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SillyApe
September 26, 2026 at 10:24 AM Replied to the thread Suggestions For - "What I Wish I Had Known At 21 That I Now Know From Studying Epicurus".PostI am 23, so I am not far from 21, but this doesn't mean that there is nothing I know now that my younger self would have profitted from knowing.
I think two of the most valuable things Epicureanism provided me were the value of gratitude and a strong… -
Cassius
September 26, 2026 at 6:28 AM Replied to the thread The Four Steps In The Academic Skeptic Denial Of Knowledge - And Epicurus' Response.PostHere are two comments from another conversation that belong in this thread:
[…]
[…] -
Bryan
September 25, 2026 at 9:12 PM Replied to the thread What is the meaning of "He thinks he preaches to her"?.PostYes this is U126.
To look at one manuscript, Vaticanus Palatinus Graecus 182 (Page: 176r), we have αὐτῇ
[…]
I do like the option of αὐτὴν, and αὐτὴν serving as the accusative subject of παραινεῖν -- "νομίζειν αὐτὴν… -
wbernys
September 25, 2026 at 4:12 PM Posted the thread What is the meaning of "He thinks he preaches to her"?.ThreadDiogones Laertius records various "scandals" of Epicurus and what critics were saying about him, one particular remark is this one below.
"in another letter to Themista he thinks he preaches to her"
Pamela Mensch simply says on this passage "The text is… -
Cassius
September 25, 2026 at 2:46 PM Replied to the thread The Nature of Truth in Epicurus: ἀλήθεια.PostYes - clear or open vs hidden strikes me as a good way to look at it --- as opposed to "eternal" or "unchanging" or "transcendent" or anything that implies that there is a "higher" truth than that which we can clearly determine through the rational use… -
Pacatus
September 25, 2026 at 2:17 PM Posted the thread The Nature of Truth in Epicurus: ἀλήθεια.ThreadI’m sure that this has been discussed before, but it just struck me again in terms of Epicurean criteria of truth …
The Greek word for “truth” here is ἀλήθεια, which stems from the adjective ᾰ̓ληθής – which attaches the negating ἀ to λῆθος: concealment or… -
Godfrey
September 25, 2026 at 11:36 AM Replied to the thread Episode 352 - EATAQ34 - Dogs, Wolves, And What Is That In Sheeps' Clothing?.PostExcellent episode
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Cassius
September 25, 2026 at 7:06 AM Replied to the thread Episode 352 - EATAQ34 - Dogs, Wolves, And What Is That In Sheeps' Clothing?.PostSummary of this episode:
Continuing Book Two of Cicero’s Academic Questions, Joshua reads the full text of Section 16, where Lucullus lays out the skeptics’ Sorites (“heap”) argument in stages: first applied to visions supposedly sent by the gods,… -
Cassius
September 24, 2026 at 7:55 PM Replied to the thread Episode 352 - EATAQ34 - Dogs, Wolves, And What Is That In Sheeps' Clothing?.PostLucretius Today Podcast Episode 352 is now available: "Dogs, Wolves, And What Is That In Sheeps' Clothing?"
spreaker.com/episode/75340874/media -
Bryan
September 24, 2026 at 5:08 PM Replied to the thread The Four Steps In The Academic Skeptic Denial Of Knowledge - And Epicurus' Response.Post -
wbernys
September 24, 2026 at 4:17 PM Replied to the thread Understanding vision and how the eyes work.PostCrashCourse is always a fun look. I used to watch them all the time in school. -
Kalosyni
September 24, 2026 at 2:01 PM Posted the thread Understanding vision and how the eyes work.ThreadThis fun video looks good for understanding vision through modern science:
m.youtube.com/watch?v=o0DYP-u1rNM -
Cassius
September 24, 2026 at 10:45 AM Replied to the thread The Four Steps In The Academic Skeptic Denial Of Knowledge - And Epicurus' Response.PostAnd in this context there's an obvious relationship between this four-step process and the Sorites paradox, as also explained by Cicero / Lucullus in Section 16:
[…]… -
Cassius
ThreadSeptember 24, 2026 at 7:13 AM We have been covering this point extensively in the Lucretius Today podcast in recent weeks, but I haven't previously posted the material that Bryan has prepared as part of his Usener material. We've discussed this in our most recent Zoom meetings and I… -
Kalosyni
September 23, 2026 at 9:44 PM Posted the thread Terminal illness and assisted dying (Article).ThreadThis article covers the recent law that passed in the state of Illinois, and further aspects.
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https://apnews.com/article/medica…f492bda6597ee01 -
Godfrey
September 23, 2026 at 6:41 PM Replied to the thread Virtues are Entirely Instumental.Post -
Kalosyni
September 22, 2026 at 8:36 AM Posted the thread Virtues are Entirely Instumental.ThreadThrough-out this forum there are number of ways in which virtue is listed, including "no absolute virtue" which I think can come across as unclear.
I think a more clear way would be to say:
Virtues are entirely instrumental and inseparable from the happy… -
Kalosyni
September 21, 2026 at 2:21 PM Replied to the thread What Happened at an Epicurean Symposium?.PostAt yesterday's Twentieth Zoom, I gave a short presentation on aspects of the symposium, and this was a slide, with further info.
We don't know exactly what occurred at historical Twentieth gatherings...but here is some speculation:
There was either a… -
Cassius
ThreadSeptember 21, 2026 at 8:02 AM At yesterday's 20th zoom Patrikios had a very specific suggestion -- that it would be great to have a book of the title in this thread-starter. Such a book might be of interest to a wide group of young people, and would be a good way to summarize for… -
Patrikios
September 20, 2026 at 9:39 AM Replied to the thread Episode 349 - EATAQ31 - Navigating Questions of Knowledge With Ships and Heaps.PostThanks Cassius , and Joshua for this enlightening episode. I appreciated Joshua’s reference to the Ship of Theseus paradox. Wikipedia provides a good explanation and examples.Ship of Theseus
Thought experiment about identity over time -
Cassius
September 20, 2026 at 9:27 AM Replied to the thread Happy Twentieth of September 2026!.PostVery nice graphic thank you as always! -
Kalosyni
September 20, 2026 at 8:39 AM Posted the thread Happy Twentieth of September 2026!.Thread
Happy Twentieth Everyone! -
Kalosyni
September 20, 2026 at 8:01 AM Replied to the thread Revisiting Issues of The Use of AI in Epicurean Philosophy.PostSince this is a specific thread on AI, and I keep succumbing to it's siren song, just a bit more...regarding this by ChatGPT, which fessed-up with this phrase: "It would be misleading to give you a precise age."
Also of interest is that it suggests a… -
Cassius
September 19, 2026 at 7:43 PM Replied to the thread What Happened at an Epicurean Symposium?.Post[…]
All of the time? -
Cassius
September 19, 2026 at 7:36 PM Posted the thread Episode 352 - EATAQ34 - Dogs, Wolves, And What Is That In Sheeps' Clothing?.ThreadWelcome to Episode 352 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… -
Kalosyni
September 19, 2026 at 7:28 PM Posted the thread What Happened at an Epicurean Symposium?.ThreadHere and there, I've done research on the ancient Greek symposium, and since we would guess that Epicureans were prudent and serious-minded folk, then we could speculate that they made sure to dilute their wine sufficiently, and thereby allow the… -
Kalosyni
September 19, 2026 at 8:23 AM Replied to the thread Revisiting Issues of The Use of AI in Epicurean Philosophy.PostI find this to be an interesting development regarding AI search results talking about its own use of evidence (it said that its first response overstated the evidence), as well as talking about the lack of reliabilty of a particular source (in this… -
Cassius
September 19, 2026 at 6:36 AM Replied to the thread Episode 351 - EATAQ33 - Heap Big Trouble For The Stoic - Platonic Approach To Knowledge.PostSummary and Full Transcript:
Continuing Book Two of Cicero’s Academic Questions, Cassius opens by explaining why the Sorites (“heap”) paradox matters to Epicurean philosophy: rejecting Plato’s ideal forms doesn’t mean abandoning useful terms… -
SillyApe
September 18, 2026 at 6:11 PM Replied to the thread Exposition therapy,Courage and when choosing Pain.PostKalosyni Yes, I was thinking about the Stoics, but this also serves for any thinker who denies that pleasure is the end.
For example, let's say someone decides they are going to "hustle" and work 80 hours a week for 5 years in order to earn a lot of… -
Kalosyni
September 18, 2026 at 5:30 PM Replied to the thread Exposition therapy,Courage and when choosing Pain.PostI am a bit out of the loop on this thread, but just some quick reactions off the top of my head, to focus on "what Epicureans would do"...
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"being admired" -- I don't think that Epicureans (those that truly follow the philosophy of Epicurus) spend too…
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