©Steemlosophy – Part 3: What is ... happiness?
What is happiness?
P + (5 x E) + (3 x H) – I'm not kidding! At least that is how the british scientist Pete Cohen defines this sense of well-being. Everybody is looking for it. Few have it. And fewer really want to share it. Happiness is a state of absolute satisfaction and absolute contentedness.
Aristoteles had a really pragmatic view of happiness ...
... The most happy human being, he thought, is somebody who lives a virtuous life and has accumulated great wealth. So, driving a Ferrari, looking at your rolex and drinking champagne while lying at the beach with twenty women? That is happiness? If so, why do celebrities like Charly Sheen or Miley Cyrus have to take drugs till they faint? Okay, maybe they do not live as virtuously as Aristoteles meant it. But at least they have more wealth as Aristoteles ever thought somebody could have...
Can happiness be long-lived? ...
... Konfuzius already said: "They must often change, who would be constant in happiness." – Does that mean that the journey is the reward? The path to happiness is individual.
From Epikurs point of view ...
... happiness just meant absence of pain. I would agree with him. To make just one example. People feel unlimited happiness when they consume heroine. Heroine is a strong opioide which basically blocks the ability of feeling pain. To present Epikurs idea it in a more trivial way: If we don't feel bad... we feel good. Happiness only functions with it's counterpart. If there is no night, we don't look forward to the sun light.
Or in the words of Leo Tolstoy:
If you want to be happy, be.
__________________________________________________________________________________
An article written by Kevin Drehler from germany, also known as @steemitpolitics. Pictures from 3sat.
©Steemlosophy, a mix of the words "steem" and "philosophy", describes a new series of articles dealing with philosophical topics on steem(it).
If you like what i am doing, feel free to upvote and follow. Thank you very much, have fun :)