Lies.
From Hogfather (Terry Prachett), as how I remember it:Humans need fantasy to be human... you need to learn to believe in little lies (e.g. The Tooth Fairy) so that you can learn to believe in the big ones. Justice, duty, mercy, etc.
Even more cool (er definitely not the exact words):
If the Hogfather doesn't return, the sun will not rise. No it will not. Instead a flaming ball of gas will rise from the horizon.
There are more of those big lies. Democracy. Meritocracy. Human rights. Freedom of speech. Love. Humanity. Goodness in people. Terry Prachatt put gods/fairies into the 'small' category but I guess it is just because he doesn't dare to touch the big one.
I do believe in these things. For sure I didn't start with the Tooth Fairy (simply because I didn't know that there is such a thing until pretty recently), and I had never believed in Santa (also simply because there is no such thing as a chimney in my house), but that doesn't matter.
I realised that it is dangerous to be completely disillusioned. When one only believes in things which are material he becomes someone with no soul. He becomes an opportunist, someone who spends his whole life chasing after material wealth and status and power and comfort; nothing else means anything. He becomes the centre of his own world.
Though fact is, we live in a world filled with other people. Because people change, external circumstances will change; places change, the market change, often at a remarkable speed, and even more often unpredictably. This is the material world.
If one doesn't believe in anything not material, he has to cope with the changes or he gets crushed. By the similarly unfeeling material world. Because he has nowhere to fall back on.
So, if one chooses not to believe in any of the lies, then he has to be prepared to face the world all by himself. Inside him there will not be anything to support him when he cannot cope with the changes anymore. He will choose not to be supported by people around him because he will dismiss those people's 'lies'. He won't be able to help himself, neither can he be helped by people. So he better makes sure that he is good enough to deal with the world and not fail.
Someone asked me before: 'what's wrong with being opportunistic'. Well, there has never been a positive connotation to the word, and the idea I get is that opportunistic people have nothing in their eyes and minds other than everything material. Like candida albicans which is a common cause of opportunistic infections when our immune systems are down.
I acknowledge and respect different ways of intepreting the world, but I have my own ways. I won't go for pre-marital sex but I won't judge those who pursue it. I won't break my bond but I won't say that those who do are immoral. Breaking bond is not the point:
The point is, one has to believe in some lies. Ideals. God(s). To help him tackle the world. To help him stand up again after he falls. To help thim believe. In himself.
Labels: Philosophy and Religion, Values
