Whether the truth, Lucilius, lies in one or in all of these views, we must be philosophers; whether Fate binds us down by an inexorable law, or whether God as arbiter of the Universe has arranged everything, or whether Chance drives and tosses human affairs without method, philosophy ought to be our defense.
She will encourage us to obey God cheerfully, but Fortune defiantly; she will teach us to follow God and endure Chance. But it is not my purpose now to be led into a discussion as to what is within our own control—if foreknowledge is supreme, or if a chain of fated events drags us along in its clutches, or if the sudden and the unexpected play the tyrant over us; I return now to my warning and my exhortation, that you should not allow the impulse of your spirit to weaken and grow cold.
Hold fast to it and establish it firmly, in order that what is now impulse may become a habit of the mind.
I used to let myself become irritated with people who so quickly dismissed philosophy, and then later I found myself feeling sad for them, though I’m not sure that was much of an improvement. I now make more of a conscious effort to understand the source of their doubt, because, heaven knows, I too have been burdened by it, though I prefer not to admit it.
“What use could philosophy possibly have? It’s just a bunch of ideas, and they do absolutely nothing to change anything in my world, and so I need to go on dealing with all the unfairness and the nastiness. Thinking about something never made it any better!”
Careful now. Far more often than I at first recognize, an astute estimation of the circumstances can indeed permit me to sometimes change aspects about them, even if I cannot become their total master. It is the thinking that makes any outside actions possible, however humble they may be.
And even where I can never gain any power over what is happening around me, let me not forget that I can always change my attitude about such things. That is no small thing, since it allows me to find meaning and value in both what I prefer and what I do not prefer.
Every condition provides the opportunity to discover something good, to make proper use of whatever comes my way so I can become someone of greater character. It is the thinking that makes any inside actions possible, however humble they may be.
“Sure, but it doesn’t help me with how I feel—I am bitter, I am in pain, I am in despair! My thinking won’t change that, will it?”
Actually, it most certainly can, and it most certainly will, if only I work on ordering my habits. A passion is always in reaction to an event, whether I have done it myself, or another has done it to me, and now the question is how a judgment will put it to use.
In many cases, how I feel is an immediate and direct consequence of what I am thinking right now. If I have decided it is worth caring for, I will face the emotions that come along with the attachment. There will be pleasure when it is present, and pain when it is absent, and I too easily overlook that the caring was the result of my deliberate choice to begin with.
In other cases, how I feel has a more convoluted origin, a remote and indirect consequence of my past thinking. I may not remember when I followed a certain path, or why I initially did so, but the inertia, so to speak, keeps pushing me along. There is no need for crippling regret, however, as all of that can still be corrected, beginning at this very moment.
Finally, there are those cases where how I feel arises from some instinctive disposition, an impulse of the flesh rather than of a deliberation of the mind. There is no need for surrender, however, because even in such a state I have the capacity to examine it, to direct it, to transform it into a means for bettering myself. No feeling is to be ignored or repressed, only to be understood and tempered.
Is the Universe ruled by Fate? Then philosophy advises me on how to come to terms with my destiny.
Is the Universe ruled by the Providence of God? Then philosophy advises me on how to know, to love, and to serve Him.
Is the Universe ruled by Chance? Then philosophy advises me on how to accept whatever might pop up, for no apparent reason whatsoever.
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