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📿 Satisfied in the Present
This week’s Saturday meditation comes from the writings of the classicist and philosopher Pierre Hadot’s book, Don’t Forget to Live (published posthumously). According to Hadot,
For the Epicureans, senseless people—that is, most of the human race—are devoured by insatiable desires aimed at wealth, glory, power, and the disorderly pleasures of the flesh. What characterizes all these desires is that they cannot be satisfied in the present. This is why, as the Epicureans said, senseless people ‘do not recollect their past nor enjoy their present blessings; they merely look forward to those of the future, and since these are necessarily uncertain, they are consumed with anxiety and terror. The worst of their torment is when they perceive too late that they have devoted their zeal in vain to money, power, wealth, or glory. For they never attain any of the pleasures for which they had been inflamed by hope, and for the conquest of which they had worked so hard.’ The fool’s life is unpleasant and anxious, according to an Epicurean saying; “it rushes entirely toward the future.
Contemplation Questions (Pick one or create your own!):
Why do so many wisdom traditions stress living in the present moment?
How might being in the “here and now” change your perspective?
This Week’s Meditations…
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Thank you for reading/listening this week; I hope you found something useful.
Until next time, be wise and be well,
J.W.
P.S. Feel free to comment, ask questions, or make suggestions!