Tetrapharmakos

Let me repeat, "we" don't have to go to Bali to get in balance. We don't have to study an Eastern religion to find (y)ourselves. We don't have to use drugs or another 'soma' to be happy.

The recipe for leading the happiest possible life is right here - since 4th century BC - in Europe. And its Ancient Greek cook is Epicurus. His 'four-part cure' is:

Don't fear god,

Don't worry about death;

What is good is easy to get,

What is terrible is easy to endure.

More - a Chinese garden of course: here.

Please Ignore

"Even in modern times, the critics of Epicureanism continue to misrepresent it as a lazy-minded, shallow, pleasure-loving, immoral, or godless travesty of real philosophy. In our day the world 'epicureanism' has come to mean its opposite - a pretentious enthusiasm for rare and expensive food and drink. Please have the courage to ignore two thousand years of negative prejudice, and assess this philosophy on its own considerable merits."

P.S. Quote is from Hutchinson in: Inwood and Gerson, 'The Epicurus Reader. Selected Writings and Testimonia' (1994). The painting is from Rubens, 'The Feast of Acheloüs' (around 1615).

After All

What a lovely read: Greenblatt, 'The Swerve. How the World Became Modern' (New York 2011). Did I already say that it is a must read?

This book has for me three story-lines:

1. Book hunter Poggio Bracciolini who "discovered" in 1417 a copy of Lucretius 'De Rerum Natura' (English: On the Nature of Things) in a monastery. Probably the monastery of Fulda in Germany.
2. The message of Epicurus via the poem of Lucretius.
3. Lucretius' poem as the key on how the world became "modern" in the Renaissance.

What is the message of Epicurus (Ancient Greece 5th century BC) in the poem of Lucretius (Ancient Rome 1th century BC):

• Everything is made of invisible particles. Lucretius didn't use the Greek word 'atoms' but "first things", "first beginnings", "bodies of matter" or "seed of things".
• Elementary particles of matter are eternal. Greenblatt: "The invisible particles from which the entire univere is made, from the stars to the lowiest insect, are indestructible and immortal, though any particular object in the universe is transitory. That is, all the forms that we observe, even those that seem most durable, are temporary: the building blocks from which they are composed will sooner or later be redistributed."
• Elementary particles are infinite in number but limited in shape and size.
• All particles are in motion in an infinite void.
• Universe has no creator or designer.
• Everything comes into being as a result of a swerve. Latin words for 'swerve' are 'clinamen', 'declinatio' or 'inclinatio': an unexpected, unpredictable movement of matter.
• Swerve is the source of free will.
• Nature ceaselessy experiments. Greenblatt: "All living beings, from plants and insects to the higher mammals and man, have evolved through a long, complex process of trail and error. The process involves many false starts and dead ends (...)."
• Universe was not created for or about humans.
• Humans are not unique. We are made of the same stuff as everything else.
• Human society began not in a Golden Age of transquility and plenty but in a primitive battle for survival.
• Soul dies.
• There is no afterlife. When you grasp that your soul dies with your body, you also grasp that there can be no reward or punishment when you die. Greenblatt: "Life on this earth is all that human beings have."
• Death is nothing to us.
• All organized religions are superstitious delusions.
• Religions are invariably cruel.
• There are no angels, demons or ghosts.
• Highest goal of human life is the enhancement of pleasure and the reduction of pain.
• Greatest obstacle to pleasure is not pain; it is delusion.
• Understanding the nature of things generates deep wonder.

Life's ultimate goal is pleasure and not worshipping JWH, God, gods, ancestors, family, city or state. What a scandal it must have been for the Jews and later the Christians. Not only a scandal but above all a conflicting reason to be (French: raison d'être).

For me this book was above all a meditation on what is lost and the life-cycle of books before the invention of the printing press. So many pagan (read: non- or before-Christian) texts and so little survived over time. Books deteriorate over the centuries by water, fire, touching,  unrolling and rolling, bookworms, etcetera. Books deteriorate inevitable! The only way to preserve them is to read them and before they are worn out, copy them. A work that was done by scribes in monasteries. The copying of manuscripts turned out to be crucial to the survival of Lucretius and other pagan texts.

It reminds me that I've to educate my kids on Epicurus. Sometimes I think they are drowned too much into worldly delusions. Cut the crap and read Epicurus! I've bought two more books of my Epicurean-bible: a book with fragments (not all) of Epicurus translated into Dutch. The book that gave me the words, the worldview, the antidote against Christianity. In case you missed it: I am very Epicurean.

P.S. I wrote many times about Epicurus: here.

P.S. Did you know - not in this book - that Karl Marx's earned his PhD on Epicurus: here?

Manuscript Hunter

Checking out Gian Francesco Poggio Bracciolini (1380-1459). The rediscoverer of Lucretius' 1st century BC manuscript 'De rerum natura' (English: On the Nature of Things).

Sowhat? A little patience please, I almost finished reading Greenblatt, 'The Swerve: How the World Became Modern' (2011). 

Lucretius? Yes, the one who explained 4th century BC epicurean philosophy to a Roman audience. You remember Epicurus, right?

Invitation to Wander

How many books of 'My History Top 10' from Heuijerjans have you read? I have read four of them: Kennedy, Davies, Hughes and Wulf. My observation #top10: mainly books from era since Western Age of Enlightenment. Why? Question: Does Heuijerjans know that his point of view on history is biased if these books are his solid ground?

Here is my more balanced (with its own biases of course) list on history:

1. Friedrich Nietzsche/ Beyond Good and Evil (1886). Antidote against Socrates (Ancient Greece 5th Century BC) and Christianity (Year 0 - Present Day).
2. Christian Meier/ Caesar. A Biography (1982). Antidote against Age of Enlightenment. Rome is never beaten in history. More
3. Frankfort, Frankfort, Wilson and Jacobsen/ Before Philosophy (1946). Antidote against Ancient Greece and Rome. Book on Ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt before philosophy and ratio was born in Ancient Greece.
4. Moyers and Flowers/ The Power of Myth. Interview with Joseph Campbell (1988). Antidote against science and ratio. The influence, metaphors and power of myths.
5. Darrin McMahon/ The History of Happiness (2006). Antidote against there is only one definition of 'happiness'. More
6. Karel van der Leeuw/ Het Chinese Denken (1994). Antidote against Western thinking. Book in Dutch on Chinese thinking.
7. Angus Madison/ Contours of the World Economy 1-2030 AD. Essays in Macro-Economic History (2007). Antidote against the Western World has gained supremacy on planet Earth. In retrospect China has never been beaten and lives in splendid isolation. Only for a brief period of time, between 1850-2010, the West has had a higher Gross Domestic Product. More
8. Leopold/ Uit den Tuin van Epicurus (1976). Antidote against Christianity. The most personal book on this list. Book in Dutch. It's a translation of fragments and letters of Epicurus (Ancient Greece 5th Century BC). More
9. Martin van Creveld/ The Age of Airpower. Antidote against being earthbound or seabound. More
10. Wikipedia/ Sense. Antidote against written books. Antidote against the bias of the five human senses: sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch. More
11. Eriksen and Nielsen/ A History of Antropology (2001). Antidote against our group is the axis and cornerstone of the world.
12. Bruno Borchert/ Mystiek. Geschiedenis en Uitdaging (1989). Antidote against ratio. Book in Dutch on history of mysticism. The spiritual enlightenment of individuals was the founding stone of Christianity and Islam.
13. Bruce Chatwin/ The Songlines (1987). Antidote against written words. The aboriginals in Austrialia save the knowledge of their natural environment in memorized songs.
14. Ton Lemaire/ Twijfel aan Europa (1990). Antidote against Western behavior, globalisation and consumerism. Book in Dutch.
15. Ryszard Kapuscinki/ The Other (2008). Antidote against the 'I' is the axis and cornerstone of the world.
16. Aldous Huxley/ Brave New World (1931). Antidote against technology is king. What kind of society do we want? What is public? What is private?
17. Heraclitus of Ephesus/ Panta rhei (5th century BC). Antidote against books. Sometimes one sentence tells more than one book: 'everything flows' (Greek 'panta rhei').
18. Kooimans, Van den Broeke, Fokkens and Van Gijn/ Nederland in de prehistorie (2005). Antidote against history as written words. Book in Dutch on The Netherlands in the Prehistoric era.
19. Stephen Hawking/ A Brief History of Time (1988). Antidote against planet Earth. Our planet was born and will one day die too.
20. Simone de Beauvoir/ The Second Sex (1949). Antidote against male is the axis and cornerstone of the world. Woman are not naturally born as woman but they become woman as product of society, parents, religion and conformity.  More

The books above are just my pick. It's not a frozen reading list but an invitation to wander around in the fringes and biases of white European male on planet Earth. I am not a specialist on any of the above mentioned antidotes. I am just a curious human being trying to explore and wonder about his fringes. Trying not to get frozen.

Addendum November 11, 2016

  21. Charles S. Peirce/ Evolutionary Love (1893). Antidote against Charles Darwin's image
        'Survival of the Fittest'. The image is not evolutionary competion but evolutionary love.

Witzigen Weisen

This is the book that was the stepping-stone for me to study philosophy. To be exact, it were three particular sections on page 65 and 66.

I took this book off the shelf out of curiosity - at the age of 17 I guess - while walking to the history and geography section in the library. I noticed this book before and was somehow attracted to the word 'garden' (Dutch 'tuin'). By accident - was it an accident? - I took this book with me to Austria (skiing holiday). On one of the first days I read this book early in the morning. I was flabbergasted. Before this book 'philosophy' was for me: stupid, anything but common sense, detached from reality and irrelevant quibbles.

The book opened for me the door to ancient Greek philosophy. Thoughts, words and images before the Bible. How I longed for that! Next to that it seemed that philosophy was a clear and tangible world. Something that everyone could learn. Just like a special kind of history. Tempting!

P.S. J.H. Leopold, 'Uit Den Tuin Van Epicurus' (1976). Reissue based on 2nd print 1920. Page 65 and 66 is part of the commentary from Peter van Eeten.

P.P.S. The 'witty wise man' (German 'witzigen Weisen) is Epicurus (4th century BC). 

One Definition Fits None

And my definition? My personal opinion is that happiness depends on one's level of consciousness. In other words there's not one definition. One definition fits none. 

Look at Maslow's hierarchy of needs. On the 'Physiological' level Epicurus' definition is valid: "The cry of the flesh bids us escape from hunger, thirst, and cold; for he who is free of these and expects to remain so might vie in happiness even with Zeus." On the level of 'Safety' I'm happy when there's peace in my part of the world, my job pays well, my own house needs no maintenance and my kids are doing well. Kate Bush's definition "loving and being loved" fits to the level of 'Love/ belonging'. When I write another nice blog that's received well, I'm happy on the level of 'Esteem'. Level of 'Self-actualization' is looking at life and planet Earth like this and this.

What makes me most happy? É simples: ter você.

Will You Go?

13 days left! Only 13 days left for visiting @VonderandBloom's 'Around the World in 80 Days Tour' at Schiphol Airport (Amsterdam).  I would love to go and see those two girls playing their lovely music: Brilliance of You and Little Dreamer.

Would love to but I think I never will. For me there's no need to visit Schiphol this year. Next to that there is no urgency for me right now.

'What to do next?' must be one of the most puzzling questions of our time and age. Work. Kids. Partner. Book. Film. Concert. Meditation. Hobbies. So much to do. So much distraction. And still only 24 hours in a day.

Question: 'Visit VonderandBloom at Schiphol somewhere in the next 2 weeks?' What to do according to Epicurus (341-270 BC) and Stephen Covey (1932-)?

Epicurus: Satisfy Your Natural Needs

According to Epicurus we should strive for natural needs. When these needs are satisfied we should stop striving. Is visiting VonderandBloom a natural need? Is friendship, listening to music a natural need? I can't tell. Can you?

Covey: Put First Things First

Our tasks  should be based on importance rather than urgency according to Covey. Evaluate whether your efforts exemplify your desired character values, propel you towards goals and enrich the various roles and relationships of you. Prioritization is the key to the success of any business or in any walk of life. Is visiting VonderandBloom important? If I visit them recreational with my wife or a friend I would build on a relation (Q2). Or is it just trivia or pleasure (Q4)? It's all up to me. It's all up to you. Isn't it? Isn't it always? 

Sources. Epicurus: natural needs.  Covey: first things first and time matrix.

Stick to Epicurus' concepts

Sometimes I feel as if I throw away my life. Once in a while I feel so without dedication, ambition and drive to be the best in whatever. There's no need, voice, or demon in me that tells me: climb the mount Everest, become next years gliderchampion, write a book or write an article about Old Egypt's concept on happiness.

I always stick to Epicurus' (341 - 270 BC) concepts "Live hidden and stay away from politics" and "The cry of the flesh bids us escape from hunger, thirst, and cold; for he who is free of these and expects to remain so might live in happiness even with Zeus." All the rest is vanity.

Am I too dutch to feel an expert in nothing? Am I really excelling in nothing? K. Anders Ericsson tells  us that excellation is above all more than 10.000 hours of transpiration. The key to excel in anything or to become an expert  is above all transpiration. Not 1 hour or 1 month but at least 6 years and 3 months.

What did I do with my life? In which subjects did I invest more than 10.000 hours?

• Books. I must have read thousands of books. To be honest all I learned from them is that I know "nothing". There's is so much more to read, to discover and to experiment. When I read a book I always discover thousands of things and details I never thought of before. Details that shift my opinions, judgements, prejudices and assumptions. It's like a floating river. Never solid ground.
  
• Lover, husband and father. Being loved and loving. It's what 'homo sapiens' all share. We all know by personal experience all about "love". To be more precise it's the foundation under our species' procreation. It's the reason why I was born and the reason that my four kids were born. And I hope it's the reason that my grandchildren (till eternity) will be born one day too.
• Let time pass by. Above all I am an expert on just doing "nothing". To read a little, to dream a little, to write a little, to tweet a little, to blog a little, to blip a little, to look out of the window a little,  to smell a little, to think of you ... a little. Nothing more and nothing less.

When I am dead all the above, all ones ability to live ones life, all the "knowledge" and "wisdom" will fade away. Blown away with the wind.

Question: where did you invest more than 10.000 hours in?

What's your amount of being a stoic? Or on the stupidness of the #red tag.

I am always very afraid for 'Democrats' and other mono-theistic believers. Remember the #red tag of yesterday on Twitter for World AIDS Day? Still remember it or already lost it in a cloud of tweets? I considered the #red tag as stupid! It's fake and words only! I always get shivers for "movements" like this. It's too mono-theistic. Two weeks ago I wrote about 'Democray as a mono-theistic religion'. I'm not afraid for democrats - I consider myself as one too. I'm not afraid for discussions - I love to. I'm afraid for democrats who see their belief as the One and Only. What I'm most afraid of is the fact that they don't want to talk or discuss about their belief. They don't really want to discuss. For them it's not a belief. For them it's the One and Only way of life that does Right to all human beings. They simply can't imagine that not everyone shares their fair, honest, right, sincere, human and down to earth point of view.

To be more precise I'm afraid for democrats who see their belief as God = Democracy. I'm afraid for the stoic kind of democrats. The ones who say "All or Nothing". Read the quote below. After reading it you will find out that I'm an epicurean. I belief in the little and in small steps. The strange thing is I'm a mixture sometimes. Sometimes I'm in an "all or nothing" state of mind too. Well that must me the epicurean in me too. What about you? What is your amount of being a stoic (All or Nothing) or epicurean (step by step)? Did you test your future/ present partner on it?

P.s. If you can smile :) on this week's blog you are my friend. If you can't or feel like sending me hate mail -you will be my friend as well- than consider this blog as your mirror and please check your amount of being too stoic.

Quote:
"Some thoughts about the Stoics and the Epicurean
Who are nowadays the Stoics and the Epicurean? How can you recognize them? What do they look like? That isn’t hard at all. A stoic is an individual who obstinately beliefs in his moral mission: a mission he has to fulfil. He always is in need of a Great Plan that gives his life meaning, but in fear that it will actually be fulfilled, he chooses a very difficult, probably not fulfillable plan, that above all can not be fulfilled by normal human beings. What counts is to suffer in name of something that has moral meaning.
Everybody who believes in the one, eternal, indissolubable Great Love is a stoic. It is clear that they will never find that, but that doesn’t keeps them from furiously searching for it without compromising. There motto is: ‘Everything or Nothing’.
Christians, real christians are stoics. There final destination is Paradise and they will reach that by purification of the body and elevation of the soul. Their favourite slogans: ‘We are born to suffer’ and ‘The first will be the last’. Marxist are stoics: their destination is Justice for All, without any exception. They are also confronted with a destination that will not be fulfilled on short term: the Sun of the Future, the word tells it all, will be catched in Future. In expectation of it revolutions, dictatorship of the proletariat and other equally difficult phases are on the program.
Marco Panella is a stoic: he wants above all to solve the problem of Hunger in the World, in the whole World. If we would propose a less ambitious program, e.g. the hunger in the Napolitian quarter San Carlo all’Arena, he would refuse that immediately, probably because the target could be reachable. And because he lives in a country where tortures hardly exist, he is forced to torture himself and that is the reason why he fasts, he ties himself and suffers.
The epicurean is made of other stuff: because he is aware of the fleeting of life, he is targeting for goals who are reachable on short term.
An epicurean is an employer who will ask for raise of salary to solve a problem within a year.
An epicurean is someone who prefers to vote on a party who doesn’t promise him Justice, Freedom and Happiness, but a gradual improvement of his life, through a policy of step by step.
An epicurean is someone who will continue his relationship with his partner although he is no longer really in love, but who arranged living with his partner in which they agree to differ.
The advantages and disadvantages are equally divived between the two worlds of thought. On the whole epicurean are more serene, more in peace with the world, almost always cheerful. On the other hand stoic work hard: when they play cards they will do that with much dedication. Epicurean do hold politics in contempt and they will almost never succeed as big industrial: he cares more about his private-life than about society. To become Pirelli, Pirelli must have been a stoic: an epicurean would have been satisfied with a little tire-store.
It would not be a bad idea when partners, before they get married, instead watching the stars and there constellations, they would measure the amount of being a stoic or epicurean of their future man or wife."

Quote. Source: Luciano de Crescenzo, ‘Storia della filosofia greca, da Socrate in poi’. Translation by @JeanD99 from dutch into english.

Epicurus on happiness: escape from hunger, thirst and cold

Epicurus: "The cry of the flesh bids us escape from hunger, thirst, and cold; for he who is free of these and expects to remain so might vie in happiness even with Zeus."

This quote of Epicurus (341-270 BCE) is my favourite definition on happiness. Simple. Easy. It's something all of us (better: I) sometimes seem to forget.

Anyone read 'The Pursuit of Happiness' by Darrin McMahon? Why should you? Because it tells all of us that the definition on "being happy" changed a few times through history. It's only a definition, it's not a natural law of the human species.

Question: What's your definition of happiness?