LOVE of FATE
In a popular ”self-help” book, “The Secret,” readers like ourselves are encouraged by the author to do some variation of the following formula
:
identify our deepest material and physical desires,
create the ideal imaginary situation in our mind in vivid or high-definition form of how it will look, sound, and feel once we have it, and
use positive thinking and affirmations to
ensure that the cosmos coordinate and/or conspire to ensure that you obtain that glorious and fulfilling end result; the one you are imagining will fulfill you and make you happy and complete. Maybe.
Things Outside of Your Control
In fact, no matter how hard one may work, how well planned, or how many affirmations one recites, we may fail and that may produce confusion and anger if we have not taken time to also Love Your Fate, or at least accept there are always elements outside of your direct control and these may be the very things which prevent you from getting your wishes ESPECIALLY if you only have one pathway to achieve your goals and dreams.
In other words, Why not spend time connecting to your deepest material and physical desires while also knowing that you can not control whether or not you actually ever accomplish the goals that you are intentionally pursuing?
As you focus on obtaining or achieving Greatness or Success, it is powerful to embrace a Love of Fate and a sense of wonder when considering the variables and outcomes that you can not control.
Another powerful concept to entertain is the fact that whatever happens will inevitably be much different than the clear and vivid future that you have been planning in your own mind. Consider and observe these elements outside your control: Covid, war, famine, other people‘s desires, illness, economics, etc. . .
Even now, in spite of these unknown circumstances, you can begin to embrace and fall in love with the fate that is unraveling all around you, you can be able to identify more positive resources at your disposal and you will can allow yourself to be able to ignore the negative emotions which become attached to the variables that seem to be stacked against you.
If you begin to be in Love with or at least accept whatever “fate/the universe/god/determinism/chaos” (regardless of which label you embrace) decides to deliver, you will be able to deal with life’s unfortunate roller coaster without emotional attachment to the ultimate outcome whether it is positive or negative when compared to the initial outcome you created at the start of your journey.
If one can not have total control over Failure or Success, even if we can give ourselves the best possible position to achieve our desired outcome, we CAN control how we feel about our Future, Fate, Fulfillment & even our own deaths if we so choose and that mind shift could help us have more contentedness.
Who Cares? An Appeal from Ancient Greece
The concept of amor fati has been linked to Epictetus. [2] It has also been linked to the writings of Marcus Aurelius, [3] who did not himself use the words (he wrote in Greek, not Latin). [4]
The phrase is used repeatedly in Nietzsche’s writings and is representative of the general outlook on life that he articulates. . .
Source Wikipedia
We can learn much from studying the life of some of the ancient philosophers and stoics such as Epictetus. Most of my readers who have followed my journey, know that I draw much of my inspiration from the way these ancient stoics thought, even if they lived in a morally deplorable era. For instance, Epictetus, it is believed, was a slave in Greece & was maimed by having his leg broken by a master.
It is unknown to this author by what means Epictetus earned his sovereignty and freedom, however, it is historically thought to have been the case. This former slave told of methods by which a person could obtain more internal emotional control. “Amor Fati” is one such method of Stoic Reframing.
What do I mean by inserting this cryptic language pattern “Love of Fate” or phrase into an article meant to empower you to Be Your Own Hero? I mean to empower you to not be affected by your perception of outcomes. In fact, we can’t know whether the first attempt at achieving your goals might not be the very failure that you need in order to be prepared to be successful at another goal further down the road. You don’t know that being burned or turned down on one occasion might lead to avoiding a similar situation in the future; we just can’t know. Therefore, we should all Love the Journey & keep trying to achieve goals with reasonable expectations and highest of hopes.
Considerations & Reflection
Amor Fati:Love of Fate is about reserving our judgement of a situation, behavior, or circumstance and only responding in the most rational and objective ways to produce the ideal outcomes AND emotional attachments to circumstances for our own mental health and overall well being.
If Stoicism doesn’t help you, then don’t let me ruin “The Secret.“ However, if you find some truth here to help you or someone you love heal and grow, please do share this article and reach out.