To See Clearly, One Must Go Up

“The result of this exercise …. is to reveal to people both the splendor of the universe and the splendor of the spirit…Human affairs when seen from above seem very tiny and puny; they are not worthy of being desired” — Pierre Hadot

This exercise is the View From Above. With this unique perspective we can let go of what is not important and see more clearly what is.

Practicing the view from above is a matter of understanding our place in the universe and letting this inform our action and character. The view from above works through cognitive distancing, letting us step back from our ordinary life, zoom out, and view the larger picture.

One way we can view the world from above is by reflecting on the temporary nature of things and the fact that we occupy the smallest sliver of time can help us get a sense of our place in the world.

The universe is in a constant state of transformation. Things, people, species, monuments, businesses, teams, all come to be and then pass out of existence.

Eventually, you will cease to exist, your friends and family will cease to be. Our nations, companies, schools, are all temporary.

Most likely, the entire universe is just a temporary installation. This flow of things, the impermanence of the world, is completely out of our control. In the words of Marcus Aurelius:

“All is ephemeral, both what remembers and what is remembered.”

This is how things have been since the beginning of the time. Human civilization itself only occupies a sliver of time. Life emerged around 3.5 billions of years ago. If we were to represent that timescale as a football field, human civilization comes into existence during the last fifth of an inch. The past and future are unimaginably vast.

When perceiving our lives from the vantage point of a vast universe and nearly inconceivable future and past, what is petty disappears and what is important, friends, family, our character, and justice, can be seen more clearly.

You can practice this on your own or with Stoa.