i like this idea

[diamondsontheinside]

i dont know much about hedonism. ok... so all i know is that its the belief that if it feels good or is enjoyable, its good. but... i think in a lot of ways i like this idea.

i can't see how smoking weed, or being drunk, or having sex, or masterbating, or any of those things can be bad. if God is all he/she/it/whatever is cracked up to be, if god put us here on earth and everything with us, too.... then why would he put something here if it was bad? i mean... cannabis... its a fucking gift man. and anyone who's ever had sex or made themselves orgasam knows how awesome that is. and i think all those things could be really spiritual. so i dont know. i'm not a religious person, but i get shit from the like all the time becaouse of the things i choose to do.

i think this idea is on to something.

[Columbo]

You should read a book called "Perfume" by Patrick Suskind, You will see that it really is a more dangerous philosophy than merely the thought that we might masturbate and smoke dope when we feel like it - Come on I mean even clergymen masturbate
(google it - perfume patric suskind)
Its about a hedonist whose pleasure is in the world of perfume and all the exquisite sensory stimuli. It leads to depravity, but like all hedonists texts its because his failure in life is that he forms habits

[myself]

You should read a book called "Perfume" by Patrick Suskind, You will see that it really is a more dangerous philosophy than merely the thought that we might masturbate and smoke dope when we feel like it - Come on I mean even clergymen masturbate
(google it - perfume patric suskind)
Its about a hedonist whose pleasure is in the world of perfume and all the exquisite sensory stimuli. It leads to depravity, but like all hedonists texts its because his failure in life is that he forms habits

So that's what 'Perfume' is about.
I've heard about both book and movie, but I haven't read the book and I haven't seen the movie.

[DutchElephant]

I'm an optimistic Existentialist
I feel as if humans are just a fancier version of other animals that try to put too much meaning on life

All we truely know is that we exist.
Since there is no God or true meaning, then our lives should be about enjoyment.

Having Fun, Doing exactly what you want to do.
However-don't hurt people in the process
Some people take hedonism too far by not being responsible, and therefore hurting themselves or others.

[Silverbackman]

DutchElephant, I would agree. When you move beyond the illusions of "god(s)" and "meaning" in life then it is only logical that the number one goal of life is the maximum number of pleasure and fun and the least amount of pain and suffering. Even people who say they don't adhere to this philosophy actually do accept it deep down.....as all this is self-evident.

I think the reason why many people reject hedonism is that many consider it to be a selfish egotistical philosophy. And I do suppose there are some people that take the philosophy too far by not caring (rich corporate capitalists and greedy politicians, for example) about other people and the harm they can be putting upon other people. This is of course in my opinion a false analysis of what hedonism is......altruistic hedonism is much more common.....increasing the maximum number of fun and pleasure and decreasing as much pain and suffering as much as possible.

diamondsontheinside, yeah I would agree that pot and sexuality are true good gifts to mankind......the former tends to make people more caring of their fellow man ;). As long as you don't cling to the pleasures though.....and always remembering the peripheral nature of all things.

[comfortablynumb90]

because we cant really know the *big* questions about life until we die, or because we might never know, people just have to live their lives the way they see fit....living for pleasure is deffinitly a legitimate option...but you have to know that pursuing some forms of pleasure (such as smoking weed) could end you up with harsh consequenses thanks to unfairness of laws, people judging you etc. so you have to determine if the consequenses of those pleasures are worth it to you....

if there is a god, what other reason would be on this earth but to feel good/help others to feel good? as long as you don't physically harm others or screw someone over big time, the best life path is do what feels good for you

[~Kaiser Psychonaut~]

If you approach life with a hedonistic heart and attitude but a logical mind it makes it alot better.

[Karen_J]

a logical mind it makes it alot better.

Yeah, you have to make smart decisions. I find it funny sometimes when I analyze risks and consequences of potential actions, only to come to the same conclusion about what I should do as what the traditional conservatives preach. It may be the same conclusion, but I get there by a path that I actually have respect for.

[Stabby]

I'm an optimistic Existentialist
I feel as if humans are just a fancier version of other animals that try to put too much meaning on life

All we truely know is that we exist.
Since there is no God or true meaning, then our lives should be about enjoyment.

Having Fun, Doing exactly what you want to do.
However-don't hurt people in the process
Some people take hedonism too far by not being responsible, and therefore hurting themselves or others.

I agree completely. Since life has no objective meaning, the only meaning that it does have is that which we give it. And since it's evident that the feelings we call pleasure and happiness make this meaningless life favorable to the absence of life, that then is the meaning of life.

Of course there are countless ways to go about being happy, but the only "right" one is the one that we choose, as long as we are sure that in our hearts it does make us happy. Authenticity and honestly to ourselves are the only stipulations of existential freedom (which is what they're a key concept of existentialism :D)

Not hurting people is something that I can relate to. However it isn't universal. Some people do like to hurt people, or truly don't care, and there's no way that we can impose our peaceful way of life on them in a philosophical way, just like religion can't impose their views on us in a philosophical way. Hurting people makes us feel bad, so we don't do it, but that is exclusive to the individual and not a part of existentialism. Having said that, is can certainly be our choice to combat those who hurt others, but that is our personal choice. Existentialism is almost an anti-philosophy in that sense. It doesn't give us a way of life or a set of values, it helps us in creating our own meaning and ideals and helps us come to terms with the meaningless of existence and live our lives fully, despite a lack of universal or objective purpose.