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Thu 12 Aug, 2010 01:19 pm
Question... I love to know how others think.
My thought is based on the idea that the happy life is one that contains a cycle - a series if you will - of successes and failures. That part of reaching an overall feeling of contentment includes a measure of 'pain', or hardship. This helps not only to highlight the feeling of accomplishment, but that its through some sense of struggle that we come to 'own' or earn the successes that do come. Yet the more I thought about it, of life's most satisfying successes, achievements, personal victories or peak experiences are there any which bring that feeling of deep satisfaction yet don't require hardship, struggle or pain?
Conversely: Is there any significant life-success which does not require some measure of pain?
If there isn't - that struggle and at least some hardship is necessary - then I find it paradoxical that human behavior tends to favor what's most expedient; the most direct means to an end - almost an obsession with making our lives easy. In our post-industrial lives where daily survival has become so convenient, is it perhaps now only through the obstacles (or goals) we, ourselves, create wherein we can reach deep goal satisfaction?
Love to hear any and all thoughts
Thanks
@Khethil,
Khethil wrote:
Question... I love to know how others think.
My thought is based on the idea that the happy life is one that contains a cycle - a series if you will - of successes and failures. That part of reaching an overall feeling of contentment includes a measure of 'pain', or hardship. This helps not only to highlight the feeling of accomplishment, but that its through some sense of struggle that we come to 'own' or earn the successes that do come. Yet the more I thought about it, of life's most satisfying successes, achievements, personal victories or peak experiences are there any which bring that feeling of deep satisfaction yet don't require hardship, struggle or pain?
Well sure. Eating a good juicy steak with fries, and drinking a great beer or wine.
(Oh, forgot. Medium rare, of course!)
@Khethil,
In my experience people normally work harder for or because of the easy fix than it would take to achieve a legitimate approximation. To me that is the real paradox.
@GoshisDead,
kennethamy wrote:Well sure. Eating a good juicy steak with fries, and drinking a great beer or wine.
(Oh, forgot. Medium rare, of course!)
Oh nice one... rare's the only way to go!
GoshisDead wrote:
In my experience people normally work harder for or because of the easy fix than it would take to achieve a legitimate approximation. To me that is the real paradox.
... in that seeking the easy ends up being more effort/labor? Like spending $10 to save $5? That kinda thing?
Thanks
@Khethil,
Khet: yes it either takes way more effort/resources, or if it is easily gained the price in effort or hardship afterwards is more.
@Khethil,
To me the worst part is seeing that you're just going in circles and there's nothing you can do about it.-Realizing all the pain you have to go through to reach success again. I guess that sounds pessimistic though.
@Render,
Render wrote:
To me the worst part is seeing that you're just going in circles and there's nothing you can do about it.-Realizing all the pain you have to go through to reach success again. I guess that sounds pessimistic though.
No not really - not to me.
That scenario sounds like a "time to re-evaluate"-opportunity. Do I keep trying this seemingly-futile endeavor? - Balance the expected gain with the expected outcome.
Thanks
@Render,
Render wrote:
To me the worst part is seeing that you're just going in circles and there's nothing you can do about it.-Realizing all the pain you have to go through to reach success again. I guess that sounds pessimistic though.
Are we really going round in circles or are going around in a spiral? We learn and grow from ever revolution tightening our response, even if it is imperceptive. If we see the tightening of the revolution as progress we might find that the pain of the previous revolutions will eventually be worth something.
@GoshisDead,
GoshisDead wrote:
Are we really going round in circles or are going around in a spiral? We learn and grow from ever revolution tightening our response, even if it is imperceptive. If we see the tightening of the revolution as progress we might find that the pain of the previous revolutions will eventually be worth something.
That's so true... I've been through episodes that seemed like climbing Mt. Everest at the time... looking back it seemed more like a bump. I changed. There's an idea of grace through adversity... bonsai trees are an example.
Still the basic idea in the OP is valid: it occured to me watching The Lord of the Rings (never read it), that Frodo would never have known what he was capable of had it not been for the rise of Evil.
The thing about life being too easy.... in a way that comes up in the movie Fight Club. I've been into movie philosophy lately... movies are kind of myth expression these days.
I had it tough sometimes and I learnt everything I know about life and people from fighting and survival and I won, you have to be smart when it's live or die and lady luck played her part to0. Now I'm free to enjoy myself, to live and be free and to love which is the best thing in the world.
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