Fourth Aphorisms - On the notion of Care

I

The gods have died, and we have ceased to care...

II

To "care" does not mean giving hugs to the needy; it means to stand on a ground and act according to the ground. No matter how many hugs you give out, without a ground, you do not care.

III

What does it mean when I say "I care for you"? It means you have become part of my ground, part of the foundation that constitutes as who I am. Every step I take into future ground I need you to hold me up, or else my ground breaks asunder and I fall into the drift of nothingness.

IV

To care is not only to care with those you love, but also those you hate. As compare to Love, Hatred is equally important to the shaping of your character - you hate because whatever you hate violates your values. This - a personal principle shaped by love and hate - is your ground. Out of this ground you begin to care for the world.

V

The ground, however, is not social; it must be yours and only your ground. Whatever is social is an institution - that is a ground, yes; but it is also a prison. It will box you in.

VI

Ground is itself groundless; Care is itself liberation.

VII

Therefore, Faith is most desirable.

VIII

Ground is reality; Care is the road to reality; both the objective scientist and the subjective sketpic are disillusioned towards reality.

IX

To care requires thinking, but ultimately it demands action.