The Wisdom Of podcast explores great works of literature, the sort of works from which much insight and wisdom can be drawn. We explore themes from happiness, to love, to authenticity and to tragedy.
The Wisdom of With Kristian Urstad by Avant-Garde Productions
Man makes religion, religion does not make man, says the German philosopher Feuerbach. Karl Marx agrees. But why do we do this, and should we? Find out more!
You want lasting joy and fulfillment in your life? Then strive for excellence and competency! Or so argues Aristotle.
What is the universe without human consciousness? Strangely, not much! Or so I argue!
We prefer machines to people and mechanical precision to messy human qualities. What is this but our love of death over life! Or so argue Byung-Chul Han and Erich Fromm!
Aristotle and Kant argue for two very different ethical outlooks. I definitely prefer one to the other!
We live in an age increasingly dominated by black and white thinking. When we leave no room for the complexity and ambiguity of reality, the outcome is going to be perilous.
The French philosopher Montaigne made the exploration of selfhood the most important thing in his life. How does his project compare to today's version of self-fashioning?
Beneath today's trend of optimizing everything lies some deep philosophical and existential problems.
Ahead of their age, awaiting ours: Kierkegaard, Schopenhauer, and Nietzsche!
Our growing distrust of expertise and of universities is terminally stupid. We will all pay the price.
Abstract time and space sever our ties to place, rhythm, and responsibility! Or so argues the philosopher and ecologist, David Abram!
When religion becomes shallow it's no longer truly religion. Many philosophers have warned us of this, of religion being reduced to self-serving functions.
The American psychologist argued that before modern consciousness, we heard and obeyed the voices of the gods. With AI, is it any different today?
We've set a bleak precedent for what's to come.
Cicero and Simone de Beauvoir offer us two very different visions of growing old and the philosophy of aging!
Living an Edenic existence fails to give us what we truly need and want: namely, responsibility, love and meaning!
According to Han, we live in a culture of constant self-exposure and exhibition. And, despite what we think, it makes us flat, banal and powerless!
We walk in the shadows we cast. Let's be the architects of a better future.
This is the famous last line in one of Beckett's novels. But it's not just a last line, it's a credo for human existence!
We treat melancholy as a pathology, something to be cured or eradicated. But we've lost sight of it's real value!
Socrates doesn't just undermine his interlocutors, Plato undermines us! Or so argues the contemporary philosopher Alexander Nehamas!
They all gushed over Nero, and they're no different today! It's all very embarrassing and sad.
Woman in the Dunes is a 1964 Japanese film directed by Hiroshi Teshigahara. It's about a guy who gets trapped in a sandpit and has to keep shovelling sand to stay alive! It's a repetitive and futile situation! Ring any bells?
In our age of digitization, our sense of touch has clearly been demoted. For thinkers like Aristotle and Nietzsche, the cost is enormous!
The German philosopher Schopenhauer believed that compassion was the true foundation of morality. It worked best when it came to his dogs!
Why are we not like rocks or cabbage? Because there's a hole or fissure at the heart of our being! Or so says the French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre!
The value of gold used to be largely symbolic. The Gold Rush marks a complete philosophical turning point when it comes to the perceived value of gold! And I think Jung and Heidegger would agree!
Star Wars and Star Trek: Which of these is more philosophically interesting? And which of these two universes would you want to live in? I got my answer!
Han thinks there's a deep existential hollowness lurking beneath the shiny veneer and the noise of modern life. He attributes this to many things about our contemporary society. Find out more!
Is ASMR just some superficial Youtube phenomenon? Or is there something important and deep behind its popularity? Find out more!
On the surface, being a moral saint sounds like a great thing. But, not so fast! The contemporary philosopher Susan Wolf doesn't think so. And both Dostoevsky and Camus have their own concerns about thinking of yourself as morally pure! Find out more!
In our attention-economy wisdom has now become content - ready-made for monetization! Socrates warned against this trend long ago!
These ancient philosophers argued that physical toughness was a discipline essential to happiness. Relevant for us today? I think so! If interested, check out my new book series! The second book is available now! www.amazon.com/Manifesto-Beauty-Reclaim-Digital-World/dp/1069510815/
Nietzsche tells us that one must LEARN to love. That might sound a bit odd to us. What does he mean and why is it important? Find out more! If interested, check out my new book series! Here's the first one: A Manifest on Beauty: Reclaim Real Beauty in a Digital Agewww.amazon.com/Manifesto-Beauty-Reclaim-Digital-World/dp/1069510815/
Does astrology make any sense? And if not, why do we still believe in it? If interested, check out my new book series! Here's the first one: A Manifest on Beauty: Reclaim Real Beauty in a Digital Agewww.amazon.com/Manifesto-Beauty-Reclaim-Digital-World/dp/1069510815/
What's wrong with hypocrisy? Well, Jesus and Jean-Jacques Rousseau agree on at least one thing that's wrong with it! f interested, check out my new book series! Here's the first one: A Manifest on Beauty: Reclaim Real Beauty in a Digital Agewww.amazon.com/Manifesto-Beauty-Reclaim-Digital-World/dp/1069510815/
The distinguished historian Will Durant published a book where he ranked the greatest thinkers ever! See who made the list! If interested, check out my new book series! Here's the first one: A Manifest on Beauty: Reclaim Real Beauty in a Digital Agewww.amazon.com/Manifesto-Beauty-Reclaim-Digital-World/dp/1069510815/
The French philosopher Bergson criticized the scientific notion of time, instead turning to what he called lived time. Find out more! -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------If interested, check out my new book series! Here's the first one: A Manifest on Beauty: Reclaim Real Beauty in a Digital Agewww.amazon.com/Manifesto-Beauty-Reclaim-Digital-World/dp/1069510815/
If interested, check out my new book series! Here's the first one: www.amazon.com/Manifesto-Beauty-Reclaim-Digital-World/dp/1069510815/ The full title is: A Manifest on Beauty: Reclaim Real Beauty in a Digital Age
If I could time travel anywhere, I'd skip the big battles and royal balls. Drop me in a smoky café in 1940s Paris—existentialism, espresso, and all! If you're not convinced, take a listen!
How should we meet death? With rage! Or so says the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas! And he's not the only one! Find out more!
What would Kafka think about our attention economy today? And what about the state of our art? Find out more!
Naomi Klein, the Canadian author and social activist, argues for what she sees as the apocalyptic mindset of the far Right. Along with Klein, I offer up a few of my own concerns!
So as we all know, there's the popular or cliched idea that we should be “nonjudgmental”. But by and large, I don't think that's right!
Send us a textThe philosopher Theodor Adorno lays a powerful groundwork for thinking ethically about animals! Find out more!
Send us a textHumour can have real revolutionary force! Ask the philosopher Mikhail Bakhtin. Let's keep laughing at the powerful. It will work!
Send us a textThese giants of literature, they're often viewed as similar from afar. But they're not. Especially when it comes to how they see the human soul and the road to salvation!
Send us a textIn our world of more and faster and louder, we might do well to remember that less is often more! Just ask Miles!
Send us a textThe love letter has become an extinct species! This is a symptom of a much larger problem - at least according to Heidegger!
Send us a textIs human well-being and flourishing really all about detachment? I would argue, no!
Send us a textModern beauty has become tepid and smooth. It lacks the depth and friction and power of genuine beauty! Or so say Han and Plato!
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