orpheus, heraclitus, and laozi
stories of entertained minds tend to be quieter and calmer, and i speak from personal experience. recently, i haven't been feeling much entertained.
with each passing day, i gradually feel how my philosophical ignorance interferes with my daily life; at the end of the day, that whole idea of βi only know that i know nothingβ sounds a bit despairing to me (even though it was never said like that).
i've been walking around with this almost insatiable hunger to make things make sense, but with little time to study. it has been lonely, but i decided to take this moment as the most recent opportunity to learn about myself.
recently, i came across the taoist philosophy of laozi, which, despite coming from ancient china, connects deeply with what heraclitus (the greek philosopher) had to say.
beyond that, i find it amusing how diogenes, the cynic, agrees more than he disagrees with laozi - i love you, diogenes. what intrigues me most, however, is how the taoist thought presents an almost practical solution to the myth of orpheus going to the underworld. in effect, this myth is much more current than it seems.
orpheus, faced with uncertainty, panics and loses what matters most to him - the presence of his beloved. instead of focusing on his goal and "moving according to the flow of water", he lets the anxiety of uncertainty take control. by trying to resist the current, he loses his dear wife and suffers not only for the rest of his life, but also beyond death.
laozi and heraclitus and diogenes make me want to become an orpheus in an alternative myth, where, in the face of the despair of uncertainty, i can observe and perceive the flow of water, surfing upon it.
