Epicurus on Happiness

Written by Michael

I somehow trundled through one of the best educations money can buy without taking a lick of philosophy—which casts the first part of the statement slightly in doubt, doesn’t it? Let’s just say my schooling was expensive, and draw a discreet curtain over the rest.

Luckily, I’ve stumbled upon several documentaries that are helping me rectify this sorry state of affairs; below is one I watched yesterday and enjoyed a great deal, which discusses the ancient philosopher Epicurus and his ideas on happiness. As I want all my readers to be happy, I am embedding the film below. Don’t say I never did anything for you. Or if you do say it, use some language other than English, which is the only one I understand (draw the curtain! draw the curtain!).

Given that every one of the 300 books Epicurus wrote in his lifetime has been lost, Epicurus’ Wikipedia page will have to do. It contains this gem: “I was not; I have been; I am not; I do not mind. – written on the gravestones of followers, seen on many ancient gravestones of the Roman Empire, and often used today at humanist funerals.”

Epicurus: definitely making it into the Library of 1000 Books. He’ll be so pleased.