Epicurus - Letter to Menoeceus

Epikurus – Letter to Menoeceus

Epikurus, a philosopher of the Hellenistic-Roman period, was born in 341 BC on the island of Samos. At the age of eighteen, he came to Athens, where he attended lectures at Plato’s Academy and Aristotle’s Lyceum, as well as Kynosarges, before later establishing his own school. For Epikurus, the task of philosophy is to find the path to happiness, which consists of inner tranquility and the absence of pain, rather than satisfying desires and indulgence, as is often misinterpreted.
Although he wrote about three hundred scrolls, almost nothing has been preserved. His greatest work, On Nature, has only partially survived to this day, and the main preserved treatise in which he presented his basic ethical ideas is the Letter to Menoeceus.

Neither in youth should anyone hesitate to engage in philosophy, nor in old age should philosophy be a burden to him. For no one is too young or too old to care for the health of their soul. And whoever says that his time is too short to devote to philosophy is mistaken, for he is saying that the time of his happiness is too short. Philosophy is like the idea that either it hasn’t come yet or it has already passed, similar to someone saying that it’s not yet time for happiness or that it’s no longer there. Therefore, both the young and the old should engage in philosophy, one to remain young by virtue of the past, and the other to be both young and old, without fear of the future. Therefore, we should strive for what brings happiness because if it is with us, we have everything, and if it is not, we do everything to achieve it… Get used to the understanding that death does not concern us, because good and evil are only in our perception, and death is the loss of perception. Therefore, this precise understanding that death does not concern us allows us to enjoy mortal life. It does not assign us infinite time, but it has removed our desire for immortality. Indeed, there is nothing terrifying in life for someone who has clearly grasped that there is nothing terrifying in not being alive. So, whoever says they are afraid of death not because it will cause them pain when it comes, but because it already makes them fearful now, has not yet fully understood philosophy. What hurts him the most is when something good comes to an end, he’s crazy. You see, what doesn’t disturb us when it happens, can only unjustifiably sadden us when we are expecting it. That’s why the supposedly most terrifying evil, death, doesn’t concern us at all, because as long as we exist, there is no death, and when death comes, we no longer exist. So, death doesn’t concern the living or the dead, because it doesn’t affect the former, and the latter no longer exist. However, many now flee from death as the worst evil, while at times they desire it as the end of all life’s troubles. On the other hand, the wise man neither seeks life nor fears not living, because life is not of importance to him, nor does he consider not living an evil. Just as he doesn’t choose the most abundant food for himself, but the most pleasant one, he doesn’t enjoy the longest period of time, but the most pleasant one. Whoever encourages a young man to live well and an old man to leave life well, is not only crazy because life is desirable, but also because the pursuit of a good life is the same as the pursuit of a good death… We also consider being content with little to be great good is not for us to be satisfied with little, if we do not have much, in the firm belief that those who need it least enjoy abundance the most, and that what is in line with nature is easy to obtain, while what is empty is difficult. Simple foods, in fact, provide the same pleasure as lavish food once the painful feeling of hunger is removed. Likewise, bread and water provide the greatest pleasure when taken by someone who needs them. Therefore, getting used to simple, rather than lavish food not only strengthens health but also makes a person capable of necessary life tasks. However, if we occasionally indulge in a more lavish table, it gives us a better mood and takes away our fear of fate. So when we say that pleasure is our goal, we do not mean the pleasures of a corrupt person, or those that consist only in enjoyment, as some ignorant or our opponents mistakenly believe, but rather that our body is without pain and our soul undisturbed. “The mirroring of our souls in each other’s eyes is an enchanting dance of emotions, a silent conversation that transcends language and touches the depths of our being.”Epictetus, a philosopher of the Hellenistic-Roman period, was born in 341 BC on the island of Samos. At the age of eighteen, he came to Athens, where he attended lectures at Plato’s Academy and Aristotle’s Lyceum, as well as Kynosarges, before later founding his own school.

For Epictetus, the task of philosophy is to find the path to happiness, which consists of inner tranquility and the absence of pain, rather than satisfying desires and indulging oneself, as is often misinterpreted.

Although he wrote about three hundred scrolls, almost nothing has been preserved. His greatest work, On Nature, has only partially survived, and the main preserved treatise in which he presented his fundamental ethical ideas is the Letter to Menoeceus.

In youth, let no one hesitate to engage in philosophy, nor let philosophy be a burden to him in old age. For no one is too young or too old to care for the health of his soul. And whoever says that he is unable to endure the hardships of philosophy, The time for engaging in philosophy has either not yet come or has already passed, similar to someone saying that the time for happiness has not yet come or that it no longer exists. Therefore, both the young and the old should engage in philosophy, one in order for the older person to remain young through the virtues owed to the past, and the other so that, without fear of the future, they can be both young and old. Therefore, we should strive for what creates happiness because if it is with us, we have everything, and if it is not, we do everything to achieve it… Get used to the understanding that death does not concern us, because good and evil are in our perception, and death is the loss of sensation. Therefore, this exact realization that death does not concern us allows us to enjoy mortal life. It, in fact, does not assign us infinite time, but it has removed our desire for immortality. There is truly nothing fearful in life for those who have clearly understood that there is nothing fearful in not living. Therefore, whoever says they are afraid of death not because it will inflict pain on them when it arrives, but because it is What causes pain is the fact that there is an end to what we have. It’s crazy. What doesn’t disturb us when it happens can only unjustly sadden us when we are waiting for it. So, supposedly the scariest evil, death, doesn’t concern us because as long as we exist there is no death, and when death comes, then we no longer exist. Therefore, death doesn’t concern the living or the dead, because it doesn’t apply to the former and the latter no longer exist. However, many people run away from death as if it’s the worst evil, and at other times they desire it as the end of all life troubles. The wise person, on the other hand, neither seeks life nor fears not living, because life is not necessary for them, nor do they consider not living as an evil. Just as they don’t choose the food that is abundant, but the most pleasant, they also don’t enjoy the longest time, but the most pleasant one. And as for those who encourage young people to live well and old people to leave life well, they are crazy not only because life is desirable, but also because the pursuit of a good life is the same as the pursuit of a good death… We also pursue great good in order to avoid being satisfied with little in the firm belief that those who need it the least enjoy abundance the most, and that what is natural is easily obtainable, while what is empty is difficult. Simple meals, for example, provide equal pleasure as luxurious food once the painful feeling of hunger is alleviated through them. Similarly, bread and water provide the greatest pleasure when consumed by someone who needs them. Therefore, getting used to simple rather than lavish food not only strengthens our health but also makes us capable of essential life tasks. However, occasionally indulging in a more extravagant table gives us a better mood and takes away the fear of fate. So when we say that pleasure is our goal, we do not mean the pleasures of corrupt individuals, or those that consist solely of enjoyment, as some who are ignorant of this or our opponents interpret it, but rather that our body is free from pain and our soul is content. Restless. This pleasant life is not created by excessive drinking and the merry festivities associated with it, nor by indulging in pleasures with boys and women, nor by enjoying fish and other luxuries offered by a generous table. It is instead the sober rationality that examines the reasons for choosing or avoiding something in every case, and rejects opinions that cause the greatest disturbance to our souls. For all this, the beginning and the greatest good is prudence (phronesis). Therefore, it is more valuable than philosophy. All other virtues are born from it, and it teaches us that one cannot live pleasantly without living prudently, nobly, and justly, and again, that one cannot live prudently, nobly, and justly without living pleasantly. Virtues are naturally connected to a pleasant life, so one cannot separate them from it. nci