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philosophy

How Confucianism Shaped Chinese Culture and Legacy (Video)

Confucianism, originating during the Zhou dynasty , emerged as a philosophy emphasizing moral principles and societal harmony, devoid of the supernatural elements common in many other religious...
Greek Philosopher Pythagoras with overlay of woodcut showing Pythagoras with bells, a kind of glass harmonica, a monochord and (organ?) pipes in Pythagorean tuning. From Theorica musicae by Franchino Gaffurio, 1492 (1480?)	Source: Khuram Ibn Sabir/Adobe Stock, overlay Bibliothèque nationale de France/Public Domain

Pythagoras’ Claim of Universal Musical Harmony is Wrong, Finds Study

Ancient Greek philosopher Pythagoras posited that "consonance," a harmonious combination of notes, arises from specific relationships between simple numbers like 3 and 4. While scholars have...
Representational image of Saint Thomas Aquinas. Source: ckybe / Adobe Stock

Who Was Thomas Aquinas and Why Is He Mentioned So Often?

Thomas Aquinas, who lived from 1225 to 1274 AD, played a crucial role in medieval Catholic theology and philosophy. Thanks to his profound insights and masterful integration of faith and reason,...
Aspasia surrounded by Greek philosophers, by Michel Corneille the Younger  (1670) Versailles (Public Domain)

Elusive Epicurus, Hellenistic Greek Philosopher In Search Of Happiness

Epicurus was a fourth-third century BC Hellenistic philosopher who established his school, called The Garden, in Athens, where even women and slaves were welcomed. Epicureanism opposed Platonism and...
Kintsugi: Broken Japanese vase that has been repaired.  Source: Margineanu / Adobe Stock.

Embracing Imperfection: The Artistry of Kintsugi (Video)

In the realm of pottery, there exists an extraordinary Japanese art form that transforms broken fragments into something even more beautiful. This mesmerizing practice, known as "kintsugi," embraces...

Medieval Maverick: Roger Bacon's Quest for Knowledge and Truth

In the Middle Ages, knowledge was largely limited to what could be gleaned from ancient texts and the teachings of the church. However, there were those who refused to accept the limitations of their...
Deciphering the psychology behind the belief in starseeds. Source: Caphira Lescante / Adobe Stock

Starseeds: Psychologists On Why Some People Think They’re Aliens Living On Earth

By Ken Drinkwater et al. / The Conversation There’s a new group of people on Earth who believe they’re aliens. Star people, or starseeds, are individuals who believe they have come to Earth from...
Jean-Leon Gerome’s Diogenes, 1860 (Gandalf’s Gallery / Flickr)

How Ancient Greek Philosopher Diogenes Teaches Us: Live Simply, Find Happiness (Video)

Ancient Greek philosopher Diogenes lived in the 4th century BC and is known for his unconventional and radical lifestyle. He rejected materialism and believed that true happiness could only be...
Bloody gladiator sports at the Colosseum ( Gasi/ Adobe Stock)

Are You Not Entertained? A Take On Professional Sports, Philosophy and Wargames In Ancient Rome

The poet Juvenal berated the Roman people for allowing themselves to be seduced by slimy politicians who bought their votes with free wheat and expensive circus games: “Already long ago, from when we...
The Stoic philosopher Chrysippus is said to have died laughing. Image of man laughing taken from the Judge Magazine Cover published on February 4th, 1922. Source: Public domain

Chrysippus Died Laughing at His Own Deadly Joke

We’ve all heard the expression “to die laughing” to refer to a bout of uncontrollable laughter. But did you know that it actually happens? When looking at the Hellenistic bust of Chrysippus housed at...
Heraclitus by Abraham Janssens (Public Domain)

Heraclitus Died When He Covered Himself in Cow Dung

History is filled with bizarre stories about death, and the ancient Greeks are no exception. While the great intellectual Empedocles is said to have jumped into a volcano, in a misguided attempt to...
Composite image combining illustration of Acharya Kanad and an image of an atom. Source: astroved / CC BY-SA 4.0 & Siarhei / Adobe Stock

Acharya Kanad: An Indian Sage Who Developed Atomic Theory 2,600 Years Ago

While John Dalton, an English chemist and physicist, is the man credited today with the development of atomic theory at the turn of the 19th century, a theory of atoms was actually formulated 2,500...
Adi Shankara, 788-820 AD, founder of the Advaita Vedanta, the oldest extant sub-school of Vedānta, a tradition of interpretation of the Upanishads, by Raja Ravi Varma.	Source: Raja Ravi Varma / Public domain

India’s Vedic Sanskrit Upanishads: Foundation of Religions and Karma!

The Upanishads are a genre of texts that form the final and last section of the Vedas. The Upanishads were composed orally in Sanskrit, and the earliest surviving ones dating to the 1st millennium BC...
Ancient Greek science and technology represented by a 3D image of Athens landmark the Parthenon emerging from a smartphone screen.		Source: scaliger

Ancient Greek Science and Technology – From Antikythera to Pharos

The Antikythera computer was the culmination of advanced mathematics, astronomy, metallurgy and engineering. It incorporated the philosophy and science of Aristotle, the gears of Ktesibios, the...
Athenian Agora, Where Some of the World’s Greatest Philosophers Gathered

Athenian Agora, Where Some of the World’s Greatest Philosophers Gathered

Ancient Greece, and Athens in particular, played a crucial role in the development as well as the history of Western Civilization. The center of Athenian life was the Agora, an open space at the...
Oldest Japanese Manuscript on Confucius Teachings Confirmed

Oldest Japanese Manuscript on Confucius Teachings Confirmed

Experts believe that they have found the oldest work on Confucian teachings in Japan. The find dates back almost 1500 years when the Japanese nation was only just emerging. This collection of...
The Birth of the Renaissance: Understanding the Genesis of a New Era

The Birth of the Renaissance: Understanding the Genesis of a New Era

“I tell you: one must still have chaos within oneself, to give birth to a dancing star” (Nietzsche in Thus Spoke Zarathustra). By conservative estimates, the European Renaissance spans the historical...
Pythagoras advocating vegetarianism.

Pythagoras: A Life Beyond Math and Science

Pythagoras is perhaps the most famous figure in the group of ancient Greek philosophers known as the Pre-Socratics. This is largely due to the Pythagorean Theorem, a mathematical theorem that is...
The Greek philosopher Diogenes was a famous pupil of the founder of Cynicism, Antisthenes. Source: Public Domain

Antisthenes and the Cynics: How to Live a Pure and Honest Life

One of the unique philosophical teachings of ancient Greece was Cynicism – a moral and virtuous teaching that really emphasized the pursuit of a pure, honest life. Today we are going to take an in-...
Socrates: The Father of Western Philosophy

Socrates: The Father of Western Philosophy

Socrates, the most famous philosopher of all time, had one of the most subtle and complicated minds we have on record. His death was a dark moment in Athenian and human history, but his thinking and...
Painting of Empedocles

Earth, Air, Fire, and Water: Empedocles of Acragas - The Pre-Socratic Philosopher with a Sense of Style

Socrates and his successors Plato and Aristotle are perhaps the best known and most influential philosophers of ancient Greece. Nevertheless, Greek philosophy had already been flourishing for more...
Leonardo da Vinci portrait and anatomical sketches.   Source: klss777 / Adobe Stock

Secretum: Leonardo Da Vinci and the Anatomy of the Soul

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) was born in the middle of the Humanism movement – a search for the lost wisdom of the classical age that broke with the rigid schemes of the Middle Ages. It provided an...
The Bhagavad Gita. Source: General Press / CC BY-SA 2.0.

The Ancient Philosophy of the Bhagavad Gita, Song of God

The Bhagavad Gita is one of the most important religious texts in Hinduism as well as one of the most seminal religious texts in the world, alongside the Bible , the Quran , the Torah and the...
Religion of the Aztecs: Keeping the Balance in an Unpredictable and Terrifying World

Religion of the Aztecs: Keeping the Balance in an Unpredictable and Terrifying World

The Aztec Empire was the largest and most successful Mesoamerican empire in terms of size and demographics. It stretched across highlands, coastal plains, valleys, and forests. It is not surprising,...

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