Philosophy and You. . .

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by mal4mac

Look up one post, Shaman Raman says he does. Maybe not all of his life, but Kant appears to have had an impact. The original poster was asking if some kind of philosophy had an impact on people's lives, not if it had taken over peoples lives completely.

---

Yep. That's it.

If I've ever taken any interest in religion my understanding of Kant & Nietzsche has always come back to me and destroyed that interest. I think this is largely a positive thing; chasing after non-existent ghosts is not a fruitful activity. His ideas in ethics are also important to me, as a theoretical yard stick, but I cannot follow the categorical imperative. I'm driven by my impulses, and no one else is abiding by the categorical imperative, so I might as well just follow my impulses. But having gained some level of rational thought at least kids me into thinking I have some grip on the world, which is somewhat calming. An ongoing Socratic dialogue in my head, and sometimes in forums, gives me something enjoyable, and seemingly important (to me), to do, so gaining some knowledge of Socrates from Plato and others was important. Epicurus, Aristotle and the stoics have also been important, showing me that the practice of a simple, philosophical life is the good life, or at least a "good enough" life. Schopenhauer was important for keeping me inclined to literature and music , and giving good arguments for why they are such good things... Nietzsche as well...