什么是人生快乐每个人有不同的理解。西方人从亚里士多德起总结出人生有四层快乐，拉丁语写依次是： Laetus：物质享受快乐，这是第一层也是人生最常见的从吃喝玩乐里得到的快乐。人生物质享受本身没有什么不好，但这些东西带来的快乐是短暂有限的。如果人把快乐局限在这一层上了瘾有一定危险。多少人因吃喝玩乐过度变成毒鬼酒鬼色鬼？ Felix：第二层心理满足快乐，常见的是人在名利财富方面有所成后跟别人比较而沾沾自喜的快乐。这种快乐比第一层更持久高档，但也有局限性。名利财富来之不易，上了瘾陷进去更要付出代价。多少人因无休止地追逐钱财名利而伤了身体家庭人格良心？ Beatitudo：到了第三层人追寻快乐跳出了自己的小圈圈，把重心转向“爱”，怜悯友爱助人为乐，甚至为社会做贡献。人跳出小我进入人类大我的快乐比前两种更持久更高深，但也不完美。这层快乐的局限来自于人性的弱点比方嫉妒贪婪，陷得太深人难免遇到失望苦恼。 Sublime Beatitudo: 这是人类所追求的完美的最终的快乐。这种快乐是建立在人的前三层快乐的基础上更高一层的快乐。有人从哲学、艺术、科学各方面摸索人生宇宙的一系列重大问题，试图寻找人生里的完美快乐。当然这种快乐存在与否还众说不一。 最高境界beatitudo的快乐也是宗教信仰的话题。圣经新约马太福音耶稣那段“登山宝训”的经文英语也叫beatitudes，来自拉丁语beatitudo, 词根是beati, 拉丁语happy之意: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt.5) 这是耶稣登山宝训里连说八个beatitudes的第一个，中文“灵里贫乏的人蒙福了，因为天国是他们的。” 抛开中译的“福”字未能表达出拉丁语beati(快乐）的原意不提，心灵贫乏的人可理解为不快乐的人。感觉不到幸福快乐的人为什么反能得到天国？搞懂这段圣经有助于对beatitudo的理解。 浮尘快乐短暂无常两千年前的释迦摩尼就已看透。他看破红尘伤心苦脑一度成为“心灵贫乏”之人。正是心灵的挣扎使他发誓找到一条远离烦恼之路。圣经这段beatitude经文说明如果人满足于滚滚红尘，深陷物质世界短暂有限的快乐，难免漠视心灵上的贫困。人若没有困苦之心的逼迫，自然就无心去追求更深奥更完善的快乐。 基督教天国里的完美而永恒的快乐是西方人自古谈论的Sublime Beatitudo，近似佛教“西方乐土”远离滚滚红尘世界烦恼的那种清心快乐，也是不通过艰苦宗教修行不可理会的快乐。 （毗陵居士2021年1月）
Sermon on the Mount (“the beatitudes”, Matthew 5): Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land. Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the clean in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
基督教出现后，欧洲人对happiness 的认识自然受到很大影响。例如四世纪憎人Augustine of Hippo名言：”You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.”(言出他的Confessions)
到了11世纪神学家Thomas Aquinas进一步指出，快乐分完美与不完美两种： —Perfect happiness (beatitudo) is not possible in this lifetime, but only in the afterlife for those who achieve a direct perception of God —There can be an imperfect happiness (felicitas) attainable in this lifetime, in proportion to the exercise of Reason (contemplation of truth) and the exercise of virtue. —Virtue is to be divided into two categories: 1) the traditional Aristotelian virtues of wisdom, courage, moderation, friendship, etc., and 2) the theological virtues revealed to man through Jesus Christ: faith, hope, and love. —There is an important distinction between enjoyment and happiness. Enjoyment concerns satisfaction of worldly desire. Happiness concerns obtaining our absolute perfection, which by definition can only be found in the absolute Being, which is God.
二十世纪英国作家G.K. Chesterton论快乐也延续建立于基督教三个所谓主要的theological virtue的基础上： “Happiness is a state of the soul; a state in which our natures are full of the wine of an ancient youth, in which banquets last for ever, and roads lead everywhere, where all things are under the exuberant leadership of faith, hope, and charity.”
Practitioners! Q Virtue alone is happiness. Virtue is its own sufficient reward, and vice its own punishment. Good must be found by every man within himself. All outward things that are commonly regarded as good or bad, such as wealth and poverty, pleasure and pain, health and sickness, are matters of indifferences to the true Stoic. UQ Cf. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtue Btw, happy to be a truly percentage Stoic!
Laetus：物质享受快乐，这是第一层也是人生最常见的从吃喝玩乐里得到的快乐。人生物质享受本身没有什么不好，但这些东西带来的快乐是短暂有限的。如果人把快乐局限在这一层上了瘾有一定危险。多少人因吃喝玩乐过度变成毒鬼酒鬼色鬼？
Felix：第二层心理满足快乐，常见的是人在名利财富方面有所成后跟别人比较而沾沾自喜的快乐。这种快乐比第一层更持久高档，但也有局限性。名利财富来之不易，上了瘾陷进去更要付出代价。多少人因无休止地追逐钱财名利而伤了身体家庭人格良心？
Beatitudo：到了第三层人追寻快乐跳出了自己的小圈圈，把重心转向“爱”，怜悯友爱助人为乐，甚至为社会做贡献。人跳出小我进入人类大我的快乐比前两种更持久更高深，但也不完美。这层快乐的局限来自于人性的弱点比方嫉妒贪婪，陷得太深人难免遇到失望苦恼。
Sublime Beatitudo: 这是人类所追求的完美的最终的快乐。这种快乐是建立在人的前三层快乐的基础上更高一层的快乐。有人从哲学、艺术、科学各方面摸索人生宇宙的一系列重大问题，试图寻找人生里的完美快乐。当然这种快乐存在与否还众说不一。
最高境界beatitudo的快乐也是宗教信仰的话题。圣经新约马太福音耶稣那段“登山宝训”的经文英语也叫beatitudes，来自拉丁语beatitudo, 词根是beati, 拉丁语happy之意:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt.5) 这是耶稣登山宝训里连说八个beatitudes的第一个，中文“灵里贫乏的人蒙福了，因为天国是他们的。” 抛开中译的“福”字未能表达出拉丁语beati(快乐）的原意不提，心灵贫乏的人可理解为不快乐的人。感觉不到幸福快乐的人为什么反能得到天国？搞懂这段圣经有助于对beatitudo的理解。
浮尘快乐短暂无常两千年前的释迦摩尼就已看透。他看破红尘伤心苦脑一度成为“心灵贫乏”之人。正是心灵的挣扎使他发誓找到一条远离烦恼之路。圣经这段beatitude经文说明如果人满足于滚滚红尘，深陷物质世界短暂有限的快乐，难免漠视心灵上的贫困。人若没有困苦之心的逼迫，自然就无心去追求更深奥更完善的快乐。
基督教天国里的完美而永恒的快乐是西方人自古谈论的Sublime Beatitudo，近似佛教“西方乐土”远离滚滚红尘世界烦恼的那种清心快乐，也是不通过艰苦宗教修行不可理会的快乐。
（毗陵居士2021年1月）
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land. Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the clean in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
灵里贫乏的人是蒙福的，因为天国是他们的。 悲伤的人是蒙福的，因为他们将受到安慰。 谦和的人是蒙福的，因为他们将继承那地。 饥渴慕义的人是蒙福的，因为他们将得饱足。 怜悯人的人是蒙福的，因为他们将蒙怜悯。 心里洁净的人是蒙福的，因为他们将看见神。 使人和睦的人是蒙福的，因为他们将被称为‘神的儿女’。 为义受逼迫的人是蒙福的，因为天国是他们的。
过奖，总结学习前人经验教训在此分享而已
In both his philosophical and theological reasoning, Augustine was greatly influenced by Stoicism, Platonism and Neoplatonism, particularly by the work of Plotinus, author of the Enneads, probably through the mediation of Porphyry and Victorinus (as Pierre Hadot has argued). UQ
Q https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plotinus
Besides Ammonius, Plotinus was also influenced by the works of Alexander of Aphrodisias, Numenius, and various Stoics. UQ
EvenOdd 确实学派学者互相有影响
好，他怎么说的？
Practitioners!
Q Virtue alone is happiness. Virtue is its own sufficient reward, and vice its own punishment. Good must be found by every man within himself. All outward things that are commonly regarded as good or bad, such as wealth and poverty, pleasure and pain, health and sickness, are matters of indifferences to the true Stoic. UQ
Cf. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtue
Btw, happy to be a truly percentage Stoic!