In 1417, a manuscript-hunter named Poggio Bracciolini discovered a copy of Lucretius's On the Nature of Things in a monastery near Lake Constance. [134] The discovery of this manuscript was met with immense excitement, because scholars were eager to analyze and study the teachings of classical philosophers and this previously-forgotten text contained the most comprehensive account of Epicurus's teachings known in Latin. [134] The first scholarly dissertation on Epicurus, De voluptate ( On Pleasure) by the Italian Humanist and Catholic priest Lorenzo Valla was published in 1431. [134] Valla made no mention of Lucretius or his poem. [134] Instead, he presented the treatise as a discussion on the nature of the highest good between an Epicurean, a Stoic, and a Christian. [134] Valla's dialogue ultimately rejects Epicureanism, [134] but, by presenting an Epicurean as a member of the dispute, Valla lent Epicureanism credibility as a philosophy that deserved to be taken seriously. [134] Körte, Alfred (1987). Epicureanism: two collections of fragments and studies (in Greek). New York: Garland. ISBN 978-0-8240-6915-5.

Erler, Michael (2011), "Chapter II: Autodidact and student: on the relationship of authority and autonomy in Epicurus and the Epicurean tradition", in Fish, Jeffrey; Sanders, Kirk R. (eds.), Epicurus and the Epicurean Tradition, Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, pp.9–28, ISBN 978-0-521-19478-5 Epicurus rejected the conventional Greek view of the gods as anthropomorphic beings who walked the earth like ordinary people, fathered illegitimate offspring with mortals, and pursued personal feuds. [111] Instead, he taught that the gods are morally perfect, but detached and immobile beings who live in the remote regions of interstellar space. [112] In line with these teachings, Epicurus adamantly rejected the idea that deities were involved in human affairs in any way. [110] [113] Epicurus maintained that the gods are so utterly perfect and removed from the world that they are incapable of listening to prayers or supplications or doing virtually anything aside from contemplating their own perfections. [112] In his Letter to Herodotus, he specifically denies that the gods have any control over natural phenomena, arguing that this would contradict their fundamental nature, which is perfect, because any kind of worldly involvement would tarnish their perfection. [113] He further warned that believing that the gods control natural phenomena would only mislead people into believing the superstitious view that the gods punish humans for wrongdoing, which only instills fear and prevents people from attaining ataraxia. [113] Diogenes of Oinoanda (1993). The Epicurean inscription. Translated by Smith, Martin Ferguson. Napoli: Bibliopolis. ISBN 978-88-7088-270-4.

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Here we see one of Epicurus’ techniques for obtaining happiness even in the most miserable situation: instead of dwelling on the pain, recollect one of those moments in the past when you were most happy. Through enough training of the mind, you will be able to achieve such vividness of imagination that you can relive these experiences and that happiness. This idea is well illustrated by Victor Frankl, the Viennese psychiatrist who suffered four years in various concentration camps, including Auschwitz. Frankl writes that one of the few things that was able to give him a feeling of happiness was conjuring up an image of his beloved wife, and engaging in imaginary conversation with her. As he writes: “My mind clung to my wife’s image, imagining it with an uncanny acuteness. I heard her answering me, saw her smile, her frank and encouraging look. Real or not, her look was then more luminous than the sun which was beginning to rise.” (Frankl 1984, p. 57). Epicurus – Happiness is Pleasure The aim is not the positive pursuit of pleasure but rather the absence of pain, a neutral state he calls “ataraxia,” which is freedom from all worry, often translated simply as “inner tranquility.” a b "Epicurus". Epicurus - Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University. 2018. Epicurus’s natural philosophy of atomist materialism, later admired by Galileo, Newto

Relating to the baseline theory, we have very comparing minds with one another and within ourselves. The book explains how we compare incomes and success, which leads to unhappiness, but we need to flip this state of mind to compare with the less fortunate to appreciate what we have (22–23). According to the Dalai Lama, “If you harbor hateful thoughts or intense anger deep within yourself, then it ruins your health; thus it destroys one of the factors for happiness” (25). We are born into a certain state of mind about happiness, but we can change our outlook by being happier in each moment. For example, we can find more happiness with ourselves through self-worth. Self-worth, according to the Dalai Lama, is having a source of affection, compassion, and a sense of dignity (32). We need a strong sense of contentment to feel happier without obtaining objects, which assists in finding self-worth. Along with material things, we need to be able to decide what is going to bring us happiness or just pleasure. We have to reflect on what will ultimately bring us positive or negative consequences when dealing with a positive or negative action we perform to bring us satisfaction (28). We must ask ourselves if a certain object/action will make us happier or bring us pleasure. At the end of the chapter he talks about how deep religious faith has sustained countless people through difficult times. He tells a story about a man named Terry Anderson who was kidnapped off the streets in Beirut in 1985. After seven years of being held as a prisoner by Hezbollah, a group of Islamic fundamentalist extremists, he was finally released. The world found him a man overjoyed and happy to be reunited with his family and he said that prayers and religion got him through those seven years (303). This is the main example Lama used. Happiness is Pleasure; all things are to be done for the sake of the pleasant feelings associated with them The author goes on to talk about how when people hear the word "spirituality" they automatically think it goes with religion. He says that despite the Dalai Lama having a shaved head and wearing robes, they had normal conversations like two normal people.

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Epicurus maintained that the senses never deceive humans, but that the senses can be misinterpreted. [48] [49] Epicurus held that the purpose of all knowledge is to aid humans in attaining ataraxia. [50] [51] He taught that knowledge is learned through experiences rather than innate [52] and that the acceptance of the fundamental truth of the things a person perceives is essential to a person's moral and spiritual health. [53] [51] In the Letter to Pythocles, he states, "If a person fights the clear evidence of his senses he will never be able to share in genuine tranquility." [54] Epicurus regarded gut feelings as the ultimate authority on matters of morality and held that whether a person feels an action is right or wrong is a far more cogent guide to whether that act really is right or wrong than abstracts maxims, strict codified rules of ethics, or even reason itself. [55]