The ancient Greek philosopher Socrates declared, “Life without philosophy is inconceivable.”

But what is “philosophy”?

The word “philosophy” was first used by the Greek thinker Pythagoras around 600 B.C.

The term “philosophy” comes from two Greek terms. Philo means “love.” And sophia means “wisdom.” Literally, then, philosophy means “love of wisdom.”

Others have said that philosophy is merely “thinking about thinking.”

For a more formal definition of philosophy we offer the following:

“Philosophy is the attempt to think rationally and critically about the most important matters.”

In the eighteenth century A.D. Immanuel Kant stated that philosophy addresses three main questions:

1.     What can I know?

2.     What should I do?

3.     What may I hope?