Philosophy cannot have its own subject. She can have anything with her subject. But this “anything” is a matter of choice. After all, philosophy, like thinking, is far from indifferent. Philosophy does not have its own subject, but it is far from indifferent to the subject. On the contrary! If a philosopher, having chosen an object, is indifferent to him, then nothing happens. Just uninteresting. For the philosopher, this will always be, to one degree or another, a matter of life and death. To become a philosopher or even to become one can only be one who is in some way a “philosopher”. That is exactly what Alexander Pyatigorsky said (“The Philosopher Escaped, ” 2005).
Talent was born
On January 30, 1929, a boy was born in the family of an engineer, who would subsequently become an outstanding figure in the field of philosophy. His name is Alexander Pyatigorsky.
Alexander Mikhailovich graduated from the University of Moscow State University - Department of Philosophy - in 1951. After university, Pyatigorsky was a teacher in high school, and then, in 1956, he began teaching at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IW RAS). Already in 1962, Alexander Pyatigorsky received his Ph.D. in philosophy through his dissertation on the history of the most ancient Tamil literature. In 1963, Pyatigorsk accepts an invitation from the University of Tartu and participates in studies in semiology. In 1973, the Russian philosopher migrated from the USSR to Germany. A year later, Alexander Mikhailovich moved to live in the UK, where he spent the rest of his life studying philosophy and religious studies.
Alexander Pyatigorsky is a philosopher who has traveled to many countries with his lectures, which discussed various topics. In 2006, he visited Moscow. In the arsenal of the Russian philosopher from the UK there were topics that affected political philosophy.
Free man
Nobody knows exactly who Pyatigorsk was. His versatility was impressive. But the main direction in religious studies that attracted him was Buddhism. It cannot be said specifically that he himself was a Buddhist, but the fact that this philosophy was close to him was a fact. He was impressed by the fact that people of this faith accept things as they are, and pay more tribute to the spiritual than the material. Having starred in the film “The Runaway Philosopher, ” Pyatigorsky said: “The main thing is not to resist … Those who did not resist, that is, did not create a terrible field of false activity, went on to …” Thus, he agreed that the calm that is characteristic of Buddhist representatives faith - the most correct human behavior in the everyday world.
Alexander Pyatigorsky did not like to speak narrowly, even mentioned in his lectures that he did not like many words, as they “save thinking”. Serious communication was alien to him, and he allowed himself to speak not only witty, but also funny, despite the seriousness of the topic under discussion.
"Fast! Not a single superfluous word and not a single superfluous look, ”- it was with this phrase that the legendary philosopher began to communicate with correspondents. His lectures and interviews were more like talking with friends than talking to someone who can explain deep things. He was simple, but he understood and could explain difficult things.
Nothing can ruin true philosophizing
Alexander Mikhailovich became the author of many philosophical books, he tried himself in prose and even wrote novels. A person who possessed the gift of communication decided to express his thoughts in a text written on paper.
In 1982, Merab Mamardashvili published a book entitled “Symbol and Consciousness. Metaphysical reasoning about consciousness, symbolism and language ”, co-authored by Alexander Pyatigorsky. Books written by the Russian philosopher in the future became the exposition of his individual, free thought. Many of the books received wide resonance in the literary world.
Being not only an ordinary philosopher and religious scholar, but also having proved himself in the role of a culturologist, historian, linguist and scientist-researcher, the “talking philosopher” was remembered for being a brilliant writer.
His books touched on various topics that I would like to discuss. Politics, the inner world of man, culture - all this was described in simple words of Pyatigorsk.
In the book “What is Political Philosophy”, Alexander Mikhailovich answers the question: “What is political reflection and what does the reduction in its level lead to?” This publication is characterized by an abundance of casual and plot lines on which political thinking is built.
The “free philosopher” was always worried about issues related to the “journey” of a person inside his soul and time. On the basis of this, great novels were written: "The Philosophy of One Alley", "Remember a Strange Man", "Stories and Dreams."
Not forgetting his passion, which has become the subject of many years of study, the writer Pyatigorsky has written many books on the subject of Buddhism. One such book is An Introduction to the Study of Buddhist Philosophy. The book did not focus on Buddhism as a separate religion; rather, it represented this trend in the form of a person’s lifestyle, a separate culture and art.
Simple sayings
Alexander Mikhailovich was able to express himself in such a way that his words sank deep into the mind of a person, forcing him to reflect on each letter of what was said. The easy presentation of thoughts that Alexander Pyatigorsky brings are quotes from his life. It was the whole life of the “escaped philosopher” that was remembered as a deep idea of existence.
“If you, the snout, do not think, then this is the only way you can, not even act, but be. You will not have another existence, ”the phrase was said by Alexander Pyatigorsky during a conversation with Otar Ioseliani in 2002.
Each lecture given by the philosopher was remembered by the fact that it contained subtle humor, which facilitated and discharged the general atmosphere in the audience. “There is no inner freedom at all! This is not even an illusion! This is a lie! ” - With this phrase Pyatigorsky began his lecture on the subject “On Internal Freedom”, which was held at the Russian Economic School in 2007.
