by Bob Trowbridge

Created on: February 18, 2009

Philosophy is not and never has been solely the playground of philosophers. And while the word is often thought of as being related to the search for the nature of knowledge, philosophy literally means "the love of wisdom," Any area of human thought or experience can have its philosophy. There is political philosophy, medical philosophy, psychological philosophy, the philosophy of play, and so on.

But what all philosophy comes down to is how individuals or groups of individuals see themselves and how that vision plays out in their behavior. Everyone has a philosophy of life, one that they portray every day in all of their words and actions. They may not be rationally capable of expressing that philosophy, but they will nonetheless play out that philosophy their entire life, unless they change it.

As for pure philosophical speculation, every thinking person engages in it whether they label it as such or not. Socrates suggested that knowing ourselves is important. Anyone who has ever asked, "Who am I?" is engaging in deep philosophical pondering. What thinking person has never asked, "What am I doing here?" "What is the purpose of my life?" "How can I find happiness?

The purpose of what I would call Practical Philosophy is not trivial. It is not an academic pursuit. It does not have to do with the meaning of life in a global way. It has to do with the meaning of my life. This is not a theoretical search. This has to do with how I will live my life each day and how I will think about my self and my life.

Some may read the great philosophers so that they might appear to be educated and erudite in conversations with their peers. But the theories of the great philosophers are meaningless to me unless they can shed light on my own behavior and my daily challenges.

Wisdom and knowledge are not the same thing. One could be the most knowledgeable being in the world and still be bereft of wisdom. Knowledge is the surface of things. Wisdom is the inside of things. Knowledge can bring you pride and a sense of accomplishment. Wisdom brings you understanding.

As a rational thinker, how do I know that my philosophy of life is wise? I need to examine my true philosophy. My true philosophy is not what I state to the world. It is not what I would write down in an essay. It is not theoretical. My true philosophy is the one that I live every day. If I have problems with my life, I need a philosophy adjustment.

I may have a philosophy of love and compassion, but my day may be filled with judgments and annoyance. I may believe in justice and brotherhood/sisterhood, but may treat others unfairly or take advantage of others. The philosophy I hold with my rational mind may be of a very high caliber, but only the philosophy that I live really matters.

So we come back to Socrates and his dictum: "Know thyself," and move on to its corollary, "The unexamined life is not worth living." The search for knowledge and the search for wisdom should have only one point, one overriding goal, that is to improve our lives, to make us better individuals.

Practical Philosophy is about who we are and how we live our life. It is about the impact we have on those around us and the impact on our world. Philosophy is open to all rational thinkers but it is not a head game. The only philosophy that matters in the end is the philosophy that is encased in skin and bones.

In the beginning of the book of John in the New Testament we have, "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us." In this case we have the Greek word "gnosis," which means knowledge. Our knowledge and wisdom are only meaningful to the extent that they become flesh and are acted out in our world.

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