Finding the Wisdom Within
I decided to start this year with the intention of becoming a better version of myself and finally doing the many things I always wanted to do but found a way to put off. It seems that the universe was listening because I saw a poster for the Philosophy Works class offered for only $10 as a gift to celebrate their 50th year anniversary in New York. The class promises to help you find inner happiness, wisdom and strength.
I’ve tried to take this class for the past 3 years and have always put it off. There was really no reason to, as the course was only $90 for 10 sessions. I always had an excuse, either I was too busy with work, my volunteering and exercise at night, or I’d just simply forget to sign up for the next time the class was offered.When I saw the class being offered for $10 dollar, I could not put any more excuses. Not even the fact that I’m currently studying for my GMAT and that I’m now writing this blog and that takes me some time during the week. Additionally, I thought it’d be a great idea to write about what I learned in the class in this blog. Writing about the teachings, will help me solidify them in my mind and really help me put them into ‘practice’. That is the purpose of the school, to practice practical philosophy. To learn a little about all the greats from various disciplines, but take what is learned and apply to our lives to make it better.
To be a philosopher is not merely to have subtle thoughts, nor even to found a school, but so to love wisdom as to live according to its dictates, a life of simplicity, independence, magnanimity, and trust. It is to solve some of the problems of life, not only theoretically, but practically.” – Henry David Thoreau Walden, 1854
The first class “The Wisdom Within” took place last week. At the beginning of class, the tutor asked us why we came here. I think the quote by Thoreau pretty much sums up why I decided to take this class. I love seeking knowledge and applying everything I learn. This is a great quality, but at the same time it can be very dangerous.
We spent some time discussing what wisdom is. The root of the word philosophy is not simply but the combination of “love” and “wisdom”. It was good to learn that wisdom is within us, we only have to look for it. At the end of the class, the tutor gave us two exercises to put into practice during the week to be discussed at the next class. The first one is asking yourself the question “what would a wise one do?” whenever we feel like we need to come to a hard decision.
The second practice given was “the exercise”. This was a guided meditation to be done for at least two minutes during the day that will help us come to the present by being aware of our surroundings, specifically, our five senses. The exercise felt a lot like to me the last five minutes of yoga class when we are in savasana pose. We spent the first hour of the second class, “Levels of Awareness”, discussing “the exercise”. Did we make time to practice it? How did we feel? How did it help us become more present? I personally had a hard time practicing the exercise. As the teacher mentioned in class, my cup is too full. Meaning, my head is full of running thoughts, and it makes it hard for me to practice.
The tutor also introduced us to the principle, “your word is your bond”. Which to me means, if you say you are going to do something, you must do it. I said I will write on this blog, so I will continue to do it. I said I will practice the concepts given in class, so thinking about this principle will help me do it. I may not be able to be compliant all of the time, but this is the year when I am living an examined life and will put into practice what I say I will do.
