"Gnothi sayton" is the Delphic injunction, "Know thyself." The effort to know oneself is not one that is conspicuously promoted by our research universities today, as is indicated by the very appellation "research university." The journey to self-knowledge is therefore primarily a self-imposed education; this list is designed for autodidacts.

This group is for those individuals, and especially the young, who, for one reason or another, cannot refrain from reflecting deeply upon their lives and who they are. It is for those individuals who are a mystery to themselves, who are lost and unknown to themselves, and who desire above all else to hunt down the secret keys that will unlock the mystery of who they are.

To heed the Delphic injunction is to attempt to rescue philosophy from today's professors of philosophy. In light of that goal, I ignore the commandment of academic philosophy: "Ye shall gain wisdom only after learning many foreign languages," and offer the following, which may serve as orienting guidelines, in English translation.

"'Know yourself' is the whole of science.--Only when he has attained a final knowledge of all things will man have come to know himself. For things are only the boundaries of man." Friedrich Nietzsche, Daybreak (or Dawn)

“Knowledge of oneself is for everyone the greatest incentive to acquire the universe of learning in the shortest possible time.” --Giambattista Vico

"He who knows others is clever; he who knows himself is wise." Lao-tze

Note to Pending Members: I send an e-mail entitled "Gnothi Greeting" to all pending members. You must reply to this e-mail before I will let you in the group. I do this in an effort to screen spammers.

For further elaborations on the purpose of this group, see Msgs 340 and 627.