Philosophy and Well-Being by John Cummins (This is the text of John’s talk at the APC on 22.10.2019, Aurora Agora Night)

When I speak to my kids about becoming into being, one of their favourite topics, they ask me if this image is the being I am trying to become.

The artificial ape, one of my favourite books, that claims that tools and technology are the real drivers of man’s evolution and not our natural environment. A topic for another day. Back to the topic of well-being and philosophy. 🡺
 
Well-being is the reason I got interested in philosophy. What do we mean by well-being? 🡺
 
Well-being includes our emotional, psychological, and social health. It affects how we think, feel, and act. It can determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices. In a word, well-being is our mental health. Mental health or well-being, is important at every stage of life – 
from childhood and adolescence through adulthood. 🡺
 
I struggled with mental health as a young man. As a university student it stunted my growth, my confidence, but most of all my well-being. My struggle with well-being and my natural curiosity brought me to Philosophy, “The Love of Wisdom”. Through the study of metaphysics; the nature of reality, and being – I have tried to come to a better understanding of myself and the world of ideas. I am happy to say that it has helped. 🡺
 
Some of my favourite philosophers and writers that have given me philosophical insight to help with every-day life  are: Santayana, Winnie the Pooh, Shakespeare, Will Durante, Jane Austen, Jack London, Augustine, Aristotle, and Albert Einstein. I have tried to incorporate my favourite ideas and quotes from these philosophers and authors into my everyday life by chewing and digesting their ideas. 🡺

Santayana The elegant and gentle philosopher who simply asked us to see the beauty and music all around us “the earth has music for those that listen....”  🡺

Perhaps my favourite philosopher Winnie the Pooh, who we know, had his funny side …. “people say nothing is impossible but I do nothing every day”. Something I’ve been accused of from time to time . On the more serious and profound side, he would say things like …. “the things that make me different are the things that make me” and that’s true for all of us. 🡺
 
I became fascinated with Jack London on a recent holiday to California, after having read his book, Martin Eden, a book on love and individualism, and the conflict between reason and passion .…. “ The proper function of man is to live , not to exist . I shall not waste my days trying to prolong them. I shall use my time. “ He is most well-known for his books White Fang And Call Of The Wild. .......   🡺
 
Before Shakespeare there was Plato, who some say, is a “footnote” to all of philosophy. Then there was Shakespeare a “footnote” to everything since…. “there are more things in heaven and earth Horatio then are dreamt of in your philosophy”. what Shakespeare is trying to tell us is that philosophy without love and passion is dusty and lifeless. Where ideas come to life in Shakespeare can be expressed in the next quote-
“and this our life exempt from public haunt find tongues in trees , books in running brooks , sermons in stones and good in everything” where man’s imagination is what life is all about …. 🡺
 
Will Durant, an American Canadian philosopher and historian who popularized philosophy in North America in the 20s and 30s and who’s works introduced me to philosophy and the history of ideas. These are all great quotes and I’m gonna read them all since he is a Canadian. ....
 “60 years ago I knew everything now I know nothing” 
“Education is a progressive discovery of our own ignorance” 
“Inquiry is fatal to certainty” 
“History is mostly guessing the rest is prejudice”. 🡺
 
Jane Austen, what can I say, who doesn’t love Jane Austen . Romance for grown-ups , a perfect balance between reason and passion. As much as I love her reason, I think I love her humour more, …..“ If I loved you less I might be able to talk about it more”. ...... 🡺
 
Augustine, who’s book Confessions, I kept with me as a companion for almost a year, a book about a journey from faithlessness to faith. My favourite quote of Augustine is simply….  “love and then do what thy will”, life is a simple as that. ....... 🡺
 
Aristotle the philosopher of virtue and moderation, the world needs more Aristotle. ….. “Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all” .   This is the essence of Shakespeare and Santayana in my opinion. 🡺
 
And last but not least, Albert Einstein the rebel with a cause! …..“ I have only two rules, which I regard as principles of conduct, the first is to have no rules, the second is to be independent of the opinion of others”. 
The next quote I feel is a good one to end on . …..“ there comes a point in your life when you need to stop reading other people’s books and write your own”.  this reminds me, of the Irish/British existentialist author Iris Murdoch, who said man is a creature who draws pictures and then becomes those pictures. I feel our challenge in the era we live in “ is to draw our own pictures and become those pictures .  🡺 
 
“thank you very much”.