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Not Life, But a Good Life is The Ultimate Goal — Socrates
Socrates on wisdom, wealth, and the good life
Life is a gift, but it is not always easy.
We can do more than exist or merely survive.
Life is about finding your true north or commitment to meaningful pursuits that give our lives a sense of direction and fulfilment.
But a good life isn’t necessarily about achieving specific goals or material possessions.
It’s about finding joy and fulfilment in the journey of life. It’s about creating a sense of purpose and meaning that sustains us throughout our journey.
It’s about finding balance, creating meaningful connections with others, and living in a way that aligns with our values and beliefs.
Socrates was a classical Greek philosopher considered one of Western philosophy’s founders.
His ideas have also inspired many other thinkers throughout history, including the Stoics, who emphasized the importance of living in accordance with nature and reason, and the existentialists, who stressed the importance of individual freedom and responsibility.
He believed the pursuit of wisdom and virtue was the key to living a good life. He thought everyone had a duty to examine their beliefs and values to live a life that was true to their nature and in harmony with the world around them.
For Socrates, the ultimate goal of human existence was to achieve a state of eudaimonia, or happiness, which he believed could only be attained through the cultivation of wisdom, morality, and self-knowledge.
Socrates observed that pursuing material wealth and pleasure was ultimately unsatisfying and that true happiness could only be found through a life of virtue and philosophical inquiry.
On re-evaluating a good life
“Not life, but good life, is to be chiefly valued,” Socrates said.
Socrates believed that the ultimate goal of human existence is not just to live but to live a good, meaningful and virtuous life.
He defined a good life as one living according to virtue.
