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Philosophy, or love of wisdom, is not something abstract. It’s about how to understand life better and therefore how to live better, individually and collectively.
We all have something deep within ourselves, but sometimes we’re afraid to look for it. It’s like diving within yourself to look for the inner gold. You need courage to dive into the water, because there are many fears: the fear of drowning, of strong currents, of dangerous fish, and so on.
It seems to me that the purpose of human life is to grow. When I look back at the moments or the phases through which I have grown, I see them as times that tested me to transcend what I felt were my limitations; be it starting my own business venture with a bagful of doubts about my capabilities, or be it a moment of extreme anger in which I consciously decided not to identify with the anger. These phases had a common factor that we call ‘challenges’. I feel that the universe has it made it so by design!
Human Beings have a natural need to improve and grow. Certain moments in our lives are decisive where we feel we made a breakthrough and in hindsight we may recognize the inspiration and experiences that guided us in those moments. Often we find that in such moments we are more goal-oriented and focussed, thereby able to make accurate decisions and push our boundaries
This is a write-up based on an event celebrating International Mother Earth Day held at New Acropolis, Colaba, Mumbai.
For centuries art has been a natural means to express one’s inner journey – be it as a community or as an individual search. So has it been for Olivia Fraser, who has used her art to uplift, to produce wonder and beauty, and to find the ‘inner essence’ of things.
Olivia Fraser moved to India in 1989. Initially she was a travel painter before apprenticing with miniature and Pichwai artists from Jaipur, where she learnt their rich, rigorous and intricate tradition. The influence of Nathdwara Pichwai painting and early 19th century Jodhpuri painting,
The word “unify” comes from the Latin unus and facere, “to make one”, that is, to bring together various different parts that are coherent with another, and combine them in such a way that we can achieve a harmonious and homogeneous unity. It is an act of coming closer together, of connection, which, if it did not exist, would mean that each of the parts or beings would follow different paths – something which is not wrong in itself – but it would cause them to be divided, disunited and opposed to one another. Without the gesture of unification, we would have to live in perpetual chaos, in which it would be very difficult to find meaning in existence and its changing circumstances.
The word Samurai originally meant ‘those who serve’, although individuals of this elite warrior class in medieval Japan were also referred to as Bushi, or warrior. And Bushido was the code of morality which the Samurai were meant to follow, not just in battle, but also in day-to-day activity. Speaking of this code in his book Bushido: The Soul of Japan, which is widely considered to be an authority on the subject, Nitobe says that it was not written down anywhere, but had organically formed over centuries.
TOne of the platforms through which this unique concept of education was disseminated was through the ancient Indian Gurukul tradition. The term Gurukul comes from Guru, meaning teacher and kul, meaning extended family or home.
How would you define art? Usually, it is described as a form which is pleasing to the eyes. We call this form ‘beautiful’. Is beauty then related only to the sense of sight, motivated by the viewer’s feeling at the moment of viewing? Or is there such a thing as absolute Beauty, which is beyond subjective feelings of that moment, grasped by an inner sight, which remains beautiful, whether the viewer appreciates it or not; like a beautiful sunrise, or a lotus flower. Many religions speak of such Beauty as an eternal value, an archetype, one among many expressions of the principles of an objective unchanging reality, unbound by space and time, beyond the ever-changing subjective reality. If such absolute beauty exists, it becomes an aspect of reality, which unites despite differences in moods, fashion, culture, nationality, skin color, or gender.
There are many in the world today who are yearning for change. They want to see the world change, to become capable of addressing the current burning issues; capable not only of spotting the problems, but also to offer valid solutions and, above all, to materialize them.
It really doesn’t take much to list the main issues the world at large is facing today, and those which we may face very shortly. There might be even greater problems which are as yet not so visible, but might be the root for what is more easily seen. Among them we may suggest ignorance and materialism for example.
As we begin to step out after almost two years of being largely confined to our homes, the occasion of World Philosophy Day today offers an opportunity to reflect on the challenges we faced, and the value and need of philosophy in these unprecedented times.
The word Philosophy comes from the Greek words philo (love) and Sophos (wisdom). To be a philosopher, therefore, is to yearn for wisdom, to always aspire to follow truth.
History is an extraordinary showcase where different ideas have appeared and given rise to many different ways of life, like coloured crystals whose hues vary according to the light. Each age has its parameters, and human beings, on their endless path of searching, have been ruled by those models, which they have tried to follow and obey more than they would follow an idea from any other source. What is commonly accepted becomes like a law and, as time passes, some of the ideas that have been accepted become even more powerful than laws themselves.
Philosophy means “love of wisdom or knowledge”. It is a route illuminated by the sun of truth. Anything which does not respond to this essential characteristic is not philosophy, but mere speculation and alternative repetitions of what others have said, taking as much advantage of the old teachings as a spoon takes nourishment from and enjoys the soup in which it is dipped.
In the developed world, the standards of literacy, numeracy, general knowledge and behaviour are falling. Millions of young people have also become disaffected from school and, despite the fact that previous generations have fought hard to make what was once a privilege of the rich accessible to all, do not see much point in formal education. In the U.K. for example, the figures of truanting have been going up for years and the problem has become so bad that the government is paying the most disaffected students in order to keep them in school and away from the streets.
The Movie The Matrix, released in 1999, and its two sequels (Reloaded and Revolutions), released in 2003, have together been an international phenomena. The first movie in particular, was known as a modern version of Plato’s Myth of the Cave, and the two subsequent parts are of the same universe – the real world and the cave – although further away from Plato’s text. When The Matrix Revolutions was released, it seemed that the dice were rolled. A cycle was complete, and the sun was rising on a world where the cards had been dealt and the rules had apparently changed.