EPICUREANISM, ep-a-ku-re'on-izm, was the
philosophy founded by Epicurus at Athens near the end of the 4th century a. c.
Epicureanism propounded a simple, rational, dogmatic view of the nature of man
and the universe, through which men might attain real and enduring pleasure, in
the sense of peace of mind. The philosophy was never very popular and was
attacked with extraordinary violence and unfairness by philosophers of other
schools and, later, by Christians. From these attacks Epicureanism got its
popular reputation as a mere self-indulgent cult of pleasure. But the small
groups that upheld Epicureanism were intensely devoted to their master. They
regarded his teaching as a true gospel, as good news about the nature of things
that delivered those who upheld it, presumably on strictly rational grounds,
from the worst of human evils.
In the 1st century A. C. the school attracted
some of the finest minds of ,the time, including the Roman poet Lucretius, and
for a time, Vergil. In the course of the 3d and 4th centuries A. C.
Epicureanism quietly died out. It seems to have been extinct as a school by the end of the 4th century A. C.
The objective and the contents of Epicurean
philosophy are known from the fragmentary remains of Epicurus' own writings,
supplemented by later sources. Much of the existing knowledge of Epicurean
doctrine comes from Lucretius' poem On The Nature of Things, and there are
other accounts in the writings of Cicero. The study of the doctrine is made
easier by the fact that it did not develop much after the time of Epicurus, and
no schisms or subdivisions grew up in the school. Epicureans were generally
content to repeat the teachings of their master with very little modification.
The
Epicurean Objective
The great objective of Epicureanism, as of the
contemporary Stoic and Skeptic schools, was to free men from anxiety and bring
them through knowledge of the truth to that untroubled peace of mind they
called ataraxia. But the route the Epicureans followed to this objective was
very different from that of their contemporaries. Epicurus thought that men
reduced themselves to utter misery by their worrying, particularly about
worldly ambitions and the satisfaction of their material needs, but most
especially about death and the gods. Widespread fear of the gods was promoted,
ac cording to Epicurus, not only by popular superstition but even more by
philosophical religion. A belief in an all-embracing and inexorable Divine
Providence governing every detail of life was something to be really frightened
of-if it truly existed. Epicurus proposed to deliver men from these fears by
persuading them to follow a way of life conformable to his rational view of the
universe.
Philosophical
Tenets
Epicurus divided philosophy into three parts: canonic, concerned
with the rules for finding the truth; physics, concerned with the nature of the
world and the gods; and ethics, concerned with morality.
The canonic basis of the doctrine was a simple
one. There was only one means of knowledge: some kind of direct physical
perception based on the senses, which were considered absolutely reliable. The
general notions by which men recognize different kinds of things are a sort of
memory-deposit resulting from a large number of particular sense-perceptions.
Epicurean physics, the process of discovering
the truth about the universe and the gods, was a variation of the old atomism
of Democritus.
Nothing
exists but atoms and the empty space in which they endlessly move. Universes,
including our own, and all in them, including men, are just chance concatenations or chains of
atoms, which are always coming into existence and being dissolved in infinite
space. In these atomistic universes, human thought and action are completely
undetermined and not subject to any fate or necessity. The gods live in the
gaps between the universes. They are peculiar atomic structures, immortal in
that the flow of atoms into them
exactly balances the outflow. This is not the case with men, and hence
men die.
The gods have no power over the universes, but
live a quiet happy life in the between worlds. They must exist because all men
believe in them, but there is no need to fear them. Philosophers can derive
peace and joy from contemplating the ideal existence of the gods, and it is
possible that the gods approve of the philosophers, who are their equal in all
except immortality.
Death is the dissolution of the atomic
structures that are human bodies and souls. But death is not something to fear.
Death is not something that happens to men. Men are never in a state of death,
because when death arrives, men no long er exist.
When men are freed from fears of death and the
gods they can live the good life according to Epicurean ethics. The standards
of good and bad are pleasure and pain. Pleasure Means principally untroubled
peace of mind, and pain is the distress and worry from which the great
Epicurean truths set men free. Man's natural needs are few and simple, and are
easily provided for. To experience
pleasure it is necessary to eliminate all artificial wants and to pare human
desires to the real needs of nature. The most unnecessary, artificial want is the desire for
political power and fame. Rejecting this, men should attempt the austere,
hidden life, wanting nothing artificial. Such an existence in the company of a
few like-minded friends will provide the reassurance and good fellowship
necessary for peace of mind, ataraxia. Surrounding oneself with
fellow-believers is of the greatest importance in the Epicurean way of life.
In theory, Epicurean morality is firmly based
on self-interest. All societies are based solely on an agreement of men not to
harm each other a mutual advantage. The philosopher is primarily concerned with
his own well-being. But in the practice of friendship in the small groups of
Epicurean adherents there appears something of that sense of community and
humanity that is lacking in Epicurean theory.
EPICURUS, ep-a-kur'as ( 341-270 s. c. )
philosopher, founded the school known as Epicureanism. He was born on the
island of Samos, where his parents were
Athenian colonists. Little is known of his early studies except that he
had little enthusiasm for other
philosophers. He did admit having heard the lectures of atomist philosopher,
Hausiphanes, but he called the professor a "jellyfish." He founded his own school at Athens in 307
or 306 s. c. It was a small community of men united by common intellectual
interests and a common ideal of life-more like something between a gathering of
disciples and a research institute than a college or university. The school
occupied a garden Epicurus had
bought, where the members grew their own food, and is often referred to by
later writers as the "Garden." Epicurus inspired great love and
lasting affection in his followers. He had many friends and wrote charming
letters to children. He was unusually kind to his slaves allowing some of them
to study with him. Although his philosophy was later maligned as hedonistic, he
himself lived with austere simplicity and encouraged others to do likewise He
was however, always cheerful promoted small festivities in his school, and left
money for them to continue after his death .
He died in Athens after a painful illness,
which he bore with great courage and composure. Like many ancient philosophers,
Epicurus lived up to his own principles. See also EPRICUREANISM.
ERIGENA,
JOHANNES SCOTUS (c. 81- c. 877), theologian and philosopher, who in these
fields was the most advanced thinker of his age.
Life
and Works.
The only certain facts about Erigena's life are
that he was called to France by Charles the Bald about 845 to head the palace school
and that he wrote and translated several works. The name "Erigena"
may mean "born in Ireland." He is a;so called John the Scot (from
Scotus), which need not be contradictory, as at that time the Irish were
sometimes called Scots.
Erigena knew Greek and made Latin versions of
the works of Psudo-Dionysius about 858, as well as of other Greek patristic
writings. He own works include De divina praedestinatione (On Divine
Predestination), written about 851 and condemned by the councils of Valence
(855) and Langres (859), and De divisions nature (On the Division of Nature),
written between 865 and 870. The doctrines expressed in these works were the
most advanced of the era. Not surprisingly, they remained the subject of
controversy for centuries. They were condemned at the council of Sens in 1225
and by Pope Gregory XIII in 1585. In 1681. De divisions naturae was put on the
Index of Forbidden Books.
Thought.
Erigena was deeply influenced by Neoplatonic
thought and was also convinced of the necessity-and superiority- of a rational
explanation of the universe. He therefore attempted to explain the relation of
God to the created world in a rational fashion, using Neoplatonic concepts as
his basis. His natura continens, or total universe, can be divided into four
parts: (1) that which creates and is not created, namely God; (2) that which is
crated and also creates, namely the Platonic ideas, or perfect archetypes,
which were created by God in a conscious act of self-revelation; (3) that which
is created-by the archetypes-and does not create. These last are the forms of
the visible world, including man. They are imperfect reflections of the ideas,
and nature of God. (4) Finally, the forth part is that which neither creates
nor is created_god is his final (or original) form, not viewed in his
manifestations in creation. Clearly, such a theology has close affinities with
pantheism.
Still more difficult to reconcile with
orthodoxy was Erigena's attempted explanation of sin as misdirected will. His
system is very weak on this subject. He shows that with God, being and knowing
are the same. It would follow then that sin, which is apparently implicit in
this universe, must be there with God's knowledge.
