Metamorphosis of the Soul

Aphorism 16

First—assimilation. Followed by—destruction. Finally—creation.

Aphorism 17

The human being is born anchored—anchored to its family, its language, its culture, its environment, its time, and its reality-tunnel. If the human being is fortunate, it will be liberated from these anchors and allowed to elevate itself. Once elevated, and if twice blessed with good fortune, the being will grow wings and be able to fly, where the only limitation is the strength of one’s own wings. The creation of our own boundaries is the culmination of an evolutionary process that results in the death of the old spirit and the (re)birth of the free-spirit.

Aphorism 18

“Of the three metamorphoses of the spirit I tell you: how the spirit becomes a camel; and the camel, a lion; and the lion, finally, a child.” Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra

Aphorism 19

As human beings, we have a complex and ambivalent relationship towards boundaries. Boundaries are both our halo and our noose. Our future as a species will be determined by how each of us individually deals with the challenge of creating our own boundaries, integrating those boundaries into the wider world, and dealing with the boundaries of others. If we continue to bear the burden of our ancestors’ boundaries, then we will be ill equipped to face the challenges of a new world. Reality is in a constant state of flux: it is in a process of constantly remaking itself over and over. To adequately fulfill our lives as spiritual beings we must be able to adapt to the ever arising facets of reality. In short: as reality evolves, the obligation placed upon us is to evolve concomitantly. We are the only species on earth that can palpably, readily, and radically take hold of the course of their own evolution. We can no longer shy away from this responsibility. If we let ourselves be guided into the future with a rear view mirror, then the possibility of catastrophe is not a question of if, but a question of when.

Aphorism 20

“What is difficult? asks the spirit that would bear much, and kneels down like a camel wanting to be well loaded. Is it not humbling oneself to wound one’s haughtiness?” Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra

Aphorism 21

The artist, before he or she can come into their own being, must assimilate to the methods, techniques, and boundaries of those who came before. Only after mastering them, or after being sufficiently mastered by them, can the artist adequately extend the boundaries of what is new and novel. What is true of the artist is true of life in general. Whether we like it or not, being born is synonymous with being brain-washed—the politically correct term is socialized. The human spirit always makes an ass out of itself before it becomes anything else, if indeed it does evolve past the stage of burden—e.g., St. Paul was a Jew before he was a Christian, Freud studied medicine before developing psychoanalysis, Einstein was a Newtonian before creating relativity, etc. All boundaries are overcome, expanded, or dissolved, because they are incomplete, inadequate, or no longer relevant. Dissatisfaction with the current collection of boundaries is the precursor and precondition to moving beyond them. Unfortunately, some individuals become so comfortable with their boundaries, that they are blind to their own dissatisfaction with them.

Aphorism 22

Only bear the burden until it makes an ass out of you.

Aphorism 23

To be sure, being over boundary defined is a palpable and diagnosable disease but the senseless and reckless destruction of all boundaries is a cure worse than the disease. Boundaries are not to be overcome just for the sake of overcoming them. One of the most paradoxical boundaries we have is language—it is, at once, both our halo and our noose. Without the agreed upon rules, norms, and standards of language, communication would be impossible. With language we sacrifice a degree of freedom so that we can communicate with others. Yes, boundaries are impediments to freedom, but they are also facilitators of action. We should only seek to remove boundaries when they prevent us from doing something that assists in the self-actualization of the soul. Before one is ready to overcome a boundary, he or she must be able to feel the burden of it. The weight of the boundary must be too great to bear. But once someone overcomes a boundary, they are now responsible for becoming their own law-maker, their own judge, their own arbiter—a task nearly God-like in stature.

Aphorism 24

“Can you give yourself your own evil and your own good and hang your own will over yourself as a law? Can you be your own judge and avenger of your law? Terrible it is to be alone with the judge and avenger of one’s own law.” Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra

Aphorism 25

It is during the soul’s darkest hour when it cannot bear any more weight, that the lion-spirit is born. With resentment as its mother and revenge as its father, the lion is born to kill. The individual will become a ferocious spirit filled with hostile energy and a taste for destruction. Pugnaciously recalcitrant, the lion-spirit is the force that frees us from our prison and prevents us from going back; it is the eternal nay slayer, the obstinate “No.” It is the great equalizer, the great eraser, that will raze both the living and the dead. The lion-spirit is the source of our dissatisfaction, our resolve, and, most importantly, our courage. The lion-spirit is the great awakener: it is the catalyst of understanding that allows us to realize that the reality-tunnel we have been living through is the creation of others and not our own. The lion-spirit demolishes every chain, lock, and wall that had been in our way and leaves us in a state of being that is radically free. Radical freedom is a liberating experience for some and a terrifyingly debilitating experience for others because it shows us that all meaning, value, truth, and happiness, are created and not found in reality. For those of us not prepared to meet reality on a clean slate, infinity is a paralyzing prospect. But the lion-spirit is too destructive to be the final evolution of the soul; it lacks something… The unabated rampage of the lion-spirit begins in the desire for freedom but ends in cynicism, pessimism, and nihilism. Having destroyed all and everything, the lion-spirit no longer has anything to value or cherish: meaning is lost, value can be found in nothing, and life becomes empty. It remains incomplete…

Aphorism 26

“But Hours will come when you will realize that [the ocean] is infinite and that there is nothing more awesome than infinity. Oh, the poor bird that felt free and now strikes the walls of this cage! Woe, when you feel homesick for the land as if it had offered more freedom—and there is no longer any ‘land.’ ” Nietzsche, The Gay Science, Aphorism 124.

Aphorism 27

Only creation justifies destruction.

Aphorism 28

“To create new values—that even the lion cannot do; but the creation of freedom for oneself for new creation—that is within the power of the lion. The creation of freedom for oneself and a sacred “No” even to duty—for that, my brothers, the lion is needed.” Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra

Aphorism 29

In the wake of the lion-spirit, the creative spirit is now free to (literally) create their own reality, one often quite antithetical to their previously inherited reality-tunnel. But the well of strength must run deep for one to be strong enough to be the artist of their own reality-tunnel. Though strength is required, it is not sufficient for creation. The creative-spirit must also be humble, delightfully easy-going, and playfully flexible in demeanor—its every act of creation is done with laughter and dance. The creative-spirit is an artistic force and not a scientific force. In other words, it is radically (but consciously) a subjective creation and not an objective creation. The creative-spirit realizes the folly of objectivity and therefore decides to weave a reality-tunnel that is conducive to its goals, in line with its dreams, and is beautiful according to its standards. The creative spirit is self-contained and trusts no one, kneels to no one, but neither criticizes others. No longer the slave of its boundaries, the creative-spirit has escaped the illusion of objectivity that has allured and deluded so many of humanity. Because the creative-spirit is the artist of its own reality-tunnel, the spirit is now the master of its boundaries.

Aphorism 30

“Why must the preying lion still become a child? The child is innocence and forgetting, a new beginning, a game, a self-propelled wheel, a first movement, a sacred “Yes.” For the game of creation, my brothers, a sacred “Yes” is needed: the spirit now wills his own will, and he who had been lost to the world now conquers his own world.” Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra

Aphorism 31

Only when we are as free, imaginative, and careless as a child at play can we sculpt our own reality-tunnel.

Aphorism 32

We begin as beasts of burden whom cannot help but say “yes” and proudly accept whatever is heaped upon us. But then we become warriors of freedom, liberators with a bellicose “No” in return to all that had previously been “yes.” Finally, we become transformative spirits whom no longer echo the “yes” of others, whom no longer fight with the obstinate “No,” but now can create with their own sacred “Yes.”

Aphorism 33

The being who can successfully complete the metamorphosis from assimilation, to destruction, to creation, emerges (re)born as a true free-spirit.