"Practical wisdom helps us act well, but the highest wisdom is about understanding the deeper meaning of life.
Saying practical wisdom is more important than philosophy would be like saying a political leader is greater than the gods just because they make decisions for people. That would be a mistake.
Both practical wisdom and philosophical wisdom hold great value. Practical wisdom helps us make good choices. Philosophical wisdom shows us the deeper truths of life."
-The Nichomachean Ethics - For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 104
"Socrates, the philosopher, believed that virtues like kindness and bravery are forms of wisdom. But he wasn’t completely right—virtues aren’t just knowledge; they must be used wisely.
This is why:
• A person cannot be truly good without wisdom.
• A person cannot be truly wise without goodness.
They go hand in hand."
-The Nichomachean Ethics - For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 103
I wrote a petition on change.org today to incentivize Congress to pass a budget on time and without increasing the national debt.
Check it out at:
Change.org
Sign the Petition
Budget Reform Act
"Why does practical wisdom seem more important in daily life if philosophy is greater? The answer is simple:
Both types of wisdom are important.
• Practical wisdom helps us not just understand what is good, but actually do good things.
• Wisdom is about living rightly, not just knowing what is right."
-The Nichomachean Ethics - For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 101
"Good decisions are different from science. Science seeks fixed truths, but decisions must adapt to changing situations. It is not the same as guessing, because good decisions require time and thought, while guesses are often quick and random.
There are different kinds of correct thinking, but not all of them lead to wise decisions:
• A clever but selfish person might plan something harmful very well. Even though their thinking is correct, they are not using wisdom for good.
• A person might make the right choice but for the wrong reasons. This is still not true wisdom.
• Someone might think too long about a simple choice. True wisdom is about knowing the right thing to do, at the right time, in the right way."
-The Nichomachean Ethics - For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg.100-101
“Philosophic wisdom is the highest kind of wisdom because it combines:
1 Scientific knowledge – Knowing universal truths.
2 Intuitive reason – Understanding first principles.
Philosophic wisdom aims to grasp the biggest, most important truths.
Anaxagoras and Thales were called wise. This wasn't due to practicality. Instead, they grasped deep, complex truths about the universe.
However, philosophic wisdom is not the same as practical wisdom.
• Philosophic wisdom seeks knowledge for its own sake.
• Practical wisdom helps us make good choices in life.”
-The Nichomachean Ethics - For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 98
