Choice, Trauma and Stoicism

I had a problem with Stoicism. The problem was that I was unable to be one. I got exposed to Stoicism a few years back after an wholly unfortunate event in my career. I do not want to give out any details of the same. It would probably not be in the interest of my well-being.

Suffice to say, a matter was decided by a court of law adversely against my client. Now, Hold on That was not the problem. The problem was that, me (the lawyer) and my client were kept totally in the dark about the decision in an appeal against conviction in a criminal case and my client was taken to jail suddenly in the dead of the night on a Friday. I, (the lawyer) came to know about the judgment at a wedding party over the same weekend. I was nevertheless under the shocking question – has our courts committed injustice? Added to this was the immediate view of my peers, as the news did spread.

I was informed, directly by many that this type of disposal of the case ought to have been anticipated by me. The difference between a regular Joe and a Giant in the legal fraternity is to understand the disposition of individual judges and take “remedial” measures beforehand. This was shocking because, a reasonable human being would definitely agree that even Telepathic Aliens, All Powerful God or Lord Macaulay could not have anticipated it, if given the full facts. Many Senior Lawyers infact agreed that the predicament that myself and my client faced was really unfortunate.

In My Mind, when a court of law so very easily casts centuries of legal development achieved through blood, death, suffering and determination into the proverbial trash bin, it shook my fundamental faith in the Legal Process, that law schools take pride in instilling deeply. It was not the case that there was no remedy, but the very fact that, something so precious to humanity can be destroyed very easily was extremely traumatic and disturbing to me.

A few months and after a change of professional and personal lifestyle, I stumbled upon a book on Stoicism. Stoicism and the principle of “Amor Fati” – Love Fate seemed to ease the constant throbbing in my head. Also, the principle of distinguishing things within control and out of control. This seemed to give an answer to me, but there was something hiding in plain sight. And that is when I realised that Stoicism is a Lie in the Modern World.

Stoic principles emerged in Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome, when Humanity was subject to much of nature’s ravages and not much could be done about famine, flood,volcano etc. Therefore, Stoic Principles appear to be sound remedies for a mind facing such natural disasters atleast until the 20th Century. Nature is not yet in Human Control, atleast fully. Nature is just Nature and as such has no moral principles. It is wild and untamed.

Stoicism’s failings in Human Causes are apparent with the original stoics themselves. Marcus Aurelius is one the greatest stoics and his Meditations are amazing. Okay, but on his deathbed, he allowed a despotic fool to take over – his son Commodus. Stoic Principles seem to have failed him in the most important judgment of his life – to appoint the Emperor of Rome and thus sealed the fate of millions of lives, humans and animals alike. Sadly, no one has held Marcus to account. Some may say that Marcus will accept responsibility, but it is of no value as Centuries have passed.

Similarly, another stoic often quoted is Cicero. Cicero, fought on the side of Pompey against Julius Caesar in the Roman Civil Wars. When he realised Caesar is winning, he committed suicide. It is said, that he refused to give up his principles. Isn’t suicide the coward’s way out? So did he say” I can’t stop Caesar so I will get out of his way?! Cicero is worse, he got the easy way out when faced against Caesar – another Human.

Humankind is no longer Wild or at the mercy of Nature. Humankind has been sufficiently tamed and tempered through economic needs, law and social justice.When looking upon stoicism against the background of Human-made disasters and Human – as - a - Disaster, stoicism seems to be cheating us. We cannot do anything against nature yes. But what about man? If A Human chooses to do injustice to you, just because that Human Can Do (without accountability), if you remain stoic and say it is not in my control, then you are relinquishing your survival instinct and living contrary to human nature. Such thinking goes against being a Stoic.

China is definitely to blame for COVID-19 – either for creating the virus or for hiding it until it spread to other countries. The World is using Soft Power and Diplomacy to coerce China. Does anyone ask whether Soft Power would work? Is it not rational to think What if China anticipated that The rest of the world will delay or never utilise harsher measures for a considerable period of time? If on one hand we say that, China holds Disproportionate Power, but on the other hand the rest of the world push their own economic and political agendas, it is ordinary humans who suffer and worse are rendered powerless.

Similarly, when caste-based and gender-based violence breaks out, all imaginable kinds of rhetorics and theatrics are spoken by champions of the political and legal systems. But, Later, when the legal system fails to give a definitive answer, humans suffer and are rendered powerless.

All suffering today, is totally Human-Made. But, we decide not to make a rational inquiry and identify the right human responsible. We either have to satisfy ourselves with a human at some point of the chain being identified and punished. When it comes to shouldering responsibility, we become blind to the reality and the real source of the suffering.

Developing sophisticated systems of governance, living and suffering and at the same time, being blind to Human-Made Suffering shows the double standards in Modern Society.

In the film Wisdom of Trauma, Dr.Gabor Mate`says that, The world appears unjust because Humans see the world as unjust and make it so. Most of the time, unjust acts are caused due to trauma and Modern Society’s blindness to the trauma. All the trauma line up form the fabric of society and sends out a message that, disproportionate power is the only means in order to survive in an harsh, unjust world.

In the same, film, it is said that, injustice by humans is a result of humans not acknowledging their authenticity. Humans engage in Physical or verbal violence or cause injustice or self-harm because, the authentic need of the human has been denied, so the human mind attempts to suppress or even destroy the meaning of the need – an object or desire. This need to suppress or destroy is trauma and the real-world action is a symptom of this trauma.

The double-standard exposes the gap between the cause for the suffering and the actual suffering that can be bridged not only by a rational inquiry, but a compassionate inquiry as well. The Suffering is the symptom, the double standard is the enemy. If a Human causes suffering, we need to be compassionate against that Human and attempt to find out "WHY" suffering is caused through that human. Treating that Human as an enemy will make us blind. The action of that Human could be very well his mind finding a solution for a trauma.

We are no longer living in a world where Nature causes suffering. Suffering today is man-made. Man decides to throw cherished laws and principles to the dustbin. It is a human choice. It is not sufficient to show that remedies are available against injustice, the real task is to ensure that, Human Principles that evolved through much struggle, sacrifice is not cast away easily. Rule of Law is one of these Principles. To do that, we need an impartial inquiry into what pushes Humans to Choose Injustice. We need to understand Human Nature.

Coming back to my experience in the Court, I realise that, Rule of Law can be destroyed by Human Choice even by the Courts and the humans manning them. We could make such destruction difficult through Legal Precedents or retributions. But, when one such human “very easily” destroys such established legal principles and there is no serious inquiry into why it is so then the injustice is normalised and along with it, Trauma is normalised and reinforced. More Trauma in Society is not just bad, it is unhealthy.

When I first started writing this out, I felt that Stoicism was a lie. However, Dr.Gabor Mate` shows that, when suffering is only due to Human Choices, I feel that, holding principles in life will not suffice. Stoic Principles work against Nature. Nature is not wild by Choice, it is what it is. Humans, by nature, have the power of choice, and when we make choices that turns Justice on its head, then we need to make a Scientific Inquiry into why we make such Choices. This would be the most Stoic Response. The Stoic Response is in line with Human Nature.

*First Published in Linked In on June 21,2021 by the Author.