Description
Book SynopsisPhilosophy as a Way of Life This unique collection of essays on the late Pierre Hadot's revolutionary methodological approach to studying and practicing philosophy explores Hadot's primary conviction that philosophy itself goes beyond solving puzzles and analyzing abstract arguments. Hadot believed that philosophy is a key part of humanity's search for happiness, that it can transform our perception of the world, and thus can alter our very mode of being. His argument that the goal of philosophy is to shift our focus away from our habitual obsession with individuality, and to embrace universality and objectivity, has resonated with thinkers across the Academy and outside it.
Offering genuinely interdisciplinary analysis of Hadot's work and philosophical practice, this volume includes papers written from a gamut of philosophical, historical, and geographical perspectives. Articles address issues in the history of philosophy from Pythagoras to Descartes, by way of Islamic t
Table of Contents
Notes on Contributors vii
Foreword by John H. Spencer xiii
1 Introduction 1
Michael Chase
2 Ancient Philosophers: A First Statistical Survey 10
Richard Goulet
(Color plate section is between page 32 and 33)
3 Philosophy as a Way of Life: As Textual and More Than Textual Practice 40
Richard Shusterman
4 Charismatic Authority, Spiritual Guidance, and Way of Life in the Pythagorean Tradition 57
Constantinos Macris
5 Alcibiades’ Love 84
Jan Zwicky
6 Stoics and Bodhisattvas: Spiritual Exercise and Faith in Two Philosophical Traditions 99
Matthew T. Kapstein
7 Philosophy as a Way of Life: Spiritual Exercises from the Buddha to Tagore 116
Jonardon Ganeri
8 Approaching Islamic Philosophical Texts: Reading Mulla¯ Sadra¯ Sırazı (d. 1635) with Pierre Hadot 132
Sajjad H. Rizvi
9 Philosophy and Self-improvement: Continuity and Change in Philosophy’s Self-conception from the Classical to the Early-modern Era 148
John Cottingham
10 Descartes’ Meditations: Practical Metaphysics: The Father of Rationalism in the Tradition of Spiritual Exercises 167
Theodor Kobusch
11 Leading a Philosophical Life in Dark Times: The Case of Leonard Nelson and His Followers 184
Fernando Leal
12 Philosophy as a Way of Life and Anti-philosophy 210
Gwenaelle Aubry ¨
13 Philosophy and Gestalt Psychotherapy 223
Paul O’Grady
14 Wittgenstein’s Temple: Or How Cool is Philosophy? 241
Michael McGhee
15 Observations on Pierre Hadot’s Conception of Philosophy as a Way of Life 262
Michael Chase
Bibliography 287
Index 311
