All of this, but particularly this," . . .as Marcus Aurelius in his Meditations puts it: We are part of the All, the Cosmos, and the All and the Cosmos runs through each of us."
Kimberly Carter: Epictetus and the great Poet, Friedrich Hölderlin, hold to this universalism, which Hölderlin in particular (as a joint college fraternity member with Schelling and Hegel) wrote his two colleagues: ἓν καὶ πᾶν (hen kai pan) -- The One, The All.
Hölderlin expands this in "Hyperion" -- a fiction in letters reflecting Hölderlin's meditation as a young man:
To be one with All -- that is the Divine Life, that is Heaven for Humanity.
To be One with All that Lives -- to return in blessed self-forgetfulness into the ALL of Nature, that is the High Peak of Thought and Joys; that is the Holy Mountain Top, the Refuge of Eternal Peace, where Noon looses its humidity and thunder its voice and the lapping seas resemble the waves of wind over the cornfield.
To be one with All that Lives! With these words, . . . the Human Spirit throws the scepter away and all Thought disappears into the Picture of the Eternal-One World.
In the original:
Eines zu sein mit Allem, das ist Leben der Gottheit, das ist der Himmel des Menschen.
Eines zu sein mit Allem, was lebt, in seliger Selbstvergessenheit wiederzukehren ins All der Natur, das ist der Gipfel der Gedanken und Freuden, das ist die heilige Bergeshöhe, der Ort der ewigen Ruhe, wo der Mittag seine Schwüle und der Donner seine Stimme verliert und das kochende Meer der Woge des Kornfelds gleicht.
Eines zu sein mit Allem, was lebt! Mit diesem Worte legt * * * der Geist des Menschen den Zepter weg, und alle Gedanken schwinden vor dem Bilde der ewigeinigen Welt,
I started college in September 1969, participated in the October Moratorium march, and was a marshal at the *huge* November 15 March on Washington. Still have a visceral memory of watching hundreds of thousands of people pour down Pennsylvania Ave. NW. In those days we talked incessantly about tactics and strategies for opposing unjust wars. Some people claimed that the ends justify the means. This, I eventually figured out (with the help of others), had it backwards. In real life the means *become* the ends whether that's our intention or not. I've tried to keep that in mind.
Susanna J. Sturgis: There is much wisdom in what you have just said, "In real life, the means become the ends whether that's our intention or not." Thank you for your thoughtfulness.
Chuang-tzu, Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius Seems like we have read and studied some similar things. We should discuss these three sometime. Even though I like Taoism and Stoicism, I believe there is a whole in there beliefs. However, I believe they are still very useful.
Jim Sanders: Thank you so much. I think you and I would do well over coffee or beer, we have the same core values and much spirit and just enough differences to spark interest!
All of this, but particularly this," . . .as Marcus Aurelius in his Meditations puts it: We are part of the All, the Cosmos, and the All and the Cosmos runs through each of us."
Kimberly Carter: Epictetus and the great Poet, Friedrich Hölderlin, hold to this universalism, which Hölderlin in particular (as a joint college fraternity member with Schelling and Hegel) wrote his two colleagues: ἓν καὶ πᾶν (hen kai pan) -- The One, The All.
Hölderlin expands this in "Hyperion" -- a fiction in letters reflecting Hölderlin's meditation as a young man:
To be one with All -- that is the Divine Life, that is Heaven for Humanity.
To be One with All that Lives -- to return in blessed self-forgetfulness into the ALL of Nature, that is the High Peak of Thought and Joys; that is the Holy Mountain Top, the Refuge of Eternal Peace, where Noon looses its humidity and thunder its voice and the lapping seas resemble the waves of wind over the cornfield.
To be one with All that Lives! With these words, . . . the Human Spirit throws the scepter away and all Thought disappears into the Picture of the Eternal-One World.
In the original:
Eines zu sein mit Allem, das ist Leben der Gottheit, das ist der Himmel des Menschen.
Eines zu sein mit Allem, was lebt, in seliger Selbstvergessenheit wiederzukehren ins All der Natur, das ist der Gipfel der Gedanken und Freuden, das ist die heilige Bergeshöhe, der Ort der ewigen Ruhe, wo der Mittag seine Schwüle und der Donner seine Stimme verliert und das kochende Meer der Woge des Kornfelds gleicht.
Eines zu sein mit Allem, was lebt! Mit diesem Worte legt * * * der Geist des Menschen den Zepter weg, und alle Gedanken schwinden vor dem Bilde der ewigeinigen Welt,
I'm going to put this above my desk for a daily reminder. Thank you!
I started college in September 1969, participated in the October Moratorium march, and was a marshal at the *huge* November 15 March on Washington. Still have a visceral memory of watching hundreds of thousands of people pour down Pennsylvania Ave. NW. In those days we talked incessantly about tactics and strategies for opposing unjust wars. Some people claimed that the ends justify the means. This, I eventually figured out (with the help of others), had it backwards. In real life the means *become* the ends whether that's our intention or not. I've tried to keep that in mind.
Susanna J. Sturgis: There is much wisdom in what you have just said, "In real life, the means become the ends whether that's our intention or not." Thank you for your thoughtfulness.
Violence diminishes all of us
Edward Bryant: You said that so concisely. You inspire me with that spirit!
Chuang-tzu, Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius Seems like we have read and studied some similar things. We should discuss these three sometime. Even though I like Taoism and Stoicism, I believe there is a whole in there beliefs. However, I believe they are still very useful.
Jim Sanders: Thank you so much. I think you and I would do well over coffee or beer, we have the same core values and much spirit and just enough differences to spark interest!
Hole not whole.sorry for the typo. This post is not about philosophy so we can discuss this another time.
Jim Sanders: Actually, I brought up philosophy with Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius. You are a very thoughtful person, and I enjoy reading your remarks.