I do see philosophy as a way of life, otherwise, what is the point? You have to follow what you believe to be true. If, through philosophy, I come to the conclusion that doing this or that is right, then I must do it. Otherwise, why?

So were the first philosophers. Embodying their philosophy.

I like the comparison you make with religion. It seems to me that they have a lot in common. I have the feeling that what people like Plato called philosophy is today closer to what yogis and mystics in the East do, than modern philosophers in the West.