The story of Philosophy- Will Durant

I was thinking of writing about this book since last four days and every time I tried to pen down I procrastinated. I am not a veteran on philosophy and it’s hard to write on subject which u r not well verse with. This would be probably my first philosophy book if “Man who sold his Ferrari- Robin Sharma” and “Alchemist- Poulo Coelho” is not considered one. Believe me it took me as much courage to write about this book as Neil Armstrong must have had to step on moon. It was only after immense search on Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Nietzsche, Voltaire, Spinoza and others (obviously on wiki, google, and ask jeeves) was I able to write a few below bits about it.
So here it goes ….
The enriching book is broken down across 11 chapters and runs from 460 B.C. to present era. It gives insights about philosophers of different eras, spread across nations. It tells about how the legacy has been passed; how certain thought process emerged and why certain people crucified.
Socrates (469-399 B.C.) – Renowned for his contribution in field of ethics, epistemology and logic
Plato (428-338 B.C.) – Exemplary contribution in field of natural philosophy, science, and western philosophy. His famous dialogues are apologies to Socrates (his mentor) and Theaetetus.
Aristotle ( 384-322 B.C.)- Included physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology in his study of philosophy. Student of Plato and teacher of Alexander
Francis bacon(1561-1629) -Established and popularized an inductive methodology for scientific inquiry, often called the Baconian method or simply, the scientific method. His demand for a planned procedure of investigating all things natural marked a new turn in the rhetorical and theoretical framework for science, much of which still surrounds conceptions of proper methodology today.
Spinoza-Extremely naturalistic views on God, the world, the human being and knowledge serve to ground a moral philosophy centered on the control of the passions leading to virtue and happiness. They also lay the foundations for a strongly democratic political thought and a deep critique of the pretensions of Scripture and sectarian religion.
Voltaire- Real name francois marie arouet, first novel cedipe in duress, against authority and church.
Immanuel kant-Taught to believe in religion without reason.
Schopenhauer- Goal of good life is its extinction.
Herbert Spencer(1855-1893)- British philosopher who attempted to apply the theory of evolution to philosophy and ethics in his series Synthetic Philosophy
Santayana, james and dewey – American philosopher and educator who was a leading exponent of philosophical pragmatism and rejected traditional methods of teaching by rote in favor of a broad-based system of practical experience.
This is only few excerpts from the chapters, real knowledge lies in pondering on their thoughts rather than accepting them blindly. Chapters are wonderfully created by building the background of the era. The common element found amongst them are their inquisitiveness towards every aspect touching life. Some have formed their own thought, while few have extended others.
For an amateur in philosophy, it was a great experience reading the book. I would only advise that don’t read this book in one single sit. Read, grasp and ponder….
Happy reading

3-idiots movie review

“jingle bell jingle bell.. jingle all the way.. “. We live in a fantasy world. We think there will be “Mashiha” in form of “Santa” or “Rancho”. These people have power to self-sustain and be different from others. They will give us directions which would change our life for good. The same concept is connoted in 3 Idiots.
Literally Idiots are one who has IQ less than 25 and mental age less than 3 years. But Amir khan gives a different angle to Idiot. Idiot is one who thinks differently..non-conventional thinker with rationality beyond other peoples understanding. A deliberately striking word used to emphasis 2 sides of everything.
Story starts with neo batch entering ICE College. Here like all college ragging is the first interactive mode between senior and junior. Seniors possess the godly power to make juniors do all kind of unwilling act. While all other people were abiding to the tradition, our hero denies doing the act. He shows his cranium power and frightens not only seniors but also professors.
Story moves showing mundane routine followed by millions of engineering student across India. It highlights many prominent issues like student pressure, study pressure, flaws in education system, faculty attitude and student attitude in subtle manner. The key theme is to let students decide their own careers. Our “Mashiha” creates hopes not only in life of his friends, but millions of viewers.
We all should see inside us and identify our passion to pursue a career. Life is not running in a race. It’s more of flirting with our job and enjoying it. Our “Mashiha” Rancho is indeed from that fantasy world that reaffirms our age old believes. His mantra “All is well” has already created a buzz and would linger in our mind for long time.
Over all it’s a fantastic movie, directed excellently by V2C. It has 3 friends chemistry like in DCH and versatility of character like RDB( lead cast are same- with actor kareena kapoor as exception). It has a perfect blend of message, entertainment and youthfulness.
Rated: 4/5