The Laws of Human Nature - Part 2

At one time or another, we have all had a paper cut. The slice always seems to occur somewhere on a finger so that we are constantly reminded of the cut by a twinge of pain.

The irritation that we feel will often lead us to comment to a friend that a paper cut is the worst annoyance imaginable.

In truth, it would not take much effort to think of a far worse fate. Why, then, at least in that moment, would we confuse the discomfort of a paper cut with that a more disagreeable experience?

The answer might be termed  The Law of the Relativity of Human Suffering:

A man's suffering is similar to the behavior of a gas. If a certain quantity of gas is pumped into an empty chamber, it will fill the chamber completely and evenly, no matter how big the chamber. Thus suffering completely fills the human soul and conscious mind, no matter whether the suffering is great or little. Therefore the "size" of human suffering is absolutely relative.--Viktor Frankl

In other words, the suffering of the moment completely occupies our attention. But what happens when we suffer pain and distress together? Do our mounting troubles cause us to despair of ever finding happiness?

Not exactly. As already noted in an earlier post, our minds are not overcome by misery because the cares of life temporarily distract us from our unhappiness and because we hope our troubles will soon come to an end.

And this brings us to another providential law of human nature that works in tandem with our understanding of the relativity of all human suffering called The Law of the Priority of Human Suffering:

For human nature is such that grief and pain--even simultaneously suffered--do not add up as a whole in our consciousness, but hide, the lesser behind the greater, according to a definite law of perspective....And this is the reason why so often in free life one hears it said that man is never content. In fact it is not a question of a human incapacity for a state of absolute happiness, but of an ever-insufficient knowledge of the complex nature of the state of unhappiness; so that the single name of the major cause is given to all its causes, which are composite and set out in an order of urgency. And if the most immediate cause of stress comes to an end, you are grievously amazed to see that another one lies behind; and in reality a whole series of others.--Primo Levi

It is only the greatest cause of our suffering that expands to fill our mind and occupy our attention. If we trip while opening an envelope and break our leg, it will not be the paper cut that we also received which we will recall as being the cause of our unhappiness at that time.

However, if as we tripped we flailed our arms and kept our balance, we would be "grievously amazed" that as soon as our sense of relief had passed, our new awareness of the paper cut would preclude any chance of experiencing absolute happiness.