In Emil Višňovský's new book, We Should be Living in the Garden, we find that there is much to contemplate and that he answers many of the questions on culture, life and philosophy that are raised by the current era. The thread that runs through his essays brings together these themes to show us, as the author puts it, that philosophy is not only an immanent part of culture but it is also its "spice" (Višňovský 2010, 5).
Višňovský named his book after one of his essays (ibid., 134-140), in which he states that the garden is a combination of the elements of the natural world that requires that a person bring a "golden mean" of reason, emotion, and limb to the natural environment, which in turn cultivates the cultivator. The garden is a "cultural landscape" and nature, in the shape of the garden, may also be the medicine required to treat many of the diseases of modern society. In ancient times, the phenomenon of the garden was brought to prominence by the school of Epicurus for whom it gave perspective to the world. It became a symbol of this philosophy, in which emphasis is placed on the good life and human happiness. To Epicurus and his pupils, the garden, where he lived and taught his philosophy, was primarily an oasis of peace of mind as a precondition for wisdom and blessedness; peace of mind in the sense of a value and dimension of our life, which, in the hustle and bustle of the modern city, is highly valued. In the garden, not only do the treasured fruits of philosophy bloom, but so too do all kinds of culture, including those that are valued the most: human qualities and human relations. The garden has an essential and holistic human dimension. It is the living environment or area where the differences between the natural and the cultural are both preserved and destroyed. The garden may be the peak of our civilisation and civilisability. The meaning of civilisation should be found in the development of human potential. This essay is in fact a challenge, since it ends by asking "Why don't we seek harmony between nature and culture? Why don't we construct our world like a garden?" (ibid., 140).