All men should strive to learn before they die, what they are

"All men should strive to learn before they die, what they are running from, and to, and why." — these words by James Thurber echo with a profound truth: the quest for self-understanding and purpose is not just a luxury, but a vital part of what it means to live a meaningful life. In the ancient world, the question of purpose and direction was not a mere philosophical exercise, but a matter of great importance to the sages and scholars of old. The greatest minds of history understood that to live without knowing what one is seeking or avoiding is to live in a kind of blindness. The journey of life is not simply about moving forward but about understanding the forces that drive us, the desires that propel us, and the fears that hold us back.

Consider the great Socrates, who, in his wisdom, declared that "the unexamined life is not worth living." To Socrates, this was not just an intellectual observation—it was a call to action. The life of the mind is an active, constant process of questioning, of understanding the self, and knowing both the forces that draw us toward our goals and the obstacles that stand in our way. Socrates, throughout his life, sought to understand not just what he was doing, but why he was doing it. His relentless questioning—of himself and others—was not an exercise in vanity or ego, but a means of uncovering the truth of human existence. He understood that without this awareness, we are like ships adrift at sea, tossed by the winds of emotion and habit, rather than sailing towards a purposeful destination.

Thurber’s quote asks us to do the same—to strive to understand what we are running from, what we are running toward, and, most crucially, why. In every age, people have been driven by invisible forces—fear, ambition, desire, or guilt. We often find ourselves chasing after goals, careers, and possessions, without truly questioning the source of these desires. Are we, like the great Aeneas, running toward something noble, a life of honor and duty? Or are we fleeing from the shadows of our own fears, evading confrontation with our deepest insecurities? The answer to these questions defines the course of our lives, as surely as the wind shapes the sails of a ship.

Consider the life of Alexander the Great, a man whose conquest of the known world was driven by an unrelenting desire for glory and immortality. Yet, as his empire stretched from Greece to India, Alexander faced a profound inner emptiness, as though the very victories he sought were not enough to fulfill the deeper longing within him. In the end, despite all his conquests, Alexander’s quest for meaning left him with an unquenchable thirst, and his premature death at the age of 32 marked the end of a life lived without understanding the true source of his desire. Alexander’s story is a stark reminder of the danger in pursuing goals without understanding why they matter or where they lead. He was running toward fame, but not with clear eyes, and thus never truly reached the peace he sought.

On the other hand, consider the story of Mahatma Gandhi, whose life was defined not by what he ran toward in a material sense, but by what he ran from—violence, injustice, and oppression. Gandhi understood that to free others, he must first understand the forces that shaped his own soul. His entire philosophy of nonviolence arose from his deep, personal understanding of the inner struggle between hate and love, fear and courage. He sought not only to free India but to understand his own heart—to reconcile the forces of anger and compassion within him. His life, therefore, was a profound exercise in understanding what he was running from and what he was running toward, making his actions a clear reflection of his moral compass.

The lesson here is one of profound self-awareness and introspection. To truly live a meaningful life, we must ask ourselves why we pursue the things we do. We must examine the hidden motives behind our actions, uncover the fears that drive us, and understand the desires that pull us in one direction or another. Only then can we make choices that are aligned with our true purpose, and live with clarity and intention. As Thurber so wisely puts it, understanding these forces gives us the power to shape our destiny rather than be shaped by it.

In our own lives, we must take time to reflect on our inner drives. What are we running from? Is it fear, insecurity, or the shadow of past regrets? And what are we running toward? Is it success, recognition, love, or perhaps inner peace? Understanding these truths gives us the clarity we need to choose our paths wisely, without being guided by blind impulse. Like Socrates and Gandhi, we must seek to know ourselves, for in that knowing, we gain the strength to live with intention, to navigate the seas of life not as mere passengers, but as captains of our own fate.