A nice philosophy

My favorite part of the book of Lao Tzu so far:

"He who knows others is wise;
He who knows himself is enlightened.
He who conquers others has physical strength.
He who conquers himself is strong.
He who is contented is rich.
He who acts with vigor has will.
He who does not loose his place (with Tao) will endure.
He who dies but does not really perish enjoys long life."

Mostly I like the first five lines, but it sounds weird without the rest.

A musical version of die Dialektik next

Today's german class turned into a lecture on Hegelian philosophy. I thought there were some members of the audience who might appreciate that :)
We also discussed Roger's and Hammerstein's song "My Favorite Things" from the sound of music.
I certainly like the number of academic tangents my professor can take between any two points. It's delightful.

A Hegel Quote to be Happy About

"The bud disappears when the blossom breaks through, and we might say that the former is refuted by the latter; in the same way when the fruit comes, the blossom may be explained to be a false form of the plant’s existence, for the fruit appears as its true nature in place of the blossom. The ceaseless activity of their own inherent nature makes these stages moments of an organic unity, where they not merely do not contradict one another, but where one is as necessary as the other; and constitutes thereby the life of the whole.