“Everything is dual; everything has poles; everything has its pair of opposites; like and unlike are the same; opposites are identical in nature, but different in degree; extremes meet; all truths are but half-truths; all paradoxes may be reconciled.”

The Kybalion

Buenos Aires, Argentina – Graffiti silhouette – Nicolas Lobos

In the past few years, insecurity has grown to be a topic of discussion, worry and concern in Buenos Aires. It has entered the list of “ongoing problems to be solved”, together with inflation, tax increases, lack of resources for hospitals and schools, and low pensions. Every day, we read or hear news about how insecure living in Buenos Aires is. Insecurity is part of our conversations, our daily worries and, most importantly, our claims and complaints.

We read the news regarding crime rates and a huge amount of energy moves in the direction of worrying and complaining. We worry so much that we spend lots of money improving the security of our houses and we complain that the city is not safe enough. But can this really make a difference? Will this really make the feeling of uneasiness disappear?

Buenos Aires, Argentina – Back alley – Jaay dev Singh

All this has made me think about the nature of insecurity. What do we really mean when we talk about it and what we fear?

“There are two sides to everything”, says the old Hermetic axiom, so insecurity and security are two parts of one particular state of mind.

We think that our life should be secure. We believe a secure life is the natural order of things. Everything has to be fixed and in place, work has to be stable, our days have to be organized, traffic has to be smooth, no electricity cuts, no transport strikes, no unexpected events are desired in our lives. We want all this, we demand it and if it does not work this way, we complain.

Buenos Aires, Argentina – Dog walking – Aleksandar Todorovic

But can we ever really feel secure? And if we do, if we finally get to feel secure, is this something that can last over time?

At the bottom of our claim to security we find fear. We complain because we don’t really want to see, to feel, that our life is very insecure, very uncertain, but not because of something that is now here threatening our life, but because life itself is uncertain. We cannot be sure that all is going to turn out as planned, we cannot know what will happen in the future, but we act as if insecurity or uncertainty should not exist. So we demand security.

We are afraid of losing things, of unexpected changes, of feeling confused and not knowing what to do. We are afraid of feeling unprotected and in danger; ultimately, we are afraid of death. Mass media understands this underlying fear and exploits it by feeding us a constant flow of terrifying news that confirms our worst nightmares.

Pinamar, Argentina – To the beach – Juan Cruz Mountford

But we can take a moment to reflect calmly on this issue: Death is an inexorable fact in our existence even though we avoid thinking about it. Can we avoid it by creating a secure life around us? And what is more, are we really creating security or is it an illusion? We rarely stop to think that we might die any minute or that our loved ones might. Our life is indeed fragile. Also, we don’t think very often about how we would like to pass away: In fear or in peace? In anger or reconciled? And also, what kind of life do we need to lead in order to enjoy a peaceful end?

These are profound questions about our existence, and we don’t often give them much thought because in order to do so, we should first accept death as a natural part of our existence. Instead, we spend our lives worrying about the little things in life. It becomes very important if I can buy this or that, if I can go on vacation to this or that place, if the car broke down, little conflicts with other people, if this or that person was rude to me, etc.. Caught in these endless pursuits, we not only become blind to the fragility of our lives, we also prevent real concerns from participating in our mentations. What is the meaning of my life in this world? What traces will I leave in the world when I am gone? What is the meaning of my suffering? We don’t understand what the meaning of this feeling of insecurity and the urge to create security really is.

Buenos Aires, Argentina – City mood – Marc Schadegg

Danger is an inescapable condition of our existence, a feeling that keeps us alert and attentive to potential unexpected events and prevents us from falling asleep in illusory security and comfort. When things do not work or do not go as planned, when people do not react as we expected they would, there is a conflict inside us and this very conflict makes us grow, adapt, readjust our ideas and admit new worldviews. Conflict forces us to find new resources and different means to deal with a situation. Contradictions, uncertainty and insecurity make us feel helpless and impotent and this produces suffering. But this is the truth. A truth that is more profound than our daily worries: that we have no control over many things, we cannot avoid accidents or a rise in inflation, but we can be alert and marvel, trying to understand what this is all about.

By admitting this, we come to accept that our existence is frail, and for that, it can be considered a gift, that having a secure life is an illusion and that the feeling of insecurity and uncertainty can be our ally, keeping us alert and attentive to what is necessary at this moment, keeping our mind active to figure what our options are at the present moment.

When we no longer reject insecurity, we begin to accept life.

Julieta Spirito

Works Cited

The Kybalion. A Study of The Hermetic Philosophy of Ancient Egypt and Greece, 1908, Three Inititates (1862-1932), YOGeBooks: Hollister, MO, page 12.

Credits

Snapshot 1: Luis Guillon, Argentina – Into the night – Esteban Bernal (Unsplash)

Snapshot 2: Buenos Aires, Argentina – Graffiti silhouette – Nicolas Lobos (Unsplash)

Snapshot 3: Buenos Aires, Argentina – Back alley – Jaay dev Singh (Unsplash)

Snapshot 4: Buenos Aires, Argentina – Dog walking – Aleksandar Todorovic (Shutterstock)

Snapshot 5: Pinamar, Argentina – To the beach – Juan Cruz Mountford (Unsplash)

Snapshot 6: Buenos Aires, Argentina – City mood – Marc Schadegg (Unsplash)

Locations

Home: www.perypatetik.net

Social: www.facebook.com/Perypatetik

Cinemblem: Perypatetik youtube channel

The Syncretion of Polarization and Extremes

Alencar, Joana. Lack of Social Trust – Brazil. January 2019.

Baccino, Alejandra. Polarization within Ourselves – South America. January 2019.

Cordido, Veronica. Hanging by Extremes – Venezuela. January 2019.

Hernandez, Jonay Quintero. Extremism Is Now the New Hype? – Spain. February 2019

Montano, Osvaldo. Progress in the Face of Polarization – Bolivia. February 2019.

Romano, Mavi. Censorship and Cultural Survival in a World without Gods – Spain. January 2019.

Sariñana, Alejandra Gonzalez. Student Movements – Mexico. March 2019.

Sepi, Andreea. A World of Victims and Perpetrators? – Germany and Romania. February 2019.

Sevunts, Nane. The Era To Close – Armenia. March 2019.

Skobic, Alexandar. The Loss of Identity. April 2019.

Sitorus, Rina. Polarization in Politics: All a Cebong or Kampret – Indonesia. March 2019.

Valenzuela, Monica. Adults and Children. April 2019.

Vuka. Extreme Immunity to Functional Tax and Judicial System – Serbia. March 2019

Wallis, Toni. Walls and Resettlement – South Africa and Angola. February 2019.

Forthcoming

CW 16 – Italy – Mary Ranaldo
CW 17 – Lebanon – Ghadir Younes
CW 18 – Cuba – Marilin Guerrero Casas
CW 19 – Ukraine – Evgeny Bondarenko
CW 20 – Uruguay – Andrea da Silva Escandell
CW 21 – Spain – Jazz Williams
CW 22 – Armenia – Mania Israyelyan
CW 23 – Poland – Pawel Awdejuk
CW 24 – Balkans – Aleksandar Protic
CW 25 – Italy – Daniela Cannarella
CW 26 – Serbia – Jelena Sekulic
CW 27 – Tajikistan – Nigina Kanunova
CW 28 – Portugal – Nuno Rosalino
CW 29 – Uruguay – Lillian Julber
CW 30 – Argentina – Javier Gomez
Source: The Codex of Uncertainty Transposed