I just finished reading a book of aphorisms called The Authentic Reactionary: Selected Scholia of Nicolás Gómez Dávila. Banger after banger is found in this book. Dávila, a Colombian Catholic philosopher, was famous for writing what he called "scholia," short sentences that punch out ageless wisdom. Dávila took great care in crafting each sentence so he could be a transmitter of God's wisdom. Here are 20 of my favorites, with the bolded ones making me say "wow" while reading:
“A noble society disciplines itself without having to wait for catastrophes to force it to be more disciplined.”
“Religious thought does not advance, like scientific thought, but rather deepens.”
“The death of God is an interesting opinion, but it is not one that affects God.”
“Humanity is the only god that is totally false.”
“Ritual is the discreet guardian of spirituality.”
“Finding himself, for modern man, means dissolving himself in a collective identity.”
“Instead of humanizing technology, the modern prefers to technify humanity.”
“The modern world will not be punished. It is the punishment.”
“Modern history is the dialogue between two men: one who believes in God, the other who believes he is god.”
“Education does not cure stupidity; it arms it.”
“Each day we demand more from society so that we can demand less from ourselves.”
“The three hypostases of egoism are: individualism, nationalism, collectivism. The democratic trinity.”
“The tragedy of the Left is to diagnose the malady correctly, but to aggravate it with its therapy.”
“Every straight path leads directly to hell.”
“Hell is a place where man finds all his plans realized.”
“Hierarchies are heavenly. In hell all are equal.”
“Our soul has a future. Humanity has none.”
“The soul is degraded when the body is lazy.”
“Everything that can be reduced to a system ends up in the hands of fools.”
“To be a reactionary is to understand that man is a problem without a human solution.”
I like to visit reactionary thought in the vein of Dávila to remind myself of a few things:
Those who belong to the left and right have naive political ambitions.
Men (and now women) have overconfidence in the mind's solutions to solve the world's problems.
The modern individual tries to conform reality to the mind, while the less foolish approach is to conform a "bodymind" to reality.
To play is to lose when a game is rigged, so take care in what game to play.
Be a “man of honor” rather than a “man of will.” The latter, represented by the likes of Andrew Tate, is ubiquitous today. We need new role models.
This particular aphorism from Dávila, which doesn't appear in the book, happens to be my favorite: “Once again, we have fallen into one of those eras that ask philosophers, not to explain or to transform the world, but solely to build refuges against the harshness of the weather.”
I don't entirely share Dávila's viewpoint on this matter. Even though I've dunked on them before, I believe TOE1 philosophers are valuable, providing us with new metaphysical options distinct from the sterile ones offered by modernity. However, rushing to create propositional-castles, especially when unexamined fear is unconsciously guiding a body, can be existentially iatrogenic. The way I prefer to philosophize - the "minimum viable" approach - aligns with the "build refuges against the harshness of the weather" disposition.
I am consistently humbled by reality, and I exercise compassion daily when inquiring with others humbled by it as well. While the men of will may appear to have life on lock, the rest of us are wrestling with life, with deep confusion on how to respond. Creating a TOE or adopting one from the algorithmically local galaxy brain is unnecessary. Instead, provisional refuges, however makeshift, are needed to see us through the harsh weather.
The better one gets at practical philosophizing, the better one becomes at navigating the complexities of life, along with the constant challenges it presents. In time, refuges will transform into palaces, but this transformation will be a multi-generational project. Whoever expects palaces to unfold from a TOE in their lifetime is indeed a fool.
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