Elysian: Belonging to Heaven - Greek

Thoughts about the possibility of a better world

The word Elysian came into my mind after I came across

Elle Griffin

’s newsletter,

The Elysian

which I really enjoy reading. I jotted the word in my little notebook with the thought that I might write about it one day, and I felt I would really enjoy doing so.

Elysian is a special word. It has a beautiful phonetic sound. It promises good and hopeful things, and maybe the possibility of a good future. Griffin's writing is also evoking an actionably hopeful future and telling about its philosophy to open new perspectives in the reader’s mind. Griffin writes about utopias—the ideal world—and something we all desperately need today: the possibility of a better continent.

The essence of a beautiful world

We are at a very strange moment in world history. In the last century, humanity has been through two world wars, a Cold War, and now I fear we are on the verge of a third. In such a period, I think it is more important and essential than ever to think about a better world. Therefore, thinking about utopias and reading them is a truly worthwhile task.

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The first time I heard about Thomas More's Utopia, published in 1615 and describing an ideal world, was in my high school philosophy classes. I remember feeling grateful that someone had sat down and thought about an ideal world since it seemed a thoughtful behavior. What was interesting was that while such a picture was painted, the world we live in was nothing like the one described in the book.

Recently, I read a summary of the book, if not the whole book, as a reminder. Utopia comes from Greek and means "the country that is not existing". More describes in detail everything that a country should have: justice, governance, housing, and family structure. People living in Utopia live equally, they produce and consume together. This is a country where there is no money; everyone brings what they produce to the markets, and whoever needs it gets what they need. Everyone can believe in whatever religion they want, and others respect that. Everyone works six hours a day, and the rest of the time has to be spent on a meaningful hobby.

Of course, there are some things that sound horrible, such as families with more than a certain number of children having to give their babies to those without children. Or, freedoms are severely restricted in some areas. For example, women cannot get married before the age of 18 and men before the age of 21. Still, the idea of people being truly equal, having the most basic human needs, not going hungry, and having the right to live a dignified life sounds very good.

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If you ask me, an ideal order is one in which equality and justice are accompanied by freedom. Freedom is a trait that I, as well as all human beings, carry in our genes and that we cannot give up, but we need to be able to live in a system where no matter what happens to us in life, we will not starve, and we will have access to basic needs such as health care and good education.

It feels good to imagine an ideal life, even for a short time, but it is such a possibility that it seems as far away as the horizon, on the edge of impossibility.

In the news programs, I often see people being killed in concerts, hospitals being bombed, children dying non-stop, and even the death of children has no effect on governments. Of course, and fortunately, there are people who are trying to keep the hope for peace alive despite everything, there is a part of society that wants solutions where people don't die anymore. But the governments don't want that, they don't care peace or the lives of people; that's the problem.

The people of countries and the governments of countries are quite different; governments don't even listen to their own people, and people's opinions are often a pointless and hopeless effort, like trying to talk to a deaf person. On social media, the thoughts of peaceful people are like a puny candle that burns by itself and goes out just as quickly.

Since there is no other means of expression, we can express on social media the horror we feel, our cries for help, and all our efforts to make the rulers open their eyes to the good. But there, too, like a discharged battery, we drain our emotions as much as we can, and then we are forced to go our own way with our heads bowed in despair, like a small and helpless child who has lost a toy.

Elysian means heavenly. It is a word that has been used in many places since ancient Greece, from Homer's story to modern literature. Elysium means afterlife, and Elysian means belonging to Elysium.

I can't stand without asking: Where is this Elysium, and where are the Elysian people? Why do they never appear to us? Why can't we reach them?

Will the myth of a better world ever become more than a dream we cherish with hope? Or does the bitter fact that there has never been a peaceful period in the history of the world make it a futile and absurd endeavor to dream of peace for the future?

More importantly, how can we live without hoping for a better world?

Notes & Reads:

Today, I want to recommend an article, I'm studying all the utopian novels this year, about the utopian novels and books which is written by Elle Griffin.

Wish you, in fact for all of us, a peaceful weekend and week ahead.

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Thank you for taking the time to accompany me in the story of a new word. Every word of the world’s languages is also ours, belonging to humanity while giving us an essence of the culture in which it was rooted.

We are made of stories—that is, of words.