“If we're to be happy at all, it has to be found outside of this notion of pleasure. We have to step beyond hedonia. But the problem is that we risk going too far.”
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Humans have been chasing happiness for thousands of years. But we can't seem to agree on the exact definition of happiness and it's often presented as simply a smiling face on social media. Jonny Thomson, author and our very own staff writer here at Big Think, argues that happiness is less of a smiling face, rather, happiness is a smiling soul.
Thomson runs the social media account ‘Mini Philosophy,’ where he distills complex philosophical ideas into bite-sized lessons. So, what can philosophy teach us about happiness? By examining different schools of philosophical thought, we can learn a lot about different ways to create happiness.
From Buddhism, Daoism, and ancient Greece to the philosophers of today, Thomson leads us through 2,500 years of happiness philosophy and carves out 3 simple methods that you can use to usher greater happiness into your life.
Timestamps:
00:00: What is the end point?
01:46: The philosophies of happiness
02:31: 3 pillars of happiness
03:00: Happiness ≠ pleasure
04:40: Moderation
05:53: Virtue
08:08: Applying the 3 pillars
Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/series/the-big-think-interview/jonny-thomson/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description
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About Jonny Thomson:
Jonny Thomson taught philosophy in Oxford for more than a decade before turning to writing full-time. He’s a columnist at Big Think and is the award-winning, bestselling author of three books that have been translated into 22 languages.
Jonny is also the founder of Mini Philosophy, a social network of over half a million curious, intelligent minds. He's known all over the world for making philosophy accessible, relatable, and fun.