Philosophical Musings: A Journey Of the Mind, A Vessel Of Paradoxes

If Buddha said “The mind is everything, what you think you become.”, and René Descartes said “I think, therefore I am”, but Socrates said “The only true wisdom is knowing you know nothing.” then is my mind but an empty vessel.

In knowing that I know nothing, am I nothing? Am I no different than the vast expanse of space? I examine my life, because as Socrates said “an unexamined life is not worth living.” Yet upon further examination I realize all of my accomplishments are fleeting, and so is my existence.

Now Thucydides stated “The strong do what they can, and the weak suffer what they must.” I do both, not having had a choice in the hand I was dealt. I’m a walking antithesis, a contradiction, and oxymoron all in itself. Both strong and weak I don’t know what Thucydides would say about me. Sometimes I overcome great challenges, and accomplish feats. Other times I struggle to not lay in bed and weep. So in regards to Thucydides I wonder if he considered a man who is both strong and weak. To him what words of wisdom would he speak.

Now with Martin Heidegger I can surely agree. For I often think great thoughts, only for them to be overshadowed by my great errors. Now speaking of errors, with Heraclitus I’d disagree, for so many times the same blunders have often befallen me. I’m sure I’ve stepped in the same river two times, heck maybe three. Although thinking deeper maybe the river was different, and it was just me. For like Bishop George Berkeley said “to be is to be perceived.” So taking that into account the river was merely what I perceived it to be. Would a new school of fish, or lack thereof change its identity?

As John Locke explained "No man's knowledge here can go beyond his experience" and I surely didn’t experience a whole river in its entirety. So perhaps the mistake once again is inside me, and how I perceive things to be.

So as I battle against the bewitchment of our intelligence by means of language, I assume I’d make Ludwig Wittgenstein proud, even if my words may be seemingly absurd. For as Bertrand Russell once said “whoever wishes to become a philosopher must learn not to be frightened by absurdities".

So as I walk the line between trivial and sublime, William James would say Philosophy has taken over my mind. And as these thoughts flow from deep inside one line at a time, maybe one man will understand me. Now if G.W.F Hegel is correct even he won’t understand me.

Then again maybe Soren Kierkegaard holds the key, and like he declares about life, this piece must be understood backwards, but read forward in entirety. Either way I hope we are able to understand, for as Epicurus said "The greater the difficulty, the more glory in surmounting it"

All in all, one thing can be certain, I find happiness in writing this whimsical folly, for as Aristotle said "Happiness lies in virtuous activity, and perfect happiness lies in the best activity, which is contemplative.” So as I contemplate philosophy I’m most glad you took this journey with me. In the words of Martin Heidegger “Everyone is the other and no one is himself.” So you are me and I am you, and we may act as though we are the shaper and master of language, but the truth is in fact that language remains the master of man.