What is the key to happiness according to Epictetus?

If there is something that generates consensus it is the desire to”be happy“. “THE happiness They are moments”, goes the popular saying. But what seems like pure common sense, for many philosophers was the study of their own life.

Thinking of happiness as a key goal in life has given rise to many theories. In this sense Epictetus had something to say about it.

This was a Greek philosopher who lived part of his life as a slave in Rome. According to Wikipedia, there are no known written works by him, but his teachings are known from the writings of his disciples who were responsible for spreading his legacy.

A reference to Stoicism, a philosophical school based on a logical system and its views of the natural world, believed that everything worked under one law of cause and effectand the universe had a rational structure.

The key to happiness according to Epictetus

There are several ideas out there on how to find happiness, but basically the most important one is philosophy lies in the unconditional acceptance of external factors that cannot be controlled.

This is one of the requirements for achieving happiness in Stoic philosophy: radical acceptance, without fighting against circumstances.

Epictetus I thought that if we wait to receive what we really want, we are doomed to be permanently disappointed.

For him it was necessary to embrace what he universe has for us, and then life will be more bearable.

THE unconditional acceptance His philosophy did not imply submission or resignation, but rather taking reality as it is and happens.

Another key to this thought is the freedom. This branch of philosophy did not conceive of happiness without freedom.

The phrase is attributed to Epictetus: “Happiness does not consist in desiring things, but in being free.”

To the latter we add the first key to form another devastating thought in this regard: we must distinguish between the things that depend on us and those that do not depend on us.

With this, Epictetus urges us to discover the importance of focusing on what you can control and accepting what you cannot control. Happiness is in the individualnot externally.

Finally, this quote sums it up what has been said so far: “Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to establish this difference.”

Manual for a happy life

As mentioned, even if the handwriting of a book by Epictetus is not known, the Manual for a happy life (published in Spain by the publisher Naturae Errata), was written by one of his disciples and was read by people as diverse as Pascal and Descartes.

There he names ten keys which we list below:

• I. No more scolding.
• II. Self-criticism.
• III. Life is imperfect.
• IV. Fear, the worst enemy.
• V. Be wary of praise.
• SAW. Relativize the offenses.
• VII. We will die, therefore we are alive.
• VIII. We are what we are not.
• IX. Commitment, a lifestyle.
• X. Shut your mouth.