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Kalosyni
December 23, 2025 at 11:38 AM Commented on the video How The Wise Epicurean Is Always Happy?.Comment (Image/Video)Cassius is there a transcript of this video to read? -
Don
December 23, 2025 at 6:59 AM Replied to the thread My personal, cursory interpretation of Epicurus. Please feel free to correct me..Post -
Cassius
PostDecember 22, 2025 at 7:22 PM For those who might be interested in a starting point to research the evolution of the concepts from eudaemonia to felicitas to "happiness," I have asked Claude to summarize the major points and produce a bibliography of references to check. Take this… -
Cassius
PostDecember 22, 2025 at 7:17 PM From this podcast a discussion has developed as to several important aspects of happiness. To make that easier to find in the future I have split off that part of the thread into the Ethics forum where it will reside here:
What Is Happiness? How Does… -
Cassius
December 22, 2025 at 6:18 PM Replied to the thread My personal, cursory interpretation of Epicurus. Please feel free to correct me..PostIn regard to the DeWitt book as you read around the forum you will find varying opinions about it. I don't agree with everything he has to say either, but the reason I recommend it is that he gives a sweeping overview of the full picture, especially as… -
Daniel188
December 22, 2025 at 4:29 PM Replied to the thread My personal, cursory interpretation of Epicurus. Please feel free to correct me..Post[…]
I will try to get this book. Thank you.
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I agree. My perspective is that you can't have ataraxia without pleasure. In his letter to Menoiceus, Epicurus states that there are only two feelings: pain and pleasure. If we eliminate pain, we automatically… -
Cassius
December 22, 2025 at 3:50 PM Replied to the thread My personal, cursory interpretation of Epicurus. Please feel free to correct me..PostWow that is very detailed and well thought out. Thanks for posting. I have just a couple of initial comments on first reading:
1. You appear to me the type of person to whom the DeWitt book would appeal and be very valuable. If you don't have it I… -
Cassius
December 22, 2025 at 3:31 PM Replied to the thread Epicurus Was Not an Atomist (...sort of).PostLot of work there and will take some time to read but thanks for posting! -
Daniel188
ThreadDecember 22, 2025 at 2:56 PM Hello everyone!
I'm writing this post to correct some of my views on Epicureanism. I'll list some of my interpretations here and hope that others will look at them and critique them to point out any errors. I won't claim to have a thorough understanding… -
Eikadistes
December 22, 2025 at 2:24 PM Posted the thread Epicurus Was Not an Atomist (...sort of).Thread
Greetings, all! I published some thoughts about the limitations in our employment of the word "atomism" as an expression of ancient Epicurean particle physics. I'll admit that I might be splitting hairs here, and exploiting a post-structuralist… -
Cassius
PostDecember 22, 2025 at 8:28 AM I'm always stuck in the past with my word associations:
https://www.getyarn.io/yarn-clip/28a7…48-a70269be58db -
Cassius
PostDecember 22, 2025 at 8:19 AM From Lucretius, Bailey translations:… -
Cassius
PostDecember 22, 2025 at 8:09 AM From Jefferson's outline of Epicurus in 1819 letter to William Short, referencing both happiness and felicity:
Syllabus of the doctrines of Epicurus… -
Cassius
PostDecember 22, 2025 at 8:06 AM Feline is not related to Latin felix ("happy, fortunate, blessed").
It comes from a completely different Latin word: fēlēs (genitive: fēlis), which means "cat" or "wildcat."Etymology Comparison… -
Cassius
PostDecember 22, 2025 at 8:02 AM Seems like I recall some variation of felicity being used by Jefferson but I'll have to look further (these two charts are chatgpt):… -
kochiekoch
PostDecember 22, 2025 at 7:21 AM I did a quick look at the word "felix", was it associated with cats in ancient times? Nope, you can thank silent movie star "Felix the Cat"
Felix the Cat, Educational Pictures advertisement from 1926 Motion Picture News -84 (cropped) - Felix the Cat -… -
jcblackmon
December 21, 2025 at 7:05 PM Replied to the thread Welcome JCBlackmon.PostThank you, Eikadistes. Martin caught an embarrassing algebraic error (one that slipped past all my STEM readers, including the anonymous referee), but the point remains; I just didn't express it exactly right. -
Cassius
December 21, 2025 at 12:08 PM Replied to the thread Episode 312 - TD39 - Word Games Are No Substitute For Reality.PostEpisode 312 of the Lucretius Today Podcast is now available. This week our episode is entitled: " Word Games Are No Substitute For Reality."
[media]https://www.spreaker.com/episode/69157846/media -
Don
PostDecember 21, 2025 at 9:32 AM It seems Felix would be a good Latin translation of Μακάριος (makarios) "blessed, fortunate'
https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?do…Aentry%3Dfelix1 -
Cassius
PostDecember 21, 2025 at 7:16 AM Also in this thread as to the proper interpretation of words like "happiness" let's not forget another famous example of a Latin word used in similar meaning: felix.
Presumably Virgil understood Epicurus very well, so it's interesting that his famous line… -
Joshua
December 21, 2025 at 1:15 AM Replied to the thread Happy Twentieth of December 2025!.PostAnd here is a thread on William Short, in which I recounted the anecdote where he saved a boy from drowning:
The Long Neglect of William Short -
Joshua
December 20, 2025 at 8:31 PM Replied to the thread Happy Twentieth of December 2025!.Post -
Don
December 20, 2025 at 7:29 PM Replied to the thread Welcome D Campbell!.Post[…]
Just curious: Which translation are you reading? -
Don
December 20, 2025 at 7:28 PM Replied to the thread Welcome D Campbell!.PostWelcome aboard! -
Kalosyni
December 20, 2025 at 7:22 PM Replied to the thread Welcome JCBlackmon.PostWelcome to the forum jcblackmon ! -
Kalosyni
December 20, 2025 at 7:21 PM Replied to the thread Welcome D Campbell!.PostWelcome to the forum D Campbell ! -
Raphael Raul
December 20, 2025 at 6:12 PM Replied to the thread Dignitas founder Ludwig Minelli, dies by assisted suicide aged 92.PostHello Kalosyni, yes, there are those with terminal illness with months to live and those who are old and have a poor quality of life.
Now, for those with a terminal illness of six months or less, there was an agreement that was reached, this past December… -
EdGenX
December 20, 2025 at 2:36 PM Replied to the thread Welcome D Campbell!.PostWelcome D Campbell! -
Daniel188
December 20, 2025 at 12:55 PM Replied to the thread Possible use of the Pythagorean exercise called "evening review" for Epicurean purposes..Post[…]
That's basically what I had in mind when writing this post. These types of techniques can be used for various purposes. Cicero's technique for improving memory can also be usefully applied to Epicurean matters. For example, you can memorize basic… -
Cassius
December 20, 2025 at 12:26 PM Posted the thread Episode 313 - Not Yet Recorded.ThreadWelcome to Episode 313 of Lucretius Today. This is a podcast dedicated to the poet Lucretius, who wrote "On The Nature of Things," the most complete presentation of Epicurean philosophy left to us from the ancient world. Each week we walk you through the… -
Cassius
December 20, 2025 at 11:25 AM Posted the thread Freyr and Gullenbursti (and other pigs In Western mythology).ThreadI thought we already had a thread on this in the forum but it looks like I was remembering an old exchange I had back on Facebook in 2015 as to Freyr and his sidekick Gullenbursti. I'll set up this thread mainly as a placeholder to start.
I'll also see if… -
Martin
December 20, 2025 at 10:57 AM Replied to the thread Welcome D Campbell!.PostWelcome D Campbell! -
D Campbell
December 20, 2025 at 10:03 AM Replied to the thread Welcome D Campbell!.PostThanks very much for welcoming me into your group. My interest in Epicureanism was originally piqued when I read The Swerve by Stephen Greenblatt. Since then I've picked up a copy of De Rerum Natura (which I love so far) and have started reading The… -
Kalosyni
December 20, 2025 at 8:58 AM Posted the thread Happy Twentieth of December 2025!.Thread
Happy Twentieth Everyone! -
Cassius
December 20, 2025 at 8:07 AM Added the video How The Wise Epicurean Is Always Happy?.Image/Video
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Don
December 20, 2025 at 7:27 AM Replied to the thread Possible use of the Pythagorean exercise called "evening review" for Epicurean purposes..Post[…]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Method_of_loci?wprov=sfla1
The method of loci is a good example of an ancient cultural meme (for lack of a better term) that was available to everyone and all schools of philosophy. It seems many times these techniques or… -
Cassius
December 20, 2025 at 5:46 AM Replied to the thread Possible use of the Pythagorean exercise called "evening review" for Epicurean purposes..PostHmmmm I just noticed in posting that last link that that thread is "closed."
Not sure what happened there - probably the thread and the reason for closing it needs a revisit at some point!
Ok I just scanned over that thread and now I expect that my… -
Cassius
December 20, 2025 at 5:43 AM Replied to the thread Possible use of the Pythagorean exercise called "evening review" for Epicurean purposes..Posti haven't closely studied issues involving meditation, but this discussion reminds me of that. I seem to recall we have one or maybe more threads with people talking about hazards of meditation at least in certain circumstances, so I will see if I can… -
Don
December 19, 2025 at 10:34 PM Replied to the thread Possible use of the Pythagorean exercise called "evening review" for Epicurean purposes..PostI'm coming late to the game here, so I'm just starting from the top...
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This seems akin to exercising parrhesia (frank speech) upon oneself. Not that I'll necessarily have the discipline to implement this on a regular basis, but I can see the utility of… -
Cassius
December 19, 2025 at 5:52 PM Replied to the thread Possible use of the Pythagorean exercise called "evening review" for Epicurean purposes..Post[…]
No need for concern and I want to stress I did not intend to be harsh either. Your responses were excellent! I am constantly fine-tuning the tone and approach of the front page of the forum and our vetting process. I want to be sure that we are… -
Kalosyni
December 19, 2025 at 5:47 PM Replied to the thread Possible use of the Pythagorean exercise called "evening review" for Epicurean purposes..Post[…]
I didn't see this post till after posting my reply.
But it is ending up as a fun "compare and contrast". (Hopefully fun, lol).
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Kalosyni
December 19, 2025 at 5:44 PM Replied to the thread Possible use of the Pythagorean exercise called "evening review" for Epicurean purposes..PostHere is the first part of the quote above, which has a different goal than in Epicurean philosophy:
"All our senses should be educated into strength: they are naturally able to endure much, provided that the spirit forbears to spoil them. The spirit ought… -
Daniel188
December 19, 2025 at 5:12 PM Replied to the thread Possible use of the Pythagorean exercise called "evening review" for Epicurean purposes..PostMy intention wasn't necessarily to demonstrate that Seneca could offer any useful philosophical advice for Epicureans. Rather, I'm aiming to distill the specific exercise itself. In this case, regularly reviewing everyday events in order to learn from… -
Daniel188
December 19, 2025 at 5:05 PM Replied to the thread Possible use of the Pythagorean exercise called "evening review" for Epicurean purposes..Post[…]
The Epicurean telos is pleasure. Self-awareness is useful in pursuing this goal because it allows us to recognize habits that are harmful. When I think of harmful habits, I mean those that cause more pain than pleasure in the long run. Without any… -
Cassius
December 19, 2025 at 4:52 PM Replied to the thread Possible use of the Pythagorean exercise called "evening review" for Epicurean purposes..PostTo elaborate on my post a little further, I note that D. tells us that he is "relatively new to Epicurean philosophy but am very eager to learn more and your site appears to have an amazing wealth of materials."
It's definitely possible to answer the… -
Cassius
December 19, 2025 at 4:37 PM Replied to the thread Possible use of the Pythagorean exercise called "evening review" for Epicurean purposes..PostThanks for posting Daniel and welcome to the forum.
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First of all in suggesting this, have you thought about what the Epicurean telos is and how it relates to setting a goal of developing self-awareness?
How would you explain that to someone who came… -
Daniel188
ThreadDecember 19, 2025 at 3:53 PM Hello everyone!
Today I'd like to present a method for developing self-awareness that I originally learned from the Stoics. I believe this method can be used to pursue the Epicurean telos. First, let me quote the source from which I originally got this… -
Eikadistes
December 19, 2025 at 8:55 AM Replied to the thread Welcome D Campbell!.PostWelcome, D! -
Julia
December 19, 2025 at 8:32 AM Replied to a comment by Eikadistes on the file Antiochus IV Epiphanes And Jerusalem.Reply (File)If we managed to change the wording in the mainstream narrative from "Judeo-Christian" civilization to that of a "Judeo-Christian and Epicurean" civilization, that would be just one small step for mankind, but a giant leap for us piglets from Epicurus'… -
Joshua
PostDecember 18, 2025 at 11:52 PM And of course all of this is to forget the other side of the ledger, which Stephen Greenblatt cites here from Lorenzo Valla's De Voluptate:
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He is speaking here about death, but the real point is that there is nothing which marks humans out as special…
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