ZOZUĽAKOVÁ, Viera. Practical Philosophy in the Lives of Constantine andMethodius. Constantine and Methodius were well educated and they could speak several languages. They were deeply religious men, leading strict and ascetic way of life, in accordance with Byzantine teachings and traditions. Although the names of both brothers are mainly connected with liturgy in Old Church Slavonic, their mission was of far greater significance. They both disseminated the Byzantine Christian thought by their lifestyle and participation in public life. The paper provides specification of terms related to Constantine's definition of philosophy and discusses the importance of practical philosophy in the lives of Constantine and Methodius. Furthermore, it focuses on the explanation of the meaning of the knowledge of truth in Byzantine Patristic context. It also focuses on explanation of meaning of knowledge of God the way Constantine and Methodius viewed this issue via theses of significant thinkers, mainly via theses of Gregory the Theologian, one of the most prominent Byzantine authors of the fourth century. Key words: philosophy, Byzantine traditions, ascetic way of life, knowledge, truth, Constantine, Methodiusabstrakt: ZOZUĽAKOVÁ, Viera. Praktická filozofia v živote Konštantína a Metoda. Konštantín a Metod mali vynikajúce vzdelanie a ovládali niekoľko jazykov. Boli hlboko veriacimi ľuďmi a v duchu učenia a tradície byzantskej cirkvi viedli prísny asketický život. Hoci sa mená oboch bratov spájajú predovšetkým s liturgiou v staroslovienskom jazyku, ich misia mala oveľa väčší rozmer. Obaja svojím životom a verejným pôsobením šírili byzantské kresťanské myslenie. Článok prináša vymedzenie termínov v Konštantínovej definícii filozofie a pojednáva o význa-me praktickej filozofie v živote Konštantína a Metoda. Ďalej sa zameriava na vysvetlenie výz-namu poznania pravdy v byzantskom patristickom chápaní, na objasnenie zmyslu poznávania božích vecí a priblíženia sa k Bohu tak, ako túto problematiku poznali Konštantín a Metod cez diela významných byzantských mysliteľov, predovšetkým prostredníctvom textov Gregora Teológa, jedného z najvýznamnejších byzantských autorov 4. storočia.

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The aim of the contribution is to draw attention to the value of study of humanities and to humanities research. As an example we use the research of Byzantine values and their impact on the European regions. The Byzantine Empire as a medieval power influenced the political and cultural-social development, and for a long time secured economic and social stability in much of the Mediterranean and the adjacent areas. The influence of Byzantium on the Slavic environment can be seen at different levels. Comparing Byzantine values with current values and monitoring of their impact on the formation of Slavic identity in Great Moravia and Slovaks in contemporary Europe enables to explore the transformation of values and the changes of individuals in social relationships. Globalization in the post-modern era has raised fundamental questions addressed to the global society that deal not only with the development of technology, or economy but also with important problems of national culture, cultural heritage and other cultural segments, their preservation and development.