Because labor is so central to human existence, throughout history various thinkers have speculated about what the Buddhist eightfold path calls “right livelihood” for those who would seek and practice wisdom. For instance, both the Stoic Musonius Rufus and the Confucian Wu Yubi advocated subsistence farming as a noble line of work. The Taoist sageContinue reading “Ways of Life and Lines of Work”
Category Archives: Thoreau
Best Friend Books
It occurs to me that, just as we have circles of friendship, so also we sometimes have circles of influence and affection in the books we read. Certain books and authors are like best friends that we revisit again and again: think of those who cherish the novels of Jane Austen, the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius, the Confessions ofContinue reading “Best Friend Books”
Socrates and Thoreau
My favorite quote from Henry David Thoreau runs as follows: There are nowadays professors of philosophy, but not philosophers. Yet it is admirable to profess because it was once admirable to live. To be a philosopher is not merely to have subtle thoughts, nor even to found a school, but so to love wisdom asContinue reading “Socrates and Thoreau”
Read the Eternities
One of my favorite Thoreau aphorisms goes like this: “Read not the Times; read the Eternities.” Yet in times of turmoil – war, revolution, depression, pandemic, and the like – it can be difficult to focus on the timeless questions of how to live well because merely living take precedence. On the other hand, there’sContinue reading “Read the Eternities”
Philosophical Professionalism
Robin Hanson recently suggested that we need more generalist thinkers, and that they can be found among the ranks of polymaths, public intellectuals, and professional philosophers. Although I might post again on the topic of generalists vs. specialists, today I’d like to focus instead on the concept of philosophical professionalism. In most fields, a professionalContinue reading “Philosophical Professionalism”
Opinions vs. Truths
In recent posts we’ve looked into holding opinions about fewer topics, holding multiple opinions about the same topic, and changing our opinions about the opinions that other people hold. But what exactly is an opinion? Let’s take a closer look. Pyrrho, a fascinating but shadowy figure reputed to be the founder of ancient Greek skepticism,Continue reading “Opinions vs. Truths”
Philosophy and Money
Some great thinkers – Plato, Aristotle, Gautama Siddhartha, Epicurus, Thoreau, Rand, and many more – have reflected deeply on the place of money and wealth in human life. The reasons are not hard to find: In many ways we are a grasping, materialistic, status-driven species. It’s all too easy to have an unhealthy relationship (asContinue reading “Philosophy and Money”
The Power of Reflection
In a journal entry composed a few years ago on philosophy as a way of life, I observed: What Thoreau, the Stoics, and the Vedics essentially advocate is to be present with complete attention by, where needed, interposing the judgment of your mind between desire and deed, between impulse and action. Unfortunately, no one everContinue reading “The Power of Reflection”
Peter Saint-Andre, Philosopher-Coach 