Philosophy

The issues addressed by the discipline of philosophy involve principles of logic, explanations of how and why things exist, the nature of reality and questions about how one should live. The three branches of study in philosophy include axiology (the study of value - ethics and esthetics), epistemiology (the study of knowledge), and metaphysics (what is real). http://philosophy.lander.edu/intro/what.shtml Pre-Socratic philosophy was metaphysical in nature. http://www.pbs.org/faithandreason/gengloss/metaph-body.html Philosophy extends to other areas of academics as well, including history, mathematics, education, science and religion. Essential differences in early Western versus Eastern philosophical approaches are discussed below. You will also find on this page famous quotes, related links and videos related to philosophy.

Western philosophy is said to have originated in Athens, in Ancient Greece. Although there were philosophers before him (such as Heraclitus, and Parmenides), it is the work of Socrates that is viewed as laying the foundation for subsequent western philosophical thought.Philosophy Pages: Socrates His work on topics such as beauty, truth, wisdom, courage and justice were documented by his student, Plato, as he wrote nothing down.Washington State University: Socrates

Eastern Philosophy is generally thought of as originating in China or India. Confucius, and the Taoist Chuang Tse, were among the first eastern philosophers.Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Confucius The Hindu, Buddhist, and Taoist philosophical traditions predate Socrates by over 200 years.Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Hindu Philosophy

1. In early Western philosophical thought, God was deemed as creator and King of all that is, and he made the laws of the natural world such as gravity. In Eastern philosophy the universe simply 'is,' humans can derive and organize thoughts about their perceptions, but that is not the underlying basis of observed phenomena.
2. Eastern philosophers believe that the symbolic thinking of the West moves one further away from a direct understanding of reality. The Western approach of applying either logic or dogma is its basis for a deeper investigation of reality.
3. In Western philosophy, verbal or mathematical models of reality are a reflection of truth, whereas in Eastern philosophy verbal models are evaluated on the basis of their effectiveness to reflect reality rather than their inherent truth. http://www.psych.utah.edu/gordon/Classes/Psy4905Docs/PsychHistory/Cards/Eastern.html

• "To teach how to live with uncertainty, yet without being paralyzed by hesitation, is perhaps the chief thing that philosophy can do." ~Bertrand Russell
• "What is the first business of philosophy? To part with self-conceit. For it is impossible for anyone to begin to learn what he thinks that he already knows." ~Epictetus, Discourses
• "Learning Zen is a phenomenon of gold and dung. Before you understand it, it's like gold; after you understand it, it's like dung." ~Zen Saying
• "Nobody can have the consolations of religion or philosophy unless he has first experienced their desolations." ~Aldous Huxley, Themes and Variations, 1950
• "Upon the whole, I am inclined to think that the far greater part, if not all, of those difficulties which have hitherto amused philosophers, and blocked up the way to knowledge, are entirely owing to our selves. That we have first raised a dust, and then complain, we cannot see." ~George Berkeley
• "I think; therefore I am." - Rene Descartes