Nihilism & Chill: 4 Things You Need to Know
- shailja singh
- Sep 13, 2020
- 3 min read
Nietzsche was a German philosopher, essayist, and cultural critic. Much of Nietzsche’s philosophical work has to do with the creation of self—or to put it in Nietzschean terms, “becoming what one is”. Nietzsche believed that the idea of “becoming” should take precedence over the idea of “being”.
Nietzsche's thinking is of contemporary relevance, not matched by any other historical thinker. Here are 4 lines of thought developed by Nietzsche that can help you find meaning in suffering.
1. Harness your instinctive knowledge
According to Nietzsche, our psyche contains within its depths primitive drives which stretch back into the prehistory of humanity. In these uncivilized layers reside what Zarathustra called “the beast within” – potentially destructive inclinations which can overtake and possess the human being.
Instead of endorsing repression or suppression of the beast within, Nietzsche advocates exploration and familiarization with these potentially destructive residues from the ancient past.
“The most shortsighted and pernicious way of thinking wants to make the great sources of energy, those wild torrents of the soul that often stream forth so dangerously and overwhelmingly, dry up altogether, instead of taking their power into service and economizing it.” (Nietzsche)
Just as a raging river can be harnessed for its energy, so too the uncivilized layers of the psyche, if channeled and handled properly, can vitalize life.
2. Owning up to envy
Envy is seen as an indication of evil and hence we attempt to conceal it. For Nietzsche, the psychological health of a person or society depends on being able to resist denigrating what one wants but can’t have. It involves resisting the urge to deny the gaps in one’s life for the sake of inner convenience. It is, for Nietzsche, always better to say what one wishes to be and have rather than to twist one’s entire personality to avoid discomfort. We must, for the philosopher, be strong enough to face, and stay honest about, our own misfortunes.
One of the most mature acts we are capable of is to admit to the strength of our envy – and the scale of our regret – without falling prey to defensive philosophies of denial, in all their many and ingenious disguises.
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3. Self exploration through history
Our nature is sculpted not only by early personal life experiences and the traits and dispositions inherited from our ancestors, but also, according to Nietzsche, by historical forces. The traditions and “experiments” of past cultures continue to live on within us, influencing our life and experience from the deeper layers of our psyche. Given that the “the past of every form and way of life” continues to live on in us, Nietzsche proposed we need to engage in an active exploration of history, if we are to attain self-knowledge.
“Direct self observation is not nearly sufficient for us to know ourselves: we need history, for the past flows on within us in a hundred waves.”(Human All Too Human)
When we understand how enmeshed we are in the attitudes and beliefs handed down to us, we can begin to untangle ourselves and start to think about what we really value.
4. Embracing Nihilism
Nietzsche believed that the universe has no inherent meaning. It is up to us as individuals to find meaning and purpose in an otherwise meaningless world. In short, you need passion. You must have the need to be powerful, otherwise you will never become powerful. All those inherited and contradictory drives and your instincts will take precedence in your psyche.
“[Nihilism] reaches its maximum of relative strength as a violent force of destruction – as active nihilism.” (The Will to Power, Friedrich Nietzsche)
After ridding one’ self of all the beliefs and attachments which previously gave their life meaning, the active nihilist stands alone in the universe, a true independent free spirit able to create meaning instead of having it imposed on him by an authority figure.
The key to suffering, Nietzsche thought, is to know how to utilize it to one’s advantage. Everybody inevitably suffers, but, it is only the great individual who not only willingly faces and endures suffering, but invites it in with the knowledge that it presents an opportunity for growth and an increase of wisdom.
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