Take the Road to Wisdom to Find a better Life

Wisdom, wisdom and more wisdom!  How many more times must I spell out this simple but obscure six letter word that hides a beneficent gift to humankind.

The reason for encouraging you to attain this rare commodity, is because of the seemingly sad state of today’s superficial and ignorant world.

Whilst pursuing the things that we think will make us happy, paradoxically, they eventually serve to make us more miserable as we continue down the path of  self-destruction.

Why not get off this ignorant path of perdition, my friend, and instead discover for yourself a pathless trail towards self-knowledge, self-improvement and limitless wisdom.

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The Battle between Reason and Passion

The Rafael painting (on the left) of Greek philosophers Plato (pointing up towards the sky) and his pupil, Aristotle (palm facing down towards the ground) seemingly depicts them debating what should govern Man’s affairs: either Plato’s heavenly passion of the Gods, or Aristotle’s earthly reason of science.

This battle of wise minds serves as an example that begins this post with an apparent conflict between reason and passion, as I ask the question to myself as to which of the two should be used towards benefiting us personally and society as a whole?

Philosophy, and Stoicism in particular, can be accused of being, at most part, emotionally cold and distant because of it’s aim for us to invoke the use of reason to override all human emotions.  The elements of passion and reason have been opposing forces ever since the very beginnings of philosophy.

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Can one be happy and anxiety free in a world filled with nothing but social pressures, stress and troubles?  Well Swiss writer, Alain de Botton thinks we can, with some practical wisdom in the following talk as he discusses the pressures and anxieties within the workplace as well as in our lives in general.

To be honest with you, I’d much rather stay home and become a full-time Football Coach to baby J who is becoming ever more ambitious by the day – but alas, I got to pay the bills!

Alain does a good job in giving me some much needed consolation through the use of philosophy despite me needing to work within a environment with human beings hell bent on backstabbing and ass kissing just to get to the top.  Enjoy and learn from Mr. de Botton…

“Alain de Botton examines our ideas of success and failure — and questions the assumptions underlying these two judgments. Is success always earned? Is failure? He makes an eloquent, witty case to move beyond snobbery to find true pleasure in our work.”

~ TedTalks

I came across an interesting quote on the net today that provoked me to share it with the rest of you:

“… the great materialistic progress which we have venerated for so long is on the verge of bankruptcy. We can no longer believe that we are born into this world to accumulate wealth and abandon ourselves to mortal pleasures. We see the dangers and realize that we have been exploited for centuries. We were told the twentieth century was the most progressive that the world has ever known, but unfortunately the progression was in the direction of self-destruction.

To avoid a future of war, crime, and bankruptcy, the individual must begin to plan his own destiny, and the best source for the necessary information comes down to us through the writings of the ancients. The greatest knowledge of all time should be available … in a book that would be a monument, not merely a coffin.”

~ Manly P. Hall in the preface to the diamond jubilee edition of The Secret Teachings of All Ages

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