I often have profoundly satisfying conversations with my friends on a wide variety of topics ranging from science, philosophy, history, politics, culture, to astrology. What I love most about these discussions is how they transport us away from the busy bustle of everyday life and gossip and into an intellectual space of theoretical concepts and collective ideals.
Opting to explore the value of astronomical observations for society as we marvel at the majestic night sky, instead of discussing our mutual friends or the latest celebrity news might sound too serious to many. However, such debates positively offer us a broader perspective of the world, a synthesis of our fragmented individual opinions informed by our differing life philosophies of life. I find this to be one of the best ways to internally clarify what I believe and stand for, so that my opinions and choices reflect my original personal identity and a well-thought-out philosophy of life.
By “philosophy of life” I mean a sort of rational and conceptual framework to make sense of the world with a personal moral compass to navigate it. Philosophical thinking can help in almost any venture; it is embedded in everything. We all have perspectives which form the basis for our motivations and our daily choices. Our life philosophy therefore encompasses our principles of “right” and “wrong”, our personal values, our definition of “success”, as well as our “purpose” in life or lack thereof.
It is through forming a solid philosophy of life that we tackle the bigger questions of life such as deciding whether we believe in God or not, or determining why and how humanity came to exist within our own limited understanding. There are many titles that may be used to portray a personal philosophy of life: Feminist, Rastafari, Environmentalist, Buddhist, Libertarian, Conservative, Muslim, Artist, Socialist, Atheist and many more.
These titles refer to already established ideologies and religions that we might feel are in alignment with our worldview, however as you may already know, our philosophies of life are a lot more complex and nuanced than that and cannot be summarized in one word or one ideology. Because this typically results in being boxed into one label, stripping away authenticity and complexity, into a unidimensional existence. This in turn generally leads to fanatism and extremism consequently inciting stigma, prejudice, and stereotyping from and towards others.
2500 years ago, Socrates, known as the founding father of western philosophy, asked pertinent questions for which he was later sentenced to death: “Why?” “Is this the best thing to do?” “Why should we do it this way?” With such questions, Socrates was suggesting a deliberate, conscious way of profoundly thinking before we accept ideas as worthy of belief. Depending on the society you live in “common sense” or bon sens, defined by French Philosopher Rene Descartes as the wisdom to judge true and false, may culturally differ but will always set the ethical and ideological status-quo. The media then propagates it, as other social and cultural institutions reinforce it. But in certain cases, this accepted “common sense” is also full of incongruity, inaccuracy, and more regrettably, prejudice. Hence why the Socratic questioning approach to said status-quo should be embraced in both our private lives and in the public sphere and legislature.
Contrary to popular belief, we do not have to be philosophers to reflect on and form our own philosophy of life. “Philosophy is a bubble. Not much of it happens in high school, or after college. It lives inside academia, or, more precisely, inside a space that is itself inside academia.” Writes Associate Professor in Philosophy Agnes Callard, in The Point Magazine. Philosophers are indeed those unafraid of the big questions of life largely for intellectual stimulation: What is the meaning of life? Where are we going as a society? What is love? Naturally, many of us ask ourselves these same questions but then we get overwhelmed in trying to answer them. Furthermore, we become discouraged about asking them publicly for fear of sounding pretentious and of simply getting nowhere. However, unless you are in academia, the main goal of such critical reflection should not be to simply philosophize or theorize but to find practical and meaningful answers to us, applicable to our individual life, based on our personal experiences.
Deciding on a philosophical path in life is the result of a complex interwoven factors. We cannot help being influenced by the culture, language, and historical moment we are born into. However, many of us — at least those fortunate enough to not be at the mercy of war or famine, or natural disasters, although these also have a way of deeply transforming your worldview — have no excuse and plenty of time to critically reflect on the religions, ideologies, and systems we inherit from our family, culture, and society at large, by asking ourselves whether these truly make sense to us, individually. Asking ourselves the big questions of life deeply matters because only with rational answers to them can we direct our energies meaningfully. Otherwise, we become easily swayed by popular views, going where the wind blows which might result in an impressionable weak identity, lack of inspiration and life direction, and self-doubt.
Beyond self-reflection and participating in constructive deep conversations, inquisitively, studying life is another sure way of broadening our perspective and solidifying our life philosophy. It does not have to be formal study either, a simple internet search of the world’s most influential philosophies and ideologies alone is enriching. And if one can travel, then one should. Actively engaging with the living world and people from all walks of life, with an open mind, is the most leisurely way to develop your life philosophy. Within the limitations of our daily lives, set by our preferences and external factors, whether it be through introspection, the internet, libraries or profound discussions with friends, there is always a way to pro-actively broaden our worldview. Contemplating our life philosophy and being able to entertain conflicting ideologies to our own without feeling insecure not only enriches our intellect and adds meaning to our lives, it also fosters more thoughtful and harmonious social exchanges, whether it be in person or online.