The desire for more positive experience is itself a negative experience. And, paradoxically, the acceptance of one’s negative experience is itself a positive experience.
“The search for something permanent is one of the deepest of the instincts leading men to philosophy. It is derived, no doubt, from love of home and desire for a refuge from danger; we find, accordingly, that it is most passionate in those whose lives are most exposed to catastrophe.”
― A History of Western Philosophy: And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day
― A History of Western Philosophy: And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day
“Prudence versus passion is a conflict that runs through history. It is not a conflict in which we ought to side wholly with either party.”
― A History of Western Philosophy: And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day
― A History of Western Philosophy: And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day
“Those who are comfortably established in life tend to have no need to ask what it means. They are the insiders, and for them, how things are is how they should be. The status quo is so much a given that it goes not just unquestioned but unseen, and the blind eye is always turned. It is those whose place is uncertain, and who are thus uneasy in their existence, who need to ask why. And who often come up with radically new answers.”
― The First Muslim: The Story of Muhammad
― The First Muslim: The Story of Muhammad
“The desire for more positive experience is itself a negative experience. And, paradoxically, the acceptance of one’s negative experience is itself a positive experience. (p.9)”
― The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life
― The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life
“The citizens of Athens, like those of other cities in other ages and continents, showed a certain hostility to those who attempted to introduce a higher level of culture than that to which they were accustomed.”
― A History of Western Philosophy: And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day
― A History of Western Philosophy: And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day
Ali’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Ali’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
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