Schopenhauer’s Will and the Big Bang

I understand that Schopenhauer’s concept of the will is a metaphysical idea, whereas the Big Bang is a scientific event, but I can’t help but wonder if Schopenhauer would have reached the same conclusions if he had the knowledge we have today. Schopenhauer, writing in 1818, had no concept of the expanding universe or the Big Bang. But if he were aware of the Big Bang, its blind, chaotic explosion of energy, and the ongoing expansion of the cosmos, would he have continued to view the will as an metaphysical force driving all of existence, or would he have seen it as more akin to this cosmic event — a blind, unconscious force propelling everything forward without aim or direction?

The Big Bang can be thought of as an explosion of blind, unconscious energy, setting the universe into motion. From the creation of galaxies to the evolution of life, everything seems to unfold without any clear aim or direction — much like Schopenhauer’s will. It's always striving, never satisfied, and constantly pushing things forward. The ongoing expansion of the universe, driven by forces beyond our control, mirrors this same kind of blind, aimless striving. Just like our desires, the universe itself is in motion, and it feels like we’re all caught up in something much larger than ourselves.

In light of comparing Schopenhauer’s concept of the will to the Big Bang, I find Julius Bahnsen’s ideas particularly interesting. Bahnsen expanded on Scopenhauer's ideas by suggesting that the will is actually a collection of individual wills, each striving toward its own goals. This leads to conflict when these wills inevitably collide. So it’s not just the endless striving itself that brings suffering, but the conflict that arises when these wills collide. This is exactly what we see in the world around us.

He also argued that the will, in a sense, cannot be negated like Schopenhauer suggested. For Bahnsen, without the will, the intellect is impotent. It cannot "will" nothingness, for a will-to-nothingness is still a form of willing, and willing non-willing is a contradiction. In this way, Bahnsen’s view is even more pessimistic — there’s no final escape from this endless striving.