The Possibility of Joy

Joy: A thought. What if all normal human beings are born with something like an emotional default state of quiet joy? The Roman stoic Seneca seemed to think this, and to suspect that many things in our lives come to stand between us and that normal default state. Emotions such as worry, anxiety, fear, frustration, irritation, anger, hatred, and even a wild intense exuberance can unhinge us and move us away from that quiet, peaceful default setting in our souls. The philosopher, in Seneca's view, should help us to diminish and ultimately eliminate those obstacles to joy with tools of wisdom. The stoic goal wasn't anything like emotional anesthesia, or worse, bottling up and hiding our emotions, but rather to have only wise emotions that won't obliterate or bury our natural default state of quiet joy.

Imagine that your computer came with a beautiful and peaceful screen saver but that, over time, something has corrupted the system and now you have only an ugly, irritating alternative on the screen. What if the act of simply unplugging and restarting would fix the problem? It would be silly not to do so. That's what Seneca wants for us.

Unplug. Restart. Find your spiritual default. Don't let emotional reactions which, ultimately, you can learn to control, keep you from your birthright of inner calm and simple joy.

Many of us, unfortunately, as adults experience the opposite of this most of the time. Let's call it "Yoj." Yoj is the reverse of joy, it's troubling, uncomfortable, and very unhelpful for our agility, creativity, and ability to navigate the world well, while positively engaging the process in our souls. Only a modest background experience of joy will do. So. Unplug. Restart. And find ways to eliminate anything that would stand between you and your inner quiet joy.