“Custom is our nature. What are our natural principles but principles of custom?”
- June 19, 1623 – August 19, 1662
- French
- Mathematician, Physicist, Inventor, Philosopher, Theologian
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Quote
“Custom is our nature. What are our natural principles but principles of custom?”
Explanation
Pascal challenges the idea that our beliefs and behaviors are rooted in unchanging, inherent truths, arguing instead that much of what we call “natural” is actually shaped by habit and social conditioning. What we take as instinctive or universally true—our morals, judgments, even our sense of right and wrong—are often the result of repeated exposure and cultural norms. Over time, custom feels like nature, blurring the line between what is truly innate and what has merely been ingrained.
In Pensées, Pascal frequently explores the fragility of human certainty and the ways in which education, geography, and tradition influence belief. He notes that what is considered “just” in one country may be unjust in another, yet each claims its principles as natural. This relativism isn’t an endorsement of moral chaos, but rather a call for humility: our convictions may be less objective than we assume, and we must be wary of mistaking familiarity for truth.
In the modern world, Pascal’s insight continues to resonate. Cultural bias, inherited ideologies, and social habits often masquerade as universal truths, influencing everything from politics to ethics to personal identity. His quote invites us to critically examine our assumptions, to ask whether what we believe is truly grounded in reason and conscience—or simply in custom. Only by recognizing the power of habit can we begin to seek what is truly just and true.
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