Recent Updates From Across EpicureanFriends.com
Recent Activities
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Godfrey
September 4, 2026 at 8:32 PM Replied to the thread How SMART Fitness Goals Keep You On Track.PostKalosyni So far my new regimen is going well. It's only been about six weeks, but I've replaced my usual solo workouts with a couple of different exercise classes, each a couple of times per week. I've also got a workout buddy (who happens to be my… -
Martin
September 4, 2026 at 12:15 PM Replied to the thread How SMART Fitness Goals Keep You On Track.PostConcentration during exercising at the gym is a must at stations where lack of concentration constitutes a safety hazard, e.g. when working out with heavy weights or when making movements close to others in a densely packed gym.
On the other hand,… -
Kalosyni
September 4, 2026 at 10:44 AM Replied to the thread Good General Reference Post Contrasting Buddhism with Epicurus.PostFrom the article in post 14:
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Buddhism says life is suffering, but here the author of the article is saying something that really prompts me to contemplate more: the idea that humans are hooked on obsession over suffering. And related to that then… -
Kalosyni
September 4, 2026 at 10:29 AM Replied to the thread Good General Reference Post Contrasting Buddhism with Epicurus.PostThank you, Matteng ...he mentions Epicurus!
Here are some quotes from the article:
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For the third bullet-point I would bring up a comparison to the the Letter of Menoeceus about "not the pleasures of the profligate"...and more pains than pleasures.
[…]… -
Kalosyni
September 4, 2026 at 8:37 AM Replied to the thread How SMART Fitness Goals Keep You On Track.PostMatteng My hunch is that for an Epicurean the "pain" isn't quite as painful compared to the Stoic, since there is an anticipation on the future well-being and pleasure that will result. The Epicurean is sensitive to the body and isn't in competition… -
Matteng
September 3, 2026 at 4:30 PM Replied to the thread Understanding Confirmation Bias.PostI think he would emphasize to reflect and compare with sensation/evidence/facts even when it pains. Clear conceptions give more sustainable Pleasure.
VS46. Let us utterly drive from us our bad habits, as if they were evil men who have long done us great … -
Matteng
September 3, 2026 at 4:20 PM Replied to the thread How SMART Fitness Goals Keep You On Track.PostThank you Kalosyni
It’s great that you’re bringing up topics related to personal development. I feel that often gets lost when defending the idea that pleasure—not virtue—is the goal. Yet virtue (which often means choosing pain) is the most… -
Cassius
September 3, 2026 at 1:11 PM Replied to the thread Episode 349 - EATAQ31 - Navigating Questions of Knowledge With Ships and Heaps.PostLucretius Today Podcast Episode 349 is now available: "Navigating Questions of Knowledge With Ships And Heaps”
[media]https://www.spreaker.com/episode/74871778/media -
Matteng
September 3, 2026 at 12:27 PM Replied to the thread Good General Reference Post Contrasting Buddhism with Epicurus.PostToday I recognized some similiarities by this Essay
https://bernisdharma.substack.com/p/early-buddhi…&utm_medium=ios -
Kalosyni
September 3, 2026 at 9:32 AM Posted the thread Understanding Confirmation Bias.ThreadWhat would Epicurus think about how "confirmation bias" describes our underlying tendency to notice, focus on, and give greater credence to evidence that aligns with our existing beliefs.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias -
Kalosyni
September 3, 2026 at 8:41 AM Replied to the thread Good General Reference Post Contrasting Buddhism with Epicurus.PostEarly schools of Buddhism would have been in agreement with Epicurean atomism.
Here is an overview, with regard to the material existence of things:
In Buddhist philosophy, the question of whether matter exists is traditionally broken down using four main… -
Cassius
September 3, 2026 at 8:36 AM Replied to the thread Discussion of Article - "Epicurus And The Pleasure Of Rebelling Against Plato".Post[…]
Or are they more Christians who understand the weakness of their own logic using Epicurus' more compelling logic for cover?
This is where it all comes back to Diogenes of Oinoanda's point - what IS happiness? If you redefine the meaning of pleasure… -
Robert
September 2, 2026 at 11:16 PM Replied to the thread Discussion of Article - "Epicurus And The Pleasure Of Rebelling Against Plato".Post[…]
Christian ataraxia, eh?
Yes, very intrigued by this text--and thank you for extricating that crucial passage. I've only just skimmed the rest at this point, but I notice that our buddy Hedonius starts off by rejecting Stoicism and the Peripatetics… -
Cassius
September 2, 2026 at 8:31 AM Replied to the thread Welcome EpicuriousDavid!.PostNo specific discussions come to mind at the moment. I know we've mentioned many times that in regard to Menoeceus it makes a big difference that the recipient would have been a student who understood the basics, and therefore did not need to have EVERY… -
Julia
September 2, 2026 at 7:41 AM Commented on the image Epicurus Teaching Natural Physics.Comment (Image/Video)Corresponding excerpt from Eikadistes' translation on twentiers.com:
Nothing from Nothing
It is necessary to understand these [conjectures] were already determined on account of the unseen: first indeed, that nothing is being generated out of that which is… -
EpicuriousDavid
September 2, 2026 at 12:51 AM Replied to the thread Welcome EpicuriousDavid!.PostIs there a discussion anywhere about the mode in which the letters were composed?
To elaborate, my understanding is that letters at the time would be written as a normal letter or a ‘letter’ really intended for a broader audience distribution,… -
Godfrey
September 1, 2026 at 11:28 PM Replied to the thread How SMART Fitness Goals Keep You On Track.PostThanks Kalosyni , this is timely (no pun intended). I've recently amped up my exercise regimen and this is helpful for thinking through how best to persist through my growing pains in order to maximize my resulting pleasures
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Joshua
September 1, 2026 at 6:10 PM Replied to the thread Discussion of Article - "Epicurus And The Pleasure Of Rebelling Against Plato".PostRobert , you might be interested in a dialogue by Desiderius Erasmus called The Epicurean. That's not a great version of the text to read from, but unfortunately I'm not at home at the moment. Here's a seminal passage from a cleaner text:
[…]
Edit to… -
SillyApe
September 1, 2026 at 11:39 AM Replied to the thread Discussion of Article - "Epicurus And The Pleasure Of Rebelling Against Plato".Post[…]
This is a major problem with religious beliefs in general: They start from abstract assumptions first, so you can fit anything into them, even if it sounds contradictory.
For example, I live in a highly religious country. When something bad happens,… -
Kalosyni
September 1, 2026 at 10:00 AM Posted the thread How SMART Fitness Goals Keep You On Track.ThreadExercise increases and maintains health and well-being, but we need to have goals and take action:
Here is an article excerpt:
[…]
Read the full article:
https://health.clevelandclinic.org/smart-fitness-goals
*******
Letter to Menoeceus says: "And for this… -
Kalosyni
September 1, 2026 at 8:21 AM Uploaded the image Epicurus Teaching Natural Physics.Image/Video
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DaveT
August 31, 2026 at 8:08 PM Replied to the thread Discussion of Article - "Epicurus And The Pleasure Of Rebelling Against Plato".Post[…]
They've been working on that since the Islamic scholars translated Plato and Aristotle from Greek into Latin. I don't see how they've succeeded in rationalizing their belief system in any way except for the social justice work they've done as a… -
Robert
August 31, 2026 at 6:20 PM Replied to the thread Discussion of Article - "Epicurus And The Pleasure Of Rebelling Against Plato".Post[…]
At least from what I've seen, Christianity has this really odd wrinkle. On the one hand, God is perfectly good, without fault, and blessed--In Greek Orthodoxy, the word μακάρ is used, just as it is in Epicureanism (I have wondered if they stole… -
Robert
August 31, 2026 at 5:59 PM Replied to the thread Discussion of Article - "Epicurus And The Pleasure Of Rebelling Against Plato".Post[…]
Your point here reminds me of Lucretius's concern that inadequate understanding of the cosmos could lead some people to lapse back into superstition. (Book V, 65-91). In fact, in the light of what you've just written here, I can understand better why… -
Cassius
August 31, 2026 at 10:27 AM Posted the thread New Time Line Of Epicurean History By Twentiers.ThreadI've just learned of this new time line published at the Twentiers website, and it looks very good.
https://twentiers.com/2026/08/25/timeline-of-epicurus/
PS - I realize that we have had several threads i the past about Time Lines, but they are not easy to… -
Kalosyni
August 31, 2026 at 9:30 AM Replied to the thread Discussion of Article - "Epicurus And The Pleasure Of Rebelling Against Plato".Post[…]
Regarding DeWitt's ideas, this may just be a "coincidence" of ideas, and not an actuality of there being a particular source. The only "blessed and incorruptible God" within Christianity would be in the Unitarian Universalist movement. Pretty sure… -
Cassius
August 31, 2026 at 5:03 AM Replied to the thread Discussion of Article - "Epicurus And The Pleasure Of Rebelling Against Plato".Post[…]
Have you also read his "St Paul And Epicurus"?
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I certainly agree I can see that that would be attractive to pursue - if it were true. I agree that what you're talking about probably happened to a degree, but like Lucian mentions in Alexander the… -
Robert
August 30, 2026 at 9:18 PM Replied to the thread Discussion of Article - "Epicurus And The Pleasure Of Rebelling Against Plato".PostThat's a great point you raise about Epicurus's view of hard determinism. Wonder if we can relate this also to his participatory attitude with regard to religious ceremonies.
The question interests me for a couple reasons. One is that I'm curious about… -
Cassius
ThreadAugust 29, 2026 at 4:33 PM Welcome to Episode 349 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
August 29, 2026 at 3:59 PM Replied to the thread Discussion of Article - "Epicurus And The Pleasure Of Rebelling Against Plato".Post[…]
No doubt but you are right - it is certainly pleasurable to think you are going to live forever, and that is a major attraction of religion. And I suspect this would be why Epicurus suggested it would be better to live by a false religion than by a…
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