A 'true' philospher

Who are you? 

Where does the world come from?

What is the most important thing in life?

- An excerpt from the book: Sophie's World

A philosopher is a person who is engaged in philosophy. A thinker, simply put. Philosophy is the study of the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality, and existence, in general. 

From the world's point of view, philosophers are often viewed, categorized, and sub-categorized into classes of people who are particularly interested with two main things: the meaning and origin of life (why is there life and where does it come from?) and the natural laws, processes, and society. (how does it all work?) On the other hand, some might not agree with this due to the fact that philosophy is so broad that no philosopher can concern himself with the whole of philosophy.

Lots of people have hobbies. Some people collect stuff, some enjoy photography, some do writing, and some spend most of their spare time on a particular sport. A lot of people have hobbies, but hobbies differ widely. Some are only into sports while others are only into reading. And if I happen to enjoy sports, I have to be accepting of the fact that others find sports boring. Is there nothing that interests us all? Is there nothing that concerns everyone - no matter who they are and where they live in the world?

But yes, there are questions that should certainly interest everyone. They are precisely the questions philosophy is all about. Again, what is the most important thing in life? Just like hobbies, it varies, it differs, but the origin is the same. If we ask someone who is dying from starvation, the answer is food. If we ask someone who is freezing to death, the answer is warmth. If we ask someone who feels lonely or isolated, the answer will probably be the company of other people.

But when the basic needs have been satisfied, will there still be something that everybody needs? 'True' philosophers think so. They believe that man cannot live on bread alone. Of course everyone needs food. And everyone needs love and care. But there is something else - apart from that - which everyone else needs, and that is to figure out who we are and why we are here.

Being interested in why we are here is not a "casual" interest like sports. People who ask such questions take part in a debate that has gone on as long as man has lived on this planet. How the universe, the earth, and life came into being is a bigger and more important question than who leaked the nude photos of Jennifer Lawrence.

Basically, there are not many philosophical questions to ask. We have already asked some of the most important ones. But history presents us with many different answers to each question. So it is easier to ask philosophical questions than to answer them.

Today as well, each individual has to discover his own answer to these same questions. You cannot find God's existence in an encyclopedia nor does it tell us how we ought to live. 

a 'true' philosopher's quest for truth really is like a detective's story. It's like watching a magic trick. We cannot understand how it is done but we feel that we are a part of something mysterious and we would like to know how it all works. Thus, the only thing we require to be good and true philosophers is the faculty of wonder,

Let's not take the world for granted. The world itself becomes a habit in no time at all. It seems as if in the process of growing up, we lose the ability to wonder about the world. To be more precise: Although philosophical questions concern us all, we do not all become philosophers. For various reasons, most people get so caught up in everyday affairs that their astonishment at the world gets pushed back into the background.

This is also similarly related to my fear of indifference. I always want to be in an inquiring state of being as I hope you do too.

To be continued...

Cited from: Gaarder, J. (1994). The garden of Eden, The top hat. In Sophie's world: A novel about the history of philosophy. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.