Ship me a pot of cheese, in order that I might be able to indulge myself at any time when I want.
-Epicurus
Final month, I wrote an article on why you should read Thinking Fast and Slow as a tribute to Kahneman. Surprisingly, it was considered one of my best-received articles to this point, and a number of readers have requested me to do extra e-book opinions. So the plan is to do considered one of these a month as a particular studying suggestion. This manner, I can experiment with extra sorts of recs and I gained’t become bored with writing about one fashion of article.
Of everybody I’ve learn, I discover Epicurus to be probably the most helpful philosophers for thriving within the trendy period. Whereas his title and philosophy are sometimes related to unchecked hedonism and decadence (therefore the adjective epicurean), his precise philosophy can educate us a complete lot about dwelling peacefully in a world of extra. By this text, I hope to persuade you to present Epicurus a spin and combine some ‘Epicureanism’ in your life. Extra particularly, we can be elaborating on the next ideas-
- Epicurus the Hedonist– Individuals usually misunderstand Epicurean hedonism. Epicurean philosophy is predicated on a easy supposition: we’re glad once we take away the issues that make us sad. Thus, a lot of his philosophy revolves round eliminating sources of discontent and unhappiness. This entails ruthlessly reducing out all indulgences which might be either- not pure (we wish them to impress others, not for their very own pleasure); dangerous in the long term; or usually disruptive to our psychological peace (standing video games). This side of his philosophy is especially relevant to a world seeped in social media- the place we’re continuously bombarded by messages of how we’re missing in some key space of our life, and the way shopping for the following product, service, or expertise will repair this lack. Epicurean philosophy is an efficient reminder to maintain be vigilant about how we’re being influenced by the fixed subliminal messaging and to solely pursue the pleasures that we wish for ourselves.
- Epicurus the Introspector (is that this a phrase?)- Epicurus attributes a big a part of our struggling to our superstitions. Our superstitions trigger us to behave irrationally, shedding our steadiness and leaving us inclined to manipulation. A lot of his emphasis on withdrawing from bigger society right into a smaller group of pals and friends is to create an setting the place now we have the psychological house to critically take into consideration our suppositions and axioms. Notably related are Epicurus’s writings on coping with concern and uncertainty- given how a lot communication on-line is constructed with the specific goal of creating us offended, polarized, and scared.
- Epicurus the Pal- Epicurus has a very robust emphasis on the significance of friendship as a should for a contented life. Studying his (and different classical philosophers) work creates fairly a whiplash- given how little we appear to worth that in our world. It’s not uncommon for folks to go away their total communities for college, jobs, or romantic relationships. Whereas I’m not denying the significance of any of these or condemning folks for doing it (I’m nomadic, so I exchange my total social circle each 1–2 months)- it’s attention-grabbing how friendship has virtually turn into an afterthought when discussing priorities. It’s stunning how usually folks give recommendation prefer it’s okay to desert your ‘low-value’ social circle to be able to turn into a millionaire. All of that regardless of the quite a few intangible advantages that having social connections can have. Studying thinkers like Epicurus may also help us maintain a mirror to our personal lives, and to assume deeply in regards to the tradeoffs we make subconsciously.
Epicurus lined much more, that we’ll not be masking as a result of I both don’t find out about it, didn’t discover it compelling, or to maintain issues concise. I might strongly counsel studying his work your self and forming your personal conclusions (particularly contemplating my lack of {qualifications} on these subjects). It’s additionally price contemplating that every one thinkers have their limitations. The Epicuean answer of retreating right into a backyard solely works for these with entry to a pleasant backyard. The Epicurean thoughts would additionally wrestle to know the enjoyment of spending many sleepless nights maximizing shareholder worth. It’s at all times worthwhile to critically consider each thinker, particularly those that died with out turning into “thought leaders” on LinkedIn. With that out of the way in which, let’s get into it.
It’s unattainable to dwell a nice life with out dwelling properly and effectively and justly. And it’s unattainable to dwell properly and effectively and justly with out dwelling a nice life.
Epicurus has usually been painted with the broad brushstrokes of hedonism, his title being related to lavish feasts and unchecked indulgence. A sort of Historic Greek R.Okay Rockstar. Nonetheless, it is a main misunderstanding.
Epicureanism isn’t about indulging each whim or chasing fleeting pleasures. It’s about reaching a state of deep, abiding tranquility — what Epicurus known as “ataraxia” — by understanding the true nature of happiness and its origins. The easiest way to know Epicurean pleasure-seeking is the next quote-
And we imagine that self-sufficiency is a superb good, not so that we’d do with few issues beneath all circumstances, however in order that if we do not need rather a lot we are able to make do with few, being genuinely satisfied that those that least want extravagance get pleasure from it probably the most; and that all the pieces pure is simple to acquire and no matter is groundless is difficult to acquire; and that easy flavours present a pleasure equal to that of an extravagant life-style when all ache from need is eliminated, 131. and barley muffins and water present the best pleasure when somebody in need takes them. Subsequently, turning into accustomed to easy, not extravagant, methods of life makes one utterly wholesome, make man unhesitant within the face of life’s obligatory duties, places us in a greater situation for the instances of extravagance which often come alongside, and makes us fearless within the face of probability. So once we say that pleasure is the aim we don’t imply the pleasures of the profligate or the pleasures of consumption, as some imagine, both from ignorance and disagreement or from deliberate misinterpretation, however somewhat the dearth of ache within the physique and disturbance within the soul.
As we are able to see, on the coronary heart of Epicureanism lies a easy thought: true happiness doesn’t come from endlessly chasing pleasure, however from systematically eliminating the sources of our unhappiness. It’s about recognizing that a lot of our struggling is self-inflicted, stemming from wishes that aren’t actually our personal. We condemn ourselves to discontentment by bowing to the alter of societal pressures, promoting, and the ever-present tendency of comparability that pervades our digital lives.
Take social media. I do know individuals who plan journeys round ‘Instagrammable spots’ and spend hours modifying their images. Others comply with random accounts and unfollow them later to enhance their follower ratios. After which now we have folks that like to inform folks what number of nations they’ve visited as if which means something. All this to curate feeds and set up the prevalence of their lives. Multiply this by 100 and now we have a tradition of inadequacy, the place everybody insists on standing on their very own soapbox to say their specialness.
In an setting like this, there’s just one approach to stand out- consumption. Pursue (and flaunt) extra possessions, experiences, and achievements, not for the enjoyment they could deliver, however for what they inform others about ourselves. For some, materialism is now not cool, and they also flaunt the aesthetic of activism. They put up their tales, play at advocacy, and maintain conferences about how they are going to uplift blue-collar people or finish the evils of imperialism with a lot fervor that they overlook to truly take motion.
It doesn’t matter what taste, conspicuous consumption is supposed to exhibit a dedication to maintaining with a treadmill of expectations. Epicurus would encourage us to step off that treadmill, to query the wishes that drive our decisions. To ruthlessly prune away the wishes that aren’t actually our personal. In doing so, we’re left with a set of wishes that fulfill us, for which we’re keen to dwell and die. By pursuing them, and ignoring all of the unnatural pleasures, we find yourself dwelling a lifetime of long-term pleasure and tranquility.
In contrast to lots of his contemporaries, Epicurus was amoral. To him, pleasures have been solely good and unhealthy primarily based on how they impacted your well-being. Nonetheless, this causes an issue to anybody who desires to combine Epicureanism into their very own lives. How are you going to decide b/w two pleasures that result in opposing outcomes? Ought to I drink that chocolate milk and thus spike my blood sugar? Or do I skip sugar and dwell lengthy (that is purely hypothetical, as everyone knows {that a} world w/o chocolate milk isn’t a world price dwelling in). If I woke with a powerful urge to stroll round punching grandmas ought to I act on it? Or do I stifle that urge to maintain my place in society? To reply such questions, we have to perceive how we rank varied pleasures and pains, and what we might be keen to surrender. That is the place the following half is available in.
A free life can not purchase many possessions, as a result of this isn’t simple to do with out servility to mobs or monarchs.
Are you depressing? There are two possibilities-
- Your circumstances are actually that unhealthy and nothing improves until you repair them.
- “Your worst sin is that you just’ve destroyed and betrayed your self for nothing” (what’s your favourite Doestovesky work? Mine is both Brother’s Karamazov or The Fool).
Epicurus tends to lean in direction of the latter. To him, a good portion of human struggling stems not from exterior circumstances, however from inside our personal minds. Our irrational fears, anxieties, and superstitions cloud our judgment, main us to make selections that finally sabotage our personal happiness. A lot of this, he believed, was a results of dwelling in a state of fixed distraction, bombarded by exterior noise that prevented us from connecting with ourselves. As such, we glance exterior for cues- and find yourself enjoying the sport of conspicuous consumption.
To make issues worse, we’re continuously bombarded with data, a lot of it designed to evoke a powerful emotional response — concern, outrage, indignation. That is one thing now we have talked about extensively relating to AI Hype- each hype bros and doomers finally depend on comparable techniques to inculcate FOMO and induce hysteria. It’s why corporations pretend demos and Doomers discover new methods to move off their science fiction as existential risk-
These techniques depend on echo chambers to mentally beat us into submission. Introspection permits us to extend b/w stimulus and response, letting our vital considering kick in. Nonetheless, nobody could be a prophet in a flash mob. To interact in significant introspection, we’d like an area conducive to such actions. That’s the place the following half is available in.
Epicurus inspired his followers to kind close-knit communities. These communities would enable their members to step again and assist one another critically analyze the occasions round them to make sure that nobody took the unsuitable path. The communities served as a mirror, serving to folks see issues that they might wrestle to see on their very own. Thus, group immediately advantages self-relfection.
Nonetheless, that is solely attainable you probably have a GOOD group. Subsequently, it shouldn’t shock you that Epicurus positioned a powerful emphasis on friendship. Let’s finish on a dialogue of that.
Of all of the means to insure happiness all through the entire life, by far a very powerful is the acquisition of pals
I might sit right here and wax lyrical about the fantastic thing about friendship, however I doubt any of you’d contest me on that. As a substitute, I’ll throw out some random statistics
“The science of why friendships keep us healthy” has some good factors corresponding to this-
Individuals who have pals and shut confidants are extra happy with their lives and fewer prone to endure from melancholy (Choi, K. W., et al., The American Journal of Psychiatry, Vol. 177, №10, 2020). They’re additionally much less prone to die from all causes, together with coronary heart issues and a variety of power illnesses (Holt-Lunstad, J., et al., PLOS Medicine, Vol. 7, №7, 2010; Steptoe, A., et al., PNAS, Vol. 110, №15, 2013).
or this
Individuals with no pals or poor-quality friendships are twice as prone to die prematurely, in response to Holt-Lunstad’s meta-analysis of greater than 308,000 folks — a danger issue even better than the results of smoking 20 cigarettes per day (PLOS Medicine, Vol. 7, №7, 2010).
or this-
On the opposite facet of the coin, analysis has proven that loneliness — amongst individuals who lack high quality friendships, romantic partnerships, or different relationships — will increase our danger for coronary heart assault, stroke, and untimely loss of life, in response to a longitudinal examine of practically 480,000 U.Okay. residents (Hakulinen, C., et al., Heart, Vol. 104, №18, 2018). A meta-analysis by Holt-Lunstad estimates that loneliness will increase the chance of early loss of life as a lot as 26% (Perspectives on Psychological Science, Vol. 10, №2, 2015).
Or take the examine, The relative importance of friendship to happiness increases with age
Frequent interactions with the closest pal might have a better impression on happiness in previous age than these with the closest household and neighbor.
That is what makes the next chart so concerning-
You possibly can discover a variety of different stats to again up how vital friendship will be. So right here’s a query to you- have you ever given your friendships an applicable stage of significance? Do you give your friendships the identical significance as work, romance, or household? Or has platonic friendship slipped into your blind spot, the way in which it usually does for thus many people?
Even when he isn’t my fav, I maintain a delicate spot for Epicurus as a result of he threads a really high-quality line-
- I’ve at all times been drawn to the fabric asceticism usually inspired in Hinduism (it’s why I sleep on the bottom and not using a mattress or a pillow).
- However I’ve by no means been into the entire “this world is nothing, reincarnation is the aim, so it’s essential to resign all pleasures for salvation” that always comes with it. I’m very a lot an embrace your passions/pleasures kinda man.
Epicurus gives approximation for beliefs that navigate each these points. I additionally assume that relating to the fashionable world, he’s the thinker that is likely to be probably the most useful to learn. And that’s the reason he’ll at all times be high-up on my suggestions checklist.
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