Do any of you guys have interest in philosophy?

[Bible_Belt]

You're a philospher?

Why yes, I think very deeply.

 

[Kotaix]

Alan Watts is the man, he has a way of explaining concepts that make it easy to understand, and most of his content is on audio which makes it perfect for consumption while driving or working out.

A lot of different philosophical movements have all come to the same conclusion: You need to only focus on what you can control, and going beyond that is what causes suffering. This is the message of bhuddism, taoism and stoicism, and it's the cornerstone of all religions before they get into the weeds: Trust in God, or the universe, or fate, and you will find peace. Everything else in religion is more or less superfluous. I think this is the reason that religions have persisted throughout human history. I truly believe that philosophy/religion are inescapable parts of the human psyche. Modern people have ignored it to their own detriment, and to the detriment of society in general.

If you haven't read Nietzsche then you really have to. His writings are very much Red Pill, which is probably why he's been slandered so much. The level of prescience and depth in his writings is amazing, but he's not easy to read. He famously said that he says more in one sentence than other authors say in a paragraph, and it's true.

I've tried reading Simulacra and Simulation and some of the other post-modernists, but it's a wankfest of confusion. You should also read Marx just to understand why he's wrong.

Another great book that will make you think is Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind by Shunryu Suzuki, it's one of the few books that i re-read back to back.

 

[Epicenter]

Keep it coming guys.

The simplified philosophy is something everybody does. Alcoholics who meet for their beer do it in some form too.

I think to do it little bit systematically is what gives the extra power. Many times you meet with friends and the conversation is not satisfying.

Intellectual curiousity and philosophy should be the standard imo. When you are at the bottom of maslow's pyramid of needs it's understandable that it is not a priority. I still think it should be done on the side. Later when you are on a higher level you have a hobby that gives meaning to your life.

You will have the skill to talk with intellectual people. Even if you can't find them you can do it on the internet. The most important part is imo that

you can communicate with yourself.

It's important to keep your structural identity. Otherwise your identitiy will be fragil.

 

[Epicenter]

Alan Watts is the man, he has a way of explaining concepts that make it easy to understand, and most of his content is on audio which makes it perfect for consumption while driving or working out.

A lot of different philosophical movements have all come to the same conclusion: You need to only focus on what you can control, and going beyond that is what causes suffering. This is the message of bhuddism, taoism and stoicism, and it's the cornerstone of all religions before they get into the weeds: Trust in God, or the universe, or fate, and you will find peace. Everything else in religion is more or less superfluous. I think this is the reason that religions have persisted throughout human history. I truly believe that philosophy/religion are inescapable parts of the human psyche. Modern people have ignored it to their own detriment, and to the detriment of society in general.

If you haven't read Nietzsche then you really have to. His writings are very much Red Pill, which is probably why he's been slandered so much. The level of prescience and depth in his writings is amazing, but he's not easy to read. He famously said that he says more in one sentence than other authors say in a paragraph, and it's true.

I've tried reading Simulacra and Simulation and some of the other post-modernists, but it's a wankfest of confusion. You should also read Marx just to understand why he's wrong.

Another great book that will make you think is Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind by Shunryu Suzuki, it's one of the few books that i re-read back to back.

You can not easily define what you can control. That is complicated to find out or often impossible or only with a lot of experimentation. Additionally things are flowing and changing constantly. You are always in some uncertainty. That is the deal in life.

 

[Epicenter]

I think there is light in all good teachings. Even Jesus certainly sounded Buddhist to the Jews.
I married a Buddhist woman and i dont mind her at all.
This one time she smacked my arm when i went to take picture of a statue. Lol
It was funny because my western reaction was. "Dude its a fcking statue, its made of stone"

Interesting thing is Buddha would agree with you against your wife.

What I meant is there is some hierarchie to the topic.

To say there is light in good teachings sounds tautologic to me. It sounds
like in all good teaching there is good teaching. That doesn't give much insight imho.

 

[Epicenter]

Science is racist:

 

[Epicenter]

Thinking outside the box is very important in philosophy. A different angle can make all the difference.

Even with pick up one needs new ideas.

 

[PeasantPlayer]

Can you write something about them?

Zhuangzi Quotes (Author of The Book of Chuang Tzu)

236 quotes from Zhuangzi: 'Once upon a time, I dreamt I was a butterfly, fluttering hither and thither, to all intents and purposes a butterfly. I was conscious only of my happiness as a butterfly, unaware that I was myself. Soon I awaked, and there I was, veritably myself again. Now I do not...

www.goodreads.com

 

[PeasantPlayer]

Can you write something about them?

Miyamoto Musashi Quotes (Author of A Book of Five Rings)

286 quotes from Miyamoto Musashi: '1. Accept everything just the way it is. 2. Do not seek pleasure for its own sake. 3. Do not, under any circumstances, depend on a partial feeling. 4. Think lightly of yourself and deeply of the world. 5. Be detached from desire your whole life long. 6. Do not...

www.goodreads.com

 

[FlexpertHamilton]

Yes, I find philosophy (especially philosophy on how to live and the human condition in general) to be extremely important and interesting.
I am more or less an atheist and after abandoning religion at a young age, I found it very hard to find meaning and purpose in life. Many people are in a similar position and as such they adopt a hedonistic lifestyle because they think the only point of life is to maximize pleasure. Or on the flip side you get people with the "puritan work ethic" sort of value system where they work tirelessly in pursuit of external goals such as career promotions, material possessions, etc only to find that after reaching these goals, their lives are just as pointless and meaningless as always.

So, considering that our modern western culture is so absymal and provides a terrible roadmap for how to live your life, I had to turn to philosophy to help me create some sort of framework.

The first philosophy I got into was eastern philosophy, which was piqued by listening to talks by Alan Watts. I expanded this knowledge further from various other sources including Sam Harris, Joseph Goldstein, Thomas Metzinger, Robert Wright, and others, and now it is more or less internalized in me. That said, I still have much to learn since I do not have anywhere near 10,000 hrs of meditation experience, but I intend to stick with it for the rest of my life.

Lately, I have started learning about stoicism which has many parallels with eastern philosophy (specifically some parts Buddhism), and I'm finding it to be very fascinating and useful as well, although I don't know enough to say much about it yet.

Once I can understand and internalize stoicism I want to learn about existentialism next. My only real introduction to it was in the form of the novel Crime and Punishment, but I got the sense it's one of the more sophisticated and complex philosophies out there, so I suspect it will probably take a long time to really understand it.

I don't think philosophy is something you can ingest in bite sized little pieces and expect to change your life. I think it is a discipline in the traditional sense and takes work to internalize it and make it a daily part of your life. But without incorporating philosophy and the scientific method into your life, your mind will be filled with the garbage our modern culture produces in the form of tv shows, marketing/corporate propaganda, social media, news sites, etc.

 

[PeasantPlayer]

I love philosophy... I am most interested in philosophical cosmology, since I find it highly unlikely we will be able to create a unified theory using only the scientific method.... philosophic thinking always precedes scientific achievement. Without philosophy we would all still be living in mud hunts tossing rocks at the Moon, huddled and praying the Sun comes back up, blaming everything on God or gods.... and we should not question anything.

I agree with this 1000 percent. I'm responsible for my choices. No Gods above me no people below me

 

[Epicenter]

What do women want? What do feminists want? What do men want?

I remember reading this office guy who delegated all his work to india. The 8 hours in his office he spent with cat videos.

I can't blame him. Cats and dogs in sisterhood or brotherhood isn't it that what we want in the world as end goel?

 

[Epicenter]

Democracy. I like this one

 

[Spaz]

Democracy. I like this one

View attachment 4316

That depends on the type of democracy, in some places minorities are appointed by law into their parliamentary system to give them voice.

However, there's no such thing as a perfect operating system, if it works 80%, it's already great.

 

[lamath]

Miyamoto Musashi Quotes (Author of A Book of Five Rings)

286 quotes from Miyamoto Musashi: '1. Accept everything just the way it is. 2. Do not seek pleasure for its own sake. 3. Do not, under any circumstances, depend on a partial feeling. 4. Think lightly of yourself and deeply of the world. 5. Be detached from desire your whole life long. 6. Do not...

www.goodreads.com

Reading the book of 5 ring atm.
Some very good stuff in there.

 

[Seductions_Mad_Scientist]

I personally think philosophy is underneath literally every subject. Perhaps I'm stretching the definition of philosophy a bit but if you do that thing kids sometimes do where you repeatedly ask 'why?' it'll get pretty abstract and pretty philosophical really quickly.

Developing a diverse philosophical toolkit is always a good thing to do.

 

[lamath]

I personally think philosophy is underneath literally every subject. Perhaps I'm stretching the definition of philosophy a bit but if you do that thing kids sometimes do where you repeatedly ask 'why?' it'll get pretty abstract and pretty philosophical really quickly.

Developing a diverse philosophical toolkit is always a good thing to do.

The why philosophy to me is worthless, and i dont think it bring anything very useful.

Philosophy is useful for me because it teach wisdom, how to live my life, it teach the right mindset to see the world.
If you look deep enough you will notice that most school of philosophy are quite similar that tell you something about the timeless wisdom that can be learned

 

[Epicenter]

The why philosophy to me is worthless, and i dont think it bring anything very useful.

Philosophy is useful for me because it teach wisdom, how to live my life, it teach the right mindset to see the world.
If you look deep enough you will notice that most school of philosophy are quite similar that tell you something about the timeless wisdom that can be learned

I don't think that the schools are similar. I am an Epicurean. It's quite different from the others.

There are state philosophies and private philosophies. The state philosophers are mostly lying.

Others like Schopenhauer and Epikur are more honest.

That is why you should ask the "why" question otherwise you get tricked easily.

 

[lamath]

I don't think that the schools are similar. I am an Epicurean. It's quite different from the others.

There are state philosophies and private philosophies. The state philosophers are mostly lying.

Others like Schopenhauer and Epikur are more honest.

That is why you should ask the "why" question otherwise you get tricked easily.

Epicureans philosophy seems interesting, but idk much about it except the very basic descriotion. Would be interested in the how because at first view it seems to be a bit too hedonistic.

Im no expert but i do read alot. Regading stoitism i only read Aurelius so far. Got Senaca shortness of life a few week back and will surely read Epikur afterward.
Also interested in learning more about Kant, i just know the basic i got in one sociology class in colleges

Imo
There is similarities, the focus what you can control and your reaction to things is one.
Look at some Aurelius quote , Buddhist and even Nietzsche there is similar thinking.
Same with the story of Epikur and his broken arm, we have seen some very similar things by Buddist monk.

 

[Epicenter]

Epicureans philosophy seems interesting, but idk much about it except the very basic descriotion. Would be interested in the how because at first view it seems to be a bit too hedonistic.

Im no expert but i do read alot. Regading stoitism i only read Aurelius so far. Got Senaca shortness of life a few week back and will surely read Epikur afterward.
Also interested in learning more about Kant, i just know the basic i got in one sociology class in colleges

Imo
There is similarities, the focus what you can control and your reaction to things is one.
Look at some Aurelius quote , Buddhist and even Nietzsche there is similar thinking.
Same with the story of Epikur and his broken arm, we have seen some very similar things by Buddist monk.

I would start with Epikur. The reason why hedonism is connected to Epikur is for two reasons. The first is propaganda almost from all religions and state philosophers because they don't want people to be independent and free.

The second reason is many people are to weak. Epikur believes in the pleasure and pain principle but he believes that they must be tamed as well.

Epikur's life principles are simple and down to earth.

1, Live hidden (in your garden with friends or something like that). Away from politics.
2. Be minimalistic and frugal. Don't chase status, sex, don't get greedy.
3. Channel your couriosity, the notion to conquer, the notion expand,
wanting to get away form bordeom into INTELLECTUAL COURIOCITY

If you have these as a basis you will learn about other philosophers without
getting too much negatively impacted, distracted, irritated, annoyed, hypnotized by them.