philosophy

Noun

• any personal belief about how to live or how to deal with a situation
  • self-indulgence was his only philosophy
    
  • my father's philosophy of child-rearing was to let mother do it
    

• the rational investigation of questions about existence and knowledge and ethics

• a belief (or system of beliefs) accepted as authoritative by some group or school

Related words

• Synonyms: 
  doctrine , philosophical system , school of thought , ism