Philosophy As A Therapy

The Epicureans can be described as a reclusive group of friends. Lead by Epicurus, they arrived seventeen years after the death of Aristotle. Epicurus founded The Garden, a perfect place for them to memorize their therapeutic form of philosophy. They practised their theories by reciting their own work, however, only a few of Epicurus’s forty one treatises have survived.

Philosophy, as with many other groups of thinkers, was a way of life for the Epicureans bearing many similarities to religion but with one key difference - it was solely based on reason. The study of nature lay at the core of their beliefs, much like previous philosophers such as the Milesians. Epicurus believed Aristotle’s sublunary world can be accounted for by atomic motions. Aristotle previously laughed at Democritus, a budding atomist, who believed in tiny invisible particles. He thought they streamed from objects, into our eyes and then into our very souls. Epicurus agreed here, and his belief in the motion of atoms means he doesn’t require an unmoved mover (Aristotle’s theory) to account for eternal change. Instead, they have always existed.

Epicurus called his explanation for the world’s creation The Doctrine of the Swerve. Imagine rain falling from the sky in a perfectly parallel, infinite void. Then, imagine the raindrops as tiny particles, all falling downwards at the same speed. If this were the case, then there would be no chance for these particles to have a complex collision. Therefore, in opposition to Democritus idea of atoms flawlessly streaming, these atoms must swerve slightly to cause a chain reaction. This is how the world was created.

“... Movements, turnings, eclipses, risings, settings and related phenomena occur without any [god] helping out” - Epicurus, Letter to Herodotus

Hence, unlike Aristotle, he believed there was nothing teleological (design) about nature. Our world simply came to be this way. Everything can be accounted for in material terms, including natural disasters. This does not mean that Epicurus was an atheist, however. He believed that Gods existed. The concept of God and the feeling of the numinous seems to be innate to human beings. These anthropomorphic images of Gods are perceived constantly by mankind and bear resemblances to them, so they must exist somewhere in the vast cosmos in order for mankind to know of them. Epicurus suggested the Gods may be streams of images flowing to or from our perceptual faculties. Although, whether or not they are merely just a projection, he thought that they were worthy of worship regardless.

Seeing as these Gods do not partake in Epicurus’s atomic, material matters within the Universe, he claimed we should not worry about them. The Epicureans felt the only point in studying Philosophy is to make our minds better off, thus their philosophy being known as therapeutic. Epicurus acknowledged four principle fears:

• God

• Death

• Failure

• Suffering

The relief from these fears is known as ataraxia, meaning freedom from distress. As discussed in my previous post, Epicurus’s four-fold remedy, Tetrapharmakon, is as follows to save one from existential dread:

1. Don’t fear God

2. Don’t worry about death

3. What is good is easy to obtain

4. What is terrible is easy to endure

We can already see how Epicurus’s philosophy does impact mental well-being as a form of relief and reassurance, or as medicine for the mind. But why shouldn’t we fear the Gods? Although in Epicurus’s opinion, they do not function within the natural world, what if they lie in the world beyond? We cannot totally be sure. Epicurus’s response is this:

1. The Gods are perfectly happy

2. Hence, they are in a state of ataraxia

3. Troubles, such as anger, are disturbances in happiness

4. As the Gods are in ataraxia, they never feel anger

5. So, they will never cause us any trouble

If the God’s behaved otherwise, they’d be going against our natural, good conception of them.

All of the Epicurean’s beliefs were as simple as this. They used four-fold remedies as a solution to be practiced and remembered in times of distress. They wanted their philosophy to be short and understandable to all who wanted to partake in it.

“Practise these and the related precepts day and night, by yourself and with a like-minded friend, and you will never be disturbed either when awake or in sleep, and you will live like a God among men” - Epicurus, Letter to Menoeceus

Epicurus’s remedy for the second fear, death, was explained within my letter in my previous post. In short, we should not fear death because after we die, we no longer can obtain knowledge through our sense experience. The atoms of our soul scatter after death, and it is our soul which enabled us to perceive the world whilst we were living. Hence, the soul experiences nothing after death. Epicurus was a hedonist, accepting that nothing is good or bad unless you experience it.

However, this remedy falls short if one is not a hedonist. So, Epicurus changed his argument according to this disagreement, and in response to those who believe in an afterlife:

1. Nothing good or bad happens to us unless we exist

2. We do not exist when we are dead

3. So being dead is neither good nor bad for us

4. So, death is nothing to be afraid of

But, objectors claim that being dead and death are two completely different things, so how can step 3 of the remedy follow from step 4? Epicurus asks exactly what the objector is afraid of; what is the problem with death?

“He is a fool who says that he fears death not because it will be painful when present but because it is painful when it is still to come. For that while present causes no distress causes unnecessary pain when merely anticipated” - Epicurus, Letter to Menoeceus

Hence, death is an irrational fear. Nobody really wants to be immortal, so death cutting life short should not be a worry. Even cutting a good life short is debatable, what makes a life good and full enough so it’s not the correct time to end?

Ataraxia, the freedom from worries, is highly achievable. This continues into the third remedy - “what is good is easy to obtain”. An infant, for example, recoils from pain from the moment that it is born, and rejoices in happiness and pleasure. Pleasure is the absence of pain, and before an infant is corrupted by the troubles of society, this is what they strive for. There are two kinds of pain; physical and mental. One of the greatest barriers against achieving ataraxia is desire, which often stems from physical pain. For example, a walk in the woodlands suffering from hunger isn’t very pleasant, especially if one is craving for a specific meal. Instead of suffering, this walker should focus his mind on the meal prepared for when he gets home. This uncontrolled form of pain makes reaching ataraxia impossible, but the mental pain of desiring luxury has an even bigger impact.

Instead, one must alter or remove their desires. The worry surrounding where the next meal is coming from is just causing unnecessary pain. A desire becomes more painful the less satisfied it becomes, we need to accept the best that we can get. Food is a natural, generic, desire, but the types of food that we eat are not. If we worry about specific foods, we open ourselves to the risks and troubles of uncertainty. To avoid this, we must simplify our desires.

This is not to be confused with desiring simple foods, however. Rather, our desires should be easily satisfiable, so we don’t have to worry about desiring them.

“Everything natural is easy to obtain” - Epicurus, Letter to Menoeceus

There are enough resources on our earth to satisfy everyone’s needs. Someone with less desires is more wealthy than someone with lots of money. If our desires go beyond our resources, we should either restrict our desires or widen our resources.

The fourth remedy states: “what is terrible is easy to endure”. The Epicureans believed one can easily endure pain. Pain can be outweighed by bodily pleasures, such as the company of friends - these are known as kinetic pleasures. Pain can never outweigh them. For example again, the walker and the meal; he is directing his attention to a positive thought. We can all handle pain, intense pain only lasts for a short duration, whereas long term pain is duller and easier to endure. We can even call on memories of past pleasures to make us feel good whilst we are troubled within our suffering.

“The feeling of pain does not linger continuously in the flesh; rather, the sharpest is present for the shortest time, while what merely exceeds in the pleasure in the flesh lasts only for a few days. And diseases which last a long time involve feelings of pleasure which exceed feelings of pain” - Epicurus, Principal Doctrines

Therefore, the four step solution is:

1. Attend to the kinetic pleasures at hand

2. Remember past kinetic pleasures

3. Do not dwell on past evils

4. Do not make pain worse by thinking false thoughts!

Epicurus is said to have adopted this doctrine himself on his deathbed. Whilst the fear of the impending unknown can cause human mind’s to race, the remedy practised by the Epicureans can be used by many to put a disheartened soul at ease. Escaping natural fears is tricky, but fear and anxiety in the modern world are highly recognized as the catalyst for most irrational thoughts. Perhaps Epicurus’s doctrine can be an effective medicine when properly executed, even centuries later.