6th Dinner – Epicurus’ Philosophy of Pleasure & Pain

The Invited Philosopher

Rene

The Menu

1. Appetizer: Tom Kah Kung*
2. Second Appetizer: Green Papaya salad*
3. Main Course: Baja Barramundi with yellow rice and salsa fresca.
4. Drink: « Epicurean » water

*Courtesy of Rene

The Philosophy

The Greek Philosopher Epicurus’s argued for “Everything in Moderation”. But it is not as simple as that.  And our dinner discussion took us into many unexpected directions. Unexpected, because many I had not considered before. That is one big reason why I enjoy the philosophy dinners: To discover points of views my mind would not have considered. My introduction to Epicurus was this French podcast. For Rene, I found 3 web sites with good summaries of the philosophy: Reading Epicurus: Pleasure & Pain, What is Epicurism?, The Philosophy of Epicurus. After the dinner I also enjoyed reading the 3 ingredients for happiness.

The Summary

Epicurus identified happiness with the pursuit of pleasure and the avoidance of pain. He claimed there are two ways to attain pleasure: (1) Meeting one’s desires (2) Having no desires (state of tranquility or ataraxia). He characterized three types of desires of which the last two lead to pain and should be avoided: (1) natural & necessary desires such as for food and shelter, (2) natural but non-necessary desires such as those for too much food, luxury food and accommodation, (3) vain desires such as those for fame, power, or wealth. He also listed three ingredients for happiness: (1) friendship, (2) freedom, (3) thought or wisdom (to lead an examined life)

Analysis

Are All Non-Necessary Desires to Be Avoided?

Rene argued that all “non-necessary” desires have the potential to lead to pain or addiction and he included books and thinking, two main pillars of philosophy, my beloved hobby. The next section covers those two under “Thinking and Wisdom”.

The question here is, can anything not absolutely necessary become harmful? Can a hobby become an addiction?  A desire to repeatedly do what others call a “good activity” or a  “hobby” should not lead to pain.  For example, “reading books”. But then, in our modern society, if, for example, you exchange “books” for “online dating”, or for “watching Netflix”, some will judge it as bad if done excessively.  And if you exchange that for “hitting the bars” or “drinking” excessively, then it is obvious that not only the judgement by other people is negative but the outcome to the health and mind of the person is negative as well. And it will cause pain, as Epicurus argued.

Rene argues that anything done compulsively and that we cannot stop ourselves from doing becomes an addiction or harms us, even reading. As an avid reader my initial response was to argue that it depends on the types of books we read and whether they help us become a better person.

But on second thought, it seems possible that anything, if done excessively may rob us of the balance in our life.  It is indeed a striking philosophical question to ponder: Can a hobby or a passion admired by most people ruin a person’s life? Let’s say a talented artist who paints, becomes obsessive and compulsive with his art, doing nothing but paint, day in, day out, and the artist neglects other parts of his life, like his family. Then, is it still good?

Probably not. But we found one activity that may be beneficial even if you do nothing else: Meditation. Read on.

3 Ways to Enlightenment

The meaning of enlightenment was discussed in the Siddhartha dinner. It is a state that can only be experienced but is not easily described. A state that humans achieve when they have no pain and no desires and are in complete bliss and contentment. While Epicurus never used that term, his search for happiness and striving for a state of tranquility could be called the search for enlightenment.

The Simple Life

Epicurus believed that the gods exist, but that they have absolutely no concern for, or even awareness of, humankind. He was therefore not well respected by the early Christians. He said it would perturb the supreme happiness and tranquility that defines the gods to get involved in human matters. Instead of fearing the gods, human beings should seek to emulate them in their supreme happiness and tranquility. The state of “supreme happiness and tranquility” should remind us of Buddha. And the advice to “emulate” that state, was taught by Buddha. Based on these beliefs and his arguments for having no desires or only the minimum to satisfy necessary desires, Epicurus and his friends left Athens to lead a very simple life in a commune type house they called “the Garden”. It is what spiritual groups, such as Buddhist monks, also do.

Thinking & Wisdom

Philosophers by nature extoll the virtue of thought. This actually contradicts many spiritual teachings and also preventive medicine strategies which recommend periods of no thinking to quiet the mind and the ego, and for inspiration. Buddhists join philosophers in recommending wisdom to attain enlightenment, but part of that wisdom entails stopping thoughts for long periods of time.

Epicurus, however, recommended that he and his friends learn to analyze their anxieties about money, illness, death and the supernatural. For him thought was a good remedy for anxiety. That belief only makes sense when we consider using our thoughts wisely! If we become obsessed with thinking about a particular topic, it is not healthy and will eventually cause pain. Epicurus recommended using thoughts to write a problem down or airing it in conversation which allows for better understanding. Once understood, either the problem itself is removed, or at least, its secondary characteristics are removed: confusion, frustration, surprise (See 3 ingredients for happiness). In Epicurus own words:

Misfortune seldom intrudes upon the wise man; his greatest and highest interests are directed by reason throughout the course of life

The misfortune of the wise is better than the prosperity of the fool

Meditation

Rene and I agree on the benefits of meditation which requires stopping the constant stream of thoughts. This sounds like a contradiction to the philosopher’s premise that thoughts are good and that examining our life is beneficial. But even the recognition that periods of “no thoughts” are beneficial can only be attained through thinking, and following a recommendation to practice it. After we practice meditation on a regular basis, we understand its benefits and how it complements Epicurus’ philosophy, here: “thinking in moderation” to attain a “state of tranquility”.

But meditation is not a natural desire. If we understood, however, its benefits, it would become a necessity.  Health science is providing evidence that meditation is a necessity and can prevent or cure diseases.

A question that came up during the dinner was: What happens if someone meditates too much? Is it an addiction? This usually only occurs to people such as gurus and monks who leave society to seek a spiritual and often solitary life. I am not sure I know what happens to these people. In considering the simulation theory discussed in a previous dinner, I argued to Rene, tongue in cheek, that these people stop playing the virtual game and they disappear from this world, or their world disappears. What we have observed or read in books, is that some of these people become “enlightened”. Some return to society to teach meditation and other virtuous practices that lead to happiness or enlightenment. Buddha was one of them. Meditation is Epicurus’ missing ingredient in the pursuit of happiness. But he got everything else right.

 

“He who has peace of mind disturbs neither himself nor another.”
― Epicurus