There was a couple who loved each other very much. They had lived very happily and peacefully for a long time. But lately they had started arguing and being hurtful. Even a small word was enough to start a big fight.

One evening they decided to sit down and review their relationship. Neither of them wanted a divorce, but they realized that it could not go on like this.

The woman came up with an idea. They would plant a tree in the garden, and if it dried up in three months, they would divorce; if it didn't dry up and grew, they would stay together and try again.
The next day they went and bought a fruit tree and planted it.

A month passed. One midnight they met in the garden. Both of them had a pitcher full of water in their hands...
Among the things that human beings naturally gravitate towards and want, happiness is a good thing to be achieved and a fundamental goal. Therefore, it is one of the basic concepts that has been sought in different elements since antiquity. Therefore, philosophers first focused on what a happy and good life could be for human beings. And like Leonardo's Mona Lisa, no one has yet been able to paint a picture of happiness, much less define it...

As we get older we look for happiness in possessions, having money, a good job, a house, a car, a beautiful woman or a handsome husband. Then what we have is not enough and we look for happiness in other things. Or sometimes we realize how happy we are after we lose what we have. We think we are happy with what we have and that's why we are afraid of losing it.

Epictetus of Leodicea has an aphorism I like very much: "If one day you lose a relative, a friend, a possession, don't be sad! Say, I have returned it to its owner, they did not belong to you. Just like you stayed at an inn. You used them temporarily and returned them. When you leave the inn, you don't take the bed and quilt with you, you leave it to the owner!"
Sometimes we are happy with things that do not belong to us. Again Epictetus says: "One should be happy with things that belong to oneself, otherwise you will be very sad when you lose them! A horse may rejoice because "I am beautiful, I am beautiful", but if the owner of the horse rejoices because "my horse is beautiful", he may be sad in the end".

The smiling face of the theater masks, Democritus, who was the first to address the problem of happiness, considered peace as the basis of happiness. According to him, happiness is "the good condition of the soul and its steadfastness, a combination of the two. Serenity and peace, not pleasure, are necessary for happiness."

Happiness is when our inner world is at peace and serene, unshakable. According to him, peace and serenity are sufficient for right living. Being peaceful does not mean being insensitive.
And the best and rightest thing one can do in life is to spend it with as much joy and as little distress as possible. To do this, one must first overcome the affections. Affect, here, is the state of feeling that one is in in response to what is happening and what is going on. These states of mind that we enter into in the face of external influences disrupt our inner steadfastness, which is the condition of happiness.

According to Democritus, the thing to be done is not to allow any fear, anxiety, vain imagination or passion in the soul. It is to develop reason and the power of thinking in order to live in moderation and serenity.
According to cynicism, happiness resulting from the attainment of pleasurable things is not happiness. It has to be related to morality through human life. The way to be happy is to become independent from pleasure. There are external factors in life that can easily affect us and shake our souls and inner world. These are usually things that seem good to us. Things that attract people such as fame, position, influence, wealth are things that prevent our inner independence. These are not things that can actually be desired for themselves. Therefore, even if they seem good, they are not good.

According to Diogenes, who lived in a barrel and had only a lamp and a bread bag as the most extreme example of the cynical school of thought: "For a happy life, it is enough to meet basic needs such as food and shelter."

In fact, happiness does not come as we strive to be happy. Happiness seems to be something that everyone knows very well, but it is actually the biggest secret. It comes when we are not chasing after it. It fills you up in an instant. It mysteriously bursts out of our existence.

What is essential for a happy life is to act in accordance with reason and nature. Inner serenity, painlessness, freedom, moderation, justice are sufficient for happiness. Happiness is nothing but peace and inner serenity...
According to hedonism, happiness is pleasure and anything that gives pleasure is good. Pain and pleasure do not coexist. Pain is unhappiness and bad. Therefore, any pleasure that gives happiness is good. Aristotle is one of those who strongly opposed this hedonistic school and defines happiness as follows: "Happiness is the activity of the self-sufficient soul in accordance with virtue."

Alexander the Great had heard of the wisdom and fame of Diogenes who lived in Sinop. One day, while Diogenes was sunbathing peacefully in front of the cube where he lived, having finished the dry bread he had begged for in the morning, Alexander appeared with his soldiers. "Diogenes, O great sage! I have heard of your fame! I'm going to Alexandria, come with me and help me rule the world, just come with me and wish me whatever you wish!"

Diyoje's answer is the quote that has gone down in history: "Don't cast a shadow, I don't ask for anything else from you." As Alexander was leaving Diogenes sadly, he said to his companions: "Do you know that I have owned three continents, ruled half the world, but I have never been as happy as this sage. If I were not Alexander the Great, I would want to be Diogenes."

Mukaddes Pekin Başdil

Researcher-Author

Source: Denizli Haber