Philosophy Articles
with John Driggs
In John’s collection of Philosophy writings, he explores epistemology, moral and political philosophy, metaphysics, consciousness, and Buddhism.
Western Philosophy…
“Failures of Ultimate Explanation”
The earliest Greek philosophers didn’t really ask ‘what is?’ questions. Rather than quibble over the meaning of words, they tried to solve specific problems by creating bold explanatory theories…
“Plato’s Moral Tyranny”
Only you, the individual, can decide whether a behavior, norm, or institution is right or wrong. It is your burden and yours alone. You can’t shift it to god, nature, history, or even to society, because whatever…
“The Impulse for Freedom”
Before cultures clashed, our social behaviors — rituals and traditions — would have seemed as natural as the seasons: each controlled by the gods, or nature. So, there wasn’t really reason to question…
“Contrast & Conserve”
Anaximander therefore postulated a metaphysical non-thing called the apeiron— or the unbounded; something akin to the conservation of the whole, something akin to the equal sign in mathematics, akin to…
“Poetic Imagination”
I hope at least once in your life you’ve seen the Milky Way. The brushstroke of glimmering white light that cuts through the heavens is breathtaking. And to imagine, before all the light and carbon…
“Carving Knowledge from Our Imaginations”
Every civilization throughout history has created a dogmatic school whose main task is to pass on the doctrine of its founder intact to each generation. In the rare…
“Copernican Revolution”
The Dark Ages was marked by an authoritative and pessimistic theory of knowledge. The Catholic Church, under the spell of Plato, held a monopoly on truth, which stripped people of their freedom…
“How do You Know”
What do I know? How do I know? What is knowledge? How is it created? How does it grow or evolve? Can knowledge ever be demonstrated, proved, or justified as True, with a capital T?…
“Who Decides Good & Evil”
Can we better understand our own morality? Can we make objective claims about our behaviors, norms, and institutions? Is there anything like moral progress? How can we be sure?…
“Scientific Revolution”
The Scientific Revolution began after the fall of Constantinople, when scholars migrated to Italy, bringing with them what ancient writings had survived. This sparked a new optimism as people rediscovered Greek philosophy…
“What is Science?”
Science is an evolution from the ancient Greeks, beginning with Thales of Miletus, who invented the Ionian Tradition, a tradition of reason. Science, since Karl Popper, now requires an empirically refutable theory…
“as a Matter of fact”
What is matter? Whatever words we use to define matter must, in turn, be defined by more words, which is circular. Plus, quantum theory shows us that what we thought is matter is no longer stable….
“Power of Belief”
It’s spring in Salt Lake City. I’ve been writing at my desk all day and my back’s painfully aware. I glance out the window and see that the morning’s storm has washed out the pollution and left a soft blue sky….
“In Defense of Freedom”
There is so much misinformation in the world right now, it’s hard to navigate it skillfully, with full awareness and clear comprehension. Journalism have been reduced to populism, virtue-signaling, and identity politics….
“The Realist”
When I reflect back on my life to understand what has motivated me most, it is without a doubt truth; a commitment to reality. I am a realist in every sense of the word. It’s expressed in my art, in my writing…
Eastern Philosophy…
“What is Mindfulness”
Mindfulness practice is currently a fad in the West. And that’s wonderful — it’s great that, as a culture, we’re promoting more mindfulness and less mindlessness. But with its surge in popularity, there has also been a lot…
“The Art of Bare Attention”
Today we’re going to talk about the ancient Buddhist practice vipassana, or insight meditation. Now, just to be clear, this is an entirely secular practice. It doesn’t require you to adopt any dogmatic beliefs…
“The Faceless Seer”
Because “I” can’t be removed from you, because it’s essential to you, only you can investigate it for yourself. So, go ahead, take a look. What is this thing you call “I”? Where is it? What is it like? What is its nature?…
“The Four Noble Truths”
The Buddha taught only suffering and its end, which is expressed in the Four Noble Truths — the indispensable foundation embraced by all Buddhist traditions and lineages, no matter how far their metaphysics…
“The Noble Eightfold Path”
Dharma practice, then, asks us to live in peace and harmony with the Dharma. Together, the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path form an indivisible whole called the Dharma, or Truth, Law, Nature, Life.
“Ardor & Clear Knowing”
There are two qualities that are often overlooked in vipassana, or insight meditation. The Satipatthana Sutta tells us we need more than mindfulness on our path to awakening. We need ardor and…
“Hallucinations of Perception”
When we perceive the world without mindfulness, which is the norm for most people most of the time, then we simply know and remember only the surface appearance of things. Our experience becomes…
“Thinking Into Being”
Thought takes the seamless and interconnected whole of existence and breaks it into pieces, which can then come into relation to one another. It is in thought that ‘you’ and ‘I’ are born, where ‘you’ and…
“Stepping Into Wholeness”
As you become more mindful, I think you’ll discover that there is no space between ‘you’ and what is known—no space between ‘you’ and the person across from you, no space between you and the world…
“Touching Suffering”
Once we start to open to suffering and dis-ease in our own lives, once we become more familiar with the mind-body process and the cause of ill-being, we begin to see suffering everywhere. We realize that…
“The Morality of Harmony”
Today, we will move into the second arena of training in the Eightfold Path, training in virtue or morality, where we will choreograph our thoughts and understanding onto the world stage through our words and our bodies…
“Speaking Harmony Into Life”
Want peace of heart and mind? Are your words honest? Are they from a place of goodwill? Are they useful and beneficial? Are they thoughtful and affectionate? Is this the right time to say them?…
“Acting for Freedom”
If you want to find peace, concentration, and clarity, commit yourself to non-violence. And do this first by making it a practice to fall in love with yourself. Every morning when you wake up, extend some love and…
“Taking What is Not Given”
Non-stealing asks us to live in harmony and reciprocity with the whole of existence. Where stealing is an expression of our greed or our ego, non-stealing is the expression of our love or our non-duality…
“The Art of Balanced Effort”
What will you do with this precious gift of life? Whatever it is, you will need effort to do it. Effort is the source of all achievement. It fulfills our aspirations, breathes life into our values, and turns our intentions…
“Mindfulness & Insight”
Mindfulness is an immediate, direct, and present knowing. One that can’t be carried into the future, remembered from the past, or written in a book. It can’t be contained in thought. It is a raw or bare awareness…
“Roots & Threads | Focus”
The Buddha said a mind without focus is like a fish out of water, flipping around with no control. We need it to stick with our goals, tasks and aims, and to harmonize our words and actions with these aims…
“Wisdom Without End”
To help us navigate the landscapes of our experience with peace of heart and mind, the Buddha created a training program, made of three arenas: training in sila or moral conduct, training in cognition, and training in…
“Work-Life Harmony”
Work-life and spiritual-life can often seem like two very separate and even incompatible things. But our work is central to our lives and so it must play a significant role in our spiritual journey. For many of us, it…
“Everything Changes”
It’s no secret everything changes. Your experience this morning isn’t your experience now. Yet how many of us act like we really understand this? How often do we grasp onto the illusion of things…
“Living in Relation”
Who or what are you when everyone and everything else disappears? You and I and everything else live in relation. I cannot be without you. How does this realization affect how you relate to others?
Epistemology…
“Poetic Imagination”
I hope at least once in your life you’ve seen the Milky Way. The brushstroke of glimmering white light that cuts through the heavens is breathtaking. And to imagine, before all the light and carbon…
“Carving Knowledge from Our Imaginations”
Every civilization throughout history has created a dogmatic school whose main task is to pass on the doctrine of its founder intact to each generation. In the rare…
“Failures of Ultimate Explanation”
The earliest Greek philosophers didn’t really ask ‘what is?’ questions. Rather than quibble over the meaning of words, they tried to solve specific problems by creating bold explanatory theories…
“The Scientific Revolution”
Though it was Kepler who seemed to have best understood how knowledge is created, it was actually his mistaken contemporaries Francis Bacon (1561–1626) and René Descartes (1596–1650) who…
“What is Science?”
The scientific revolution was largely inspired by the optimistic belief that each person has the power to acquire knowledge for herself. And no doubt Bacon and Descartes were the biggest forces behind that optimism…
Moral Philosophy…
“Work-Life Harmony”
Work-life and spiritual-life can often seem like two very separate and even incompatible things. But our work is central to our lives and so it must play a significant role in our spiritual journey. For many of us, it…
“Everything Changes”
It’s no secret everything changes. Your experience this morning isn’t your experience now. Yet how many of us act like we really understand this? How often do we grasp onto the illusion of things…
“Know Your Spiritual Impulses”
What is it that shapes your very being in this world? What are those inner forces that move you with their own power? Which impulses do you typically act on? When was the last time you looked, not to your…
“Touching Suffering”
Once we start to open to suffering and dis-ease in our own lives, once we become more familiar with the mind-body process and the cause of ill-being, we begin to see suffering everywhere. We realize that…
“The Morality of Harmony”
Today, we will move into the second arena of training in the Eightfold Path, training in virtue or morality, where we will choreograph our thoughts and understanding onto the world stage through our words and our bodies…
“Speaking Harmony Into Life”
Want peace of heart and mind? Are your words honest? Are they from a place of goodwill? Are they useful and beneficial? Are they thoughtful and affectionate? Is this the right time to say them?…
“Acting for Freedom”
If you want to find peace, concentration, and clarity, commit yourself to non-violence. And do this first by making it a practice to fall in love with yourself. Every morning when you wake up, extend some love and…
“Taking What is Not Given”
Non-stealing asks us to live in harmony and reciprocity with the whole of existence. Where stealing is an expression of our greed or our ego, non-stealing is the expression of our love or our non-duality…
“Wisdom Without End”
To help us navigate the landscapes of our experience with peace of heart and mind, the Buddha created a training program, made of three arenas: training in sila or moral conduct, training in cognition, and training in…