There is no doubt that alongside issues such as unemployment, inflation, taxes, and inequality, one of the greatest problems in Europe is a spiritual one.
The name of this problem is meaninglessness. Neither religion, nor science, nor even the habits we adopt to our lives can fully shield us from occasionally contemplating about the meaninglessness of life.
Truly, what is the meaning of life? If there is no longer a belief system, ideology we can hold on, if there isn’t any upper target we can pursue, how can we find our own path?
Even though it’s impossible to provide a satisfying answer to this compelling question, we can still benefit from philosophers who’ve strived to find a solution to this problem.
Nietzsche, one of the philosophers who tried to create an antidote to the crisis of meaninglessness that ensued in Europe, in the period following the Age of Enlightenment, can be our guide.
“God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him. How shall we comfort ourselves, the murderers of all murderers?“ said Nietzsche, in his famous book Thus Spoke Zarathustra.
Looking from his perspective, I want to ask, aren’t we all killing the things that once upon a time we adored?
Aren’t we the ones who create habits for ourselves and follow them religiously, but at the same time destroy them instantly no matter what it costs?
We are the creators, we are the destroyers of our creations. And I say this our “Terrible beauty”.
It is terrible because it seems like for us humans, there is nothing that we can hold on to, due to the fact that we are becoming murderers of almost everything we attach to ourselves. But it is also beautiful because we are turning into lifelong travellers when we realise there isn’t any place that we can call home. And is there anything greater than to become a wanderer of the world? Aren’t all the secrets that are hidden from us found in uncertainty?
“Oh, you may be sure that Columbus was happy not when he had discovered America, but when he was discovering it. Take my word for it, the highest moment of his happiness was just three days before the discovery of the New World, when the mutinous crew were on the point of returning to Europe in despair. It wasn't the New World that mattered, even if it had fallen to pieces. Columbus died almost without seeing it; and not really knowing what he had discovered. It's life that matters, nothing but life -- the process of discovering, the everlasting and perpetual process, not the discovery itself, at all.” - Dostoevsky, Idiot
When the air is bright, it seems like everything is fine. But what if that brightness is only an illusion to prevent us from taking a journey to the unknown islands of our souls? Isn’t it boring when everything you see is somehow obvious, therefore there is nothing you can add on?
We search for the adventure, not for the meaning. We are not dying because of uncertainty, but because of stability. In contrast to many stereotypical beliefs, the light does not stand in the sun, it stands in the deepest tunnels of the human soul. Therefore, we need to have the courage to take a long, deep journey to our own souls.
Uncertainty is our "Terrible beauty". Let's embrace it.
As Nietzsche said: “One must have chaos in oneself to give birth to a dancing star.”
