What Is Happiness? Epicurus on the Good Life

We are living in, perhaps, what is the most pleasurable time in the history of humanity — national security has never been higher, education has never been more widespread, and medicine has never been more advanced. Modern society allows for the mass accumulation of wealth, and easy social mobility. We are surrounded by devices designed to provide instantaneous pleasure, and bombarded with constant advertisements and distractions, luring us towards pleasure.

And yet, instead of the boundless pleasure and happiness one would expect from a society with such advancements, there is an epidemic of suffering.

Modern society is hellbent on selling us narratives on happiness, on telling us that sex, money, and fame are all we need to be truly happy and live a life of pleasure. But rather than leading us toward true pleasure and happiness, these narratives lead us to develop “empty desires” of material wealth and vanity.

And so, during these times, when material wealth and vanity are desired above all else, when society self-perpetuates myths on happiness, one cannot help but stop and think about the meaning of true happiness. How can one achieve the good life, the desired life, all the while gaining pleasurable experiences and minimizing pain?

There was, but one ancient Grecian philosopher who tackled this question head-on. Whereas other Hellenistic philosophers at the time answered life's biggest question in terms of self-discipline, morality, and ethicality, Epicurus of Samos alone stood out against the crowd. Instead of teaching about morals or ethics, he taught the philosophy of happiness and pleasure. So, who was Epicurus of Samos, and what does he tell us about the Good Life?

Epicurus, the Campion of Pleasure

Epicurus (341 BCE - 270 BCE) was born on the small island of Samos in the late 4th century BCE, and is most well-known for his teachings of Epicureanism, a sort of restrained hedonism. Hedonism refers to the belief that pleasure is the highest form of good in life, and that the Good Life should be spent pursuing the most pleasurable experiences.

When one thinks of a hedonist, then, one may make assumptions about their lifestyle. For example, if a hedonist only believed in the pursuit of pleasure, then would the only things of value in their life be sex, luxury, and status? In fact, rumours were quite widespread when Epicurus opened his first school for Epicureanism, named “The Garden.” Critics of Epicurus’ teachings spread rumours that Epicurus had to vomit twice a day, so that he could continue being fed massive feasts by his slaves. Another critic fabricated 50 letters, supposedly written by a lustful Epicurus and directed towards his young and attractive students. Even in modern society, the word “Epicurean” is used to describe luxury or an overindulgence in pleasure.

But the reality was that Epicurus was nothing like the reputation that preceded him. In fact, Epicurus was a simple man who led a simple life, owning only two pieces of clothing, eating only bread and olives, and occasionally treating himself to a slice of cheese. His teachings and philosophy of Epicureanism were founded in a society similar to ours, in a time when people were surrounded by pleasure, and yet no one was truly happy. He studied happiness not out of vanity, not out of self-indulgence, but out of a curiosity on why, if people were surrounded by so much pleasure, they were still not living the good, happy life.

Epicureanism

“Pleasure is the first good. It is the beginning of every choice and every aversion. It is the absence of pain in the body and of troubles in the soul” - Epicurus

Epicurus and his followers believed that there were two elementary emotions or pathê (sensations) in life: pleasure (hêdonê) and pain (algêdôn). He believed that these elementary pathê were not just abstract concepts, but that our bodies and souls were naturally attracted to one and repelled by the other. And so, in a life dictated by pain and pleasure, he believed that it was life's greatest good, perhaps even morally right to pursue pleasure and reject pain.

However, what made Epicureanism so different from traditional Hedonism was their definition of pleasure and happiness. Traditional Hedonists, called Cyrenaics, thought of happiness as a feeling, as a sensual pleasure to be had. And so in their pursuit of this pleasure, they would cast aside all concerns of the future, all experiences of the past, and enjoy physical and mental pleasure in the moment regardless of consequences.

Epicureans on the other hand characterized pleasure as a sort of tranquility. They believed that in order to truly gain the most pleasurable experiences in life, one must live truthfully and honestly. In order to gain the most pleasurable experiences, one must be at peace with themselves, ridding both physical pain and mental anguish. This meant that they recognized that not all pleasurable experiences are good and intrinsically pleasurable, as they may bring on greater pain in the future. This is what differentiates sensual Hedonism (the Cyrenaics) from the Epicureans, who practiced a restrained form of hedonism. This is also what made Epicureanism one of the most influential philosophies in Ancient Greece, competing with the likes of Zeno and his school of Stoics, and Plato and his teachings of the Forms.

With the Epicurean belief that there were two elementary sensations, there also came the development of a framework to describe suffering and happiness. The state of suffering came to be known as “Tarakhê,” otherwise known as mental perturbation, and the state of happiness came to be known as “Ataraxy,” or the freeing of oneself from mental perturbation and physical pain.

Tarakhê - Mental Perturbation

Tarakhê, used to describe mental suffering or perturbation, was at its core believed to be caused by an overload of desires. Epicurus’ teachings taught 3 levels of desires: natural and necessary desires, natural and unnecessary desires, and empty desires.

Natural and necessary desires are said to be desires that are essential to life and living; things like the desire to quench one's thirst, or the desire to eat a nourishing meal. These are desires that look to the increase of happiness and well-being, decrease of physical pain and suffering, as well as alleviating mental strain.

Natural and unnecessary desires are said to be desires that are naturally occurring, but unnecessary to our daily life and survival in general. These are things such as the desire for good-tasting food, or the desire to buy luxurious goods such as a bigger car. These desires, in Epicureanism, are believed to increase pain along with the increase of pleasure, as they can never truly be fulfilled.

Finally, Empty desires are just that: they are empty and do not truly bring us pleasure. They are vain desires born out of fear and insecurity, desires that can never truly bring us pleasure and happiness. These are things such as the desire for wealth, the desire for fame, or the desire for status.

Ataraxy and Eudaimonia - Tranquility and Happiness

Ataraxy is described to be the complete absence and elimination of Tarakhê or mental perturbation. A state of ataraxy is characterized by an understanding of the self, and a tranquility of life that brings about eudaimonia or happiness. Further building on the 3 desires that Epicurus describes in his philosophy, he also teaches two kinds of pleasure that help us better understand how to achieve ataraxy: Kinetic pleasure and Katastematic (static) pleasure.

Kinetic pleasure describes non-necessary pleasures, which are caused by natural and unnecessary desires and empty desires. Epicurus argues that non-necessary pleasures caused by non-necessary desires often cause more pain and distress than pleasure, due to the fact that as we fulfill one desire, our desires augment. They continue to increase and intensify beyond our abilities to fulfill them, leading to the state of Tarakhê.

Katastematic pleasure, on the other hand, is related to the first kind of desire, a natural and necessary kind of desire. These are pleasures that, rather than fulfilling our desire for something more, fulfill our most basic wants and needs. By doing this, it provides us the most pleasure by fulfilling our desire, but not augmenting it.

Epicurus’ Three Pillars of Happiness

Using the framework we established above, Epicurus took a good, hard look at Greek Society. He determined that, despite the abundance of sex and love, of fame and money, and of luxury, people were still not truly happy. It was because of people's augmenting desires, of empty wishes of pleasure, that they did not feel fulfilled despite the numerous pleasurable experiences that they had. And so, Epicurus came up with 3 parts that he believed would lead to true happiness, and would allow us to free ourselves from the shackles of desire and live the Good Life.

Friends

The first ingredient to the good life was… friends! Epicurus realized that Eros, or romantic love and sex, was not fulfilling our desires. It was too controlling, filled with jealousy, and difficult to maintain. As soon as we got one pleasurable experience, we wanted more and more, leading to augmenting desires. On the other hand, friendships were much nicer. Friends are non-possessive, understanding, and they were there in hard times if you needed support. In fact, there is a word to describe this kind of love: Philia. Philia is the love between friends and equals, and was often considered the ultimate form of love. Epicurus in particular placed a heavy emphasis on the importance of Philia in one’s life, even going as far as to say:

“A wise man would feel the torture of a friend no less than his own, and would die for a friend rather than betray him, for otherwise his own life would be confounded.” -Epicurus

This is a highly altruistic statement for a man who was so obsessed with personal pleasure! In fact, Epicurus founded his own school of philosophy, The Garden, based on this rule. In the school, there would always be a friend there to talk to you when you were bored, or supported you when you were in a time of hardship.

Freedom

The second ingredient to the good life was freedom or liberation from one’s unnecessary desires. Epicurus saw that society was chained down by unnecessary and empty desires: a desire for luxury, a desire for money, a desire for fame. People worked long and hard hours because they believed that the end all be all of the good, happy life were status and money. However, Epicurus refutes this by saying that what really makes us happy and fulfills us, is a desire to make a change. What really makes us happy, he tells us, is breaking our chains to our desires, and doing what we really want to do: poetry, art, non-profit work, or any other thing that makes us feel fulfilled. His teachings tell us that our desires for fame and money really stem from insecurity. They stem from a fear of being forgotten in society, a fear of not being able to support yourself. But these fears do the opposite: they break us down, and they force us to chase after things we don’t actually feel fulfilled by.

Tranquility

Finally, Epicurus believed that we needed tranquility in our lives to be happy. He realized that society’s obsession with luxury was just a cover-up for the desire for tranquility. We enjoy luxurious locations because we think it will bring us inner peace. We buy luxurious items because we feel the need to buy items that make us feel rich and good about ourselves. Luxury in general is a symbol of status and power, which society tells us is pleasurable, but it just leads to augmenting desires. What Epicurus suggests instead is for us to spend time reflecting and understanding ourselves. Taking time to regularly reflect on our feelings, meditating, and journaling is what Epicurus says leads us to a true feeling of Ataraxia or tranquility.

Summary

Epicurus and his three pillars to a good life are just guidelines to how we should live, and should not dictate our day-to-day dealings. We are humans after all: we make mistakes, we become sad, we get angry. It is impossible to achieve true peace or happiness, the only solution is to try our best. But Epicureanism does teach us something important. It teaches us about the fundamentals of pleasure and pain, of our basic desires, and of the causes and consequences of these desires. So, the next time we desire something, the next time we are faced with a desire, the next time we are faced with a life-altering decision, it is important to ask ourselves, will this truly make me happy?


Sources:

https://www.verywellmind.com/epicurean-philosophy-and-happiness-4177914

https://societyofepicurus.com/life-in-epicurean-communities/

https://www.theschooloflife.com/article/the-great-philosophers-epicurus/

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/epicurus/#Life

https://iep.utm.edu/epicur/#SH5b