Taking a guess that what you mean by “philosophy” is a belief that acts as guiding principle for how to live.
Christianity is probably the most popular “philosophy” in America – so the principle would be “Love thy neighbour as thyself.”
Even most non-religious people would probably agree that this principle is an ideal one to follow.
Possibly, the Golden Rule carries an implicit command, first love yourself, not with ego or selfishness but with honesty, responsibility and unconditional loving kindness. For how is it possible to know the feelings and needs of others unless one pays attention to and understands one's own?
I think it would be an excellent approach if everybody, or even most people, actually did love themselves in the same way that an excellent mother loves her child. Unfortunately, I don’t think this is the case: many people are so full of insecurities and psychological wounds that they have difficulty in caring for themselves in even the most basic things like healthy diet, exercise and sleep. Many are busy masking their pain with addictions. Relationships consistently falter from not treating the self and others well in thought, word and deed.
Once self-love is achieved on the inside, it becomes easy to extend it out to all others.
It's not that I put no stock in it. It's excellent. But looking at news headlines, the divorce rate, the amount of racism and hatred, the crime rate and the fun people seem to get out of treating each other with sarcasm, it does seem almost too difficult for many. It can take some people a lifetime to learn how to love and some never learn.
An easier ethic when first starting out might be, “first do no harm.”
This post was edited by Benedict Arnold at December 14, 2016 12:59 AM MST
Benedict Arnold 