bjbernis

The Dalai Lama once said, "In life, Pain is inevitable, but suffering is optional." I think this is directly related to the concept of humility. True humility is not the devaluation of the self in as much as it is the elimination of the self, the result of which is a perspective that transcends the instinctual human desire for the aversion of pain and the seeking of pleasure. Once this perspective is attained, a person then has the ability to replace these survival instincts with higher-level goals and purposes. Thus, problems are no longer problems in as much as they are simply physical constraints to the achievement of said goals and purposes.... (read more)

I must respectfully disagree with your interpretation of Kant's use of the term "a priori knowledge." Kant says "While all knowledge beings with experience, it does not all arise out of experience." Hence, Kant never himself says that we can have knowledge without ever having had experience, that is to say, the shorthand explanation of Kant's philosophy, namely that "a priori truths are truths that can be attained without experience" does a poor job of representing the nuance of his epistemological system. Again, he says "While all knowledge beings with experience, it does not all arise out of experience" meaning that you have to exist in order to attain a priori knowledge... (read more)