Hedonism

[chemiKalz]

How many of you subscribe to this point of view on life? I'd think it would be most of us considering we love opiates.

[Chipper]

I am a confirmed hedonist so I'm right with you, chem

[OpiXPO]

To what degree do you mean? Everyone has a bit of it within them, and its more of a matter of how much of the extra control you give it.

[Indy]

I've lived sort of hedonistically at times. I don't think it's entirely selfish, and I think it can really help round you out as a person, keep you from going crazy. I always try and reward myself if I'm going through stress: even just taking a day or two to sleep in, play some video games and eat good food, I think is something that everyone should try and do every once in a while.

[chopstix]

Check.

[Seedy]

fuck, honestly i have to say i've always been a hedonist. it's only human to not willingly bring suffering on yourself. isn't it? sure i can get all self rightious and say i've learned a lot from the suffering and it's made me a better person - character building, ect - but honestly, realistically, everyone strives to make life as pleasurable as possible right? it may end in suffering. even people who derive pleasure from pain are in essence hedonists imo.

interesting subject. i'm drunk.

[mountaingirl]

As the OP said, I believe most of us are. I think all humans are; most just do a better job at hiding it than others. I have been a sybarite since birth and desire pleasure, luxury and passion. In other words...If it's good, I love it! I prefer the best of most things. But due to my CP I haven't been able to afford the lifestyle I've been accustomed to. I used to make hundreds of dollars per night working and now I have a negative income. I feel like such a drain. I know I give back to my family in ways other than financial, but wish I could contribute money to the "common pot" as I used and pay for my own things. (Thankfully, I paid my car off and have been investing for 8 years.) Though right now, I am completely strapped for cash. But does that slow my hedonism down? Well, maybe some, but not entirely. I still find ways to pamper and indulge regardless of my budget and think I will always be able to. (I hope so at least.)

So yes, I'm definitely a hedonist.

Mountain Girl

[ouaisOut]

Yup. Always a hedonist. Always an Epicurean. Back when I did the drugs and they didnt do me. Always a hedonist. Food, Nature, Art, Drugs, Music.... Sensuality.

Dinner parties in squatted apartments with grand ceilings, but with functioning kitchens that we'd use to cook divine platters of Byzantine/Mediterranean/French recipes of shocking complexity. I'd wear my 19th C. Greek embroidered silk smoking jacket to host. We'd collected all sorts of cigarette cases from ivory to plastic to wooden cases carved by my Bosnan cousin's peasant uncle, then we filled them to the brim with the desired brands :Marlboro Reds natch, Camel Straights, Rothman's, Gauloises, and Drinas for most of us, but particularly for the Serbs/Bosnians/Croats/Albanians who needed a taste of their own embattled countries.

I lost my élan vital somewhere along the path between late youth and early middle-age and I'm searching for it. I will conquer my weakness and challenges and become the hedonist I once was.

It wasn't the substances we took that made us hedonists, it was the way of life: cooking ludicrously elaborate old French recipes from the late 18th century: ortolans stuffed inside partridges stuffed inside of grouse stuffed inside spring chickens (chicken's version of veal) stuffed inside ducks stuffed inside capons stuffed inside geese stuffed inside pheasants… cooking was only one of our methods of recreating a totally hedonistic living. But that example stands as a literal and figurative model of hedonism. All the orgies and sexual decadence proceeded from these meals.

Home-brewed slivoviçe, absinthe, rakia... Tea, tea and more tea. Frothy sweet turkish coffee, cup after tiny cup. heated over a wood-fire.

The above dish (the birdies in birdies ad infinitum) was served in the middle of a monstrous and ancient oak table (belonged to a centuries-old monastery before the land distribution under King Peter I and under Marshal Tito.), decked with peasant-embroidered tablecloths. The embroidery was directed by and came from a friends great-great-grandmother.

She was from the southern Serbian area (Old Serbia- Kossovo where Tsar Lazar lay down his weapons to gain a kingdom of heaven from his Eastern Orthodox God by offering himself and his soldiers as Christ figures on the battlefield of Kossovo.) These womens' embroidery tended toward abstractions based upon Byzantine designs. They were some of the last cultures who held the secrets of Byzantine design in their collective minds.

But the work of Bracque/Picassi/Feininger/Kandinsky from the 20s wouldn't hold a candle to the fundamentally ancient abstract pop-art that was being kept alive by these Bosnian/Serbian peasant women. Imagine. 2 Balkan Wars against the Turks, Two World Wars that ravaged the populace and the land plus the flat-out genocides of the early 90s, and these women are still able to practice their divine, delicate, utterly singular versions of Byzantine art throughout that entire century of horror.

If the Germans and the predecessors of Slobodan Milosevic had eliminated all of these people, which was their intent... one of the last living cultures that keeps alive the unmatched beauty and technique of the Byzantine Empire would have passed from human memory in a year or two.

The Germans considered the Slavs slaves, as such, they massacred millions of them in poland, and in their plan for the New World Order, Poland was a slave state. Each polish child, if in possession of 4 strong healthy limbs, would enter school... for 6 months. In order that the student would learn every single thing he or she would need in order to be the best slave a German could have.

Teaching Polish children to count over 20 was a crime.

wow, back to reality…
I took quite a diversion but I fell it's natural because (1) my particular example of lovely hedonism was a party of Central Europeans and Balkans who could have been at each others throats according to most news sources, but nothing could have been further from the truth, (2) We never would have achieved that level of comfort and pure relaxation in dilapidated splendor if our company had all been American or N. European, (3) Our group comprised many folks who were used to getting decadent on very little money in very torn-down decadent places of the past.

Decadence involved shooting wild boar in the forests, or picking wild strawberries, or distilling our own slivovice, or canning our own preserves. Then totally relaxing and talking and being louche for hours on end. Sleeping on grandmother-woven blankets beneath the trees when the heat of noon hit us.

I guess thats just one really memorable indulgent dinner that we fully enjoyed in our hedonism…*orgies, love, warm cuddling and sensual veil dancing came into play. There were more of these hedonistic happenings in less exotic locals but I find that it's easer to achieve honest, Bacchus-inspired hedonism in in areas where that kind of spirit and living hasn't been totally crushed by Calvinism or, cough, vile Puritanism or dead Methodism. Where living well and sexing it up isn't seen as an anti-Calvinist blasphemy, but rather, a natural manifestatin of joy and the collective spirit of the people with whom you're hanging.

[30_Units]

I ascribe to hedonist ideals. Sure. Can't live that way 24/7 at the moment, but I get my moments, and that keeps me happy.

[nick]

I was a hedonist for a long time.Then I grew up.Nowdays I'm more in to epicureanism.

Oh and spring chicken is technically referred to as a poussin and you'd have to stamp on a grouse to fit it inside of one.

[30_Units]

Epicureanism is a system of philosophy based upon the teachings of Epicurus (c. 341–c. 270 BC), founded around 307 BC. Epicurus was an atomic materialist, following in the steps of Democritus. His materialism led him to a general attack on superstition and divine intervention. Following Aristippus—about whom very little is known—Epicurus believed that the greatest good was to seek modest pleasures in order to attain a state of tranquility and freedom from fear (ataraxia) as well as absence of bodily pain (aponia) through knowledge of the workings of the world and the limits of our desires. The combination of these two states is supposed to constitute happiness in its highest form. Although Epicureanism is a form of hedonism, insofar as it declares pleasure as the sole intrinsic good, its conception of absence of pain as the greatest pleasure and its advocacy of a simple life make it different from "hedonism" as it is commonly understood.

Even though that's just a paragraph, it sounds delightful. I'm glad you mentioned it, I'm going to have a good reading day ahead. danke

[Thanat0s]

i took this myspace quiz years ago:
"
oh, about me:


You scored as Hedonism. Your life is guided by the principles of Hedonism: You believe that pleasure is a great, or the greatest, good; and you try to enjoy life's pleasures as much as you can.

'Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die!'

More info at Arocoun's Wikipedia User Page...

EDIT: (100%)Hedonism

100%Kantianism

95%Strong Egoism

90%Justice (Fairness)

90%Existentialism

70%Utilitarianism

45%Nihilism

35%Apathy

35%Divine Command

0%
"

i was shocked im not more driven by divine command...

[nick]

i took this myspace quiz years ago:
"
oh, about me:


You scored as Hedonism. Your life is guided by the principles of Hedonism: You believe that pleasure is a great, or the greatest, good; and you try to enjoy life's pleasures as much as you can.

'Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die!'

More info at Arocoun's Wikipedia User Page...

Hedonism

100%Kantianism

95%Strong Egoism

90%Justice (Fairness)

90%Existentialism

70%Utilitarianism

45%Nihilism

35%Apathy

35%Divine Command

0%
"

i was shocked im not more driven by divine command...

A myspace quiz!! It must be true then!!

100% Kantianism and a hedonist.I'd be interested to hear you apply the catagorical imperative to hedonism.

[Thanat0s]

A myspace quiz!! It must be true then!!

100% Kantianism and a hedonist.I'd be interested to hear you apply the catagorical imperative to hedonism.

haha,
there was in fact a 100% by 'hedonism as well...
lost in the copy/paste i guess...

funny, i guess having like 300+% quantity of these driving elements of personality explain a few things about the head i find myself living in.
contradictions galore, and i feel strongly about all of em...
make for a wild ride sometimes.
especially when the hedonism makes me eat mind altering substances
then Kant makes me feel guilty mid trip...
i usually employ Existentialism/Strong Egoism
to pull myself out and back into full on Hedonism...

its all pretty much spot on.
shocking accuracy for a myspace quiz...
no?

[pdxninja]

when i became a smack addict i truely began to realize what hedonism is.

now im off it i still live for the pleasure of life. fuck year pleasure orgies of nonstop awesome.

[Paregoric Kid]

nice to see people mentioning Epicurus. he is my favorite ancient philosopher and one of my favorite philosophers of all time actually. as you can see one of my favorite Epicurus quotes is in my sig. some of Epicurus' papyrus scrolls were discovered a couple years ago, I hope they get translated and are made available online. I would say my philosophy is a mix of epicureanism and objectivism. I highly recommend everyone read the Principal Doctrines of Epicurus: http://www.epicurus.info/etexts/PD.html and here are some other good sources on Epicurus:
http://www.epicurus.info/
http://www.epicurus.net/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epicurus
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epicureanism

and with regard to objectivism I like this quote from Ayn Rand, "By the grace of reality and the nature of life, man—every man—is an end in himself, he exists for his own sake, and the achievement of his own happiness is his highest moral purpose."

[Thanat0s]

Although Epicureanism is a form of hedonism, insofar as it declares pleasure as the sole intrinsic good, its conception of absence of pain as the greatest pleasure and its advocacy of a simple life make it different from "hedonism" as it is commonly understood.

Even though that's just a paragraph, it sounds delightful. I'm glad you mentioned it, I'm going to have a good reading day ahead. danke

problem i have here...
i dont think we can experience pleasure
without having known its inverse
and vice versa...

as a devout Hedonist,
i find my drive towards pure pleasure
neccessarially inflicts pain,
the greater pain i can know,
the greater the heights of pleasure that become accessible.

its a contradiction/paradox
and sometimes hard to live with.

but one must be devoted to SOME ethos...


EDIT:
example:
your 10th shot of the day.
is it as good as the first that gets you well?

never.

[The_Chef]

Well, we all need our vices, just some of us more than others.

[The_Highwayman]

I'm not a hedonist...wish I was but I can't even buy myself things I want or deserve without guilt, that's if I do it at all. I usually keep myself open to be taken advantage of and bottle up the ensuing anger and let it eat away at me. All stems from my low self esteem, feelings that I don't deserve good things in life because I'm unworthy, I'm trying to work on it but it seems everytime I get a chance to make it right I shut up and take it...it's a trait that I'm not particularly proud of and right now I'm going through it as I write this and it feels terrible...I can't even take prescribed pain meds as I would feel guilty doing it even though I am in legitimate pain....

[MissLow]

problem i have here...
i dont think we can experience pleasure
without having known its inverse
and vice versa...

as a devout Hedonist,
i find my drive towards pure pleasure
neccessarially inflicts pain,
the greater pain i can know,
the greater the heights of pleasure that become accessible.

its a contradiction/paradox
and sometimes hard to live with.

but one must be devoted to SOME ethos...


EDIT:
example:
your 10th shot of the day.
is it as good as the first that gets you well?

never.

Truer words were never spoken...
I am without a doubt, a hedonist.
My lifestyle as a daily drug user, lady who takes my clothes off for cash and enjoys it most of the time, and penchant for men with "illigitimate" professions would all point to this...
However I have always known that to live the way I chose to live and to feel the great pleasures I feel, I must endure the pain and miserable periods of self loathing, fear, sickness and poverty.
the 10th shot is never as good, but I'll still have it.

[harmonik]

I'm a hedonist in certain aspects such as the eternal quest to get high, but sex is a completely different story.. at least i think so. hedonism implies selfishness to me and i am a very selfless sexual being

[Ickyuck]

My moms called me a hedonist. Ouch.