Am I a traitor?
...I am working very hard to be.
Friedrich Nietzsche (in "Beyond Good and Evil") made the observations quoted below speaking specifically of a philosopher. Today I believe that all individuals are capable of thoughtful, passionate searching, and I issue it here as a challenge that each of us work toward these ideals as put forth by Nietzsche more than 125 years ago. I see signs every day that we (as the whole of humanity) are moving in this direction:
"...[The philosopher] must perhaps have been critic and skeptic and dogmatist and historian and, in addition, poet and collector and traveler and reader of riddles and moralist and seer and 'free spirit' and practically everything, so as to traverse the whole range of human values and value-feelings and be able to gaze from the heights into every distance, from the depths into every height, from the nook-and-corner into every broad expanse with manifold eyes and a manifold conscience...
...The philosopher, being of necessity a man of tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, has always found himself, and had to find himself, in contradiction to today: his enemy was ever the ideal of today. So far all these extraordinary furtherers of man whom one calls philosophers, though they themselves have rarely felt like friends of wisdom but rather disagreeable fools and dangerous question marks, have found their task, their hard, unwanted, inescapable task, but eventually also the greatness of their task, in being the bad conscience of their time."
I must work hard to betray 'today'. It is my responsibility, to myself and to others, to sow discomfort, and water and nourish dissatisfaction, in order to reap meaningful progress. How do I go about this task?
First I must remove myself from the consensus. I must find a suitable position opposite (or in opposition to) the consensus, stake my claim, get to know my like-minded neighbors already in this place, and work to convert other thoughtful, passionate explorers to visit and perhaps put down stakes of their own.
Once I have established myself in this place, I must pack a knapsack with my thoughts and other necessities and begin circling the original consensus, searching for other perspectives to which I may want to claim in part or in whole as additions to my first domicile of opposition.
If I am thorough I will completely circle the original consensus likely finding a variety of both suitable and unsuitable encampments and/or additions. It is important for me to examine this circular spectrum of opposition to work at understanding as many varying possibilities as I am able to locate and reach.
It is possible that before I have completed my 360 degree journey, the original consensus will shift. If it shifts into my neighborhood I must pull up stakes and find a new neighborhood in opposition to this new consensus. If it shifts in a different direction I must pull up stakes, visit and explore the new consensus, then find a new encampment (which could possibly be my old encampment) suitable for once again establishing a domicile. I must then again shoulder my thoughts and necessities and begin a new journey circling this new consensus.
A vagabond is often judged to be a disreputable troublemaker. Today, the general consensus is that one should be settled and certain in both thought and deed. And many of us choose to settle in another's certainty. But even that individual who puts forth more effort by choosing to face uncertainty, see possibilities, create meaning and purpose, and secure some degree of agreement and consensus, has not completed the challenge put forth unless they choose to then pull up stakes and start again with uncertainty. The only way to reap meaningful progress is to embark upon this never-ending, ever-evolving quest again, and again, and again, and again, and again...
Upon reviewing this week's written thought, I see that some may argue the compatibility of thoughtful passion. How can one reason with a burning desire? For me it is not a question that offers an option, but rather a question that demands a response. Utilizing uncertainty, I must sow discomfort, creating (at least in me) a burning desire to scratch the itch. Many simply soothe the itch with the balm of another's certainty; but when I have tried to mask the pain with these snake-oil potions, I cannot breathe.
I have found no cure for the burning and itching. Any relief I have acquired has been sporadic and temporary. 'Reason' is the only non-drowsy analgesic I have found. Therefore I am thoughtfully passionate.
The possibility of truthful meaning and purpose requires uncertainty, discomfort, dissatisfaction, and thoughtful passion. As Nietzsche said, "We must get there, that way, where you today are least at home."