Philosophy as a Way of Life

By Pierre Hadot ,

Book cover of Philosophy as a Way of Life: Spiritual Exercises from Socrates to Foucault

Book description

This book presents a history of spiritual exercises from Socrates to early Christianity, an account of their decline in modern philosophy, and a discussion of the different conceptions of philosophy that have accompanied the trajectory and fate of the theory and practice of spiritual exercises. Hadota s book demonstrates the…

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Why read it?

3 authors picked Philosophy as a Way of Life as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Hadot’s book was a rare confirmation for me of an alternate approach to ancient philosophy. My earlier work on ancient sceptics had led me to appreciate the centrality of personal therapy aimed towards peace of mind. Hadot persuasively demonstrates that this was, in fact, the aim of virtually all ancient Greek philosophy.

Modern philosophers have presumed that the ancients, like themselves, are engaged in an objective search for truth. Hadot shows that philosophers from Plato and Aristotle, Epicureans and Stoics, to Plotinus and St. Augustine, focused not on truth but on easing pain and suffering through a variety of therapeutic…

From Adrian's list on reinventing philosophy.

Not many philosophers receive lots of letters from readers telling them they have changed their lives. But Pierre Hadot, the French philosopher and classicist, did.

Almost singlehandedly, he revived the understanding of ancient philosophy as a way of life—a practice for ordinary people to live better and more flourishing lives. His work is the best combination of serious scholarship and human purpose I know of.

From Alexandre's list on politics and the good life.

I simply had to include one of philosopher Pierre Hadot’s wise and weighty books on Stoic philosophy. The subject matter of this book is centered on Stoic thought, but draws on, compares, and contrasts Stoic ideas with other foundational ideas in ancient and more modern philosophy. The key theme, as the title suggests, is that philosophy’s highest calling is as a way to transform and improve the way one actually lives one’s life. While including chapters on Aurelius, and on Socrates, (a highly respected pre-Stoic inspiration to the Stoics), another main emphasis is on how Stoic practices serve as “spiritual…

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