Is Death Bad for You?

We all believe that death is bad. But why is death bad?

“The Bird And The Cage” by Paulo Coelho

“Once upon a time, there was a bird. He was adorned with two perfect wings and with glossy, colorful, marvelous feathers. One day, a woman saw this bird and fell in love with him. She invited the bird to fly with her, and the two travelled across the sky in perfect harmony. She admired and venerated and celebrated that bird.

A Japanese Proverb: “A Teaching on Heaven and Hell”

“The old monk sat by the side of the road. With his eyes closed, his legs crossed and his hands folded in his lap, he sat. In deep meditation, he sat. Suddenly his meditation was interrupted by the harsh and demanding voice of a samurai warrior. “Old man! Teach me about heaven and hell!”

The Seed

In the Far East the emperor was growing old and knew it was time to choose his successor. Instead of choosing one of his assistants or his children, he decided to do something different. He called young people in the kingdom together one day.

The circle of 99

Once upon a time it was a king, he was rich, powerful, had a lovely palace, delicious food every day, beautiful wives and he could have whatever he wanted. Despite these, he was unhappy.

The secret of happiness – a Parable

A merchant sent his son to learn the Secret of Happiness from the wisest of men. The young man wandered through the desert for forty days until he reached a beautiful castle at the top of a mountain. There lived the sage that the young man was looking for.

Happiness, Philosophy and Science

Philosophy was the origin of most scientific disciplines.   Aristotle was in some sense an astronomer, a physicist, a biologist, a psychologist and a political scientist. 

Happiness is a journey

We convince ourselves that life will be better after we get married, have a baby, then another. Then we are frustrated that the kids aren’t old enough and we’ll be more content when they are.

Hard Times

A man was selling oranges in the middle of a road. He was illiterate, so he never read newspapers. He put some signs along the road and spent the whole day praising the flavor of his wares.

Is Free Will an Illusion?

Don’t trust your instincts about free will or consciousness, experimental philosophers say.