Who are the Dead Geniuses?
And are they really worth liking, sharing, following and subscribing to, more than the living influencers of today?
Why Is This a Contrarian Idea?
In a world obsessed with real-time updates, trending influencers, and the latest thought leaders, suggesting that the most valuable insights come from people who have been dead for centuries is a deeply contrarian view.
Our society values novelty and real-time relevance, often dismissing the dead as outdated. Yet, paradoxically, the dead thinkers, creators, and innovators of the past continue to shape the present more than most living influencers do. We ignore them at our peril.
This is a contrarian idea because it directly challenges these assumptions we may all have made implictly or explicitly:
1. Newer is Better
Our modern world assumes that the latest innovations and thinkers are superior to those of the past. I suggests the opposite: that time filters out the noise and leaves behind only the most valuable knowledge.
2. Dead People Are Irrelevant
In an era where the emphasis is on real-time engagement and social influence, the notion that the most impactful figures are no longer alive is rather counterintuitive.
3. Relevance Fades with Time
Many believe that ideas, art, and insights lose relevance as society evolves. However, I argue that true genius is timeless and often gains relevance with age.
The Power of Dead Geniuses
Dead Geniuses, to me, are those individuals whose ideas and contributions remain deeply influential long after their deaths. Unlike the fleeting influencers of today, they have survived the ultimate test of time. Their relevance persists because their influence transcends generations, offering wisdom applicable to human nature, science, economics, and art.
Who are the Dead Geniuses?
Dead Geniuses are (not were) those individuals whose ideas or contributions to humanity are both very high impact, and are still useful or valuable today. They have died; but their works are very much alive. They are influencers but at a very different scale.
- The Pythagoras Theorem is still taught in every school in the world, although Pythagoras has been dead for about 2500 years.
- Chanakya’s Arthashastra still informs India’s approach to philosophy, economic policy, although Chanakya’s been dead for about 2300 years.
- We still hear Mozart performed in concert halls across the world, in media, the elevator, and even when we put our phone on hold when we call customer support. Mozart died more than 250 years ago.
- And Lata Mangeshkar’s voice isn’t going to be lost to history anytime soon. What she sang is applicable to most Dead Geniuses: Naam gum jaayega. Meri aawaaz hi pehchaan hai. Gar yaad rahe. (My name will be lost to time. My voice is my identity, if its remembered at all.)
What Makes A Dead Person a Genius
And what makes them geniuses? Time. It’s through the passage of time that we as a society or a species realised that their ideas or contributions or works weren’t just true or useful or beautiful or valuable in their time; but they are equally or more valuable today.
But why am I talking about the dead, especially as a contrarian idea? Because the dead usually have more to teach us than the living. More to influence us, if we let them. Time has a beautiful but ruthless ability to forget the useless and remember the useful. To forget the worthless and remember the valuable.
That’s why dead geniuses are the ones worth liking, sharing, subscribing to and following. The teachers, the authors, the creators, the researchers and even the professionals and businesspersons.
Why We Should Engage with Dead Geniuses More Than Living Influencers
1. Time as the Ultimate Filter
Time has a ruthless ability to discard what is useless and preserve what is valuable. If a work, idea, or insight has survived centuries, it likely has fundamental truths that remain relevant.
2. Like, Share and Follow the Greatest Minds
Reading classic books, studying historical philosophies, and engaging with the works of Dead Geniuses is akin to having a conversation with them. They become mentors, offering perspectives untainted by present-day biases.
3. Timeless Wisdom in an Overloaded World
With information overload, distinguishing valuable knowledge from noise is more and more difficult. Dead Geniuses provide a kind of intellectual shortcut: their work has already passed the test of time and remains relevant.
The Ultimate Comparison: Living Influencers vs. Dead Geniuses
| Feature | Influencers | Dead Geniuses |
|---|---|---|
| Lifespan of Influence | Usually a few years or a decade | Centuries or even millennia |
| Depth of Knowledge | Often surface-level, driven by trends | Profound, time-tested insights |
| Source of Authority | Popularity, social media following | Intellectual contributions, historical significance |
| Medium of Communication | Videos, blogs, social media posts | Books, theories, scientific discoveries, music, art |
| Purpose | Engagement, entertainment, monetization | Advancement of knowledge, timeless wisdom |
| Impact | Temporary, reactive | Permanent, transformative |
| Filter of Relevance | Driven by algorithms and virality | Survives only if truly valuable over time |
How To Have Conversations With Dead Geniuses
I’m not suggesting a seance. You can talk to dead geniuses by reading their work, consuming their ideas and experiencing their results. For example, books are conversations with authors.
And classic books are conversations with dead genuises.
- Want to ask Chanakya a question about the world or India’s desired place in it ? Read the Arthashastra and he’ll usually have answers for you.
- Want to have a conversation with Adam Smith about the free market? Open the Wealth of Nations and he’s waiting for you too.
- Need a little help understanding the very basics of the psychology of investing from its dean Ben Graham? Open The Intelligent Investor and have a word with Ben.
Time is very clear about this. It has chosen, almost through natural selection, certain ideas over others, certain dead people over others. These are the ‘baaps’ (forefathers) of today’s influencers.
Because, they haven’t influenced just your generation, they’ve influenced too many generations to count.
How to Follow, Like, and Subscribe to Dead Geniuses
If you're under the influence of junk influencers on Instagram, X, Facebook, Youtube and more, here’s how to follow, like, subscribe to, and share content or posts by Dead Geniuses in a way that fits your daily routine:
- Curate Your Feed And Follow a Dead Genius on Instagram – Follow Instagram pages like @socratesphilosopher, @rumiphilosophyquotes, and @williamshakespearequotes to get posts from Dead Geniuses.
- Listen to a Dead Genius on the Go – Download an audiobook from Audible, Spotify, or YouTube. Try The Wealth of Nations narrated by Gildart Jackson or Meditations by Marcus Aurelius, narrated by Richard Armitage. The dead can't speak, but they still have a lot to say.
- Binge-Watch A Dead Genius's Work and Ideas – Watch YouTube channels like GreatArtExplained, Philosophy Tube, and The School of Life for a Dead Genius's living idea as a summary or analysis.
- Join the Conversation About A Dead Genius – Engage in Reddit threads like r/philosophy, r/askhistorians, and r/classicliterature for debates and discussions about a Dead Genius's idea.
- Apply A Dead Genius's Strategy In Real Life – Use Leonardo da Vinci’s principles for creativity and innovation, or use Stoic principles from Meditations for mindset shifts.
- Visit Places A Dead Genius Lived or Worked, Physically or Virtually – If you can't travel, check out Google Arts & Culture for virtual museum experiences.
- Make A Dead Genius Shareable – Post and repost quotes from Dead Geniuses to friends and family on Instagram, Facebook, X, Youtube and more. Their ideas are underrated, undervalued, and probably under-distributed.
So once in a while, It’s not a bad idea to like, share, follow and subscribe to a Dead Genius.
Listen to The Companion Episode
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