(2005). Letter to the Editor. Philosophical Practice: Vol. 1, No. 2, pp. 75-76.

The paper discusses the manner and extent to which Epicurean ethics can serve as a general philosophy of life, capable of supporting philosophical practice in the form of philosophical counseling. Unlike the modern age academic philosophy, the philosophical practice movement portrays the philosopher as a personal or corporate adviser, one who helps people make sense of their experiences and find optimum solutions within the context of their values and general preferences. Philosophical counseling may rest on almost any school of philosophy, (...) ranging — in the Western tradition from Platonism to the philosophy of language or logic. While any specialist school of philosophy may serve valuable purposes by elucidating specific aspects of one’s experiences and directing future action, the more ‘generalist’ the philosophy used as the basis for counseling is, the broader and more far-reaching its potential impact on the person undergoing counseling. Epicurean ethics is a prime example of a philosophy of life that is suitable for philosophical counseling today. Its closer examination reveals that, contrary to superficial opinion, it is not opposed to Stoicism and may in fact incorporate Stoicism and its antecedent virtues (including many Christian virtues) in a simple yet comprehensive practical system of directions for modern counseling. (shrink)

Contributions of Pierre Hadot pertaining to the notion of philosophy as a way of life have had a profound and enduring influence upon philosophical counselling theory and practice. Various philosophical counsellors, such as Robert Walsh and Arto Tukiainen, have embraced this imperative by living their philosophical counselling practice. Nonetheless, a prevailing trend among these practitioners lies in their exclusive reliance upon either the ancient Greek philosophical tradition as expounded by Hadot, or in their adaptation of contemporary Western philosophies. Regrettably, a (...) conspicuous omission prevails with respect to the incorporation of contemporary African philosophies, notably their philosophical praxes as a way of life/living, within the discourse of contemporary philosophical counselling. The integration of African philosophies into the discourse of philosophical counselling literature holds significant promise, particularly concerning the potential to impact ways of living within a Southern African context. Within the wider landscape of contemporary African philosophy, certain authors have already conceptualised ubuntu philosophy as a way of life/living. This talk, notwithstanding, undertakes to introduce two different African philosophies, namely, hermeneutic African philosophy and conversational philosophy. A novel interpretation of these philosophies will be advanced, positioning them as praxes for philosophical counselling. Emphasis is placed on an interpretative actualisation in response to lived experiences, contextualised within a conversational framework. The implications for philosophical counselling are threefold: firstly, the disclosing of alternative ways of life/living and being/becoming, along with the creation of new concepts; secondly, a profound accentuation of the relational dimension in philosophical counselling, underscored by the notion of collaborative philosophising that emerges from the dynamic interaction between the philosophical counsellor and the counselee; thirdly, a reworked understanding of philosophical counselling that moves beyond methodological constraints while embracing the transformative potential of reflective, creative, and critical conversations. (shrink)

Desire is an important philosophical topic that deeply impacts everyday life. Philosophical practice is an emerging trend that uses philosophical theories and methods as a guide to living a eu‐ daimonic life. In this paper, we define desire philosophically and compare different theories of desire in specific Eastern and Western traditions. Based on the Lacanian conceptual–terminological triad of “Need‐Demand‐Desire”, the research of desire is further divided into three dimensions, namely, the subject of desire, the object of desire, and the desire (...) itself. The concept of desire is then an‐ alyzed from this triad and these three dimensions through different philosophical theories. This paper selects Buddhism as the representative of Eastern tradition, and Stoicism as the representative of the West, paying special attention to Stoicism’s “spiritual exercises” following Pierre Hadot. By exploring and comparing the Buddhist paths to liberation from suffering (i.e., the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path) and the two theoretical pillars in Stoicism (i.e., the notions of “living according to nature” and “the dichotomy of control”), practical guidance is then provided for un‐ derstanding and regulating desire in times of crisis. This understanding and regulation of desire constitutes a philosophical therapy for today’s troubles, particularly those caused by excessive or irrational desires. (shrink)

Moral distress is a well-documented phenomenon in the nursing profession, and increasingly thought to be implicated in a nation-wide nursing shortage in the US. First identified by the philosopher Andrew Jameton in 1984, moral distress has also proven resistant to various attempts to prevent its occurrence or at least mitigate its effects. While this would seem to be bad news for nurses and their patients, it is potentially good news for philosophical counselors, for whom there is both socially important and (...) philosophically interesting work to be done. In an effort to encourage such work, this paper explicates the philosophical (as opposed to more purely psychological or institutional) contours of the problem. A subsequent paper, titled 'A Philosophical Counseling Approach to Moral Distress,' will highlight ways in which such a response would differ from the strategies so far deployed within the nursing profession. (shrink)

Method in philosophical counselling is still a contentious topic. That is, there is no consensus on whether the philosophical counsellor should have a method in her practice to help the counsellee resolve philosophical problems. Some philosophical counsellors claim that there should not be any rigid adherence to method(s) as this will render philosophy too dogmatic. Philosophical counselling, in light of this view, promotes a kind of mutual philosophising sans definite goal with the counsellee. What I call "dissentient philosophical counselling" takes (...) this claim even further: the philosophical counsellor lives/practices her philosophical counselling, that is, she embodies and practices philosophy as a way of life. This view is posed as a response to contemporary conceptualisations of philosophical counselling where the philosophical counsellor might stand in a disembodied relationship with her method(s) and tries to have a conversation "from nowhere". Dissentient philosophical counselling, even though more focused on living philosophically , still suffers from certain shortcomings. In this paper, I firstly showcase how even the seemingly innocuous but important question "How might one live?" suffers from a lack of much needed nuance. And secondly, I introduce, via a fictional narrative, a provisional way of practicing this reworked dissentient philosophical counselling. I do this by, firstly, introducing African conversational philosophy, via its method of conversationalism, and secondly, I introduce a peculiar version of Pyrrhonian scepticism especially regarding the notion of bios adoxastōs (life without dogma). (shrink)

Este trabajo analiza el problema de la lectura, interpretación y comprensión detextos bajo la perspectiva de una doble ver tiente: como un recurso metodológico de la enseñanza de la filosofía y como un criterio hermenéutico del acompañamiento o asesoramiento individual. Desde la consideración de la semiótica de la recepción de Umberto Eco y la hermenéutic a filosófica de Hans-Georg Gadamer, propondremos las líneas generales que pudieran comunicar la dimensión didáctica y práctica del fenómeno de la lectura orientada a la comprensión. (...) This paper analyzes the problem of reading, interpretation and comprehensionof texts under a double perspective: as a methodological resource for the teaching of philosophy and as a hermeneutical approach of accompaniment or individual counseling. From the consideration of the Umberto Eco’s semiotics of reception and the Hans-Georg Gadamer’s philosophical hermeneutics, we’ll propose the general guidelines which could communicated didactic and practical dimension of the phenomena of reading aimed at understanding. (shrink)

The article poses three questions relating to the self-definition of philosophical counselling: 1. Is it an alternative to psychological and psychotherapeutic approaches? 2. What is the therapeutic nature of philosophical counselling? 3. Is it contemplation or critical reasoning? The first part introduces some examples of the concepts that sharply distinguish philosophical counselling from psychological and psychotherapeutic approaches. It also considers those that mix these different approaches. The second part deals with the question of whether or not philosophical counselling can be (...) considered to be a therapy. Some philosophical counsellors work on the belief that there is a synchrony between modern philosophical counselling and the classical conception of philosophy as therapy. Many, however, are of the opinion that it is not possible to speak of it in terms of therapy. The third part gives examples of the way in which philosophical counselling is understood to be contemplation and on the other hand of those who employ approaches based on critical thinking in philosophical counselling. (shrink)

Philosophical counseling proves to be today among the most complex intervention forms in the postmodern individual’s daily life. Aurel Codoban, existential stylist, proposes a way to interpret and act in the existential field. He starts from the premise that philosophy must propose a way of life. He takes on a philosophical practice that builds an ontology of detail in which the fundamental element in the human condition definition is no longer rationality but desire. As existential stylist, the philosopher elicits in (...) his analyses the benefits of philosophical counseling on the love-desire relationship in the context of transformations in individuals’ lives along five dimensions as an existential datum of the human being: physical, social, personal, spiritual and religious. In this context, love as a cognition instrument denotes the way postmoderns use the resources of desire for personal development, alterity cultivation, and subject instituting as relational reality. Bringing together erotic desire and the desire for transcendence, love proves to be a transfiguring force in the postmodern world, even if some of the forms we used to associate to love are blurred or metamorphosed. (shrink)

The article looks at critical thinking in philosophical counselling and the concepts upon which it is based. In conceptions that place critical thinking as the basis of philosophical counselling, an important role is played by the Socratic approach to philosophising. The Socratic method in thinking allocates a fundamental role to conversation, and thus to intersubjectivity, and is therefore an alternative to individual ways of thinking. Conversation as philosophical reflection corresponds to the Socratic intersubjective understanding of truth. The author adopts the (...) view of German philosopher H. Schnädelbach who distinguishes between dialogic and doctrinal approaches. The dialogic approach is found in the Socratic-Platonic tradition, while the doctrinal approach is found in Aristotelean approaches. Doctrinal philosophising is premised in the ideal of intersubjectivity which can be achieved by anyone. Philosophical thought as reflection is always implicitly dialogic at the very least. The article considers definitions of critical thinking and provides examples of critical thinking based philosophical counselling from the thinking of Tim LeBon and Elliot D. Cohen, which link both philosophical and psychological approaches. In conclusion it is critical of an excessive focus on rationality in counselling. (shrink)

Various approaches and methods are used in philosophical counselling. Two main trends can be observed: the first is the use of contemplative methods and the second constitutes approaches based on dialogical critical thinking. The author defends the idea that developing philosophical counselling on the basis of critical thinking presupposes that it is possible for counsellor and client to hold a philosophical dialogue where the relationship is one of expert/lay person. J. Šulavík has described this relationship in greater detail. In the (...) Socratic model, the philosopher and the lay person hold a dialogue whereby they ascertain opinions via inductive comparison and by defining things, creating a shared concept. While the Platonic and Enlightenment models were grounded in the authority of the expert philosopher, in the Socratic and postmodern models, the expert philosopher loses the power to manipulate those who know “less”. Lay people are not passive consumers of a particular “optimal” philosophy but through their own “philosophising” create philosophy and tailor it for themselves. While philosophising, therefore, the philosopher does not take on the role of “producer” of philosophy but of “adviser” (consultant). It is therefore supposed that people have a general need for philosophy and that ultimately they should create and reflect upon their own philosophy. (shrink)

Business leaders frequently face dilemmas, circumstances where whatever course of action they choose, something of important value will be offended. How can an organisation prepare its decision makers for such situations? This article presents a pedagogical approach to dilemma training for business leaders and managers. It has evolved through ten years of experience with human resource development, where ethics has been an integral part of programs designed to help individuals to become excellent in their professional roles. The core element in (...) our approach is The Navigation Wheel, a figure used to keep track of relevant decision factors. Feedback from participants indicates that dilemma training has helped them to recognise the ethical dimension of leadership. They respond that the tools and concepts are highly relevant in relation to the challenges that occur in the working environment they return to after leadership training. (shrink)

Ova filozofska analiza psihoterapijskih pristupa temelji se na tezi o znanstvenolikosti životne filozofije. Filozofija života je koncept koji je prisutan u svakoj važnijoj psihoterapiji, bilo na jasan bilo na implicitan način. Rabili smo nekoliko načina istraživanja filozofske pozadine psihoterapija: povijesnu i konceptualnu analizu, dvofaktorski model ontološko-epistemološkog prostora, socijalne mreže i filozofske škole i njihov utjecaj na povijest psihologije, te neke specifične probleme iz područja filozofije znanosti. U završnom odjeljku smo analizirali pokret filozofskog savjetovanja. Istražili smo njegove značajke, te poveznice s (...) psihoterapijom.This philosophical analysis of psychotherapeutic approaches is based upon thesis of scientific character of one’s philosophy of life. Notion of philosophy of life is present in each major psychotherapeutic approach, in either explicit or implicit matter.Modes of philosophical inquiry include historical and concept analysis, two factor model of ontological-epistemological space, social networks in the philosophical schools and their impact on the history of psychology, and some specific issues in the philosophy of science.Finally, philosophical counseling movement is examined. What is typical for this movement and what sort of connections does it have with psychotherapy is covered. (shrink)