Is Passion the enemy of Reason

It is not a well kept secret that man is enslaved by his passions. We see it every day. Whether it is a man who ogles at his secretary and does not reason: but I am married or a boy, who loves his girlfriend and spends his entire father’s entrusted money on trips. Reason, again, does not prevail but passions rebel against it and the boy is unable to defend ‘My father would consider this treachery’


It seems I have given the impression that Passions are the worst enemy of Reason. Passions are movements of our sensibility. And in themselves they are neither good nor bad. They would be bad if they lead us to act against our reason, against our nature. But, on the contrary, they would be good if they lead us to act correctly.


But I would like to correct or refine myself in my portrayal or representation of Passions and Reason. You will observe a child brings down the house when he wishes for something. A child’s mind is sedated with passion. He is unable to reason his way out of a situation as we do when we deprive ourselves certain pleasures due to the loans we have to pay, due to the debts we have incurred, due to the desires we curb for our children. This is reason, this is prudence, or this is temperance, whatever you call it.


An animal will never find any reason to curb his hunger or his sleep. In our passions, Man shares this Animal nature. This animal nature we possess that departs from the essence of human life, Love, when Man is ready to destroy man for the pursuit of lust, land or wealth. These again are unbridled passion that rebel reason: I ought not harm anyone else for my own good


It is in the context above, I called Passion the enemy of Reason. Passions only rebel, they are bodily desires. They are a disorder of will due to our tainted nature that inclines us to sin. But there are often circumstances where a student is late for the lecture and reason dictates he ought not to be allowed. But any reason that is not eventually pointing to good is only going to end up autocratic. The purpose of reason is to achieve good not so that reason serves itself. Reason that serves itself will eventually serve tyranny. If more good can be done by having compassion on the student, then reason should always serve good: I ought to forgive


There are cases where the teacher may be ingratiated by a particular student who consequently takes liberties of coming late. The teacher may make exceptions but now, it is not so much the virtue of compassion being practiced but emotions that cloud her reason. She cannot look to truth, as her own love for the student has clouded her understanding of discipline, impartiality and justice. It is wrong not only to the student but a wrong against other students and certainly against herself. The teacher’s fondness for the student is not serving the student’s good but only her own ego. He makes her feel important and she reciprocates by making allowances.


We observe this phenomenon everyday and it should not be a surprise to anyone that The Greeks got it right all along.