It is not pursued in order that the day may yield some amusement before it is spent, or that our leisure may be relieved of a tedium that irks us.
It molds and constructs the soul; it orders our life, guides our conduct, shows us what we should do and what we should leave undone; it sits at the helm and directs our course as we waver amid uncertainties.
Without it, no one can live fearlessly or in peace of mind. Countless things that happen every hour call for advice; and such advice is to be sought in philosophy.
It is philosophy, rightly understood, that will bring me peace. No, not the philosophy of the professionals, but the philosophy that is markedly amateur, that has gown calluses and has grime under the fingernails. It isn’t about making a living, but just about the living.
“Business” should be a wholesome word, and yet it is twisted into a nasty word. Instead of being about making something of benefit, it turns into making something for profit. It is no different in the business of philosophy. Words are made to manipulate, not to inform. Ideas are made to stroke the ego, not to serve the truth.
After all the preening and the posturing, we lose a sense of what is real.
“Now, young man, that is very naïve of you! Who’s to say what is real and what isn’t?”
There is the very problem, and creeping in under the radar is the practice of the self-appointed guardians telling us, by their highly official credentials, that they are supposed to educate us on what is real. They are the “experts”, and they are certain they know what is best for us.
And yet a man can only learn what is best for himself on his own authority, however much he can be inspired by others. I fear I am becoming some sort of philosophical anarchist, though I do sometimes wonder if Stoicism and anarchism, or at least libertarianism, are more closely related than we would like to admit.
That is a question for another day. For today, I ask myself why I follow philosophy, the love of wisdom, and why I consider it to be more than a hobby or a diversion. I do not believe that my thinking should be reserved for a stuffy conference or a fancy dinner party. Philosophy is not an escape from reality—it is wholeheartedly engaging in reality.
Don’t make it too complex. What matters the most? Living a good life. What is a good life? Now that is where philosophy is required. You can’t avoid it at all, as it is a necessity for happiness.
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