More than Happiness: Heart of Epictetus’ Teachings!
If a man is unhappy,
remember that his unhappiness is his own fault,
for God made all men to be happy.
~Epictetus, Golden Sayings 122
You must begin, then, by purifying your own mind, Epictetus tells us, and adopting this as your plan in life: ‘From this time forth, the material that I must work upon is my own mind, just as that of a carpenter is wood, and that of a shoemaker is leather; for my work lies in making the correct use of impressions.’ [Discourse 3.22.19, Trans., Robin Hard, slightly modified].
God has given us a share in the Divine Reason–our capacity to think wisely and choose rationally. ‘The gods have given us the best and most efficacious gift,’ writes Epictetus, ‘the ability to make good use of impressions’ (1.1.7). [1] How to make good or correct use of impressions? Epictetus explains: ‘Don’t let the force of an impression when it first hits you knock you off your feet; just say to it: “Hold on a moment; let me see who you are and what you represent. Let me put you to test.”’[2] In this manner, we can either give our ‘assent’ to the impressions or withhold it, depending upon their moral worth. Thus, impressions require our ‘assent’ before they generate the impulse to act on them. How we conduct ourselves applying this methodology determines the character and content of our lives.
We experience the world through our sense perceptions. Events, situations, and experiences create certain “impressions” before our mind. Our mind tends to judge them as right or wrong/good or bad. Senses provide the stimulus by way of impressions, and our actions/reactions are the response. Between stimulus and response, there is a gap. In this gap lies our freedom.
Impressions—evaluation/judgment—action/reaction: This is the process. Epictetus tells us that we should not respond impulsively to the impressions. We should step back and take a moment to reflect before reacting. Thus we will be able to maintain control of our negative emotions. [See: Enchiridion 20]
Thus, it is clear that our good lies in the “correct” use of impressions. [Enchiridion 6]
The upshot of these teachings is just this: Live by ripe principles rather than by raw impulses. Then you will not be dazzled by the appearances.
In the manner of Socrates, Epictetus notes that we mistakenly look for abiding happiness and serenity in the wrong places; that is, in the “externals”—in pleasures, in riches, in fame and power—where they are not to be found, unassailably. [3.22.26-28]
‘Externals’ cannot provide us unshakable happiness. What are the most precious things to aim for and cherish in life? In Epictetus’s words, they are: Serenity, happiness, and inner freedom! [3.22.39]
Where are these things to be found? Inside yourself, says Epictetus: Inner freedom is to be sought in that which is completely up to you, fully in your power of choice, always without any constraint. Is there such a thing, something that is completely in our power?
Yes, says Epictetus:
Our capacity for choice is completely within our power: for, no one can force us to ‘assent’ to what seems to us to be false. It is in this faculty of choice–to judge impressions correctly–that our true freedom lies. [3.22.42]
So, then, here is Epictetus’ recipe for abiding happiness:
‘Seek not to desire or avoid anything that is not in your power.’ Put differently, “If you want to be free, restrict your desires and aversions to things over which you have complete control.” [Encheiridion 14, A.A. Long, How to be Free, p. xix., slightly modified]
Above all,
‘Seek not to have events happen as you want them to, but instead want them to happen as they do happen, and your life will go well.’ (Handbook 8)
St. Augustine once quipped, almost in the Stoic fashion, “Happy is the man who in the course of a complete life, has everything he desires, provided he desires nothing amiss.”
What does it really mean ‘not to desire anything amiss?’
In Epictetus’s view, it means to desire nothing that is not in our power of choice. For example, to desire unimpeded pleasures, fame, and success is not in our power. To desire these is to desire something amiss and hence invite unhappiness.
Within a short compass of one paragraph, Epictetus distils the art of life as follows:
Remember that you must always behave in life as at a banquet. Is anything brought round to you? Put forth your hand and take a moderate share. Does it pass by you? Do not stop it. Has it not yet come to you? Do not be impatient to get it, but wait until it reaches you. If you act like this toward your children, your spouse, your position, and your wealth, you will be worthy one day to dine with the gods. And if you do not even take the things which are set before you, but pass them by, then you will not only be worthy to feast with the gods, but also get to share in their divine power. [Enchiridion 15: T. W. Higginson, A. A. Long trans., slightly modified]
Epictetus had two rules to live by, more or less:
- Nothing is good or bad—except virtue and vice—but thinking makes it so. [with a tip of the hat to Shakespeare]
So, mind your mind and guard your thoughts.
“Very little is needed to make a happy life;” says Marcus Aurelius, “it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking.” (Meditations, VII.67) - To follow, not force, Providence. Therefore, bear and forbear!
The rest, as in Ecclesiastes, is all vanity!
From yours truly’s forthcoming publication:
“More than Happiness: Stoic Path to Human Flourishing”
[1] Robert Dobbin, Epictetus and Selected Writings, with introduction and notes (London: Penguin Classics, 2008), xii.
[2] Ibid., xii-xiii.
Recent Comments