Who is your favorite Philosopher?

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Permalink Reply by Bob on April 28, 2009 at 3:25pm

Saint Thomas Aquinas

Permalink Reply by AnGella on April 28, 2009 at 3:58pm

Bob said:

Saint Thomas Aquinas

What do you think of starting a thread with your favorite passage(s) from him to share with those not familiar? I'm going to google him. I know the name, but can't think of anything I have read of his.

Permalink Reply by Bob on April 28, 2009 at 10:09pm

Saint Thomas Aquinas said:
The test of the artist does not lie in the will with which he goes to work, but in the excellence of the work he produces.

He also said:
Because philosophy arises from awe, a philosopher is bound in his way to be a lover of myths and poetic fables. Poets and philosophers are alike in being big with wonder.

Permalink Reply by AnGella on April 28, 2009 at 10:18pm

Bob said:

Saint Thomas Aquinas said:
The test of the artist does not lie in the will with which he goes to work, but in the excellence of the work he produces.

He also said:
Because philosophy arises from awe, a philosopher is bound in his way to be a lover of myths and poetic fables. Poets and philosophers are alike in being big with wonder.

That's poetry! I so resemble that! Definitely Big with Wonder and I strive for excellence in my art... code and design.

Permalink Reply by James on April 29, 2009 at 12:06am

Balthasar Gracian - The Art of Wordly Wisdom

Permalink Reply by AnGella on April 29, 2009 at 12:09am

James said:

Balthasar Gracian - The Art of Wordly Wisdom

I found an online reference here!
The Art of Worldly Wisdom

Thanks, and welcome to the group!

Permalink Reply by AnGella on April 29, 2009 at 12:54am

I like this one:


Balthasar Gracian - The Art of Wordly Wisdom

xi Cultivate those who can teach you.

Let friendly intercourse be a school of knowledge, and culture be taught through conversation: thus you make your friends your teachers and mingle the pleasures of conversation with the advantages of instruction. Sensible persons thus enjoy alternating pleasures: they reap applause for what they say, and gain instruction from what they hear. We are always attracted to others by our own interest, but in this case it is of a higher kind. Wise men frequent the houses of great noblemen not because they are temples of vanity, but as theatres of good breeding. There be gentlemen who have the credit of worldly wisdom, because they are not only themselves oracles of all nobleness by their example and their behaviour, but those who surround them form a well-bred academy of worldly wisdom of the best and noblest kind.

Permalink Reply by James on April 30, 2009 at 11:12pm

AnGella said:

James said:

Balthasar Gracian - The Art of Wordly Wisdom

I found an online reference here!
The Art of Worldly Wisdom

Thanks, and welcome to the group!

One of my favorite books...I've gone through a few copies, still have my first one and you should see how worn it has become over the years lol.

Permalink Reply by AnGella on May 1, 2009 at 1:41am

Definitely something you could and should read over a few times! I greatly appreciate the introduction!

Permalink Reply by Vlada Mikahl Schoon on March 13, 2024 at 1:37am

In my young days while at Uni I was deeply interested in Ayn Rand her views on Objectivism & Capitalism and then as I estranged myself from my parents soon after Uni her views came moreso into play in my mindset,..see sadly parents are teaching socialism in their homes... Yet I'm of the belief self-reliance and independence should be taught from childhood. Socialism is expecting others to do what you ought to and are capable of doing for yourself. While parents by example should be teaching their children Conservatism/Capitalism at home as a form of parental leadership that will prepare children to be independent and responsible adults in the real world.

For example,tough love works as it will determine laws and boundaries, allow free speech and debate, set practical guidance ie. give each child a day of the week to do their washing, set a time limit in which to achieve this task and then reward with recognition which nurtures self-reliance and self-esteem, not treats and stuff.. after all this is what should be expected of oneself. Thrift is a good one,[moreso now we have a world wide recession] ..grant pocket money on condition it is fiscally managed ie, 10% saved for long term goals, 10% for midterm goals and 10 % for short term goals, 10% for good causes and the rest spent as wished but accounted for in a ledger of sorts. etc.etc. My foster father raised me with this way of thinking,just as his father had taught him..as it got him everything he required at a young age including his own cafe,bar business and thus he wished to passed it on to me,he always said that I was to be his prodigy.. so that at the age 25yr old I almost owned my own business too,..I gained inheritance when he passed away and I invested it wisely, first a deposit for a house & car.. the rest into my business I have & own now...I have never had anything on credit except a mortgage for my house, I always saved for everything that I purchased, and own everything outright including everything in my own home,which I'm almost freehold before I reach 40yrs old...I work for a medical health company.. helping troubled Youth,Elderly & others with mental illnesses,drug addiction or with just deep rooted soul based traumas, alongside a team of social workers, all while using natural human altruism...I've noticed of late that the modern Internet age (& especially the last 3 years or so,but its been around for eons) has grown a population of moronic people, all with no morals not a shred of respect of their own body and or are not only selfish & greedy,but are self inebriated & egomaniacal. Those who have lost the ability to communicate efficiently and act negatively like bullies towards anyone who even opposes or disagrees with their opinions. Gone are the times of generally just help your fellow man or neighbour in good kind heartedness with no exchange of money in return..,Oh No It's the age of Madness and Lunacy take,take,take.. yet only these past 3 years since Covid its got noticeably worse,.. I wish for the age of Common Sense and Morals to return.. so I can once again smile when I think of what type of future the next generation of kid's that come into my presence will actually have & what kind of adults they will eventually become.