Epicurus: The Happy Philosopher

Few philosophers have presented the world with a better answer to “how to be happy” than Epicurus (341-270 BCE) who lived and taught in ancient Greece. Epicurus was no epicurean glutton or wanton consumerist. He believed in a simple life, where the true path to happiness was through "friends, freedom and thought".

Epicurus was born on the Greek island of Samos, off the coast of modern Turkey. Although all of his books have been lost, his ideas have lived on. This free thinking philosopher maintained that everyone could be happy, it’s just that we were pointed in the wrong direction.

He didn’t believe it was a sin to enjoy a pleasurable life; after all, he did live at least 400 years before that concept became popular. The problem with the lack of joy in so many peoples’ lives is that most of us equate happiness with having a lot of money or just having a lot of stuff.

Epicurus was also a big proponent of love, sex, and beauty, but he didn’t think these were things you could go out and buy.

The word “Epicurean” has become associated with living a life of luxury, particularly eating gourmet meals and drinking expensive wines and liquors. But Epicurus had a very different definition of the luxurious life. What we’ve gleaned from the fragments of information he left behind was that Epicurus lived a simple life. He wore simple clothing, lived in a simple dwelling, and ate very simply. He preferred nuts, olives, bread and cheese and found fish to be terribly overpriced. Although today, he would marvel at the miracle of glossy paper and ink, Epicurus would no doubt be appalled at the content of Epicurious Magazine.

Most everyone agrees to the premise that we are the unwitting victims of mass media advertising and peer pressure. While most of us are convinced that a big plasma TV is essential for happiness, (at least during the hours of 7 and 10pm) and that 20 pair of shoes is far more gratifying than 3, Epicurus believed that happiness could never be achieved by having cartloads of possessions; in fact, happiness came pretty cheaply.

The most important ingredient for true happiness, he maintained, was to have a lot of good friends. He put his philosophy where his mouth was and purchased, (with money I suppose) a large house in Athens. He then invited all his best friends to come live with him. While everyone had their own room, they all came together for meals (tapas, no doubt) and good conversation.

What was distinctively epicurean here was that socialization with friends went on 24/7. It was detrimental to your own well being to eat alone “like a lion or a wolf”. Eating was all about the quality of your eating companion. It was far more important than what you were actually eating; which leads me to Epicurus’ second big key to happiness – Freedom. Epicurus strove for freedom from critical Greek politicians, gossipy neighbors, oppressive employers and the like. Financial independence was the key, so he and his roommates left town and lived self-sufficiently in the country, - kind of like the first Kibbutz.

Epicurus’ third ingredient for happiness was “an analyzed life”. Ok what’s that? What he meant was that we all needed time off (vacation time if you like) to review our lives, take stock, and make the necessary adjustments. This could only be done successfully if we stepped away from the daily routine of our lives and allowed ourselves to think. Few would dispute the merit of this ingredient for happiness.

So you ask. Can money bring happiness? A lot of people say, “No, but it sure can help”. I agree, but I also have to believe in the Epicurean philosophy that it’s ok to seek out what’s pleasurable, (as long as you don’t hurt anyone else), to make a lot of good friends, to work for yourself (by doing what you love to do) and to take a nice vacation every once in a while. If you’ve got loads of money and you’re lacking the other ingredients, true happiness will undoubtedly remain elusive.

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