Every person at least once in his life heard: "Everything that is done is done for the better." Or in this performance: "Everything that God does, everything is for the best." People usually hear this phrase in childhood from their mothers or grandmothers, but they do not reflect on the validity of this statement. They remember, and so their relationship with this folk wisdom ends or, rather, is interrupted exactly until the time when they have to independently enter the battlefield with life. And then they will be able to answer the question of how much God arranges human life for the better. In the meantime, while modern children are growing up, we will take a look at the interpretation of the phrase “Everything that is done is done for the better” in various philosophical and religious traditions.
Christianity
Why are Christians convinced that God does everything for the best? Because, from the point of view of believers, everything in life is either a reward or a punishment (test). God tests a person with punishment, and the servant of God becomes better. Therefore, one way or another, everything that is done is done for the better. If a person believes in God, then in any case he wins: happiness falls on him - he enjoys life, he suffers - he becomes better, morally purer and generally closer to the Lord.
Indeed, what could be desperately bad in earthly life if it is only a prelude to heavenly life? Everything plays into the hands of a person in one way or another. Therefore, one can even say: "Everything that is done leads to the best." Yes, but this opinion had objections, primarily from the side of common sense. Voltaire spoke on his behalf.
Voltaire (1694 - 1778)
The 18th century French philosopher wrote Candide, or Optimism. In this absolutely beautiful and infinitely wonderful work, Voltaire ridicules, among other things, metaphysics, especially the optimism of Leibniz, the quintessence of which can be considered the famous quote: "Everything is for the best in this best of all possible worlds." In the philosophical story of the French philosopher, there are two main characters - Candide and his teacher Pangloss. The story is structured in such a way that many adventures and trials fall on the heroes, but Pangloss never loses heart and constantly repeats: "Everything is for the best." He says this even when he is left without an eye as a result of misadventures.
Arthur Schopenhauer (1788 - 1860)
Voltaire died in France, 10 years later A. Schopenhauer was born, and, strangely enough, he also did not like Leibniz and his “pink” optimism. And in retaliation, he came up with his own aphorism: "This world is the worst possible world" - implying that everything here changes only for the worse. Why is that? Because reality, according to the German philosopher, is controlled by the evil and ruthless World Will, its task is only one - to be reproduced in human beings and thus exist forever.
In the world of A. Schopenhauer, existence has only one content - suffering. Man is closed in it, he is a prisoner of life. The tragedy of human existence lies in the fact that it is not followed by any otherworldly continuation. The life task of a person is interpreted by A. Schopenhauer as the awareness of one's slavery to being and the adoption of a decision on the purposeful destruction of the will to live (another name for the World Will). Proceeding from this, Schopenhauer favorably treated both suicide and the mortification of the flesh, for the weaker the human body, the less will it have to live. The ideal death for the hero of philosophy A. Schopenhauer would be death from starvation in absolute poverty. So it goes.
The reader will probably be interested to know how the venerable Mr. Philosopher himself lived. Do not worry about him, he lived perfectly: he ate well, slept well. He was very sensitive to his health and, according to the assurances of A. Camus (a French philosopher of the 20th century), A. Schopenhauer could talk about suicide while sitting at the dinner table.
When the first irrationalist was asked why he did not follow his own instructions, he answered that sometimes a person’s spiritual heat is only enough to show the way, but he no longer has enough strength to go along it. A witty answer, and you can't argue. This is how Schopenhauer invented an alternative to popular wisdom, which says: "Everything that is done is done for the better."
Jean-Paul Sartre (1905 - 1980)
It's time to open the cards. Behind the formulation examined here lies an ordinary fatalism. This term is known even to those who are not particularly fond of philosophy. Fatalism means the predestination of everything that happens in the world with a person. Accordingly, such a worldview forms a person who is submissive to fate. It is this type of person who believes that everything is done for the better.
Fatalists are opposed by voluntarists. The latter believe that there is no predestination, everything depends on the willpower of a person (hence the name). Existentialist philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre belonged to such people. He simply could not believe that God does everything for the best, since in his worldview system God is dead. The death of the Almighty happened already in the 19th century, Nietzsche announced it.
J.-P. Sartre argued that there is no predestination in man. He himself is fully responsible for himself, he is his own personal “project”, and there are no higher powers over him. He is the only one. God, according to Sartre, did not die without a trace and not painlessly for a person. As a legacy to his son, the Almighty left a "hole in the soul", which a person has to fill during his life and thereby take place.
Buddhism
Let us digress from the West and turn to the East. For the Buddha, there was only one predestination - this is the dependence of a person on his actions. An ordinary person lives in samsara, i.e. in the constant cycle of birth and death. We remind you that, according to Buddhism, a person is reborn again and again until he reaches nirvana (from Sanskrit - "extinction") - liberation from the endless circle of rebirths and, accordingly, the suffering associated with them.
The existing world is filled with suffering. And, in principle, nothing good awaits a person in him if he does not realize the truth that life is suffering, this is the first step towards liberation. Then other "noble truths" should be assimilated: the desire to live gives rise to suffering; it is possible to achieve a state of complete indifference to what is happening - it is called nirvana; the middle road leads to nirvana, which lies between asceticism (mortification of the flesh) and hedonism (the desire for constant and unrestrained pleasure). Thus, if the Buddha said that everything that is not done is done for the better, his quotes could sound like this: “You will reach nirvana only if you realize that life is suffering, you need to give up your desires and embark on the middle path” ; “If you are already on the path of enlightenment, then everything is for the best.”
Is it worth blindly submitting to fate, God or chance (God-Chance)?
The Buddhist "middle way" can be quite easily applied in everyday life. Fatalism and voluntarism are the facets of life. Everyone chooses for himself who he is - a puppet in the hands of higher powers or a being endowed with will and able to decide his own destiny, to be its master.
For someone who does not want to decide anything, but prefers to go with the flow, fatalism is quite suitable, and he can say: "Everything God does is for the best." True, fatalism can be different, it can express certain thinking after the fact. For example, a person struggled with fate all his life, and then submitted to it, and he considers his entire life path as the fulfillment of a higher predestination.
Voluntarism, on the contrary, is for those who do not want to surrender to the mercy of God or fate.
Thus, depending on the choice of the party in this dispute, a person decides for himself whether the statement placed in the title of the article is true or not.
A small bonus for readers who do not know Latin, but would like to show off some expression. So, the phrase “everything that is not done is done for the better” in Latin sounds like this: Omne quod fit, fit in melius.
Parable…
Personally, I think that always and in everything you need to look for a share of positive and joy. Not always, what seems to us terribly scary, offensive and unfair, is such. Yes, there are always exceptions. But there is no point in focusing only on the fact that everything is “bad” and “wrong”. Everyone goes through their own lessons in life. And there is no need to be afraid of them and run away from them. It happens that they hit us painfully, but after all, all this is lived through, passes through the soul and heart and thoughts, and comes out at the right time with already drawn conclusions and acceptance of the situation. There is no need to pre-paint the scenario of the development of events in your head - all the same, everything will turn out in a negative way. We are always ready to think of the worst. We can't think of anything better.
One and the same "problem" is lived by an individual in his own way, no one decides, except for ourselves, how exactly we will overcome the formed barrier. And no one will decide for us how to accept the current "not such" situation. What happens to you happens only to you. No one will ever be able to look at the world through your eyes, see what you see, and understand it the way you understand. Making mistakes isn't scary. After all, on the other hand, you will know that you tried, you were able or were able to overcome the fear of error. If you want to live without a load of problems, insults and missed opportunities - everything is in your hands, do not listen to anyone but yourself.
We will never know everything in advance. Yes, and there's nothing to it. Create and create your life yourself, with your positive thoughts and cherished desires! A positive attitude and desire are the main engines of all processes!
And .. everything that is done and done is for the better. The best is inevitable! ;)
Failure happens to everyone. Someone endures them steadfastly, while other people get very upset, they give up and lose the desire to do anything. If you belong to the second category, this post is just for you. We firmly believe that whatever is done is for the best. Try to pull yourself together and see the good in every situation.
Every failure is a colossal experience
No one succeeds unless they have experienced failure. And even if everything in his life is going great from birth, the very first failure will deprive such a lucky one of his vitality. If you periodically encounter difficulties, then you should thank fate. Now you know how to solve many problems - you are not afraid to move on. Difficulties harden us, and hardly anyone will deny it.
This is what the most successful people have.
Look at the rich, famous and talented people. We often think that everything in their lives is wonderful and smooth. But just spend one evening reading the biographies of those who seem lucky to you. You will be surprised to find out what obstacles they had to go through to achieve success. Many of these people have repeatedly gone bankrupt and started from scratch, have been unemployed for years, and become objects of ridicule. Some of them lost loved ones or underwent serious treatment. There is not a single person in life whose life would be perfect and absolutely happy. Remember: if others have overcome difficulties, you can too.
Another failure. Your actions?
Something unpleasant happened again and are you ready to deal with it in the usual ways? It can be just despondency and doing nothing, a desire to feel sorry for yourself endlessly, attempts to cry into someone's vest. Or do you withdraw into yourself, start to seize failures, wash them down with alcohol? We know very well: none of those methods work. They don't help, they only make things worse. The ideal option to knock bad thoughts out of your head is to give a task to your body. Go in for sports, do hard physical work, go hiking. Give your brain the opportunity to free itself, drive away all thoughts from yourself and stop feeling sorry for yourself.
Stop waiting for instant results
If you want to achieve something and you are constantly not getting what you want, stop and think: maybe you want to get something in an instant that takes a whole year to achieve? In those circumstances that depend slightly on you, do not set yourself a strict framework. Don't say, "I'm doing a good job, so I'll be promoted next month." In this case, not only you decide. Say to yourself, “I did great this month. Next time I will work even better so that the boss has a reason to promote me when he needs a deputy. By formulating your expectations in a completely different way, you do not set limits on your brain, you do not violate them, and you are not disappointed.
Sometimes a small dream is more important than a big one.
This point is somewhat similar to the previous one. If you set yourself the goal of losing 20 kg, then with a high probability this is a road to nowhere. The long-awaited result does not come in any way, failure happens again. Break your dream into several small ones, start your journey with the desire to lose 5 kg and tighten some part of the body a little. In a month, you will be able to check the “done” box next to such a goal - then you can safely set the next one. By small steps, your goal will be achieved - and no unnecessary frustration.
Find a saving hobby
If you are a calm person, you will need something that causes a surge of emotions, an adrenaline rush. For example, take up rope jumping. If trouble happens again in your life - just go and get another boost of energy. Such a shake-up will give strength to survive the trouble and move on.
If there are so many upheavals in your life, choose something opposite for yourself - try to learn the art of calligraphy. When you need to feel sorry for yourself and get upset, you will calmly sit over a notebook and draw beautiful letters. This not only calms and distracts, but also helps to acquire an additional useful skill. There can be many options for a hobby, but the essence is the same: your life should not revolve around the same problems - dilute it with new colors every day.
Our mistakes are our path to a better life
Only those who do nothing do not make mistakes. Remind yourself often that only through trial and error can you truly find your way. And on this path you can not do without defeats, problems, troubles. It is they who make you that warrior who will surely win a significant victory in the future.
Started a business - be sure to bring it to the end! This mother's rule is not without meaning and clear prospects. But what about the magic of the moment, what about the last chance to change everything, change your mind, make life less predictable, but more suitable for you personally? Our heroes did not listen to anyone but their intuition, and they talk about it with joy.
CHANGED THOUGHT TO STUDY
Anya(26), Moscow
I studied at MGIMO at the Faculty of International Relations. Specialization - Africa. After four years of torment, she received a blue bachelor's degree and, succumbing to the herd instinct, applied to the magistracy. It seemed to me that "master" sounds cooler than "specialist", but he had to study for another two years, and for a specialist - one.
For admission, it was necessary to pass the "History of the countries of the East of the XX century." I went into the auditorium and got a ticket. She sat down to get ready, but her thoughts suddenly began to work in a different direction. Will I really be studying the problems of the East and Africa for another two years? Some crimes get paid less! At that moment, when one of the applicants answered his ticket, I realized that I did not want to be in his place. I don't want any exams or a master's degree! I do not want to work in the Foreign Ministry and become a guru of African studies! By that time, I was already moonlighting and knew that there was a lot of bright, creative work in the world. And I wanted to go to that world, and not to the Foreign Ministry and Africa.
I called the assistant and asked: “Can I leave?” She replied that it was not allowed to go out during the exam. I clarified that I do not want to leave, but to leave: “I don’t want to act. At all". The girl was confused, smiled stupidly and said: “Well, okay ...” I took my things and left, accompanied by the amazed looks of the teachers. Fellow students outside the door were also very surprised. They probably thought I was weak. But I had the feeling that for some time I was not going with the flow, but was emerging and catching a breath of air, that I was making an Action, making a Decision. I didn’t know what I would say to my mother, but I thought that I had done someone a favor, because I vacated one place in the magistracy.
“I wanted to go to the world, not to the Foreign Ministry!”
Before the exam, the master's program was a bastion for me, which I definitely need to take, and I prepared, despite a bad cold and fatigue from the final exams ... Now I only regret that I did not leave the first year. I started to get bored at MGIMO from the very beginning.
Five years have passed since then. All this time I worked in the publishing business: as a secretary, personal assistant, sales manager, PR specialist, journalist. Now I'm a project manager, I love my job, and I don't care how many diplomas gather dust on my bookshelf. As practice has shown, everything turned out for the better.
CHANGED UP TO WORK
Evgeniya(24), Novosibirsk
I got a job in a bank. Two months later, I saw the vacancy of my dreams: "Required news journalist for television." I passed the interview, coped with the creative task, received an invitation to work and ... the next day I did not go to her. I changed my mind, because in the morning the head of the department called me from the bank and said: “Don’t leave, you got a diploma here as the best specialist, another bonus and some other white envelope.”
I called on TV and explained that I could not go to work, because they added my salary at the old place. I hoped that they would ask me: “Are you sure? Well thought? And I will say: “No, I want to see you! Take me away!”, but the editor only wished me good luck. I regretted my decision three days later, when I turned on the TV and saw that a girl was hired for “my” position, who studied a year younger and whom I considered a nerd, far from life and profession.
“I tried to imagine people happily buying shoe covers…”
Six months later, the crisis came, and I was fired from the bank, like many other employees. A couple of months later, I was offered a serious and interesting vacancy for a regional sales manager. At the interview, I showed off my banking experience, and I was accepted without further questions. I had to sell shoe covers. In the evening, on the eve of going to work, I sat at home, drank tea and dreamed. I tried to imagine people who happily buy shoe covers ... It didn’t work out. Imagine yourself in that place - too ... I do not think that selling shoe covers is bad or unworthy. But I didn't see myself doing that. I called and said that I would not come out, as I received another offer.
After these stories, I sat down, thought hard, analyzed everything and ... decided to do my own projects. She registered an LLC and began to implement her own ideas. Now I have my own design studio, and I am only responsible for myself. Which I don't regret at all.
CHANGE YOUR MIND to get divorced
Pavel (25) and Tatiana (24), Volgograd
Pavel tells. “A year and a half after the wedding, Tanya and I began to quarrel a lot. Literally fucked every day. They behaved in such a way that now it’s even a shame to remember! There were several reasons for conflict. Firstly, my wife really did not like that I constantly receive sms from my girlfriends. And they are just girlfriends, nothing like that, but these messages drove Tanya crazy! The second annoying factor was the unstable financial situation - there were problems with work and, accordingly, with money - they were not enough for anything.
At some point, our scandals became simply unbearable. We fought non-stop for a month. And both came to the conclusion that we no longer see the point in continuing the relationship and that it was time to think about divorce. The last straw was the scene before the New Year. I won’t go into details, but in the end, in the evening, we sat down, talked and decided that we could no longer live together. Then Tanya suggested a divorce. I supported her decision, and the next day we went to the registry office to write an application.
We entered the building, and memories suddenly flooded over me. I said to Tanya: “Do you remember this registry office, our wedding? Do you remember how good it was then?“ She was silent, but it seemed to me that she was no longer so determined to divorce. Then I suggested to wait another two weeks. What difference does it make if we get divorced now or half a month later? Moreover, the registry office is close to home. We turned around and silently walked home. The next two days passed in the usual way - we swore, fought ... and then for some reason we relaxed and stopped. Since then, the topic of divorce has not returned. Parents about our decision (and about its cancellation) did not learn anything.
“Do you remember this registry office, our wedding? How did we feel good then?“
It was probably a relationship crisis that we had to overcome. Let it be through going to the registry office for a divorce ... Now we understand each other better than then, and we are more tolerant of each other. The problems that we had a year ago have gradually been resolved. I found a job and the financial situation stabilized. In order not to injure my wife with constant “friendly” sms, I now put the phone on vibration. And most importantly - we are waiting for an addition to the family!
changed my mind about having an abortion
Irina(24), Moscow
Pregnancy was a big surprise for me. Test rrraz - and gave out two strips. Turns out it's been nine weeks. At that time I was 22 years old, I did not have a husband, but my one-year-old daughter was growing up ...
Only I had time to be glad that this crazy infantile period was over, when you have to stay awake at night, walk at five in the morning, squat around the baby and do various acrobatic tricks with her in your arms ... As soon as I got a new job, flew on a business trip, only some prospects appeared on the horizon, and then ... I had an attitude since childhood: I will give birth to only one child. In addition, of course, it was frightening that we live with my daughter in a rented apartment and that we do not have a Moscow residence permit. In general, I weighed everything and decided to have an abortion.
“Since childhood, I had an attitude: I will give birth to only one child!”
And I was already sitting in line at the clinic, when I suddenly felt that I was absolutely not where I should be. I hesitated for only a second. She easily got up and walked out. They tried to stop me - they say, you will miss the line, girl. I didn't even take the money. At that moment, my only desire was to leave the hospital as soon as possible. And from somewhere there was a certainty that I would not be lost even with two children ...
When I told my relatives that I was leaving the child, they began to lament with tears in their eyes: how are you alone, but in Moscow, and even with two children ... The list of fears and arguments against was endless. But I was calm and unperturbed and I was not going to change my decision.
I think that everything happened at the right time and in the right place. The situation gradually resolved: I bought an apartment with the help of a mortgage, and we all became full-fledged Muscovites, I began working two jobs and went to the office a month after giving birth. Now, being a mother of two daughters, I manage to go to the theater and exhibitions, go ice skating, and meet friends. This fall I went back to university. And personal life, it seems, is slowly getting better. There are close people around me who support me ...
I do not plan to tell my second girl about that story in the hospital queue. For what? We, I think, will have many other, more important topics for conversation!
Prepared by Alexandra Sorokovikova
Photo: CORBIS/FOTO SA. FROM ARCHIVES OF HEROES
“Whatever is done, everything is for the better” is such a hymn to denial and rationalization. It was invented by those who did not find the moral strength in themselves to cope with the challenge of the human situation. Great consolation in the event of events out of control or an excuse for making the wrong choice?
Probably, I want to believe in harmony and the highest meaning of what is happening, inaccessible to us logic and wisdom beyond consciousness. But it's hard to rely on something you can't control. There are things that happen with varying degrees of regularity, but something is the result of a choice, including an unconscious one. For example, to be in a zone with an increased probability of a particular event is also a choice. And any choice leads to certain consequences - “good” or “bad”.
I'm afraid there is nothing predetermined: scenario, fate, guarantees. It is not easy to accept responsibility for what happened wrong, through our fault. This is a difficult moment. But in itself it is a challenge to maturity and a point of growth. How to come to terms with the fact that it turned out to be a consequence of the choice?
The main goal of Gestalt therapy is to repair the ego function. That is, to return or replenish the ability to make a choice, to be responsible for it and at the same time be satisfied with the course of one's own life. For to spend the rest of your days in regret about the previous ones is somehow irrational from the point of view of evolution. If we turn to the religions of the world, we will find that one of the common and most important ideas is the idea of humility. Reconcile - be at peace. Do what needs to be done and come what may. Some things are up to us and some are not.
It is worth accepting as a starting point the fact that no one knows how life would have flowed if at that moment the choice had been decided differently. It will all remain in the fantasy zone. In reality, there are only consequences that need to be dealt with somehow. That's all.
The consequences may be different. Joyful - giving a sense of triumph, victory over circumstances, special luck. Or sad - leading to feelings of guilt, powerlessness, deep regret. Unpleasant feelings cannot be ignored. You can, with varying success, suppress them, push them out, still somehow try to get rid of them, or you can meet with them and live. In the first case, these are large expenditures of psychic energy, loss of time and stagnation. In the other, learning a lesson, even a bitter one, and reaching a new level. Having made a so-called mistake, you get a wonderful bonus - a kind of inoculation against stupidity! And in the light of this experience, much becomes clear.
In fact, making the right choice is not so easy. Setting priorities correctly, orienting yourself in what has not yet happened (predicting the future), feeling what will be important later ... It is not at all easy. I would say - on the verge of the possible. “To follow the stars”, to hear the subtlest voice of intuition, to trust it, to read the signs correctly, it does not always work, but when you are under stress.
Important decisions are always associated with excitement, and in a stressful state, we usually regress and become “stupid”. It is foolish to regret and reproach yourself for having chosen something that seemed important at that moment. At that moment, you were the person to whom this choice seemed the best possible. Then it is easy to argue that it would be necessary ...
It's bad if you don't make a choice at all. More precisely, there is still a choice - it is to react passively or to transfer responsibility to someone or something. But this, again, is rarely recognized as a choice. Everything that cannot be explained is endowed with an artificial meaning, fatalism is formed. Lucky in some situations - and a victim of circumstances in others.
In general, harsh realism is not popular. The magical paradigm is much nicer. But life is not for the weak.published .
Tatyana Martynenko
P.S. And remember, just by changing your consciousness - together we change the world! © econet
