Let’s start at the beginning: it is impossible to live without suffering at some point and going through all kinds of adversities. Changes in life are a constant. What goes up comes down, what goes down goes up and what lives, dies.. It has always been this way, and it will continue to be this way without us being able to do anything to prevent it. That is why, for centuries, Stoicism and other great philosophers in history, such as Nietzsche, have taught us that the best way to achieve inner peace is to accept what happens, instead of resisting it.
In this sense, one of the most profound concepts and what best represents this line of thoughts is the figure of the fati lovewhich can be translated from Latin as “love destiny.” Nietzche also resorted to the cliché in one of his most famous quotes, which perfectly summarizes what we will tell you today: “Love your destiny, which is, in reality, your life.”
What does it mean fati love?
fati love It is a Latin expression that we could translate as “love of destiny.” This concept, which has roots in Stoic philosophy, was later popularized by the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. For the Stoics, there is no such thing as luck. In fact, according to this branch of philosophy, Luck is “the ignorance of events.” Although sometimes things happen to us that seem to meet the criteria of good or bad luck, over time they can turn into something very different.
This is demonstrated by the life of Zeno of Citium, founder of the Stoic school in 301 BC. His career as a philosopher began with a terrible shipwreck. Zenón was a merchant, and with this terrible accident he lost everything he had in life and was completely ruined.
Under these circumstances he arrived at the Cynic Academy, where he began to study philosophy, and then founded his own school. Some time later, the Stoic would say “fortune wants me to have greater freedom to philosophize.”referring to the terrible shipwreck.
From this idea, which reflects that there is nothing useful in regretting events, arises the concept of fati love. The Stoics, as well as Nietzsche, They tell us that we must not only bear with strength what happens to us, but we must love it and embrace it. Because only then will we be able to turn apparent misfortunes into the best opportunities of our lives.
How to apply the fati love to everyday life
Unlike other branches of philosophy, the Stoics approached the study from a practical point of view. They lived and acted following the doctrines and lessons taught by Stoicism, and They cultivated the four great Stoic virtues: courage, temperance, justice and wisdom.. So, following your example, let’s talk about how we can adapt the concept of fati love to everyday life in the 21st century. You will be surprised to discover that all this stoicism, despite having begun to resonate in the year 301 BC, continues to have indisputable validity.
Give thanks for everything that happens in your life
Cultivating gratitude in happy moments seems simple. It’s easy to find reasons to be thankful when everything is going the way you expected. What is complicated, and therefore what is truly transformative, It is giving thanks for what happens to you and shakes you without you expecting it.. The difficult moments are the ones we should really be grateful for.
Marcus Aurelius, in his Meditations, advises giving thanks not only for what is easy, but also for the trials that shape us. At the end of the day, we don’t know which shipwreck will end up becoming the engine of our success.
As the famous Bruce Lee said, it’s about not asking for “an easy life,” but asking for “the character to overcome a difficult one.”
Imagine the worst
Seneca, a renowned Stoic, was one of the richest men of his time. And yet, He advised his students (and he himself did it) to dedicate a few days a month to living in poverty. With this, Seneca sought to prepare for the worst, assuming completely naturally that this could happen.
Unlike the most modern currents of psychology, Stoicism recommends us to think that everything could go wrong, that we can lose everything we value. In this way, we will be able to prepare ourselves emotionally to face difficulties and value what we have in the present.
Learn from failure
For the Stoics, you can only fail when the attitude is not on your side. That is, failure never depends on external factors, but on your attitude. It was Nietzsche, who adopted the fati love as one of the fundamental principles of his philosophy, who said that phrase that we all now know and use even in the most unexpected contexts: “What doesn’t kill me, makes me stronger.”
Recognizing that every setback is part of the journey can free us from the weight of failure, and motivate us more than any victory.
Practice detachment
Finally, the Stoics said that, to live in harmony with destiny, it is essential to let go of attachment. And not, We are not just talking about not having a relationship of great dependence with everything material.. The Stoics talked about not holding on to expectations, to the specific results we expect.
This does not mean that you give up on your goals, but accept that the path may not be as you imagined. To practice detachment, you can try meditating daily or stopping to breathe deeply in times of stress, reminding yourself that you don’t need to control everything to be at peace.