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| QUOTATIONS 1489-1520 |
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| 1489. As far as a relationship of a man and a woman is concerned do the opposites attract? Undoubtedly. There are too many instances of this around us to deny the truth of this saying. Looked at objectively almost any couple we know is made up of two individuals who have little in common not only psychologically but also are different in many other respects. And yet they get and stay together for a sufficient amount of time to be called "a couple". The reason for this "attraction of the opposites" is that everyone feels limited, incomplete, as if missing something and is looking for "the opposite" to round out him or herself. And so a man and a woman mate and marry not only because they are driven by sexual passion but also because of psychological attraction, the attraction of "the opposites" for the "completion" of oneself, by absorbing from one's partner what one is missing in him or herself. But sooner or later both realize, or rather begin to experience, that incorporating the traits which are contrary to one's character (even if one makes the conscious and persistent efforts, which is seldom the case to begin with) is next to impossible, for these traits are being rejected by one's "psychological body" in the same manner and with the same force as the transplanted organs are rejected by the physical body of the recipient. One doesn't stop doing one thing and begin doing the opposite of it because of the consciously made decision, even if it's based on the previous experience and not purely intellectual. To change one's behavior one has to change himself in some fundamental, irreversible way., i.e. to become in essence a different person. The best motivated resolutions, the most sincere commitment, which are, in reality, are rare indeed, just wouldn't do it. The moment self-control is relaxed (one is only human) one relapses into the old, natural mode of being. And this is one of the main sources of the perpetual strife between a wife and a husband who though they "become one" this "one" is composed of the opposite and therefore contradictory parts constantly in conflict with each other. Thus this new entity "one" is driven by the opposite inclinations, conflicting motivations, contradictory attractions and dislikes, etc. But, unlike in Hegelian dialectics, with its simultaneous "unity and struggle of the opposites" which eventually results through synthesis in the new and higher entity, in relationship between a man and a woman there is no underlying intrinsic "unity of the opposites" (except for their shared humanity, which is too general and therefore too remote to be of much relevance in this case) and the struggle between "thesis"(one) and "antithesis"(another)does not culminate in "synthesis" which presupposes in the pure dialectics the destruction of the two former to create the later. Mind you, a fair amount of destructions takes place, but unfortunately it doesn't lead to a happy ending. As a result, instead of the yearned for completeness what we got is alienation, instead of self-fulfilment failure of self-determination. No wonder that so many marriages end in divorce and so few relationships last long. So, perhaps people will do better if they abandon the hope of completeness, reconcile to one's limitations and settle (if lucky) with someone exactly like them.. Not as ambitious and exciting but much more comfortable and safe. Alas, the mankind is not known for its willingness to accept reality and always looking for loopholes, which is in this case the rather widespread notion that if not a man and a woman then their children, the product, so to speak, of their union, can achieve the elusive completeness, by combining and synthesizing the opposite traits of their parents. But even that is far from certain. First, some of the traits are simply mutually exclusive, and second the child is not simply the sum of two, but comes into this world (the notion of "tabula rasa" notwithstanding) with its own set of incipient personality characteristics, which by the time they're fully developed will produce its own feeling of incompleteness (for something, or rather many things are invariably missing), leading to the same search and the same disappointment the parents went through Nevertheless, integrating the diametrically opposed tendencies and philosophies of life in some higher truth shall always remain the mankind's eternal exercise. in futility - the good intentions leading to the bad results, whether it is attempted on the societal level, or aspire to by two individuals. 1490. One cannot explain to the other what one do not understand himself. Moreover, if one cannot explain something to the other it means he doesn't understand it himself. 1491. Oh, how much misery must weary heart contain heart of a woman, unattractive, plain how much anger, jealousy and pain when beauty enters, brightening the room no admiration, but impending doom she feels, overwhelmed by spirit-crashing glum. 1492. Observing the enormous variety and the breathtaking beauty of marine life one may wonder if the leaving of sea by some of its inhabitants which lead to development of the terrestrials was a devolutionary rather than an evolutionary step, i.e. going backward instead of forward, at least from an aesthetic point of view. 1493. The modern Judaism is like the God of the Old Testament, Jehovah who constantly appeals to Israelites sense of gratitude by repeatedly reminding them about the great miracles he performed in the past for their sake: freeing them from Egyptian bondage and leading them to the Promised Land of milk and honey. An so does the modern Judaism by appealing to Jewish sense of gratitude by reminding them that without Judaism as the unifying force the Jews would have disappear through assimilation as a distinct nation long time ago. But while this is undoubtedly true it doesn't mean that every Jew nowadays has the moral obligation to continue practice his ancestral religion, or that anyone who doesn't ceased to remain a Jew and even becomes a traitor to his people. In the modern world which proclaims the separation of religion and state as one of the founding principle of democracy and freedom the secular Jew is as much a Jew as a religious one. 1494. Remember, that while you are busy telling what you do know you are missing the opportunity to learn what you don't. 1495. As each piece of apple contains taste and nourishment that can be appreciated and enjoyed separately, without eating the whole apple, so each sentence in the true enlightening discourse, spoken or written, should contain enough truth in itself and nourish the mind without necessity to hear or read the whole. Every sentence, every proposition of such a discourse when taken out of context should make sense separately and be self-evident. And the ultimate test of the enlightening discourse is that each such sentence and proposition could be used as a quotation, containing meaningful statement. The major flaw of many spoken or written presentations of ideas is that they resemble mathematical formulas extended over several pages - by the time conclusions are reached (if ever) the multiple and often questionable in themselves premises are forgotten and the listener or the reader instead of being enlightened is confused and bewildered. 1496. The overwhelming majority of criminals are males. And most of them are physically stronger than an average man. There is a reason for this. In a world of young males the physical strength gives one a superior status and a strong young male who attained this status, mostly through intimidation and fighting, expects to maintain it as he grows up. Unfortunately for him, in the world of adults one's position is not determined (unless one is a professional athlete) not by the bulk of one's muscles but by the size of one's wallet. As a result, a physically stronger man often find himself to be a subject to a physically weaker one. This subjugation is humiliating and insulting to his male dignity. When the physically superior man refuses "to obey" the socially superior one the conflict often resolved by resorting to physical means by the first and to the legal by the second. Since in organized society the legal side has at its disposal the vast array of tools like police, courts and prisons the physical side is invariably the losing one and ends up in jail. That's why the prison population is on average is much stronger physically than those outside. 1497. Perhaps one of the reasons the Jews are seldom engage in self-destructive behavior, like alcoholism, drug addiction, etc., is that throughout their history they could always rely on the non-Jews to try to destroy them. Why to go to all this trouble killing yourself when there are so many people who are so eager to do it for you. 1498. As soon as I discovered that I have a gift of persuasive speech, the ability to see the things in the new and different light and to convince the others of the truth of my ideas everyone I met became a potential listener to what I have to say. But now, since I began to write and realized that writing could be more persuasive than speech I look at everyone as a potential reader. 1499. It has become a standard line of defense in today's courts of law to explain and even excused the actions of the accused by referring to their personal history: they were abused as children, mistreated as adults, deprived of opportunities afforded to others, etc., etc. Now, if the world wants to continue judge the Jews as a group as it certainly has been doing for at least two thousand years, they collectively should be giventhe same consideration, i.e. their history of being abused, mistreated and deprived of the basic human rights has to be taken into account before pronouncement of judgement. 1500. It never ceased to amaze me how the people who'd never come up with a thought or idea of their own proudly present the common platitudes and cliches as their personal insights and revelations, seemingly totally oblivious to the fact that they have heard or read them hundreds of times before. 1501. Enjoy your food, or your clothes but don't try to have them both. 1502. For most of their recorded history Jews as a nation lived in fear. Imagine a small tribe, practically defenseless. It wanders not so much in search of a better place but to escape annihilation. Its enemies are numerous. Its people spend their days and night in dread of impending disaster. To survive they have to be constantly alert to detect the slightest danger before it's too late. They can never rest or relax. But no man can live like this. Men need rest, men need refuge, men has to put, every now and then, the guards down. But whom can we trust, who will protect us in those rare moments of rest and relaxation when our guards are down? The God! The God is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 1503. Recently, it has become almost axiomatic (and practically automatic) to put the blame for seemingly endless conflicts, wars and bloodshed in Africa and Asia (Middle East in particular) on the Western countries like Britain, France, Belgium, etc. which before withdrawing from their former colonies created "artificial" states disregarding the ethnic and religious differences amongst the people who became the mismatched parts of the newly constituted conglomerates like Nigeria or Iraq, for example. Yet, those who condemn such "nation building" by fiat tend to forget that the modern European nations which are blamed for the present misfortunes of the "third world" went themselves through the centuries of confrontation, wars and bloodshed which ravaged the European continent for millennia on a much larger scale before finally emerging from this wholesale slaughter no more homogeneous that the present African states and still have to deal with Basque separatism, IRA in N. Ireland, recent Balkan conflicts, break up of the Soviet Union, etc. "Nation building" is a bloody business whether it takes place in "civilized" Europe or "backward" Africa. The brutal truth is that every "old" and presently "stable"nation came into being as a result of conquest and subjugation of its neighbors and there is nothing sacred or "natural" about this process as opposed to the "artificial" creation of the new, post-colonial states. 1504. A woman regards her youth and beauty as a long term investment which is supposed to protect her from growing old alone. And this is the meaning and the origin of this famous phrase - "I gave you the best years of my life". 1505. The real art is never completely real. It is always transparent enough to see the brush stroke. 1506. From Job's "Naked I came from my mother's womb, naked I shall return", throughout Ecclesiastes' "For all his toil, his toil under the sun, what does man gain by it?" and again "I has reflected on all that my hands had achieved and all the effort I had put into its achieving. What vanity it all is and chasing of the wind! There is nothing to be gain under the sun." and to Jesus' "Do not store up treasures for yourself on earth, where moths and woodworms destroy it and thieves can break in and steal" and again "For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his life?" there is this thread of futility of material gains and earthly success which is the reflection and the outcome of the Jewish historical experience of being periodically dispossessed of their property and even their lives : for robbers always came and always took not only material possessions but Jewish life itself. 1507. The peculiarly Polish paradox is that of the deeply religious Eastern European country that desperately wants to be a part of the profoundly secular Western Europe. Which leads to a specific Polish dilemma: would Polish Catholicism, which so triumphantly survived the oppression of Eastern Communism, be able to withstand libertarianism of Western Capitalism? 1508. From the violent antagonisms of the past we're entering the present age of relative tolerance. The growing acceptance of the opposite views, ideologies, religions, life styles, sexual behaviors, etc. lead some to assume that ultimate convergence of the opposites is possible. But only future will tell if it is true. 1509. As far as liberation of a personhood is concerned a lot has been achieved in the last few decades. No question, there are more opportunities than ever in the developed industrial democracies for personal fulfilment and corresponding satisfaction or even happiness provided one is totally self-sufficient. But in truth, few of us are at the level of personal relationship and none at the societal level at which we are all interdependent. And no amount of personal liberation can change that. 1510. Come to think of it, if one pays attention to how people talk nowadays, a word "but" has become the most often word used in English language. Isn't it intriguing? What does it tell us? Is it a sign of uncertainty and confusion or of contrariness and defiance? 1511. Using the modern PR(public relation) terminology the Christian and Jewish theologians and members of the clergy are but the "spin-doctors" forever trying to put a positive interpretations on the often contradictory and sometimes ominous or downright intolerant, vicious and hateful passages of the Old and New Testaments. 1512. Sometimes the whole is more than sum of its parts, sometimes is less. It is also possible that a combination of the diverse parts would never amount to a whole. 1513. Paradoxically people would often prefer evil from the "one of their own" than good from someone who is not. For the first they're always looking for explanation and excuses, the second is viewed with suspicion and apprehension: Timeo Danaos et dona ferentes (I fear the Greeks even when they bring gifts). Driven by the same sentiments they also wouldn't mind if you are a rebel, as long as you're their rebel. 1514. The Western culture, being an extension and creative manifestation of Western man, of his mind and sensibilities, could never come to grips with the ordinary jew, "the jew next door" so to speak. Though Jews lived in their midst for millennia, the gentiles invariably attached some mystery to them, as if the Jews were different species, or the creatures from the other planet. Thus, whenever European literature (and later cinema) depicted a jew it was always a stereotype of extremes: at worst a "super scoundrel" or a "super villain", at best a "super genius", but never as a normal human being like the rest of us. 1515. One knows that one grows old when one begins more and more sentences with a word "remember". 1516. Those who say "make love, not war" don't realize that love is war, the war of opposed will, of conflicting desires, of colliding feelings, of lingering mistrusts, of mutual jealousies, of fears of betrayals, etc., etc., etc. 1517. There is a great deal of difference between one who likes to tell the long and elaborate stories about himself, and one who uses miscellaneous episodes of his life as the appropriate illustration to support his views and ideas. For the second his life is but a raw material from which to build a personal philosophy, while the first is exhibiting self-centeredness, self-absorption and simply fascination with himself. The conclusions of the second could be instructive for the listeners or readers. The stories of the first is and entertainment at best, and source of boredom at worst. 1518. This is a kind of person I am. I would tell the people erecting a scaffold to hang me to be careful not to overexert themselves. I never hated anybody, nor even held the grudge. I never repaid with evil for evil done to me. No matter how badly I'm treated by some people, I always treat them well and care for them. I am not a God, just a man. Then God, who is perfect, shouldn't he be infinitely better than I am? Or, perhaps, the qualities I exhibit in such an abundance, the qualities which ostensibly praised by the world as the manifestation of goodness are in truth but the signs of weakness of character and lack of courage, which therefore are clearly beneath the dignity of the omnipotent God. 1519. I have nothing against an englishman for as long as he isn't "playing Englishman", or a jew for as long as he isn't "playing a Jew", or a russian for as long as he isn't "playing a Russian", and so on and so forth. What I mean is that I value above all the authenticity of individual and his freedom to remains always himself, and all kinds of role playing is distasteful, even repugnant to me. 1520. In this world of ours, where homo homini lupus est , one has either his finger on a trigger or faces the barrel of a gun. And it is obvious to anyone, not totally demented by the pseudo-liberal brainwashing, which position is preferable. |
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