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VS52 - Happiness or Blessedness?

  • Kalosyni
  • May 6, 2023 at 10:05 AM
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  • Kalosyni
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    • May 6, 2023 at 10:05 AM
    • #1

    Don - can you help out with translation of this one (my eyes go cross-eyed when I look at Greek letters). This translation is from Peter Saint Andre. (Do we already have this someplace else?)

    52. Friendship dances around the world, announcing to each of us that we must awaken to happiness. ἡ φιλία περιχορεύει τὴν οἰκουμένην κηρύττουσα δὴ πᾶσιν ἡμῖν ἐγείρεσθαι ἐπὶ τὸν μακαρισμόν.

    Should the last word be translated as "blessedness"?

  • Don
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    • May 6, 2023 at 10:21 AM
    • #2
    Quote from Kalosyni

    Should the last word be translated as "blessedness"?

    μακαρισμόν makarismon is a form of the same word used to describe the gods in PD1: Τὸ μακάριον (makarion).

    Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, μ , μα^κα^ρ-ίνη , μα^κα^ρ-ισμός

    Note that the LSJ definition cites VS52

  • Don
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    • May 6, 2023 at 10:25 AM
    • #3

    See also

    Post

    PD01 - How Blessed and Imperishable Are Used in the Bible

    τὸ μακάριον καὶ ἄφθαρτον are the Greek words used in PD1

    I recently discovered that the famous Beatitudes in the New Testament use the same word as Epicurus's Principal Doctrine 1: μακάριος (makarios) "blessed" https://biblehub.com/greek/3107.htm I'm *not* saying that the Epicureans influenced the Bible writers (a la Dewitt), but I thought it might be instructive to see that word used in a more familiar context to add a different level of meaning to the Doctrine. The Beatitudes obviously applied…
    Don
    July 24, 2021 at 7:08 AM
  • Kalosyni May 6, 2023 at 10:55 AM

    Changed the title of the thread from “Every Instance of "Ataraxia," "Eudaemonia," and "Tranquilatas" in a Core Epicurean Text” to “Vatican Saying 52 - Happiness or Blessedness?”.
  • Kalosyni
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    • May 6, 2023 at 10:57 AM
    • #4

    I found this at a translation website, but the last two letters of the word look different than in the above ancient Greek (in post 1 above)

    μακαρισμός ὁ, pronouncing happy, blessing, Pl. R. 591d, Arist. Rh. 1367b33, Andronic. Pass. p. 570 M., Plu. 2.471c ; giving praise or thanks, Epicur. Sent.Vat. 52, Phld. D. 3 Fr. 86a.

    Source:

    Eulexis-web
    Eulexis-web (version en ligne du logiciel Eulexis) permet de lemmatiser ou fléchir un texte en grec ancien et de rechercher dans des dictionnaires de grec…
    outils.biblissima.fr

    This was the original translation site and it gave me four options and I just chose the first site which I posted link above.

    Ancient Greek Dictionary Online Translation LEXILOGOS
    www.lexilogos.com
  • Don
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    • May 6, 2023 at 11:40 AM
    • #5
    Quote from Kalosyni

    the last two letters of the word look different than in the above ancient Greek (in post 1 above)

    The endings of ancient Greek words are very mutable: case endings, conjugations, etc.

    LSJ is *the* authority for definitions, too:

    Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, Α α,

  • Eikadistes
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    • May 6, 2023 at 11:44 AM
    • #6

    I run into "happiness" most often as a translation of EYΔAIMONIA, whereas "blessedness" tends to be reserved for MAKAPION. However, they are intrinsically related Epicurean philosophy and both can imply the goal of pleasure.

  • Don
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    • May 6, 2023 at 11:47 AM
    • #7

    Here's a pertinent excerpt from my letter to Menoikeus translation:

    Quote

    Another pivotal word here is μακαρίως which appears to have no certain etymology but seems possibly to be derived from the idea of being wealthy in a literal and/or figurative sense. The usual translation is something like "blessed, fortunate, wealthy, 'well-off'”. That being said, "happy" or as Saint-Andre says "completely happy" doesn't, in my view, provide the overall sense of satisfaction or completeness conveyed by a word like μακαρίως. Keep in mind that this is a form of the exact word used to describe the "blessed" beings talked about in Principal Doctrine 1: Τὸ μακάριον καὶ ἄφθαρτον οὔτε αὐτὸ πράγματα ἔχει οὔτε ἄλλῳ παρέχει· ὥστε οὔτε ὀργαῖς οὔτε χάρισι συνέχεται· ἐν ἀσθενεῖ γὰρ πᾶν τὸ τοιοῦτον.

    "That which is blessed/completely happy/blissful and imperishable/indestructible has no troubles itself nor causes troubles for others; as a consequence, it is affected by neither anger nor gratitude; because all this would be an indication of weakness/sickness/lack of strength."

    That Doctrine's μακάριον is rarely translated as simply "happy" but rather "blissful" and other superlatives like that.22,23,24

    22

    https://books.google.com/books?id=sPCww…ymology&f=false

    23

    http://www.crossmarks.com/brian/allsaintb.htm

    24

    https://www.studylight.org/language-studi…/index.cgi?a=38

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  • Don
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    • May 6, 2023 at 4:56 PM
    • #8

    Some other words:

    φιλία (philia)

    affectionate regard, friendship, usu. betw. equals

    Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, φι^λί-α

    περιχορεύει (perikhoreuei)

    To dance (χορεύει) around in a circle (περί)

    Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, περιχορ-εύω

    I like the connotation that the word has of dancing in a group, in a dramatic or religious chorus of dancers, not in a solitary way.

    Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, χορός

    οἰκουμένην (oikoumenēn)

    the inhabited world, particularly that known to the ancient Greeks: (sub-polar) Europe, (western) Asia, and (northern and Saharan) Africa

    Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, οἰκουμέν-η

    κηρύττουσα (kēruttousa)

    Attic form of κηρῠ́σσω (kērússō)

    • To be a herald or auctioneer
    • To make a proclamation as herald
    • (transitive) To summon by herald
    • (transitive) To proclaim, announce
    • (transitive) To command someone publicly to do something (with infinitive or dative of thing)
    • (New Testament) To preach the gospel

    δή • (dḗ) (discourse particle) + πᾶσιν

    • Adds temporal specificity: now, already
    • Adds emphasis: truly, !, indeed, in truth
    • Adds specificity: exactly
    • Sometimes ironical: no doubt, of course
    • With pronouns: of all people
    • + πᾶσιν "to all, every, each"

    ἐγείρεσθαι (egeiresthai)

    present mediopassive infinitive of ἐγείρω (egeírō)

    rouse or stir oneself, be excited by passion, etc.,

    Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, ἐγείρω

  • Cassius July 5, 2025 at 11:27 AM

    Moved the thread from forum VS 52 - Friendship goes dancing round the world proclaiming... to forum Epicurus - The "Vatican List" of Sayings.
  • Cassius July 5, 2025 at 11:35 AM

    Changed the title of the thread from “Vatican Saying 52 - Happiness or Blessedness?” to “VS52 - Happiness or Blessedness?”.

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