Questions · Philosophical questions
Philosophical questions you can answer without a philosophy degree
The big questions, through small doors. Instead of asking what time is, ask whether you’d pause an hour or replay one. Instead of asking what fairness means, ask about a time someone was fair to you.
- 17 questions
- EN + TL on every card
- Free in the app
Kumustahan is a bilingual conversation card app: 1,200 questions in English and Filipino across 7 decks, with a short reflection on the back of every card.
Imagine your future self laughing at one thing you're doing now. What is it?
Imagine yung future self mo natatawa sa isang ginagawa mo ngayon. Ano yun?
Future you may have a softer sense of humor about today. Some things feel bigger before time makes them funny.
Baka mas soft na tumawa ang future self mo sa today. May bagay na malaki ngayon, pero funny later.
The questions
17 philosophical questions
Every question in English and Filipino/Tagalog, word for word from the Kumustahan decks. Open “Back of the card” for the reflection printed on the other side.
Time and memory
4 questions
Pausing, replaying and remembering. What would you keep?
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Which button would you rather have: pause a busy hour or replay a favorite hour?
Kung may time button, alin ang pipiliin mo: i-pause ang isang abalang oras o ulitin ang paborito mong oras?
Back of the card
Your button needs a label. What would you write on it?
Kailangan ng label ang button mo. Ano ang isusulat mo rito?
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What day from the past would you like to watch?
Anong araw sa nakaraan ang gusto mong mapanood?
Back of the card
Pause on one scene from that day. Which detail would you want to look at longer?
Huminto muna sa isang eksena ng araw na iyon. Anong detalye ang gusto mong tingnan nang mas matagal?
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Choose a memory power: remember every name or remember every route you have taken.
Pumili ng memory power: tandaan lahat ng pangalan o lahat ng daang nadaanan mo.
Back of the card
Give your memory power a name. It can sound heroic or completely ordinary.
Bigyan ng pangalan ang memory power mo. Puwedeng pang-hero o ordinaryo lang.
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Imagine your future self laughing at one thing you're doing now. What is it?
Imagine yung future self mo natatawa sa isang ginagawa mo ngayon. Ano yun?
Back of the card
Future you may have a softer sense of humor about today. Some things feel bigger before time makes them funny.
Baka mas soft na tumawa ang future self mo sa today. May bagay na malaki ngayon, pero funny later.
How we choose
4 questions
Changing your mind, deciding what to drop, the choices that repeat.
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When did you last change your mind after hearing a good reason?
Kailan ka huling nagbago ng isip dahil may narinig kang magandang reason?
Back of the card
Try an optional before-and-after: "I thought..., but now..."
Kung gusto mo: "Dati, akala ko..., pero ngayon..."
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When plans change, how do you decide what to keep, drop, or adjust?
Kapag nagbago ang plans, paano mo dini-decide kung ano ang itutuloy, bibitawan, o ia-adjust?
Back of the card
Changed plans show priorities quickly. Sometimes the real answer is comfort, people, responsibility, peace, or simply energy.
Kapag nagbago ang plans, mabilis lumabas ang priorities. Minsan comfort, tao, responsibility, peace, o energy lang talaga.
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Name one choice you keep repeating that you want to understand better.
Magbanggit ng isang choice na paulit-ulit mong ginagawa at gusto mong mas maintindihan.
Back of the card
Repeated choices are quiet storytellers. Looking closer can help you ask what they are protecting, feeding, or avoiding.
Tahimik magkuwento ang paulit-ulit na choices. Kapag tiningnan mo nang mas malapit, makikita mo kung ano ang pinoprotektahan, pinapakain, o iniiwasan nila.
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Which fear has been making decisions for you lately?
Anong takot ang parang nakikialam sa decisions mo lately?
Back of the card
Fear can sound practical when it wants control. Noticing its voice helps you decide with more freedom.
Minsan practical pakinggan ang fear kapag gusto niyang kontrolin lahat. Kapag napansin mo siya, mas may freedom kang pumili.
Fairness and living well
4 questions
What a good life and a fair world look like, up close.
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Tell us about a time someone was fair to you in a way you still remember.
Ikuwento yung time na naging fair sa'yo ang isang tao, at natatandaan mo pa rin.
Back of the card
Fairness can be memorable because it gives people room to breathe. It says, I see the whole situation, not only the mistake.
Natatandaan ang fairness kasi nakakahinga ang tao. Parang sinasabi nito, nakikita ko yung buong situation, hindi lang yung mali.
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Who is someone you respect for the way they live, even in small things?
Sino yung taong nirerespeto mo sa paraan ng buhay niya, kahit sa maliliit na bagay?
Back of the card
Respect often begins with small, steady things. A simple habit can show a lot about how someone moves through life.
Madalas nagsisimula ang respeto sa maliliit pero consistent na bagay. May simpleng habit na maraming sinasabi tungkol sa isang tao.
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Make one harmless rule that the whole world follows for a day.
Kung may isang rule na susundin ng buong mundo nang isang araw, ano iyon? Dapat walang masasaktan.
Back of the card
Imagine everyone following it at once. What small scene would be funny or helpful to watch?
Isipin na sabay-sabay itong ginagawa ng lahat. Ano ang nakakatawa o helpful na makikita mo?
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If someone funded one helpful idea for your neighborhood, what would you build or improve?
Kung may sasagot sa gastos, ano ang gagawin o aayusin mo para makatulong sa lugar ninyo?
Back of the card
Picture its first day in use. What would you be happy to see people doing?
Isipin ang unang araw na ginagamit na ito. Ano ang ikatutuwa mong ginagawa ng mga tao?
The self that keeps changing
5 questions
Who you were, who you’re becoming, and why both are you.
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Name something you are outgrowing, even if you still care about it.
Magsabi ng isang bagay na parang ino-outgrow mo na, kahit may care ka pa rin doon.
Back of the card
Outgrowing something does not always mean rejecting it. Sometimes it means honoring what was real while making room to change.
Hindi laging rejection ang pag-outgrow. Minsan pag-honor siya sa naging totoo, habang gumagawa ng space para magbago.
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Describe the kind of person your recent choices point toward.
I-describe kung anong klaseng tao ang tinuturo ng recent choices mo.
Back of the card
Your choices are not the whole story, but they do point somewhere. Notice the direction without rushing to judge it.
Hindi buong story ang choices mo, pero may direction silang tinuturo. Pansinin muna bago husgahan.
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Which version of your past self are you starting to understand more now?
Aling version ng past self mo ang nagsisimula mong mas maintindihan ngayon?
Back of the card
Understanding your past self does not erase what happened. It can soften the way you hold the person you were.
Hindi binubura ng understanding ang nangyari. Pero puwede nitong palambutin kung paano mo hinahawakan yung dating ikaw.
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As you got older, which habit at home started to make more sense to you?
Habang tumatanda ka, anong habit sa bahay ninyo ang mas nagme-make sense na sa'yo ngayon?
Back of the card
Getting older can change the way you see home. A habit may look different once you know more of the story.
Habang tumatanda, nag-iiba rin minsan ang tingin natin sa bahay. May habit na mas naiintindihan kapag alam mo na ang kuwento.
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Where do you feel pulled in two directions?
Saan mo nararamdaman na hinihila ka sa dalawang direction?
Back of the card
Feeling pulled does not mean you are weak. It may mean two real things are asking for your attention.
Hindi ibig sabihin mahina ka kapag nahihila sa dalawang direction. Baka dalawang totoong bagay lang ang humihingi ng pansin.
How to use them
Before you ask
Philosophy is mostly asking why until the answer gets interesting. You don’t need Plato to do it. You need a question about something everyone has lived through, like a memory they’d keep or a time they changed their mind, and the patience to ask why twice.
That’s how these are built. Each one is a classic theme of philosophy (time, identity, free will, fairness, the good life) in everyday clothes. A choice between pausing time and replaying a favorite hour is a question about what we value in time. A question about outgrowing something you still care about is a question about identity. People answer the everyday version and end up doing philosophy anyway.
Let disagreements run. Philosophy needs two people who see it differently and are curious why. If the talk gets too abstract, bring it back with “give me an example.” For questions that ask people to open up rather than think, go to deep questions.
Good for
Tips
- Ask for an example whenever the talk gets abstract.
- Ask why twice: once for the reason, once for the belief under it.
- Treat disagreement as the goal, not the problem.
- Keep each answer short so more people get a turn.
- Don’t settle it. A good philosophical question stays open.
Decks for this
Running a kitchen-table philosophy night
- Pick one theme. Time, choice, fairness or the self. One theme per evening goes further than four.
- Answer the everyday version first. Everyone gives a quick, concrete answer before anyone generalizes.
- Ask why, twice. The first why gets a reason; the second gets the belief underneath it.
- Look for the clash. When two answers disagree, ask each person what the other might be seeing.
- End with a change. Ask whether anyone sees it differently than when they started.
Philosophical questions
Frequently asked questions
What are good philosophical questions to ask?
Questions about time, memory, choice, fairness and identity, asked through everyday examples, like whether you’d pause or replay an hour, or what you’re outgrowing. They lead to big ideas without needing any background.
How do you start a philosophical conversation?
Start with a concrete question everyone can answer from their own life, then ask why, and why again. The second why is usually where the philosophy starts.
Are philosophical questions the same as deep questions?
Not quite. Philosophical questions ask people to think about ideas; deep questions ask them to share something personal. A philosophical question can be answered at a dinner party; a deep one needs more trust.
Bring a better question to the table.
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