The number of revolutions is infinite. The last one – that’s for children. Infinity frightens children, and it’s essential that children get a good night’s sleep… (p. 168)     I-330.

The lessons of this novel apply to life more than I wished they did. It has captured the attention of scholars and authors for generations, but it has largely been forgotten in recent times. This book is scary and hilarious in its satire. The world that exists in OneState cannot exist today, but it is easy to see the machinations of those in power wishing for the control of the world like that of the Benefactor. Remember that one must always choose one’s own path. Don’t let others want for you. There is no end in the infinity, if you don’t like your circumstances change them. Revolution is the only way for progress.

We

War: The ultimate male aphrodisiac. Nothing has captivated the mind of man more throughout the millennia than the applied use of force. Sure, women captivate men, but most times the women come after the war, rarely before. War is the ultimate distillation of life: kill or be killed. General Douglas MacArthur in a speech at West Point said, “Yours is the profession of arms, the will to win, the sure knowledge that in war, there is no substitute for victory.”

If war is such an important part of the human condition it is important to know how to wage it successfully. There are thousands of books on the subject, it seems that every courtier, and effeminate writer needing to raise his testosterone quotient has written on the subject. However, these all pale in comparison to a short simple book written 2,500 years ago. Sun Tzu’s Art of War is the distillation of strategy, deception, and leadership that stands the test of time.

Those who are willing to study and apply the knowledge of this great book will be victorious in their endeavors. It is a simple enough book to read, it can be done in an afternoon for even the most lachrymose reader. But one reading is not enough to glean all the valuable wisdom locked inside the words. Some things will shock the reader, e.g. all warfare is based on deception (I.18.) However, upon closer examination this is known to be true.

Where this book really shines is in the depiction of strategy and leadership of generals. In fact, this handbook is written for generals, not the soldiers or the kings of history. The general is the man that actually wages war, and makes the life or death decisions that affect his men, his country, and history. The military strategist is a rare creature indeed, but when they are discovered in history they are deadly effective.

There is required for the composition of a great commander not only massive common sense and reasoning power, not only imagination, but also an element of legerdemain, an original and sinister tough, which leaves the enemy puzzled as well as beaten. Winston Churchill, The World Crisis (1923)

 

Sun Tzu argues for vast amounts of preparation before war. In fact that is the only way to win. “Thus it is that in war the victorious strategist only seeks battle after the victory has been won, whereas he who is destined to defeat first fights and afterwards looks for victory (II.15.)” This rule is helpful in realizing that it is not wise to leap without looking. Great generals have their battles planned out so well in advance that they fear no battle they engage in. They see all the options, all the angles, and are always willing to mix things up.

“There are not more than five musical notes, yet the combinations of these five give rise to more melodies than can ever be heard (IV.7.)” The beautiful simplicity of this statement echoes to the reader that with concerted effort and variation of tactics anything can be accomplished. One must merely look for the advantages in all obstacles.

To truly succeed as a general though requires a deep understanding of both oneself and the enemy.

“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle (III.18.)”

These words seem foolhardy and egotistical at first glance. How can one guarantee success in this crazy world we live in with so many variables and things that can go wrong. But knowing everything about oneself and the things that will affect is a sign of a well-ordered and humble mind. Knowing and understanding the enemy one is facing means that one has looked outside him to see the true picture of the world around him. He has taken the ego out of the equation.

How can a general accomplish the goals he has set for himself? How does he beat another man who is trying to do the same to him? Through the use of deception a general succeeds. “…that general is skillful in attack whose opponent does not know what to defend; and he is skillful in defense whose opponent does not know what to attack (VI.8.)” A general must be like water, always filling the form of the vessel that holds him. Using all the avenues around him to his advantage. “In war, practice dissimulation, and you will succeed. Move only if there is a real advantage to be gained (VII.15)”

How can a general know that his deceptions are working, and what his enemy is doing? He uses spies of every sort. Sun Tzu argued that war is an expensive endeavor (something everyone can agree on,) so the use of money to acquire spies that can end the engagement quickly is an expense that pays dividends. Being able to use spies effectively is important, and their management must be direct and generous. They are the most valuable genius of the general. They give him all of the information he could ever need to win.

It is important however to keep utmost secrecy with the use of spies, as it is the nature of their business. But if one is subtle with the art of espionage, spies can be utilized for every kind of endeavor and greatly augment the chances of success.

As “there is no instance of a country having benefited from prolonged warfare (II.6,)” it is important that the general of an army be able to lead his men effectively. He must be a great leader. His men must love him or he is to be doomed, as the men of a leader reflect the leader himself. “Regard your soldiers as your children, and they will follow you into the deepest valleys; look on them as your own beloved sons, and they will stand by you even unto death (X.25.)” This is the way to great leadership. The general is the ultimate arbiter of a soldier’s life, if they do not trust this man they are not willing to go forth boldly into battle for him. One must therefore respect the men/women underneath oneself, and not act the tyrant lest they lose the war.

There are five dangerous faults which may affect a general: (1) Recklessness, which leads to destruction; (2) cowardice, which leads to capture; (3) a hasty temper, which can be provoked by insults; (4) a delicacy of honor which is sensitive to shame; (5) over-solicitude for his men, which exposes him to worry and trouble (VIII.12.)

If one can cultivate the opposite of these characteristics, they are well on their way to success and leadership. These are characteristics one must cultivate over time and not give up. This may be difficult to accomplish, but the rewards are worth the effort. Leadership is the one trait honored by all men, and if one is a great leader, one is great before all men.

As you go about your life, and face the many day-to-day battles we all face. Remember this:

The art of war teaches us to rely not on the likelihood of the enemy’s not coming, but on our own readiness to receive him; not on the chance of his not attacking, but rather on the fact that we have made out position unassailable (VIII.11.)

Art of War

Humanity loves all winners, history is written by them. Most losers of history are disgraced, their names dragged through the mud, and quickly forgotten. However, every now and then, a man or woman comes around that bucks the trend. They are remembered in their loss as well as, if not higher than, the victor. General Robert E. Lee is one of those losers. A man so deified by the South after his surrender to General Grant at Appomattox Court House, that he has come to define the South. There was no man more chivalrous, humble, and dignified, and his letters proved it so.

Robert E. Lee Jr. compiled this excellent collection of letters, and remembrances in 1904 to the betterment of society. Through this book, the reader is introduced personally to a man that stands high in the annals of time. Although the Civil War and the results have marred the history of the United States, of the few benefits that came out from this war, Robert E. Lee ranks highest.

General Lee was the kindest, most affectionate and chivalrous man that ever led an army. Through his character and his actions he led the ragtag Army of Northern Virginia through terrible winters, vastly outnumbered at most engagements, and without adequate supplies. He lived as his soldiers did: cold, hungry and in tents. Even when offered housing and better food by the people around his encampments, he turned it down. His men put such trust in him, that they would follow him to the ends of the earth. They also knew that he was always willing to listen to the appeals and the problems of his men. Many of his letters included these problems his men had, and whenever conversing with his family he always wished for more socks or supplies for his men.

His letters to his family during the war show such affection and service that one is surprised this man was at war while writing these. A man that had certain pressing engagements constantly around him, always found time to write to his wife and children. He constantly remembered the personal lives of his soldiers and officers. Treating them as his sons, and as real people. Not just cannon fodder ready to be thrown to the wolves.

After his army faced disasters through the mismanagement of troops and equipment by others Lee would not blame others. Jefferson Davis once wrote,

“Yet, through al this, with a magnanimity rarely equaled, he stood in silence, without defending himself or allowing others to defend him, for he was unwilling to offend anyone who was wearing a sword and striking blows for the Confederacy (p.45.)”

When other men challenged Lee’s skills or leadership. Others were more than willing to come to his aid. General Stonewall Jackson is quoted as saying, “ He is cautions. He ought to be. But he is not slow. Lee is a phenomenon. He is the only man whom I would follow blindfold (p.83.)” This is high praise from another of the South’s consummate generals.

He was known to have a love of children and animals. Always willing to play with young children and offering help to all. His affection for his horses, Traveller (as recognizable as the rider) and Lucy Long is amazing. Not to mention the love he showed to his family’s animals at home.

What amazes even more is the extreme humility that was showed by this gentleman. Always placing the efforts of God, his family, and his men before his own. His belief in God, and religion showed throughout all of his works. He attended church every Sunday, even most of the Sundays of the Civil War (battles notwithstanding.) During his tenure as President of Washington College (later renamed Washington and Lee,) he kept in close contact with the Young Christians and placed the rebuilding and improving the chapel as the highest priority for the school.

His son defined his devotion as, “His was a practical, everyday religion, which supported him all through his life, enabled him to bear with equanimity every reverse of fortune, and to accept her gifts without undue elation (p. 93.)” This stoicism is a mark of few men, but should be upheld as a guide for future generations of men. In a letter to his wife, the General states, “What a glorious world Almighty God has given us. How thankless and ungrateful we are, and how we labor to mar his gifts (p.32)” The humility he showed throughout his life, embarrasses my ego, and gives an image to reach for.

General Lee was also increasingly dignified throughout his life. Alexander Stephens, Vice-President of the CSA said of the General, “What I had seen General Lee to be at first – childlike in simplicity and unselfish in his character – he remained, unspoiled by praise and by success (p. 65.)” This is the type of compliment Lee received almost constantly through his life. Further personified by Colonel William Preston Johnson, a faculty member at Washington College.

I never saw him take an ungraceful posture. No matter how long or fatiguing a faculty meeting might be, he always preserved and attitude in which dignity, decorum, and grace were united. He was a very well built man, with rounded body and limbs, and seemed without the slightest affectation of effort to sit or stand or walk just as a gentleman should. He was never in a hurry, and all his gestures were easy and significant. He was always an agreeable companion. There was a good deal on bonhomie and pleasantry in his conversation. He was not exactly witty, nor was he very humorous, though he gave a light turn to table talk and enjoyed exceedingly any pleasantry or fun, even. He often made a quaint or slightly caustic remark, but he too care that it should not be too trenchant (p. 285)

This man received such high praise from all of those around him. However, it is his own words and actions that show his dignity in the highest. In a letter to a fellow General (Longstreet), Lee states,

“I am of the opinion that all who can should vote for the most intelligent, honest, and conscientious men eligible to office, irrespective of former party opinions, who will endeavor to make the new constitutions and the laws passed under them as beneficial as possible to the true interests, prosperity, and liberty of all classes and conditions of the people (p. 242.)”

Words like these show a man who was not troubled by his losses or the past. He merely hoped optimistically for the future of the United States always. This dignity cannot be taken away from him, no matter how people look at the Civil War. There were many problems associated with the Civil War. But for this man it was easy to fight, for he would not turn his back on his home state nor what he thought of as the Union. “All that the South has ever desired was that the Union, as established by our forefathers, should be preserved, and that the government as originally organized should be administered in purity and truth (p.202.)”

There is no better praise than to be praised in defeat. There is no greater honor shown to a loser than shown to General Robert E. Lee. His life and his words offer a glimpse into a man led by duty, and of such caliber that all should wish to emulate. I hope that I can live according to the principles that Lee lived, but know that I will assuredly fall short. This portrait has opened my eyes to a challenging time in the history of the United States and I recommend it to all who wish to gain an appreciation of character.

Be the gentlemen and ladies that Robert E. Lee would be proud of.

Recollections and Letters

So maybe Marcus Aurelius isn’t for you. Seneca is a bore, and you think Epictetus needs to get a clue about life. If Stoicism has failed to capture your imagination, I have one last prescription for you. The Obstacle is the Way, by Ryan Holiday, is the penicillin that cures whatever could possibly ail you. Stoicism for the modern age, and written for anyone who can look at problems in their life as challenges or obstacles. If you can do this, Holiday argues the world becomes yours. I’d like to think he is right. Holiday makes it easier by illustrating the travails of numerous historical figures overcoming their own problems in novel and simple ways. (Simple does not mean easy.) The treatment is simple: use perception, action, and will to overcome any thing that stands in your way.

We all have the same twenty-four hours in a day that every great man or woman of history has had to accomplish their goals. Yet most people look at their goals daily and say “Tomorrow”, “It’s too hard,” “If only I had…” or “If X wasn’t in my way,” etc.. These are bullshit stories we tell ourselves to make us feel better about our failures. Do not accept them and they no longer have power. “There is no good or bad without us, there is only perception. There is the event itself and the story we tell ourselves about what it means (p.22)” Embrace the challenges that enter your life, and you will get better at facing them, and soon the problems that seemed to loom so large will be molehills in the rearview mirror.

As it turns out, this is one thing all great men and women of history have in common. Like oxygen to a fire, obstacles become fuel for the blaze that was their ambition. Nothing could stop them, they were (and continue to be) impossible to discourage or contain. Every impediment only served to make the inferno within them burn with greater ferocity. (p. 4)

Here in the twenty-first century, we are given so many blessings and technologies that make life seem easy. One can get everything and anything at the press of a button on a screen. Yet as soon as things don’t turn out the way we expect, we are stopped on a dime. We don’t know how to proceed. We have become weak with the blessings of the future. It doesn’t have to be this way. The blessings in our life can make life easier, but they should not be crutches we rely on as they can be taken away at any time. When things don’t go your way, realize the opportunity you have to succeed and be prepared to act.

Once you have a good grasp of reality and realize the advantages that come with even the worst of positions, one must act. Break the problem down into parts and crack away at them one by one. Theodore Roosevelt once said, “We must all either wear out or rust out, every one of us. My choice is to wear out.” Will you wear out or rust out?

How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. Eventually with consistent driven action, one must reach their goal eventually. It does not matter if you eat the elephant nose to tail, or hoof to spine.

Pragmatism is not so much realism as flexibility. There are a lot of ways to get from point A to point B. It doesn’t have to be a straight line. It’s just got to get you where you need to go. But so many of us spend so much time looking for the perfect solution that we pass up what is right in front of us. (p. 101)

The will to continue when everything stands in the way is the mark of a stoic and a success. We always have control over our mind, it is the one thing that can not be taken away from us, by fate, governments, obstacles or anything. How we react and feel about any given situation is the most important thing. Life will not turn out like we hoped or expected. Pain is inevitable; you will get knocked on your ass. Do you have the inner strength to get back up and brush yourself off? Do you have the humility to undertake everything you do with effort towards your goal, knowing that the path is hidden from us, except for that next step?

The rules of the game are simple, life will throw challenges at you. How you respond to them will probe the temper of your soul. Make it strong, and keep pushing forward. If you only accept from the universe what you want, eventually it will be given it to you.

“Nothing can ever prevent us from trying. Ever (p. 123.)”

The Obstacle is the Way

Meditations, the personal diary of Marcus Aurelius, the last of the great Roman Emperors, embodies the ideal of the philosopher king. Stoicism is defined to its core.

The scary thing is that the world almost lost this treasure. Aurelius wished for his diary to be destroyed after his death. As it was merely thoughts he wrote for himself, this was a simple wish. However, humanity is lucky that this man’s personal philosophy escaped the fires of destruction.

When most people hear the word philosophy, they run for the hills out of fear of stuffy old white men expounding theorems that don’t make sense. Meditations is not that kind of philosophy. Instead, it is a blueprint for living well, for being a good person, and for facing all the obstacles that will come forward in your life.  What is more, it is easy to read. Aurelius did not write this for academics or others, but for himself in simple words.

Aurelius’ philosophy can be boiled down into one statement: “If it is not right, don’t do it. If it is not true, don’t say it. (XII.12)” This is a simple philosophy, but not easy to live. It is something all men and women should strive for, and I continually struggle with it myself. But failing is okay as long as you keep coming back to this idea.

Marcus believed that right action was important most of all. “And thou wilt give thyself relief, if thou [does] every act of thy life as if it were the last, laying aside all carelessness and passionate aversion from the commands of reason, and all hypocrisy and self-love, and discontent with the portion which has been given thee. (II.5)”

What gave Marcus Aurelius the strength to be this virtuous selfless man? No man ruled over a larger empire, nor accessed such wealth as he. He had every opportunity to fall prey to the baser desires of man.  However, these things did not faze Marcus Aurelius. He did not care for the freedoms that could be taken away at any moment. He preferred the inner freedom of his will and intelligence. He always decided how he felt about the things that happened around him, looking for the positive in all. This is the only freedom any of us truly have, the freedom to come to our own conclusions.

“For nowhere, either with more quiet or more freedom from trouble, does a man retire than into his own soul, particularly when he has within him such thoughts that by looking into them he is immediately in perfect tranquility; and I affirm that tranquility is nothing else than good ordering of the mind. (IV.3)”

Marcus Aurelius shared interesting viewpoints on life and death and time that simplify the problems associated.  He cautions himself “Do not act as if thou [were] going to live ten thousand years. Death hangs over thee. While thou [live], while it is in thy power, be good. (IV.17)” We must always remember that we are going to die, as it is the one thing common to all living creatures. Most people fear this fact, when it should empower people to live the life they want. Life is not infinite but time is.  We should not wish for fame or our name to outlive us, because these are merely idle and pointless treasures as:

“He who has a vehement desire for posthumous fame does not consider that everyone of those who remember him will himself also die very soon; then again also they who have succeeded them, until the whole remembrance shall have been extinguished as it is transmitted through men who foolishly admire and perish. (IV.19)”

His ability to view things from the cosmic perspective gives Marcus Aurelius the ability to truly whittle away the idle pleasures and fears of all men.

“Do not then consider life a thing of any value. For look to the immensity of time behind thee, and to the time which is before thee, another boundless space. In this infinity then what is the difference between him who lives three days and him who lives three generations? (IV.50)”

Living this stoic philosophy is definitely hard work. Most people will not be up to the task, and that is okay. It is not for everyone. I hope to always fall back on the philosophy of stoicism in the trying times of my life.  I need it especially in this day and age that puts so much value on the items and products around us. Consumer capitalism blinds us to the true nature of things. So when I am blinded, I try to remember to look to the true nature of things.

“When we have meat before us and such eatables, we receive the impression, that this is the dead body of a fish, and this is the dead body of a bird or a pig; and again, that this Falernian is only a little grape juice, and this purple robe some sheep’s wool dyed with the blood of a shellfish: such then are these impressions and they reach the things themselves and penetrate them, and so we see what kind of things they are. (VI.13)”

I have both been looking forward to and fearful of writing about this book. This has been such an impressive and imposing tome on my life that I hope I can do it justice. I could write the lessons of this great man for many hours and pages, but that would take the joy out of reading it oneself. I can’t recommend a better book to those who face troubles in their life (i.e. everyone), or who wish to live a better life. There is no greater self-improvement book and if there is a better life philosophy I have not found it.

If you do plan on reading this book, read the Gregory Hayes translation I have linked to. It is not the copy I have, but it is highly recommended as the easiest and simplest translation of the book.

I leave you with a simple wish: “Keep thyself then simple, good, pure, serious, free from affectation, a friend of justice, a worshiper of the gods, kind, affectionate, strenuous in all proper acts. (VI.30)”

Meditations

Never in my life have I read such an infuriatingly hilarious book as Candide. I am not alone in my grievances. Voltaire’s novel is so depressingly funny because it makes a mockery of the Enlightenment philosophy of Optimism. In fact, Candide literally means optimism. Ever single, possible horror this world has is displayed prominently in this short, witty, and surprisingly articulate book.

The story focuses on Candide, a young German man, who lives in a castle under the protection of a Baron. This Baron employs a philosopher named Pangloss who preaches that this is the best of all possible worlds (optimism.) The Baron has a young daughter named Cunegonde, who Candide falls in love with. This is where things go downhill very quickly. Candide is kicked out of the castle and is subjected to such a rapid procession of horrors and losses that would make most people give up the will to live. However, Candide constantly beckons back to his old teacher Pangloss’ idea that this is the best of all possible words.

The things talked about in this novel should not be funny; laughing at them should make any reader feel guilty. Yet, time and time again, I had to pause while reading this to quell a smirk or laughter at heinous acts of Providence. Rapes, wars, tortures, cannibalism, fires, earthquakes, theft, etc. are all discussed as naturally as the sun rising in the East. I was thrust onwards, by Candide’s eternal optimism to keep reading.

The eventual conclusion to the novel, which does not spoil the text, is that Candide finally finds the best possible world for himself in his work and in cultivating his garden.

Critics have tried for years to figure out what Voltaire was trying to prove by writing this book. Most argued that it was trying to solve mankind’s ultimate question: why an omniscient, omnipotent, benevolent God made a world with a great deal of evil in it? I think this misses the point of what Voltaire was trying to expound. Voltaire was himself a figure of the Enlightenment who hated organized religions of all creeds and flavors.

When the conversation happening to turn into this channel [the clergy], one person said, “If you subtract pride from priests, nothing will remain.” [Voltaire replied,] “Then, Sir, you consider gluttony nothing?” (A Letter from John Moore)

Most of Voltaire’s followers thus took this book to be a denouncement of all religion and benevolent gods. However, I think this simplifies the argument too much that we lose Voltaire’s entire premise. Through the continuous displays of horror and evil, Candide ultimately remains optimistic. In the face of criticism from every man he ever meets, except for dear Pangloss and a hapless soul named Jacques who drowned, Candide believed “all is well.”

Voltaire proved a point that has been talked about by such great minds as Shakespeare, Aurelius, Frankl, and more: that there is no such thing as good or bad but thinking makes it so. This is stoic philosophy at its core, yet no critic seems to come to this conclusion. Good and evil come from the same source in Voltaire’s mind, and it is only your opinion of the event that causes the distinction. Even through all the tragedies of both Candide and Voltaire’s life, he never gave up hope for the goodness of man. Because he believed it so.

We are the creators of our own circumstance, whatever happens to us will happen and there is nothing we can do to stop it. How we react to these moments of change and chaos determine how we live our lives. So live it well, with the knowledge that nothing can hurt you unless you allow it to. No amount of savagery or fate can take the spirit of optimism from your soul, so that you can overcome any obstacle.

Read this book for the wittiness that transcends centuries. Read this book to learn from one of the greatest figures of the Enlightenment and the French Revolution (of which he died before its beginning.) Read this book to laugh at the face of an evil god, and realize you are laughing at yourself. Read this book to realize your life is not that bad. Read this book to help cultivate the garden of your mind.

Candide.

The Hero With 1000 Faces is a book that challenges everything I thought I knew about the world. Joseph Campbell writes remarkable earthshattering ideas in such a simple, fluid and easy to follow manner that I can’t help but scream to myself “Why didn’t I think of that!” Campbell, however, would argue that we all have already thought of these things, they are in our dreams and in our myths. Campbell spent most of his adult life studying comparative mythology of all the great civilizations, and what he found was startling in its simplicity. All of the myths and fairy tales that cultures have told for millennia are based on a simple coherent and equal structure: the Monomyth. It is such a simple idea, George Lucas used it to create Star Wars, and we all know how that turned out.

“The wonder is that characteristic efficacy to touch and inspire deep creative centers dwells in the smallest nursery fairy tale—the flavor of the ocean is contained in a droplet or the whole mystery of life within the egg of a flea. (Hero, pg.1)”

The names, events and places, might change, but the underlying message is the same. All men and women throughout time face the same problems as everyone else, and there is a simple way to solve your problems: by following the journey of the hero.

Not all men and women become heroes, in fact most do not, but we all have within ourselves to be that hero if we only follow the prescription of the monomyth. Campbell broke this circular progression down for all of us to use if we so choose.

Separation or Departure

• The Call to Adventure
• The Refusal of the Call
• The Supernatural Aid
• The Crossing of the First Threshold
• The Belly of the Whale

Trials and Victories of Initiation

• The Road of Trials
• The Meeting with the Goddess
• Woman as the Temptress
• Atonement with the Father
• Apotheosis
• Ultimate Boon

The Return and Reintegration with Society

• The Refusal of the Return
• The Magic Flight
• The Rescue from Without
• The Crossing of the Return Threshold
• The Master of Two Worlds
• The Freedom to live.

This journey is how we all grow and improve. This series of initiations allows betterment and success. Not all Heroes’ journeys follow every step along the way, but this general circle has shepherded all of the great heroes and legends of civilization.

Following Campbell’s ideology, and studies, leads to a realization that humanity is something shared by all people of all times, and that all are connected to life and death. This is psychedelic thinking to say the least, but it is no less than the tenets espoused in Buddhism, Christianity, Norse Mythology, fairy tales, and more. Accepting this connectedness, one feels a heavy burden to raise humanity and the world up to the standards that have come before. This common DNA though becomes more than a burden but a gift that can be tasted and given generously, if one merely follows the way. But to do this one must raise him/herself up to raise humanity. There is something incredibly freeing about that.

Campbell delves deep into the study of dreams, and the works of eminent psychologists as Freud and Jung. Claiming that “Dream is the personalized myth, myth the depersonalized dream; both myth and dream are symbolic in the same general way of the dynamics of the psyche. (Hero, pg.14.)” This connection of dreams to mythology has been severed and forgotten, so many fail to grasp the significance of both. Campbell elucidates the problem most coherently by describing the U.S.

In the United States there is even a pathos of inverted emphasis: the goal is not to grow old, but to remain young; not to mature away from Mother, but to cleave to her. And so, while husbands are worshiping at their boyhood shrines, being the lawyers, merchants, or masterminds their parents wanted them to be, their wives, even after fourteen years of marriage and two fine children produced and raised, are still on the search for love—which can come to them only from the centaurs, sileni, satyrs, and other concupiscent incubi of the rout of Pan, either as in [dreams,] or as in our popular, vanilla-frosted temples of the venereal goddess, under the make-up of the latest heroes of the screen (Hero, pg. 7)

It is hard not to see the truths in these words. But the hope is that all can achieve growth and fulfillment in life. To do this however requires the shattering of ego, something most are unable or unwilling to do. Getting rid of the ideas of good and evil in one’s heart and realizing that these come from the same source, and there is no distinction. Becoming a creator of circumstance is tough work, but it is an admirable goal in the journey of life. Living should not be wasted, and there is no surer way to fulfill life than by becoming the Hero of one’s own journey.

The modern hero, the modern individual who dares to heed the call and seek the mansion of that presence with whom it is our whole destiny to be atoned, cannot, indeed must not, wait for his community to cast off its slough of pride, fear, rationalized avarice, and sanctified misunderstanding. “Live,” Nietzche says, “as though the day were here.” It is not society that is to guide and save the creative hero but precisely the reverse. And so every one of us shares the supreme ordeal—carries the cross of redeemer—not in the bright moments of his tribe’s great victories, but in the silence of his personal despair (Hero, pg. 337.)

My hope is to heed the call of my own journey, and not languish the life that is set before me. I will shatter my ego; embrace the challenges that life and I set before me. The path will be strenuous, but I know that with this blueprint I can achieve beyond my wildest imaginations, and awake the hero within. Will you?

The Hero With 1000 Faces

Kim is a book I can’t help but read again and again. Rudyard Kipling’s portrait of colonial India at the turn of the 20^th century is an up close look at a world that has  been forgotten. This story manages to capture the reader and doesn’t let go. It is a book that delves into topics such as identity, faith, intelligence work, but most of all life itself. The harrowing tale that combines Buddhism, spies, culture, language, trade, identity, and empire. No better fiction exists that shows The Great Game, between England and Russia, in all its glory. This book is an education in and of itself, but more so it is fascinating. The adventures of young Kimball O’Hara (Kim), the orphan son of an Irish sergeant in the city of Lahore, are peculiar but enviable. Kim known throughout as the “Friend of all the World” for his friendship and knowledge of the people and cultures of India is as much Easterner as Westerner. This dichotomy fuels much of the story.

It is hard to say what this story is about, because it is quite possibly about everything and nothing. This adventure is about life in all of its colors garish, pretty, and dull. It is of affection and emotions unimaginable to many today. When Kim is following the travels of a wandering Buddhist Llama on the search for nirvana in the waters of the “River of the Arrow.” Learning the spy game from Lurgan Sahib, a spymaster of highest respects. Trading horses and spying with Mahbub Ali, the greatest horse trader in all of India. Or catching Russian spies in the hills of the Himalayas with the fearful Babu Hurree. Kipling portrays a world so vibrant and real the reader is transported to the road alongside Kim.

Throughout this novel, Kim is shown to confound others with his identity, as no man is able to place him in a box. He may be an Englishman, sahib, by blood. However, he fits in just as easily with Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, low caste, high caste, no caste, and more:

“Therefore, in one situate as thou art, it particulary behoves thee to remember this with both kinds of faces. Among Sahibs, never forgetting thou art a Sahib; among the folk of the Hind, always remembering thou are—“ he (Mahbub) paused, with a puzzled smile. “What am I? Mussalman, Hindu, Jain, or Buddhist? That is a hard nut.”

This difficult identity of neither East nor West, or any other easy classification makes Kim the ultimate canvas. To make a spy in the Great Game, to embrace the words of an enlightened Buddhist monk or walk with Queens on the roads of India.

It is easy for Westerners now to claim an understanding of Buddhism with the Dalai Llama a well-known celebrity. However, without the imagery and teachings Kipling shared with us through Teshoo Llama we would be at a loss. In this short adventure we are shown all of the tenets of this “Middle Way” and given an appreciation most do not have of their own religions. But this is not the only religion the reader is given an education on; Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, and Christianity (both Church of England and Catholicism) are explored through the lens of India into a vivid image that finds truth in all. As Mahbub Ali says,

The wise man knows horses are good—that there is profit to be made from all; and for myself—but that I am a good Sunni and hate the men of Tirah—I could believe the same of all faiths. Now manifestly a Kattiawar mare taken from the sands of her birthplace and removed to the west of Bengal founders—nor is even a Balkh stallion (and there are no better horses than those of Balkh, were they not so heavy in the shoulder) of any account in the great Northern deserts beside the snow-camels I have seen. Therefore I say in my heart the Faiths are like horses. Each has merit in its own country.

If one would like to learn about the intricacies of the spy game in India, and probably the whole world, Kim is the book to read. The Play of Jewels, now known as Kim’s game, is a game of memory designed to challenge even the strongest of intellects. It should be used by all spy agencies to this day (and probably is.) This game teaches one to take pictures with the mind of the things they have seen in an instant and recall them with stunning specificity. It is a game I would like to practice and get better at myself. In addition, Lurgan Sahib, the spymaster, teaches Kim the skills of observation, disguise, and culture; tests him with suggestion (hypnosis,) and dressing-up. This book looks at the skills of the spy with such rigor that Allen Dulles purportedly skimmed through the book most nights. If the book is good enough for the Director of the CIA, it’s good enough for me.

Where Kipling, and more specifically Kim really thrive though is in the travels along the roads of India, from the Plains to the Hills. Here the reader is given such a beautiful analysis of the varied peoples and landscapes that the sights, sounds, and smells creep into the world with such gaiety that one yearns to join him on the road (even the frigid and steep hills of the Himalayas.)

What this story is really about doesn’t matter. The symbolism, characters, adventures and vivid landscapes make this a book well worth reading even if it were not a historical treasure. Yet it is a masterpiece that better illuminates the beautiful land of colonial India than any book that came before or after. Not a word is wasted, nor a scene unseen. I greedily wish Kipling had written more of this adventure, but it is pure and final in its form.

This book makes me yearn for adventures of all sorts, it reminds me to treat every person with respect and know they have something for me to learn. I have found clarity towards the infinite differences of peoples and religions, and respect all of them for what they are. The journey will hopefully be long, and the lessons learned important. I go forth knowing that , “We be all on one lead-rope…”

Kim

I am writing 2ndhandwisdom as a means to not only remember what I have read and the lessons learned, but to share these things with whoever wants to read. I don’t know where this is going to go, but I certainly hope you all enjoy it. If not I’ll still keep updating it, just so I can remember.

I look forward to sharing the journey to wisdom with you all.

R. Bailey