Even though from the very beginning of my book I talk about God, that is not because the very beginning is based on God. In fact, if I do rewrite Chapter One, I would want to make it clear that I am not asking, initially for faith in God. I mention Him because I myself believe in Him, but it is not my intention to ask for Faith from my reader, in Chapter One, nor in Chapter Two, nor even in Chapter Three, really, although when we get to Chapter Four it will be a requirement. Chapter One begins in happiness, and desire (Chapter 0). Desire is the desire for happiness, and happiness is the fulfillment of desire. These are definitions, of two complementary principles, that are found throughout the book.
While it is certainly possible to posit desires in God, I did not begin from this. I began from desires in a human being. Now surely, no one can deny that we have desires, and further, that the having of desires is something universal to all of us. Every living being has desires, and it is through the seeking of the satisfaction of desire, that the living beings stay alive, both as individuals and as species. Certain things, we cannot avoid desiring; to wit, food, water, air, and shelter. Other things, are more under our control, though some barely, it seems: sex, money, fame, power, entertainment. Some desire righteousness and justice. But whatever things we desire, we seek in them our happiness, which is the definition of desiring. Now there is something else implied in all of this, and it is free will. Simply put, beyond the desiring of the necessities of life, there are other desires that we can choose to pursue or not to pursue, and it is our individual choices in these things that define us as persons, both to ourselves and to others. And, I submit that, the choice of which among the many possibilities to pursue, which defines us as persons, is under the dominion of the free will of each. The question of what to choose, then, is a question, the answer to which, defines us. This, then, is an important question. Some deny that our wills are free at all, noting that we necessarily pursue what we desire, and do not consciously control the specificity of what, in fact, we desire. Is that true? What do you think?
