Essays on: Philosphical Midwifery

(a mode of Psychotherapy, also called Philosophical Counseling)

Now, since you know there are few things more important than reflecting on your own life, you might want to arrange your time so you can devote sufficient time and attention to this important task. Secondly, after you write down your answers in your journal, study them, review them, and add to them as you recall new material and insights. So then, let us explore a troublesome problem you are having.

We have explored the idea that a pathologos blocks one from attaining one's most significant and meaningful goals but we have yet to define the signs of a pathologos problem. Equally, we have reached the point where we can understand that the pursuit of goals which are less meaningful produce less blocks and that the pursuit of lesser goals are attended with less negative experiences, and we have also shown how these lesser forms are variants of the more fundamental expression of the pathologos; but we have not fully discussed the significance of the relationship between the pathologos and the manifestations of its numerous forms and varieties

There are recurring sets of issues that should be explored that are discussed on the APPA website and among our colleagues. They deal with the relationship of the practice of philosophy and psychology/psychotherapy such as the difference between philosophical practice and psychotherapy, the use of the language of the DSMIV, compensation, and the idea of causation in psychogenic disorders

In this paper I propose to cover the following four areas concerning philosophical midwifery:
(1) Philosophical Midwifery and the transmission of the pathologos;
(2) verification, prediction, and validation in Philosophical Midwifery;
(3) how Philosophical Midwifery differs from philosophical counseling and psychotherapy;
(4) Philosophical Midwifery as a new paradigm and exemplar

Clearly, there is no need to professionalize Philosophical Midwifery; since no academic program can qualify anyone. The qualifications to the title of PM are simple. If you can do it you are one, if you can’t you’re not. The standards are public and available on demand. The questions that PM explore are available and can be adapted by anyone

The intellectual life of mankind is marked by various difficulties and chief among them is a moral crisis one faces in the attempt to rid oneself of a kind of ignorance that has its origin in the false beliefs perpetuated within the family. While this kind of ignorance is the cause of repeated failures and a dissatisfaction with life, its presence is hardly suspected even though it is one’s own belief about oneself. These beliefs are not without an influence on our lives since they are irreconcilable with the attainment of one's most significant and meaningful goals. The continued presence of these beliefs is ruinous to many who otherwise could have fulfilled their dreams and meaningfully contributed to our society.

Essays on: Dream exploration

After functioning as a Philosophical Midwife for many years I offer the following analogy as a model for your reflections: Our dreams are to the difficulties and problems in our waking life very much like a skilled physician's diagnoses and treatments are to the troubled suffering of his patients' lives.Consider what must follow if this analogy can be said to be both accurate and true

Those who are led through our way of exploring dreams gain an understanding of themselves, their reality, and the profound nature of the role of the Dream Master. This approach is philosophical rather than psychological because it is a non-interpretive method that draws all the material for the exploration and analysis from the subject, bringing a recognition of how false beliefs are at the basis of one's problems

It is generally agreed among philosophers and those in the social science that in Plato's Republic the training of the philosopher king includes such topics as arithmetic, geometry, harmony, astronomy, and the dialectic, but only a few know that there is another necessary study that Plato says reaches truth. The truth he refers to is not a general kind of knowledge as with those other studies but a knowledge personal and particular to the individual

Essays on: Philosophy and Plato

Philosophy has often been said to have similar goals with some religions in that it seeks knowledge of the divine and so provides us with an ideal for our lives. However, what separates philosophy from religion is the means it uses to achieve those goals, for, in philosophy understanding is cultivated as the primary condition for reaching knowledge and wisdom. But this path of understanding doesn't just jump into view spontaneously; it must be cultivated by the use of models and many examples

It will be shown that there is no question more significant than answering the question, "What is a philosopher?". And, if we can make that clear it is likely that it will be surprising to most people because it is widely believed that if one has any question about what kind of philosopher someone is it can be easily answered by knowing what kind of philosophy the philosopher represents. However, that way of dealing with the question avoids another and more interesting problem

Man is a curious creature. There appears to be nothng he will not try if it offers the slightest chance of overcoming his sense of alienation. He will go to war, use drugs, get married, and even play golf. Even if it has only the slimmest chance of ending his sense of futility, he will gamble on it. The sense of being incomplete has driven many into psychotherapy, it can lead one to search the heavens for some clue to one's destiny, it can awaken a need to meditate in Zen, it can draw one into the priesthood or to coaching little league, and for some it can motivate them to exchange their talent and life's energies to enrich a corporation in return for a vague promise of financial gain and, possibly, retirement. But, while nearly anything will be tried, there is one thing that nearly everyone rules out, something that they are sure will never work and that is relying upon one's own reason to lead to resolvement of their conflicts and their dissatisfaction with life

Philosophical Midwifery as a mode of psychotherapy is based, in part, upon Plato's rationalism and his dialectic, both of which are explored in depth in his Republic. In the Republic, he builds an imaginary city-state as a contemplative model for the philosopher's "ascension to reality" (521D), producing in him "the image and likeness of God" (501C), it is this ascent that is called true philosophy (52D)whether the political reality of that city-state exists now or in the future is of no concern to the philosopher (592B)

Philosophy as a way of life Conference at University of Liverpool

I would like to invite you to share in a journey and to consider if a way of understanding Plato’s Republic is consistent with the way a group of philosophers in Southern California participate in the Philosophical Midwifery Program of the Noetic Society.

First, I will review something curious about the important role that dreams play in Plato’s Republic because it is said that through dreams one reaches truths about one’s present, past, and future as well as dreams of a visionary nature. To prepare the soul for such meaningful dreams, Plato adds, it is necessary to temper unnecessary desires by reason in conjunction with law and further that prior to falling asleep, to reflect on “worthy reasonings and inquires” so that it may empower the rational part of the soul (Plato, Republic, 571d-572b). But, while acknowledging its importance he does not offer any method to guide one’s search for the meaning of dreams.

Essays on: Comparative and Religious studies

. . .Because they are unable to silence reason's claims they reject what cannot serve their faith. To prove their faith they must convert others because otherwise they would not know their belief is believable. To keep their faith secure from doubt they must depreciate the very nature of the mind's grasp of Being so that in the end they deny what they cannot comprehend

When long established beliefs clash it often happens that amid the rubble illusions also tumble, for history has no favorites. It is, of course, possible for some people to continue to live as if the clash of forces did not bring down one’s favorite idol, but for others it offers a new chance to view what they should have known needed to be questioned and, possibly, rejected

A Dialogue for a Noetic Seminar based Upon Thomas McEvilley's Work and includes his Bibliographical Sources A Dialogue on the Dialectic

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Library of Pierre Grimes' Essays

Essays on: Philosphical Midwifery

Essays on: Dream exploration

Essays on: Philosophy and Plato

Essays on: Comparative and Religious studies