Welcome @Root304 !
Posts by Scott
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Welcome Onenski ! Glad to have you here!
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Welcome to the forum! This is a very interesting group of people, and a fascinating philosophy. Dig in and enjoy!
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The rather obvious intent of Derek Walcott in this little poem is to address a particular life situation, but to me the meaning of it is able to easily expand and accommodate the many things that can absorb us and mis-
lead us from ourselves and our true happiness. It just jumped out at me that it could be well used by Epicureans, as a comforting narrative on overcoming the ravages of idealist perspectives.
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Welcome reneliza ! Always glad to have new peeps join us! Much interesting stuff here, just have a look around! You will encounter very knowledgeable scholarly folks, and people more like me - just beginners, learning the basics. It is a most enjoyable philosophy to study. See you around!
Scott
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Ha! What a cool gazebo/ramada/whatever thingy!
(I actually thought it was a joke you were pulling that you click on the "Dance Improvisation" link and it pops up with "There's Nothing Here!") -
great work on your blog Kalosyni!
I had no idea you did a blog, Kalosyni. I must say your Dance Improvisation really activates the imagination!!!!!
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Welcome, @Modecs ! Glad to have you here. I hope you enjoy learning about this most interesting and insightful philosophy, and sharing your thoughts with a really super group of folks!
Scott
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Welcome, lulucarpet ! This is a very interesting place to hang out. I was curious at first, but as I learn more here, I am increasingly impressed with this Epicurus fellow. Enjoy investigating this forum. Feel free to post questions or comments.
Scott
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Very interesting, thanks for that, Don. I love how the concept of home is so expansive (even in English). It is at once thought of as the place I live, with my immediate family, but also wherever I feel I "belong". That can be quite large. Sometimes even as large as Everything. For me it was a kind of eureka moment when I one day felt that I "belonged" to the entirety of Everything. This was not an intellectual understanding - of COURSE I belong to "all that is". Obviously. It was an EXPERIENCE - that has never left me. And now I feel a great peace. I am unruffled if someone says there is more than our Universe, or Time and Being can stop and start again, or go away forever (to where?) or a god created the Universe, etc. I chuckle with good humor inside, because if there is a god, or some crazy ways the Universe organizes itself and flexes in unfathomable ways, or if it is all somehow intangible dreamlike stuff that only seems to be "physical", still all this is subsumed under the "All" that I call the Ocean of Everything. I'm Home.
I do not feel like I understand the physics of "all that is", which perhaps Epicurus DID feel due to his philosophy of physics, but I wonder if perhaps he felt a sense of belonging with it as I do because, one can, in different ways, have a coming to terms with it. A point at which the Everything is no longer alien. It's my place. It's Home. For both Epicurus and me, in our own ways, there is nothing "outside" of the Universe that can make it alien. We're Home!
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τὸ πᾶν
I've seen it translated as:
the sum of all things
the sum total of all things
the universe as a whole
the whole of beingit could be translated The All or The Whole. It could also be translated as The Everything Everywhere. The word really encapsulates for me the elegance and succinct nature of the original classical Greek.
I have used totus mundus: the whole world.
kosmos: “Pythagoras is said to have been the first to apply this word to "the universe," perhaps originally meaning "the starry firmament," but it later was extended to the whole physical world, including the earth.”
Well, what a romp! Thanks to Nate for bringing this old thread back to life! Else I would have never noticed it.
The above quotes and all the other discussion of this concept was a fun surprise for me. I don't know Greek at all, but this idea is one that is very significant to me. The English word "Universe" has become too "small" in some ways - as mentioned by Cassius I believe - what with all the "alternate" universes and multiverses, etc. So I started using the term "Ocean of Everything", by which I meant to capture ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING, including all those multiverses or whatever is out there. In this idea for me, there is nothing that is NOT captured by it. The physical, the intangible, and if there were gods or other "supernatural" things, those would still fall under this term. It's all part of the Ocean, for me.
I use this term in my daily meditations (which I modified a bit recently to make an attempt at my personal version of EP). For me the concept is important because this "Everything" or whatever it is called, is Home for all of us. We can never leave it, and we have always been in it. All of Time and Being fall under it. And for a while, we have been fortunate enough that some star dust came together into a patterned form we call being alive. And yet further, as humans, aware of our being here! What could be more amazing and fabulous than this, our Home? Isn't it wonderful to be Home? Always?
if we aren't every day in awe, we aren't paying attention
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An attempt anyway, at:
"My Epicureanism"
-it may be a bit "off"
I. Physics
or
How I "live" between quotation marks
so glad there comes the chance
to be a wave in this amazing Ocean of EVERYTHING!
"i" am always Home
always have been
always will be
breathing, the Ocean and "i" share, right now
not breathing, we still share (everything!)
so
Hallelujah!!!
how exciting!
the Ocean needs "me"!
to say that:
…Hallelujah!!!
all day
II. Epistemology:
or
How the heck am “i” supposa no?
"i" can always learn more
Hallelujah is NOT just
an eXclaim!
is a challenge
to make meaning(s)
tug it outta worm dirt-
and lexicons!
work! work work!
III. Ethics:
or
Whats for dinner?
ok
may there be happiness, joy and fun
may suffering fade
may worry be put aside
may there be kindness
may there be good friends
may there be laughter
may there be rejoicing in the well being of others
(slow down, will ya? there's only a little left)
may there be great compassion
may there be wisdom
may there be gratitude, in all directions
none but one of these are allowed
to be small
hall-le-LOOOOOOOooooooJAH!!!!
(aka "hell YES")
all day
all days
rinse, repeat
until smiling. with no breathing
"i" always like Ethics best
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There is on "outside" the universe.
Cassius I believe you will want to correct this sentence. Minor point but...
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Welcome, @BeberH ! Glad to have you with us. This is a really interesting forum. Jump in, ask questions, make comments.
See you around!
Scott
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Welcome, @DrNandita ! I hope you find this forum interesting and informative. I am also pretty new here but I have learned a lot in a short time. Fascinating philosophy, this!
Best,
Scott
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Welcome to the EF forum, @jgiro ! Lots of Interesting ideas and discussions here! We have all kinds of folks - from scholarly people who can read ancient Greek &/or Latin, to ordinary guys like me just interested in learning about this Epicureanism thing. Everyone is friendly.
Jump in ...and have fun!
Scott
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I'm digging the Epirurus face search light!
(Sorry, Cassius, we're being irreverent! The "kids are running loose in the front yard!!!")
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Briar has some worthy technology, but it does seem very focused on human rights activists, journalists in war situations, etc. It might be so secure it is too restrictive for this purpose. Not saying so, just saying something to consider as we eval.
