Change is the sum of the universe, and what is of nature ought not to be feared. But one gives it hostages, and lays one's grief upon the gods. Sokrates is free, and would have taught me freedom. But I have yoked the immortal horse that draws the chariot with a horse of earth; and when the one falls, both are entangled in the traces.
Interpretation
Change is a fundamental part of existence, and it should not be feared. Accepting this can lead to freedom from grief.
This quote reflects on the inevitability of change in the universe and encourages the acceptance of that change, rather than fearing it. It suggests that by clinging to our grief and allowing it to control us, we become trapped, much like binding a celestial horse to an earthly one, thus dragging both into entanglement. The reference to Sokrates indicates an aspiration for true freedom, which involves embracing the nature of change rather than resisting it.
In practice
This quote can be used in a motivational speech about embracing life's changes.
Do not believe that others will die, not you.... I have wrestled with Thanatos knee to knee and I know how death is vanquished. Man's immortality is not to live forever; for that wish is born of fear. Each moment free from fear makes a man immortal.
One must live as if it would be forever, and as if one might die each moment. Always both at once.
In hatred as in love, we grow like the thing we brood upon. What we loathe, we graft into our very soul.
I thought, There goes my lord, whom I was born to follow. I have found a King. And, I said to myself, looking after him as he walked away, I will have him, if I die for it.
All significant breakthroughs are break -“withs” old ways of thinking.
Thankfully, dreams can change. If we'd all stuck with our first dream, the world would be overrun with cowboys and princesses.
I have been on the road and visited numerous places and met people from all over the globe. I can say that it looks nearly the same everywhere I have been: The climate crisis is ignored by people in charge, despite the science being crystal clear.
One can choose to go back toward safety or forward toward growth. Growth must be chosen again and again; fear must be overcome again and again.
We can go on talking about racism and who treated whom badly, but what are you going to do about it? Are you going to wallow in that or are you going to create your own agenda?
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