1. Jeremy Bentham (15 February 1748 - 06 June 1832):
Jeremy Bentham, the key founder of the Principle of Utility, was a voracious reader at a very early age. He was known as a 'philosopher' to his family since his interest towards reading had begun in his childhood. Bentham was actually considered a child prodigy, when at the age of 3, he was found reading a multi-volume history of England and other Latin books. Apart from being a philosopher associated with the Doctrine of Utilitarianism, Bentham is also recognized as one of the earliest advocates of animal rights and idea of Panopticon.
His keen interest in learning, inventing new theories and creative ideas has given him worldwide success through his writings. Jeremy Bentham debated in favour of abolition of slavery and death penalty for children. He was also pro-individual legal rights and opposed to the idea of natural law and rights. This English scholar is remembered as the 'spiritual founder' of University College in London.
2. Martin Buber (08 February 1878 - 13 June 1965):
Martin Buber was an influential twentieth century Jewish philosopher and an outstanding religious thinker, political activist, educator, essayist, translator and editor who re-defined religious existentialism through his 'philosophy of dialogue'. Although he was born in Austria, Martin Buber spent a major part of his life in Israel and Germany. Buber was a cultural Zionist who championed the cause of Jewish cultural renewal through his study of Hasidic Judaism.
He challenged the works of Kant, Hegel, Marx, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Dilthey, Simmel and Heidegger through his writings and was a source of immense influence to Emmanuel Levinas. Buber along with Franz Rosenzwig translated the Bible from Hebrew to German as well as wrote numerous other religious and Biblical studies. Buber was a leading adult educationist who developed the philosophy of focus of education of character and initiated the establishment of Jewish education centers in Germany and teacher-training centers in Israel.
3. Ludwig Wittgenstein (26 April 1889 - 29 April 1951):
Ludwig Wittgenstein was an Austrian philosopher who inspired two great philosophical movements of the 20th century — logical positivism and ordinary language philosophy. Though born in of the richest families in Vienna, he was deeply influenced by philosophy and pursued a career in the same, going against his father's wish, who wanted Wittgenstein to join family business.
Greatly influenced by famous philosophers like Bertrand Russell and by Gottlob Frege, Wittgenstein applied modern logic to metaphysics, providing new definition to the relations between world, thought and language, thereby explaining the nature of philosophy. He was a highly sensitive and nervous person who often got annoyed and disturbed by things around him. Beyond doubt, he was a great philosopher of 20th century and continues to influence current philosophical thoughts in many areas like logic and language, perception and intention, ethics and religion, aesthetics and culture and such more
4. Meister Eckhart (1260):
Eckhart von Hochheim, better known to the world as Meister Eckhart, was born in a German family of landowners in c.1260. He was endowed with the honorific title of "meister" (master in German) after he obtained the academic title of 'Magister in Theologia' from the University of Paris. A theologian, preacher, mystic, writer, able orator and a renowned philosopher of the thirteenth-fourteenth century, Meister Eckhart's life and feat is no ordinary deed. His works, ideas and contributions have kindled and captivated the curiosity of the modern readers.
He is lauded for his theistic works and his unusual views on god that is grounded on his principle conviction — "God is 'No-thing' - but rather the Being that undergirds all reality - and we must become no-thing to be one with God." Despite of his dissident theological beliefs and ontological philosophies, his mysticism is still valued and respected. Although the Roman Catholic Church condemned him for his heretical theological ideas, Eckhart remained true to the teachings of the Church. Eckhart was one of the firsts to write inquisitive prose in German and introduce new terms and gradually with his work made German the language of democratic tracts.
5. Rudolf Steiner (25 February 1861 - 30 March 1925):
While describing Rudolf Steiner, it is rather easy to list the fields in which he failed to excel than explain the areas in which he was a master. A philosopher, a theologian, an educationalist, an agricultural expert, an architect, an expert in medicinal plants, a dramatist, an authority on Goethe and a blessed artistic trendsetter, the areas of his interest and expertise are almost endless. If he had lived in this age, a world, which always respects specializations, would have created a separate niche for him. The productivity of Steiner's life is mesmerizing — 6000 lectures, groundbreaking approach to education, art, medicine, and agriculture and dozens of books.
As if all these were not enough, he developed a specific method for spiritual development too. Best known as a philosopher and a multi-faceted genius, his brilliance was first acknowledged when, as a student, he was chosen to edit the scientific writings of Goethe, one of world's greatest poets. This laid the foundation upon which Steiner started his own spiritual approach. Moreover, it was the burning desire, which was overriding in him, which enabled him to find the unobserved world within the material world and lead others in his path.
6. Albert Schweitzer (14 January 1875 - 04 September 1965):
Albert Schweitzer was a German born French theologian, organist, philosopher, physician, and medical missionary. His notable work is in founding the Albert Schweitzer Hospital in Lambarene, now in Gabon, west central Africa (then French Equatorial Africa). Schweitzer is also greatly known as a music scholar and organist who was a profound scholar of the music of German composer Johann Sebastian Bach. Many of his Bach recordings are currently available on CD. He started and greatly influenced the Organ reform movement.
Schweitzer was the founder of universal ethical philosophy and universal reality. He is best known for challenging the secular view of Jesus as depicted by historical-critical methodology present during his time in certain academic circles, as well as the traditional Christian view, depicting a Jesus Christ who saw himself as the world-saving Messiah. He won the 1952 Nobel Peace Prize for his philosophy of "Reverence for Life". There have been several films made, portraying Albert Schweitzer and his life.
7. Thales (0624 BC):
Thales of Miletus was a prominent and popular Greek philosopher of pre- Socratic times. He belonged to Miletus in Asia Minor and was among the Seven Sages of Greece. Furthermore, Aristotle considered him as the very first philosopher in the tradition of Greek. With his works, Thales tried to describe and explain the natural phenomena, without taking help of mythology and was extremely influential in this regard. Most of the other pre-Socratic philosophers also followed the foot-steps of Thales and got engaged in explaining an ultimate substance, change, and the existence of the world without referring to mythology. Subsequently, the denial of mythological explanation by Thales brought a necessary idea for the revolution of science.
Thales also became the first person to describe general principles and put forward hypotheses. For the same he had been considered as the "Father of Science". In order to solve mathematics problems, Thales took the help of geometry like calculating the pyramid's height and distance between shore and ship. Thales is also recognized with the first usage of deductive reasoning application to geometry. For the same, he derived four corollaries to Thales' Theorem. He is greatly addressed as the first true mathematician. Thales was also the first person to study electricity.
8. Sun Tzu (0544 BC):
Sun Tzu was an ancient Chinese military general, strategist and philosopher, who is believed to have written the famous ancient Chinese book on military strategy, "The Art of War". Through his legends and the influential "The Art of War", Sun Tzu had a significant impact on Chinese and Asian history and culture. The book drew immense popularity during the 19th and 20th centuries when the Western Society saw its practical use. This work still has continued its impact on both Asian and Western culture and politics.
Sun Tzu's authenticity is still a question of debate, but the traditional Chinese accounts place him in the Spring and Autumn Period of China (722-481 BC), where he was a military general serving under King Helü of Wu. Based on the description of warfare in "The Art of War" and the striking similarity of the text's prose to other works from Warring States period led the modern scholars to place the completion of "The Art of War" in the Warring States Period (476-221 BC).
9. Socrates (0469 BC):
"As for me, all I know is that I know nothing" - a famous quote describes the humble and modest attitude of one of the most famous Greek Athenian philosopher, Socrates. Mostly known to the world through the dialogues and works of his students and followers like Plato and Xenophon, he was one of the founders of Western philosophy. Plato portrayed him as the foremost contributor in the field of ethics. According to Plato, Socrates led to the foundation of concepts like Socratic irony and the Socratic Method, or elenchus.
Socratic Method is still a commonly used tool for wide range of discussions in classrooms and law school discourses. This method includes asking series of questions not only to bring individual answers, but also to encourage fundamental insights to the current issue. Socrates also made important contributions to the fields of epistemology and logic. The influence of his ideas can be clearly seen during the Renaissance and the Age of Reason in Europe, where various paintings and literary works reflected his views. His legacy was continued by his famous students and followers like Plato, Xenophon, Antisthenes and others.
10. Plato (0428 BC):
Plato was a classical Greek philosopher and mathematician, more so known as the student of Socrates and writer of philosophical dialogues. He founded the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the Western world. Along with his teacher Socrates and his student, Aristotle, he led the foundation of Western philosophy and science. His sophistication as a writer was evident from his important work, "Socratic Dialogues" which includes thirty-six dialogues and thirteen letters assigned to Socrates. His dialogues have been used to teach a wide range of subjects, including philosophy, logic, ethics, rhetoric, and mathematics.
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