The Philosopher's school
A saying by Musonius Rufus
Today, I want to share with you one of my favourite sayings attributed to the Roman stoic Musonius Rufus.
“The philosopher’s school is a doctor’s office. You must leave not pleased, but pained, because you do not come in healthy.”
(Musonius Rufus, Lectures and Sayings.)
For Rufus, philosophy is the pursuit of the ideal of a life lived according to reason. That is, according to Stoic doctrine, a life lived according to nature. It is through reason that we can gain insight in to the natural way of living, and hence, reason can serve as a guide to live a life that is more in harmony with nature. Philosophy is nothing but the practice of attaining this end —living and thinking in accordance with nature —, to the most intense degree.
As human beings however, more often than not, we don’t live in harmony with nature. We don’t follow nature, rather, we follow our own opinions, opinions which often diverge from nature. And what diverges from nature, can never lead to anything good. As it is with the body —when we refrain from living in accordance with nature, our bodies get sick—, so it is with the soul, —when we refrain from living in accordance with nature or reason, our soul gets sick.
Philosophy is then the practice meant to remind us of reason, and to spur us on to live in accordance with it. Philosophy is a therapy, —the treatment of the soul through reason. And this leads Rufus to say, that when one listens to a philosopher, one should not feel pleased, as one would when watching a movie, or listening to music. Rather, one should feel pained. For the opinions one holds that are against nature, and according to which one lives, these opinions should be harmed by the reason spoken by the philosopher. The degree to which we enjoy a philosopher’s thoughts is no measure of the greatness of the philosopher. Rather, the degree to which the philosopher confronts us with ourselves, and to parts of us in which we are lacking, this is the true measure of a philosopher. It is the degree to which the philosopher is able to purify us, and before purification can take place, we must first come face to face with what needs to be purified. A confrontation, often accompanied with pain.
Speaking the voice of reason, the philosopher confronts us with the sick parts of our soul, and we leave his office not pleased, but pained. So that we may eventually be purified, and regain a way of life in harmony with nature.