I had spoken of my experience with books in a previous article. The article below explores some of the specific books that have helped me on my journey.
The Story of Philosophy by Will Durant – This was published in the 1920s and you can still find pirated copies being sold on the footpaths and streets of Mumbai which means that it remains a bestseller. Almost 80 years after its publication it remains a bestseller.
Eleven years of research and three years of actual writing went into the creation of The Story of Philosophy. And the results are plain to see in almost every page. Will Durant’s passion and love for philosophy is infectious. If you finish the first chapter – on Plato – you will want to read it to the end. And once having finished you will want to read and re-read repeatedly.
Will Durant will infect you with his passion. It will change your perspective, your sense of values, and your sense of what is important in life. And it is easy reading. Will Durant describes not only the thoughts of the great philosophers but the lives of the philosophers themselves. It is not just philosophy but also biographical sketches on how the philosophers lived their lives.
The only drawback to this book is its title. This is not the story of philosophy as such but only the story of western philosophy. Eastern philosophy is nowhere in the picture. Durant makes this plain in the introduction and in any case this is nit-picking over trifles.
There are many sentences and passages in this book that are enough to transform your life if you take them seriously. Giving an example from my own life, consider this quotation from Bertrand Russell on China on pages 485 – 86:
“…in many ways China is the greatest country I have ever seen. It is not only the greatest numerically and the greatest culturally but it seems to me to be the greatest intellectually. I know of no other civilization where there is such open mindedness, such realism and such a willingness to face facts as they are instead of trying to distort them into a particular pattern.”
Bertrand Russell I respect and admire. He has probably influenced and inspired me more than any other person that I have met through books and these comments by him got me going. First it triggered of an interest in China and its culture and that itself is enough to transform anybody’s life dramatically for the better.
Second and just as important, these comments cured me of positive thinking. I had read and been much influenced by Norman Vincent Peale and his ridiculous book, The Power of Positive Thinking, when I was young. Russell’s comments were enough to give me fresh direction. Positive thinking is a curse. Having an optimistic attitude is a blessing but it must come naturally. Trying to think positively and forcing yourself to be optimistic does you only harm and no good at all.
Consider again the sentence, “I know of no other civilization where there is such open mindedness, such realism and such a willingness to face facts as they are instead of trying to distort them into a particular pattern.”
Life is battle for survival and you must know yourself and know the enemy if you are to have any chance of surviving and retaining your sanity. Face facts as they are, however unpleasant, without flinching. Both about yourself and about your spouse, your family, your community, your country, the world, about anything and everything. According to Sun Tzu – “If you know yourself and know the enemy you need not fear the results of a hundred battles.”
This one sentence by Russell that I have quoted twice above will enable you not to fear the results of a hundred battles. But you must make it a part of your life. You must train yourself to think clearly.
As to how to think clearly I would recommend Edward De Bono’s books and a lot of other reading. De Bono’s Six Thinking Hats is particularly good and so is Practical Thinking
Find yourself some books and authors that you like and read and re-read them repeatedly. Make these books a part of your being; have them influence your thoughts and way of looking at the world naturally and imperceptibly. For my part I have used Bertrand Russell and the novels of Dick Francis but almost any of classics of English literature will do. Read and re- read repeatedly. Make them a part of your being. Then – especially with Edward De Bono for further guidance – you should do fine.
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