02 - Epicurus on Happiness - Philosophy: A Guide to Happiness

[@ILLBEBACH2]

I had a philosophy professor whose question was, " Is Happiness passive or active?" The premise for this as is so much in this terrific series is based on being entertained, (passive) as opposed to an active state of happiness, which doesn't rely on fun. One participates in their state of mind. It's a wonderful link in this exploration of what is is to be balanced. It keeps you conscious. Thank you.

[@seanericanderson3666]

Brilliant series. Alain de Botton is a great populariser of philosophy.

[@Claire-tb4mp]

Epicurus Philophphy strikes a cord in me. I think about my future a lot. I think about which to prioritize, Money or Happyness. All of the jobs that bring me excitement also will bring me into poverty. But happiness matters so much more. Another thing I struggle with is happiness in my own life. When I think about the places and times that make me happy I realize that all three rules are met. I need to now figure out how to meet those rules in my own life.

[@ExtrovertedCenobite]

Being happier with less is so very important for those that have very little to those that have more than they need. I agree with your post and hope that humanity can learn that material goods are more of a hindrance to happiness than a path to happiness as many wrongly presume.

[@aaron___6014]

I wish we had more of his work.

[@thelukeramsay]

Don't be sad my friend for we are not all lost and there is people starting to look in the right place each and everyday! I think sharing good news daily with ones peers is a fantastic idea. - one love my brother

[@MrLogicstorm]

Oh, so you kind of mean enough to live off of comfortably? I can dig that man. I think the quickest route to happiness is to be content with what you have, preferably to live with less because sometimes the stuff you own starts owning you if you aren't careful.

[@drbachimanchi]

After watching this video first time mostly 10 years back I tried to implement . Trust me it's tough. currently .... I became an endocrinologist owning my own clinic, independent from corporate jobs, married have a daughter home and have a tight group of family and friends Will comment again after 10 years.good luck to you all

[@OmarAMuhammadThM]

In my personal pursuit of Happiness. I was lead to this Epicurean concept of happiness. Epicurus says real happiness needs these three elements. 1. Friends, 2. Financial Freedom 3. an Analyzed life. Advertisements offer this to us by association with things we can buy. Thus we pursue things over essentials. LORD help us...

[@ghafla254blog3]

The best philosophical piece i have read so far.. Quite insightful...

[@macdiggins2107]

yes quite insightful GHAFLA 254 Blog

[@dbsk06]

this series is better than any self-help/new age book out there.

[@uffda24]

love the idea that having too much is as useful as an overflowing pot! great doc!

[@osetia20]

by accident it is the second of your videos I am watching, I love the structure of it, it is very well explained

[@earthwaterairspiritfireleb5482]

Gratitude for Epicurus in Maryland, USA

[@alizamzam11]

Alain successfully fills out today's social holes with the help of ancient philosophy - that is , we hardy change

[@ScalerWave]

Excellent documentary. Makes me happy just watching it. :)

[@cloudstrife0257]

GS has that "viral" aspect to it that makes it popular. It's a well produced video about nonsense... that's what makes it endearing.

[@OvercomeLoneliness]

Cool video. I found a lot of interesting perspectives about being happy.

[@sophie-bt2rd]

watching this made me feel at peace :)

[@mrgoldirocks]

A basic human need is "Accomplishment", and true accomplishment requires hard work.. Epicurus is right about the fact that you need time for contemplation, but there has to be a balance with meaningful work. A life of complete leasure will absolutely lead to boredom and unhappiness.

[@bartdikken7618]

And just to get back to the stability of happiness. I have no clue about how permanent happiness could be achieved or whether it exists, but i do know that i (think i) feel truly satisfied since 5 months, not being affected by real life problems, just having peace with the person that i am and not feeling an absolute urge for anything(maybe a neutral state of mind would describe this the best).

[@MrLogicstorm]

Yes.Yes. Happiness is a state of mind, it is our perception of the 'external world' which causes us to be unhappy. Given the right beliefs any one can be happy, the question is how stable is that happiness?

[@ReignOfPraine]

That's the way it should be. Can you imagine a world in which everyone thinks in an individual manner?

[@ExtrovertedCenobite]

Thank you, I will be checking it out soon. Have a great day, keep up the good work and peace to you.

[@bartdikken7618]

I agree with you on that question. I like to think that everyone achieves happiness in a different way (This is a form of happiness which is influenced by "the external world"). A more scientific way of putting this would be that everyone's brain is different (on atomic/molecular level). Since human's are nothing more than a bunch of atoms our free will is formed by atom's and currents. The result from this is that our happiness is also solely a way of satisfying our brain.

[@ElTuco84]

This show was made 13 years ago, that means social networks didn't exist yet. I bet he today would make a different approach about the theme of happiness with the way our society is influenced by facebook.

[@TheLiquidCat]

You can follow him on facebook now! heehee. facebook.com/alaindebotton

[@jmdenn3000]

Art Trivia no, it would not. Despite our modern arrogance, people don't change

[@macdiggins2107]

IKR JEEZ LOUISE

[@MrLogicstorm]

Well I applaud you for your steadfast belief in the infallibility of the human mind. Please, enlighten me by answering the question "What is knowledge?"

[@cloudstrife0257]

I find these mindsets frightening. They quickly become your excuses for your lack of success and you convince yourself you have accomplished the things you've wanted to... but you never had enough to feel genuiningly, personally successful.

[@MrLogicstorm]

But surely understanding is inseparable from memory.

[@earthwaterairspiritfireleb5482]

its not the destination, its the journey

[@macdiggins2107]

Id rather get the shit out of me then enjoy it pass through my asshole

[@Prabash_Prabhu]

@@macdiggins2107 then you surely not know how to shit

[@mrgoldirocks]

your reply is interesting because you've seen it from an angle slightly different from my perspective...but very valid in its own right. For me, "accomplishment" is things like scientific discoveries, artistic achievements or leaving behind an effect on the world that outlives our short lives...such as the philosophic thoughts of a man from 500 B.C. Greece I don't see Accomplishment as piles of possessions or numbers in a bank account.

[@WarshMeh]

sounds like the school of life guy

[@wzupppp]

maybe it is him

[@p.r.sanchez576]

This is the creator of The School of Life precisely

[@AnneSofieLovesMozart]

that's because it is :)

[@missionpupa]

well not directly; this includes other factors and other means. because we have bodies, we need security to be happy. money is one of the means to provide security (of course there are other alternatives like living in the forest and be self sufficient where currency is not valuable). However, there are numerous studies show that there is a certain point where money provides you with happiness but it becomes stagnant at a certain level of wealth acquisition.

[@andreatung]

Love the idea of philosophical advertising.

[@kostaz8]

I think its manipulating

[@ianpulsford2295]

kostaz8 Would you rather be manipulated into spending all your money on crap you don't need, or manipulated into not spending it? In any case, it's the opposite of manipulation; essentially the advert is saying the promises of regular advertising might not be true, and that's about thinking not manipulating.

[@ayukusumajaya]

advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy shit we don't need. - fight club

[@geospatialindex]

To impress those we hate

[@SkormFlinxingGlock]

Haha, don't worry I would heartily agree with Epicurus before the Keynesian school any day of the week. Theirs is one of the most destructive of all modern economic philosophies. I think the sarcasm in my comment didn't exactly come across ;)

[@TheSharice63]

Thank for sharing;)

[@earthwaterairspiritfireleb5482]

Smoking marijuana in prayer with friends, getting really high laughing unable to smoke more, then meditating together to the awesome 60s music rainbow body meditation

[@mackenzieusher8025]

Having money is very helpful towards happiness in today's world. In fact, even having more than the average person can help a lot. Money pays for health bills (even here in Canada, not everything is covered 100%, such as dentists or psychiatrists); it pays for nourishing, quality food; it allows us to provide for our families; it buys us the luxury of travel, and the time needed to do it; it pays for education, undeniably important to our happiness; and it allows us to participate in enriching activities, such as attending the symphony, seeing a play, or going camping. It's true that there are some things that are vital to happiness that money cannot buy, but, spent wisely, money provides us with the opportunity to live longer, healthier, more enjoyable lives.

[@pblom0]

The happiest people in the world have no money? How can that be then.

[@myollinir]

Mackenzie Usher I don't think the point is that one should strive to have no money, but rather happiness is not necessarily found in money no matter what amount you have. That does not deny the fact that today it is easier to breathe with sufficient income, due to the modern monetary system built upon debt. It pretty much requires us to work, which is why "finding a slightly meaningful job" or "dialing back" or not working for other people is emphasized...

[@sakuraz2363]

Mackenzie Usher we need money because we have o friends in this world so use money to attract compassion ,meet your friends and don't work much

[@versace42069]

the agora with his scriptures is very interesting

[@Pilinaification]

I totally agree with Andrea. Y lo de escribir en las paredes Great! Tambien lo hacía otros grandes. Si se hace con cuidado, no en plan asesino en serie, puede quedar fantastico.

[@bartdikken7618]

I think happiness can not be defined in general(for everyone), however it could be possible that those three factors make you happy;). Nonetheless happiness is found within yourself i believe.. (and here happiness isn't about being happy, but about being contempt with the life that you live at every single moment of your life)

[@UkeGirl100]

What I was getting at was that if you are a whole lot poorer than everyone you have ever met or known, you might be unhappy. No, your happiness isn't in anyone's hands but your own, but it's not uncommon for people to compare themselves to the people around them.

[@garyjohnson9037]

maybe this is where we get the saying "written in stone" !!!

[@macdiggins2107]

no u fkn dumbass

[@bartdikken7618]

I think so too(not sure about the plants since i haven't ever heard of a plant with ears ;P.. they are a whole different type of organisms that are build up from a different set of basic cells and survival strategies. So im not sure about plants being able to listen to music.) However the problem I have with decide whether music can make you happy (temporary/permanent) is that i only have a mostly empirical argument and no solid thesis.

[@nikolab8760]

Epicurus - The father of all hippies

[@macdiggins2107]

BAHHHAHHAHAHAHAAHHAH LITERALLY

[@aaron___6014]

wrong

[@amytruong5603]

10:45 the cute happy :-) face

[@carpo719]

You responded to this old comment at just the right time.. :) I just made a video about happiness as a perspective independent to each individual. Peace-

[@asktheanswer424]

this is reality, we need to root ourselves deeply in good, make this the overseeing heaven realm, then in dreams, in video games, we can sometimes indulge in other stuff, but the root and main thing we see here and should express in art meant for this place should be good, this is sage wisdom... otherwise we hold ourselves back, never let the base reality become evil... it needs to be Good, a neutral being (in terms of good, neutral, evil) would even agree.

[@MrLogicstorm]

That's an interesting definition of knowledge, in particular the "true" part. Does this mean that scientific knowledge is not knowledge since it has a tendency to be updated?

[@earthwaterairspiritfireleb5482]

Karmic Lawyer - Living according to a moral code that acknowledges karmic law, that good deeds causing longterm joy and wisdom cause good rewards, whereas bad deeds, causing longterm sorrow and foolishness, cause bad reward. Practicing optimism, and enjoying the good feeling of practicing a good deed, as well as knowing that in benefitting another we also benefit as well.

[@hacccper]

There's a lot of empirical evidence to support the notion that money or wealth or indeed material possessions do not lead to happiness. Success doesn't mean happiness either, because society is happy with you doesn't necessarily mean that you're doing something you love, or for that matter that you're happy at all. Many seem to seek this kind of acknowledgement from society, however fruitless. If you wish to be a cog in a machine more than anything else, then you're exactly what they want.

[@bartdikken7618]

On a more realistic level, this means that happiness cannot be achieved by everyone according to the same ideology. Everyone's brain is different due to different experiences and inherited features(nature/nurture).

[@sakuraz2363]

don not lease a car , stay in university as long as you can, if you buy a residence, do not go by American standers( big big) and exercise and read .period

[@dah_bard1160]

sakura z forgot love the one you’re with

[@SabbathSOG]

I recommend the book happiness is a serious problem.

[@bartdikken7618]

And MrLogicstorm, how do you think about the effect of music on the emotional state of people (or sense of happiness)? (Scientificallly: sound is converted to electric currents/waves, words and tune translated by the brain, --> leading to a temporary sense of happiness?

[@UkeGirl100]

Mr. Logicstorm -- No, not that other people decide what our happiness is.... What I mean is, so many people base their self-images on how "normal" their lives are. Yes, we can live on $1000 per year, but if we make an amount that is comparable to the rest of the population, we might be happier. Money doesn't make your life, but for some, feeling "normal"does.

[@gideonsdoggown4029]

I want to be the person that finds Epicurus' books!

[@mef1975]

+Gideons Doggown Well, a couple guys just found the nazi train in Poland. Get to it. All it takes is someone willing to go to all ends.

[@Kumbaya6991]

Gideons Doggown let's hunt the hunt of hunters

[@macdiggins2107]

go to a library

[@mattmorgs229]

This is the bloke that runs the School of Life KZbin Chanel

[@MrLogicstorm]

Haha, it's good to see a fellow skeptic. I can best describe my view on the subject using the metaphor of a mirror. Now, I hate to use this hijacked language because it makes me sound like a dunce, but hear me out. Knowledge is like a mirror. It reflects the 'ultimate reality' of the universe (shudder). But knowledge itself is not the reality and depending on the method you use to gain the knowledge your mirror may be very dirty or may just have some smudges on it.

[@ExtrovertedCenobite]

Well said but I am afraid that there are some who can't or won't see or understand your point and will wrongly believe that you must be unsuccessful and envious of others success which leads you to hold on to your false bellief.

[@asktheanswer424]

i am enlightened

[@dannypenaloza4160]

DOES ANYONE KNOW WHERE I COULD REFERENCE THE FRIENDSHIP QUOTE (8:20)?

[@michaeldesantos427]

I don't know if this counts, I couldn't find anything else: www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/a-good-idea-from--epicurus-1114368.html

[@dannypenaloza4160]

Not Quite, but None the less thanks for taking the time to look. I greatly appreciated. Also do you speak spanish? just curious.

[@3358g]

Advertising probably existed as long as the sale of products. Whether it be modern adds on TV or an ancient stall owner telling you how much more the ladies will love you with his new musk ox fragrance. As long as people have sold things you can bet they had a pitch to convince you you needed their product.

[@earthwaterairspiritfireleb5482]

Gratitude for the suburbs, studies show that suburbs are slowly invading the cities making them nicer and less polluted big buildings are being dismantled and there are lots of wooded and forest areas interspersed among buildings. The middle class is very multicultural and very wise..  Suburbaners respect trees give to charity and live by ecofriendly methods

[@UkeGirl100]

My feeling is that having what you need to survive and exist in a way that is comparable to the majority of the people in the area and time that you live, as well as doing something valuable for other people, and examining your life are the three things that you will need to be happy.

[@moustafamai]

Having a lot of money is happiness no doubt so that I can live happily in nature without worrying about anything

[@LiLoTech]

You really think there will be no worries? Lol.

[@macdiggins2107]

wowee im enlightened i luv the erth and all its peeks

[@kennethcarvalho3684]

What i am not able to figure out is how come philosophy only flowered in one part of the world?. I mean what was so special about Greece?

[@koenosullivan7116]

*sends healing energy*

[@macdiggins2107]

14:44 look at the top of his head

[@tarvh]

LMFAOOOOOOOOO

[@catseng3949]

too much thinking, both

[@OMG_BeCkY]

I find it hard to believe that they had advertising in 341 B.C.

[@matthew_thefallen]

Turkeys in Turkey at 14:00

[@thoughtsinabox]

The sad part about the 'sarcastic' advertisements? They exist. As real ads.

[@earthwaterairspiritfireleb5482]

the good side of the conscience is a lot better than the bad side, the good side seems to eventually include all the benefits of the bad side, without its downfalls, the bad side of conscience actually has no benefits, its only illusion. if your third eye is open you realize bad isn't really even possible and you are always doing good bad only seems to occur to a not fully functional third eye. in fact conscience is not split into sides at all (an illusion perceived by those whose third eye is still reaching maturity), but is actually a circle, revealing the processes of karma. - AJNA CHAKRA

[@macdiggins2107]

3:29 "send me a pot of cheese" quoted from the man whose hairline reaches his asscrack

[@tooshiwooshay]

Ok I'm angry how come they put up that happiness not included poster then took it down like that's a continuity error right there and thats FACTS

[@MrLogicstorm]

Isn't this peculiar, because I believe the same of you. I have thought about this a considerable amount and have not just 'reacted', though thought without action is useless. I don't want to assume what you believe since I don't have much information to go off of, but I assume that you believe that striving for the assertion of material wealth is a good? And that by doing so you can find happiness? If I were to attempt to vent some anger I would start by writing a journal.

[@bartdikken7618]

Do you think someone can ever find happiness? and if so, does this count for everyone?

[@mrgoldirocks]

Epicurus missed one important factor for happiness: Having work that satisfies your soul. My work gives my life meaning - I would not be happy without it. Most people trade their lives away in work that isn't fun or satisfying for them - thus, unhappiness.

[@Reel___]

what do you do for work?

[@stenvag]

Wow just wow.

[@u-nis]

This is the school of life guy

[@BradPitbull]

EPICURUS IS MY NIGGA

[@fola88]

Greeks and Romans gathered their knowledge from the ancient great Nubian cultures of Middle and Northern Empires. If scholarly people dug a little deeper on research as our professors should have you'd understand that they are so many African philosophers and powerful ideologies that you will never get to study.

[@Qwertype315]

why is it friends freedom and an analyzed life? what makes him think this is a complete and generalized list?

[@angelsalcido9526]

How are there still no captions?

[@earthwaterairspiritfireleb5482]

Firinne tha boidheach(The truth is Beautiful)

[@SabbathSOG]

Shopping is not happiness it is considered fun.

[@MrLogicstorm]

I respectfully disagree with your first proposition. To say that happiness requires conformity to the majority is to say that your happiness is in the hands of others and not just yourself, which I do not think is the case.

[@earthwaterairspiritfireleb5482]

Heart Chakra is Outpouring a love eclipsing the physical world today   Impossible to fight, world peace, we must remember Israel means Heart, like Heart Chakra, then we understand, world peace

[@UkeGirl100]

That sure is the truth of it!!!

[@zacharycat]

Money, you have lots of friends hanging round the door. When it's gone and the spending ends They don't come no more. Billie Holiday

[@groucho66]

Read de Botton's How Proust Can Change Your Life.

[@KillingMachine56656]

Now if only all humans watched this instead of the billions of views music videos and product advertisements have the world would be a better place, but most of them can't wrap their brain around most philosophical concepts.

[@asktheanswer424]

heavenly culture, multicultural heaven

[@asktheanswer424]

lets try focusing on the moral people who have charisma, not the evil ones, is having a huge cult following really charismatic in reality?

[@thomask837]

In this age friendship is just transactional

[@JackisJack_]

Sounds like you're looking in the wrong places, and with a rather pessimistic and nihilistic view on life.

[@BobanOrlovic]

>Shows you videos of 21st century Greece that has absolutely nothing to do with ancient Greece

[@mickeymousebaby]

you said that 1 month ago and now it has 39,400!

[@earthwaterairspiritfireleb5482]

גַמָד הַרָשָׁע Oxygen is holy No one philosophy can own it It fulfills them all but none of them hog it Mystic oxygen Together we sit in all our many points of view, dreams and experiences Getting high together on oxygen and life itself Blessed is earth everyday to be returned to heaven - Honoring the Breath