Comforting the Blankie of philosophy

Philosophy on horseback and in favor of the powers that be, and the ruler – philosopher! Needless to say, a unique case in the history of world culture we have encountered, mentally traveling through the halls of the Roman philosophy. The bronze copy of the Emperor-philosopher Marcus Aurelius decorated our ghostly Museum, and on Capitol hill remained the original. By the way, he survived by chance. The fact that the early Christians took over the equestrian Marcus Aurelius statue of Emperor Constantine the Great, who was kind to them and did not give to the lions. Christians do not have to break the statue and calm, friendly philosopher, Gentile, mark long standing in the square before the residence of the Pope.

Such is the irony of history. History generally likes to joke and her jokes are unpredictable. When the Golden age of the Roman Empire sunk into Oblivion, with the philosophy of the Imperial horse came...Yes, Yes, again behind bars, in the cold, wet dungeon. In prison Philosophy was the consolation of the last Roman, as he called his descendants, the last ancient philosopher søren the Boethius.

Boethius actually visited this world in its fateful minutes. The mighty Roman Empire, the Empire of warriors and peasants was exhausted and trachsel. I had to save ancient culture from chaos, good from brazen and imagines himself master of the world conqueror. It was necessary to protect the mind from militant stupidity.

By the time when the Eternal City was ruled by the barbarians, Severin Boethius became known as a very well-educated people who have mastered the Greek Sciences and philosophy. He, reluctantly, took a barbarous power, and served her until, until it resembled the Roman. Hearing about him as a wise politician and a great philosopher were scattered throughout the Empire. For many years it seemed that the light was not on these gifts that fortune has showered not my favorite of the Boethius. At the Zenith of fame, he held the post of first Minister, and his dearly beloved sons were consuls. However, soon after, as a philosopher reached the pinnacle of power and honor, fate fixed him with his icy gaze, and he experienced firsthand how bleak human happiness is as unreliable as friends and ruthless enemies.

Garden of Epicurus

Letter to a friend about the benefits of philosophy.

So we met with a strict but lovely Lady Philosophy. Its clear as the sun, the arguments sounded convincing even to the prison bars and them with doubt and joy, listened to the prisoner – the last Roman Severin Boethius. However, despite the support and the consolation of Philosophy, the wise prisoner was executed, and with his death ended the thousand-year era of ancient philosophy, the era that gave the world the greatest thinkers and imperishable treasures of wisdom.

Well, historical epochs come and go. Still, sad to leave loved we treasure our ghostly philosophical Museum, with the barrels of Diogenes, with branching antlers of the sophists, with Garden of Epicurus, and even with a terrible Plato's androgynes...

That was not so sad to part with the pearls of ancient philosophy from our ghostly collection, let us today with some degree of healthy skepticism to treat us as a respected ancient sages. Mankind because, often, laughing, parting with the past, and even philosophy.

And help us in this great ironist of all times and peoples, the Roman satirist Lucian. He laughed at all the antique philosophy, laughed subtly, ironic and with a deep knowledge of the subject. The fact that Lucian was himself a philosopher, and knew philosophical wisdom firsthand. So often in his satires as the actors present and the ancient sages, and the satirist.

In our Museum has several philosophical and satirical letters to a friend written by Lucian, and where we are talking about familiar ancient philosophers and their teachings.

Take a look in one of these letters...

He emerged from the daily life and looked at everything around

     "Imagine all the teacher I took it with a greedy and an open mind, though they could not be aware that is happening to me. I felt all kinds of feelings: I was upset, hearing the censure that I was the most expensive – wealth, money, fame, and nearly wept over their destruction. But they seemed low and funny, and I rejoiced, as if looking out from the darkness of my former life at a clear sky and great light. And, most amazing of all, my soul was becoming more and more acute eyes. But I didn't notice that she was blind!"

And now, after this philosophical insights, each satirist began to look to all kinds of worldly phenomena and very soon realized how they are funny, pathetic, and unstable. Despising all the usual benefits and considering pursuit of them an obstacle to the true practice, he emerged from the daily life and looked at everything around. However, doubts did not leave the young philosopher, on the contrary, they became even more...

     - "On this world, which the philosophers call the cosmos, I did not manage to learn anything – neither how it happened, or who it's Creator. I didn't know where it start and what is its ultimate goal. Then I began to see the world in parts, but it only increased my confusion: looking at the stars I burned with the desire to find out what they are. But the most incomprehensible and mysterious seemed to me everything about the moon. Finally, lightning, piercing the clouds, rushing thunder, rain, snow, hail – all of it was for me an unsolved mystery!"

In this restless mood of the newly made philosopher turned to his brothers on reason - the philosophers. He went to the Stoics and to the Epicureans, and the Platonists, and other sages, as they hoped that they would be able to answer the young soul tormenting questions...

witnesses of the dignity to assume

"I chose the best out of them – if the witnesses of the dignity to assume a sullen face, pale skin color and thick beard, and indeed, at first glance, they seemed eloquent and people familiar with celestial and terrestrial phenomena. Giving them and yourself a fair amount of money, I asked them to explain to me the structure of the universe. And with such eagerness they began to clean off my former ignorance, which led me to even more confusion, okatu a rain of causes, purposes, atoms, voids, materials, ideas and other things. But just sadder was the fact that my mentors in anything didn't agree with each other. On the contrary, each of them had disputed the opinion of another and strove to ensure that I said he was right".

Lucian calms his friend and tells him that he once was a lover of wisdom, was talking to the philosophy, with Plato and with the truth and listening to the sages who sat as a theatre filled with a crowd ten-thousandth, with a height of watching. Lucian, pretending to be a simpleton, puzzled – really great philosophers arguing about the same things and have the same opinion. He wants somehow to justify the sages. However, his frustrated friend relentless...

     "Oh how you would laugh if you heard their speech, full of boasting! No towering over us, crawling on the ground, philosophers do not see better than their neighbors, and still others by old age and infirmities, and even short-sighted. And yet, they claim to distinguish the border of heaven, indicate the size of the sun, pass through neglinny spaces and falling from the stars, determine their value and appearance.

     Often they are unable to answer such a simple question - what is the distance from Rome to Athens, but just know, what is the distance between the moon and the sun.

Great principles of ancient Chinese philosophy

  The relationship of Yin and Yang was one of the great principles of ancient Chinese philosophy and all Eastern philosophy.
For example, our Chinese philosopher, reflecting on the symbolism of Yin and Yang, wrote a great treatise on marriage and the wedding ritual, which was essential for ordinary Chinese and for the Emperor until the twentieth century.
But begins this treatise, of course, with the relationship of Yin and Yang.

"Among the moral feelings and principles, my son, there is no more significant than the relationship between a man and a woman. And among the feelings associated with the relationship between them, none is more important than the marital.
In the great "Book of changes" said: "When Heaven and Earth interact as Yin and Yang, the ten thousand things arise.
The man helps the Sky and the Earth touch the principles of Yin and Yang, and then installed the mating ritual. And you should follow it.
Why in accordance with this ritual a man takes a wife, and a woman getting married? Yes, because the principle of the Yin corresponding to the female, is low, does not befit her to take the initiative! No wonder in the ancient book says "sings Yan, Yin echoed, the Man works, the woman follows him."

However, on our sage warns that a man should not marry on their own initiative, but the initiative comes from parents and matchmakers. It is necessary to zoom out of shame and to prevent debauchery.
Now it becomes clear why our Chinese sage who writes about wedding rituals, everywhere wants to see Yin and Yang.

As a gift to his bride pick out my son a wild goose.
Look, a goose flock in flight forms a slender chain, and the stay - slim series: this means that when the marriage ceremony senior and Junior are in order, and not take someone else's territory.
But most importantly, because the goose at the appropriate time is flying South, and the South is Yang, and returns North into Yin, and does not violate this term. So the groom should not take time, the girls empty promises".

HAPPINESS AS EXTERNAL WELL-BEING

According to another view, happiness consists in external wealth, i.e. wealth. But does wealth bring happiness? For some, it may be a variant of a "Golden cage". And besides, it remains an open question, whether in any way the produced wealth can be the key to happiness?
Of course, the wealth should not be discarded, as in need more difficult to feel happy. But wealth does not bring happiness to those who have a soul there is nothing but greed, who have no other joy, how to outdo the other. Add to this the fact that it is not in itself wealth makes a person happy, but "wealth acquired righteously and does not burden". (Guseinov A. A., Apresyan R. G. Ethic. - M., 1998. - S. 299), which may be related to the happiness of fortuitous circumstances.
Since wealth is closely adjacent the power that many find happiness. But the worship acquired freedom. So, those in power and dependent on him, not severable and not free from each other, since otherwise (and in this understanding of happiness) defeats the purpose of such a state of happiness. Therefore, Mr cannot be "happy" without the worship of others. And prefer to ease my soul from the burden of responsibility in freedom (and consequently, and freedom of the spirit), dicloniuses before someone will lose "his" happiness, after parting with an object of worship. Besides, with the point of view of the Christian religion, and European philosophical ethics, a lack of freedom, dependence and rigidities of misery. No wonder, Jesus clearly contrasted the "happiness as the highest good" the might of power, and carelessness, voluntarily adopted subjection. (Matt., 4:1 - 11).