Man has no automatic code of survival. His particular distinction from all
other living species is the necessity to act in the face of alternatives by
means of volitional choice. He has no automatic knowledge of what is good for
him or evil, what values his life depends on, what course of action it
requires. Are you prattling about an instinct of self-preservation? An
instinct of self-preservation is precisely what man does not possess. An
“instinct” is an unerring and automatic form of knowledge. A desire is not an
instinct. A desire to live does not give you the knowledge required for living.
And even man’s desire to live is not automatic: your secret evil today is that
that is the desire you do not hold. Your fear of death is not a love for life
and will not give you the knowledge needed to keep it.