The Practical Utility of Good Will
(Preamble to “Kant Touch ‘Dis”. Pendant details at the end)
Emmanuel Kant was a German philosopher who lived in the 1700’s that was one of the first people to stop looking at morality as a kind of superstition and series of intangible and subjective beliefs based on pure imagination and start looking at them like a practical guide to cultivating an objectively good life. Basically shifting from looking at the rules of morality under the same umbrella as “don’t walk under ladders” and “don’t break a mirror” to very solid and concrete common sense like “don’t stand between a bullet and a target” and “you can’t talk yourself out of problems you behave yourself into”.
He believed that at the root to quality in moral beliefs was reason and formed a moral law called a categorical imperative that stated “act only in accordance with that maxim through which you can, at the same time, will that it become universal law.” This basically means don’t do anything in which you wouldn’t want to see that be the standard of action upheld by the whole world as well as yourself and all the people you love. If you steal, expect to be stolen from. Basically, the golden rule of “do unto others” phrased in a practical lens.
This change of thinking is something that really changed humanities values! So much so that a popular belief based in this kind of thinking called deism, which was the belief that the creator had set our world in motion and subscribed all functions to natural law instead of constant micromanagement and playing with us like a kid playing with you soldiers. To the followers, this meant that in order to find morality, you looked into the obvious logic and common sense of the world around us instead of pitting science and religion against each other in the pulpit.
Benjamin Franklin was heavily influenced by this which brought about our concept of separation of church and state which was huge because, before this, the king could claim divine right and justify any action to his people as his will being backed by or equal to, the will of the highest diety. Depending on what religion was prevalent in the area, who that diety was would change but still, the point here is that the king could claim to be inherently superior as opposed to just borrowing power from his position to rule and make decisions. This was the first leap in thinking that lead to the paradigm of democracy and giving all people the power to co-create our world.
I realize we haven’t fully implemented and executed this ideology yet but we are FAR on the path from the thought paradigm of the world previously and we are very much headed in that direction more every day. This thought change did lead to the huge leaps in social advancement, equality for everyone, and is consistently working to level the playing field of how we all as individuals contribute towards the growth of humanity. We’re all kinda stewards of whatever ideology we embrace and use it to steer our actions towards the conclusions of that blueprint.
These are some of the most important points I want to contribute to the discussion about the ways following the idea of not just living every action as a two way street, but devoting ourselves fully to creating the best world we’re capable of through all we dream, create and do:
Definition of good will:
to have the internal willingness to contribute to the improvement of both the exterior and interior world. Also including the active or passive appreciation of improvement in the world or one’s own life as well through the disposition of gratitude.
1. Having an impeccable good will for the world allows groups of people to work together to do MUCH more than they could alone. Honey catches more flies than vinegar and when everyone is working together in good spirits, the results become synergistic where everyone’s effort compounds on itself instead of simply adding up.
2. Down to a cellular level, having a good intentions and genuinely seeking to do good in the world will physically and psychologically improve your personal performance with everything you do. Anyone who is pure of heart can truly daw the power within themselves to move mountains. Think about the stories of mothers lifting cars to help their children. If you would like to look into this further, look into Bruce H. Lipton’s work in epigenetics and Tony Robbins work in practical psychology and neurolinguistic programming.
3. An impeccable good will also gives us the ability to help anyone or work with anyone in order to do good. It allows us to let our own personal issues and preferences take a backseat to contributing. To genuinely being able help someone, regardless if whether or not you like them is a rather big asset because a world you cannot love is a world you cannot help create. Therefore, if you let any one individual you have distaste for get in your way of loving the whole, you’ve cut yourself off from your power to create or contribute and basically taken your hands off the wheel of your own life.
4. By the result of #3 we learn humility through accepting and appreciating the world for what it is by putting the greater good before our own preferences as individuals. This teaches us to truly embrace seeking to understand before seeking to be understood and have the awareness of others necessary to truly do what is helpful and not impose our judgement of what is good unto others. The idea of devoting yourself to “doing good” can get incredibly self righteous if you don’t go in understanding that the interpretation of what “good” is changes in each scenario and it’s important to be democratic about sharing the power on what the definition of “good” is with those you’re working with. This keeps our focus and priorities in order that we must “treat everyone as ends in themselves” (Kant)
5. Having an impeccable good will fosters the greater belief that the world can be improved, we’re capable of improving it, and it’s our responsibility to do whatever we can to improve it. This gives us the most important gifts of all; hope, and faith. If you eever found truly hard circumstances and you had to make it through, those two things you can use to make almost anything not just survivable, or overcomable, but possible.
6. Having an impeccable good will also teaches us forgiveness because we understand that there are many many ways people interpret “good” and they don’t always pan out but one persons failure one day may be massive success the next. It is not up to us to judge each other, only to do our personal best and let others do their’s as well and work together in spite of differences. Genuine war is a sickness to be avoided at all costs because it costs everyone who participates in it more than anyone should care to lose, but it does serve a purpose and until that purpose no longer exists and we can learn to navigate and appreciate our differences, war will continue to exist.
7. A sense of impeccable good will will push anyone to new levels of personal purpose and industriousness where the world around you will rally to your success because your goals will be in alignment with the world’s own self interest and your path there becomes a worthy cause for your life on this earth. Anything with virtue at the center is destined for success and if you put a truly pure heart behind lofty and benevolent ambitions, you will succeed and be blessed on your way there, and even if you must go through fire to get there, you will have hope and faith to guide and fuel you.
This is what I see as just a few relevant points as to why good will is a fundamentally important life path that is the core of going anyplace worth being. Much love everyone and:
“Be excellent to eachother”
-Wyld Stallyns
“Kant Touch This”
Pendant featuring:
Turquoise
Garnet
Peridot
Blue topaz
Wrapped in copper
8 cm x 4.2 cm