There are two possible ways of using the fact that death will eventually find us: we can use that knowledge as a reason to give up trying, waste our lives away, and passively wait for death to come, or we can use it as the greatest inspiration, and find, by understanding our mortality, a plethora of reasons to make the most out of the limited time we have on this earth.
Just allow me to clarify that I'll use throughout this article the term "nihilism" somewhat losely. I know the positive nihilism I will be talking about is not really nihilism, but it serves to explain the point I'm trying to make.
NEGATIVE NIHILISM
Aka actual nihilism. We are seeing a widespread lack of purpose among young men and women. Record suicide numbers, record overdose and self-harm reports, record broken families, record numbers of depression and other mental illness amongst young men. It's no coincidence, and no surprise, that the overwhelming majority of young men have adopted a doomer and nihilistic outlook towards life.
"Life sucks", "the world sucks", and "everything sucks". And in many cases, it does. It is completely understandable to feel that way sometimes. Modernity is not the paradise that was promised. It's an unnatural, godless epoch.
But playing the victim card, giving up, and allowing ourselves to become souls devoid of hope is not the way forward. Time moves in cycles, and even if our time is at times a very dark time, light will conquer the world again eventually. So there is hope. There always is.
Negative nihilism is the giving up of all hope as a consequence of the mortal limitations of human life. And it doesn't lead to anywhere good. A nihilistic mindset leads to lack of effort, to self-destructive habits, to onanism, and to the ultimate death of the spirit.
Death will eventually come, yes. But this can be something that fills us with motivation, joy, and hope. Allow me to explain.
POSITIVE NIHILISM
I have been challenged by multiple unpleasant circumstances recently. I'm at a crossroads in my life, and I'm going through a period of much stress, massive decisions, uncertainty, and some pain.
I have found a mindset that has signifcantly helped me navigate these tumultuous times. Whenever I start to become stressed, whenever the pressure is getting to me, and whenever I start to let negative circumstances get the better of me, I just remind myself: "conquer this, overcome this challenge in line with the Word of Jesus Christ, and you'll find yourself one step closer to Heaven".
All the pressure, all the stress, all the overthinking, they're gone. Instantly.
One step closer to Heaven.
Instead of using your mortality as an excuse to waste away the beautiful journey that is life, you can, by adopting this mindset, understand your mortality as what it really is: an opportunity to do good in the world. An opportunity to give your best for the time that you are here. An opportunity to both experience life as it was meant to be experienced -with hope and joy- and also to guarantee your admittance to the Kingdom of Heaven once your time finally comes.
This is what I call "positive nihilism". And as you can see, it's not possible without religion.
Atheists will not understand this. No wonder they're often the ones that descend into total nihilism and despair.
But for us that know that Heaven is real, we can use that knowledge to secure for us a mortal life of virtue, sacrifice, and struggle, because we know we will be rewarded. We know it will eventually be worth it.
Keep going brother. Keep struggling. Keep overcoming. All the work you're doing, all the effort you're putting in, will not only be rewarded in this life but also, and most importantly, if it's God's will, in eternity.
It's just another step on the way to Heaven.
God bless,
Simple Man
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