<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/60018575">Discipline Is Destiny </a>is a three-part manual to master and implement the Stoic virtue of temperance, aka discipline, in your life, thus improving your body, mind, and spirit.

Book Summary 

"You don't know have to always be amazing. You do have to show up. What matters is sticking around for the next at bat."-Ryan Holiday

Author Quote 

Most of us know Hercules as this legendary, super-strong, club-whipping guy who fights lions before lunch and can defeat nasty, multi-headed <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lernaean_Hydra">hydras </a>all day long. Long before he became “Hercules” in bold letters, however, everyone’s favorite Disney hero and Greek demigod found himself at a crossroads.

Book Overview 

Standing at a literal fork in the woods, Hercules sees two women, each pleading with him to take her path. One is beautiful beyond belief, half-naked, and offers him a life full of pleasure and completely devoid of pain. The other is also pretty but dressed more conservatively. She tells him the only rewards he’ll find on her path are those he’ll have earned through courage, honorable deeds, and, yes, hardship — but that this path will help him become who he was meant to be.

The women in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hercules_at_the_crossroads">this parable </a>are Vice and Virtue, and I’m sure you can guess which path Hercules chose, given how awesome he became. Has this story ever happened? Probably not. But is it still important? Yes, because it’s a story about us . At least, that’s what <a href="https://fourminutebooks.com/ryan-holiday-books/">Ryan Holiday </a>thinks — and why he opens his book <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/60018575">Discipline Is Destiny </a>, the second of four in a series about the cardinal virtues of Stoicism (courage, discipline, justice, wisdom), with this metaphor.

Covering the 3 areas in which we need discipline — body, mind, and spirit:<ol><li>Controlling your body is the first step of mastering self-discipline, and it can happen in many small ways.</li><li>Only a moderate mind can be happy, and directing your brain is a lifelong job.</li><li>Discipline is about actualization, not isolation, so stay kind to yourself and others.</li></ol>Let’s see what it takes to live a disciplined but satisfying life!

Top 3 Lessons From The Book 

The reason discipline is most easily built by starting with small, physical challenges is that you can feel your body’s responses to those challenges. When you work out, you feel the result the next day. When you sleep early, you feel more rested. That’s a great way of sending yourself the feedback that, yes, building discipline is working — and helping.

Lesson 1: Taking charge of your body is the easiest way to build discipline, and you can take many small steps to do it.

While Holiday suggests a variety of things, from eating lean to strenuous activities, like taking cold showers, working out, or walking the long route to work, to sleeping early, the most important is this: Show up. When it comes to physical discipline, doing a little every day will have a much bigger impact than trying to do a lot on rare occasions.

Holiday mentions Lou Gehrig as an example, a legendary baseball player who played over 2,000 games straight without missing a single one. Did he not feel well during some of them? For sure. But he showed up regardless, and, in the long run, that made all the difference.

Like Vice calling out to Hercules, our modern world is loaded with opportunities for instant gratification. It, too, seems to want to fulfill our every desire immediately. But if you’ve ever given in to those impulses, you know how empty and unrewarding that can ultimately feel.

Lesson 2: We can only be happy when we practice restraint, and it’s a lifelong job to moderate our minds.

When you order pizza every time you feel like it, you’ll get health problems. When you rage quit at work whenever your boss makes a snide comment, you’ll never build a meaningful career. And so on. Everything becomes meaningless when you do it all the time, so we need restraint to enjoy life’s pleasures to the fullest — and, therefore, moderating our minds is a lifelong job.

The <a href="https://fourminutebooks.com/buddhas-brain-summary/">Buddha </a>was born in a palace, yet he still felt miserable. The poverty he later experienced outside wasn’t any better. It was only once he learned to practice patience, to sit with suffering, and to not lose it when things went awry that he found he could calmly manage — even enjoy — both life’s ups and downs. Try to pause before you react, analyze your feelings, and <a href="https://fourminutebooks.com/hyperfocus-summary/">learn to shut things out on purpose </a>. Most of all, remember you’ll never be perfect. Mastering our brains is a job that will take forever — and that’s okay.

The highest level of discipline happens on the plane of the spirit, according to Holiday, who mentions ancient <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chariot_racing">Roman charioteers </a>— competitive horse carriage riders — as a prime example. Having to balance many activities and roles at once while performing in a life-or-death situation, these athletes used their self-discipline for a higher purpose — in this case to entertain their community — while remembering that failure is just part of the equation.

Lesson 3: Unless used for the greater good, discipline is pointless, so show kindness and compassion both to yourself and others.

Spiritual discipline is about staying calm, doing the work, and steering the course without alienating others. When you fail to get to work on time, keep cool. When you feel groggy, just try to get through the day. And when others don’t understand why you’re doing things the way you do them, try to be respectful and diplomatic about it.

When <a href="https://fourminutebooks.com/lives-of-the-stoics-summary/">Stoic philosopher </a>Cleanthes walked down Athens’ streets one morning, he bumped into a man yelling at himself for some mistake. “Remember, you’re not talking to a bad man,” he told him, according to Holiday. So yes, show others kindness as you pursue discipline, but remember to extend that same courtesy to yourself whenever you need it.

This book is a follow-up to <a href="https://fourminutebooks.com/courage-is-calling-summary/">Courage Is Calling </a>, the second of four books <a href="https://ryanholiday.net/about/">Ryan Holiday </a>is penning on the cardinal Stoic virtues. The virtues are courage, temperance, justice, and wisdom. Given both books follow a similar structure, I assume all the others will too. It starts with a brief story and introduction to the four virtues, followed by three parts about how to master and implement this particular value into your life.

Discipline Is Destiny - Book Review

Holiday’s writing style is conversational. He draws on a wide range of examples, and the chapters are manageable, engaging, and make clear points. I’ve been a fan of Holiday’s work for years, and <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/60018575">Discipline Is Destiny: The Power of Self-Control </a> is no exception!

The 15-year-old high school student who struggles with constant distraction, the 34-year-old waiter who feels lost in her career, and anyone who enjoys modern takes on Stoic philosophy.

Who would I recommend the  Discipline Is Destiny to?

Read our free Discipline Is Destiny summary of Ryan Holiday's book to learn how to master your body, mind, and spirit.

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Discipline Is Destiny Summary

"We fall in love with those who care for us in familiar ways."

<ul><li>As adults, we find ourselves rejecting certain candidates not because they're wrong for us, but because they're a little too right.</li><li>We are unfamiliar with such rightness, it feels foreign and unearned.</li></ul>

Why are we scared of the love we deserve?

"To choose our partner wisely, we need to tease out how certain compulsions to suffering may be playing themselves out in our feeling of attraction."

"It's your job to make your significant other happier — not happy, but happier. They should already be happy before they get into the relationship; it isn't fair to you that you be their source of happiness."

We are actually (only) attracted by people who have the style of love similar to our parent's in the past. And our choices are limited by that tendency, which sometimes result in toxic relationship. To choose a partner wisely, we should examine our past and free ourselves from it (e.g. When we have a toxic parent.)

Summary

We’re given very little guidance on how to choose our partners and tend to leave it to that mysterious force we know as ‘instinct’. However, it truly pays to be a little more rational in this area and work out how our instincts operate and why they push us towards some people and away from others. For gifts and more from The School of Life, visit our online shop: https://goo.gl/lLmtDZ Join our mailing list: http://bit.ly/2e0TQNJ Or visit us in person at our London HQ: https://goo.gl/scNBv2 FURTHER READING “How do we choose the people we fall in love with? The Romantic answer is that our instincts naturally guide us to individuals who are kind and good for us. Love is a sort of ecstasy that descends when we feel ourselves in the presence of a benign and nourishing soul, who will answer our emotional needs, understand our sadness and strengthen us for the hard tasks of our lives. In order to locate our lover, we must let our instincts carry us along, taking care never to impede them through pedantic psychological analysis and introspection or else considerations of status, wealth or lineage. Our feelings will tell us clearly enough when we have reached our destiny. To ask someone with any degree of rigour why exactly they have chosen a particular partner is – in the Romantic world-view – simply an unnecessary and offensive misunderstanding of love: true love is an instinct that accurately and naturally settles on those with a capacity to make us happy.…” You can read more on this and other subjects on our blog, here: https://goo.gl/IkAGvy MORE SCHOOL OF LIFE Our website has classes, articles and products to help you think and grow: https://goo.gl/1y98gz Watch more films on RELATIONSHIPS in our playlist: http://bit.ly/TSOLrelationships Do you speak a different language to English? Did you know you can submit Subtitles on all of our videos on YouTube? For instructions how to do this click here: https://goo.gl/J1yL37 S6UUH4 SOCIAL MEDIA Feel free to follow us at the links below: S6UUH4 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theschooloflifelondon/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheSchoolOfLife Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theschooloflifelondon/ CREDITS Produced in collaboration with: Zedem media http://www.zedemanimations.com/ #TheSchoolOfLife

Understand yourself and those around you.

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We’re given very little guidance on how to choose our partners and tend to leave it to that mysterious force we know as ‘instinct’. However, it truly pays to be a little more rational in this area and work out how our instincts operate and why they push us towards some people and away from others.  For gifts and more from The School of Life, visit our online shop:  https://goo.gl/lLmtDZ
Join our mailing list: http://bit.ly/2e0TQNJ 
Or visit us in person at our London HQ: https://goo.gl/scNBv2


FURTHER READING
“How do we choose the people we fall in love with? The Romantic answer is that our instincts naturally guide us to individuals who are kind and good for us. Love is a sort of ecstasy that descends when we feel ourselves in the presence of a benign and nourishing soul, who will answer our emotional needs, understand our sadness and strengthen us for the hard tasks of our lives. In order to locate our lover, we must let our instincts carry us along, taking care never to impede them through pedantic psychological analysis and introspection or else considerations of status, wealth or lineage. Our feelings will tell us clearly enough when we have reached our destiny. To ask someone with any degree of rigour why exactly they have chosen a particular partner is – in the Romantic world-view – simply an unnecessary and offensive misunderstanding of love: true love is an instinct that accurately and naturally settles on those with a capacity to make us happy.…”
You can read more on this and other subjects on our blog, here: https://goo.gl/IkAGvy


MORE SCHOOL OF LIFE

Our website has classes, articles and products to help you think and grow: https://goo.gl/1y98gz

Watch more films on RELATIONSHIPS in our playlist: 
http://bit.ly/TSOLrelationships

Do you speak a different language to English?  Did you know you can submit Subtitles on all of our videos on YouTube?  For instructions how to do this click here: https://goo.gl/J1yL37
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How To Choose A Partner Wisely

Mimetism was not Rene Girard original idea. It can be traced to David Hume who observed one's actions reverberates to the rest like the strings of a violin. It describes humans as a social specie, prone to co-vibrations aka under the influence of other people's actions.<ul><li>Mimetism is a social technology to get to the subjectivity of others. But ...</li><li>Mimetism is a tendency, but also a capacity. It leaves room for individual agency. At any time, you, the player, can choose the next string to pluck.</li></ul>

Mimetism as the Strings of a Violin

The basic mimetic behaviour manifests in society in more meaningful ways:<ul><li>Through prestige. The respect, admiration, and high regard that is accorded to someone has less to do with the objective qualities of the person and more with the adherence to normative values.</li><li>A step higher is the real of the sacred. For Girard this is just a dial up of mimesis. The power of a sacred relic lies just with the collective admiration that one feels compelled to mimic. Gods live only as long as there are rituals of belief.</li></ul>

Normative Evolution, Prestige and Gods

Mimesis is both the strongest and necessary authority for us to hold normative values. It more than any faculty decides what we think of beautiful, as good ... what laws we think of just or what sexual relationships we think of as legitimate or depraved. Even what we strive to be like.

Mimetic desire can be separated in:<ul><li>a desire to experience (physical desire)</li><li>a desire to be (metaphysical desire). We chase objects for what they say about us on for the fullness of being that we expect them to confer upon us.</li></ul>ex: We may chase a sexual partner for how they make us feel or for the social status of being with them. We may start a company for the thrill of the struggle or because we want to be like like the Silicon Valley tech bros. The balance of the 2 will vary from person to person, but pride and ambition are strongly correlated with metaphysical desire.

The 2 twin components of mimetic desire

Metaphysical desire is focused on our identity, our ego, our spirit ... the core of what we are. This itself can be broken down into 3 components:<ol><li>Reality. We want our existence to be observed and noticed by others. What really matters is not the physical experience but what others think it's real.</li><li>Persistence. We want our identities to last through time. We are obsessed with achieving some immortality. </li><li>Self-sufficiency: Deals with having the power of the social realm to fulfil our thirsts. It's what Nietzsche calls "the will to power". It has a lot to do with domination over others.</li></ol>

The 3 Components of Being

We crave objects because other people we look up are associated with those objects: a celebrity, a parent, a colleague etc... The faulty logic being that our acquisition of the object will grant us the same sense of being as our role-model. Desire is not a straight line from subject to object, but a triangular path to object through the role model.

The Faulty logic of Object Acquisition

Not all our actions will be motivated by metaphysical desire, but out of the possible motivations ... it is the strongest. In commercial terms it means products that focus on it will command the most value. It explains the success of branding, the celebrity culture and consumerism as a whole.

The Power of Metaphysical Desire

<ul><li>Malleability. They are highly dependent on our mediators. If I grew up with a Don Juan father I may seek superficial relationship. </li><li>Power. The more we get motivated by it the more we loose our agency. The tulip buying mania, the 2001 dotcom crash etc.</li><li>Deceitful: We are oblivious that we are confusing an object for a state of being. </li><li>Ungovernable: It is not ruled by reason. Reason becomes a spoke-person to our spirit. Not the source of action, but its justification.</li></ul>

The 4 Qualities of Metaphysical Desires

The second part of the lecture on Girard. More in depth look at desires.

Mimesis, mimetic desire, and metaphysical desire are the fundamental building blocks of Girard’s psychology. They will show us how even the most intimate aspects of our identity can be radically shaped by others and how to distinguish vanity from authenticity. These psychological fundaments are what make humans social animals, why prestige and recognition matter so much to us, and how we are able to form cultures and even language itself. They are responsible for humanity’s greatest achievements, but they also render us helplessly fallen. Under scrutiny, metaphysical desire will reveal itself to be none other than original sin. 00:00:00 Introduction 00:03:51 Mimesis 00:08:16 Mimesis and Normativity 00:17:34 Mimetic Desire 00:29:17 What is Meant by "Being" 00:31:53 The First End of Being: Reality 00:34:38 The Second End of Being: Persistence 00:35:31 The Third End of Being: Self-sufficiency 00:41:36 Metaphysical Desire 00:50:14 The Malleability of Metaphysical Desire 00:52:09 The Power of Metaphysical Desire 00:53:30 The Deceitfulness of Metaphysical Desire 00:58:18 The Ungovernability of Metaphysical Desire 01:00:31 Original Sin

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Science & Nature

Mimesis, mimetic desire, and metaphysical desire are the fundamental building blocks of Girard’s psychology. They will show us how even the most intimate aspects of our identity can be radically shaped by others and how to distinguish vanity from authenticity. These psychological fundaments are what make humans social animals, why prestige and recognition matter so much to us, and how we are able to form cultures and even language itself. They are responsible for humanity’s greatest achievements, but they also render us helplessly fallen. Under scrutiny, metaphysical desire will reveal itself to be none other than original sin. 

00:00:00 Introduction
00:03:51 Mimesis
00:08:16 Mimesis and Normativity
00:17:34 Mimetic Desire
00:29:17 What is Meant by "Being"
00:31:53 The First End of Being: Reality
00:34:38 The Second End of Being: Persistence
00:35:31 The Third End of Being: Self-sufficiency
00:41:36 Metaphysical Desire
00:50:14 The Malleability of Metaphysical Desire
00:52:09 The Power of Metaphysical Desire
00:53:30 The Deceitfulness of Metaphysical Desire
00:58:18 The Ungovernability of Metaphysical Desire
01:00:31 Original Sin

If I were not Diogenes, I wish I were Alexander.

Johnathan at Limbo

Lecture II: Mimetic Desire and Original Sin | René Girard's Mimetic Theory

René Girard's Mimetic Theory - Lecture 2

You Can’t be Creative Everytime. So, Will You Waste that time?Also Being Emotional with Your Work isn’t Permanent, Even Not that Good. Will You Say that Hardwork or Struggle?Always Doing Something Interesting, Will You Say that Consistency or Just a Flow of Your Interests driven by Your Emotions too??Interest in One Thing, Even that isn’t Permanent. So Gonna Change Your Goal Hann.

Creativity, Interest, Emotions

Work with These Terms-Creative, Enjoyment, Passion, Emotions, Being Motivated, Doing Something Interesting, etc isn’t Good for Everytime.Demotivation Gives You Reality Checks About Your Work.

General Psychology & Work

You Should Know Your Why? A Reason, Why are You Doing It? But Choose/Find/Understand it Precisely.Your Why Shouldn’t be Like:Cause, I Enjoy it. I love it. I feel it. I’m So Interested in it. It Motivates me. It Seems Creative to me.Is it Permanent? How Do You Know that Would be Same in the Future too?

Why & Work

<ul><li>Result Oriented</li><li>Helping Mindset</li><li>Good Cause</li><li>Hardwork & Achievement</li></ul>Questions Mark ‼️? What's Your Heart Says!!

Purpose Of Work?

I’m Gonna Get that. I’m Going to be Happy at the End. I’m Gonna Improve The Life of People Depending Or Connected to my Life. (Etc)

1. Orientation Of Result

It Creates a Positive Impact on People’s Life. My Work Will Contribute to Make this World Better. (Etc)

2. Helping Mindset 

In My POV, I Find It Better as I can Do Better in this Demension of Work. That will Create A Better Impact on My Surroundings & Me too. It Seems Worth it to Use My Time on it or A Part of My Whole Life, I'm Gonna Spend on it.

3. A Good Cause

I’m Doing it Cause It’s Too Hard. Whatever I’m Doing, is Because I like To Struggle, Study, Learn, Be Better, Be in Working Pain. (Etc)

4. Hardworking Mindset

Thanks For Reading

Clarity, Our Intension of Doing Things Needs To Be Clear.

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Purpose of Work : Clarity of Dream

Edson Arantes do Nascimento also known as Pele, needs no introduction. During his illustrious career, he won three World Cup titles with Brazil, made history as the only player to do so, scored 1281 goals in 1363 games, and became a global icon.Biopic: Pelé: Birth of a Legend

Pele

Enthusiasm is everything. It must be taut & vibrating like a guitar string.

She is the most respected female playback singer of india. She started accidentally as a singer due to financial requirement. She sung 50,000 songs in 36 languages. She started her career in 1942. She won 81 awards just from the music film industry itself, rest were the National Tribute Awards.

Lata Mangeshkar

"Start by doing your job. Then, do more than your job. Finally, forget that you are even doing a job."

He was a leading investor, CA, stock trader, business magnate with a net worth of $5.8 Billion. He was sarcastically referred to as "India's Warren Buffet & Big Bill of India". He is the first businessmen to successfully earn money out of a Scam. He made maximum wealth from the 1992 Harshad Mehta Scam. He founded Akasa Airlines which was similar to the Southwest Airlines by the low fare cost strategy.Featured in Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story

Rakesh 

You cannot make profits in stock markets unless you can have ability to bear losses.

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He was a world renowned Australian Leg Spin Bowler known for setting a record of taking maximum 708 Test wickets until 2007. He was one of the legendary bowlers of cricket history who is said to have spinned the bowl for almost 90 degrees succincting it a miracle with practice.

Shane Warne

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Personalities died in 2022

IIsolation can provide a distraction-free environment, allowing individuals to focus on their work or personal projects more efficiently.

Increased Focus And Productivity 

Being alone can provide an opportunity to reflect on one's thoughts and feelings, leading to increased self-awareness and personal growth.

Personal Growth And Self-discovery

Without external distractions, people may have more time and mental space to come up with new ideas and solutions.

Creativity And Innovation 

Isolation can provide a chance to relax and recharge, leading to improved physical and mental well-being

Improved Mental And Physical Health 

Taking time to be alone can allow individuals to fully engage in their relationships with others, resulting in stronger and more meaningful connections

Stronger Relationships

Increased independence: Isolation can provide an opportunity for people to develop independence and self-reliance, as they are forced to rely on their own resources and abilities.

Increased Independence 

Improved time management skills: Without external distractions, people may become more mindful of how they spend their time, leading to improved time management skills.

Being alone can provide an opportunity to better understand one's own emotions and thoughts, leading to increased empathy and understanding of others

Increased Empathy And Understanding 

Isolation can provide a chance to prioritize self-care practices, such as exercising, cooking healthy

Improved Self-care 

Without the distractions of daily life, people may have more time and mental space to pursue hobbies and interests, leading to personal development and growth.

Opportunity For Personal Development 

For more life regarding valuable guidance follow me 👇<a href="https://medium.com/@xubair1915">Xubair1915 on Medium </a>

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Isolation is the path to self discovery and understanding life. 

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Only Through Isolation We Reach Elevation 

It is a mind-disguising strategy used by Julius Caesar to manipulate any characteristic of a material, product or person by increasing its demand in a creative abdomen.

Costly Signaling

Once captured by the pirates of the ocean, they demanded a ransom of 20 talents for Julius from the Roman empire. Sensing the opportunity, Julius played with a smile & insisted to demand for not less than 50 talents. For an army commander this amount was more than the levitated value. Thus, increasing his potential significance in the empire.The amount was given, he was relieved, Julius then with his forces recaptured the pirates & retrieved the 50 talents.Talent : Currency of Roman Empire

Example #1

Caesar was sharp-minded strategist. Very extravagant & luxurious parties where given by him for many occasions, which brought out the attention of Highly networked traders, Forgemens, Army Chiefs & Kings. This gave a succinct attention to Julius's status & ideology increasing his empire's value.

Example #2

Counting not less than a 100, Julius decided to memorize every soldier's name which is quite difficult. This caused a sense of respect in minds of every soldier for him. For the hierarchical status, Julius stated his soldiers as "comrades", to give equal respect to the persons dying for his blood, His friendly methodology made himthe epicenter of his Army Soldiers.

Example #3

During the battle with Pompey, Caesar found that with less food supplies & infertile lands for cultivation they only had an option to eat the hand-made Chara Bread which tastes very disgustful. The soldiers refused to eat it. The repugnance was thrown off by Julius when he declared the bread to be nutritious & disguising it as a soldier's brand, also he regularly used to eat it the same bread, despite being the King.This stupendous feeling made soldiers get used to the taste of bread and smell, again cherishing his brand value among the Romans.

Example #4

This is a clothing strategy where Julius Caesar used to dress himself in a unique & eye-catching stanza. Experts state that the same was used by Steve Jobs & Elon Musk, they struck to a theory that dressing differently in a conference shows your optimistic enigma towards your personality. Your "Out Of The Tile" approach states your Boldness, Creativity & Judgment for Colors.

Red Sneakers Effect

31st Dec: Today is the Last Day of the Julian Calendar invented by Julius Caesar 

Julius Caesar is considered by most historians the greatest military commander of all time. You might know of his war strategies, battle tactics, and perhaps his career history. But I bet you don’t know how he convinced a continent’s population to follow him. Or how he made the region’s largest army adore him. In this episode, you’ll learn the leadership tactics that took Julius Caesar to the top. You’ll hear the methods he used to convince and influence others. You’ll discover applicable practices that you can use, and you’ll even hear the real reason why the humble potato is so popular.  Try HubSpot for free: https://hubspot.sjv.io/jWq4k6 How To Take Over The World (Julius Caesar): https://bit.ly/3MPXkC8 My costly signalling experiment: https://i.im.ge/2022/10/21/2Nj6C0.Costly-Signal.png Listen to episode 63: https://bit.ly/3TnCKeN Sign up for the Nudge Newsletter: https://www.nudgepodcast.com/mailing-list

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Ever noticed how the smallest changes can have the biggest impact? On Nudge, you'll learn simple evidence-backed tips to help you kick bad habits, get a raise, and grow a business. Every bite-sized 20-minute show comes packed with practical advice from admired entrepreneurs and behavioural scientists. Nudge is fast-paced but still insightful with real-world examples that you can apply - this is not your average business podcast.

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Julius Caesar: How to influence an empire

Julius Caesar: How To Influence & Win An Empire

A French philosopher he developed a unique worldview based on the concept of mimetic desire. According to him, human beings are constantly seeking to imitate and emulate the desires of others, and this process of imitation drives much of human behavior and social dynamics.His main idea is that desire is always mediated through the desires of others, and that this process of imitation creates conflicts and rivalries that are fundamental to human society.He is gaining a lot of praise recently with lots of Silicon Valley luminaries listing him as a major intellectual influencer.

René Girard

Girard observed that our desires are social. We rarely desire an object for it's intrinsic functional qualities. We usually use the objects as proxies for an identity we envy. Desire are not fixed or innate, but rather constantly changing & under the influence of the people we encounter. We can see this in advertising, when we buy sneakers to be like Jordan, not to run a marathon. When we date a certain person because others will see us a certain way and so on.

Mimetic Desire

For Girard, we are different than animals because of our desires, our myths, our lies. We invent stories, we go to war for abstract concepts etc. This is a the object of his psychological focused philosophy. Similar to how class was the nexus of socialism, how casts worked in Hinduism, or rationality in liberalism.

Spirited Animals

According to Girard, is a social mechanism that arrises from a cataclysmic event. A troubled society murders an "innocent" victim (blamed for all evils) & thus gains cathartic release and gains new new Gods. This event is dramatised, captured in myth and then translated back into the society in the form of rituals & prohibitions. Ex: Julius Caesar is ritually killed as he is blamed for the fall of the Republic. However, as his nephew becomes emperor, Caesar becomes a God. And later on an institution emulated by all rulers.

Girardian Scapegoating

The Christian mythology follows the same Girardian arc: civil unrest in Judea, Jesus crucified as a scapegoat, turned into a God, institutionalized through the church. However, the unique element is that the story is told for the perspective of the victim, rather than of the accusers. In the Bible, the victim is innocent, the crowd was mistaken.It is this unique care for the victim that spills into our modern worldview and institutions: from human rights to work ethic. In a sense we all live in a Christian society even if we don't consider ourselves as Christians.

The Uniqueness of Christian Scapegoating 

For Girard, violence is natural. But modern day seems quite peaceful. And Girard credits 2 institutions:<ul><li>capitalism: which Girard sees it as a status seeking game more than a rational transfer of resources.</li><li>laws: a set of institutions that mediates disputes and acts as a monopoly on violence </li></ul>For Girard capitalism is this stew of violent energies that needs to be contained through laws. One can not function without the other.

The mechanism to protect against violence

It's no wonder the European aristocracy went into business as soon as heroes and warriors went out of fashion.

Basic Girardian ideas beautifully presented by a young philosopher, Jonathan Bo, in conversation with David Perell. 

Lecture I gives a brief overview of Girard’s life and work. It summarizes the key conclusions of mimetic theory, distilling the most crucial ideas of this 10+ hour long lectures series into a digestible 2 hours. For those who are short on time, this synopsis is sufficient to give you a taste of Girard. For those embarking on the full journey, this lecture is a rough map that will orient you throughout the expansive, tumultuous, and dizzying terrain ahead. 00:00:00 Introduction 00:05:05 The Case for Engaging Girard 00:19:34 The Structure of This Lecture Series 00:23:52 Girard's Biography 00:29:06 What We Cover in Lecture I 00:30:45 Mimesis 00:33:43 Metaphysical Desire 00:42:04 The Negative Phase of Mimesis 00:51:20 The Scapegoat Mechanism 01:03:05 Christianity 01:10:55 Love and Hypocrisy 01:13:38 Truth and Dogma 01:18:04 Innovation and Imitation 01:26:02 Violence and Apocalypse 01:37:16 The Case Against Engaging Girard

Lecture I gives a brief overview of Girard’s life and work. It summarizes the key conclusions of mimetic theory, distilling the most crucial ideas of this 10+ hour long lectures series into a digestible 2 hours. For those who are short on time, this synopsis is sufficient to give you a taste of Girard. For those embarking on the full journey, this lecture is a rough map that will orient you throughout the expansive, tumultuous, and dizzying terrain ahead. 

00:00:00 Introduction
00:05:05 The Case for Engaging Girard
00:19:34 The Structure of This Lecture Series
00:23:52 Girard's Biography
00:29:06 What We Cover in Lecture I
00:30:45 Mimesis
00:33:43 Metaphysical Desire
00:42:04 The Negative Phase of Mimesis
00:51:20 The Scapegoat Mechanism
01:03:05 Christianity
01:10:55 Love and Hypocrisy
01:13:38 Truth and Dogma
01:18:04 Innovation and Imitation
01:26:02 Violence and Apocalypse
01:37:16 The Case Against Engaging Girard

Lecture I: Introduction to Mimetic Theory | René Girard's Mimetic Theory

René Girard's Mimetic Theory - Lecture 1

In 2015, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desmond_Tutu">Desmond Tutu </a>, a former South African Archbishop and anti-apartheid pioneer, traveled to Dharamsala, a place in India and home to His Holiness <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dalai_Lama">the Dalai Lama </a>, for his 80th birthday. Both have fought non-violently against oppression in their countries for over 50 years, while leading millions of people in their spiritual journeys. Hence, they took this special occasion as a chance to sit down together and evaluate one of life’s most important questions: how do we find <a href="https://fourminutebooks.com/resisting-happiness-summary/">joy </a>in the face of suffering?

The Book Of Joy - Summary 

Indeed, a long sit-down it was. Tutu stayed for seven days, during which he and the Dalai Lama intensely discussed this issue. Douglas Abrams, Tutu’s long-time co-writer and editor, documented the conversation, so that one year later, their answers would be available to the rest of the world in the form of a book, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29496453-the-book-of-joy">The Book Of Joy </a>.

"We create most of our suffering, so it should be logical that we also have the ability to create more joy. When it comes to personal happiness there is a lot that we as individuals can do."-Dalai Lama & Desmond Tutu

Quote

While the two addressed many obstacles to joy, along with eight pillars that enable it, I’d like to use the following 3 lessons to address the root issue and how to move past it: <ol><li>A life without suffering does not exist. </li><li>Since we can’t control suffering, we must practice our response to it. </li><li>Compassion and sadness help us alleviate our troublesome responses to suffering. </li> </ol>

Top 3 Lessons

Especially in the Western world, we are constantly being sold on the idea that it’s possible to remove all suffering from your life. There’s a pill for every ill, money solves most problems, and once you finally have that spouse, the home and the two kids, you’ll be happy forever.But, speaking of kids, how do they arrive in this world? Through an excruciating process called giving birth. If women didn’t power through it in exchange for the bundles of joy kids are, the human race could pack it in right now!

Lesson 1: There is no life without suffering.

The Book Of Joy summary explains why suffering is inevitable, how to react to it better and which emotions you can channel it into, according to the Dalai Lama & Desmond Tutu.

The Book Of Joy Summary

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