Studying Philosophy

Quoting Abeills

I know that studying philosophy is no game even though it might seem so, reason why I am curious how you started studying it

It's really the only thing that truly gives me an enduring sense of satisfaction and fulfillment, other than close friends and family. I came across it sort of by accident and almost instantly knew this is what I wanted to do with my life (which, unfortunately, I am not currently doing).

Quoting Abeills

or if any of you has any schedule regarding this

Basically I just read or "do" philosophy when I have the time, which is becoming increasingly difficult to find.

Studying philosophy just doesn't seem to fit into my schedule.

My own studies are rather haphazard. I just read and study what I like. I have found it useful to learn what I can about the history of philosophy. This podcast has helped.
MOOCs are also a great resource.

The trick with studying philosophy is that you actually have to practice it in some way - that is, write out or even just hash out arguments in a way that you yourself can follow. It's not enough to read and recite what Descartes said, in other words: you need to be able to explain to yourself not just what he said, but why he said it. Even more productive is doing comparative analysis: hashing out two different positions on an issue and examining the motivations and concerns that underlie each. In every case you're going to have to do some writing or some 'work' beyond merely absorbing what the position itself merely says. You need to be able to explain - to yourself, ideally - what is at stake in a position.

Do this over and over again, and you'll start to figure the whole thing out eventually. Also, read everything - like your life depends on it.

do not study philosophy. do something more interesting / worthwhile.

Reply to Abeills One can study academic philosophy by reading books over and over and over again. This is sufficient for such an endeavor. However, this is not studying philosophy in the sense of achieving greater personal, experiential insight into the nature of nature. To do this, one needs to experience all aspects of life during their life. For myself, I have found that studying the arts as well as various sports have given be new eyes, but so has everyday interactions with humans in and out of work. All fields of study have influenced me including psychology, physics, literature, history, etc.

It is literally one's lifetime journey and one becomes more skilled as one learns.

Abeills:I know that studying philosophy is no game even though it might seem so...

It never seemed like a game to me; blood sport, yes.

Abeills:Any tips about comprehending concepts and playing with them would help me!

Neural atypicality seems to be an advantage.

Quoting The Great Whatever

do not study philosophy. do something more interesting / worthwhile.

I feel like what happens a lot when people study philosophy is that they don't actually really learn anything, but somewhere along the line they get this idea that not knowing anything is actually a virtue and then they become arrogant douchebags. Philosophy, studied by itself and only itself, probably turns people into assholes who have to compensate for their lack of any real knowledge by being an asshole.

I suppose the main reason why I continue to study philosophy is because I find most everything else to be boring. Philosophy is pretty silly all things considered but at least it's interesting, to me at least. But I'm also kind of an asshole sometimes too so maybe I should go on a diet.

Quoting Abeills

Any tips about comprehending concepts and playing with them would help me!

Read and think very slowly. Reject the schizophrenic and hasty reading habits of modern people. Set at least 1-2 hours aside everyday for serious and solitary study. Make this habit religious, do not skip even one day. Begin with approachable works like Plato's dialogues or Boethius' Consolations of Philosophy or Descartes' Meditations. Do not go to Aquinas, or Kant, or Leibniz just yet. Finally, order your life towards virtue - because a life of vice, intemperance, and heated passion destroys ones ability to seriously contemplate and rationally calculate.

Reply to The Great Whatever im sorry this is nonsense

Quoting The Great Whatever

do not study philosophy. do something more interesting / worthwhile.

Well the second bit is good. Some science, some maths some psychology, some geography some politics, some religion, some sport; by all means put some meat on the bones as well as picking them over.

Quoting Abeills

Hello! I am a philosophy student who is passionate at this point about each field. I know that studying philosophy is no game even though it might seem so, reason why I am curious how you started studying it or if any of you has any schedule regarding this :)
Any tips about comprehending concepts and playing with them would help me! Thank you.

I have only been studying philosophy in my 60's. I think following your nose is quite a good way to get going. I started that way, then I went to college, where they made me initially scrutinise something Ancient and something Logical. I realize these are two good starting points, and they certainly enable you to hold your own when people start knowledgeably bandying about things that look like equations with ? in them, or quoting concepts that they say can only really be understood in the original Greek.

Now I have wandered off into the philosophy of emotions and mood, which nobody here is much interested in because they're mostly Very Logical Chaps, in between wondering whether there is time for me to rewrite the philosophy of language from scratch (it's important to have a barmy but obsessive project of one's own, I think).

Philosophy can become more meaningful if you combine it with meditation practice. Seek out the noblest and most sublime ideas and meditate on them. Studying philosophy should result in a sense of joy and liberation.

Quoting Abeills

Any tips about comprehending concepts and playing with them would help me! Thank you.

The trial of Socrates is pretty amazing. It's not complex reading and it touches on some pretty deep concepts.