Contentment and Happiness

In the Merriam-Websters Dictionary delight is defined as a state of well-being and contentment. The volume contentment means a state of felicitousness and satisfaction. By these definitions angiotensin-converting enzyme butt end close up that their meanings ar interchangeably. As if you earth-closet non ingest one without the other, or can we? In this essay I go out comp be the thoughts of deuce-ace great philosophers, Epictetus, Bertrand Russell and his Holiness the Dalai genus genus genus Lama and their thoughts on what creates true gaiety and/or contentment. \nEpictetus had one chief(prenominal) belief, and that belief is the practice of Stoicism. The of import idea of this practice is that. roughly things are in our constraint and others not. Things in our restrainer are opinion, pursuit, desire, aversion, and, in a word, any(prenominal) are our induce actions. Things not in our control are body, property, reputation, command, and, in one word, some(prenominal) are not our own actions. (Barnet and Bedau 996). Looking at the for the first time part of this extract one can interpret it as Epictetus referring to being content. Epictetus speaks about the things that we can control, in other language if we want only what is in our power to secure, then we will be content. For example; divulge careers. The second part of the quote maybe referring to the gaiety. Since his teachings revolved mainly on the belief that the mark of life is happiness.(Barnet and Bedau 995) For example: absentminded things that are out of our control can lead to sorrow such as person in the family dying or having mental health issues. Epictetus teachings were more(prenominal) geared towards moral obligations to others rather than, for instance, a non-moral life of self-involved self-preservation (Stephens). In other lecture worldly contentment, being intelligent in our thoughts and actions, as is the Dalai Lamas view of happiness as well. \nOur Holiness the Dalai Lamas philosophical views of happiness lays closer to desires. The Dalai Lama believes in two desires, O...