How to Live (According to Spinoza)

There may be no philosopher in history (with the possible exceptions of Socrates and Nietzsche) who has received greater attention in artistic, literary, and popular culture than Baruch de Spinoza (1632–1677), writes Steven Nadler (one of the leading experts on Spinoza).

In my interview with Nadler on In Search of Wisdom, he explained,

Something is fascinating, mysterious, complex, and engaging about Spinoza, partly because he’s so difficult to understand. And every time I read him, it gets more difficult. But the other attraction of Spinoza is that he’s a rebel. He’s a radical who was punished by the community that raised him. And everybody loves a radical, especially somebody who suffers at the hands of the authorities.

How to Live

In Think Least of Death: Spinoza on How to Live and How to Die, Nadler writes on the idea of becoming free. Spinoza discovered, and what he wants us to know, is a particular way of living that represents a kind of perfection of our human nature. It is, in fact, a condition that constitutes true human flourishing, and it even makes us somewhat like God or Nature itself.

If one theme runs throughout and unites Spinoza’s writings, it is freedom. One can live at the mercy of circumstances, rashly pursuing and avoiding things whose comings and goings are well beyond one’s control. The free person, by contrast, is in control of his life. He acts rather than reacts.

“The free person is led by reason, explained Nadler, not by passion.” Therefore, the life of the free person is, in short, the model life for a human being.

According to Spinoza, “All men are born ignorant of the causes of things.” People believe themselves free because they are conscious of their volitions and appetite and do not think of the causes by which they are disposed to wanting and willing because they are unaware of those causes.

Think Least of Death

When asked — How does the idea of thinking least of death differ from other ancient philosophical schools?

Nadler responded,

Some of the Stoics said that you could do nothing better than meditating upon your own mortality. In Epictetus and Seneca, you find that that contemplate your death, remember that you are a mortal creature. At one point, Epictetus says that you’re like putty in the hands of the gods; you’re not in control of your fate. Spinoza goes in the opposite direction. He says that the truly free and rational person is focused on the joy and the power of living. They appreciate what they are and the power that constitutes what is to be a living individual. And the joy that comes from increases in that power as we become more rational and virtuous. And a person who is so focused on this joy, the joy of living, will not focus on death.

Having read Spinoza’s Ethics, the rational person knows what they are and what the future holds for them. That is, in the long term, hopefully, very long term. “And so if you were to ask this free, rational person, are you mortal, they say, well, of course, I’m mortal, I am a finite individual in nature, and eventually, I will die.” But it is not a point of obsession for them. Having come to terms, they can now focus on leading a virtuous and rewarding life.

Final Thoughts

The overriding goal of Spinoza’s philosophy — what all of his metaphysical and religious theories are in the service of — is becoming a free person. In demonstrating the path to true well-being, to a condition of human happiness that is stable, complete, and not subject to the vagaries of chance.

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