Nature

Live in accordance with Nature is the stoic first statement. What does that really mean?

We all have a basic understanding of what nature, the whole of nature is, but what about her rules? Notice that I used the female pronoun to describe nature. She is a bit moody, so that may be appropriate. Nature is the totality of all that is, including man. How is it possible to live not in accordance with nature?  We can easily live not in accordance with man's laws, but how about natures'? Can we defy the law of gravity or the attraction of electrons to neutrons? or the laws of chemistry or of biology? Not so much.

The stoic describe a bunch of beliefs that they attribute to nature, and some are hard to agree with, while others are difficult to disagree with. Man has been given desires to reproduce, to eat, to move some, to desire a easier way of life, to think, to desire anything with utility or beauty or novelty. Some feel the pull strongly to some, others to other desires. I have a strong desire to understand the truth, food, and novelty of thought.

Nature does not care what happens. There is no plan beyond that. It is all just a wild biological science experiment, species evolve, those that survive reproduce. Humans have had a mind to adapt the environment to something we can survive in, flourish in, and as a result have populated most regions of the earth, and have overpopulated many regions. Overpopulation is when an area cannot support the number of people living there, either through food supply, economically on in non-compatible belief systems. We have prospered and figured out how to prosper better, how to keep the infirm alive, how to grow the ungifted, and how to support all these through a finical system that is causing wage slaves to think they are free. We can see the deep divisions in our culture, and yet the government will not acknowledge these divisions. Clearing of belief systems is the simple solution to all this strife.

Our beliefs have become an division between we humans. We are Christian or Muslim, Buddhist, Hindi, Tao, or whatever because we were raised that way, and have never looked at our beliefs. It is time we take a look and understand that, and understand that belief is just concepts not real. Nature is all that is real. There are no gods. Those are all human concepts to soften the reality and provide guidance to the next generation. It is not reality. To get along as a flourishing population, we must all cooperate, and become one large 'cosmos' or population. The problem is, I believe, our population has exceeded what the world can support long term. We are due for a major die off.

Flourishing required positive emotion, engagement, meaning, and if nature permits accomplishment. This provides satisfaction, joy and more positive emotion. Religion is not necessary, but is a quick way to train the unconscious automatic  mind. It is time to create or revive a belief system based on the rational mind again, as Stoicism was.

The first rule must be that nature is all that is, and if it is not nature, as a belief system, it may be suspect. The study of nature, and all that is natural can go a long way. Things that we can produce from nature may not be suitable for uses as intended. There may be downsides.

How far are we willing to bend to support others? Short term is wildly different than long term. I am not willing to support natives long term, it is time they become self supporting. Same with welfare, not the sick or infirm; we will need to support them until they die off, but the level of support should not be better that we, ourselves live. I live in a small old house because I was raised cheap, frugal, and self sufficient more or less. Most on welfare live better than I do. After the government takes there cut, this is what is left.

But what do I know? God is just a human concept, they do not exist. We need to cooperate to survive.