Definition of Philosophy

Confucius

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confucius.jpgEver wondered about the area about politics that makes it so ideal and pristine, Ethics. As it turns out, the very first philosopher to ever suggest the relationship between politics and ethics was the famous Chinese philosopher Confucius who emphasized personal and governmental morality. As we all know, most governments are founded on a set of rules or laws that have been refined and revised throughout that specific country’s history. The great civilizations of the ancient times such as the Egyptians and the Maya’s have their forms of governance patterned after nature and that in nature there is a supreme being that makes all things happen. This supreme being (which is embodied by a king or other form of ruler) can and has the right to revise and formulate laws as they see fit based on either personal preferences and historical facts (which is the written or oral history of the race or tribe which states or defines the role of the leader) however long the said culture might have existed. These cultures may have come and gone but their influence and views on how the world, life and self-governance happens is history. The English, French and other major civilizations of Medieval times went through several upheavals in government because of corruption and other related matters. The Greeks began the study of philosophy as part of their quest in understanding the why, what, where and who’s of life. Why did the sun set at night, why do the flowers bloom during spring and many other questions people might ponder about were thought of an explanation collectively by scholars and philosophers of the day.

 

Confucius is recognized worldwide as a philosopher whose works and theories have shaped the lives and governments of many Asian civilizations. His work in linking ethics (which is the study of how one should behave in relation to others) and Politics (which is the institution of governance) and how these two should begin at the personal level. The Romans have recognized the principle and was said to be one of the reasons why people got to the Senate. To be a good responsible citizen who is part of society, one must become part of the senate to show he has nothing to hide. This is true but man has a way of twisting and turning history and faith using it for personal benefit which can be seen as far back as recorded history can remember. Much of the works of the great philosophical fathers such as Socrates is known only through the writings of his student Plato who is also a philosopher who might have changed a few thoughts as he reviews and records them in writing. History is written memory of people and cultures that have long gone and much of our lives today will become the history of tomorrow. As the great Confucius would have put it, how have you lived today and what have you contributed to society. The good of the many, greatly outweighs the good of the one.

Aristotle’s View of Politics and society as a whole

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Aristotle, one of the founding fathers of modern philosophy has written many works regarding politics and his interpretation of such. In the book, Nicomachaean Ethics, Aristotle’s foundations for his political projects were based on the presumption that ethics and politics were closely related. In a sense of reverse thinking, he says that the main purpose of politics is to empower or entice citizens to become honest and empower them to do or perform noble actions. This has been greatly contested by many Western civilizations of today who see politics as a sort of undertaking based on greed and self-interest which might be true no only for these areas but anywhere else in the world.Continue Reading

Merging Science and Philosophy, Impossible?

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Many have said that the world of science and philosophy are worlds apart and cannot be understood or used to complement each other. These two fields seem to contradict each other at every angle but some do think they can be used together to allow a better understanding of the universe and our place in it.
Science as we know is based on fact or the search of an explanation for something through facts. Meaning why a candlestick burns scientifically is because of many known scientific processes like; oxidation, fuel, air, combustion and so on and so forth. But taking the standpoint of a philosopher pondering that fact would result in a totally different definition or explanation.

The merging of these two fields of study is not as far off as you think. Many of the fathers of philosophy were scientists in their own rights. These ancient people formed the basis for both philosophy and the sciences. Thales, who is considered to be the father of philosophy wondered about the universe from his time and the significance of man in that universe. He was said to have employed a form of research that can be en-likened to a scientific inquiry or study. The next ancient philosopher, Anaximander, focused more on the nature of the universe as a whole. He is credited to have made the first accurate sundial marking accurately the hours of the day on a sundial. He made elementary maps in his quest to find the relationships of the places he knew and their significance to his existence. One of the most famous philosophers was Pythagoras who was a philosopher and mathematician where he formulated some of the most elementary basis of mathematics and their relationships with the universe.
Many more ancient philosophers and scientists shared the same passion for a better understanding of the universe and the way we influence it or are a part of it. True to this, we can say that it may be theoretically possible to meld the two areas of science and philosophy into a new area of study where we seek answers and hopefully better questions to answers to them.