The Pursuit of Balance: A Nihilistic Philosophy
Rediscovering Resilience in an Age of Fear and Avoidance
Health gurus today are always banging the drum of mindfulness, meditation, cold showers, and breathing exercises as a means to improve mental health. Implicit it seems, is that following their aphorisms is the holy grail of human existence.. While these health practices becoming so popular aren't bad in and of themselves, it points to a pursuit of balance, comfort and predictability amid our chaotic lives in the West. This proliferation of ideals dedicated to attaining emotional centeredness, is the mark of a nihilistic human spirit, and potentially a sign of rough times ahead.
The pursuit of balance appears on the surface as following health maxims with the expectation of becoming healthier and happier. Meditation, mindfulness, journaling, "self care", cold showers and breathing exercises are a some examples of this emerging health trend. The key theme that ties this new health movement together, is that all of the practices are directly related to reducing stress and anxiety. Beneath the surface however, the goal is an attainment of tranquility through stress relief and comfort.
Cold showers, breathing exercises and ice baths are a slightly different phenomenon, but they stem from the same sphere dedicated to improving mental health. They are distinct because they stimulate a small stress response, whereas meditation and mindfulness does not. Although, both cold showers and breathing exercises may achieve the same end result of reducing stress, among other benefits, they are part of this new-age cultural health obsession. Practices such as these that evoke a small stress response help increase mental fortitude and emotional resilience, but they all stem from an internal desire for harmony.
Internally, our nervous system is always seeking a state of balance, which is called homeostasis. Homeostasis refers to the tendency of an orgamism toward an equilibrium between many interdependent physiological parts. A common example is when you feel too hot or cold, your body produces effects such as sweating or shivering in order to maintain a stable inner temperature. Unfortunately, a similar system manifests in society, where we are naturally drawn to what is in the middle, or AVERAGE rather than what is EXCELLENT. It pulls us toward conformity, and away from being a unique individual.
While this great ability of our nervous system always pulls our internal state toward a center, it simply helps produce ideal operating conditions, rather than being an external model for a life of flourishing. The fact that this inner-phenomenon is manifesting in human behavior speaks to how docile the human spirit has become, which is seeking to simply MAINTAIN itself rather than to OVERCOME itself.
The pursuit of self-maintainence, rather than self-overcoming is quite a concerning trend. It’s indicative of many societal and individual issues which are coalescing into a greater desire for stability, order, and comfort, rather than growth. Throughout history, the fall of civilizations has often followed economic instability, scientific discoveries, high political tensions, social class disparaties and high stress levels. We can see all of these factors unfolding in front of our eyes in the decaying western world.
A disturbing desire for order lies behind the growing intolerance of free speech, politicized fact checking, climate alarmism, the support of government-mandated health policy, and overly calm, useless presidents. These issues point to weakness in individuals and politicians who are seeking comfort and stability in a world that is anything but. Therefore, it is the fear of uncertainty and the avoidance of stress which is driving society to the pursuit of balance. This mode of being is maladaptive, which simply seeks to scrub the body and mind of fear, stress and confrontation. This is soil from which tyrannies may sprout.
The mistake of pursuing balance as an ultimate GOOD lies in one's interpretation of suffering and stress as strictly BAD. This is seen in the surging popularity of mindfulness and meditation practices which stem from Buddhism. While practicing meditation can be beneficial, when it's used as a method of suppressing confrontation with stress, this leads to the sterilization of the mind.
The drive toward asceticism is a symptom of a DEEP disdain of suffering, which reflects a frail emotional state and an aversion of the physical world. Even Stoicism itself embodies this disdain of suffering, which can be seen in its goal of achieving inner-peace, similar to the chasing of enlightenment in Buddhism. In Stoicism, peace is only PART of the goal, whereas the other goal of human flourishing EMBRACES stress and strain. Balance as an END is not a noble goal for the mind and body, but rather a cop out - an aversion of something all too human - SUFFERING.
Just as lifting weights breaks down muscles, prompting them to rebuild stronger, stress and suffering strengthen the human will. In biology, this is referred to hormesis. Whereas homeostasis reflects the body's desire for equilibrium, hormesis refers to the fact that our bodies and minds STRENGTHEN in response to environmental stressors in an attempt to adapt. While this doesn't mean more stress is always better, it means there's an ideal threshold for each individual which is always moving either up or down. In this light, healthy amounts of stress can be viewed as an affirming aspect of life that challenges your body and mind to increase its capacity to deal with the environment.
Perhaps the largest factor leading to this phenomenon is that humans are not naturally adapted for modernity. The rise in health issues in the West such as obesity, lowering testosterone levels, weaker grip strength, and anxiety are all natural results of a post-industrialized, highly competitive environment. Hunter-gatherer tribes do not experience a fraction of the health issues we have in the West. Hence, our culture and lifestyles lead to many needing stress relieving life hacks as a form of achieving stability in conditions which are in constant flux.
These adaptations are a sign of an environment which is putting evolutionary pressure onto us. It’s a call to reevaluate our relationship to stress, and to understand that it’s not a bad thing, unless it is debilitating. Stress can lead to a bend or a snap, and more than ever, we need to cultivate our mind and bodies to be able to bend with the ever-changing, chaotic wind of western civilization.
Rather than seeking to ESCAPE into tranquility, we can utilize these modern health tools to CONFRONT our stressors, to INCREASE our capacity to achieve what we want out of life. We modern men, we must say YES to all that is life. We must CONFRONT our deepest fears, our worries, and stare into our own abyss. The volcanic activity we often see in the back of our mind is that of LIFE - that which is DANGEROUS. It is the WISE man who dives head first into his own turmoil, and the WEAK man who creates an intellectual palace as a retreat from all that is RAW and TRUE.