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Introduction to Philosophy of Pierre Hadot Or on to Spiritual Exercises View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Siberian Federal University Digital Repository Journal of Siberian Federal University. Humanities & Social Sciences 12 (2013 6) 1739-1746 ~ ~ ~ УДК 1(091) Introduction to Philosophy of Pierre Hadot Or On to Spiritual Exercises Jānis Šķesteris* University of Latvia 28/30 Mārstaļu Str., Riga, LV-1050 Received 28.08.2013, received in revised form 26.09.2013, accepted 28.11.2013 By focusing on the key concepts of the French philosopher Pierre Hadot – conversion and spiritual exercises – this article provides introduction of the views of this philosopher. Hadot’s main research interest was ancient philosophy, and thus he has developed an innovative method for understanding the philosophy of this period. Hadot points out that from his point of view ancient philosophy was primarily a way of life and therefore must be understood as “spiritual exercises”. This concept is understood as an effort in changing and transforming the self, which is called conversion in the philosophy of Hadot. Keywords: Pierre Hadot, spiritual exercises, conversion, ancient philosophy. Introduction Pierre Hadot was a philosopher and From the very beginnings of Western historian whose general research focus was philosophy1 thinkers have given countless ancient philosophy. By describing his scientific definitions of philosophy from the position of efforts, the Latvian philosopher Igors Suvajevs their doctrines. Despite the fact that there have points out that the works of Hadot can be divided always existed many different interpretations in two distinct parts. (Љuvajevs, 2008, 116) The of this discipline, an established stereotype of first part is translations, reconstructed texts the philosopher as a theoretician has persisted and commentary. Hadot has published works even until today. It is a stereotype that depicts of Plotinus, Marius Victorinus, Ambrosius, a professional, who is discussing abstract and Marcus Aurelius and Epictetus. The other part theoretical questions within the grasp of the consists of his own researches and reflections: conceptual material known only by himself “Marius Victorinus” (1960), “Porphyry and and others of his kind, alienating this reasoning Victorinus” (1968), “Plotinus or the Simplicity of from the on goings of the everyday life. By Vision” (1963), “Spiritual exercises and ancient exploring the views of the French philosopher philosophy” (1981), “The Inner Citadel: The Pierre Hadot (1922 – 2010), this article will Meditations of Marcus Aurelius” (1992), “What try to describe an alternative understanding of is ancient philosophy” (1995), “Studies in Ancient philosophy. Philosophy” (1998), “Philosophy as a Way of © Siberian Federal University. All rights reserved * Corresponding author E-mail address: [email protected] – 1739 – Jānis Šķesteris. Introduction to Philosophy of Pierre Hadot Or On to Spiritual Exercises Life” (2002), “Wittgenstein And The Limits Of In his works dedicated to ancient philosophy Language” (2004) etc. Hadot indicates that the discourse of ancient Summarizing his conceptual frameworks, philosophy must be understood from a completely Hadot indicates that from his point of view different position, where philosophy is primarily philosophy must be defined as “spiritual a way of life, however it is a way of life, which exercises”. (Адо, 2005, 342) In order to is closely linked to philosophical discourse. successfully understand and interpret views of (Hadot, 2002, 4) For instance, in “Phaedo” Plato ancient philosophers, this is the aspect, to be describes philosophy as an exercise of death. taken into account. To the contemporary reader, (Platons, 1997, 106) Plato understands death the philosophical works of this period may seem as the separation of the body and soul. In a clumsy, unsystematic, and even contradictious. philosophical sense the philosopher is trying to Hadot draws attention to the fact that the ancient separate these two parts, thus liberating the soul, philosophical schools never considered theory by shedding it from the passions linked to the as an end in itself; it is clearly and decidedly corporal senses, in order to obtain the autonomy put in the service of practice. In other words, of the thought. Thus, for example, epicureans ancient philosophy was intended to transform, taught how to reach the pure joy of existence, and not to inform, (Адо, 2005, 344) and these but stoics – how to get rid of the disposition for transformations were enacted by spiritual things who do not depend on us, by becoming exercises. Further on we will try to understand the sharply aware of the tragic situation to which the conception of “spiritual exercises” by analyzing human being is conditioned by fate. the works of Hadot. With the domination of Christianity, and the separation of theology and philosophy, when Different philosophies philosophy became the servant of theology, When he described contemporary obliged to provide the theoretical and conceptual philosophy, Hadot often pointed out that although material of theology, philosophy lost its original we do have teachers of philosophy today, we have connection with life. Philosophy became a fully no philosophers. (Адо, 2005, 310). Hadot came to abstract discipline, but all the ancient spiritual the idea of a conflict between philosophy and the exercises were integrated in the spiritual teaching of philosophy in his youth (Hadot, 2008, practices of Christianity. This problem was 278) and throughout his life he kept the belief of deepened by scholastic tradition of the middle philosophy as a metamorphosis between system ages and the formation of universities, when the of beliefs and existence in it. (Адо, 2005, 17) education ceased to focus its attention to the Guided by this belief he was skeptical towards development of human being, and reoriented the modern philosophy, because philosophy itself to the formation of professionals. Such represents itself in the form of a technical a tendency has been maintained until today. jargon addressed to specialists. Professionals are And despite the fact that outside the university training other professionals to be competent in in the time period from the sixteenth to the theories, to understand the terminology and to eighteenth centuries in the persons of Descartes, comply with conventional standards of a given Spinoza, Malebranche and Leibniz, developed field, considering their established and self- a genuinely creative philosophical activity preserved professionalism to be completely self- and declared its autonomy from theology, it satisfactory. still remained to be a theoretical discourse. In – 1740 – Jānis Šķesteris. Introduction to Philosophy of Pierre Hadot Or On to Spiritual Exercises this period one theoretical discourse criticized which means “unclassifiable” in the ancient another theoretical discourse. As Hadot points Greek – i.e. something that can’t be classified. out, starting with the eighteenth century with According to the etymological meaning of the rare exceptions (for example, Nietzsche or term philo-sophia (love + wisdom), Socrates Schopenhauer) philosophy returns back to the was a lover of wisdom. By using the character university with such brilliant personalities of Diotima, in his work “Symposium”, Plato as Wolff, Kant, Fichte, Schelling and Hegel. describes wisdom as a perfection of knowledge (Hadot, 2008, 271) By continuing this tradition, which is available only to gods. (Platos, 1980, 90) philosophy has kept its close relationship with Namely, in its perfection wisdom is something the university until nowadays. Starting with the alien to the world of mortals. Socrates in his love already mentioned Nietzsche, as well as Bergson for the things that are foreign to people becomes and existentialism in general, philosophy starts likewise foreign for mortals. to regain its primeval characteristic – to be a way These few examples portray the gap in the of life (Hadot, 2008, 108), however, despite the lifestyle and opinions of the common people and efforts of some individual persons2, philosophy the philosophers of the ancient world. This gap has continued to position itself as a professional implicates that there has been a moment in which and not a existential discipline. the philosopher has experienced some kind of a transformation, which has made him different Conversion from others. To name the process of fundamental With his philosophical efforts as well as changes in the personality of a human being, with personal example3 Pierre Hadot stood Hadot uses the concept of conversion. for philosophy in its primeval constellation. Conversion (Latin conversio) stands for Hadot writes: ”Undoubtly a philosopher must turning back, inversion, change of direction. be neither a professor nor a writer, but a person Thus, this term is used to describe various kinds that has made a certain life-choice and accepted of changes, transformations and rearrangements. a certain way of life, for example, stoicism or For Hadot this term refers to a transformation epicurism.” ( Hadot, 1992, 92) In other words, of the mental order – from a simple alteration philosophy is connected with some definite of opinion to a complete change of personality. existential choice. As Hadot explains, being a (Адо, 2005, 199) In the ancient Greece, the philosopher in the ancient world automatically experience of conversion was mostly connected implicated a contradiction with the normal with the field of politics or law, in which
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