Sincerely apologize if this is the wrong place for such a question(/rant).
The context of the question relates to “Self” and maybe about “Power” in general.
I’m assuming the following maxims hold true:
- Unexamined life not worth living…
- Philosophy is lived. Choices primarily determine your philosophy
Please to correct my assumptions or reasoning. Can elaborate on above if needed.
I tend to myself in circles regarding the importance of philosophizing and examining my life. Maybe it’s a symptom of some mental issue… With every new idea I learn, I now have to consider it and balance it with all I’ve learnt in the past. Each choice becomes a battle of value systems and ideas and perspectives and constraints. It’s tiring to the point where I try not to think and just “do”.
But then that path leads me to an autopilot where my choices fall to my default “human” state overridden by the philosophy modules installed at the time. Then it devolves into the unexamined life. Or then life throws a curveball. I have to snap out of it and need to reassess everything going into the philosophizing state above.
Philosophy feels like an indulgence.
I’m guessing this pendulum is not new. On a global scale, Academia are cutting philosophy department budgets as it’s easier to divert money to “actionable” disciplines. No point in “wasting” time in thinking about thinking about doing things. Who needs a meta-compass if we need to walk the distance anyway (even though it helps a tremendous deal if the compass is in the right hands (which hold the power)).
I know I’ve reduced the argument to 2 buckets. I’m currently trying to consume Zen literature trying to get rid of my buckets and/or/xor trying to bring harmony of various buckets in my life… (https://tinyurl.com/verse20)
My question is: how do you manage all this philosophizing in your life? How useful is this indulgence?
Happy to accept any books/articles on this. Thank you.
Empty is that philosopher’s argument by which no human suffering is therapeutically treated. For just as there is no use in a medical art that does not cast out the sicknesses of bodies, so too there is no use in philosophy, unless it casts out the suffering of the soul.
— Epicurus
I’m not a huge fan of Heidegger but I do think he was a genius and a juggernaut in philosophy, unavoidable. He argued human being, or Dasein more accurately, swings between more authentic, self-owned living and inauthentic, crowd-oriented living which he referred to as “fallenness” but despite the connotation it is not necessarily a negative. It is part of our condition and is natural, for lack of a better word. Meaning, don’t be too hard on yourself for not living a perfectly philosophical life.
Be a philosopher; but, amidst all your philosophy, be still a man.
— David Hume
You’ve dug my hole deeper but have also given me a shovel to help me dig out. The shovel being “don’t be too hard on yourself” and that succinct Hume quote. I would also have accepted a ladder!
There is effort required in thinking and examining. I, being imperfect and sadly not a juggernaut, waste so much energy trying to cast out the human suffering in my soul. So much energy… until, as I have mentioned, I give up and then just try go with the flow (for better and worse).
For a particular problem (including existential woes), I research and read and consume until I’m left with labels, different perspectives and much more counter perspectives. So many fancy words but little nourishment unless I consume a lot and spend equal time discarding notions. It can’t just be me.
Maybe I’ll narrow my question. Do you read philosophy to inform all aspects of your life? Or have you let the program run in the background? As you mentioned Heidegger… does your pendulum swing freely and if so, how fast? (Maybe that’s what the phrase “How’s it hanging?” refers to… huh.)
Philosophy has changed my life.
I studied philosophy in university but also read it vociferously before and after university. It informs my perspective on everything. Lately I’ve gone a few years without reading too much philosophy, which is something that has not happened since I first began reading it in high school which happened half a lifetime ago for me but I had some things happen and I didn’t have the same energy or attunement for it. I think life comes in flows or rhythms so I try not to worry about it as I used to. I try to get my nourishment from films I can analyze philosophically and it also helps me that I am religious and gain consolation from that—although not in the way most are, and I don’t attend any sort of church or anything. I am also more inclined towards my social life, but my social life is filled with people who are very similarly philosophically inclined. Even if they don’t read it or know it, they live it, and being around people like that satisfies me. I will go back to philosophy when the time is right, or rather philosophy will come back to me.
Levinas thought it was not the role of philosophy to provide consolation for the soul, and reserved that for religion. Sometimes religion leads us to philosophy and sometimes philosophy leads us to religion. I am fortunate enough to have experienced both in that order.
You may feel lost right now but it’s more likely, from what I see in your writings, that you are already on your path but you just don’t see it yet. We all take different paths and some are more difficult than others but you have the strength to walk it, or to find another if this path is leading you away from yourself. But the suffering of the soul does not necessarily mean you are on the wrong path, it may very well mean you are on the right path. And you are laying good groundwork for yourself but don’t forget that we also are material beings and it is important to live our existence with others in a way that is fulfilling for ourselves and others. We cannot just think about it, it is just important for us to decide how to do it and then most importantly to do it.
Thank you for sharing. I love the “philosophy will come back to me” line.
Forgive my analogies… it’s almost as if you’re using “Philosophy” as a map. Your initial studies helped you draw it up and kinda internalize it. Now you know roughly know where you are going and your community also help you not get lost. If you do lose way, you’ll peek at the map, tweak it as per your surroundings and keep walking. It feels like you’ve found a nice ratio and I pray you find your footing in each step.
My initial analogy of equating philosophy to a compass was a little lacking. It’s more relatable to Faith… Now I’m of the opinion I haven’t read enough!
I’m my case, I’m kinda sure what path I’m on but I end up constantly peeking/tweaking at my map and then end up getting lost as I’m not looking up. It seems a balance is possible but need to go over that initial hurdle of drawing the map first. And as you mentioned, it’s important to keep walking the uphill walk, even if simply on faith.
I am not “a philosopher”, but really we all are. If you never wonder about the nature of your own existence, are you even fully conscious? If you start asking about existence, then you will also have at least passing interest in what some wise predecessors may have considered. If your philosophical musings pertain to more practical and mundane matters like ethics and sociology, the same applies. As a member of society, I am inevitable oriented to be aware of “normative” perspectives - what is right-and-wrong, how to behave, etc. - but these norms have a lot of breadth; what path is “right for me”? Maybe the paths available inform your philosophy, but I think we all at least imagine that our philosophy should and sometimes DOES govern the paths we choose. If you have not thought about your philosophy, choosing paths is nothing but random motion.
I hear what you’re saying. There’s a basic level of philosophizing needed to understand your place in the world and to know some guiding principles. You need a minimal level of awareness to get through in life.
Although I would argue you can live your life with lots of meaning and joy even if you never read a philosophy text or had “deep” thoughts. You’re never making truly random choices as they are limited within a broader context and by your biology. As you said, there are normative behaviors which you tend to pick up and follow instinctually (learnt formally and informally). Deciding the “right path” for oneself can be a coin toss if you’re able to understand the path of your life, with minimal awareness, and make peace with the outcome. Paradox of choice exists and anxiety of making the “right” decision has plagued me all my life.
It’s like the saying: Before enlightenment, chop wood and carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood and carry water.
I appreciate your response though. It has made me realize that I’m merely annoyed about the “curse of consciousness”. We should all be happy little lemmings plunging into doom together.
Maybe I should read more history than philosophy. Maybe that’s my utilitarian side talking.
when I was young, I read a bunch of “Eastern” philosophy and thought mysticism was really cool. I guess I still do, but it also feel like a little bit of a copout to say the Tao which can be explained is not the true Tao. I mean, come on! We are verbal creatures and we ought to be able to verbalize our understandings of things. We ought to be able to identify our motivations and desires and act on our principles.
In my later years, I have come to be a “hard determinist” based on my understanding of modern physics. The past and the future exist deterministically - they are immutable. And yet, we are agents of causality - the eternal immutable future that exists does so because of what we choose to do in each moment. So that is kind of a return to some eastern mystical shit I think. Sort of a Zen koan for the 21st century if you like: how can the future already exist when we are causing it by our choices in the present? Some say it is because we are only imagining we have free will and our actions are not really free; but we all know that we FEEL free to choose - so let’s take it as axiomatic that we are free; then can hard determinism be the case? It is like the sound of one hand clapping . . .
My impressions of the Tao after making 6ish courses on chewing the Tao Te Ching have been simply: Stop thinking. Become a simpleton. Go with the flow and do as little as possible, but in the right moments. If you do too much, you’ll break stuff and cut yourself. Oh and be kind and patient too.
Which is AN answer to this “hard determinism” conundrum. I feel a similar sense of being an ‘agent’ of causality, ruled by a certain lack of free will… However, I have felt extremely strong feelings of free will where I was able to nudge myself in two domains. Maybe you’ll relate:
- Relationships: Choosing to stay antisocial or ‘making an effort’ with someones really feels like a conscious decision
- Mild environmental tweaks: E.g. Installing/Uninstalling an app such as an effective alarm app or deleting an addictive game.
Again I know these had a lot of casual pushes but it’s the sense of control which feels good. Then you get to watch the causality unfold and influence your life. Ikiru in this thread made a good point about the community and the faith element of this journey. Which sounds like your claim of ‘let’s take it as axiomatic’, as you are having faith in free will… At some point, you do choose who your spend time with and then allow them to influence you. You can decide for better or worse but as you said, the sense of choice is there.
Sidebar: I have always been able to clap with one hand? Imagine treating my entire hand as a castanet, with your fingers hitting against your base of palm, resulting in a weak clap. That minor sense of knowledge had always hindered me in understanding the full weight of that koan. Ah well…
But to answer my own question of the user of philosophy, thanks to mulling over both of your ideas is: Philosophy increases your awareness of the casual factors in your life. Then it’s possible to nudge a little better, i.e. a little more ‘upstream’ in the flowing current of life. But it’s important to pay attention to your surroundings and act in that briefest moment where you do feel you have a choice.
Thank you again for engaging. “My” conclusion has probably been said much more eloquently by some philosopher 5 trillion years ago but it’s nice to get a proof by induction sometimes.
