Philosophy is the systematic study of the foundations of human knowledge with an emphasis on the conditions of its validity and

finding
answers to ultimate questions. While every other science aims at investigating a specific area of knowledge, such as physics or psychology,
philosophy has been defined as “thinking about thinking.” At the same time, as expressed by its Greek etymology, philosophy is the love
of wisdom. Traditionally at least, it is not the pursuit of knowledge for knowledge’s sake, but rather the attempt to discover the meaning
and purpose of existence, including through intellectual means, but including also self-reflection, discipline, and religious practice and
inquiry. Though the term philosophy is of Western origin and implies a kind of investigation typical of western culture, it has its
equivalents in the various other cultures of the world, notably India, China and the Middle East.

The Nature of Philosophy

Methods and definitions
Philosophy has almost as many definitions as there have been philosophers, both as a subject matter and an activity. The word is derived
from the ancient Greek word "Φιλοσοφία" (philo-sophia), which means "love of wisdom." Though no single definition of philosophy is
uncontroversial, and the field has historically expanded and changed depending upon what kinds of questions were interesting or relevant
in a given era, it is generally agreed that philosophy is a method, rather than a set of claims, propositions, or theories. Its investigations are
based upon rational thinking, striving to make no unexamined assumptions and no leaps based on faith or pure analogy. Different
philosophers have had varied ideas about the nature of reason, and there is also disagreement about the subject matter of philosophy. Some
think that philosophy examines the process of inquiry itself. Others, that there are essentially philosophical propositions which it is the task
of philosophy to prove. The issue of the definition of philosophy is nowadays tackled byMetaphilosophy (or the philosophy of philosophy).
Modern usage of the term is extremely broad, covering reflection on every aspect of human knowledge and the means by which such
knowledge can be acquired. In the contemporary English-speaking academic world, the term is often used implicitly to refer to analytic
philosophy and, in non-English speaking countries, it often refers implicitly to a different, European strain,continental philosophy.

Did you know?

Until the Renaissance, 'philosophy' and 'science' were considered the same discipline.

Until the Renaissance, 'philosophy' and 'science' were considered the same discipline. This earlier tradition remains today in the expression
PhD, or “Philosophiae Doctor” (doctor of philosophy), which is by no means limited to graduates of philosophy proper, as one can have a
PhD in biology, music, or nursing to name but a few areas of expertise. Similarly, German-speaking academia still knows the division
between “Philosophy I” (philosophy and the humanities) and “Philosophy II” (the natural sciences).

Many ancient Greek philosophers distinguished the desire for wisdom from desires for material things, vices, and the satisfaction of bodily
desires. The definition ofwisdom for many ancient Greeks would have been about virtue and the desire for knowledge as opposed to false
opinions. However, the term is notoriously difficult to define because of the diverse range of ideas that have been labeled as philosophy.
The Penguin Dictionary of Philosophy defines it as the study of "the most fundamental and general concepts and principles involved in
thought, action, and reality." The Penguin Encyclopedia says that philosophy differs from science in that philosophy's questions cannot be
answered empirically, and from religion in that philosophy allows no place for faith or revelation. However, these points are called into
question by the Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy, which states: "the late 20th-century… prefers to see philosophical reflection as
continuous with the best practice of any field of intellectual enquiry." Indeed, many of the speculations of early philosophers in the field
of natural philosophy eventually formed the basis for modern scientific explanations on a variety of subjects.
Philosophy as a Worldview
A "philosophy" may also refer to a general worldview or to a specific ethic or belief that can be utterly unrelated to academic philosophical
considerations. This meaning of the term is perhaps as important as the classical definition, because it affects each human being. Virtually
everyone, knowingly or unknowingly, lives and operates based upon a set of values and beliefs that are often unexpressed and even
unconscious. As a result, the may easily be incompatible and contradictory, leaving those who maintain them with a sense of uneasiness. If
a man professes that “only money counts in life,” this is a philosophical stance. However, it is most likely to be at odds with other
convictions held by that same individual, such as a secret passion for art or love for his family.

Philosophy once competed with theology and mathematics for the title of “queen of the sciences.” Today, it is often considered empty and
useless speculation, finding no place along practical and technical concerns and religious or ideological beliefs. However, efforts are being
made to remove philosophy from its crumbling ivory tower and make it into a discipline, academic or other, that can lead to a clarification
of one’s personal opinions and goals, as well as an informed evaluation of the many issues in public life.

A philosophy is a way of thinking about the world, the universe, and about people. A philosophy is a group of ideas, worked
out by a philosopher (someone who has studied ways of thinking about the world). The ideas in philosophy are abstract, which
means that they are "things that cannot be touched." But this does not mean that philosophy is not about the real world.
Ethics, for example, asks what we should do in our everyday lives, and metaphysics asks about how the world works and
what it is made of.

Sometimes people talk about how they have a "personal philosophy", which means the way a person thinks about the world.
This article is not about people's "personal philosophies." This article is about the ideas that have been thought about
by philosophers (people who think and write about ways of thinking) for a long time.

For thousands of years philosophers have asked questions, such as:

 What is good?

 What is beautiful?

 Do we have free will?

 Does God exist?

 Does the world around us exist?

 What is a person?

 What is truth?

 What is evil?

 What is the relationship between mind and body?

These ideas and questions from philosophy, and many more, have formed a large body of questions and knowledge that are
written down in books.

There are many different types of philosophy from different times and places. Some philosophers come from Ancient Greece,
such as Plato and Aristotle. Others come from Asia, such as Confucius or Buddha. Some philosophers are from the Middle
Ages in Europe, such as William of Ockham or Saint Thomas Aquinas.
Philosophers from the 1600s, 1700s, and 1800s included Thomas Hobbes, René Descartes, John Locke, David Hume,
and Immanuel Kant. Philosophers from the 1900s included Ludwig Wittgenstein and Jean-Paul Sartre.

Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and
language.[1][2] It is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach
and its reliance on rational argument.[3] The word "philosophy" comes from the Greek φιλοσοφία (philosophia), which literally
means "love of wisdom", and was originally a word referring to the special way of life of early Greek philosophers.[4][5][6]

PHilosophy of man is the study of man and its philosophy in life that is subdivided into many branches such us ethics,

metaphysics natural philosophy etc.

Philosophy
A philosophy is a system of beliefs about reality. It is one's integrated view of the world. It includes an
understanding of the nature of existence, man, and his role in the world. Philosophy is the foundation
of knowledge. It is the standard by which ideas are integrated and understood.
Philosophy is a necessary product of man's rational mind. To live, man must gain knowledge of the
world. To understand the world, man must form conclusions about its very nature. For instance, to gain
knowledge of particular objects, man must recognize that objects have identity. He must recognize that
conclusions are possible because the world does exist, and exists in a particular way.
Philosophy provides the framework for which man can understand the world. It provides the premises
by which man can discover truth, and use his mind to support his life. Every man has an understanding of
the world. Every man must have a philosophy, even if it is never made explicit.

phi·los·o·phy (f -l s -f )
n. pl. phi·los·o·phies
1. Love and pursuit of wisdom by intellectual means and moral self-discipline.
2. Investigation of the nature, causes, or principles of reality, knowledge, or values, based on logical reasoning rather than empirical
methods.
3. A system of thought based on or involving such inquiry: the philosophy of Hume.
4. The critical analysis of fundamental assumptions or beliefs.
5. The disciplines presented in university curriculums of science and the liberal arts, except medicine, law, and theology.
6. The discipline comprising logic, ethics, aesthetics, metaphysics, and epistemology.
7. A set of ideas or beliefs relating to a particular field or activity; an underlying theory: an original philosophy of advertising.
8. A system of values by which one lives: has an unusual philosophy of life.

[Middle English philosophie, from Old French, from Latin philosophia, from Greek philosophi ,
from philosophos, lover of wisdom, philosopher; see philosopher.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton
Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

philosophy [fɪˈlɒsəfɪ]
n pl -phies

1. (Philosophy) the academic discipline concerned with making explicit the nature and significance of ordinary and scientific
beliefs and investigating the intelligibility of concepts by means of rational argument concerning their presuppositions,
implications, and interrelationships; in particular, the rational investigation of the nature and structure of reality (metaphysics),
the resources and limits of knowledge (epistemology), the principles and import of moral judgment (ethics), and the
relationship between language and reality (semantics)

2. (Philosophy) the particular doctrines relating to these issues of some specific individual or school the philosophy of
Descartes

3. (Philosophy) the critical study of the basic principles and concepts of a discipline the philosophy of law

4. (Literary & Literary Critical Terms) Archaic or literary the investigation of natural phenomena, esp alchemy, astrology, and
astronomy

5. any system of belief, values, or tenets

6. a personal outlook or viewpoint

7. serenity of temper