When I mention the word philosophy, what comes to your mind? Probably some fancy words, crazy ideas, meaningless debates, or someone one said, “Philosophy is just the musings of dead white men.”
Even those who see philosophy in a positive light do not take it lightly. They will say philosophy is far out of reach for the regular person. Do we really need a PhD in philosophy just to write and think like a philosopher? Some may say yes, the others may disagree.
But how did we get here?
Philosophy, believe it or not, was once the talk of the town. It was done in cafes, restaurants, barbers shops literally everywhere. You must have heard people saying, “They don’t make movies like these anymore.” And the reason behind this saying is the depth in that era's writing.
In my opinion, the main problem with our modern view of philosophy is that it has been locked away in the ivory tower of academia, confined to unnatural places and masses.
And here is the truth: philosophy is not meant to be complicated and it is not meant to be out of reach. In fact, children do philosophy and philosophical talks every single day.
Think about it. When a child asks, “Why is the sky blue?” or “How was I born?” and you try to reply with some insane answers (to the adult mind). They may appear silly, but they are doing philosophy. There are curious, searching for meaning, truth and justice in t heir own simple way.
Children are natural philosophers because they haven’t learned to stop wondering. They do not accept things easily. They poke, they question, the challenge. And that, my friends, is exactly what philosophy is all about.
So why, then, do we grow up and begin to think philosophy is too hard, too abstract, too far removed from real life? Because somewhere along the journey, we stop asking “Why?” Society teaches us to memorize, to accept, to move on and to stop questioning everything. And that is when philosophy starts to die in us.
But it doesn’t have to.
You don’t need a Masters or PhD to ask if life has any meaning. You don’t need years to wonder why there is so much inequality. You don’t need a social gathering to ask what happiness really means. All you need is the courage to ask, the patience to think and curiosity for the answer.
Philosophy is not about big and difficult words, it’s about big questions.
So let’s bring the curiosity back where it belongs. Let’s have conversations that matter. Let’s keep the spirit of wonder alive.
Because at the end of the day, it is not just confined to a specific location, or for the reserved scholars in libraries. It is the birthright of every human being. It’s belong to all.
Just remember, if a child can do philosophy, then so can you. ...