Wednesday, August 09, 2006
book i'm gonna read nextThe BIG QuestionsHow Philosophy Can Change Your LifeBy the author of Plato, Not Prozac! which I have read after stumbling across it on VJ's GP site... =PpPlato deals with Philosophical Counselling,
which made a lot of sense to me.
Because it's more like the things I'd do, advocate.
Laying bare situations for people, exploring options and analysing emotions, evaluating choices, etc. with them. But letting them do the thinking and deciding themselves. Throw light, but people'll have to find the way that suits them best themselves, that kind of thing, you know?
Eight Ways Philosophy Can Change Your LifeHealingVain is the word of a philosopher who does not heal any suffering of man. For just as there is no profit in medicine if it does not expel the diseases of the body, so there is no profit in philosphy either, if it does not expel the suffering of the mind. ~EpicurusFlourishingHaving understood how human lives are diseased, a philosopher worthy of the name - like a doctor worthy of that name - will proceed to try to cure them. The whole point of medical research is cure. So, too, the whole point of philosophy is human flourishing. ~Martha NussbaumAttainingIn the immeasurable expanses of time, you see how life moves onward and upward from infusoria to man, and you cannot deny that infinite possibilities for further perfection still await humankind. ~Thomas MannEmancipatingLife is filled with truly unfathomable potential...in most cases, our so-called limitations are nothing more than our own decision to limit ourselves. ~Daisaku IkedaAwakeningWhat lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us. ~Ralph Waldo EmersonManagingPhilosophy recovers itself when it ceases to be a device for dealing with the problems of philosophers and becomes a method, cultivated by philosophers, for dealing with the problems of men. ~John DeweyPurifyingAll phenomena of existence have mind as their precursor, mind as their supreme leader, and of mind are they made. If with a pure mind one speaks or acts, happiness follows him like his shadow that never leaves him. ~Gautama BuddhaBeingBe not afraid of life. Believe that life is worth living, and your belief will help create the fact. ~William JamesHmm,
point is,
it's perfectly fine in Philosophy to believe that life sucks and is meaningless, and embrace the necessity of living, and living to your best all the same. ((=
At least,
like the pragmatic ultilitarian person that I am,
I love to pick and choose. =Pp
I think the book is cool lar,
picked it cuz I saw questions that really picqued my interest...
How do you know what's right?Are you guided by reason or passion?If you're offended, are you harmed?Must you suffer?What is love?Can't we all just get along?Can anyone win the "war of the sexes"?Who's in charge here: we, or the machines?Are you a spiritual being?How can you handle change?The thing about psychology and philosophy is that,
philosophy don't go about labelling everything as some disorder,
treating your discontents and depression as if they are diseases/ medical conditions...
Philosophy don't deal with your past forever, instead in philosophy you make use of the past to understand the present, and find your way out to the future, a more fulfilled life. ((=
But I'm still really interested in that aspect of psychology which deals with reading people, that kind of thing, you know.
In Blink, some scientist/ researcher is able to predict with 80-90% + accuracy in 2 minutes, just by observing the way a married couple talk.
Sometimes you see the couple interacting and discussing issues in a really open fashion, until you examine them frame by frame and realise that there's the "yes...but", and many other negativities.
And then there's this...
Your body language/ facial movements are able to affect your emotions.
True enough,
some facial expressions are outward expressions of some inner feelings that cannot be hidden, is involuntary as well.
But isn't it cool that your facial expressions and emotions actually work both ways?
And loads of other stuff as well lar, that is really intriguing in Psychology.
Feel so intellectual and empowered.
That's what I like about books.
No wonder they have bibliotheraphy.
---
What makes you think something's wrong with you?People are not disturbed by things, but by the views which they take of things. ~EpicurusIf your body is experiencing an unusual pain, there may be something wrong with you - like a disease. That much is clear. But what if you are experiencing suffering? This arises from dis-ease as well as disease. Is there something wrong in your environment, or in a relationship, that is causing your dis-ease? Are you suffering because someone else is making you suffer, or because you are making yourself suffer?...But if you are already suffering and seek to understand the true causes of your suffering, then you may discover that you yourself are the true cause. If that is the case, and it is for many, then you choose to suffer, and thus you have the power to reduce or eliminate your suffering by choosing not to suffer.It's hard,
it takes time.
It takes philosophical practice. =Pp
To rise above our immediate concerns/ worries... and see them in a light of Wisdom, HOHO!
To different minds,the same world is a hell and a heaven. ~Ralph Waldo EmersonPain is inevictable, suffering is optional. ~AnonymousWe need to make a very clear distinction between what is in our ego's self-interest and what is in our ultimate interest; it is from mistaking one for the other that all our suffering comes. ~Sogyal RipocheThe universe is change, our life is what our thoughts make it. ~Marcus AureliusOMG
Reading is so enriching, nutritional to the mind.
It breeds ideas, help you form your ideas, make you better informed.
;rock YOU.
10:08 PM
