Category Archives: Philosophy/Ideas

Radical Contentment

Books, civilization, Philosophy/Ideas, The Simple Life, World of ideas

 

When he wrote the book Travels with Epicurus, Daniel Klein was already an old man who wanted to “figure out the most satisfying way to live this stage of my life.”  He did not want to figure how a young man should live. It was too late for that.  The young man was no more. Klein wanted a philosophy that could be lived. I have always called that existentialism. Living philosophy. The young man was gone and beyond help, but he could help his old self. That old man wanted to live the best life in the time he had left. That would be as close to a fulfilled life as he could get. That is the philosophy he sought. A living philosophy for the old man who was living now.

 

Epicurus wanted to answer the fundamental question: ‘How does one make the most of one’s life?” Epicurus had thought deeply about this question. He concluded the best possible life one could live was a happy life or a life filled with pleasure. That does not necessarily mean he sought a sensual life, a life that some wrongly call Epicurean. That was not the life he sought. Pleasure for Epicurus was just the starting point. Often other pleasures are more satisfying than sensual pleasures which frankly are often fleeting and not deeply satisfying.  Epicureans were not “wanton hedonists” as their reputation would suggest. As Klein said, he was not looking for “a life of dazzling sensory excitement.”

 

In fact Epicurus much preferred the life of ideas.  Learning more was what he found fulfilling. That is what I have tried to do in my retirement. Learn more, without striving. Just do it and enjoy it.

 

 

According to Klein “The old folks of Hydra have always struck me as uncommonly content with their stage of life.” He wanted to be content with his own stage of life.

He wanted to be like those old men sitting on the patio or in the Taverna enjoying life in the here and now.

 

Klein thought the ancient Greek philosophers, who were famous for their wisdom, might help him to achieve wisdom too, particularly if he sought their help in their own homeland where their ideas had germinated. As Klein said, “The prospect of reading the ancient Greek philosophers while surrounded by the rocky, sunlit landscape where their ideas first flourished feels just right to me.” So he packed his bag with books, many of them books of the ancient Greek philosophers and set out for the lovely island of Hydra where he might find out how to live a fulfilled life at age 72.

 

Epicurus sought the life that was free from striving. A life of satisfied contentment.  He wanted a fulfilled life. I call that radical contentment.

 

Radical Freedom/ Freedom from Striving

Books, Philosophy/Ideas, Simple Life, The Simple Life, Wisdom

 

Daniel Klein in his book Travels with Epicurus describes the fulfilled old man as the man who is free from vacillations and like the Zen Buddhists who are free from “the emptiness of striving.” That is what radical freedom is—i.e., freedom from striving. The reason old age is so good is because by then, hopefully, one has achieved the fulfilled life and the striving is over and the enjoyment is all. One should be living rather than striving. If one has not started living, one must start before its too late.

 

Marcus Aurelius was a 2nd century CE Roman Emperor and also a philosopher.  Like Epicurus he was a Stoic who wrote a book called Meditations, which he wrote for himself, since he said he did not write to get favorable opinions from others.  According to the Stoics, virtue is good and only vice is bad. The things which most of us strive for are really indifferent to our happiness because our lives are not made good or bad by our having or lacking them. That is why things are not important. Living is important.

 

Marcus Aurelius was a bit like Epicurus.  This is what Aurelius said, “It is not death that a man should fear, but he should fear never beginning to live.”  Henry David Thoreau had similar views.  He said that he did not want to come to the end of his life to find out that he had not lived at all. To both that was the point. Living life well. Not by striving; by living.  Thoreau also said this:

“Most men, even in this comparatively free country, through mere ignorance and mistake,  are so occupied with the fractious cares and superfluous coarse labors of life that is finer fruits cannot be plucked by them.”

 

In a word, too many of us allow striving to interfere with living. Instead we should be content.

 

Of course, in the modern world in particular commercial interests are expert at creating desires for things which will not satisfy us, but will satisfy them!  They will have their desires satisfied by our striving not us. We will never be content by trying to satisfying desires.

 

This is how Daniel Klein described the contented life of Epicurus:

“Epicurus may have predated Madison Avenue by a few millennia, but he already detected the commercial world’s uncanny ability to make us think we need stuff we don’t—and as the world of commerce keeps chugging along, to need ever newer  stuff. But when shopping for the latest thing—usually something we do not really need–Epicurus’s all-important life of tranquil pleasure is nowhere to be found.”

Commercial interests seek to keep us striving for ever more and better and newer stuff, but if we fall for that we will never get off the striving. We will be on a endless spinning cycle that never reaches the goal of contentment. We will never have enough.

 

Epicurus, ever the eloquent Greek put it this way: “Nothing is enough for the man to  whom enough is too little.”

Do you know anyone like that?  I know at least one. A famous president. But there are many like that.

This is wisdom. And radical freedom.

Old Age as the Pinnacle of Life

Books, Philosophy/Ideas, Simple Life, The Simple Life, Wisdom, World of ideas

 

Epicurus said something that was deeply surprising to me. He said that “old age is the pinnacle of life.” How is that possible? Isn’t old age the worst of times? How can it be the best of Times?

 

In his classic manuscript the Vatican Sayings, Epicurus made this profound statement:

 

“It is not the young man who should be considered fortunate but the old man who has lived well, because the young man in his prime wanders much by chance, vacillating in his beliefs, while the old man has docked in the harbor, having safeguarded his true happiness.”

 

Typically, the young man has not done much. He has accomplished little.

 

The old man who has lived the fulfilled life has found the safe harbour away from the storm. He is happy and content. When a person is content it is no longer necessary to strive. One is satisfied. That was the life Epicurus wanted.

 

That is philosophy for old men. Of course, it goes without saying, that this philosophy is also perfect for the old woman as much as the old man.  Epicurus believed in the radical equality of men and women. So I could say, just as well, this is a philosophy for old women.

 

Friendship

Friends, Philosophy/Ideas, Sunsets, Travel

 

Daniel Klein lived for a while on the small Greek island called Hydra and frequently noticed a regular group of old friends who got together in a taverna where they sat on the terrace.  By a strange coincidence I remembered I had spent a couple of hours there on a sunny day in April when I was a young lad with a lovely wife. It was our first European holiday and it was wonderful. But I was a young man. I don’t think I appreciated it enough, even though I always remember it and even though we did not do much on it. It was a short visit. But a spectacular visit with nothing spectacular about it. I think we also sat on the patio of a taverna in the warm Greek sun overlooking the harbour, sipping on a drink in relaxed contentment.

 

Many years later I found out that Leonard Cohen had lived there on that island  for a long time. That was where he met Suzanne and wrote a famous song about her. A beautiful song as only Cohen can write.

 

When Klein was on the island he often sat at the taverna and from time to time noticed this group of old men. One of the old men, would stop to pick up a wild lavender and put it behind his ear and then from time to time removed it, took a sniff of it and returned it to its rightful place behind his year. A simple pleasure. Really the best kind of pleasure. Klein was reading a book of thoughts from the teachings of Epicurus an ancient Greek philosopher.

 

What kept the group together was friendship, laughs and thoughts. Klein spoke about French Philosopher and essayist Michel de Montaigne who had said, “I know the arms of friendship are long enough to reach from one end of the world to the other.” What a great thought. Klein then noted that “Like Epicurus, Montaigne was convinced that friendship, and the good conversation that comes with it, was the greatest pleasure available to us.”

 

Now that I am an old man, I see the wisdom in that. I am lucky to have several groups of friends. Some just men. Others, men and women. All great. All important. Life is a conversation.

Epicurus was an ancient Greek philosopher who enjoyed simple pleasures, like sitting around with friends watching the setting sun.

Old Men and a Young Woman

Beauty, Friends, Philosophy/Ideas, Simple Life, Truth and Beauty, World of ideas

 

There was striking scene described by Daniel Klein in his marvelous book Travels with Epicurus. And it involved 4 old men.

 

On another day on a terrace overlooking the Aegean Sea . The 4  friends were enjoying the beautiful warm day and each other. They were “chatting amiably.” But then, something happened.

 

“Then quite abruptly, they all go quiet.  To a man, they are all gazing up at the top of the stone stairs that lead down from the coast path and past the taverna’s terrace. A young woman has appeared there and the wind is pressing against her blouse and skirt and her spending voluptuous body.”

 

Now we know why all the old men are paying so much attention. They may be old but can still appreciate such beauty. Klein continues,

 

“For a moment, she pauses there, perhaps enjoying the warm breeze, but more likely enjoying the effect she is having on the men looking up at her—her personal sirókos effect, indulgence…The young woman is named Elena. She is nineteen years and is a classic Greek beauty with jet-black hair; clear, light olive skin; and large dark, flashing eyes…The old men unabashedly keep their eyes on Elena as she and her grandmother draw near to where they are sitting. When Elena and the old woman are directly in front of them, all the men rise slightly from their chairs and greet them. While saying” “Good Day,” Tasso [one of the men] offers an elegant bow from his none-too supple waist. It is clearly a bow of admiration and gratitude for Elena’s beauty.”

 

The men settle down and start talking about the beautiful women they have known. These are not dreams. These are memories. The memories of old men. Old men can do that. That is what they have.

The men are not dirty old men. They are appreciative and wistful. They still appreciate beautiful women as they did when they were young. They don’t have to be voluptuous either. They know that this is all there is to it and they appreciate her. And they appreciate themselves. They are old. They know that. They are not angry about that. They are wistful, as I said, but accepting.

They can still appreciate the beauty of old women too. And even—believe it or not—old men. Beauty is by no mans confined to the young. At least so I believe, being an old man myself. “Truth is beauty and beauty is truth,” as John Keats said. But it is not just the beauty of youth. Old age too can be beautiful. Old men and old women no longer look like they did in the spring time of their lives, but what they have is still real too. Different but real.

No point in striving for what is gone. That is what counts.  Enjoy what you can. It is holy too.

Travels with Epicurus: A Philosophy for Old Men

Books, Philosophy/Ideas, Sunsets, The Simple Life

 

Now I am an old man, but in my youth, on my first trip to Europe, many years ago,  we visited very briefly 3 islands near Athens. One of those islands was the marvelous island of Hydra.  I remember overlooking its marvelous harbour from the ship when we disembarked. It was a classic view of a Greek island. I was stunned by the beauty. What more could anyone want?

 

On that small island there were no cars. If you needed transportation you could enlist the help of a burro to get you up the surrounding hills. Leonard Cohen had   lived there with hsi muse, the inspiration for that great song Suzanne.

 

Daniel Klein, another old man, wrote a wonderful little book about a month he spent on the island. He called the book, Travels with Epicurus: A Journey to a Greek Island in search of a Fulfilled Life. I highly recommend it, for everyone, but particularly old men.  It was given to me by one of my old law partners who  shamelessly avoided following the wise counsel offered in the book.

 

Early in the book Klein describes how, Aegean islanders like to tell a joke about a prosperous Green American who visits one of the islands on a vacation.  Out on a walk, the affluent Greek American comes upon an old Gentleman sitting on a rock, sipping a glass of ouzo and lazily staring at the sun setting into the sea. The American notices there are olive trees growing on the hills behind the old Greek but they are untended, with olives just dropping here and there onto the ground. He asks the old m an who the trees belong to.

 

“They’re mine,” the Greek replies.

“Don’t you gather the olives?” the old Greek asks.

“I just pick one when I want one” the old man says.

“But don’t you realize that if you pruned the trees and picked the olives at their peak, you could sell them? In America everybody is crazy about virgin olive oil, and they pay a dammed good price for it.”

“What would I do with the money? the old Greek asks.

“Why, you build yourself a house and hire servants to do everything for you.’

“And then what would I do?”

“You could do anything you want!”

“You mean, like sit outside and sip ouzo at sunset?”

 

I read this short passage to some friends of mine. One of them said, “If it rains I would rather sit inside this wonderful cabin I have built to keep out of the rain, rather than sit on a rock staring at the sun.”  “True,” I said, but you built it when you were young. Now you are old, you should enjoy what you have built. In rain or in sun. You have done the work, so enjoy the fruits of your labour. Stop striving for more. More, like perfection, is often the enemy of the good.

 

This to my mind sums up the Philosophy of the Greek philosopher Epicurus in a neat nutshell. The Old Greek man was content. He didn’t want to do the striving he did as a young man, to earn a living to support his life. He need not do that anymore. He could sit and drink ouzo and stare at the sunset, because that was what he wanted to do. Young men can’t do that; old men can. Young men must strive; old man have done it.

 

Been there. done that.

 

Mohács: A place of Syncretism

2025 Cruise up the Danube River, Hungary, Moral Humility, Music, Philosophy/Ideas, Pluralism, religion, syncretism

 

After seeing the watermills, the next thing we did was to tour the town of Mohács. The first thing that struck me, was the lovely pastel colours of the buildings.  I could not remember seeing anything like them. I could not resist photographing them.

The most interesting thing in the city centre where we walked was a large concrete Catholic Church. What interested me is that the church was designed in the style of a mosque.  And as we know, imitation is the most sincere form of flattery. It was not a case of a mosque being taken over by Christians; it was a case of Christians giving a nod to Islam.

 

This area of the world had been rocked by wars with a deep element of religious opposition for centuries, but here was a case of one religion admitting maybe the other religion had something good as well. This was a case of them living together in peace. A marvel. Imagine that, Christians admitting they could learn something from Muslims. For once, after the Christians took over Mohács they did not have to destroy a mosque or cover it with a new building, they could admit we can learn from each other. Could this herald a new world order? I sure hope so.

I have for a long time thought that syncretism, as a philosophy, is the way to go.  Syncretism refers to the  blending of elements from one culture, religion, or philosophy with another to create something new in the process. Religions, or philosophies, or cultures don’t have to compete, they don’t have to claim superiority. They can join hands and make something better.

One good example, is the celebration of Christmas in Europe and North America actually merges various traditions of their own with traditions in the Egypt or the Near East  and with traditions of the winter solstice in northern Europe.  Some claim this is heretical. Personally, I celebrate the combination. Another good example is combining elements of Christian religion with spiritual traditions of North American Indigenous people. The fusion can create wonderful new creations.

This photo is from inside that church.

Musicians and artists have been doing this forever . For example, combining  Jazz artists with European musical notations and African elements  to produce a unique sound. For another , I have long loved the combing of rock, country, and bluegrass music.

No single genre or culture has the secret to it all. No single religion has a monopoly on truth. No philosophy has all the answers.  Culture is always a rich tapestry of strands that multiply the magic.  James W. Loewen, the author of the book Lies My Teacher Told Me, said this: “ultimately syncretism illustrates he interconnectedness of human societies and the shared nature of cultural development.”

In my view, syncretism can be used to defeat the narrow-mindedness of those who live under the illusion that their philosophy, or their religion, or their ideas are the fount of all wisdom.

Mennonite Mothers are to Blame

Conspiracy Theories, Critical thinking, Death of Truth, Epidemics/Pandemics, Ethics, Health, Mennonites, Philosophy/Ideas, Rebel, religion, The Sleep of Reason, Trust and Distrust

 

Let’s get back to Mennonites.  We have noticed that in many places in North America the resurgence of measles on account of vaccine resistance has occurred in areas with a large number of Mennonites. Why is that? Is that a coincidence?

In my view, the problem is that many Mennonites live in a culture of belief. What I mean by that is that often Mennonites robustly indoctrinate their young. From a very early age, Mennonite mothers (and of course fathers) are careful to foster Christian faith in their offspring. They teach those children that they must have faith. Faith in God and the inerrant word of God evinced in the Christian Bible. I know that many religious groups do the same thing, but Mennonites definitely do and they do it thoroughly. Their children must believe what they believe without evidence.

 

Personally, I consider this a mistake. That is a very bad habit to get into. By doing that Mennonites (and others who do it too) shackle their children. If parents don’t give their children the opportunity to think for themselves their children will not learn to think for themselves in the real world. They won’t learn if they are not given the opportunity. That means they must be allowed to make their own mistakes. Even if we think they are wrong. We should give them evidence to encourage them to change their minds. Not indoctrination. Children must learn to think and think critically. This is true even when it comes to important matters such as choosing to believe or not to believe what their parents have taught them. In fact, this thinking skill is most important in the most important matters.

If children do not learn to think for themselves, they will be constant prey for charlatans, con-men, and hucksters.  That goes for religious hucksters as well. And there are legions of them. They are ubiquitous. It is much better for children to learn to think for themselves and make decisions based on evidence and logical arguments or inferences rather than faith inculcated by their parents. Thinking is a good habit to get into. Believing without evidence is a very bad habit to get into. I know when we are very young we need to believe our parents to keep us out of children or get hurt. But when we are old enough we must learn to think for ourselves or we will be in big trouble. And if enough children overly credulous when they get older society will be in trouble.

Those are skills that are worth much more than any belief. Such skills are literally invaluable.  That is what parents should teach their young charges.

To take away their right and obligation to think for themselves is to rob them of what they will most need after their parents are gone, namely, the ability to think and overcome challenges which they will inevitably meet. I know parents mean well when they try to inculcate their children, but they are misguided when they do it after their children are old enough to think for themselves. And to the extent they are old enough, they should be allowed to make decisions for themselves.

It is only by trying to think that we can learn to cultivate a spirit of questioning, of scrutinizing evidence, of weighing evidence and making rational decisions.  These are the skills children will need as they grow and have to make important decision such as whether or not to take vaccines. Robbing children of that skill could be considered child abuse, because it robs them of one of the most important skills they will ever need and they will otherwise be unable to learn.

Parents can guide such learning and offer help to them in learning these skills, but to take away their decision-making power is unfair to them.

Children must also learn to avoid the trap of wishful thinking. It is one of the easiest traps to fall into. The most difficult thing in the world is to disbelieve what you want to be true.  The easiest thing in the world is to believe what you want to be true.

The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche said it was not important to have the courage of one’s convictions. It was much more important to have the courage to attack one’s convictions.”  That is what we have to learn to do. That is the basis of critical thinking. It is perhaps its  most important element.  Nietzsche also said, “Convictions are more dangerous enemies of truth than lies.”

He also said, “if you wish to strive for peace of soul and pleasure, then believe; if you wish to be a devotee of truth, then inquire”

Nietzsche realized he was radical in this respect. He showed thinking is fun. He said, “I am dynamite.” I think he meant to say that he was on this earth to break up encrusted ‘truths.’ He was here to attack them, to expose them.

I think many Mennonite mothers, but not all of them, and many Mennonite fathers, but again not all of them, have taught their children to believe what they have been indoctrinated to believe, and that is a dangerous thing as is shown by the fact that too many Mennonite children  have refused to believe measles vaccines are better for them than the alternatives, such as, in extreme cases, such as the woman in Ontario, eating wild flowers.