10 week course at Nanpanton Hall

Practical Philosophy

from East & West

Courses in practical wisdom for everyday living.

Practical life skills with enough toughness to last a lifetime.

Discover the Wisdom Within

Nanpantan Hall: is an established centre for mindfulness, teaching, and meditation retreats with over 35 years of experience.

Philosophy aims to set you free. Free from pressures and worries, free from limiting ways of thinking, free to grow and be yourself.
Take your first steps to freedom with our 10 week course.

A Sat Nav for Life: Practical Philosophy & Mindful Living helps you to find direction in life.

Local Courses

Local face-to-face course & study group available in Loughborough

Peace of Mind

A safe space with experienced & supportive tutors & others looking to philosophy to set them free.

Practical Wisdom

Courses in practical wisdom for everyday living. Meet with like minded individuals.

Offer only £10

Introductory offer – 10 week course only £10. (Normally £70). Limited spaces.

This popular course is practical rather than academic and draws on sources of wisdom from East and West, past and present.

Explore Life To The Full…

The Loughborough course offers a practical means to discover fully who we are, understand how to relate to the world we live in and see what gets in the way of being happy, peaceful and free.

Students are invited to see life as a place to test the words of the wise through practical and mindful exercises.

10 weekly sessions

The ten weekly sessions explore central human questions through discussion, practical observation, conversation and reflection in good company.

Centre Registrar:
Ann Francis
Tel: 07821 640098

Self-enquiry through practical philosophy

Themes included in the course:

click each title below for more details

The Wisdom Within

These opening sessions consider how philosophy can help us enjoy richer, less stressful lives. What is practical philosophy? ‘What would a wise person do here?’ Philosophy means the love of wisdom. Our course is intended to show how philosophy can help us enjoy richer, less stressful and more useful lives. This opening two sessions consider these aims, and introduces simple exercises in mindfulness and the application of wisdom you can practise in daily life. You can download or listen to the Awareness Exercise, introduced in week one here. To download, right-click, choose ‘Save link as…’ and save the MP3 wherever you want. You can also download a PDF of the Awareness Exercise

Know thyself

Who or what am I? What is my potential? Who am I, really? My body? My emotions? My strongly held beliefs? My soul? Possibly all of these? Possibly none? Such questions have preoccupied philosophers down the ages. We look at practical ways to explore who we really are and how to tap our true potential.

Being awake

What is our state of awareness? Why does it fluctuate during the day? Often the most notable quality of wise people is their alertness to the subtleties of a situation. They are awake, perceptive and curious. We look at deeper levels of awareness, and consider how we may become more awake to ourselves, our surroundings, and the events we meet.

The present moment

Living in the now, mindfulness. What is the potential of the present moment? We review our own experience of attention through a model featuring attention centred, captured, open and scattered, and how these each relate to the past, present and future. We examine the extraordinary brightness and freedom naturally available in the present moment. A straightforward practice is introduced.

Living justly

Plato’s views on justice. What does it mean to live justly? According to Plato, justice and injustice do not start ‘out there’. They begin within us. For justice to prevail, Plato suggests that we must learn to avoid being ‘tyrannised’ by our passions and fears to the extent they overrule our reason. We discuss the practicality of Plato’s ideas on justice in our daily lives.

The Threefold Energy

The Vedic model of three fundamental energies. Sometimes we seem not to have enough energy, or the wrong kind. A wise person can act consistently despite these varying conditions. We consider how to recognise differing energies, how to gain and conserve them and how to use them wisely.

The light of reason

What is reason? How can it enrich our lives? We look at guidelines for Socratic dialogue and how to use them. Developing reason in decision-making and action are also discussed, with practical applications. Obstacles to reason are considered. Everyone has the faculty of reason and we can all use it and develop it.

The power of beauty

What is beauty?

Is there such a thing as absolute beauty?

Beauty has the capacity to open the heart and bring delight. In this session we discuss our direct experience of beauty in its different form: of the sensory world, of thought, of feelings, of the inner nature, and of conduct.

We consider Plato’s idea of there being ultimately one beauty – beauty absolute – ‘not knowing birth or death, growth or decay’.

Unity in diversity

Looking for the common thread in life. What is the effect of finding unity? When we look around, we see enormous diversity in nature. The wise person looks for the unifying factor: that which allows all this apparent diversity to be seen as part of a single whole. Seen in this way, life then has the best chance of being led freshly and openly.

The desire for truth

What is truth? How does the desire for truth show itself? Practical philosophy is about discovering the truth of things – not theoretically, but in our own experience. In this final session we look back and ask ourselves how our search for truth has fared as the term has progressed. We discuss what has been discovered and how, in our own way, we may continue to develop it in our daily lives.

How it works

A tutor presents philosophical ideas, and leads a discussion based on what arises in the group. Being practical rather than academic, the emphasis is on personal knowledge and experience. Students are encouraged neither to accept nor reject the ideas put forward, but to test them in practice for themselves, in the light of their own experience.

Next Loughborough Introductory Courses

Dates & Times

Location

How to Enrol

Find Us on the Map

Nanpantan Hall Nanpantan Rd Nanpantan LE11 3YF

Frequently asked questions

What does ‘Practical Philosophy’ mean?

The course is practical in the sense that it takes philosophical ideas and shows how they can be of direct use in our everyday lives. The intention is to stimulate enquiry and through this expand the way we look at the world and ourselves.

How do I register for the course?

Enrol online on this site or by call the contact number available on the relevant location page.

If you register online, you will receive a confirmation email with your day of attendance. If you register by any means other than online, you will receive a receipt confirming your registration.

Can I attend a local face-to-face course?

Yes, we have local venues in Doncaster, Leeds, Nottingham, Sheffield, Loughborough, Leeds, York, Huddersfield, Saltaire and Brighouse. There are also many other local venues in other parts of the UK where you can attend the course face-to-face.

Do I need previous experience?

No, all you need is an open and enquiring mind. The course is intended for everyone, regardless of education, occupation, race, political or religious belief.

How do I attend a course?

First you need to enrol on a course. The in-person courses are available locally at Nanpantan Hall, but there are other venues around the country. These include Doncaster, Leeds, Nottingham, Sheffield, Leeds, York, Birmingham and at many other local venues.

Do you have any questions?

If you have any questions simply call us on the contact phone number on the relevant location page.

What some of our students say...

"Lovely people with a strong sense of why learning is valuable at any stage in life."

"I started off with the Introduction to Practical Philosophy during the first lockdown and can honestly say it was a lifesaver."

"Have thoroughly enjoyed the introductory course and the daily awareness exercise practice. "

Introductory Course Enrolment

The courses have limited spaces and can get fully booked up in advance, so to save disappointment it is advisable to reserve your place on the next course well in advance.

Enrol below

Email: [email protected]

Some of the themes included in the introductory course:

Relevance of philosophy to today’s world
Meeting the challenges of life, with wisdom
The importance of observation and stillness
The spirit of enquiry
Seeing things as they are, rather than as we imagine them to be
Living in the present moment
Employing reason in discussion and making decisions
Different levels of awareness
Acting with justice
What changes our states of mind and emotions
Questions: Who am I? Why am I here? What is life about?
What in essence, is human nature?
The nature of beauty and reason
States of attention and personal freedom
and so much more...