Even after that deemed precious is lost, what gained can be more precious, an invaluable lesson.
— Shilashanti
In the fourth century BCE, Zeno (of Citium) the merchant was sailing with precious cargo when the ship sunk. His fortune was lost, but he would later exclaim, ‘I made a prosperous voyage when I suffered shipwreck.’ Detouring to Athens, he was browsing in a bookshop when he heard the bookseller read about Socrates. Asking where to find a man like that, Crates the philosopher walking by was pointed out.
With much learning and practising, and even devising of his own philosophical principles on mastery of resilience and more, this is one of the origin stories, of how Stoicism came to be founded. Thus did (mis)fortune drive him towards philosophy. And if so, what is truly unfortunate? It is up to us, to decide how to perceive fortune or misfortune. After misfortune, there can be fortune, only if we make it so.
Almost losing life itself, this seems to be a near-total loss. While downright disheartening to most, paradoxically, there can be an exilarating sense of freedom too. It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to rebuild life from scratch. With the slate of worldly possessions and achievements so far wiped clean, one should be compelled to reassess what are the absolute essentials to (re)work towards.
Obviously, physical needs like food and shelter have to be catered for. Yet, one will realise that not many worldly essentials are really needed. Even the bare minimum available right after loss can be more than adequate if cherished well. Throughout this process of gathering oneself, what most important is to recalibrate how life and its purpose should be looked at from now onwards. It is time to reinvent.
Now that this precious physical life has been saved, what should one use its remaining ‘extended’ days for? In other words, how should spiritual life be furthered? Surely, life cannot merely be about indulgence of the senses, to go for wealth, s_x, fame, food and sleep. Having had a near-death experience, having clawed back to life, should you accumulate and cling to the fleeting all over again?
Without going through what Zeno did, we can do the same to reset our lives now. All we need is a serious thought experiment, with which we make actual life-changing decisions, making it a physical exercise too. Spring clean regularly. Give away extras to not be caught up in excesses. Dress, eat and live simpler, not just for its own sake, since asceticism is but a way of life for growing what matters more instead.
Focus on and build up on spiritual essentials. Learn, contemplate and cultivate the Dharma sincerely and diligently before life runs out... Turns out that a physical loss can be a spiritual restart, a chance for a better rebirth within this life. What will you do? What should you do? Will you discover and actualise a better way of living the rest of your days? Will you, with physical ‘zero’ become a spiritual hero?
If not mindful, that deemed precious gained might lead to that more precious lost.
— Shilashanti
