Epicurus was a Greek philosopher from the fourth century BC. According to him, becoming happy was very simple, but people were looking for happiness in the wrong way.
Table of contents
- Epicurus
- Happiness the Epicurean way
- Free happiness
Epicurus
Epicurus was born 341 years BC in Samos, a Greek island off what is now the Turkish coast. Very few of his writings have survived the test of time. As a result, his philosophy on happiness has been reconstituted by piecing together remaining fragments.
Samos
Epicurus was optimistic and believed that people can find happiness. People didn’t find happiness because they looked in the wrong place. Many philosophers have a pessimistic attitude about happiness, Epicurus’ answer seems tempting.
We think the way to happiness is obvious: having a lot of money. With that money we can go shopping, which makes us feel happier. It’s easy to imagine that money can solve all your problems, but can it?
Epicurus loved the beautiful life: beauty, laughter and sex. Epicurus’ philosophy of happiness was synonymous with the ancient Greeks for a Burgundian life. Today, people who enjoy a luxurious life are still sometimes called Epicureans. This is a misconception, because Epicurus himself, however, lived a modest life. He lived in a simple home and ate cheap meals.
According to Epicurus, people do not realize what can make them happy. Because people have doubts about what can make them happy, they are tempted by material happiness. An afternoon of shopping is a search for happiness. Because we don’t know what we really need to be happy, we are more easily tempted by material desires.
Happiness the Epicurean way
According to Epicurus, there are only three ingredients needed to be happy, and shopping is not one of them:
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- friends
- freedom
- analyzed life
- friends
Epicurus thought friendship was very important. He therefore made a radical decision: he bought a large house just outside Athens and called it The Garden. He invited friends to live in the house, which was quite large. So everyone had their own room, but everyone ate together and talked to each other. You should not occasionally meet friends in a café, but you should partly live together with them, which Epicurus thought was important to achieve happiness. Before you eat or drink something, you should think about who you are doing it with, that is more important than what you eat. For eating without a friend is the life of a lion or a wolf.
2. freedom
To achieve that freedom, Epicurus and his friends (household members) left Athens to seek a more independent life in nature. For them, freedom means financial independence and economic self-sufficiency, rather than accountability to bosses and creditors in the competition-driven city. Life was simple, but they enjoyed their freedom. They didn’t care if they looked less fancy or had less money than other people because they were their own bosses.
3. Analyzed life
By this he meant that we have to make free time. We must take the time to reflect , to think about what we do, say and feel. We have to think about what is bothering us, so we become less anxious. To achieve this you need to retreat from the noisy city life.
Free happiness
According to Epicurus, happiness cannot be bought. Even if you have little money, but have friends around you and lead a quiet (free and analyzed) life, you can be happy. If you have a lot of money, but do not live a self-sufficient and analyzed life and have no friends, all the money in the world cannot make you happy.
read more
- The problem of suffering
- Atheists and Theists: Is There a God?
- Solipsism: what is real and what is illusion?
- Nihilism: the truth does not exist
- Theo Jansen and the Strandbeests: art or science?