Eudaimonia Journal

I have spent for than forty years of my life in the study of Eastern and Western philosophy. I have studied, practiced, and lived several distinct philosophies that were never my own or were of my own culture. At worst I felt like an imposter, a wannabe, and at times a complete fraud. I studied the sacred books, chanted mantras in dead languages and while I thought I was actually doing something that mattered in some way it was all simply self deception and hubris. Aside from my service of feeding the needy it had little if any tangible result.

Bertrand Russell once called this “philosophy that bakes no bread.” What should be the point of philosophy? Is it a absolute waste of time or does it have any tangible value?

At this point in my sixth decade of life I decided to stop, reevaluate, and peel back the proverbial onion layer by layer. I can only speak for myself when I say that I have met many kind and well intentioned people along the way but I have also met some predatory imposters who were only interested in profit, adoration, and praise as well a few outright sexual predators in monk’s robes. Most of which have fallen like rotting fruit and have been largely and thankfully forgotten even by their own circles.

How do we separate the philosophical wheat from the chaff. How do we find a philosophy that “bakes bread?” To find a philosophy that has substance and tangible applications that solve genuine existential issues in our complicated lives? That’s what I have spent the last decade pondering.

Finding a philosophy that actually does something and that has a practical application. The Greeks called this Philosophical ideal “Eudomonia”: the practice of living virtuously, with purpose and the cultivation of inner well-being.

Finding our center is a long and arduous journey. There is absolutely no one size fits all solution. There isn’t a mantra, mudra, pill, or a mystical practice that will relieve you of anything but your precious time and money.

Recently I read a comment by a lifelong philosophy student that said some philosophies add to our personality and others STRIP AWAY our baggage and deficiencies. I definitely can relate to this sentiment. Aristotle said that real philosophers are like doctors. But if you only listen to their words and do not take the prescribed treatment it isn’t the doctor’s fault that you still feel unwell.

As individuals we are not cookie cutter copies of each other nor are we robots to simply be programmed to obey and perform tasks. We are human beings and unique in our talents and shortcomings.

In the following entries I will share my insights that have given me a newer and more pragmatic sense of direction.

Welcome to my journey,

Kevin Clarence-Nelson