Thank you for the introduction! This explains the mechanisms behind, “Hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, and weak men create hard times.”
Łobaczewski’s reference to “the creative meaning of suffering” makes me think of Victor Frankl, so I’ll share a few pertinent quotes below:
“Those who have a ‘why’ to live, can bear with almost any ‘how’.”
“When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.”
“But there was no need to be ashamed of tears, for tears bore witness that a man had the greatest of courage, the courage to suffer.”
“An abnormal reaction to an abnormal situation is normal behavior.”
“Ultimately, man should not ask what the meaning of his life is, but rather must recognize that it is he who is asked. In a word, each man is questioned by life; and he can only answer to life by answering for his own life; to life he can only respond by being responsible.”
“In some ways suffering ceases to be suffering at the moment it finds a meaning, such as the meaning of a sacrifice.”
“So live as if you were living already for the second time and as if you had acted the first time as wrongly as you are about to act now!”
“It did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us. We needed to stop asking about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those who were being questioned by life—daily and hourly. Our answer must consist, not in talk and meditation, but in right action and in right conduct. Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the right answer to its problems and to fulfill the tasks which it constantly sets for each individual.”
“It is not freedom from conditions, but it is freedom to take a stand toward the conditions.”
“Dostoevski said once, ‘There is only one thing I dread: not to be worthy of my sufferings.’ These words frequently came to my mind after I became acquainted with those martyrs whose behavior in camp, whose suffering and death, bore witness to the fact that the last inner freedom cannot be lost. It can be said that they were worthy of the their sufferings; the way they bore their suffering was a genuine inner achievement. It is this spiritual freedom—which cannot be taken away—that makes life meaningful and purposeful.”
Love those quotes! And the thing that jumps out at me is "personal responsibility" - oh how counter-cultural that seems to be today - to take personal responsibility and nurture the ability to respond. Wow.
Remind me again why this sort of thing isn't taught in school?
(Oh that's right, gender issues and casting blame on external forces for every internal struggle is more important than actual wisdom and personal responsibility - I keep forgetting... must be an old person thing... sorry about that).
Haha, good points, Winston. I’d say the main reason personal responsibility is vilified is because people are much easier to control and manipulate when they view themselves as hapless victims rather than being empowered to think independently, overcome adversity, and learn from their suffering.
Good on you! I've only been exposed to Nietzsche second hand through quotes and commentaries - have not had the space/time to dive in first hand, but one day I will.
Crown is a major danger of the century which influences genuinely, intellectually and monetarily/To defeat these troubles and take advantage of this prisoner period and make web based procuring. Check this web interface for more data.. Copy Here→→→→→ 𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐲𝐛𝐚𝐚𝐫.𝐜𝐨𝐦
Thank you for the introduction! This explains the mechanisms behind, “Hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, and weak men create hard times.”
Łobaczewski’s reference to “the creative meaning of suffering” makes me think of Victor Frankl, so I’ll share a few pertinent quotes below:
“Those who have a ‘why’ to live, can bear with almost any ‘how’.”
“When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.”
“But there was no need to be ashamed of tears, for tears bore witness that a man had the greatest of courage, the courage to suffer.”
“An abnormal reaction to an abnormal situation is normal behavior.”
“Ultimately, man should not ask what the meaning of his life is, but rather must recognize that it is he who is asked. In a word, each man is questioned by life; and he can only answer to life by answering for his own life; to life he can only respond by being responsible.”
“In some ways suffering ceases to be suffering at the moment it finds a meaning, such as the meaning of a sacrifice.”
“So live as if you were living already for the second time and as if you had acted the first time as wrongly as you are about to act now!”
“It did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us. We needed to stop asking about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those who were being questioned by life—daily and hourly. Our answer must consist, not in talk and meditation, but in right action and in right conduct. Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the right answer to its problems and to fulfill the tasks which it constantly sets for each individual.”
“It is not freedom from conditions, but it is freedom to take a stand toward the conditions.”
“Dostoevski said once, ‘There is only one thing I dread: not to be worthy of my sufferings.’ These words frequently came to my mind after I became acquainted with those martyrs whose behavior in camp, whose suffering and death, bore witness to the fact that the last inner freedom cannot be lost. It can be said that they were worthy of the their sufferings; the way they bore their suffering was a genuine inner achievement. It is this spiritual freedom—which cannot be taken away—that makes life meaningful and purposeful.”
Love those quotes! And the thing that jumps out at me is "personal responsibility" - oh how counter-cultural that seems to be today - to take personal responsibility and nurture the ability to respond. Wow.
Remind me again why this sort of thing isn't taught in school?
(Oh that's right, gender issues and casting blame on external forces for every internal struggle is more important than actual wisdom and personal responsibility - I keep forgetting... must be an old person thing... sorry about that).
Love it.
Haha, good points, Winston. I’d say the main reason personal responsibility is vilified is because people are much easier to control and manipulate when they view themselves as hapless victims rather than being empowered to think independently, overcome adversity, and learn from their suffering.
I am the eternal student in these matters, currently trying to grasp Nietzsche.
Good on you! I've only been exposed to Nietzsche second hand through quotes and commentaries - have not had the space/time to dive in first hand, but one day I will.
"We need to think for ourselves, be our own independent researcher, and weigh things up against a solid moral value system." I agree!
https://youtu.be/vtx5NTxebJk
Crown is a major danger of the century which influences genuinely, intellectually and monetarily/To defeat these troubles and take advantage of this prisoner period and make web based procuring. Check this web interface for more data.. Copy Here→→→→→ 𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐲𝐛𝐚𝐚𝐫.𝐜𝐨𝐦