Philosophy is an approach to life and a search for a way to live each day a little better and a little truer. But according to which moral standards should we evaluate our actions?
There is a difference between being immoral and being amoral. Amorality means the inability to distinguish right from wrong, therefore it cannot act according to what is right. Immorality means recognizing right and wrong, but not living in accordance with what is right.
Today we live in an immoral world because we possess knowledge, but we refuse to live according to it. We are aware of the harmful impact of humans on nature, we know the destruction our weapons can cause, and we also know that what we do today will affect the lives of our children tomorrow, yet there is a great gap between knowledge and action.
What is needed to bridge that gap?
A change is needed. For centuries, that change has been material and technological. However, what we need is a more thorough change. change, internal metamorphosis. In order to be the change we want to see in the world, we must initiate internal change, inner rebirth.
According to Aristotle, the goal of every human activity is happiness. Buddha speaks of the same thing from a different perspective when he says that suffering propels us forward in our search for happiness. Both claimed that this crucial goal can only be achieved through inner exploration and that neglecting inner development would mean neglecting everything that is most important.
The Renaissance did not occur by chance, nor did it start from nothing. Renaissance means rebirth; delving deep into the past to revive old traditions and archetypes, or essential principles of life.
However, life constantly draws us towards the external in various directions. The pursuit of materialism is so deeply ingrained that it happens subconsciously, almost without our participation, and consequently, even if we truly want to change from within, we must want it strongly enough to suppress. All the stimuli that come from our external life.
Can philosophy bring about such a change? The best example is the Renaissance.
The Renaissance was a philosophical movement that flourished from the 14th to the 16th century and undeniably changed the world. In a relatively short span of around two hundred years, Europe emerged from the dark Middle Ages, an era of dogmatism, prohibition, and fear, and entered a bright period. It was as if a magical wand had awakened the world. Science, art, music, politics, astronomy, and philosophy experienced tremendous growth. Most importantly, the power of imagination was unleashed, and limitless possibilities opened up to humans as confirmation of their boundless potential.
History attributes this magnificent awakening to the influence of many external factors, such as political and financial support for art, the fall of Constantinople, the Crusades, the discovery of the New World… However, all of this diminishes the value of the visionary ability of the people who led this movement. The tea came from consciousness, not from external factors, and they knew well how to create history.
The Italian Renaissance poet Francesco Petrarca wrote: And as for you, if you outlive me for a long time, which I sincerely hope and wish with all my soul, better times may be ahead of you. Our current forgetfulness and numbness will not last forever. The clouds will disperse and our successors will be able to return to the blossom of the pure light of ancient times.
The Renaissance man adopted the idea of the comparative method of research, without confining himself to just one tradition or field of knowledge, in order to be able to explore and distinguish what is essential from what is insignificant.
This was the central idea of the Renaissance. It was important to awaken what was forgotten, in accordance with the ancient Greek tradition that speaks of the need for awakening and returning to one’s true self. This idea was not new, but a revival of an idea that had existed since ancient times, but had taken on a new form.
Perhaps we today can also understand and appreciate the significance of this idea. We need to awaken from our sleep to rediscover what is essential, to look within ourselves instead of seeking outside, in our past and our roots. Perhaps reviving a fragment of Renaissance philosophy is the key to rediscovering ourselves.
The spirit of the Renaissance was a complex combination of interconnected timeless concepts.
The Renaissance individual adopted the idea of a comparative research method, not limited to a single tradition or field of knowledge, in order to explore and distinguish what is essential from what is irrelevant. Leonardo da Vinci is an example of such exploration. As a painter, sculptor, scientist, inventor, and philosopher, he was a typical Renaissance man, whose many brilliant talents cannot be defined by just one ability, but by a philosophical approach to life: a pursuit of the flourishing of the human spirit.
Moreover, the Renaissance individual believed that it is not possible to be open to anything else if one considers their own tradition as the only true one. but to understand and apply it in order to actively shape the world. The Renaissance thinkers celebrated the idea that humans have the capacity to acquire knowledge from various sources and use it to improve themselves and society. They emphasized the importance of philosophy, art, science, and religion in this process. Figures like Hermes Trismegistus, Zoroaster, Plato, Jewish Kabbalists, and many others were revered for their wisdom, which transcended time and space.
This philosophical shift had a profound impact on society. During the Middle Ages, man was seen as a passive observer, obedient and unquestioning in a predetermined and unchanging world. With the advent of the Renaissance, man was seen as an active participant who had the power to bring about change. The primary purpose of man was now to take responsibility for his role in nature, and all learning and exploration were meant to serve this purpose – not merely to accumulate knowledge, but to actively shape the world.
The aspiration of the Renaissance was to move closer to the center, to initiate change, to meet one’s true self in order to be reborn and become a better person.
The Inner Man
The Renaissance man fought against the illusion that what I see in the mirror is what I am. Marsilio Ficino, who headed the reestablished Platonic Academy under the patronage of the Medici family, stated that the human soul has two inclinations, one to fall like a stone, and the other to rise like a fire that gives light and ascends towards the divine. This opposition of tendencies, where one pulls us down while the other pushes us up, results in a constant inner struggle, a struggle in which we have the freedom to choose. As Pico della Mirandola wrote in his masterpiece: Oration on the Dignity of Man: I have placed you in the middle of the world so that you may better observe everything that is in the world. You are created neither heavenly nor earthly, neither mortal nor immortal, so that, as a free and limitless modeler and sculptor of yourself, you can create the form you choose.
Man as a Mirror of the World
It is said that the temple of Apollo in Delphi carried the often quoted inscription: Know yourself and you will know the world and the gods. During the Renaissance, man was once again considered a microcosm of the universe – a macrocosm. This realization gave man dignity, importance, and value to his ability to participate in life. Renaissance philosophers believed that everything in nature has its place and role. Man, as the most evolved aspect of nature, is the only one capable of the most significant role he has been given as his responsibility; and that is to maintain harmony on Earth. Man was considered a powerful and creative collaborator in the universe, and neglecting that role could lead to the destruction of our world.
Rebirth
The Renaissance did not happen by chance nor did it start from nothing. Renaissance means rediscovery The rebirth; diving deep into the past to revive old traditions and archetypes or essential principles of life. Renaissance people knew that by breathing life into these old traditions, they create something new that will flourish and progress. It was like extracting seeds from the past, planting them in the present, and allowing them to shape the future.
If man is the one who recreates, then perhaps his most important creation is the re-creation of himself. But in order to do that, we must get to know ourselves. This is again a familiar concept from many ancient cultures: an inner journey that encourages us to reconnect with ourselves, leading to a deeper experience of the mysteries.
Man is a being of wonder, deserving of respect, who takes on the nature of God as if he is God himself.
This was the aspiration of the Renaissance, to come closer and closer to the center, to initiate change, to meet the true self in order to be born again and become a better person.
Perhaps we can follow their example. Perhaps the true goal is to embark on a journey of self-discovery, to embrace our true nature, and to become the best version of ourselves. To touch that inner timeless wisdom is the essence of philosophy, to build an inner Acropolis – the idea of a divine city above or within us, which guides us towards the construction of an ethical and philosophical life, inspiring us to live every day with a desire for change and growth.
Let us not be part of the herd. Let us dare to live the adventure of Life, for only then do we truly live, rather than just survive. The true mystery of life is the mystery within us, and philosophy is a way to rediscover and revive that mystery within ourselves.