331-Can You Say Epicureanism?

Can You Say Epicureanism? This philosophy of happiness may have a big name, but the concept is simple and effective. Learn more about how you can adopt this idea in your life to improve your happiness in this post.

 

Transcript:

 

Welcome to Everyday Happiness where we create lasting happiness, in 2 minutes a day,  through my signature method of Intentional Margins® (creating harmony between your to-dos and your priorities), happiness science, and musings about life. 

 

I'm your host Katie Jefcoat and today we are taking it back a couple of thousand years by talking about Epicureanism. Epicureanism is the theory of Epicurus, a Greek philosopher who lived between 341 BC and 270 BC. He believed that happiness was and should be the ultimate pursuit in life. 

 

Now, you may be thinking, "Oh, that's where the word Epicure came from?" For those of us, myself included, who don't know that word off the top of our heads, it means to take excessive pleasure in actions like eating and drinking. Actually, this word was mistranslated and is far from Epicurus's theory.  

 

Essentially, Epicureanism is the belief that the factors of happiness are derived from tranquility, freedom from fear, and the absence of bodily pain and that true happiness could be obtained through knowledge, friendship, the limitation of excessive desires, and living a virtuous life. 

 

So, what does this translate to in modern life? While we can't avoid all pain, and it's likely we will indulge in eating that second brownie every now and then, we can take it to heart and shape it into our lives to increase our happiness. 

 

A few examples would be:

• Gaining knowledge to prevent the anxiety of the unknown. 
• Practicing minimalism and focusing less on materialistic desires. 
• Choosing experiences over things to spend our hard-earned money on. 
• Focusing on the positive and what variables are within our control.
• And taking action to pursue and value friendship. 

 

Does this sound familiar? It is because I have talked about it before in previous episodes, just without the fancy theory title. If the concepts of happiness haven't changed much in the past couple of thousands of years, there is obviously a core truth here for us to take in, and I hope you will. 

 

Plus, if you are interested in learning more about this ancient philosopher, I dropped a resource in the show notes for you. He was a fascinating dude with some big ideas! 

 

Learn more here: 

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

 

Inspired by these articles: 

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

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

https://www.philosophybasics.com/branch_epicureanism.html

 

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