what is the question?

Socratic method is based on asking question. Socrates the 4th century BC Greek philosopher, known to be the greatest thinker and philosopher of all times never wrote any books, never gave long-winded speeches, never developed his own theories. He merely asked questions of people and brought philosophy from the gilded rooms to the streets of Athens amongst the average people. He spoke and asked anyone he came across questions of myriad kind that forced people to look into themselves, to rethink their way of thinking, to 'basically' examine' their existing values and beliefs. He was irritatingly goading and persistent and came to be known as the 'gadfly' because he would not let his victim go till he got his answer or rather till he got more questions. He forced people to think and question the obvious in a different way, and come to perhaps different conclusions and thus pursue the quest of 'the good life', the meaning of beauty, what is person-hood, what is truth? and so on.

The quintessential question is 'why ask questions'? Socrates believed if we didn't turn over our beliefs in our minds, in our dialogues with others, in exchange of ideas, in posing the same question in a different manner we would never get closer to the truth. Does the 'Socratic method' gets us any closer to the truth? many tend to think so, but does it give clear cut answers, absolutely not, what it does is, it raises more even more questions and awareness. And that, to Socrates, and, in these two and half thousand years after him, is the only road to wisdom.

Socrates believed he knew nothing, and he wanted to learn from everyone he spoke to; therefore the questions. So, what questions can we begin to ask ourselves in an inner dialogue to understand our values and beliefs better? I feel, and I think Socrates would agree that any question would be as good as the other. So one could start with something like:

What is the question?
Really? what is it? or what are they? what questions should we ask and why and in what manner? and why are they important than the ones we don't ask? for instance, what is conformity? is it good to conform? or should one be a non-conformist? or put it another way. Is Conformity a part of human nature? is the urge to conform found in every human being? or is it more natural to rebel? There can be endless questions, for instance, what is insanity? who is insane? was Vangogh insane slicing up his own ear? was Hitler insane? was Osama insane? was Jack the Ripper insane? who defines insanity? who defines sanity? and how? and why one way and not any other? can insanity be a plausible excuse for any crime committed? why?


Where am I?
One of the basic questions one ought to ask in an inner dialogue with oneself is where am I? the logical answer would be 'here', that is wherever that person is. For instance, I am lying here in my bed working on my laptop therefore I am in my bedroom, for all practical purposes. But, the purpose of the question in this context is somewhat deeper, we are asking our position, our place, our relevance, perhaps to use a heavier term, our meaning in the larger scheme of things, such as this universe, this world, this cosmos. Why are we where we are? what is the purpose of this inconsequential life in terms of geographical time frame? can we by asking the question in a different manner give any meaning to our lives? can we do anything about the way we think about where we are and who we are in the place were we find ourselves?


Who am I?
I am me, you would respond automatically, and of course, that would be mostly true, but who is this you, you refer to as 'me'? is it your body and your clothes and your personality and your persona that is separate from others or is there something more than that? is there perhaps an added element that makes you the person that you are individually, distinct and unique than others? Is it important to know what makes me different from others? why is it crucial to know what makes me different from others? is it the differences in our choices, in lifestyles, in habits, in social status or what? or is the difference more visceral, more physically imbued, more spiritual. The motto of Socrates was 'KNOW THYSELF' which precisely meant dig into your own thoughts and consciousness and find out answers, delve and try to discover who you are, what you find out? who knows, it may be pleasant, or it may not be, you may succeed or you may fail, but taking the journey is the important thing.


What is truth?
We talk about truth all the time in our daily lives, we admire truthful people who we consider honest and integral in their personal dealings. But, do we ever sit back and discuss and ponder and question what is truth? what is real? what is? and what isn't? are we who we think we are? or can we ask this question in another manner say, what we perceive as reality is real or an illusion created by our senses? if that is the case then what is the actual truth? and how do we get to it? what is the path to it? Pilate asked this question and it led to making of history. How many of us bother ourselves with these wonderings?


What is the 'good life'?
One of the purposes of Socrates' philosophy was to find out ways to live the 'good life' and to do that one has to first define, and come to a conclusion about what the good life consists of? Does the good life mean a life of luxury and money and leisure? or is it a life devoted to passion and love and pursuit of what one desire's most? Is it ambition and attainment of worldly power and riches, or is it a fulfillment of inner happiness or religious actualization? is it different for different people? or can it be some baseline that can be applied to everyone? How does one pursue the good life? what are the ways to it? how does one know when one gets there?


The above discussion is just a glimpse into the Socratic method of questioning not by simply answering, but asking more and more questions, or perhaps, repositing the questions, wondering, looking, seeking and forever learning........... Shouldn't we be doing the same?