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In 1946 Hermann Hesse received the Nobel prize in literature for his book: The Glass Bead Game.
The principles of the Glass Bead Game are:”… a new language, a sign and formula of which mathematics and music equally partake, enabling one to combine astronomical and musical formulas, a common denominator for mathematics and music.”
The law of the octave is this principle where mathematics and music equally partake. This law makes it possible to combine astronomical and musical formulas. It is the common denominator of astronomy, mathematics, music and colour. Hermann Hesse writes further on in the Glass Bead Game:

• “I suddenly realised that in the language, or at any rate in the spirit of the Glass Bead Game, everything actually was all-meaningful, every symbol and combination of symbols led not to single examples, experiments and proofs, but into the centre, the mystery and innermost heart of the world, into primal knowledge. Every transition from major to minor in a sonata, every transformation of a myth or a religious cult, every classical or artistic formulation was, I realised in that flashing moment, if seen with a truly meditative mind, to be nothing but a direct route into the interior of the cosmic mystery, where in the alternation between inhaling an exhaling, between heaven and earth, between Yin and Yang, holiness is forever being created.” –

Our life unfolds today in a stressful environment. The world is looking for an “antidote”. A part of this ” antidote” can be found in music. As we are looking for the forest and the meadow to heal our souls, in the same way we should look for music. Our Earth was born from the Universe’s Song. That is why everything that exists in nature,expresses itself through a song that can be perceived by the souls who live in contact with it. All these songs form a symphony that is vital for humanity. Music of the spheres, so dear to Pitagoras, is a reality: celestial bodies that slip in their orbits have sound vibrations, creating a cosmic music. There is a music of human nature which resonates with the music of the spheres being it’s echo.
The music blends toghether in a perfect harmony. If the music of the Universe comes to us then as a normal reaction we should turn to the universe through music.
Music is a universal bridge, crossing the barriers of culture, age, and language. Perhaps, eventually, we will learn that it also spans those of time… and space.

“An invisible thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of time, place, and circumstance. The thread may stretch or tangle. But it will never break.” – Ancient Chinese Proverb.
All cultures have pondered what it is that governs the individual path of each person, and among them, many have conceived an astronomical thread that predicts their paths.
Think of the Moirai of the Greeks, who hold a thread of gold for each person on earth and cut it suddenly when his or her death is due or the other Red Thread of the Cabala which connects the believers to the Holy Land of Jerusalem.
Such a viewpoint on life and relationships has given birth to holistic philosophy, which states that our vital essence isn’t confined to the borders of our physical body. Holists declare that we are one with the Universe and see the notion of the Red String as one of the ways towards understanding this unity.

Have you ever found yourself thinking: ’’This person has entered my life for a reason’’? Quite possibly, you’re right. And it might be the case that Fate has already guided you to the point where you can bring change into the lives of others.
It is logical to think that if life is conceived as an excellent text (Latin text: knitting, connection), the strings are the primary material of men to rasterize their daily lives. To ‘lose the thread’ is now a universal expression to refer to practical or even existential deviation.
Thus, the legend of the Red Thread tells us that within the labyrinth of encounters and shared stories there is a pre-designed and perfect path, a scarlet string which, like that of Ariadne, connects us with our irrevocable destination placed at the edge of another string that will also lead to us.

When you set out for Ithaka
ask that your way be long,
full of adventure, full of instruction.
The Laistrygonians and the Cyclops,
angry Poseidon – do not fear them:
such as these you will never find
as long as your thought is lofty, as long as a rare
emotion touch your spirit and your body.
The Laistrygonians and the Cyclops,
angry Poseidon – you will not meet them
unless you carry them in your soul,
unless your soul raise them up before you.

Ask that your way be long.
At many a Summer dawn to enter
with what gratitude, what joy –
ports seen for the first time;
to stop at Phoenician trading centres,
and to buy good merchandise,
mother of pearl and coral, amber and ebony,
and sensuous perfumes of every kind,
sensuous perfumes as lavishly as you can;
to visit many Egyptian cities,
to gather stores of knowledge from the learned.

Have Ithaka always in your mind.
Your arrival there is what you are destined for.
But don’t in the least hurry the journey.
Better it last for years,
so that when you reach the island you are old,
rich with all you have gained on the way,
not expecting Ithaka to give you wealth.
Ithaka gave you a splendid journey.
Without her you would not have set out.
She hasn’t anything else to give you.

And if you find her poor, Ithaka hasn’t deceived you.
So wise you have become, of such experience,
that already you’ll have understood what these Ithakas mean.

Ithaka-by Constantine P. Cavafy

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How reassuring the thought that we were once giants, that we were once perfect and somehow immortal, that, if there is no evidence that we have lived, no one can say precisely that we have died…
“And if you find her poor, Ithaka won’t have fooled you./ Wise as you will have become, so full of experience,/ you’ll have understood by then what these Ithakas mean.” Each of their Ithakas—sense of original identity—means the same as yours.
Ithaka is the home that gives you an origin, that you grow out of and that greets you as a stranger when you finally return.
Ithaca exists for each and everyone of us, but in a different way. Only the bold make the journey.

“Bear in mind that every man lives only this present time, which is an indivisible point, and that all the rest of his life is either past or it is uncertain. Short then is the time which every man lives, and small the nook of the earth where he lives; and short too the longest posthumous fame, and even this only continued by a succession of poor human beings, who will very soon die, and who know not even themselves, much less him who died long ago. “Marcus Aurelius. Meditations. Book 3.

Stoic philosophy is meant to be for everyone, regardless of class, race, age or occupation. This is because stoic philosophers themselves came from varying lifestyles and social classes, yet most of them arrived at the same conclusions. For example Epictetus was born a slave, yet Marcus Aurelius was born a Roman Emperor, both of them however lead extraordinary lives.

Therefore this philosophy transcends space, time, and personal circumstances, making it freely available to anyone who wishes to understand it.

Image: Marcus Aurelius Distributing Bread to the People by Joseph-Marie Vien, 1765 at the Musée de Picardie in Picardy, France.

The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints.
We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time.
We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.
We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.
We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.

We’ve learned how to make a living, but not a life.
We’ve added years to life not life to years.
We’ve been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor.
We conquered outer space but not inner space. We’ve done larger things, but not better things.

We’ve cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul.
We’ve conquered the atom, but not our prejudice.
We write more, but learn less.
We plan more, but accomplish less. We’ve learned to rush, but not to wait.
We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and less.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small character, steep profits and shallow relationships.
These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes.
These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill. It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom.
A time when technology can bring this letter to you, and a time when you can choose either to share this insight, or to just hit delete.

Remember, spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever.
Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up and leave your side.
Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn’t cost a cent.

Remember, to say, I love you to your partner and your loved ones, but most of all mean it.
A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you. Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again.
Give time to love, give time to speak, and give time to share the precious thoughts in your mind.

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

The essay was born as a “The Paradox of our Age.” Its true author isn’t George Carlin, Jeff Dickson, or the Dalai Lama, nor is he anonymous. Credit belongs to Dr. Bob Moorehead, former pastor of Seattle’s Overlake Christian Church (who retired in 1998 after 29 years in that post.)

Isn’t this sad? – “Time Clipping Cupid’s
Wings”(1694), oil on canvas by Pierre Mignard

Socrates might have been taking into account the ability of those closest to us to hurt us the most, as well as love us the best, when he formulated his symmetric ethic: you have a capacity to do a certain amount of good, which is always accompanied by the ability to do a similar amount of evil.
“I only wish it were so, Crito, that the many could do the greatest evil; for then they would also be able to do the greatest good—and what a fine thing this would be!”-Socrates
If you came to see me, I might discuss Kierkegaard’s thoughts on coping with death, Ayn Rand’s ideas on the virtue of selfishness, or Aristotle’s advice to pursue reason and moderation in all things. We might look into decision theory, the I Ching (Book of Changes), or Kant’s theory of obligation. Some people like the authoritative approach of Hobbes, for example, while others respond to a more intuitive approach, like Lao Tzu’s. We might explore their philosophies in depth…We are especially vulnerable when we are low on faith, knowledge or confidence, as so many of us are who feel we can’t find all the answers in religion or in science. Throughout this century, a widening abyss has opened beneath us as, religion has retreated, science has advanced, and meaning has expired. Most of us don’t see the abyss until we haven in into. Things change. And friends leave. Life doesn’t stop for anybody, only that, some infinities are bigger than other infinities.

“People’s dreams should be either crazy or unreal. Otherwise, these are nothing but plans for tomorrow!”

(Today, I heard this philosophy about life. Wonderful isn’t it?) ❤️

• 

“Nothing contributes so much to tranquilize the mind as a steady
purpose—a point on which the soul may fix its intellectual eye.”
—MARY WOLLSTONECRAFT
A great philosophical plague of the twentieth century, sure to tail us
into the millennium, is widespread feelings of personal pointlessness.
So many people are without a firm sense of purpose or meaning in their lives that the lack has come to seem normal. But few live happily that way. We’re generally not satisfied with the idea that our lives and our world are completely accidental and without rhyme or reason. The further we look in that direction without finding any other explanation, the harder it is to bear.
The existentialists are only partly to blame. They were so cool— hanging out on the Left Bank, smoking cigarettes, thinking deep
thoughts, scribbling philosophy and poetry on napkins and tablecloths.
The existentialists truly excelled at making it look romantic to kill off
God and step into the abyss.
A lot of people dip into existentialism, conclude that life is pointless, and wonder why, if that is so, they should bother with anything. Here’s my favorite argument to stop that slide into existential depression: If life as we know it is indeed a fantastically unlikely accident, all the more reason to appreciate it. If we come from nothingness and will return to nothingness, I say let’s spend the time we have celebrating the very some-thingness of life. Our time here is precious—literally irreplaceable. So: live authentically! The catch there is that you have to figure out what living authentically means to you, but one thing it surely implies is engagement with—not withdrawal from—life itself. Use your free will to choose renewed appreciation of every moment rather than despair.

A proverb says that: if you want to make God laugh, tell your plans!
So don’t waste your time by making scenarios about the future unless you are crazy enough to be optimistic too!

” In a world where time cannot be measured, there are no clocks, no calendars, no definite appointments. Events are triggered by other events, not by time. A house is begun when stone and lumber arrive at the building site. The stone quarry delivers stone when the quarryman needs money.Trains leave the station when the cars are filled with passengers.”
(Einstein’s Dreams, by Alan Lightman)
Things in nature happen not because they have schedules to follow or appointments to visit, but because they choose to. People can also choose to do things when they believe it is time for these things to be done. The Earth would not stop revolving if you ate lunch at three rather than at two or if you went to sleep at eleven rather than ten or even if you were late to an appointment by a few minutes. We do what the clock tells us and not what our body does. Scheduling and organization has become so important that when we think of time we usually see two things – a clock on a wall and a calendar or a planner.
The Piraha Tribe which is located in the Amazon rainforest is the only culture in the world that does not have a creation myth. They have no numbers or a written language for that matter wither. They do not have past tense. Everything exists in the present. If it is not here, right now, then it does not exist. The language of the Piraha tribe is very limited, consisting of humming and whistling. They do not write and do not memorize things. These people don’t tell stories of their ancestors and very few can remember their grandparents’ names. Since they have no way of talking about the past, it ceases to exist. This, they have no stories of where they came from or how the world
was created. All they say is “The world is made.”Time is a quantity beyond their grasp. They rely purely on nature and their instincts, with which they are greatly intact. There are no numbers to give time value to. The only word they have for a quantity is hoi, or small, little in amount, close to one. They don’t see a need to define time, and have been able to survive for centuries without this notion. The Piraha refer only to the immediate personal experiences. They are not interested in the past nor the future. They live here and now. Everything is anchored in the present. They do not try to control nature nor organize forces beyond their grasp like the modern societies do. They are content with today’s day and live without a tomorrow in mind.
A world without time…